WEDNESDAY, MARCH 3
Dervish The Irish sextet is so traditional in playing jigs and reels of the Emerald Isle that it's easy to overlook their contemporary flourish on that music. Dervish has been recording and performing for more than two decades, with deft instrumentation including flutes, mandocello, accordion, bones, fiddle and mandolin, and warm vocal treatments of long-beloved tunes as well as covers like Dylan's "Boots of Spanish Leather." It's this versatility that endears Dervish to lovers of tradition as well as new recruits. Great Aunt Stella Center (Samir Shukla)
THURSDAY, MARCH 4
The Terror Pigeon Dance Revolt Their music, unpeggable, their stage shows, Nutty with capital N. Call it soul-disco with a Zappa affliction. The ensemble has been making live performance waves in N.Y.C., where the word is that it's a no-holds-barred show, unrehearsed, party-infused, and funky with dime-store costumes. They've got a record coming out on David Byrne's Luaka Bop label, a high score in my book. But by all means, go see for yourself. With The Shakes and Human Pippi Armstrong. Milestone (Shukla)
FRIDAY, MARCH 5
Jackyl These AC/DC-Skynyrd wannabes actually went Platinum in the early '90s with their Geffen debut. Now they've morphed into a nostalgic "real deal rock" act with unintentionally hilarious titles like My Moonshine Kicks Your Cocaine's Ass, all the while still tilting at Cobain's ghost for ruining everybody's fun. And that's the flame they're keeping alive – or so they want you to believe. Look beyond the rock star snarls, chain saw gimmicks, and douche-y soul patches (no doubt mirrored by their stripper-GF's landing strips), and you'll see this is a business enterprise, period. The band's music/video-free Web site is actually a front for the biker bar the lead singer owns and the truTV "actuality" show shot there. The music? A lobotomy of cliché-riffs and South's Gonna Do It Again nonsense. With Swamp da Wamp. Amos' Southend (John Schacht)
Jenny Owen Youngs Any girl with an acoustic guitar may be quickly pigeon-holed into some folk singer's category that makes her a lot like every other girl with an acoustic guitar. This one is different though. How so? Well, she toured with Regina Spektor, so that has to give her some kind of indie cred. Then she had a song called "Fuck Was I" appear on the show Weeds. That doesn't sound like the typical cookie-cutter shit to me. The Evening Muse (Jeff Hahne)
SATURDAY, MARCH 6
Tommy Ray & The Ray Guns Definitely not your typical blast from the past. What we have here is greaser rock 'n' roll with raspy vocals and tattoos – think sock-hop meets Southern rock. Elvis-inspired microphone dips and big band swing "go baby, go" shout-outs seem to raise enthusiastic wails of approval from the crowd. Their sound is nowhere near terrible but they definitely bring a new twist to good ol' rock 'n' roll. If you're in the mood to shake your tail-feather, then bust out your poodle skirt and go baby, go. With Flathead Mike and The Mercury's. Puckett's Farm Equipment (Nicole Pietrantonio)
SUNDAY, MARCH 7
Scout Niblett The Nottingham native gets compared to Cat Power (cold) and PJ Harvey (warm), but her sparse-and-visceral blues-based meditations really sound cousin to the emotional catharses of Shannon Wright (warmer). Her sixth and latest, The Calcination of Scout Niblett was again produced by Steve Albini, and bears his trademark elemental guitar-friendly sonics. It's harrowing fare filled with confessional monsters that, as the title suggests, burns when you get too close. With Temperance League (formerly Bruce Hazel and Some Volunteers) and Hobo Nephews of Uncle Frank. Snug Harbor (Schacht)
MONDAY, MARCH 8
Strung Out Formed circa 1992, when punk was old and grunge was young, California punks Strung Out laid down rock ditties that influenced pop-punk expansion with their pop-kissed speedy numbers honed with sung vocals and hard guitars. The geezers are still bopping, ably kicking up dust and filling mosh pits. The lads' recent album title, Agents of the Underground, apparently remains a modus operandi as well. With Dropkick Murphys and Larry & His Flask. The Fillmore Charlotte (Shukla)
Dropkick Murphys It's getting close to St. Patty's Day, so where else would you rather be on this night, aside from getting hit in the face with a heavy dose of Celtic rock. The band hit the mainstream after "I'm Shipping Up to Boston" was featured in The Departed. Don't think of them as one-hit wonders though – only passers-by will like them for one song. Loyal fans have been loving them for more than a decade. The Fillmore Charlotte (Hahne)
TUESDAY, MARCH 9
Leatherface The missing link between the post-rock angularism of early '80s college rock and Lemmy Kilmister freight-train mondo metal, Sunderland, U.K.'s Leatherface has been called the thinking man's punk band, and with good reason. Singer Frankie Stubbs is a first-rate lyricist, never taking the easy rhyme (or, indeed, not rhyming at all) when a particularly delicious le mot juste or turn of phrase will do instead. The band's 1991 release Mush, while hardly well-known, has become a touchstone for a new generation of bands like The 400 Blows, Future of the Left, and Dillinger Four, which, sez here, is reason enough to warrant a trip to the venerable Ghetto Fortress. The Milestone (Timothy C. Davis)
