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I love it when an opening band outshines the headliner. It gets my underdog lust fired up. Thursday night at the Red Star was a perfect example. While headliners The Clientele were no slouches (more on their show in a minute), the opening country-rock trio The Great Lakes were the winners that evening. Brilliantly played guitar lines and understated vocals from Ben Crum are welcome, considering the current state of indie rock. Any scrappy trio living in Brooklyn that can throw out a Jerry Jeff Walker cover without sounding ironic or anachronistic gets huge points in my book. I’d see them again in a heartbeat.

Now, onto the headliners - The Clientele from London. Singer/guitarist Alasdair MacLean exhibits a keen sense of well-crafted pop songs that only the British possess – a combination of distance and vulnerability that imbues the simplest of songs with a deep sense of propriety and timelessness. That, and the fact that he could throw in a Tom Verlaine-grade guitar solo now and then brought an extra dimension to their shimmering, reverb-heavy sunset pop. It was excellent music all around, one of the better lineups I’ve seen in some time.

Saturday night I caught a set by Philadelphia jazz guitar whiz Skip Heller at Chelsea’s. He and his trio of Wurlitzer player Joe Doria on organ and John Wicks on drums play around a loose definition of jazz, owing as much to Grant Green as he does Link Wray. There is a touch of jam-band about them (not necessarily a bad thing in the right dosage), but then that seems to be the state of modern rock-jazz fusions. The second set in which the Wurlitzer was given an extra boost of electricity was my favorite, creating a fertile environment for Heller’s sensitive and engaging guitar work to unfold. All in an all, a great week of great guitar players.

THANK YOU SIR, MAY I HAVE ANOTHER

Wednesday, August 16: Killer night of New Orleans hip-hop with Maxmillion and Truth Universal at Spanish Moon.

Thursday, August 17: Seventh Star, Jesus Wept and By His Blood tear it up at The Darkroom. Dimestore Troubadours and The Amazing Nuns are at the North Gate Tavern.

Friday, August 18: The king will re-enter the building as Chelsea’s hosts an Elvis Tribute night. Elsah and Greg Talmage are at North Gate Tavern. Baak Gwai, No Fuego, and Last Name Change are at Spanish Moon. The Southern Backtones are at the Red Star. The Caterie features Another Big Machine and Otherwise. Starting at 4:30, the passing of summer will be duly mourned with Ikonoklast, Thirteen Deep, vertigo Sun, Arcane Theory, All Shall perish, Too Pure To Die, Light This City, Nights Like These and Suicide Silence at The Darkroom. The Flamethowers are at the Varsity.

Saturday, August 19: Jake Fate inevitably performs at Chelsea’s with Greg Talmage. Illegal Alias (if that’s even their real name) will be at Spanish Moon. Ethylene, Maven and Ember are at The Caterie. Winston Willingham has his CD release party at the Darkroom with Matthew Herron and Kaltes Casair in tow. Melters and The Useful Knots rock it up at the North Gate Tavern.

Monday, August 21: T.J. Black and the Black Sound Parade are at Chelsea’s.

Tuesday, Aug 22: Austin singer/songwriter extraordinaire Ian Moore will be at the Red Star.

Want more suggestions for live music this weekend? Click here.