MUSIC Friday Dec. 3: The Antlers with The Luyas, First Unitarian Church, $13 Brooklyn–based trio The Antlers started as the solo project of Peter Silberman, who recruited Michael Lerner and Darby Cicci to back him on drums and keys, respectively. The band’s 2009 album Hospice wowed critics with its weighty subject matter — a tale of an abusive relationship told through the analogy of a dying patient and a hospice worker — and deft craftsmanship; many consider Hospice a masterpiece of somber, atmospheric pop.
Friday Dec. 3: Minus the Bear, the Electric Factory, $33 The math–rock powerhouse Minus the Bear has kept a steady finger on the pulse of the indie scene, adapting their sound with the changing tides but always staying true to their signature style, filled with complex rhythms and Pele–inspired guitar techniques. Experimenting with electronic riffs on this summer’s OMNI, the band seems to have taken a more dance–friendly direction.
Tuesday Dec. 7: Badly Drawn Boy with Justin Jones, First Unitarian Sanctuary, $25 Imagine Elliott Smith transplanted to England and pepped up with a whole lot of Prozac and you’ll get something like Damon Gough, better known by his stage name, Badly Drawn Boy. A mainstay of the indie singer–songwriter circuit, Gough has released seven EPs, including this October’s It’s What I’m Thinking Pt. 1 — Photographing Snowflakes, the first in a planned trilogy of ambient musings. Known for his memorably intimate live performances, Gough’s sure to give you your money’s worth of heart–wrenching anecdotes.
THEATER Now — Dec. 19: The Santaland Diaries 2010, Flashpoint Theatre Company, Second Stage at the Adrienne Theatre, $18–20 Way back in 1992, comedic genius (and brother to the loveable Amy) David Sedaris penned an essay entitled “The Santaland Diaries,” an autobiographical tale of Sedaris’s stint working as an elf in a Macy’s department store. The story has become a holiday classic, inspiring this stage adaptation, staring Flashpoint founder Derrick Loafmann. Watch the hilarious hijinks ensue.
Friday Dec. 3 — 19: The Great Divorce, the Lantern Theatre Company at St. Stephen’s Theatre, $15–25 C.S. Lewis, writer of the adored children’s classic The Chronicles of Narnia, also produced a hefty oeuvre of adult material, including his personal favorite, The Great Divorce. The satire follows a professer who is accompanied by a motley crew of mysterious characters on a bus ride through heaven and hell. The bottom line: as trippy as Narnia, but a whole lot meatier.
