this week in music

LANIE LANE

Lanie Lane will know just what to do May 10 at Mercury Lounge

Mercury Lounge
217 East Houston St., $10, 6:30
Tuesday, May 10
www.mercuryloungenyc.com
www.myspace.com/lanielanemusic

Australia’s latest musical export is singer-guitarist Lanie Lane, an emerging star in her homeland and a potential one here as well, if there’s any justice. Mixing the hoochie-cooch of Muddy Waters with the offbeat instrumentation of Tom Waits and the storytelling of Brecht/Weill and Tim Pan Alley, Lane sings in a high-pitched retro voice that sweetly makes its way through the gospel blues of “What Do I Do,” the simply d-d-d-divine “Lipstick,” the sexy-pouty “Betty Baby,” the ballad “Saturday Morning,” and the jazzy, scat-filled “Red Accordion.” She’s also been known to cover Waters’s own “Hoochie Coochie Man.” Discovered in a Triple J Unearthed search for the best new Australian music, Lane dresses the part as well; in fact, she recently kept a photo diary on the ModCloth blog of her preparations (style, clothing, makeup) for a Sydney gig. Currently putting the finishing touches on her debut album, Lane’s brief sojourn in the States began last week in L.A. and Chicago and concludes May 10 at Mercury Lounge with fomer Dropkick Murphys guitarist Marc Orrell opening up.

WHAT HAPPENED IN OHIO

New York Theatre Workshop Fourth Street Theatre
83 East Fourth St. between Second & Third Aves.
Wednesday – Sunday through May 22, $18
800-838-3006
www.carascarmack.com

Subtitled “A Fierce Telling of Feelin’ Alive A’fore We Die,” What Happened in Ohio has nothing to do with the 2004 election, Kent State, or longtime Buckeyes coach Woody Hayes punching Clemson’s Charlie Bauman after a late interception during the 1978 Gator Bowl. Instead, it’s an intriguing piece of experimental theater about love, loss, and leaving. Set in rural Ohio in the 1950s, What Happened tells the story of four siblings, played by the Roadsters theatrical troupe of actor-singers (Priscilla Holbrook, Ashley Nease, Stephanie Viola, and Nathan Richard Wagner, along with playwright Cara Scarmack). On Claire Karoff’s stark stage, with dangling lightbulbs, a cabinet of knickknacks to one side, hanging cords that hold string instruments on the other, and a quilt of earth-toned colors that somewhat resembles the map of the United States in the back, Holbrook, Nease, Viola, and Wagner sing country bluegrass songs (with Wagner on mandolin), make sharp, carefully choreographed movements, and recite poetic text that creates an abstract narrative centered around a fatal car accident that changed their lives. Told in sixteen parts with such names as “What to Carry On, What to Leave Behind,” “Is That Suitcase Too Heavy for Ye?,” and “Darling, Can You Tell Me Where Home Is?,” the play features, first and foremost, terrific music, in addition to a fine-smelling pancake breakfast, Wagner violently smashing a mandolin, a creative method of making a bed, and a lot of face-to-face moments that help develop the characters’ relationships with one another. But nothing is ever set in stone; Scarmack, who also sings and plays guitar as half of the Wildwood Sisters, keeps the precise details just out of reach, leaving the audience to grasp at the facts much like Wagner runs around and leaps after a bug. Then again, What Happened in Ohio isn’t really about what actually happened in Ohio but how what happened affected the lives of this close-knit but deeply troubled family.

CONVERSION PARTY

Conversion Party will celebrate new EP and sixth anniversary of Cake Shop tonight

Cake Shop
152 Ludlow St.
Saturday, May 7, $6, 10:30
212-253-0036
www.cake-shop.com
www.myspace.com/conversionparty

If you missed Conversion Party’s EP release celebration last night at Bruar Falls, you can catch the Brooklyn-based band tonight as part of Cake Shop’s sixth anniversary show. The four-track Favors, what they’re calling their “proper debut,” was a long time coming; the group, which originally hails from New London, Connecticut, put out More No More back in 2008, but the Matthew-heavy band has come a long way since then. Featuring Matthew Allen on guitar, bass, and drums, Matthew Clark on keyboards, Matt Potter on drums, Alex Waxman on guitar, and Ben Johnson on guitar and bass, Conversion Party plays hook-laden, guitar-driven indie pop with howling background vocals, ethereal bridges, and offbeat lyrics. “Well, I only missed you / because you were gone / Maybe it was you or your sister / You would be so mad / if you knew what I did / But I swear I only kissed her,” they sing on “Teeth.” Favors also includes the psychedelic “In the Mountains,” the Bowie-esque “Birds of Paradise Lost,” and the mostly instrumental shoegazer “Let Us All,” which adds drowned-out out vocals in the latter part. Look for them to also play the quirky ass-kicker “Awake,” one of our favorite songs of the year. A true collaborative effort with multiple songwriters and vocalists, Conversion Party goes on at 10:30 at Cake Shop, preceded by Ariana Reines at 7:30, Fanuelle at 8:30, and Holy Shit at 9:30 and followed by Surf City at 11:30 and the Beets at midnight.

FOUNTAIN SILENT AUCTION: A BENEFIT FOR ART CONNECTS NEW YORK

Russell Young’s “Pig Portrait” is among the Fountain works at benefit auction for Art Connects New York

Gallery Bar
120 Orchard St.
Saturday, May 7, suggested donation $10, 7:00-11:00
www.fountainexhibit.com

The Fountain Art Fair, held the last six years during Armory Week aboard the Frying Pan, will be holding a benefit on Saturday night at the Gallery Bar on Orchard St., featuring a silent auction, live performances, giveaway, a raffle, and more, teaming up with Art Connects New York, a nonprofit organization whose mission is “to enrich the lives of all New Yorkers by making original visual artwork more readily available in nontraditional settings” and Lomography, “a global community whose strong passion is creative and experimental analogue film photography.” The evening will include live music by Tecla and NSR, while DJ Friendly Greg will spin tunes. Among the Fountain favorites whose work will be available are Russell Young, Chris Stain, Victor Cox, Allison Berkoy, Jason Douglas Griffin, Evo Love, Jesse McCloskey, Brian Leo, Sarcasmo, and GILF! Fountain always offers a unique experience, so this should be a fun night, and don’t be surprised if some of the art is a lot more affordable than you might expect.

NYU STRAWBERRY FESTIVAL 2011

La Guardia Pl. between West Third & West Fourth Sts.
Friday, May 6, free, 1:00 – 5:00
www.nyu.edu

NYU’s annual Strawberry Festival heads into its second quarter-century on Friday with a street fair bustling with live performances, carnival games (giant Jenga!), balloon art, a milking contest, children’s activities, ice cream, bubble tea, cotton candy, giveaways, and New York City’s longest strawberry shortcake. The music lineup includes Lightning Bolt, Peterodactyl, Ducktails, the So So Glos, and a Brooklyn vs. the Bronx DJ battle between DJ Jules Verne and DJ Juan Farrakhan as students and faculty celebrate the completion of the school year.

THE FIERY FURNACES

Eleanor Friedberger and brother Matthew are playing a pair of intimate duo shows at Rockwood Music Hall this week (photo by twi-ny/mdr)

Rockwood Music Hall Stage 2
196 Allen St. between Houston & Stanton Sts.
May 4-5, $20, 9:30
212-477-4155
www.thefieryfurnaces.com
www.rockwoodmusichall.com

The Fiery Furnaces kicked off a brief nine-city, twelve-show U.S. tour last night at Rockwood Music Hall with an intimate nineteen-song set that revealed fascinating aspects of their creative process. Playing as a duo, with Matthew Friedberger on piano and sister Eleanor on vocals, the pair both used lyric sheets as they delved deep into their songbook, highlighting rare tunes, including several that they have never before performed in public. It often felt like they had invited people in to watch them rehearse, as they made minor mistakes, missing cues, garbling a few words, or discussing the ending. But the overall effect came off as charming and endearing, especially as the siblings, both of whose bangs were in fine form, prepare for a brief hiatus, with Eleanor touring behind her debut solo album this summer and Matthew continuing his series of solo records, each one using a different instrument. The varied setlist, which is sure to change for their second show tonight, ranged from “Black-Hearted Boy,” “Blueberry Boat,” and “Even in the Rain” to “Cousin Chris,” “South Is Only a Home,” “Nevers,” and “The Vietnamese Telephone Industry,” from “Uncle Charlie,” “Single Again,” and “The Garfield El” (the “El” stands for Eleanor, not elevated, Eleanor pointed out) to “Smelling Cigarettes,” “Wolf Notes,” and “Evergreen,” the latter set to the music of Bob Seger’s “Still the Same.” Matthew stumbled at the ivories at the beginning before settling down, occasionally contributing vocals to Eleanor’s poetic, word-strewn lead. Eleanor’s obvious comfort level kept things light and fun despite the flaws as the Fiery Furnaces once again delivered an unusual, unpredictable, and unabashedly entertaining show. It all had the feel of their wanting to do something very special, for themselves as well as the audience, before they take their break. Their friend and former percussionist Michael Goodman opened up, playing short, sweet originals and a Buddy Holly cover on acoustic guitar in a warm, funny style, particularly on a duet on which he sang the parts of both the man and the woman. Be sure to get there on time to check him out.

NYFOS NEXT: PHIL KLINE & FRIENDS

Phil Kline will lead a special Movado Hour NYFOS Next program at BAC on May 3



THE MOVADO HOUR
Baryshnikov Arts Center, Howard Gilman Performance Space
450 West 37th St. between Ninth & Tenth Aves.
Tuesday, May 3, 7:00
Admission: free with advance RSVP
212-868-4444
www.bacnyc.org

Downtown avant-garde composer Phil Kline, the man behind the annual Christmas procession “Unsilent Night,” has headed such collaborative projects as “Zippo Songs” and “John the Revelator” and has written experimental music for dance and theater. On May 3, he’ll be at the Baryshnikov Arts Center for a free New York Festival of Song NYFOS Next chamber music presentation he has put together with Steven Blier, Michael Barrett, and Benjamin Sosland. Part of BAC’s Movado Hour series, the evening will consist of David Lang’s “I Had No Reason,” “I Want to Live,” and “I Found My Enemy’s Ox,” Meredith Monk’s “Prayer II,” Corey Dargel’s “Toes,” “Hooked for Life,” and “Sincerely Yours,” and Elliott Sharp’s “No Time Like the Stranger.” Kline will also perform his own compositions “Somewhere Around Barstow,” “A Strange World,” “Football Season Is Over,” and “To Make a Prairie,” the first three of which feature text by Hunter S. Thompson, the fourth by Emily Dickinson. The cast includes sopranos Katherine Dain and Lauren Worsham, bass Matt Boehler, and vocalists Dargel and Carla Jablonski, with Ashley Bathgate on cello, Todd Reynolds on violin, and Kathleen Supové and Michael Barrett on piano.