Music Forecast December 1-7

White Rabbits
White Rabbits make a strong case for Midwest rock bands decamping for the coasts. The Columbia, Missouri, kids migrated to Brooklyn sometime around 2006, and by summer 2007, Pitchfork had slapped a Recommended on their debut, Fort Nightly. That record was a brassy, rhythmic, Walkmen-­inspired collection. The follow-up, 2009’s It’s Frightening, was a more pared-down affair, the handiwork of producer (and Spoon man) Britt Daniel. I dug the production style, but it left me hungry for a little more songwriting substance. It’s been about two years since that sophomore album,
so this show ought to provide a glimpse of what to expect from Rabbits record No. 3.
Tuesday, December 6, at RecordBar (1020 Westport Road, 816-753-5207)

Wilco
In 2002, Wilco released what is basically a perfect record (Yankee Hotel Foxtrot) that fractured the Chicago band’s subsequent relationship with critics — nothing seems to measure up. The very good follow-up, A Ghost Is Born, was spurned as too jammy and indulgent. More recent releases from frontman Jeff Tweedy and company have been maligned as “dad rock” and, in an October issue of New York magazine, “adult contemporary.” As a dyed-in-the-wool Wilco fan, I think I speak for a silent majority when I say: Yes, the group has gradually become less exciting over the past half-decade, and no, that does not deter me from purchasing and enjoying its albums, attending the excellent, sprawling live shows, and arguing that, when it’s all said and done, Wilco will be remembered as one of the undisputed greats of its generation.
Saturday, December 3, at the Uptown Theater (3700 Broadway, 816-753-8665)

Kinky Friedman
Satire is the thread that runs through Kinky Friedman’s career. The Jewish Texan has composed and performed country songs, written books and magazine columns and, in 2006, run for governor of the Lone Star State. (He lost to Rick Perry, a man whose behavior we have come to learn is not intentionally satirical.) Friedman stops by Knuckleheads this week as part of his 2011 Hanukkah Tour. He’s performing songs like “Ride ‘Em Jewboy,” doing some political commentary and reading from one of his books. I’d imagine that he has an interesting take on the current crop of Republican presidential candidates as well.
Thursday, December 1, at Knuckleheads Saloon (2715 Rochester, 816-483-1456)

The Night the Buzz Stole Christmas
Hand it to KRBZ 96.5 (the Buzz): In 2011, the alt-rock radio station has brought to town Sleigh Bells, Neon Indian, the Hold Steady and Social Distortion, among others. For these holiday shows, the station is working with a fairly refined formula: popular but unexciting headliner, a couple of well-liked (but less popular) second-tier indie acts in the middle, and a local band to open the evening. Nothing here blows me away. (Surfer Blood comes close.) But as far as something for everyone goes, these are worthy lineups.
Monday: Florence + the Machine, Two Door Cinema Club, Cowboy Indian Bear
Tuesday: 311, the Naked and the Famous, Surfer Blood, Soft Reeds, DJ Soulman
Wednesday: Flogging Molly, Matt and Kim, Company of Thieves, Antennas Up.
Monday, December 5–Wednesday, December 7, at the Midland (1228 Main, 816-283-9921)