Teenage Prayers

9 p.m. Wednesday, May 13. The Wedge, 442 Bates Street.

By Annie Zaleski on Wed, May 6, 2009 at 4:00 am

Teenage Prayers

314-351-1200.

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What makes the Teenage Prayers different from countless other soul-drenched rock bands out there? Hint: It's not just its famous fans — like blues legend Solomon Burke, who produced an early song, and rocker Steve Wynn, who's produced and collaborated with the NYC band. The act's organ-fueled melodies, wobbly-glam riffs and anguished vocals — think a sober Isaac Brock doing David Bowie karaoke — are a tad unsure and wholly unpolished, making songs such as "Center of the World" and "Annihilation" honest expressions of a wounded heart. And like the creative output of Wynn and the Hold Steady (which have both played gigs with the Teenage Prayers) last year's Everyone Thinks You're The Best contains no pretense — just loving homages to gritty classic rock and scratchy soul 45s.