• Dean & Britta (formerly of critically-acclaimed Indie dreamscapers Luna) bring their unique multimedia show, "13 Most Beautiful … Songs for Andy Warhol's Screen Tests," to Over-the-Rhine's revitalized Emery Theatre. The project originated four years again after Dean Wareham received a phone call from a curator (and big Luna fan) at the Andy Warhol Museum in Pittsburgh asking if he'd be interested in writing some music to go with the stockpile of 500 or so "screen tests" Warhol had accumulated in the ’60s. The clips feature Warhol's video of friends and acquaintances, including many familiar faces from the Factory days. Wareham talked to CityBeat's Brian Baker about the process of writing songs for the 13 "tests" chosen, describing it as being like making a music video in reverse. Read Brian's full feature story here. Tonight's performance — featuring Dean & Britta's quartet performing in front of large projections of the screen tests — is at 8 p.m. Tickets (if it doesn't sell out) are $25 at the door. Here's some of the soundtracked video to get you in the mood. The event is being co-presented by the Contemporary Arts Center, which is currently exhibiting Image Machine: Andy Warhol and Photography. • After a tough previous week when she was stuck in New York City during and after “Frankenstorm” Sandy, tonight at 8 p.m., veteran singer/songwriter Aimee Mann performs in Cincinnati at 20th Century Theatre in Oakley.For 30 years, Mann has built a dedicated core of adoring fans swept away by her smart, clever and emotionally resonate take on Pop music, driven partly by her uniquely inviting vocals (which former CityBeat writer Brad Quinn once brilliantly described as “egg-shaped”). She first came to the attention of the public at large with her group ’Til Tuesday, which received massive support from MTV and radio for the hit “Voices Carry." Mann and some funny pals recently parodied the of-its-era clip in a hilarious video for "Labrador" from her latest album, Charmer.Mann went solo at the start of ’90s, releasing her debut Whatever in 1993 and then capping off the decade with her brilliant songs written for and prominently featured in the film Magnolia. Departing the major label system at the start of the new millennium, Mann founded SuperEgo Records to release her own material, most recently issuing Charmer, another critically acclaimed gem that provides further evidence that Mann is still one of the great, somewhat under-heralded songwriters of her time. Another gifted writer deserving of more attention, Ted Leo (of “and the Pharmacists” fame), opens tonight's show solo. Tickets range from $20-$35. • Blues Rock cult sensation, soulful singer and modern-day geetar hero Joe Bonamassa swings through the Taft Theatre tonight for a 9 p.m. show. Tickets range from $49-$79.  Bonamassa is one of the more celebrated guitarists of our time and he's built a rabid following mostly by word of mouth and without the benefit of a big label corporation behind him. Bonamassa's latest album Driving Towards the Daylight was released this spring, but live and in-concert is where he thrives, as evidenced by his discography since 2000 — he's had nine studio albums but also four live albums and three live DVDs. Check the title track from Driving below and read more about the Blues/Rock star from this week's CityBeat here. • Acclaimed for its detailed, theatrical recreations of Pink Floyd concerts, Cleveland's Wish You Were Here is bringing its "Classic Floyd Albums Tour 2012" to Bogart's in Corryville tonight for an all-ages, 8 p.m. performance. Tickets are $12. The "tour" (spread over three months) has featured shows across Ohio where the crew has played the albums Wish You Were Here, The Wall and Animals in full. Tonight, the group is doing Dark Side of the Moon at Bogart's. The band is able to accurately replicate Floyd's intricate sound and concert experience by using a large ensemble of at least nine musicians, plus their own lighting and sound crew. Cincinnati musician Jamie Combs (of 4th Day Echo and various other projects) joined the band in 2006 as guitarist and vocalist. Here's a clip from a 2007 appearance in Cleveland of the band performing "Time/Breath Reprise." Click here for even more live music events in Greater Cincinnati tonight.

One of the more soulful venues at this year's MidPoint Music Festival was the gorgeous Emery Theatre, which is in the process of being brought back to life thanks to the efforts of "The Requiem Project" (the group that has been doing the heavy lifting to get the theater fully back in commission). But perhaps best showcasing the theater's potential as a proper new/old music venue are the folks behind The Emery Sessions, a series of live performances filmed at the Emery over the past year or so by photographer/videographer Michael Wilson (the man behind a gazillion brilliant album covers) and musicians Cameron Cochran and Henry Wilson (who play together in the group Pop Empire). The sessions have produced some remarkable footage so far, with sessions filmed with Jeremy Pinnell and the 55s, Daniel Martin Moore and Joan Shelley, Over the Rhine, Brian Olive, The Kickaways and many other local acts. When Bluegrass legend Dr. Ralph Stanley was booked to play the theater for this year's MidPoint fest, the Sessioneers captured a magical session before the show featuring The Clinch Mountain Boys with the iconic musician. The lack of an audience during all of the Sessions (and the black and white approach) adds an air of mystery to the clips, the empty theater providing a wide-open and kinda spooky atmosphere. That's especially evident in the Session with Stanley, who recorded locally in his heyday for King Records and had performed several times at the Emery decades earlier with his brother Carter as The Stanley Brothers. Fittingly, on what was dubbed "Ralph Stanley Day" by the city, the Sessions crew captured Ralph and Co. performing "Train 45," a tune the Stanley Brothers recorded for the local King label. Check out more of The Emery Sessions here.

There is a staggering amount of high-quality live music events tonight in Greater Cincinnati, especially for a Wednesday. Here are a few of the best.• Though Jazz is the music saxophonist Jeff Coffin is most closely identified, his experience and passion extends well beyond the genre. Coffin’s and his Mu’tet make dynamic, progressive sounds, most recently heard on the studio effort, Into the Air, which draws from mainly from modern and vintage Jazz. But Coffin first came to many music fans’ attention when he joined Bela Fleck’s Flecktones in 1997, a fittingly adventurous gig for the diverse musician/composer. Coffin left the Flecktones after he was invited to join the Dave Matthews Band full time, replacing late founding member LeRoi Moore in 2009. As if he wasn’t busy enough, Coffin — who has also shared stage/studio time with everyone from McCoy Tyner and Branford Marsalis to Willie Nelson and Widespread Panic — is equally acclaimed as an educator and clinician, working with students of all ages around the world. “The spirit and breath of the music is what I take away from the listening and playing,” he says of his influences, which, collectively he dubs “Spirit Music.” Coffin and his Mu’tet come to Northern Kentucky University tonight to share their musical wisdom and spirit. After an afternoon lecture and clinic for NKU music students, Coffin and Mu’tet perform an 8 p.m. concert at the school’s Fine Arts Center’s Greaves Concert Hall. Admission is $10 ($5 for students with ID). Visit nkuconnections.nku.edu for more info. • Nick Zammuto may have broken up his acclaimed experimental sound-collage project The Books, but he's not given up music. Tonight, his new band, appropriately named Zammuto, performs at MOTR Pub in Over-the-Rhine. The show is free and features a warm-up set from Lymbyc Systym. Click here to read about Zammuto and here for more on Lymbyc Systym.• Innovative guitarist Bill Frisell is in town to perform with his 858 Quartet at The Emery Theatre. The concert is related to the current, ongoing FotoFocus events around town. Click here for more details. • Popular rockers Band of Horses, whose upcoming tour with Willie Nelson was sadly cancelled recently, play at Bogart's in Corryville tonight. Click here for a preview.

Cincinnati, for me, has always been contradictory and confusing. After living here for so long I’m still ambivalent as to how I feel about it. The National certainly pushed me in the more positive direction with their show Oct. 4 at Emery Theatre. The Cincy-bred band summoned fans with a free show in support of President Obama and filled the historic venue, front to back.The National’s set was evidently well thought-out, opening with the powerful "Mistaken for Strangers," with the vocals and drums seemingly soaring through the theater.  If you haven’t had a chance to catch a show at Emery Theatre (my first experience was last week), you should certainly make that a priority. The theater, coupled with a band like the National, truly makes for an unforgettable experience. The venue alone creates a sense of intimacy between audience and act, something that is usually sacrificed to see your favorite bands.From the very start of the set, the audience was completely engaged with the boys on stage, bursting into cheers and applause at the every songs beginning and end (and even during songs at times). The only drawback for me was the fact that Matt Berninger would simply not let me forget that the show was political. It seemed as if in between every song some sort of Democratic rhetoric (not that the other side’s rhetorical strategies are any better) was interjected.  Something about the importance of voting, or how privileged we are, which is somewhat obnoxious at that point. It’s highly doubtful that anybody was suddenly converted by The National, and even more so that anyone in attendance last night was slightest bit unsure about their vote. I suppose that’s mostly my fault, though — I should expect such from a campaign concert. All that aside, the audience was left in a state of bliss by the concert's end, as The National closed out their set with an unplugged version "Vanderlyle Crybaby Geeks." Earlier in the night, I had spoken to a friend who had said the venue was acoustically pure, meaning that even without any sort of amplification, the sound would still resonate throughout the entire theater — and he couldn’t be more right. The sound was not hindered in any way (I was a few rows back) and it carried through the historic site as if I was the only one there. The closer truly unified the entire show into a ecstatic experience that I will certainly not forget.  Click here for more photos from the concert.