The Chandler Travis Three-O are as unique a band as they come, humorous and human, and the quirky Cape Cod group will appear at the off-the-beaten-path venue Click Workspace in Northampton, on Friday, January 25, at 7 p.m.
Local musician Brandi Ediss describes the Three-O as “the joy of music personified, just brimming with wit, warmth, and childlike wonder.”
The group is led by Chandler Travis, a vocalist, guitarist, songwriter and master arranger. With a lineup of guitar, upright bass, keyboard, horns and vocals, the Three-O can kick up a boisterous New Orleans groove, dissolve your armor with a surprisingly emotional gentle tune, sing a silly a cappella anthem, or make an impish racket combining rock and free jazz. Anything is possible. Only NRBQ is in their league when it comes to freewheeling variety (and the two groups have been orbiting around the same oddball open-hearted spaceways since the ‘70s).
Travis knows how to engage, entertain, and emotionally connect with an audience, no matter what the size. And last time the group was in town, their creativity wasn’t just related to the musical arrangements — that show was at a “tips appreciated” venue, so the band duct-taped a tip jar to the top of a festively decorated Roomba robot vacuum and put it on the venue’s floor, setting it free to wander and bump into audience chairs to quietly collect some cash.
The Three-O’s latest album is “Backward Crooked From the Sunset” (available now at ChandlerTravis.com) and their live shows are very much worth experiencing. Recommended!
Local band Big Mood, at right, are joined by Bye Forever! (“queer rock’n’roll” from NY) and Sadurn/Ther (“tender guitar music” from Pennsylvania) at Flywheel in Easthampton on Friday, January 25 at 8 p.m. All ages, with a sliding scale admission.
Colorway, the Valley rock trio led by guitarist/vocalist F. Alex Johnson, returns to the Luthier’s Co-op in Easthampton on Friday, January 25 at 8 p.m. Be sure to go early to catch Ray Mason, on at 7 p.m. Gentle Hen plays last at 9:30 p.m. Free show, tips are appreciated.
Vundabar (“Sludgy jangly pop” from Boston) at right, The Nude Party (rock from Boone, NC) and local favorites Carinae (“psych-rock”) take the stage at the Hawks & Reed Performing Arts Center in Greenfield on Friday, January 25, at 8:30 p.m.
Boston ensemble The Makanda Project, above, with special guest guitarist/composer Michael Gregory Jackson, is dedicated to playing the compositions of Makanda Ken McIntyre. Their performance is the latest show in this season’s Jazz Shares concert series at Gateway City Arts in Holyoke on Saturday, January 26, at 7:30 p.m.
Funky local supergroup Free Range Cats, joined by special guests Jim Armenti and Jerks On the Loose, play the Luthier’s Co-op on Saturday, January 26 at 9:30 p.m.
The Americana band Dustbowl Revival (who like to throw some soul and funk into the mix), shown at left, appears at the Iron Horse in Northampton on Tuesday, January 29, at 7 p.m. Brian Dunne opens. (And if you’re looking for a new podcast to enjoy, band leader Zach Lupetin has a good one called “The Show On the Road,” featuring conversations with touring musicians like Robbie Fulks, Bela Fleck, Darlingside and others.)
Singer/songwriter Jill Sobule (whose latest album, “Nostalgia Kills,” was voted one of the best of 2018 by The Nation) and shown at right appears at The Parlor Room in Northampton on Thursday, January 31, at 7 p.m.
Ken Maiuri can be reached at tunedincolumn@gmail.com.