Sounds Good: Skaggs and Hornsby @ Yardley Hall, Replay B-day Party @ Replay, Taj Mahal @ Yardley Hall

A couple of album releases I’ve been keeping my eye on are coming up Tuesday, October 29th.

The big one is Arcade Fire‘s follow up to their smash-hit The Suburbs.  It’s called Reflektor and the single that was dropped a few weeks ago features David Bowie and a trippy, echoe-y chorus.  You know, Arcade Fire.

The other one has a bit less fanfare, but I’ve been digging their stuff.  The band is called Minor Alps, and is made up of Julianna Hatfield and Nada Surf’s Matthew Caws.  The album is called Get There, and it’s a cross between electro-folk and indie.

Friday, October 25th

Ricky Skaggs and Bruce Hornsby with Kentucky Thunder at Yardley Hall in JoCo

I know it sounds weird to combine these two guys – one a bluegrass/country virtuso, the other a genre-crossing pianist – but somehow it works really, really well.  I caught their act the other night on Letterman or one of the other talk shows and they cranked out a cool uptempo and old-timey version of Way It Is that was a refreshing take on the classic song.  The two actually released a pretty damn good album together in 2007 and just recently released a live record.

Here’s what American Songwriter‘s Chuck Schultz took away from a recent show:

“Skaggs and Hornsby tore through some classics early on; “Toy Heart,” “Bluegrass Breakdown,” and “Darling Corey,” bringing not only traditional bluegrass sounds, but with Hornsby’s piano, some intricate soulful fills and took those songs in a new sonic direction. This collaboration in part hit an apex with CMT Crossroads. Each artist performing the others songs, in effect taking the original piece of music and creating a beautiful interpretation. Nothing exemplifies such a statement than Ricky Skaggs’ lead on Hornsby’s hit “Way It Is.”

Replay 20th Birthday Party in Lawrence

Wow.  The Replay – that iconic Lawrence scenester institution that’s played host to before-they-made-it-big bands like the Black Keys, for example – is turning 20.  Which is about how many times their bathrooms have been cleaned in that same span.  Hayo!  But if it wasn’t dirty and cheap, it wouldn’t be the Replay, right?  Just like if there weren’t pinball machines basically onstage with the bands.  On the bill for this bash is food from Lawrence cajun slingers Terrebonne, and music from the Hips, the Conquerors, Drop a Grand, Knife Crime, OILS, CS Luxem, and Paper Buffalo.  Oh, and as always, the cover is probably like $3.  Enjoy yo seff.

Sunday, October 27th

Taj Mahal at Yardley Hall in JoCo

Wow, JCCC is really tearing it up this weekend, huh?  This show features blues and world music legend Taj, along with the South African Vusi Mahlasela, and Fredericks Brown from New Zealand.  I’ve seen Taj a handful of times, and he’s worth the price of admission every time.  Hopefully, since this is kind of a world music show, he’ll get a little bit into some of his Hawaiian stuff, which is great.  Check out his album Sacred Island, if you haven’t already.  There’s also a pre-show talk and a dinner that you can get in on for a little extra.  Check out the whole schedule right here.