THURSDAY 5/9

THE CRIPPLES, THE PULSES, A-FRAMES
(Crocodile) The synth-driven Cripples are one of Seattle's most fun live bands, and their Dirtnap LP oughta get them a lot of deserved attention. The Pulses have been playing around town for a couple of years, and their sound is colored by mod, garage, new wave, and late-'70s-era Stiff Records stuff--gruff smartguy pop. Their brief, catchy songs build around guitarist Jesse's rapid, scratchy riffs and the punchy rhythm section of Kinks/Who-maniac Dave Ramm and ex-Fallout Shannon McConnell, probably the best bassist in Seattle. For a while every A-Frames set was like a greatest-hits LP, one song after another of perfectly constructed, instantly memorable tunes like "Hostage Crisis" and "(You're So) Chemical." Lately they've been throwing in a few new ones that have a lulling, repetitive quality that draws you in only to have guitarist Erin hit you in the face with some of the most beautifully jarring guitar-squall since Bob 1 on Devo's "Blockhead." At times they might recall the Fall, Urinals, the Monks, or Australia's X, but their sound is really their own. HEATH HEEMSBERGEN

THE CRANES, FOR STARS, TAGGING SATELLITES
(Graceland) Over the past decade, the brother/sister combo the Cranes have created a body of work that is hauntingly beautiful and truly spooky. Allison Shaw's childlike vocals are gorgeously unsettling, particularly showcased as they are by a musical background that manages to seem both stark and inviting. It's what you'd imagine music created by ghosts would sound like--full of shadows and after-images, whispers and longing. The Cranes sound pretty but also a little terrifying--all in the best possible way. San Francisco minimalists For Stars and Seattle's own Tagging Satellites round out the bill, promising a night of perfectly matched mood music. BARBARA MITCHELL


FRIDAY 5/10

THE GOSSIP, THE CHROMATICS, THE CHARMING SNAKES
(Sit & Spin) See preview this issue.

SUPER FURRY ANIMALS, BOBBY KARATE
(Graceland) Trying to describe the Super Furry Animals' sound is as impossible as attempting to pronounce the band members' very Welsh names. Their latest album skitters from the hazy psychedelia of "Sidewalk Serfer Girl" to the summery Beach Boys-influenced sing-along pop of "(Drawing) Rings Around the World" to the laid-back near-soul of "It's Not the End of the World" without missing a beat. Radiohead would do well to take notes--the Super Furries manage to pull off being artsy and left-of-center without coming off as pretentious or sacrificing songwriting for studio tricks. (Just try getting the chorus to "Sidewalk Serfer Girl" out of your head....) It'd be worth paying the price of admission just to experience the songs themselves, but the band's known for funneling its revenue back into creating elaborate stage shows--which makes this a night of music you won't want to miss. BARBARA MITCHELL

MIDNIGHT OIL, WILL HOGE
(Moore) I don't know much about the new Midnight Oil CD, Capricornia. And to be honest I don't believe it's that important. Midnight Oil is a band of one moment, and that moment happened 13 years ago, at the end of the Reagan regime. Without the cold Soviets, the stupid American presidents (Reagan, Bush), the imminence of global annihilation, and a Third World that's exhausted by treacherous Cold War exercises, you don't have the proper setting for the political pop-rock songs on Diesel and Dust. The only reason to watch this show is to relive that moment when our beds were burning, and the whole world was about to change (Diesel and Dust was released in 1988, the Berlin Wall came down in 1989). Accepted, they are going to play their new Capricornia songs, but if you yell hard enough they'll have to relent and give us what we really want: our burning beds and Arctic worlds. CHARLES MUDEDE

ACCEPTANCE, .MONEEN., FLYING OR FALLING, GATSBY'S AMERICAN DREAM
(Old Fire House) I haven't heard a full-length release from either Acceptance or Gatsby's American Dream (hint, hint boys), but after hearing a couple songs from each on a Rocketstar Recordings sampler, I can guarantee that kids will be out en masse tonight. Their young energy and lack of bad, bitter attitudes is refreshing and fun. Although they may not be breaking down rock barriers across America with a new sound, their songs are still catchy and sing-alongable. And well, maybe I am a sucker for the young and naive, heartbroken type, but that's not a bad thing. (It's not like I'm old enough to be their mother at the "ripe" age of 21.) I haven't seen 'em, I haven't heard much of 'em, but to me, both bands seem simply adorable. I guess we'll find out for sure tonight. MEGAN SELING


SATURDAY 5/11

SASHA & JOHN DIGWEED
(5050 Building) British DJs Sasha and John Digweed are mood engineers. They make mixes and compilations and perform live sets that produce specific atmospheres for beat-sensitive trancers. This is what techno and house compilations are essentially about: forming from a series of rare records one distinct emotion (or stimmung). Sasha and John Digweed have the reputation of being the best at this kind of thing, with Sasha being into lyrical and lush moods and Digweed into darker, post-apocalyptic moods, as exampled by his compilations Honk Kong and Global Underground: LA. I personally prefer John Digweed, but most dancers and techno freaks tend to favor Sasha. Whatever the case, these guys are superstars in their field, and if you have a passion for trance dancing, their set should not be missed. CHARLIES MUDEDE

BICYCLE, JOHN OSZAJCA, THE TRACHTENBURG FAMILY SLIDE SHOW PLAYERS, CHARLES HERMAN-WURMFELD
(EMP) How cute is this? The Seattle rock band Bicycle is leading a pack of rockers and roadies while they all partake on a 500-mile Northwest tour--get this--to be traveled by bike. Joining the band on their 11 days of awkward-seated fun are Seattle's favorite family rock band the Trachtenberg Family Slide Show Players, John Oszajca, and the director of Kissing Jessica Stein, Charles Herman-Wurmfeld (who just so happens to also be a "performance artist"). The group will be giving their butts a rest tonight as they climb off their bikes and onto the stage at the Sky Church for a mere 10 bucks a head. I guess touring by bike saves on gas money. Maybe someone will play Queen's "Bicycle Race": "I want to ride my bicycle/I want to ride my bike/I want to ride my bicycle/I want to ride it where I like." That'd be hilarious. MEGAN SELING

DANIEL MENCHE, NATURAL ORDER, BrüZed, FIRESTORM VIPER, CLONE
(Second Avenue Pizza) This show is the second in a series of ://RELAPSE events: all-ages noise-athons that bring together artists who would rather fuck with sound than slip it into something a little more comfortable. Compiled by Johnny Victory, "a Seattle-based technician of mayhem" who performs this week as part of BrüZeD, ://RELAPSE's sonic mechanics use various techniques to warp and distort everyday white noise. BrüZed's weapons of choice include power drills, chain saws, Speak & Spells, and an arsenal of electronic instruments. Firestorm Viper's digital hardcore comes on like an alternate reality where computerized, chopped-up heartbeats accelerate over time. Headliner Daniel Menche uses "natural" sounds to make his freaky, internationally acclaimed soundscapes. He takes basic elements--fire, water, air, living creatures--and records them on lo-fi or broken equipment, creating organic fragments that are manipulated enough to sound completely surreal. JENNIFER MAERZ


SUNDAY 5/12

OLIVER MTUKUDZI
(Ballard Firehouse) I'm very bitter about what has happened in Zimbabwe since its independence from colonial rule on April 18, 1980. The dictator Robert Mugabe, who has been in power for over 22 years, has crushed every dream that attempted to breathe and flicker in what used to be known as "the bread basket of Africa." (Now it is the basket case of Africa.) This is why I hate talking or writing about Zimbabwe--it reminds me of the devastation and misery the stupid government has exerted on 10 million souls. Amazingly enough, not all Zimbabweans have been destroyed by Mugabe; some have managed to endure and even produce great art, such as veteran pop musician Oliver Mtukudzi. I can't remember a time when he wasn't on the radio or on the top of Zimbabwe's pop charts. He has produced a string of hits--the most impressive of which is "Seiko" ("I'm just asking why")--and has won the respect of almost every Zimbabwean I know. As for his new CD, Vhunze Moto, it's not his best, but for those who like serious Afro-pop, Mtukudzi is your man from Africa. CHARLES MUDEDE

MANOWAR, IMMORTAL, CATASTROPHIC, HAVOCHATE
(Graceland) In his book The Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal, writer Martin Popoff tackles the eternal Manowar question with rare insight and eloquence. "Deeming this band a parody is a futile pursuit in infinite ironic layering," he writes, "for Manowar is a philosophy of interconnecting unbelievables that just disintegrates into mass ludicrousness under too serious scrutiny." And he's right: Mere logic is useless when you're dealing with what is possibly the ultimate over-the-top power-metal outfit ever. (Their 20-year career includes, among other triumphs, a Guinness Book of World Records entry for loudest band.) Second atop the bill are Norwegian black-metal veterans Immortal, who update Manowar's warrior-minded aesthetic with 300-mile-an-hour drumming, ice-cold guitar-riffing, and a ridiculous spikes-and-corpse-paint visual image that few other bands could get away with. Hold on to your codpiece. WILL YORK


MONDAY 5/13

THE CONSTANTINES, BLACK EAGLE, DJ FRANKI CHAN
(Graceland) See Stranger Suggests.

(UN)COMMON OBJECTS
(EMP) Clothes may make the man, but in the case of EMP's newest installation, (Un)common Objects, they do not make for an overly interesting art exhibit. A collection of iconic clothing and accessories, (Un)common Objects features a couple of truly fascinating items, including Patti Smith's tattered, sweat-infused T-shirt and jacket, as well as Britney Spears' getup from her infamously PETA-incorrect appearance on the MTV Music Awards. Michael Jackson's glitter glove is spectacular simply as an example of shitty, silk-purse-out-of-a-sow's-ear craftsmanship (did he get that matching sequin jacket at Loehmann's?). But Bruce Springsteen's shirt is unimpressive, as is Fred Durst's ball cap and Frank Sinatra's late-career tuxedo (and boots similar to Nancy Sinatra's circa-'90s comeback "relics" probably strut the stage nightly at Déjà Vu), and who cares about Annie Lennox's Byblos eyeglasses--oh yeah, Paul Allen does--or Bono's shades from last year? The glasses Buddy Holly was wearing as his plane went down are a macabre, depressing item rather than the coup the museum believes them to be. (Un)common Objects is a fair-to-middling, somewhat exciting and poignant (Joey Ramone's shoes and rose-colored specs) "starter collection" unfortunately dwarfed by the EMP's grandiosity. KATHLEEN WILSON


TUESDAY 5/14

MOTÖRHEAD, MORBID ANGEL, TODAY'S THE DAY, BRAND NEW SKIN
(Catwalk) See preview this issue.

THE MELVINS, DEAD LOW TIDE
(Showbox) See preview this issue.

THE MEDIEVAL BABES
(Crocodile) The name conjures up anachronistic notions, sort of like Queen's "We Will Rock You" in the soundtrack of A Knight's Tale. If there's anything anachronistic about the Medieval Babes, though, it's in their image, which is thoroughly modern. They may be on the verge of pop success, but the music is as close to accurately medieval as one can get when you consider that there was no recording equipment in those days, and that whatever sheet music does exist is hard to read. Here's the skinny: The Babes are an all-women, primarily vocal group whose members include founder and musical director Katherine Blake, formerly of Miranda Sex Garden. They may look rock and roll, but these ladies are serious about their music, and it comes across in the quality of their performance. If you're curious about music that predates Bach, if you've heard Hildegard von Bingen but have no idea what to try next, or you just like the idea of great vocal music performed by a talented group, then this show is for you. GENEVIEVE WILLIAMS


WEDNESDAY 5/15

STRAPPING YOUNG LAD, HIMSA, LEFT WITH NOTHING, CEPHEID
(Graceland) SYL's jack-hammering cross-up of metal and hardcore occupies a middle ground between the extremity of bands like Coalesce and such major-label-sanctioned alt metal acts as (insert generic rap metal band here). The result is an accessible form of heavy that manages to challenge the discerning metal enthusiast but stops just shy of causing you to say, "What the f--?" the way some of the more far-out acts will do (Dillinger Escape Plan, Gorguts). A major strength is the smack of leader Devin Townsend's sharp sense of humor evidenced in songs about farting and album titles like No Sleep 'Til Bedtime. Townsend formed Strapping Young Lad in 1994 in between running his label Hevy Devy Records and working with Steve Vai. He writes the music, plays guitar, and sings, so it's Townsend's show, but that's okay because despite big-shot connections, the guy knows the difference between himself and Stuck Mojo. Local feral hardcore band Himsa opens. MIKE McGUIRK

HOURGLASS LAKE (CD release)
(Crocodile) With a name that comes from Nabokov (always a good sign), and a musical stride that keeps one foot planted in NW indie pop and the other in early '80s U.K. wave, Hourglass Lake has just made Calliope, the most amazing out-of-nowhere debut CD I've heard in ages. Their simple/catchy melodies, active/gentle rhythms, classic/baroque arrangements, and crazy/pleasing noises rub up wonderfully against absurdist/smart/fey lyrics (sample rhyme: "meet me where the cherries blossom.../just ask the little possum"). I hate to do this to them, but for the sake of shorthand, I'm just gonna throw out a few points of band reference so that as many of you as possible try and make it out to see the show: Death Cab for Cutie (Calliope was mixed by Chris Walla, btw), the Smiths, Belle & Sebastian, Heavenly, Five Gears in Reverse, Zumpano, Pastels. That kind of thing. You know: really, really great pop--the best thing in the goddamn world. SEAN NELSON