The Toasters
January 15. Skanking hard atop the third-wave ska heap for almost 30 years, the Toasters, who pop into the Basement this month, were formed in New York by expatriate British singer-guitarist Rob “Bucket” Hingley in 1982. In addition to performing to bouncing throngs across the U.S. and Europe, the band has released over 20 albums (many of them on its own Moon Ska label) and landed tunes on TV (“Two-Tone Army” was the theme for Nickelodeon’s “KaBlam”). Pickitup, pickitup now! Opening acts to be announced. (Battle Avenue, Caterwaul, Cosmonaut, and the Wiggle Room squeeze in January 9; Tool tribute band Schism hammers January 28.) 8pm. $9. (845) 338-0744;
www.myspace.com/thebasement744.
Ben Allison
January 15. The Falcon continues to soar to the levels of world-class jazz one normally has to visit Manhattan to hear. Called “one of today’s best young jazz musicians” by the Boston Globe, bassist Ben Allison emerged on the scene in the 1990s with the vital Jazz Composers Collective, and has since gone on to lead bands bearing his own name, as well as the groups Medicine Wheel and Man Size Safe. Here, he sports a tight trio with Rudy Royston (Bill Frisell, Les McCann) on drums and Michael Blake (Allison’s Herbie Nichols Project, Ray LaMontagne) on saxes. Hallow Dog opens. (RedCred, featuring John Medeski, Ben Perowsky, and Chris Speed, jam January 6; the Adam Nussbaum Quartet hits January 8.) 6pm. Donation requested. Marlboro. (845) 236-7970; www.liveatthefalcon.com.
Frank London’s “A Night in the Old Marketplace”
January 22. Like John Zorn, his frequent collaborator, Grammy winner Frank London has spent much of his career boldly bouncing between and blending avant jazz and Jewish music. Ending a week-long residency at MassMOCA, the trumpeter presents “A Night in the Old Marketplace,” his acclaimed theatrical work based on I. L. Peretz’s legendary 1907 Yiddish play. All About Jazz describes London’s original score, which mixes Jewish, jazz, world, rock, and classical styles, as “a decadent, rich, klezmer-cabaret backdrop that sounds like Kurt Weill and Bertolt Brecht deep in the bottle after an opium binge.” (The Felice Brothers fall in January 15; Red Baraat brings the bhangra funk January 29.) 8pm. $13. North Adams. (413) 662-2111; www.massmoca.org.
“GamVille” (hosted by the Wiyos)
January 29. The way the Wiyos bring honking, shuffling, jiving, high-octane, washboard-fueled energy to old-time Americana has won them diehard fans not only among 1960s-generation folkies (Bob Dylan tapped them for his 2009 tour), but with fringe-dwelling hipsters as well. For “GamVille,” the band—now featuring erstwhile-Hunger Mountain Boy Teddy Weber and area mainstay Sauerkraut Seth Travins—brings to Club Helsinki a vaudeville-esque revue of handpicked guests and surprises. High hokum ’n’ hilarity, guaranteed. (Olabelle rolls through January 14; Iris Dement croons January 30.) 9pm. $15. Hudson. (518) 828-4800. www.helsinkihudson.com.
Claire Lynch
January 30. Talk about a triumphant return. Claire Lynch, who was named 2010’s Female Vocalist of the Year by the International Bluegrass Society, was born in Kingston but beat it down South to Alabama when she was 12. A few decades later and back she comes for this homecoming at the Skytop Steakhouse. Look forward to Lynch’s gorgeous voice, which has graced recordings by Dolly Parton, Emmylou Harris, and Linda Rondstadt, along with some of the amazing tunes she’s penned for Patty Loveless, the Seldom Scene, Kathy Mattea, and others. The Hudson Valley Bluegrass All Stars open. (The Upstart Blues All-Stars play January 1; rockabilly royals the Lustre Kings hold court January 14.) 6pm. $20. Kingston. (845) 340-4277; www.skytop.moonfruit.com.
