Jason Ricci

Thursday · Fat Fish Blue

If Blues Traveler's John Popper is the Eddie Van Halen of harmonica, then Jason Ricci might be the John Coltrane. If one offers unnerving speed and precision, the other adds to this dizzying virtuosity a fire, passion and genre-expanding inventiveness that supercedes raw talent. Jason Ricci and New Blood are shaking the hips of audiences while rattling the dusty firmament of the Blues/Rock world. If many Blues fans aren't familiar with Jason Ricci yet, it's because Ricci has been somewhat of a talent "on-hold" for a while. After exploding on the harmonica scene in 1995 as a 21-year-old prodigy, winning national and international competitions shortly thereafter, Ricci's life and career were nearly sucked in to the tragically cliché oblivion of personal, musical and chemical demons. Fueling his subsequent recovery and revival was his determination to be more than just an outrageous talent -- he wants to be the best, and 10 years later, he's pretty damn close. With the exception of veteran "Slim" Louis on bass, New Blood is true to its name, employing the flamboyant Argentine drummer Maki Bergara and burn-your-frikkin'-house-down-hot guitarist Shawn Starski -- both in their early 20s. The band plays 300 shows a year, and is in a state of constant evolution. As a result, they're rapidly attracting fans from the Jam band and Jazz scenes as well as adventurous Blues lovers. You'll be physically exhausted and your jaw will be on the floor before the second song is over. But once you get over the initial shock of this band's ability and energy, listen. There's something new and different emerging from the stage. No longer on hold, Jason Ricci's time is now, and tomorrow. (Blake Taylor)

Large Number with Fashion Flesh

Monday · Southgate House

In an increasingly digital world, it's sometimes good to know that some people hold onto the hands-on, analog way of doing things. And, if those same "analog people" are pushing the boundaries of music past the 21st century with their terrestrial instruments and limitless imaginations, that's an even better thing. And, if those terrestrial instruments were once thought of as ahead of their time, it's better still. Thus, enter Large Number, who create a new musical vocabulary through daft experimentation while finding their way to the future through the past. Large Number was formed by Ann Shenton and features Rob Allum, both formerly of "electro-historians" Add N To (X). The members of Add N to (X) were ardent fans of vintage synthesizers and proto-Electronica, such as the works of synthesist/composer Wendy Carlos (who scored the Kubrick/King movie The Shining) and Roxy Music. They released four albums from 1996 to 2000 and toured behind the releases with an energetic live show that you usually don't associate with people playing Moog synthesizers. After Add N To (X), Shenton grabbed "... a Moog, a Korg MS20, a Theremin and a beaten up CR68 drum machine," and set about forming Large Number with a banjo player, a guitarist, "a woman who communicated through the harmonica" and Allum on drums. Large Number then recorded their debut album, Spray On Sound, and released it in 2003. Large Number's sound is self-described as "sound capsules, wax cylinders, humming, belching, noise-colour, unlearning, Gregorian-purple, jazz pink, animal yellow, bird-black, un-classical, un-country, un-folk, un-pop, un-rock, un-expect, sapphire ring modulators, emerald envelope shapers, opal oscillators, stupid words and musique tarmac." That won't exactly fit in the CD bins next to "Rock," but that's just fine with them. Sections of Spray On Sound might remind some of Kraftwerk (after sense of humor implant surgery), but the disc bounces around various genres (and makes up some new ones along the way) with gleeful eccentricity. It's different, it's interesting, you'll enjoy yourself ... unless your idea of "experimental" is another Nelly/Tim McGraw duet. Go. (Dale Johnson)

Chely Wright

Large Number

Wednesday · Madison Theater

Four years ago, Chely Wright released her fifth album, Never Love You Enough, a work that she characterized as "painful" to make. For a Nashville singer/songwriter that had been among the best at finding the intersection between critical and commercial success, Never Love You Enough proved to be the pinnacle of her hit-making abilities as the album was her first to crack the Top 10 while spawning hit singles with the title track and "Jezebel." But after a string of Country radio hits like "It Was," "Single White Female" and "Shut Up and Drive," Wright found herself burned out on the process; the difficulty of making Never Love You Enough was compounded by her split from MCA. For the first time since the native Kansan was a child (she's been performing at least semi-professionally since she was 14), Wright took a year off from music. The following year found her spending an evening at London's Metropolitan Hotel with a couple of friends, the three of them playing their favorite CDs for each other and talking about the qualities that define great music. Revisiting avowed influences like Buck Owens, Randy Travis and Ricky Skaggs, Wright had something of a revelation about her love of Country music and how it impacted her own songwriting. With a renewed sense of creative purpose and no label timetable to satisfy, she returned home and began work on a batch of new songs in her home studio. The result of her newfound sense of wonder concerning her craft is her just-released sixth album for new label Dualtone, The Metropolitan Hotel, named in honor of the place where her muse was rejuvenated. The album has already yielded a Top 40 hit in "The Bumper of My SUV," with any number of other potential singles waiting in the wings, including "I Got Him Ready for You" and "Just the Way We Do It." By getting back in touch with the core of her songwriting soul, Chely Wright has invested The Metropolitan Hotel with the emotional storytelling gifts that originally earned her notice in the late '80s when she moved to Nashville. (Brian Baker)