Music: Day of Music: Top 10

It sounds like a Hallmark card slogan, but at least once a year in Minneapolis it rings true: Music can bring people together.

That annual reminder comes in the form of the Macy's Day of Music, a 24-hour showcase of Minnesota musicians from dozens of genres that attracts an even wider array of music lovers to the unbeatable downtown location(s), inside and outside Orchestra Hall.

A couple of vivid memories from the previous six Days of Music exemplify its great get-together value. During the second one (2002), I remember watching a quintet of AARP-aged ladies dance like girls gone wild to Iffy (ah, Iffy ... where have ye gone?!).

Then last year, rough-hewn acoustic-blues hero Charlie Parr performed inside the pristine hall, where he told a story about a guy who skinned weasels and carried an enormous pistol. Some blue-haired elderly couples there to get an early seat for the orchestra seemed as enamored of Parr -- albeit shocked -- as was I, as were the young punks in front of me who hung skateboards over the seats. Gave new meaning to "Roll Over Beethoven."

This year's lineup -- more than 40 acts on Friday and Saturday -- could produce plenty more memories like these, especially among these performers:

1 Wishbook (5-6 p.m. Fri., Peavey Plaza North) The four members of this earnest, Death Cab-leaning pop-rock band used to play together as Cowboy Curtis. Since that group's demise, they've joined countless other acts, including Ben Kweller and Mason Jennings (in the case of bassist Chris Morrissey) and 12 Rods and Halloween, Alaska (guitarist Jake Hanson). If it's not yet apt to call them an all-star band, it could be soon.

2 Davina & the Vagabonds (6-7 p.m. Fri., Peavey Plaza South) Jazzy piano plunker Alicia Wiley made a bigger name for herself in Peavey Plaza a few years back, and I predict Davina Sowers could have a similarly strong showing. The Southern-styled Florida transplant -- already a mainstay at area blues venues and events -- has a powerful, pretty-on-the-inside voice like Wiley's, and an impressive band to boot.

4 'Round Midnight with George Maurer (11 p.m. Fri.,-1 a.m. Sat., Orchestra Hall) Another "Boooo!" to nixing the post-orchestra rock-band slot inside (Low shimmered in this slot in past years), but this late-night jazz set should suffice. Innovative pianist Maurer lined up a 16-member ensemble to match the size of the stage.

5 Black Blondie (12:15 a.m. Sat., Orchestra Hall lobby) A nearly all-female, instrumental hip-hop group performing its artfully mish-mashed, bombastic songs in the lobby of an orchestra's concert hall -- what's unusual about that? Everything.

The Owls (4-5 p.m. Fri., Orchestra Hall) The coed somber-pop quartet -- darlings of local critics and Current/89.3 FM DJs -- needs no introduction. But they might sound newly minted when their ornate harmonies meet the hall's impeccable acoustics.

Charanga Tropical (5-6:45 p.m. Fri., WCCO-TV Plaza) This sizzling salsa/cha-cha big band led by Cuban-trained saxophonist Doug Little has become a Day of Music mainstay, and there's a reason why. On a hot summer day, no one else can make downtown Minneapolis feel so much like South Beach, Miami.

Minnesota Orchestra (8-10 p.m. Fri., Orchestra Hall) I don't know much about this band, but I hear it rocks. Get there early to get a seat. This year's set will close with Tchaikovsky's Symphony No. 5, a hit from the '80s (1880s).

Jumbo Ya-Ya (1-2 p.m. Sat., Peavy Plaza North) Like Charanga Tropical's salsa music, this zydeco/Cajun band led by accordion guru and "Prairie Home" vet Dan Newton is perfectly suited to the hot outdoor setting and Peavey Plaza's roomy dance floor (which doubles as a fountain).

Summer of Romantica As if more proof were needed that he has the busiest band in town this summer, Romantica frontman Ben Kyle was headed out the door to a noontime gig at the University of Minnesota when I called him Tuesday morning. Saturday's St. John Block Party in Rochester and Sunday's Bastille Day bash outside Barbette in Uptown Minneapolis cap off a summer of festivals, patio gigs, you name it, for the band. Kyle's green blood even landed them a slot at next month's Irish Fair.

"We decided not to do any tours this summer, and we wound up getting a lot of invites here in town," Kyle happily reported. "Summer gigs are nice, because you wind up playing to people who don't often make it out to the clubs."

While gas prices have kept many a band off the road, Romantica also wanted to strike the iron while it's sizzling and start working on the follow-up to last year's well-received sophomore disc, "America." Said Kyle, "We're really excited about it. Hopefully, we can start recording before summer's out."

Don't count on it.

The 12-track collection -- produced by local drum vet Peter Anderson at Flowers Studio -- strips away some of the overpowering guitar drone that defines FCAP's live shows (especially since Bridge Club's Joe Werner joined the band). The upside of that is you can better hear the "Surrealistic Pillow"-like, back-and-forth sparring from singers Liam Watkins and Carin Barno in nuggets like "Muse" and the seven-minute "Green Turns Gold." The downside is that the massive guitar sound sure is missed at times, although not in the Jesus & Mary Chain-sounding thriller "Like a Fire."

Random mix Another band that's been around a while without a proper album, Action vs. Action also has a CD party -- Saturday at the Triple Rock -- for its debut, "Sentimental City." The disc was produced by Darren Jackson, whose Hopefuls also play Saturday. At times it alternately recalls Cheap Trick, Everclear and Social Distortion (a fun if unlikely mix). ...

Sick of Sarah apparently took the "Laverne & Shirley" theme to heart in Milwaukee last week. The all-female rock quintet won the Emerging Artist Award at the city's gigantic Summerfest (where, no surprise, Romantica also played). Winners were voted on via text messages, which more or less means nobody over 40 was allowed to vote. That's another feather in the cap for SoS as the Aug. 12 release date nears for its debut on L.A.-based Adamant Records. ...

After a seven-month hiatus that we'll just chalk up to a corporate hiccup, Jason Nagel's "Minnesota Music" show returns to Cities 97 (97.1 FM) on Sunday at 10 p.m. The first show is an all-covers playlist. Nagel expects to be spinning new tracks within a few weeks.

chrisr@startribune.com • 612-673-4658