Music critics' picks
POP She was a new-age pathfinder when we were still stumbling through sonic dark ages, and a neo-folkie before that term was coined. Guitarist/composer Linda Cohen has always been about hybridization, her fingers dancing from folk to blues and classical style
POP
She was a new-age pathfinder when we were still stumbling through sonic dark ages, and a neo-folkie before that term was coined. Guitarist/composer Linda Cohen has always been about hybridization, her fingers dancing from folk to blues and classical styles in her haunting original tunes and intricate picking techniques. Now a youthful 60, the Philadelphia-spawned talent put out several vital albums in the 1970s, and her intimate sound hushed crowds at big venues like the Academy of Music and Electric Factory.
Cohen's professional fallback position has long been teaching - "fancy-ass finger-picking and classical" - working out of the Classical Guitar Store on Sansom Street. But lately she's been getting the urge to create again. Her out-of-print albums sell for as much as $80 on eBay, she says, leading her to contempolate a new disc. Her last came out in 1999.
Goaded by sometime manager David Carroll (a noted club and restaurant operator), she's upping her performing profile, too. "David just called me up and told me he's on the case," Cohen said with a smokey laugh. "Next thing I knew, he starts introducing me to journalists, then calls Tin Angel and books me a date. That's where it stands. I hope to do more."
Alt folkies Fern Knight open.
Tin Angel, 20 S. 2nd St., 7 p.m. Sunday, $12, 215-928-0770, www.tinangel.com.
- Jonathan Takiff
ALTERNATIVE
Swedish electro-pop princess Robyn proves that teen acts can have second lives that aren't completely embarrassing. While most know her from 1997's "Show Me Love," the singer born Robin Carlson is all grown up. Her self-titled 2005 release (on her own Konichiwa Records) found her collaborating with the Knife as well as the Teddybears' Klas Ahlund. Her music hints of Kylie Minogue, Madonna and the sweetest, most danceable break-up songs you've ever heard.
Fillmore at the TLA, 334 South St., 8 p.m. Wednesday, $15-17, all ages, 215-922-1011, www.livenation.com.
- Sara Sherr
HIP-HOP
Jim Jones, Harlem-based rapper and head of the Diplomats Records crew, is a certified hitmaker. Borrowing from a blueprint first mastered by the Wu-Tang Clan, Jones has spearheaded releases by every member of his Diplomat Records crew, to go along with a flurry of mixtapes and DVD releases. His solo works, such as "Hustler's P.O.M.E. (Product of My Environment)" and the recently released "Harlem's American Gangster," are filled with rich tales from the 'hood. It may be a stretch to hope Cam'ron joins Jones here, but there's always a chance other Dip Set label-mates might stop by.
Crocodile Rock Cafe, 520 W. Hamilton St., Allentown, 7 tonight, $25, 21+, 610-434-4600, www.crocodilerockcafe.com.
- Damon C. Williams
JAZZ
It made thrilling sense when pianist Brad Mehldau, one of the most vital creators in modern jazz, began tackling the catalogs of Radiohead and Nick Drake; both are full of songs rich in harmony and unpredictable in progression. It seemed a bit more of a lark when he found similar riches in the songbooks of Paul Simon or Lennon and McCartney. On his new "Live," he gives Soundgarden's "Black Hole Sun" a 23-minute workout with his working trio, drummer Jeff Ballard and bassist Larry Grenadier.
Three years after Ballard replaced Jorge Rossy in Mehldau's longstanding trio, "Live" is only the second release by the line-up, with a quartet session co-led by guitarist Pat Metheny between it and their first, the 2005 studio recording "Day is Done." Their two-disc set, recorded in October 2006 at New York's Village Vanguard, finds the trio digging deep into Mehldau's arrangements, fusing into an intricate weave of voices.
Zellerbach Theatre, Annenberg Center, 3680 Walnut St., 7:30 p.m. Sunday, $25-$35, 215-898-3900, www.pennpresents.org.
- Shaun Brady
CLASSICAL
In recent years, Temple University Opera Theater has presented some brilliantly imaginative and impressive shows, guided by conductor John Douglas, tireless producer Jamie Johnson and superb guest directors. This time around, Douglas has chosen "L'Egisto," written in 1643 by Francesco Cavalli, an underappreciated, supreme master of melody. The complex tale of real and mythological characters, directed by Copeland Woodruff, gives these young singers plenty of arias and duets, plus two mad scenes for the title character.
Tomlinson Theater, 13th and Norris streets, 7:30 tonight and 3 p.m. Sunday, $20, 215-204-7600, www.temple.edu/boyer.
- Tom Di Nardo