Tonight: mr. Gnome (Reviewed!) + Bright Men + Skatalites + Bike Films + Fired For Walking + More

Damn, damn, damn. I’m afraid that the snow dazzled and bewildered me, and so I totally forgot about all the awesome shows going on this very evening (Fri., December 4th) while out being pelted with grassy/muddy snowballs by my daughter. Argh.

(Okay, and my sleep-deprived brain for some reason thought the freaking show was tomorrow night, in spite of hearing about it from all three of the bands involved. sigh. Sorry, y’all.)

The one that’s making me kick myself in particular is the sure-to-be-awesome show up at Rudyard’s tonight — Cleveland strange-rockers mr. Gnome, whom I like very much, are coming back through town, and trust me when I tell you that they are mesmerizing and jaw-dropping in equal measure. Think Sonic Youth if fronted by “Maps”-era Karen O, covering songs by Brian Eno, and you’ll get sorta-kinda close to the way they sound. Check out the full review of their latest album, Heave Yer Skeleton, up over here.

Oh, and they’re loud, as in “rattle-your-ribcage” loud. Which is pretty great, if you ask me… Plus, there’re two excellent local openers, namely old-school alternarock dudes (hailing from back before “alternarock” was a bad word, mind you) Fired For Walking and Pavement-meets-Wilco country-rock slackers Bright Men of Learning, who’re one of the most enduring and talented bands in town, these days. I’ve heard some of their recent stuff, and they’ve happily blown away even their old stuff.

The show starts at 8PM, I hear, so you’d better hurry. A measly-peasly $8, which means you’ll have enough left over to pick up a CD or three. mr. Gnome are good people, and yet, each time they play our fair city, it’s to shamefully small crowds. That needs to change, folks.

Other good things going on tonight:
If you can’t make it to Rudz, you’re not totally out of options. Apparently The Polyphonic Spree‘s Jesse Podunk got scared off by the pretty little snowflakes and cancelled his show tonight at Mango’s — which sucks, because he had both Arthur Yoria and Chase Hamblin opening, but in it’s place there’s the kickoff party for the Bicycle Film Festival, which I can’t entirely explain but which sounds intriguing, to say the least. Bunch of DJs at that one, I believe: Goldsprints, Cisco Da Kid, Mr. Castillo, & DJ Paramour, among others.

And how in the hell did I forget this one? The fucking Skatalites also happen to be playing tonight up at The Meridian, inexplicably not on the main stage but in their Red Room. These are ska legends we’re talking about, y’all — I caught part of their set once, long ago, and it was mindblowing. And hey, I’ve heard good stuff about H-town openers Idiginis and The Failed Attempt, too.

Runners-Up:
Fanfarlo/The Freelance Whales @ Walter’s
The Standard, featuring Lower Life Form, Mr. Grinch, & Reko Trill @ Warehouse Live
Free Radicals @ Black House (410 S. Main)
Dash Rip Rock/The Blue Threads/The Liquid Kitchen @ The Meridian (Main Room)
Carolyn Wonderland/Guy Forsyth @ McGonigel’s Mucky Duck
Gate Crash, featuring Modern Touch DJs, DJ Cuba Gooding Jr., DJ Fredster, DJ Johnny Moon, & DJ Kiyoshi @ Boondocks
Big Sam’s Funky Nation/Nightbird (Stevie Nicks tribute) @ The Continental Club
Slick 46/The Failures/Oscuridad Social/The Gutter Rats @ Super Happy Fun Land