THURSDAY 10/7
HELIO SEQUENCE
Ever heard that Modest Mouse’s hit Good News for People Who Like Bad News sounds a little like Helio Sequence? Singer-guitarist Brandon Summers and keyboardist-drummer Benjamin Weikel (who, coincidentally, played skins on Good News) have, but the Portland duo’s new Love & Distance (Sub Pop) doesn’t sound much like the Mouse, follow? L& ’s narcotic blend of psychedelia, electronica and Britannia is the result of “listening to a lot of pop, Dylan and Can.” Kilby Court, 741 S. 330 West, 7:30 p.m. All-ages. Info: 320-9887 (with Low Flying Owls).
Also Thursday: Roger Clyne & the Peacemakers (Suede).
FRIDAY 10/8
WALLS OF JERICHO
“I share my heartaches and grief, what makes me tick and what destroys me,” Walls of Jericho frontwoman Candace Kucsulian says of the Detroit hardcore band’s new All Hail the Dead (Trustkill). “I want to reach people who feel like they’re alone and give them a voice.” With brutal gut-punches like “Another Anthem for the Hopeless” and “There’s No I in F—k You,” All Hail could become a hardcore classic. Lo-Fi Café, 127 S. West Temple, 7 p.m. All-ages. Info: LoFiCafe.com (with Bleeding Through, Martyr A.D. and It Dies Today).
THE BLOODY LOVELIES
Heavily steeped in the Beatles, Bowie and Ben (Folds), Los Angeles’ Bloody Lovelies are a casual pop geek’s wet dream—same goes for their debut, Some Truth and a Little Money (Cheap Lullaby). Singer-pianist Randy Wooten has the Thin White Duke’s vocal sneer down, and the Lovelies’ so-veddy-British guitar/piano attack and king-size hooks crackle like Supergrass watered down with low-carb beer. Nothing blazingly original, but try not singing “A Million Years From Now” once you hear it. Halo, 60 E. 800 South, 9:30 p.m. Info: 363-4522.
Also Friday: Eric Johnson (Suede).
SATURDAY 10/9
OLD 97’S
What have Dallas alt-country survivors Old 97’s been up to between 2001’s Satellite Rides and the new Drag It Up (New West)? Frontman Rhett Miller obviously fired his barber, but beyond that, Drag It Up marks a return to the band’s simpler roots: “We’ve settled in with what we do best—solid writing and performances,” guitarist Ken Bethea says. “I think we’re finally mature enough to trust the machine that is now our band.” In the Venue, 579 W. 200 South, 7:30 p.m. All-ages. Tickets: 800-888-8499.
Also Saturday: Baby Anne (Vortex); Fruit (Mo Diggity’s); Hammer Smith Band (Hog Wallow Pub).
SUNDAY 10/10
Orgy (The Ritz); Soulive (Velvet Room).
MONDAY 10/11
EARLIMART
“Most of the record is about Elliott Smith,” Earlimart singer-guitarist Aaron Espinoza says of Treble & Tremble (Palm Pictures), the trio’s fourth album. “I lived about 10 feet from his house. He was incredibly intelligent, really kind and a genius musically.” As a tribute to the late songwriter, Treble & Tremble has its own flashes of musical genius, drawing raves from in the national press for its breathy, not-quite-emo guitar pop and aching melodies. Kilby Court, 741 S. 330 West, 7:30 p.m. All-ages. Info: 320-9887.
Also Monday: The Toasters (Velvet Room); John Lee Hooker Jr. (Sound); Chris Whitley (Suede).
TUESDAY 10/12
GIFT OF GAB
A month ago we were asking, “Where’s the new album from Los Angeles hip-hop duo Blackalicious?” No answer came, but a solo debut from emcee Gift of Gab did: Fourth Dimensional Rockets Going Up (Quannum), a dead-solid, positive-focused set of deep-bass grooves and rapid-fire rhymes that easily makes up for the (hopefully, temporary) lack of new Blackalicious output. Suede, 1612 Ute Blvd. (Kimball Junction), Park City, 9 p.m. Info: 435-658-2665.
Also Tuesday: Captured By Robots (Burt’s Tiki Lounge); U.K. Subs (Lo-Fi Café); Hopesfall (In the Venue).
WEDNESDAY 10/13
RACHAEL YAMAGATA
We’re barely over the old one, but Spin is already referring to Chicago’s Rachael Yamagata as the new Norah Jones. Oversimplified girl-with-piano comparisons aside, Yamagata’s debut album, Happenstance (Arista), is admittedly ripe with sultry jazz-pop slink, but also has a subliminal swing to it, something formerly singing backup in a funk band instilled. “That taught me to pick up the pace,” she told Rolling Stone. “That’s why my songs don’t become those piano ballads that put everyone to sleep.” Liquid Joe’s, 1249 E. 3300 South, 9:30 p.m. (with Tom McRae).
Also Wednesday: Agents, Numbs (Union Patio, U of U); Dope (The Ritz); Captured By Robots (Urban Lounge).
COMING UP
Blood Brothers (Lo-Fi Café, Oct. 14). Badly Drawn Boy (In the Venue, Oct. 16). Ember Swift (Mo Diggity’s, Oct. 16). Drive-By Truckers (Oct. 18). P.J. Harvey (In the Venue, Oct. 19). Brian Jonestown Massacre (Urban Lounge, Oct. 19). Les Claypool (Velvet Room, Oct. 21). The Cramps (Sound, Oct. 24). Legendary Shack Shakers (Halo, Oct. 26). RJD2 (Egos, Oct. 27). Coheed & Cambria (In the Venue, Oct. 27). Jimmy Eat World (McKay Events Center, Oct. 27). Metal Church (Burt’s Tiki Lounge, Oct. 27). Helmet (In the Venue, Nov. 1). Kittie, Otep (The Ritz, Nov. 6).