The Sea and Cake/Catherine Irwin

Thursday · Southgate House

Now here's a fascinating double bill: Opener Catherine Irwin, renowned as half of the downbeat indie Folk duo Freakwater, is on the road to support her first solo album, the dour and sparsely beautiful, Cut Yourself a Switch. Although both Irwin and her Freakwater partner, Janet Bean, have released solo albums in the past few months, the separate releases are not indicative of a band split. After their exhaustive road schedule following 1999's End Time, Irwin and Bean decided to take time away from the van to recharge and tentatively planned to regroup for a new album in 2002. By then, Bean was busy with her solo record, and Irwin, ready to record and tour again, chose to use the songs she had stockpiled for Freakwater as the basis for her own Carter-Family-meets-Hazel-Dickens solo album, giving her, as she puts it, "an excuse to play shows by myself."

As for the show's headliner, the Sea and Cake, it's amazing that the Chicago Dream Pop quartet can manage a trip out of town, let alone a full-blown tour. The band's members have assembled six acclaimed and compelling albums and a number of EPs since their 1994 formation (including their latest, the evocative and lushly lo-fi One Bedroom) in spite of their notoriously overworked schedules outside of the band -- vocalist Sam Prekop is a painter and photographer who also put out his first solo album after S&C;'s Oui in 2000; guitarist Archer Prewitt draws the Sof' Boy comic and has a couple of solo albums under his belt; bassist Eric Claridge is a painter and illustrator; and drummer John McEntire owns and operates Soma Studio and does time in Tortoise as well. Although fans have worried that the solo projects and an obvious slowing of their once-clockwork release schedule pointed to the band's demise, they remain committed to the Sea and Cake's continued existence and singular sonic identity. (Brian Baker)

Papa M with Mogwai

Friday · Southgate House

David Pajo is one of those rare musical dynamos exquisitely blessed with an intensely skillful brand of creative schizophrenia and always churning out quality work before racing off to the next sonic challenge. For the past five years, Pajo has been plying his solo vision under various appellations (M, M is the Thirteenth Letter, Aerial M and Papa M), generally playing every instrument in service of a soundtrack that pulses with Pajo's expressively ethereal guitar work and thrumming synths. Born in Texas and raised in Louisville, Ky., Pajo was one of the founders of Slint, one of the most acclaimed slowcore outfits of the late '80s. When Slint dissolved in 1991, Pajo involved himself with a number of original and respected bands (The Palace Brothers, Royal Trux, Stereolab) before joining Chicago's ephemeral Tortoise as a full-fledged band member. His sabbatical in 1998 gave him the time to pursue his already active and captivating solo/side project career, which has since offered a dazzling array of sounds and releases including his explorations into Folk music. Pajo's most recent work has included a split 7-inch with Entrance, a 3-inch CDEP, Three Songs, and a series of CD singles released through Drag City Records documenting songs he's recorded in a variety of cities along his recent tour circuit, compiling them into what he has termed "audio tour diaries." Plans are currently in the works to collect the past eight years of voluminous Papa M single releases into a comprehensive CD collection by the end of the year. With his tenure in Billy Corgan's Zwan ending recently due to that band's dissolution (Zwan bassist Paz Lenchantin previously quit the band, reportedly to spend more time on Papa M), look for this Pajo entity to become a full-time reality. (BB)

Robert Walter's 20th Congress

Sunday · Jack Quinn's

The organ-driven Funk/Jazz of Robert Walter's 20th Congress conjures images of sweat-drenched jazzbos grinding out their soulful grooves in some '70s ghetto nightclub/speakeasy where the words "last call" have no meaning. Leading the in-the-pocket vibe train is Robert Walter, the man connected to the magic-fingers which provide the slippery, soul-kissed Hammond keywork that gives his group's two releases, the debut, Money Shot, and the new Giving Up the Ghost, their "oomph." Walter is best known as a founding member of the The Greyboy Allstars, the beat-heavy Fusion/Acid Jazz neo-legend which also spawned saxman Karl Denson (also doing very well on his own, with his Tiny Universe project). The Congress' intraband chemistry -- the vital element for a group like this -- is palpable, even with the line-up shift between records. On Ghost, Walter experimented more in the studio, using the facilities as "an instrument" and creating more textural, unique sounds. Mostly instrumental, one of Walter's greatest assets is the diversity of his arrangements, mixing carefully constructed compositions with the remarkably endearing, dirty bump-'n-grind stuff. Frequently traveling a psychedelic route, the music still has a consistent, necessary fluidity that makes his recorded work so engaging, even (and often especially) when he leads the band "out there" to the trippiest realms. (Mike Breen)

Voodoo Glow Skulls with The Pietasters and River City Rebels

Sunday · Jillian's

Back in the late '80s, a SoCal Hardcore band comprised of the Casillas brothers (vocalist Frank, guitarist Eddy, bassist Jorge) and their drummer Jerry O'Neill made the momentous decision to spice up their garage sound with a raucous horn section to honor their love of Ska and their beloved Latin musical traditions. And thus was born the furious machine gun Ska/Punk of the Voodoo Glow Skulls. After a solid year of touring supporting the likes of the Offspring, the Mighty Mighty Bosstones, 311 and No Doubt, VGS released their debut album, What Is? This Is in 1992 which has to date sold nearly a quarter million copies. VGS attracted a rabid following across a broad spectrum of Punk worshippers and soon came to the attention of Epitaph Records who signed them in 1994. The following year saw the release of VGS's astonishing Firme (which was also released in a Spanish language version), followed by 1997's Baile de Los Locos, 1998's The Band Geek Mafia and 2000's Symbolic, all of which combined to move an impressive 750,000 units. VGS's sales figures were clearly fueled by the band's relentless touring schedule and the opportune support of college radio and MTV, not to mention a jaw-dropping appearance on the '98 Vans Warped Tour that solidified and expanded VGS's fan base. On last year's Steady As She Goes, VGS moved over to respected Hardcore label Victory for an album that dabbled in everything the band has done well over the years, from party anthems to political/cultural rallying cries to their trademark hip cover song (this time a sweet version of Sam the Sham & the Pharaoh's "Little Red Riding Hood"). A dozen years of roadwork have honed the Voodoo Glow Skulls to a well-oiled Ska/Punk machine that takes a stage like a beachhead in wartime. Light clothing and dancing shoes advised. (BB)

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