Live: Music Picks Aug. 16-22 

Thursday 8.16
ANDROID LUST
Android Lust doesn’t quite know what to do with “this damn body of mine,” but one thing’s clear: “If I choose to be a cunt, the decision is mine to make. Do you understand?” Loud and clear. Lust, aka Bangladesh-born chanteuse Shikhee, doesn’t take orders from anyone. She makes love and music on her own terms, unleashing her sexy, scratchy voice to claw across lush electronic rock, hissing rage and desire with equal gusto. But even the most heated attacks are beautiful and somehow serene. Shikhee’s videos best explain this paradox, from The Cell-like imagery of “Dragonfly” to the visual ties that bind on “Stained,” she takes great pains to explain the inner workings of a very dark imagination. Love it or leave it and back off. Area 51, 451 S. 400 West, 9 p.m. Info: 534-0819

MICHAEL FRANTI, CHARLIE HUNTER TRIO
Charlie Hunter could have made like Flock of Seagulls, teased his hair and picked up a keytar. Instead, the child of the ’80s pursued a less trend-driven route, blazing new jazz-influenced trails with his eight-string guitar. Not surprisingly, Hunter is now a world-renowned artist whose imaginative compositions often sound like the work of two or three musicians. Often joined by a drummer, saxophonist, keyboardist and an assortment of backup musicians, he’s able to create giant sounds out of little more than pure talent and drive. Tonight, he’ll open for the ever-popular Michael Franti, back with more soul-inspiring, socially and politically conscious hip-hop/reggae/funk/soul/spoken word action. Gallivan Center, 239 S. Main, 7 p.m. All-ages. Free

• Also Thursday: Balmorhea (Nobrow Coffee & Tea); Bronwen Beecher (Alchemy Coffee); O.C. (Monk’s)

Friday 8.17
DR. JOHN
Canceled. What’s Dr. John up to these days, besides getting name-dropped in one of Patton Oswalt’s new jokes? Glad you asked. While still largely recognized for his 1973 hit “Right Place, Wrong Time,” the funky voodoo-soul singer/pianist continues to reinvent his sound and shake the English vernacular in ways no straight-and-narrow Joe could ever do. Lately, he’s busy making sure no one forgets about New Orleans—saints and sinners alike. Besides touring, the good doctor is also selling his drawers to benefit NOLA reconstruction efforts. Seriously. You can purchase the boxers, emblazoned by the Crescent City’s sewage system logo, at DrJohn.org. Now you know. Canceled

• Also Friday: Slippery Kittens, Pagan Love Gods (Bar Deluxe); Silent Fate (Club Vegas); Louis Osborne (The Hotel); I Am the Ocean (Broken Record); Voodoo Glow Skulls (Burt’s Tiki Lounge)

Saturday 8.18
•The Willkills (Avalon Theater); Skybox, The Future of the Ghost, Vile Blue Shades (Kilby Court); Red Rock Rondo (Ed Kenley Amphitheater, Layton); Tony Bennett (Deer Valley Resort, Park City); Poison, Ratt (Usana Amphitheatre); Bret Michaels After-Party (Club 90); C.C. DeVille After-Party (Huka Bar); Storytyme (Bar Deluxe); Pelican (Urban Lounge—see Music)

Sunday 8.19
• Bruce Hornsby, Carrie Rodriguez (Red Butte Garden); Pack of Wolves (Addicted Cafe); People Noise, The Heaters, Agape (Monk’s)

Monday 8.20
MICKEY AVALON
Details magazine recently called for a return of the Hollywood bad boy, lamenting the industry’s takeover by Lindsay, Britney, Paris and Nicole and their DUI, coke-snorting, jail-bound ways. Perhaps the authors should look not to actors, but to artists like Mickey Avalon—a down and dirty rapper with tight abs and loose morals. Avalon, whose hip-slung jeans are typically hung low enough to reveal a tattooed Thank You creeping toward his twigs and berries, led a hard-knock life until buddy Simon Rex (or should I say Sebastian? You remember him, right?) urged him to write about selling his body, buying rock and other street shenanigans. The result is delicious, crass lo-fi hip-hop with lyrics that hold no punches: “Looking out the window/ I can’t help but wonder, God must be one sick motherf—ker/ so I bust a nut in the sky/ spend another day waiting to die,” he says in a slutty drawl on “Waiting to Die,” like a less pretentious, more offensive XTC. Avalon Theater, 3605 S. State, 7 p.m. All-ages. Tickets: 24Tix.com

• Also Monday: Pack of Wolves, Red Pony Clock (Kilby Court); Chris Duarte (Bar Deluxe)

Tuesday 8.21
ROCK THE BELLS
I know it’s going down in a giant arena, but where else are you going to house all of these gigantic egos? No disrespect, for real. I’ve got nothing but love for hip-hop artists Wu-Tang Clan, Cypress Hill, Jedi Mind Tricks, Nas, David Banner, Talib Kweli, Pharoahe Monch, Immortal Technique and Supernatural, but they’ve got the skills to pay the bills and, man, do they know it! At Wu-Tang’s last Salt Lake City performance, the collective smoked giant blunts and invited all the ladies onstage for a little bump-and-grind because they can, so there. Never a dull moment with the Wu, especially when they’re debuting songs off their forthcoming album 8 Diagrams. So put your hands in the air and get ready for six-plus hours of tiger style (plus some potential post-show chick fights). Usana Amphitheater, 5600 S. 6200 West, 3 p.m. All-ages. Tickets: SmithsTix.com

• Also Tuesday: Donny Osmond (Abravanel Hall); Delta Nove (Monk’s); Iota, Lady Macbeth (Burt’s Tiki Lounge); Fountains of Wayne (The Depot—see Music)

Wednesday 8.22
• Uzi & Ari, The Eden Express, Johan the Angel (Kilby Court); Back Door Slam (Urban Lounge); Left Alone (Burt’s Tiki Lounge)

{::INSERTAD::}COMING UP
Calexico, French Kicks (Gallivan Center, Aug. 23); The Detroit Cobras, Dan Sartain (Urban Lounge, Aug. 24); David Wilcox (Holladay UCC, Aug. 24); Maps & Atlases, Barcelona (Kilby Court, Aug. 24); Sadat X of Brand Nubian (Urban Lounge, Aug. 24); Fetish Ball (Area 51, Aug. 25); Rotten Fux, All Systems Fail (Red Light Books, Aug. 25); Salt City Derby Girls Anniversary Party (Wood Shed, Aug. 25); Son Volt, Alejandro Escovedo (Red Butte Garden, Aug. 26); Medeski, Martin & Wood (Deer Valley Resort, Aug. 26); 2 Mex of Visionaries (Urban Lounge, Aug. 27); Subhumans (In the Venue, Aug. 28); Kittie (Avalon Theater, Aug. 29); Murder Junkies (Bar Deluxe, Aug. 29); Magnolia Electric Co. (Urban Lounge, Aug. 29); Skeletonwitch, Iota (Broken Record, Aug. 30); Sleepytime Gorilla Museum (Urban Lounge, Aug. 31)