SFR Picks: The Man Comes Around

"Johnny is just the best ever," singer/guitarist Doug Benson exclaims with the tone of a true super-fan. "I just think he was such an amazing man, and he and Luther Perkins came up with that rockabilly sound, I think, without even really thinking about it or really realizing it. … It can be very hard to get all your feelings across in a song the way they're intended and in such a short time, and his songs are kind of like a picture [because] they're each worth a thousand words."

Benson and his cohorts have been at it for over a decade at this point and have won acclaim both as accomplished musicians and as one of the most true-to-the-material tribute acts of all time (in your face, Australian Pink Floyd!). And though Benson says his future dream is to arrange Smiths songs in a Johnny Cash style—which we're pretty sure Johnny would be cool with, given his many excellent covers like "Hurt"—he's focused on touring and keeping it as real as possible.

"One thing that I love about music is that it's easy enough for a slouch like me to do it," Benson says, "but it's also endless." Well said, sir. (Alex De Vore)

Cash'd Out
6 pm Saturday, July 23. Free.
Railyard Plaza,
Market and Alcadesa streets

Punk’s Not Dead (Yet)

Make fun all you want, but know that pop-punk never went anywhere. And sure, some of it is embarrassing to look back upon and remember, but some is the stuff of dreams. Take Toronto’s Rosedale, the one-man band of Mike Liorti, who tours relentlessly, records voraciously and puts on a seriously excellent show for just one guy. “I know not a lot of people go to shows these days, but I definitely make it something worth seeing,” Liorti tells us. “People are always surprised at the amount of effort I put into making a great live show.” (ADV)

Rosedale:
8 pm Wednesday, July 20. Free.
Cowgirl,
349 S Guadalupe St.,
982-2565

Good Levin

Why go to a poetry reading? Dana Levin tells SFR that poetry is “one of the few artforms left that is not beholden or shaped by market forces … which means people are really speaking their truth.” Levin’s new book,

Banana Palace

, due out Oct. 11, explores technology, hunger and the end of the world. From the dream-inspired musings of “Morning News,” in which a woman grows food from her skin, to the Facebook-obsessed culture of the collection’s title poem, humor grounds dystopian visions of the future. Levin joins fellow poets Christopher Johnson and Leah Umansky. (Andrew Koss)

Dana Levin:
5 pm Sunday, July 24. Free.
Teatro Paraguas,
3205 Calle Marie,
424-1601

Musical Sunshine

You know when you’re driving on a sunny day with your arm out of the window, basking? Chicago’s Whitney (who recently ranked fourth on NPR’s list of the top 10 new bands) is the acoustic equivalent of that moment. “It has to do with not using effects,” Julien Ehrlich, lead singer and drummer, tells SFR. “We detuned a lot of stuff to make it sound rounded and warmer.” The rock group plays at Meow Wolf on Tuesday, hot off their debut at the Pitchfork Festival in their hometown. The smaller, artsy venue should be a surprise, since Ehrlich says, “Someone just told me about it, but what is it?” We told  him, and he was stoked. (Maria Egolf-Romero)

Whitney:
8 pm Tuesday, July 26. $10.
Meow Wolf,
1352 Rufina St.,
780-4458

Santa Fe Reporter