Black Francis, Kim Deal, Joey Santiago and David Lovering were an alternative nation sensation on their first go ’round as the Pixies—during the days when you had to stay up to 1am to catch one of their videos. As a reunited cult act, they’ve been bigtime—a touchstone band for an influential musical era. The group defined the loud-quiet-loud aesthetic on its Surfer Rosa album. Last night, the band played the first of three nights at the Aragon. For a visual taste of what you missed, or what you might see tonight, check out the photo gallery above.

Photos: Andrew Nawrocki

Lucky Chicagoans walked into a live opera in a food court on Michigan Avenue today where soprano Catalina Cuervo and baritone Martin Woods turned up to perform. It was the culmination of the Chicago Opera Theater and the City of Chicago’s Department of Cultural Affairs surprise performance series to celebrate National Opera Month.

Photos: Andrew Nawrocki

Last night, Chicago’s own R. Kelly played the first of two nights to a primarily female audience at the Auditorium Theatre—complete with slow jams, a Michael Jackson tribute and underwear thrown on stage. R. Kelly, in a sentimental moment, reminded us about his troubles and that he hasn’t moved to Los Angeles.

Photos: Martha Williams

Fake Shore Drive has video.

This deluxe double reissue package (also reissued as a single album 180 gram vinyl gatefold LP) sets out to set a few things straight about this 1969 album. First off, David Bowie didn’t look like a glam-rock space creature when he wrote “Space Oddity,” so the sci-fi photo of Bowie with spiky hairdo and NASA font from the more familiar version of the album has been ditched in favor of the more correct hippy curls he was sporting at the end of the ’60s.

Space Oddity captures the dabbling genius Bowie before he became a pop star and Bowie, the self-conscious editor and synthesizer had emerged. Bowie had no idea of the chameleon he would become—even as he laid out the crude template for his career to follow: Opaque futuristic lyrics, Tony Visconti production and choice studio players—all had arrived on the album.

But Oddity also different from the assured Bowie that would emerge is that Bowie is immersed in the hippy, sci-fi-reading  underground—rather than soaring above it and borrowing riffs and style for his own pastiche. As a result, Bowie frolicks more in his fields of wonder on tunes like “Wild Eyed Boy from Freecloud” and let’s his oh-so-serious lyrics wander amid proggy, folkie production. We’d never hear this many oh-so-serious words from Bowie again.

A second disc of demos, BBC radio performance recordings and single versions is a gem—stripping away the album’s wonderful frills to reveal Bowie’s trippy paperback novel-inspired tunes and rarities in the quiet-loud, Zeppelinish rocker “Let Me Sleep Beside You” and an Italian-version of the title track. Disc one is a mixed affair, of course, not Bowie’s strongest album by rock fan’s measure—but remember that albums weren’t nearly as important as singles in those days and Bowie was riding high on “Space Oddity” (produced by Gus Dudgeon, not Visconti) and the lush “Memory of a Free Festival.” Prog-lovers or folk freaks will appreciate all of it—but don’t expect the concise jolts of electricity present on Ziggy or Hunky Dory.

The remastered album sounds fuller and richer than any version before—which should make it worth it for Bowie fanatics to reconsider and reappraise.

He may be a star in the freak folk scene, but Devendra Banhart refuses to be pigeonholed on each album and with each interview. Last night, he played internationally-flavored tunes from his new What Will We Be, tunes by Little Joy, the Pleased and Johnny Thunders at a seated show where no one sat.

Photos: Stephanie Anderson

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The swanky new Lincoln Hall was sold out last night for The Walkmen, White Rabbits and TV Torso. The energetic triumphant percussion of the White Rabbits had something to do with that. At some point the White Rabbits had three drummers going at it at the same time. Sure, it’s been done before, but everybody, including myself, looked a little amazed by what they were hearing. All players were soaked in sweat by the end of the set. It was, after all, their final show in a month long tour.

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Tonight, Chicago’s Kid Sister starts to push her new album Ultraviolet—out next week, November 17th on Downtown Records/Universal Republic Records with a performance of tech-house-leaning, shuffly “Right Hand Hi” (video above) on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon tonight with guests Flosstradamus. Late Night with Jimmy Fallon airs 11:35 pm central on NBC.

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Ohio-bred arty punk pioneers Devo reformed some years ago, but singer Mark Mothersbaugh has never slowed his productivity—he’s both a soundtrack composer for TV and film and a visual artist. Last night, the band, which has a new record deal with Warner Bros., played the album Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo! at the Vic. Jeff Catt was on hand to document the continuing story of the de-evolution of humankind. Tonight, the band will be back to play 1980 album Freedom of Choice.

Photos: Jeff Catt

Hammy, glammy locals Kill Hannah are the latest victims of a ring of thefts plaguing bands touring through Philadelphia. The Chicago group’s van and equipment were stolen from a Holiday Inn yesterday, just a week after the same thing happened to Virginia band Mae. Read the whole sad story here, along with a list of newly-missing instruments. A similar rash of robberies plagued the City of Brotherly Love just a few years ago, afflicting acts like Film School and Chicago’s own Ambulette (at this point, Philly promoters probably wish they could blame the Yankees for this one). No strangers to adversity, this marks another major setback for the Kill Hannah clan, following last year’s devastating tour bus fire in Europe. Though KH was forced to cancel tonight’s tour-closing concert in NYC with Papa Roach and Jet, the group will play its annual New Heart for Xmas shows, which at this point we’d suggest renaming New Gear for Xmas.

Today I talked to my busy brother-in-law Terry Alexander about the reasons for the sale of Sonotheque—and the long and the short of it is: Dance music has exploded in popularity, leaving smaller DJ lounges like Sonotheque with the short end of the stick. He explained that the economic realities of running a small club that books different DJs every night of the week have changed, and that as far as Sonotheque and his partners were concerned, “The numbers just weren’t working out.”

“When we opened that place and we were flying in DJs, you could get them for a certain amount of money and keep the door low. Guys you could get for $1,000 are now $3,500 plus expenses. Now, with the economy being as it is, kids can’t pay more than 10 dollars to get in the show. It wasn’t working out numberswise. That’s basically what happened.”

DJ crews such as Dark Wave Disco and Flosstradamus, nurtured with residencies at the 300-capacity Sonotheque, have now moved out of Sono’s range. They can play bigger clubs such as Smart Bar or crobar for more money. Same goes for Scion-sponsored DJ events. Sponsored DJ nights can bring in bigger crowds than they could four years ago, so they are being booked at much larger venues.

When new partners in Sonotheque, the Empty Bottle, introduced Terry and his partners to the Beauty Bar people, things came together nicely. “I didn’t want to put a For Sale,” says Alexander. “It was perfect; we sold it to those guys.  They’re doing a Beauty Bar. We’re gonna support it. We’re excited about it. The timing was exactly right for everybody. Some of the staff is staying there. Some went over to Big Star. Rarely does a place a close and you pick everybody and move them around and everything is going well.”

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