Eddie Vedder at Auditorium Theater – With the Cubs as the hottest ticket in Chicago … nay … entire National League … nay … all of baseball, catching one of two solo gigs by the Pearl Jam front man and north side fan boy might be the only chance to see the bellowing rock star. Bandwagon celebs have been lining up to sing the “7th Inning Stretch” at Wrigley Field this year, and Vedder’s reoccurring slot could get given away on this homestand to some Cubbie Come Lately. Seeing the singer in the booth belting out “Take Me Out to the Ballgame” as per his usual Windy City tour dates isn’t a guarantee this time around, and you might have to put the Old Style down and venture back into an actual rock club to catch him.

J Davis Trio at Abbey Pub – Combining witty phrases and socially sarcastic quips over jazz-fused beats, Chicago’s neo-soul mainstays will fill the air with smoky vibes and cooler-than-you rhythms that flow straight out of the 1960’s beat poet movement.

Koufax at Bottom Lounge – The gorgeous, re-located venue on near Union Park keeps rebuilding a name for itself, this time around booking the quirky indie-pop this Kansas guitar outfit. With hard-hitting guitars only overshadowed by the band’s driving percussions and stick-to-your-shoe choruses, the group takes a slight step toward absurdist structures on its upcoming release, Strugglers.

For all the great shows that come to a city the size of Chicago, there are just as many discouraging ones, and every once in a while you’ll get a night like this that features shows by Bow Wow, Foreigner, Jonas Brothers and Backstreet Boys. If you’re thinking about investing in an expensive set of earplugs, this might be the day to plunk down some cash and make the purchase.

It’s Monday; who needs to party on a Monday? Stay home. You’re mother was right; you don’t have to go out every night of the week. Take some time out of your busy schedule and write her a card to tell her you finally see where she was coming from. Then tell her you’ve been suffering from crippling cases of déjà vu.

If you think this week was a slow week for Chicago gigs, just wait until you see the standstill ahead for next week. This might be as good of time as any to embark on a two-week roadtrip. But don’t make it too exhausting, because once the first week of September rolls around MC Chris, Andrew Bird, Xiu Xiu, Lewis Black, Joe Pug, Sons and Daughters, GZA, Maps & Atlases, Tricky and Spiritualized will all be here in the span of seven days. Don’t let the last two weeks of August fool you; this city still can blow the speakers off of other zip codes’ rock schedules.