MEET THE NEW SLICKER, BIGGER-BUDGET ZOLA JESUS
Zola Jesus (aka Russian American vocalist/musician Nika Roza Danilova) is a diminutive figure with a robust, grandiose voice. She's 21st-century electronic music's answer to Siouxsie Sioux, although Ms. Jesus pours on the gothic melodrama a bit more thickly than did the Banshees' frontwoman. Taiga—Zola Jesus's 2014 album on indie powerhouse Mute Records—is, predictably, more accessible than her past works. Oh, it's still too weird for Top 40 radio, but the slicker production, propensity for ballads, and brighter melodic palette suggest a larger studio budget and label nudging to tone down her music's earlier dark strangeness. Taiga's songs are well-crafted, but one senses Zola Jesus may lose some longtime fans who love the pre-Mute output with her new direction. With Deradoorian and Golden Donna. Neptune Theatre, 8 pm, $16.50 adv/$18 DOS, all ages.
STUDIO 4/4 STARTS 2015 IN RAUNCHY PARTY MODE WITH JUSTIN JAY, AARON JACKSON
Studio 4/4 kicks off 2015 with LA tech-house producer Justin Jay, the youngest addition to the DirtyBird Records roster. That means he emphasizes the raunchy side of this 4/4 genre, which, as you know, can come off as a tad stoic and ominous (not that there's anything wrong with that). Anyway, JJ just wants y'all to get down and go wild on the dance floor, and he has the arsenal of sonic weapons to make that happen; check out his remix of DirtyBird boss Claude VonStroke's crunchy, funky house jam "Sugar & Cinnamon." You're probably gonna love Justin Jay. Eugene, Oregon's Aaron Jackson is renowned for his bass-oriented house productions and radically clever remixes of smash hits like Pharrell Williams's "Happy," Bell Biv DeVoe's "Poison," and Basement Jaxx's "Where's Your Head At." Jackson's another guy who will spur you to flex your party muscles to their full potential. With Mikey Mars and Swoon. Q Nightclub, 9 pm, $10, 21+.
ELECTRO DIVA NATASHA KMETO SET TO DECK YOU AS DJ GIGS
If you didn't know that rising Portland electro-torch singer Natasha Kmeto DJ'd in addition to producing, well, now you do. She goes under the name DJ Gigs, and this is her first time on the decks in Seattle, as far as I can gather. What little I've heard of her disc jockeying reveals an approach that's a bit more up-tempo than her low-lit, emotionally redolent R&B, accelerating into libidinous, vocal-centric house and techno. I've been predicting stardom for Kmeto and her burnished-gold pipes and deft beatmaking since 2012, and this could well be her breakout year; look for Kmeto's next full-length on Federal Prism soon. With Nordic Soul, Xan Lucero, and Mikey Mars. Re-bar, 10 pm, $10 adv, 21+. 
