April 14-20, 2005

musicpicks

Amy Ray

rock/pop

She turned 41 on Tuesday, but Amy Ray is still in touch with her inner 14-year-old. Prom (Daemon), her second solo album, gives non-jocks their own fight songs (the hard-rocking "Put It out for Good," the new wave-y "Driver Education"), calls out the neighborhood closet cases ("Rural Faggot"), reclaims Jesus for the just ("Let It Ring") and relives the pain of first love ("Pennies on the Track"). On "Blender," Ray takes issue with clueless educators and corporate co-optation, but she also finds fault with the same punks who inspire her: "How can we sing against the system / When we're a main offender?" As on the excellent Stag, she gets a lot of support. Members of Birmingham's Nineteen Forty-Five play on most tracks, while "Blender" is two parts Team Dresch and two parts Azure Ray, with former Luscious Jackson drummer Kate Schellenbach keeping the beat. Like a lot of 14-year-olds, the Indigo Girl occasionally overdoes it with the irony, and sometimes she comes off a bit too earnest. She plays with the conviction that every word means something. But you know what? It does.

Fri., April 15, 9 p.m., $12, with Cordero, North Star Bar, 2639 Poplar St., 215-684-0808, www.northstarbar.com.

—M.J. Fine