Miracle Condition

Photographs: Courtesy Of Miracle Condition

The Glasslands Gallery; Sat 26
Union Pool; Sun 27

As fun as a good old reunion can be, it’s a deeper pleasure when longtime collaborators repurpose their energies. Chicago’s Miracle Condition features guitarist Mark Shippy and drummer Pat Samson, formerly of U.S. Maple, one of the most genuinely peculiar bands of the ’90s. While that outfit plied slinky, queasy noise rock, this trio favors tranced-out beauty. Shippy’s penchant for creepy dissonance remains, but he and fellow guitarist-singer Matt Carson stretch out over Samson’s loose-limbed vamps, yielding dreamlike yet ominous textures. Likely to amplify those moods are Miracle Condition’s collaborators for its first local shows: ambient sound artist Jeffrey M. Robinson and former Jesus Lizard frontman David Yow. The latter seemed restless at a recent gig by his new band, Qui, but it’s hard to imagine him not drawing inspiration from players as poised and eccentric as these.

—Hank Shteamer