For a change, the best shows aren't in the smallest clubs. Let's start with the larger rooms:
The Roseland Ballroom, I hate to say it, is hosting two of the best shows this week. On Saturday, rock legends Patti Smith and Television perform. Then on Sunday, a somewhat younger band who are legends in their own day, Franz Ferdinand, return to the Roseland with The Evaporators and Blanche. Too bad Roseland blows, huh?
Wilco plays Radio City on Monday and Tuesday. If memory serves, Bloomberg passed some sort of law that says anybody between the ages of 27 and 39 who is single and owns an iPod has to be at one of these shows. So, the law's the law, you better find a way to go. Everybody else is free to attend but it's not mandated by city legislation. If you don't have tickets, you might have a problem: Both shows are sold out. But this is New York, so you can choose from Craigs List or scalpers.
Tomorrow and Friday, Ryan Adams hits the Beacon Theater. Just don't call out a request for "Summer of '69" or he'll do to you what he did to Jim DeRegotis. And if he does, be sure to record it and put it on your website.
Another band is back in town after playing here very recently. The Killers, who have been firmly lodged in the Top 40 album chart for quite some time, return for shows at Irving Plaza on Monday and Tuesday. Be warned: The band's last show in town, at the Bowery Ballroom, lasted all of 45 minutes--and that was with a two-song encore. These guys haven't mastered the art of headlining with only one album under their belt, so if you attend either show do what you can to get your dollar's worth: Be on time and don't waste precious concert time standing in line for a beer. Every second counts.
