Mt. Egypt

What do Willie Nelson and Wayne Coyne of the Flaming Lips have in common? Besides resin-caked brainstems, both legends have handpicked the same unknown singer-songwriter as an opening act: Travis Graves, otherwise known as Mt. Egypt. And while his upcoming sophomore disc, Perspectives, is already sparking up a buzz on iTunes, he still isn't half as lauded as he deserves to be. Akin to Leonard Cohen bruising The Shins, Graves' downcast, elegantly adorned songs shine like cracked gems, simultaneously damaged and humbly triumphant. Mt. Egypt is performing at the Big Fish Pub with labelmates Simon Dawes and Nicky P. as part of the small-scale Get in the Van tour. It'll be a far cry from appearances on a massive stage with Nelson and Coyne, but hopefully Graves' association with such famous patrons will wear off on him soon. If not, his music alone is more than riveting enough to do the trick.