THURSDAY 4/14
MELISSA FERRICK
Wow, talk about D.I.Y.—Melissa Ferrick wrote, recorded, produced and engineered The Other Side, an album thick with triumphant folk rock. Her classical roots, beginning with Suzuki lessons at age 12 and continuing through two years each at the prestigious Berklee College of Music and the New England Conservatory of Music, mix well with more modern sensibilities. People like to compare her to Ani DiFranco—she’s fierce and outspoken!—but while the similarities are there, Ferrick’s talents extend beyond “as good as.” How many record labels have you started? Mo Diggity’s, 3424 S. State, 8 p.m. Info: 832-9000.
ROGER CLYNE & P.H. NAFFAH
While The Refreshments’ legacy won’t likely transcend “that band behind King of the Hill’s catchy theme song,” chances are good former frontman Roger Clyne’s solo project will make a deeper impression. Clyne, along with fellow Peacemakers P.H. Naffah, Steve Larson and Danny White, threads narrative yarns across Southwestern harmonies just meaty enough to matter. Their latest album, !Americano!, is best consumed with a shot of Patron—a swift kick in the pants you’ll neither regret nor forget in the morning. The Velvet Room, 149 W. 200 South, 8:30 p.m. Tickets: 800-888-8499.
Also Thursday: Radar Bros. (Kilby Court); Underoath (Lo-Fi Café); Steve Poltz (Egos); Tucker Rountree (Port O’ Call); NoMeansNo (Burt’s Tiki Lounge)
FRIDAY 4/15
SNOOP DOGG, THE GAME
With pungent weed smoke settled and bitter feuds forgotten, is there any spice left to Snoop Dogg or The Game? For shizz … never mind. Sure, the latter recently kissed and made up with suburban Connecticut’s man of the hour, 50 Cent, but you know he’s got beef with someone. And yes, Snoop ditched Mary Jane for youth soccer games, but his signature drawl maintains the sound of misbehavin.’ If that doesn’t persuade you, check out newcomer Oowee, also appearing with tonight’s “How the West Was One” tour. The 19-year-old Snoop protégé is earning mad street cred for being “the real deal.” Word. E Center, 3200 S. Decker Lake Dr., 7:30 p.m. All-ages. Tickets: 800-888-8499.
MAKTUB
Reggie Watts commands audiences with a voice like John Wesley Harding performing Al Green standards. The Maktub frontman’s soulful chords are revered throughout the Northwest, particularly in Seattle where his quintet first honed innovative chops. Watts, along with Kevin Goldman, Davis Martin, Alex Veley and Daniel Spils, were the 2002 recipients of Seattle Weekly’s Best Band award and have been staying on top ever since. Their latest release, Say What You Mean, nods to a slew of mixed influences from Prince to De La Soul to Sly Stone. In other words, smooth and solid like a milk chocolate Easter bunny. The Velvet Room, 149 W. 200 South, 8:30 p.m. Tickets: 800-888-8499.
EVIL BEAVER
In the tradition of fine, freewheelin’ women like Wendy O. Williams comes Evie Evil, half of rock duo Evil Beaver. The Chicago-based artist, along with new partner Garry Beaver, jolts listeners into her crass and abrasive world. It’s a place where nothing is subtle. A place where blood-dripping text announces Pleased to Eat You’s colorful track listing; where Evil’s sultry snarl is equally disarming and alluring. The pair’s tag-team talents have dominated performances with the Bellrays, Le Tigre, Nina Hagen (!) and the White Stripes. To top it all off, their sound is all based on the super-minimal setup of bass and drums (a la Death From Above 1979, whom we haven’t mentioned for weeks). Urban Lounge, 241 S. 500 East, 9:30 p.m. Info: 746-0557.
Also Friday: Phoenix, Dogs Die in Hot Cars (In the Venue); Jean Mann (Sugarbeats); Faun Fables (Halo); Voodoo Organist (Burt’s Tiki Lounge); Tucker Rountree (The Bayou)
SATURDAY 4/16
HAL KETCHUM
Everything’s coming up Millhouse in Hal Ketchum’s world. The award-winning singer-songwriter, whose battle with a neurological disorder similar to multiple sclerosis actually strengthened his country twang, has little to complain about. He’s still stoked on the love of a good woman, his third wife Gina, the inspiration behind Ketchum’s fifth Curb Records release, Lucky Man. This first CD of songs since 1998 features more of his trademark, roots-based hits guaranteed to keep the man on top. Peery’s Egyptian Theater, 2415 Washington Blvd., Ogden, 7:30 p.m. All-ages. Info: 801-395-3227.
THE WONDER STUFF
Martin Gilks and Martin Bell, along with Stuart Quinnell and Peter Whitaker, apparently want nothing to do with Miles Hunt. Their former friend and bandmate resurrected cult-fave British alt-pop band The Wonder Stuff, hired a new lineup, put out 2004’s Escape From Rubbish Island and started touring America. Unlike Audioslave or Velvet Revolver, Hunt refused to abandon the British group’s original name, a move that helped further longstanding tensions brewing since their 1988 dissolution. Tension notwithstanding, Hunt and his new posse are gathering praise for their musical tirade against the U.K. In the Venue, 579 W. 200 South, 8 p.m. All-ages. Tickets: 800-888-8499.
SUNDAY 4/17
The Good Life (Kilby Court); Kreator (Lo-Fi Café); Built Like Alaska (Monk’s)
MONDAY 4/18
Eddie Palmeri (Sheraton City Center)
TUESDAY 4/19
Slipknot (E Center); The Independents (Burt’s Tiki Lounge); Glen Phillips (In the Venue)
WEDNESDAY 4/20
Steve Vai (In the Venue); From Ashes Rise (Lo-Fi Café); Long-View (Urban Lounge); Hit & Run Bluegrass (Velvet Room); Weathered (Egos)
COMING UP
Kings of Leon (In the Venue, April 22). Velvet Revolver (E Center, April 25). M. Ward (Kilby Court, April 26). Moby (In the Venue, April 27). DJ Rap (Velvet Room, April 27). The Used (In the Venue, April 29-30). Victor Wooten (Velvet Room, April 30). The Killers, Tegan & Sara (Kingsbury Hall, May 2). Jimmy Eat World, Taking Back Sunday (E Center, May 2). Mercury Rev, Doves (Sound, May 8). Mudvayne (In the Venue, May 11). Keane (Abravanel Hall, May 12). And You Will Know Us By the Trail of Dead (Lo-Fi Café, May 15). Zepperella: Female Led Zeppelin Tribute (Egos, May 21). Queens of the Stone Age (In the Venue, May 23).