ARTS Pick: M. Ward

Indie-rock poster boy M. Ward touts his new record, More Rain, as a doo-wop effort that offers collaboration with Neko Case, k.d. lang, Peter Buck, The Secret Sisters and NRBQ’s Joey Spampinato. The songwriter is frequently on the playlist through his work with others, be it his side project She & Him with Zooey Deschanel or the supergroup Monsters of Folk. Ward recently lent his talent to Mavis Staples, producing her album Livin’ on a High Note, and penning a few of the tracks, even sharing songwriting credit with Martin Luther King Jr. on “MLK Song.”

Saturday 4/30. $20-23, 8pm. The Jefferson Theater, 110 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. 245-4980.

Free news is good news!

Nearly $1 million a year goes into the work you’re reading—covering local government, spotlighting the arts, and telling the stories no one else does. If you value that, help fund it for $10 a month (or whatever tax-deductible gift you can afford). Save the free word.