Sweet Jesus
SAT 4/9
Thirty-four years ago, Brewer and Shipley would have been playing at a club catering to longhairs and high times, passing around their brand of mellow folk-rock laced with dry-mouthed wit. So their gig at the Community Christian Church (4601 Main Street) at 8 p.m. Saturday could be equal parts serious personal evolution and well-told joke. Known primarily for their stoner-freak jam "One Toke Over the Line," the duo made a decade's worth of music before Michael Brewer moved on to a solo musical career and Tom Shipley began producing documentaries. But since local radio station KCFX 101.1 drew them out of retirement in 1986, Brewer and Shipley have recorded two albums and resumed touring -- to the relief of aging nostalgia types across the metro. This time, shouting "Freebird!" from the back row of church makes total sense. Tickets are $10-$20; call 816-561-6531 for more information. -- Christopher Sebela
Full Speed Ahead
THU 4/7
Brooklyn's Ambulance Ltd. has drawn frequent comparisons to My Bloody Valentine since its self-titled EP in 2003. But everyone forgets that it's perfectly acceptable to draw inspiration from cult favorites -- as long as your own band is more attractive. And these boys are. Particularly Marcus Congleton. We almost exclusively love bassists, but that pretty-boy frontman is damned cute. Lucky for us, the group spearheading the shoegazer revival with its strain of dreamy, spacy indie rock plays the Bottleneck on Thursday (737 New Hampshire, Lawrence; 785-841-5483). Autolux opens the all-ages show, which starts at 8 p.m.; tickets cost $10. -- Annie Fischer
