JEFF BECK
(Paramount) Jeff Beck is coming to Seattle at precisely the right time. Ours is a city that loves discord, a place where jazz and rock collide at the fringe of musicality, and that fringe is exactly the territory that Jeff Beck explores in his new release, You Had It Coming. Having aged far more sweetly than former bandmate Rod Stewart, Beck has disregarded his status as an enduring guitar icon and forged new sounds between fusion, blues, and hard rock. That makes him brave in the same way that Bill Frisell, Amy Denio, or Kronos Quartet are brave: They're all genre-busters with more cojones than a thousand dinosaurs of rock could put together. NATHAN THORNBURGH

UNIFIED THEORY, MOUNTAIN CON, SHAWN SMITH
(Showbox) Unified Who? Fear not. The band in question isn't some horrible rap-metal combo that's achieved overnight success and is now headlining the Showbox, but the renamed Luma. You know, the band with former members of Blind Melon and Pearl Jam.... Unified Theory put out an album last summer that you may or may not have heard, but odds are good that the same post-frat, Dockers-clad, Pioneer Square-congregating crowd that flocks to see Mountain Con did. The inclusion of phenomenally talented Shawn Smith (from Pigeonhed) on the bill is what makes this show worth braving. BARBARA MITCHELL

764-HERO
(Seattle Art Museum) 764-HERO frontman John Atkins is a fountain of energy, which is what makes his mainstay, as well as his new project Magic Magicians (with the Heart Procession's Joe Plummer), so compelling. Delivering fractured lyrics in a raw, full voice over the blistering power pop this three-piece creates, Atkins promises to fill the Seattle Art Museum with enough chaos and confrontation to fill my grandma's colostomy bag for the next six weeks. And that's saying something. JEFF DeROCHE

MOC MOC, SOLTO, COLIN SPRING & THE BAND THAT MURDERED SILENCE
(Breakroom) I have no idea who the bands at the top of this bill are or what they sound like, but if they are half as good as Colin Spring, this show will astound. Spring's songs have the rich sadness of Springsteen or the Band at their hayseed primes, with deeper roots in punk. With a full band finally backing him, Spring's authority on stage is absolute. His rightful audience, busy as it is these days, will probably wait for him to open for more famous heavy-hitters (Quasi, Will Oldham, Joel R. L. Phelps) who are his true peers. GRANT COGSWELL

ONIONZ, JOESKI
(Last Supper Club) East Coast transplants and hardcore househeads don't need to be reminded who Onionz is, but this low-profile, last-minute booking may end up leaving even the most devoted fans in the dark. It certainly shouldn't; Onionz's previous Seattle sets have provided hours of some of the meatiest and most scrumptious house pleasures--no fancy garnishes, just the strong, sexy good stuff. Wunderkind Joeski, a little local birdie tells me, is set to release one of the "strongest" singles of the year--so you'll be able to say you heard it here first, big shot. LEAH GREENBLATT

SLUM VILLAGE, BEYOND REALITY, THE SPINNOVATORS
(I-Spy) On this, the day after the dawn of the revisionist b-boy movement (not withstanding Jurassic Five's grip on the crown), we can see that the dust is finally beginning to settle. Last Memorial Day, eyewitness accounts had their sights set on the Detroit Electronic Music Festival. Acts from Kevin Saunderson and Richie Hawtin to the Roots and Mos Def burst eardrums and pleased many a beat-hungry heart. One of the fresh faces on the festival's marquee was the then underground-rising, revisionist b-boy group Slum Village. With cunning and sinew, the group dropped wicked rhymes with an air of hiphop nostalgia that was thick but managed to allow the audience to breathe. It was youthful, fresh, and fun. Reason enough to get your ass in a car, taxi, or bus and mosey on down to I-Spy to get rocked. Jurassic Five, are you listening? F. VENTURA-PENA

CARMINE, HAFACAT, SWEET TEA
(Sit & Spin) Here's the problem with me writing about Hafacat: I have a hopeless, doodle-on-my-notebook CRUSH on Rachel Flotard--singer/guitarist/New Jersey native/sexy redhead with a husky voice. It's pure lust. And when she sings? Sweet Jesus. Backed with adrenaline and skill from bassist Heather Madden (who's also in another little band... you might have heard of it... HELL'S BELLES), guitarist Mandy Reed, and drummer Ben Hooker, Hot Pants belts out Hafacat's loud, sweaty punk-pop with passion and confidence, hair flying and hips swiveling--igniting a wave of fun and enthusiasm over typically cynical Seattle audiences. Reed's seductive guitar-playing only intensifies Hot Pants' charisma, while Madden and Hooker provide a perfect backbone to the goofy chaos. The group's 13-track CD is due out this spring (and produced by Barrett Jones of Foo Fighters fame). But until then, you'll find me at the Hafacat show, my heart racing, gazing adoringly at Hot Pants. Blushing the entire time. MIN LIAO

THE SUPERSUCKERS, HOG MOLLY, THE CATHETERS
(Graceland) The Supersuckers may have named their latest album The Evil Powers of Rock 'n' Roll, but their commitment to defending evil is much deeper than a name. Lead singer Eddie Spaghetti's cause célèbre, for example, is the defense of the so-called West Memphis Three, a trio of pimply teenagers locked away for the murder of three boys in Arkansas. Well, Spaghetti is damn right--those then teenagers, whose story was documented in the film Paradise Lost, were railroaded by God-folk for a crime they clearly didn't commit, and celebrity involvement may yet save the three innocent, if also evil, young men. Which goes to show you rock, booze, pimples, and Satan may all be evil, but that doesn't mean they're not worthy of your love. NATHAN THORNBURGH

SMP, NOXIOUS EMOTION, FOCKEWOLF
(Catwalk) These veteran bands once formed the foundation of Seattle's techno-industrial scene in the mid-'90s. But while Noxious Emotion evolved from the old-school electronics of European-style electronic body music (EBM), SMP mutated into a sort of aggro hybrid. Vocalist Jason Bazinet and guitarist Sean Ivy whip up a brutal combo of punk aggression, industrial sounds, and hiphop beats on songs like "Militia Love" and "Pure Uncut Anger" that echoes suppressed suburban rage. SMP is at the top of its game after coming off a recent tour supporting its new album, Terminal. So be prepared for grinders throwing streams of sparks, boot-stomping, and general mayhem. DAVID SLATTON

KINSKI, THE CRIPPLES, WELCOME
(Crocodile) Kinski releases its excellent new Pacifico recording. See preview this issue.

HOVERCRAFT, BLÖÖDHAG
(EMP) Hovercraft gets giant screens! See preview this issue.

THE DONNAS, BRATMOBILE, TUULI
(Graceland) I'm happy to report that on the just-released The Donnas Turn 21, the Donnas have not gone and gotten all smartypants with age. The band still makes the kind of KISS and AC/DC-influenced rock that cries out for drunken mayhem and steamy back-seat make-out sessions. KATHLEEN WILSON

DAMIEN JURADO, THE PROM, SUFFERING & THE HIDEOUS THIEVES
(Paradox) Sub Pop's Damien Jurado, one of the few acoustic singer/songwriters in Seattle capable of making music that's not mere throwaway self-aggrandizement, is playing with smart piano-pop balladeers the Prom, for what will invariably be a heart-tugging evening of soulful, contemplative music. Jurado's Ghost of David is an icy meditation on devotion and loss that is crafty enough to worm its way into your head and reveal its dark face later in your nightmares. Not to mention, it's a really pretty record. Live, Jurado is captivating, where the Prom is charming and designed for the old-fashioned toe-tap, like Joe Jackson for the slacker set. JEFF DeROCHE

AARON MANNINO, LITTLE LUANN, THE MUTANT DATA ORCHESTRA
(Coffee Messiah) If you have a soft spot in your heart for clever pop bands such as Harvey Danger and Peter Parker, then Little Luann is worth looking into. Spaces, the band's impressive recent album on Angry Robot records, is an addictive collection of guitar and keyboard-driven pop songs based in science fiction and space travel. KATHLEEN WILSON

IQU, DJ MASA, COCO
(Baltic Room) Seattle's IQU whips up some wacky "IDM" (which, as the "dancing kids" tell me, means "Intelligent Dance Music") full of Eastern samples, sharp melodic hooks, and rich percussive texturing that makes for a downright ballsy headphone experience that is very near transporting. COCO (pronounced C-O-C-O) is comprised of Chris Sutton, who plays bass for Calvin Johnson's Dub Narcotic Sound System, and Olivia Ness, from Decoy Decoy. They have a CD on K Records, which consists solely of drums, bass, and vocals. If you haven't heard it since its release last October, then get your full-of-beans IDM ass down to the Baltic Room. JEFF DeROCHE

ALIEN CRIME SYNDICATE, PINEHURST KIDS, QUICKIE
(Sit & Spin) Alien Crime Syndicate plays intergalactic pop rocket music with yummy choruses and catches that are super sticky. They are the synthetic glue that holds the spaceship together--made with lots of effected-out sounds and humongous, ballsy, melodic hooks. They rock. They're fun, and they even carry the outer-space theme (too far, in my humble opinion) onto their albums, with tracks like "Take Me to Your Leader" and "Spacegirls Are Cool." No, it's not the newest thing in the universe, but it'll make a fine soundtrack when those fiery meteors start crashing down on ye olde planet. LISA GUNTER

DEAD MOON, GIRL TROUBLE, DIRTY BIRDS
(Breakroom) Hey! Grunge is back, haven't you heard? And garage never left the joint. Whether you're indulging in nostalgia or just have the common sense to realize that sometimes older is better, you'd be an idiot not to witness Fred, Toody, and Andrew's legendary Northwest sludge Dead Moon, and Girl Trouble's long-lived dedication to the music nearly every band to come out of this verdant region was raised on. KATHLEEN WILSON

STEW, THE DROO CHURCH, THE DELUSIONS
(Crocodile) You know there must be something to a band when you start hearing the buzz from all the right sources--jaded musicians, jaded booking agents, jaded scenesters. The Droo Church is generating a lot of excitement among a group of folks who aren't easily impressed, which is pretty impressive in itself. The band is also generating a fair amount of musical racket, tossing off catchy, rough and ready tunes that, for lack of a more articulate term, simply rawk. You can put off seeing them now, but it's practically guaranteed that you're going to be hearing quite a bit more in the very near future. BARBARA MITCHELL

DJ DANIEL MYER
(Mercury) Following in the footsteps of his German contemporaries KMFDM and Front242, Daniel Myer attracted an underground following in the '90s with his industrial project Haujobb. After interest in the industrial sound later waned, Myer branched out with a variety of techno side-projects--Newt, Cleaner, Hexer--that leaned toward the progressive side of techno. Now Myer is touring for the first time as a DJ, spinning his extensive back catalog of dark techno, EBM, and trance. But I hear he will also be playing material from other artists, so look for some old-school industrial and modern IDM in his set. DAVID SLATTON

THE WAILERS
(Moore Theatre) The Wailers, as in "Bob Marley and..." have been at it ever since the untimely passing of their singer and leader. In the last 20 years, the erstwhile premier reggae group of the world spent some time trying to come up with a new sound, came out with a couple of albums, and are now back to doing what they do best--playing the music of Bob Marley and the Wailers. They now perform with a new singer, a white guy who reportedly sounds just like, well, Bob Marley. I guess that would make them a tribute band, which is fine and all, as it should make for a pretty good show. But it seems kind of strange when the group you're paying tribute to is you. KRIS ADAMS

THE GOURDS, TARBOX RAMBLERS, MIKE NICOLAI
(Tractor Tavern) The Gourds land at the Tractor Tavern tonight via Austin, Texas. This is a band with a history of lineup changes and instrument swaps too long to ponder, and it's lucky for us that they've taken the last decade or so to find the right cast of characters. Their dogged perseverance to do as they damn well please has earned them a reputation as one of Austin's finest country acts. While the Gourds' penchant for humor tends to throw the alt-country crowd into a tizzy, theirs isn't any Three Stooges sort of slapstick--it's the schtick that naturally flows from a fun-lovin' bunch of hillbilly boys at ease with who they are and what they do. How else could you cover anything from Vic Chesnutt to Snoop Dogg? NATE LEVIN

POSEUR
(Graceland) A poseur gets some attention. See preview this issue.

THERAPY?
(Graceland) No, you're not rapidly going insane, those Irish-accented voices you're constantly hearing are real. Andrew Cairns and his quizzical band of mates, Therapy?, are in town to record an album at Seattle's illustrious Bob Lang Studio with the equally illustrious Jack Endino. And since they've taken up temporary residence in our own emerald land, they've graciously agreed to give us a sneak preview of what that forthcoming album will offer. Expect plenty of pummeling rock tempered with the kind of winking humor cute Irish boys are known for. KATHLEEN WILSON

KIMBALL COLLINS, EVANLY B
(Showbox) He's held residences in Chicago, Detroit, Las Vegas, and the U.K. He regularly plays on the superclub circuit to thousands of ecstatic, heavily perspiring devotees. He's sold a buttload of mix CDs, including the very first in the much-beloved United DJs of America series. He is Florida's own Kimball Collins, the king of American trance, and depending on how you feel about that synthy, swirly genre, you are either giddily grabbing your dancing shoes and running straight for the Showbox, or making little barf noises and scanning the listings for something, anything, else to do tonight. LEAH GREENBLATT

KAKADOT, TRACHTENBURG FAMILY SLIDESHOW PLAYERS, THE BLESSED LIGHT, TRACY & THE PLASTICS
(Graceland) See Stranger Arts this issue.