Caveman launched the night at Webster Hall with their first hit “Thankful”. The lilting tune off their debut album Coco Beware found its way onto the music scene a few years ago, but it seems to express exactly how the band is feeling these days. Their self-titled sophomore album is out, gaining traction in the indie world and beyond, as they put the finishing touches on a well-received tour. Singer Matt Iwanusa showered the audience with thanks between songs, even describing them electric, and gave a shout out to his father for making the drive to see the show. Plus the group on stage clearly demonstrated an appreciation of each other’s talents, as they organically weaved through a set list of old and new songs. The band’s wall of sound, featuring saturated layers of guitar reverb, keyboards and percussion, opened up and let loose, while a black grid on the back wall projected colorful graphic patterns to play off the beams of saturated color and strobe lights.

In the heart of Times Square, tourists and fans alike came out to see Shuggie Otis perform a very funky set at BB King’s. The virtuoso blues rock guitarist shot to fame in the early ‘70s but his success tapered out quickly back then. In the generation or two since his last album, Inspiration Information Otis has been rather quiet, but in the past week, with the re-release of that album, he has booked several sold out shows. Starting in Chicago before three nights in New York, then with stops in major coastal cities and a Europe tour this year, Otis is back and in high demand with buzz beginning to build for the album re-release at the end of last year. Check out the photos below and read the perfect score review of that album on PopMatters. If that doesn’t encourage you to see or hear Otis, then maybe sharing some other knowledgeable musical folks’ thoughts (from the press release) about this talented artist will.

John in the Morning, the morning host and show on Seattle’s KEXP is a great resource for new music. Sometime back in August, I caught wind of a band called Houndmouth and their song “Penitentiary” via the station. There may have been something that reminded me of another upcoming band, the Lumineers, in their sound, but whatever it was, I definitely put them on my ‘must see’ list. Unfortunately, it took another eight months before I could do that, but I was well rewarded for my patience. The young band, Matt Myers, Katie Toupin, Zak Appleby and Shane Cody, hail from Indiana and and are eager to share their bluesy music through their constant touring.

In a couple short months the band will see the release of their first full length From the Hills Below the City released on Rough Trade and will accompany the Alabama Shakes on the road for a few dates. In the meantime, you can familiarize yourself with their four-track EP and get all the info about their tour and the new album at their site.

If you recognize her face but can’t place her name, it might be because you recognize her from Broadway’s Once but then you realize her character isn’t given a name more than the simple pronoun of ‘Girl’. Her name is Cristin Milioti and her turn in the girl role in Once has actually come to an end. As she steps out of the massive prints the songs of Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova (The Swell Season) created, Milioti was invited to perform at Lincoln Center in the intimate Kaplan Penthouse.

Her set consisted of mostly covers, some rocking, some mellow and a couple of her own songs, that unfortunately seemed to get lost in the midst of the high profile numbers. Leading up to the show, butterflies were in Milioti’s stomach as she feared no one would be in attendance. But her sweetness and gratitude through as she shared her inspirations and her challenges with the audience, which included her parents, members of her family and her boyfriend as well. Her song selections varied across genres but mostly appealed to this writer, with an indie/rock bent. Bon Iver and Fiona Apple songs started the night. Later, in a surprise choice, the plucky “Atoms for Peace” by Thom Yorke was included with her bandmate David Abeles (another Onceer) plucking the piano strings from the interior. The finale was a cover of Pink Floyd’s “Wish You Were Here” that Milioti dedicated to her father who had played this song with her at the piano often when she was growing up. It was Milioti’s charm that held the evening together and, in the end, the audience applauded her for opening up her personal songbook to them.

Green Day has never been afraid to take risks. They give generously to their fans (especially when they do small intimate performances in metropolitan areas) even when they are one of the biggest acts, selling out arenas around the world. So one wouldn’t fault Green Day for performing the same show night after night over the course of a single tour. However, when the set feels like the same show you saw a couple years ago, there is a bit of a problem (I’m looking at you “King for a Day” medley). Despite releasing three new albums in 2013, Green Day hardly performed any of that new material on their current ‘99 Revolutions’ tour. One could blame this on the supposed lack of time the band had to gear up for the tour when their lead singer found himself in rehab for several months.

However, as surprising as that was, there was no reason to complain about the songs Green Day did perform. The swung through vintage numbers like “2,000 Light Years Away” and a lot off of Dookie and made room for several songs off the American Idiot album. Everyone basically kept singing along, even when not needing to fill in the deliberate pauses.