The Classic Tawnies; May 20, 2008; High Noon Saloon

WORT Block Party with Blueheels; May 18, 2008; 600 block of W Doty

Patchwork/Chris Koza/Elden Calder; May 14, 2008; Café Montmartre

Elden Calder is a mysterious band. Google them and all you get are photos, videos and reviews from the few people who have been lucky enough to see them. Like an indie rock Brigadoon they materialize once a year, play a kick ass show consisting of ridiculously catchy pop song after ridiculously catchy pop song, only to disappear again for months. There are some elements of the familiar, keyboard player Elliot Kozel is seemingly everywhere (in a good way) with his band Sleeping in the Aviary and its many offshoots and drummer Luke Bassuener is the driving force behind the social activist drum-circle rock band This Bright Apocalypse. But it’s the lead singer, the man responsible for these killer tunes, who remains a mystery. I was convinced he must be from out of town but rumor has it he is part of the ShopBop.com league of musician workers. The online catalog warehouse is a popular employment option for local musicians who like it for its flexible hours and decent hourly pay.

At this point Elden Calder doesn’t even have any recorded material available, though Elliot tells me they are working on a vinyl only release. Until then I have to work on talking the Momo’s charming sound guy Andy out of a copy of tonight’s terrific set. An appealing blend of piano and acoustic guitar with just the right amount of drum kick, Elden Calder has a sound that is inevitably familiar but also better than anything else that it sounds like. Please play more shows boys.

Since moving to Madison last year former Fox Valley resident Jeremiah Nelson, musically known as Patchwork, plays a good number of shows, but still it doesn’t seem as though I get to see him as often as I would like. Much of the time he plays solo, but every once in awhile he puts together a three piece to flesh out his smart pop tunes. The first incarnation consisted of Blueheels Landon Auger and Adam Cargin. Of course, using the busiest band in town’s rhythm section means there is going to be pretty limited availability. Tonight Luke was back behind the kit and a new bass player filled in the low end. Though a little rougher than the polish of the Blueheel boys, this lineup also had its charm. Of course, this was Luke’s last show with Patchwork before he takes off for Africa for most of the summer, leaving the drum chair open for the third member of TBA Chris Sasman.

The out-of-towner on the bill Minneapolitan Chris Koza filled in the middle slot. While it had been listed as being the Chris Koza Band, he was all alone up there. While I don’t recall anything distinctive about his set, he was certainly enjoyable enough to see again next time he passes through the area, unless, you know, Elden Calder is playing somewhere else the same night.

Bitch Magazine Benefit with Jentri Colello and Nicole Gruter; May 15, 2008; Mother Fool's

Josh Ritter; May 14, 2008; High Noon Saloon

I almost didn’t go to this show. It was scheduled to start at the same time as my last volleyball game of the session with Pirates! and I really didn’t want to miss it, but when Liz decided she couldn’t go because she had too much work to do I decided to take her ticket. Am I ever glad I did.

Of course, then again had I not been there I wouldn’t have known how absolutely amazing the show was. I walked in during his second song and was immediately charmed by how much fun he was having, and how completely adorable he looked doing it. I pondered the sold out crowd that stood between me and my friends who were right in front of the stage. “Is there room up there?” I texted them, not wanting to be that person who thinks they can get right up front whenever they want. “Surprisingly yes,” came the answer. Tiring of the chatter at the back of the room, I decided to try it, bringing drinks with me since that seems to somehow justify the journey. Sure enough, there was a surprising amount of room up front, apparently no one wanted to get too close.

From my better vantage point I could appreciate the rest of the band, the keyboard player who looked just like Kreggy Koscal and the adorable drummer I could have put in my pocket. The band blasted through track after track from Ritter’s most recent release, last year’s “The Historical Conquests of Josh Ritter.” While not as great as his prior release, “The Animal Years,” or my personal favorite, “Hello Starling,” it is still a worthy addition to his catalog. The Snidely Whiplash flavored “Lilian, Eygpt” was even more fun live than on CD, and the equally rooted in the past “Next to the Last True Romantic” with its chorus of “stealing hearts like they’re horses, and horses when hearts can’t be found” brimmed with exuberance. “Animal Years” stand-out track “Wolves” happened early, but even in the back of the room I could feel the energy.

I missed opener Dawn Landes, but knowing how I feel about girl singers I didn’t think it probably mattered. She joined Ritter later for a song on which they shared a microphone. That may have been the only point at which the show lost its momentum, which until this point had been building at a near alarming rate. The unremarkable duet seemed to encourage the chatter that hadn’t been as obvious since I had moved to the front. After its conclusion, things got back on track and Ritter and the band rolled through the rest of the set. Even though I had been smiling non-stop since getting there, it was “Starling’s” “Kathleen” that really killed me. Part of an enthusiastic two song encore, it gave me shivers that come back every time I even talk about how great it was. Like right now, shivers, seriously.

Next time Ritter comes to town, I won’t even think about not going.

Jon Dee Graham/Josh Harty; May 11, 2008; Kiki’s House of Righteous Music

I had tried in vain to convince Matthew Ryan and his cumbersomely named band Vs the Silver State to play the house on one of their days off in between Indianapolis and Chicago. After some initial interest, they declared it just wouldn’t work… which made more sense after it was announced they would be playing the High Noon only a few weeks later. To be honest, I was only interested in getting his opening act, one Jon Dee Graham, back to the house. I was beginning to think a trip to Chicago and a missed volleyball game were inevitable. But Jon Dee has a way of finding his way back to the basement. Only two weeks before the Chicago show, his booking agent sent me an e-mail wondering if I’d be interested in hosting a show. We all know this is one person I will never say no to.

Initially I thought Andrew DuPlantis (currently of Son Volt) his former and currently when he can bass player would be joining him, doing an acoustic set of his own, but instead he had other commitments. I laughed out loud when Andrew asked if I had any singer songwriter friends who might be able to open instead. “Those are the only people who are my friends,” I replied. And sure enough, all it took was a late night text message to Josh and I had my opener.

I hadn’t seen Josh play in a month, and as it turned out he hadn’t played in a month. While taking a break from Mickeys and playing with Jentri Colello might be good for him in other ways, it did mean he hasn’t been playing his own stuff and it was a little obvious. I have to admit the occasional forgotten lyric or chord was actually rather endearing, and it was good to hear the seldom played “Last Known Address” from his debut CD. There were a few people who hadn’t seen Josh play before and I’m pretty sure he gained a few new fans.

One person who was already a fan was Jon Dee. He claimed he would have to be extra funny tonight since he sure couldn’t play guitar like that. And he was true to that proclamation. His merch pitch, in addition to being hilarious was also effective. It read like a Feed the Children commercial, “If you buy one CD I can eat lunch tomorrow, two CDs and I can put gas in the car.” After sitting in standstill traffic for almost two hours outside of Chicago, he was so happy to be in my basement with a glass of red wine (in the Muppet glass of course) that he was determined to make this show extra special. He did that by playing a whole batch of brand new songs, songs that he hadn’t played anywhere else, “hell, some of these songs aren’t even finished,” he laughed. The standout track was a dark murder ballad with the ominous chorus “la, la, la, la, la, how do you like me now?” Shivers. I have no idea when these terrific new songs will be released, but everyone in the basement can say they heard them here first.

The rest of the night was more familiar. He played “Airplane” of course, and I felt like it was being sung only to me. Gina’s request “October” was just as rocking solo as it is with an electric guitar and a band, while “Tie a Knot” matched that intensity. As good a lyricist as Jon Dee is, he seemed in awe of his tour mate Matthew Ryan, raving about his songs and one in particular. “He promised her everything… not really knowing what everything was,” he quoted, shaking his head as if wishing he had written that line. While I haven’t heard that song, I can’t believe that it beats Jon Dee’s bulls-eye lyrical emotion. Don’t worry, I ‘m going to go see Ryan when he play the High Noon, no hard feelings. I got what I wanted.

MAMA Afterparty- The Motorz/The Treats/The Shabelles; May 10, 2008; Great Dane