Friday 17
NINA SKY Not the solo act you might expect from the name but a sister act–the 18-year-old Nuyorican identical twins Nicole and Natalie Albino, who are responsible for one of this summer’s most infectious jams, “Move Ya Body,” a minimalist cocktail of sly entreaties over a tough dancehall groove. While it may well be their only hit, their self-titled album is surprisingly listenable, nicely conflating current tastes in electronic R & B, dancehall, and hip-hop. In well-matched, equally weightless voices, the twins harmonize and play off each other with all the assurance you’d expect from two women who’ve spent their whole lives together. Erykah Badu headlines. 8 PM, Congress Theater, 2135 N. Milwaukee, 877-259-5299 or 312-559-1212, $35, 18+. –Peter Margasak
Best of Chicago voting is live now. Vote for your favorites »
Tuesday 21
BIG BUILDINGS A few weeks ago Bob Mehr weighed in on this local quartet’s first full-length, Hang Together for All Time (Stars/No Stars), noting its stylistic diversity and making the unavoidable Wilco comparison. Though the variety among these 18 short, feisty songs (19 if you count the hidden track) is indeed crucial to the album’s appeal, what really lifts it clear of banality is its unity of purpose, which shines through despite all the sloppy enthusiasm and sweaty overcrowding–in that regard it’s as much like Exile on Main Street as any of its alt-country precursors. Milk at Midnight, Puss Puss, and Adam Fits open. 9 PM, Subterranean Cafe & Cabaret, 2011 W. North, 773-278-6600 or 800-594-8499, $5. –Monica Kendrick
