Last night I went to the Big Shoulders Ball at the Black Cat. The show was tons of fun and without all the pomp and cheese cubes. The ball was “thrift store formal.” And it was a benefit too. Highlights: Ted Leo covering Pete Seeger and Curtis Mayfield. Andrew Bird’s wondrous violin plucking that he looped and looped. Tortoise finding a rhythm and sticking to it. Ken Vandermark’s tribute to Sun Ra. And Honeyboy Edwards showing how the blues used to be played. Here are a few pics. I’ll have more tomorrow and some video:

Ted Leo

Sally Timms

Andrew Bird

Peter Margasak at our sister paper the Chicago Reader brings the news that the Black Cat will be hosting a pre-Inauguration Day concert on Jan. 19. The Big Shoulders Ball, as the name suggests, is a Chicago-oriented event. It was coordinated by Tim Tuten, co-owner of a great Chicago venue, the Hideout, and the lineup includes some of the city’s best acts: among those on the bill are Tortoise, the Waco Brothers, Eleventh Dream Day, the Mekons’ Jon Langford & Sally Timms, and Ken Vandermark. Tickets are $50, with proceeds going to various charities, including the D.C.-based Future of Music Coalition; they go on sale at 5 p.m. today through the Black Cat’s Web site. (Or at the Hideout if you’re reading this in Chicago—in which case, why aren’t you reading Margasak’s blog?)

According to Margasak’s post, the Hideout is corralling a few charter buses to bring fans to the festivities. Hope they’ve figured out where to park them.