THIS WEEK IN SHOWS

Unfortunately, for those of us who’re orphaned in the city this Thanksgiving, it’s a slow week for shows. But it’s New York, so of course a few people are keeping the party going no matter what. And I’m thankful for that. Here’s what else I’m thankful for:

TUES, NOV. 24

Old dudes who’ve still got it: I usually figure it’s not worth it to see an artist who achieved their career prime a couple of decades ago. Not so with people like Ray Davies, lead singer and songwriter from The Kinks. I’d even book it on over to Jersey for him! Maybe that’s because, while I’m often drawn to bands for a certain raw energy – which has the real potential to wane – Davies’ real power has always been his genius songwriting, which has carried into the present. I guess I’m ultimately more thankful for The Kinks, though – who needs a real Thanksgiving meal when you have “Maximum Consumption” and “Hot Potatoes”?

Ray Davies, Nicole Atkins
Wellmont Theater
8:00, $75, $55 & $35, ALL AGES

Bands with personality: In a city so saturated with new music, personality, or even just a certain level of oddness, goes a long way in setting yourself apart from the crowd. I don’t know enough about Automa to say definitively that they have crazy stage presence or some excellent collective sense of humor. (Actually, from the looks of their Myspace bio, they take themselves quite seriously.) But when lead singer Suki hinted that if JezebelMusic.com went to their Public Assembly show we could score some killer Lisa Frank stickers, I knew that if nothing else, these guys were memorable.

Cinema, Cinema EP Release with Automa, Already Gravity, Psycho Wipeout, The Kissing Club
Public Assembly
8:00, $7, 21+
More on This Week In Shows

Stream Alicia Keys Performing an Update to the Now Ubiquitous Jay Z Blueprint 3 Jam “Empire State of Mind,” Which, If Not Already Cliched Enough, Actually Includes the Line “If You Can Make It Here, You Can Make It Anywhere;” Still Lacks Proper Vaudevillian Accent [Idolator]

Beck, Never One to Turn Away From a Fight (I’m Not Sure This is Accurate, But Let’s Run With It) Posts a Song About Harry Partch After Fiery Furnaces Matt Friedberger Made a Crack About Him – Learn More “In the News” Later Tonight at JM.com [NME]

Interpol Announce Fourth Album, and Claim it Will Be Better Than 2007’s Our Love to Admire, Which In Itself, Really Needed to Be Better Than Antics…But I Have Faith Guys!…Maybe; Released Early 2010 [Paste]

Stream New Animal Collective, “Graze,” The Opener to the Upcoming Fall Be Kind EP; The Track Undoes a Lot of the “Brian-Wilson” Pop Steps Merriweather Pushed Forward, Moving Back To Sprawling Psychedelia ; Let’s Call It Animal Collective “Classic,” or Better Yet “Animal Classective” [Stereogum]

Watch Ray Davies, Former Kink, Perform “You Really Got Me” on Letterman; The Most Surprising Part: Features an Enormous Choir of Middle Aged Men and Women. Least Suprising: Is a Bastardized Version of the Original, Sounding More Like Van Halen’s Awful Update [Prefix]

Myspace Buys Popular Social Network/Music Streaming Service Imeem, Meaning That Rupert Murdoch Probably Owns Songs You Haven’t Yet Recorded; Beware, Young Songwriters, Beware (But Please, Still Write Songs…I’d Be Out of Work Without You) [Brooklyn Vegan]

Stream L.A.’s Garage (Lolli)Pop Band the Dum Dum Girls Covering The Misfits’ “Last Caress,” Which is Just Alright, In My Opinion (But Don’t Trust My Opinion) [Myspace]

The Decemberists’ Turn 2009 Flop The Hazards of Love Into a Full Length Animated Film, Seemingly Still Determined to Prove That Listening to the 80-Minute Operatic Monstrosity is Somehow Worthwhile (It’s Not, Guys…There’s Petticoats, Outdated Literary Tropes, and Prog Breakdowns…and Somehow It Wound Up Not Awesome. Lick Your Wounds, Move on); Watch the Trailer Here [Pitchfork]

Watch Vampire Weekend’s Video For Contra Cut “Cousins;” Contra, Which I’m Already Declaring Both the Best and Worst Album of 2010-2020, Released January 12 [Stereogum]

compiled by Max Sebela