Music Forecast 9.25-10.1: the Carper Family, Mike Watt & Il Sogno del Marinaio, Blues Kitchen 15th Anniversary Bash, and more

The Carper Family
The three women who make up the Carper Family are not related by blood. But bassist Melissa “Daddy” Carper, fiddler Beth “Mama” Chrisman and guitarist Jenn “Little Sister” Miori do share something visceral: a deep love of old-fashioned acoustic tunes. Together, the musicians produce vocal harmonies so pure and natural, you’d think they were triplets who started singing together in the womb. The Carper Family has achieved substantial renown in its hometown of Austin, where the band is considered a local treasure for a sound deeper than mere country or bluegrass. The music is old-timey, but the lyrics are sharp and the live shows anything but boring.

Thursday, September 25, Davey’s Uptown Ramblers Club (3402 Main,
816-753-1909)

Mike Watt & Il Sogno del Marinaio

Since 2009, bassist Mike Watt — legendary founder of Minutemen, Firehose and Dos; fill-in bassist for the reformed Stooges; veteran of Ciccone Youth — has devoted himself to a project that at first sounds odd. With Italian guitarist Stefano Pilia and drummer Andrea Belfi, he has designed what he calls a “power trio” in Il Sogno del Marinaio (Italian for “Song of the Sailor”). On the band’s latest album, August’s Canto Secondo, the three artists do indeed explore a particular power. Songs wind along like spider veins, one apocalyptic prog jam intertwined with the next, with Pilia sometimes manipulating his guitar strings with a violin bow. Yet Canto Secondo also pays homage to elements of Watt’s starry past — in particular, his Minutemen days — so if you needed another excuse to see this show, that’s it. Get there early: Lawrence act Gnarly Davidson opens.

Friday, September 26, the Bottleneck (737 New Hampshire, Lawrence, 785-841-5483)

Lykke Li

Lykke Li’s new full-length is a singularly heartbreaking experience. Written in the wake of a devastating breakup — the dissolution of the relationship for which the then-26-year-old singer-songwriter relocated from her native Sweden to Los Angeles — the songs on I Never Learn drop like petals off a dying flower. The titles alone tell the tale: “Never Gonna Love Again,” “Heart of Steel,” “Sleeping Alone.” Still, it’s not just a heavy-handed pity party. The production is sweeping and cinematic, the drumbeats blood-warming, the synths lush. Wear your heart on your sleeve at Saturday’s show, but don’t give up on letting someone have it someday, either.

Saturday, September 27, Uptown Theater (3700 Broadway, 816-753-8665)

Blues Kitchen 15th Anniversary Bash

Saturday at Knuckleheads, community-radio station KKFI 90.1 celebrates the 15th anniversary of its Blues Kitchen program with a hefty lineup. Mary Bridget Davies is a dead ringer for Janis Joplin — she has toured with Big Brother and the Holding Company — and whether she’s reviving “Piece of My Heart” or performing an original, you can expect the goosebumps to come in waves. Junebug and the Porch Lights deliver the sort of easy-listening backyard blues that anyone can appreciate, and local trio Katy Guillen and the Girls never fails to inspire dancing. Four Fried Chickens and a Coke headlines because, you know, who else?

Saturday, September 27, Knuckleheads Saloon (2715 Rochester, 816-483-1456)

Fly Moon Royalty

When Seattle’s Adra Boo and Mike Illvester first began making music together, they didn’t really have a plan. Their collaboration as Fly Moon Royalty was inspired by a mutual love for old-school hip-hop and funk more than by a drive to reach the masses. Four years later, that lack of focus has worked out just fine. Boo and Illvester’s latest EP, Unfinished Business, boasts a collection of songs showcasing that multitude of influences. Boo’s voice is a robust instrument, perfectly suited to the throwback soul and funky rhythms that Illvester favors. Illvester goes from beats to mic on his share of tracks, too, where he lays down spry, energetic raps. Hear it all on Sunday at the Riot Room.

Sunday, September 28, the Riot Room (4048 Broadway, 816-442-8179)