Chicago-based experimental indie-rock act Maps & Atlases celebrates new music with a tour stop 7 p.m. Nov. 1 at ACM@UCO Performance Lab, 329 E. Sheridan Ave., in Bricktown. The show, supporting the band’s July release of “Lightlessness is Nothing New,” also features Oklahoma City experimental funk-rock quartet Magic Munchbox.

The concert is part of the Academy of Contemporary Music at the University of Central Oklahoma’s (ACM@UCO) continuing Metro Music Series celebrating the school’s 10th anniversary. Tickets are $10, available at eventbrite.com. (See our current list of Metro Music Series performances below!)

The Nov. 1 event also marks the last opportunity to see Maps & Atlases in an intimate setting before it heads out on tour supporting Coheed and Cambria.

The title of the band’s new album, “Lightlessness is Nothing New,” foreshadows an emotionally and musically dynamic collection of songs that contemplate the jolt of loss and the strain of longing to music that, against our better judgment, makes us want to dance. The record, the band’s first since 2012’s “Beware and Be Grateful,” finds frontman Dave Davison reckoning with the loss of his father and the emotional distances between light and dark.

“Now a trio, Maps & Atlases connect the roller-coaster guitar fretting and weighted timbres of their earlier albums with frenetic synth touches,” Pitchfork reviewer Amanda Wicks says of “Lightnessness is Nothing New.” “The polished result is their most accessible album to date, touching on Peter Gabriel’s fizzy pop proclivities and reaching for TV on the Radio’s early grandness.”

In the brooding-yet-playful vein of Talking Heads or Peter Gabriel, Maps embraces the paradox of what it is to be human — constantly searching and, forever unsatiated, returning with everlasting hope to the ever-darkening fray. The deceptively upbeat “Lightlessness is Nothing New,” released July 1, unveils a gorgeous, complex, slightly skewed take on pop music.

Featured in this Metro Music Series event is opening act Magic Munchbox, a Frank Zappa-meets-Herb Alpert experimental, progressive funk-rock quartet from Oklahoma City and Guthrie. The ACM@UCO-tied band includes a student and alumnus in its lineup: Gilson Machtolff on guitar, skeeter on guitar, Michael Vaughan on bass and Robby Andersen on drums.

ACM@UCO’s Metro Music Series is sponsored by Oklahoma Gazette, Exchange Music, KOSU Radio, ArtWorks, the National Endowment for the Arts and the Oklahoma Arts Council.

For more information about ACM@UCO, visit acm.uco.edu.

About ACM@UCO Metro Music Series

The 2018-2019 school year marks ACM@UCO’s tenth anniversary. To celebrate, it expanded its long-running Metro Music Festival into a yearlong event. The revamped Metro Music Series includes the High Noon Showcase, presenting free shows by ACM@UCO-tied music acts and tastemakers; its ACM@UCO Performance Lab series by regional and national touring acts; and a growing roster of masterclasses, clinics and workshops with industry leaders, many of which are open to students and the public.

Stay tuned to the Performance Lab at facebook.com/acmucoperformancelab and ACM@UCO @acmuco for updates and announcements about even more concerts and events!

 

Metro Music Series: High Noon Showcases

ACM@UCO Songwriting Room, 25 S. Oklahoma Ave. (first floor), in Bricktown.
All shows begin at 12:15 p.m.
Public welcome.
Free admission.

Oct. 15: Trevor Lindley as M E L T

Oct. 22: Johnny Manchild

Nov. 19: Sam Weber

 

Metro Music Series: ACM@UCO Performance Lab concerts

329 E. Sheridan Ave., in Bricktown.
Doors open 7 p.m. unless noted.
Public welcome.
Tickets at eventbrite.com.

Oct. 10: Mipso, with Jason Scott

Oct. 27: Ester Drang, Husbands, Tallows music release show

Nov. 1: Maps & Atlases, with Magic Munchbox

Nov. 7: Molly Burch, with Seph(ra)

Nov. 14: Mac DeMarco (solo), with Leotie

Nov. 18: Current Joys, with Love Seats and The Lunar Laugh (acoustic)

Nov. 30: Colourmusic album release show, with openers TBA

 

Metro Music Series: Masterclasses, clinics and listening sessions

ACM@UCO, 25 S. Oklahoma Ave. (first floor), in Bricktown.
Public welcome unless otherwise noted.
Free admission.

Oct. 10: Mipso Q&A clinic (open to ACM students)

Oct. 17: Noon: Listening session with ACM@UCO faculty David Broyles (They Might Be Giants, “Lincoln”)

Oct. 24: 2 p.m.: Listening session with ACM@UCO faculty Dustin Ragland (Halloween, Alaska, “All Night the Calls Came In”)

Oct. 31: 2 p.m.: Listening session with ACM@UCO faculty Sephra Scheuber (Dirty Projectors, “Dirty Projectors”)

Nov. 5: 2 p.m.: Listening session with ACM@UCO Executive Director Scott Booker (Supertramp, “Breakfast in America,” 8-track)

Nov. 7: Molly Burch Q&A clinic (open to ACM students)

Nov. 18: Current Joys Q&A clinic (open to ACM students)

Nov. 26: 2 p.m.: Listening session with ACM@UCO faculty Danny Hargis (Steely Dan, “Aja”)

Nov. 28: 2 p.m.: Listening session with ACM@UCO faculty Tyler Garcia (Third Eye Blind, “Third Eye Blind”)

Dec. 3: 2 p.m.: Listening session with ACM@UCO staff Jennifer Chancellor (DJ BC: “The Beastles: Ill Submarine”)