Neighbors, I must warn you, I am a little out of sorts today. My wife has flown to a faraway coast on business, and when that happens I get a little sad, although I know it will be worth it when she returns with tales from the road, such as the drunk guy hitting on her in Houston: “My family owns many ranches in Mexico.”
In selecting this week’s live music picks, I found myself recreating the soundscape of a playlist I made when we were first dating. Back then, I would listen to it while keeping fit in McCarren Park; nowadays, safely ensconced in marriage, it is more likely to be played during a slow stroll to a remote park on the waterfront.
So if you are feeling lonely, or infatuated, or that always elusive grateful to be with the one you love, you will find something to like in this week’s choices.
The Still Tide brings its dreamy sound down from the mountains of Colorado to the Living Room (134 Metropolitan Ave.) Friday night, instilling optimism even into songs that travel to shoegaze territory. They follow Big Thief, with its lovely combination of moody atmospherics and a piercingly straightforward folk sensibility.
For those who favor moody instrumental soundtracks to accompany their emotions, Sarah Lipstate reaches deep wells of both melancholy and wanton elation through her alter ego, Noveller. She plays the Music Hall of Williamsburg (66 N. 6th St.) on Saturday night.
Meanwhile, at Pete’s Candy Store (709 Lorimer St.), performers will be predicting inevitable heartbreak after the thrill (Tanbark, Friday at 9 pm), yearning for someone who never gives you up and never lies (Karlie Bruce and Chris Parello, Saturday at 4 pm), and finally, pleading with their love to just go (Mark Kraus, Saturday at 10 pm). If you’re hoping for something a bit more celebratory at Pete’s, help Megan Talay ring in her 23rd birthday, Friday at 10.
A great place to find love this weekend would be Max Cellar (2 Knickerbocker Ave.) in Bushwick when the Brooklyn Gypsies play there this Saturday. The band’s swirling, high-energy whirling dervish sound and driving dance beat assure that the room will be charged with seductive energy and festivity, and they are sure to draw a discerning crowd.
If you’re lucky, you might even find someone in that crowd whose family owns many ranches in Mexico.