The name has nothing to do with Charlie Chan, the old detective of literary and cinema fame, but that hasn't stopped local concert promoter Mr. Chan Presents from becoming something of a local mystery.

The company behind seemingly half the touring shows in Twin Cities nightclubs these days, Mr. Chan books acts at venues ranging from the Fine Line and Varsity Theater to Station 4 and Maplewood's behemoth Myth. Its upcoming shows include OneRepublic, Sia, the New York Dolls, Angels & Airwaves and NOFX.

For many local music insiders, the origins of Mr. Chan remain hazy. Many assumed the company was simply a satellite office of Live Nation, the national concert conglomerate that used to be Clear Channel. In some ways, it has been just that.

Officially, though, Mr. Chan is an independently owned company founded by James DeCoursey, 33, who worked for Clear Channel when it booked Quest and Target Center.

Never forthcoming with the local press (a Clear Channel trademark), DeCoursey at the very least remained a close partner with the company that became Live Nation when he started Mr. Chan in January 2006.

"They took over Live Nation's Ticketmaster account and kept a lot of the Live Nation shows," said First Avenue booker Nate Kranz, a chief rival. "It wasn't all that 'independent' a company."

The mystery of DeCoursey/Chan took another twist last month when DeCoursey relocated to Austin, Texas, to work for C3, the company behind the Austin City Limits Festival and the Chicago revival of Lollapalooza. He's leaving Mr. Chan in the hands of longtime cohort Todd Mulloy and new booker Amy Henson, another Clear Channel alum whom he hired away last month from Sue McLean & Associates.

"We plan to carry on the great work that James did over the past couple years," said Henson.

However, DeCoursey's exit from the local scene could signal a return of Live Nation to Twin Cities clubs. DeCoursey's former Clear Channel boss, Tommy Ginoza, has been courting local club owners to work with the Live Nation offices in Chicago and Detroit.

Thus, Mr. Chan -- the company that people thought was just another arm of Live Nation -- will actually butt heads with the concert giant.

"[James] is working with another company now, so he's gone from a partner to a competitor," Ginoza confirmed. He said Live Nation will work at many of the same venues as Mr. Chan and definitely have a bigger presence in the clubs.

"It could get very interesting around here over the next few months," said Fine Line booker Kim King, who had nothing but good things to say about working with Mr. Chan Presents. "They've been great for discovering and developing new artists, the ones too big for the Entry and not big enough for First Avenue."

Varsity Theater owner Jason McLean plans to meet with Ginoza and isn't quite sure what to make of the prospective Chan/Live Nation competition.

"I'm roughly aware of the concerns volleyed against [Live Nation] as a big corporation, but there are so many other damning things" in the concert business, said McLean. He also had praise for Mr. Chan: "They helped make the Varsity what it is."

As mysteries go, there's plenty about the past and future of Mr. Chan that will remain unsolved: DeCoursey didn't respond to an interview request.

Bloody good Valentine Valentine's Day haters can thank local writer/artist/musician Chuck Terhark for devising the perfect anti-Hallmark event Thursday at the Turf Club. It's called "How [Expletive] Romantic," and it will feature 10 or so bands performing the Magnetic Fields' 1999 three-CD cult classic "69 Love Songs." Yep, all 69 songs will be played, and in order. Participants include Chris Koza, Faux Jean, Coach Said Not To and Terhark's own Como Avenue Jug Band (9 p.m., $7).

"I had to make a spreadsheet for the first time in my life," Terhark said of how he mapped out the band-to-song set list. "It's not always a perfect match: I've got the Roe Family Singers covering 'Punk Love,' for instance, which doesn't make any sense at all. But that's part of the fun."

A more traditional Valentine's affair is being staged Thursday at the Varsity Theater by a vampish electro-pop duo called -- appropriately enough -- the Lovers Show, a new creation of local "Stomp" stage veterans and husband/wife team Jared and Noni Mason. Their faux-soul, self-titled debut is pure red-velvet fluff, but their show will include dinner from the Loring Pasta Bar and benefits a Brazilian children's charity (7 p.m., $35).

Meaty Spaghetti There's only a bit of singing on the newest album by beloved film-scorers-without-a-film Spaghetti Western String Co., and much of that is in a Schubert opera piece sung in German (which I don't speak a lick of, despite my last name). So it's to the group's credit that so much of the CD, titled "Lull and Clatter," evokes a specific theme and feel mainly through the language of music.

Full of light, lilting ditties like "Hoof on the Rail" and teary-eyed drama pieces including a fine rendition of the traditional "Wayfarin' Stranger," the disc sounds like a 1900s-era travelogue over icy terrain and through candlelit backstreet taverns. Or at least that's what I get out of it. One of the beauties of the Spag Co. is its open-endedness. It's the second full-length CD by Michael Rosetto's instrumental band, and it is celebrating with a party Saturday at the Cedar Cultural Center featuring a live choir and Fat Kid Wednesdays (8 p.m., $12-$15).

Also known for his great instrumental work, Cafe Accordion Orchestra leader Dan Newton takes off in another direction on his new solo CD, "Hi-Top Sneakers," which he's promoting Wednesday at the Varsity Theater (8 p.m., $10-$12). The album is a rootsy collection of original blues, rock and zydeco songs sung by Newton, including one called "The Yohnnie B. Goode Polka" that imagines Chuck Berry as a Minnesotan.

Random mix Small Towns Burn a Little Slower is calling it quits following two shows Saturday at the Triple Rock (6 and 10 p.m., $10). In its five-year run, the roaring emo-punk quintet developed one of the more dedicated followings among young local rock bands, and it did fairly well on tour, too, but the members are ready to move on to other things (including school and families). Their farewell album, which will be available at the show, is appropriately titled "So Begins the Test of a Man." ...

Because why mess with a good thing: Luke's Angels evoke more comparisons to excellent '80s/'90s women alt-rockers such as Throwing Muses and Jen Trynin on their second Jacques Wait-produced album, "Paulopolis" (get it?), which they're promoting Saturday at the Hexagon Bar (10 p.m., free). ... Also touting a CD at the Triple Rock on Friday, Haunted House is a charmingly oddball trio that got together in the studio in 2005 with Robert Skoro producing and a series of guest drummers, including Martin Dosh, Tim Glenn and Adrian Suarez. The resulting album sounds like Arcade Fire meets Wesley Willis. Singer/pianist Mike Watton says another album is already in the works. ...

How many shows can Bon Iver play in town before his album actually becomes available? The Wisconsinite, who packed the Turf Club last month, has a show Wednesday at the Electric Fetus in Minneapolis, which will shut down around 7 p.m. just for the gig. Fans can get into the performance by pre-purchasing "For Emma, Forever Ago" (but they won't get their copy until its Feb. 19 release date).

chrisr@startribune.com • 612-673-4658