Center Stage: The Bobs, Bob Malone

at McCabe’s, 1/22, 7 p.m. Without any musical instruments, Grammy winners The Bobs use their “vocal acrobatics” to replicate everything from a full orchestra to a rock band. Like some sort of chorale comedy troupe, they manage to pull off classics like Duke Ellington’s “Caravan” and The Doors’ “Light My Fire” with such silliness and skill that you’ll find yourself chuckling as you rub your eyes and look for the instruments. In an era where people tend to take themselves so seriously, they lose sight of such basic things as humor and playfulness, The Bobs bring us back to our childhood antics of air guitar and blowing air through the lips as if playing an imaginary horn. The only difference is that what comes out of their play instruments actually sounds like the real thing. If intelligence in animals is measured by playfulness, perhaps we need a band like The Bobs once in a while to deliver us from the reptilian, promote the silly, and simply have some good old fashioned mammalian fun. 3101 Pico Blvd., Santa Monica, CA, (310) 828-4497, www.thebobs.com.