Sound Advice

The Buzz


The cacophony surrounding this show has been loud and long-winded (didn't we see these ads in like August?!), but the Fray are finally here. America's answer to Coldplay and the horse that Grey's Anatomy backed in an attempt to remain relevant in the battle for prime-time TV hipness, play the INB Performing Arts Center Monday with the Damnwells, whom you will also no doubt enjoy.





Mother 2006


Sure, Bravo Entertainment might be bringing Ray LaMontagne to Boise -- sure to be one of the best concerts there this year -- but not here, and that's unfair, but guess who we get? Danzig! Again. This Saturday. The cover of his new album, Black Aria II, features an illustration of a bare-breasted nun with a skull for a face, which, apparently to Bravo, screams "Spokane audience" in a way that LaMontagne, one of the most brittle, emotional voices in a generation, doesn't.





Three Friend Request Evening


Exactly one dog chillier than a two dog night (or morning, for that matter), the veteran classic rock crew Three Dog Night is still cold as ice, though they're now also a six-mullet ensemble. Surprisingly, in addition to touring extensively (they play Northern Quest on Friday), as is the normal mode with which aging bands connect with their aging core audience, they're actively recruiting young converts to the Church of Tri-Dog Dusk. And how do you woo kids? Myspace. Peep this: myspace.com/threedognight. There's a version of "Black and White" on there that's frighteningly close to reggae, or calypso ... or something like that. It's Jimmy Buffetty at any rate, and that scares the hell out of even our most middle-aged Inlander staffer (a certain theater critic and erstwhile longhair who shall remain nameless).