Friday, April 11
Arrington De Dionyso makes sounds with his mouth you didn’t know humans could make. He learned the ancient art of Tuvan throat singing by accident as a child after trying to imitate “Sound Effects Guy” Michael Winslow from Police Academy. Years and years later, he blends that skill with Javanese-inspired rhythms and melodies and his Olympia K Records background to create bewitchingly unique music he calls “trance punk.” With Dream Salon. LoFi, 429 B Eastlake Ave. E., 254-2824, thelofi.net. 9 p.m. $8. 21 and up. KELTON SEARS
Kithkin He doesn’t know I’m writing this listing and would almost certainly object to its inclusion, but one of the members of Kithkin is in fact a Seattle Weekly staffer. His stage name is either Tin Woodsman or Shredder, I can’t remember which. It doesn’t matter. What does matter is that Kithkin deserves praise and an audience for the rumbling, effusive spirit-rock that it has dubbed “treepunk.” Conflict of interest be damned—the quartet’s upcoming debut, Rituals, Trances & Ecstasies for Humans in Face of the Collapse, is that rarest of things: exactly what it says it is. With Wishbeard, Fauna Shade, Thee Samedi. Neumos. 8 p.m. $7 adv. All ages. MSB
The Colourist Next time you’re at a party that’s less than spectacular, put on The Colourist, the self-titled debut of the indie-pop quartet behind “Little Games” and “We Won’t Go Home.” With dancey guitar riffs, pulsing percussion, bright keys, and both guitarist Adam Castilla and drummer Maya Tuttle on vocal duty, you can practically hear confetti fall from the ceiling. With Night Terrors of 1927, The Wind and the Wave. Tractor Tavern. 9 p.m. $11. 21 and over. ACP
Andrew Joslyn is taking chamber pop mainstream. Touring with Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, plus working with fellow locals Allen Stone and David Bazan, the composer has created orchestral arrangements suitable for the masses. String instruments are not just a studio flourish in his hands, but beautiful pop music. With V. Contreras (album release), Cami Lundeen. The Triple Door, 216 Union St., 838-4333, thetripledoor.net. 7 p.m. $20–$50. All ages. DH
Saturday, April 12
Fact is, Macklemore wishes anything of his was half as fresh as anything R. Kelly owns, sheets or otherwise. At this night celebrating The Music of R. Kelly, Seattle will forget the soulman’s extracurricular bedroom activities and pay tribute to his rich and wholesome canon, including “Sex Me,” “Bump ’N’ Grind,” and “Ignition” (remix or original TBA). With Zach Bruce, J. Charles, Will Jordan. Columbia City Theater, 4916 Rainier Ave. S., 722-3009, columbiacitytheater.com. 9 p.m. $15 adv./$20 DOS. DANIEL PERSON
Katie Herzig’s new album, Walk Through Walls was difficult to make. Her mother succumbed to cancer in 2011 just as Herzig was about to tour, and the songwriter stopped writing for nine months. When she did start crafting new material, she wondered whether she’d ever be able to perform it without breaking down. That’s not to say Walk is overly melancholy; it’s more about transitions, thematically, than anything else. Herzig encourages listeners to follow their hearts instead of closing them (“Frequencies”), and to tackle obstacles instead of letting them beat you down (“Walk Through Walls”). “Drug” is a sexy-as-hell piano-pop track about being in love’s grasp, and “Summer” is the sort of spine-tingling, ebullient dream-pop number that popular radio loves. If you like soul-searching and ultimately hopeful pop, Walk is the album for you. With Amy Stroup. The Crocodile. 8 p.m. $13 adv. 21 and over. BP
Guitar Shorty has quite the pedigree. He’s played with Ray Charles, Willie Dixon, T-Bone Walker, hell; he’s even married to Jimi Hendrix’s half-sister! With his trusted guitar, “Red,” Shorty has been a club-scene fixture for over 60 years, but he’s no relic. He’s still got the chops, and the ability to cut off the head of any challenger coming his way. Highway 99 Blues Club, 1414 Alaskan Way, 382-2171, highwayninetynine.com. 8 p.m. $17. CORBIN REIFF
With this year’s release of Wig Out at Jagbags, there are now more Stephen Malkmus albums in the world than those of Pavement (six vs. five). Malkmus’ solo work has always been more idiosyncratic than that of the band he changed the world with, and Wig Out is no different; fancy guitar work resides largely in the fifth position, and the vocal melodies tend to knock the listener off balance. But throughout the album, plenty of rewards are hidden among the noise. With Speedy Ortiz. The Neptune, 1303 N.E. 45th St., 682-1414, stgpresents.org/neptune. 9 p.m. $18.50 adv./$20 DOS.
Nearing the end of a largely sold-out three-month, 40-date tour, Odesza will most likely roll into town with a refined and mind-blowing live show featuring the duo’s meticulous, bright, shimmering compositions—most recently heard on the soundtrack for Divergence, to which the Seattle soundsmiths contributed a remix of Grammy-nominated heavy-hitter “Pretty Lights.” With D33J, Kodak to Graph. Through Sun. Neumos. 8 p.m. Both shows SOLD OUT. MSB
NRBQ doesn’t have a song everyone knows, which makes a tribute night perfect for the band that’s been chugging since the 1960s and has won the adoration of the kind of people you want adoration from: Elvis Costello, Paul McCartney, and the like. It’s considered one of the best bar bands in history; allow members of the Tripwires, the Jukehouse Hounds, Red Jacket Mine, and Young Fresh Fellows to fill you in on what you’ve been missing. The Royal Room, 5000 Rainier Ave. S., 906-9920, theroyalroomseattle.com. 9 p.m. $10 suggested donation. DP
The album to be celebrated tonight, Believer, is the culmination of a long journey for Kris Orlowski, who for 10 years has been cultivating a laid-back pop songwriting style rooted in a preternatural sense of melody and his distinctive loose-lipped croon. For this album, Orlowski has mastered the formula, assembling a talented, forceful band whose meticulously arranged instrumentation buoys and elevates verses that explore, with a hard-earned maturity, issues of love, faith, and existential quandary. With Campfire OK, St. Paul De Vence. The Showbox. 7 p.m. $12 adv./$15 DOS. MARK BAUMGARTEN
Say Hi This tour finds Eric Elbogen preparing for the June release of Endless Wonder, his eighth album as Say Hi. Such a title might invite speculation that the Seattle songwriter has returned to the brighter, synth-heavy pop songs of his middle era, but the album’s first single, “Such a Drag,” comes from the same dark place where the previous one, Um, Uh Oh, left off three years ago. The song has at its spine a thundering, dark kick drum—a new instrument for the multi-instrumentalist last time around—and at its heart an indictment of love that sounds like a fresh wound. With Big Scary, Telekinesis. Sunset Tavern, 5433 Ballard Ave. N.W., 784-4880, sunset tavern.com. 9:30 p.m. $12 adv. 21 and over. MSB
The Horde and the Harem, Tractor. See our review of the new album
here
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Sunday, April 13
At any point on 2013’s Innocence Is Kinky, Norwegian experimental-pop musician Jenny Hval can be heard doing one of three things: singing sweetly; reciting spoken word; or belting a lyric, often a comment about mythology or gender, with the passion of 10 people. No matter what style she chooses, Hval’s voice is hard to ignore. With Mark McGuire. Barboza, 925 E. Pike St., 709-9951, thebarboza.com. 8 p.m. $10. 21 and over. ACP
If punk is dead, no one told OFF’s legendary frontman Keith Morris (ex-Black Flag, Circle Jerks). OFF! brings the Nervous Breakdown–era intensity of early Black Flag to the modern age without missing a step. The band’s latest record, Wasted Years, is a frantically paced collection of 16 short and straightforward tracks of early hardcore fury. With Cerebral Ballzy, NASA Space Universe. El Corazon, 109 Eastlake Ave. E., 262-0482, elcorazonseattle.com. 7:30 p.m. $13 adv./$15 DOS. All ages, bar with I.D. JAMES BALLINGER
