Born in the Chicago underground in the mid-'80s, the Dwarves emerged as one of the Windy City's more famous offerings to the halcyon decade of hardcore. With Potato Pirates. $10, 8pm, The Korova, 107 E. Martin, 226-5070 —Matt Stieb
Thursday, February 26
Micro Missile Attack, Collective Dreams
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Micro Missile Attack
SA indie rockers Micro Missile Attack celebrate a new cluster-bomb release, dropping three projects and a total of 57 songs at once. Collective Dreams give pure instrumentation the recognition it deserves with proggy post-rock jams. With Dickie Briganza. Free, 10pm, The Mix, 2423 N. St. Mary's, 735-1313—Matt Stieb, Shannon Sweet
Thursday, February 26
Downtown Brown, The Black Market Club
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Downtown Brown
Detroit goof-rockers Downtown Brown weird out on tunes like “I Got a Poot in My Boot.” On the wonderfully recorded 2013 EP Faults & Fractures, The Black Market Club has a knack for syncopated hits and half-time shredding. With Last Battle. $7, 9pm, 502 Bar, 502 Embassy Oaks, 257-8125 —Matt Stieb
Friday, February 27
Andrew Rayel
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Andrew Rayel
Moldovan producer Andrew Rayel fuses Euro-pop trance with American EDM in his wildly popular sets, occasionally including classical music references from a past life as a pianist. $15-$20, 10pm, Club Rio, 13307 San Pedro, 403-2582 —Matt Stieb
Friday, February 27
The Wood Brothers
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The Wood Brothers
Actual blues brothers Chris and Oliver Wood are an insider’s choice for Americana, recording on Blue Note Records and making NPR’s Overlooked 11 list in 2006 with their album Ways Not to Lose. With Kristina Train. $20, 8pm, Gruene Hall, 1281 Gruene, (830) 606-1281 —Matt Stieb
Saturday, February 28
Hank and the Cupcakes, Sphynx
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Hank and the Cupcakes
Hank and Cupcakes is the ideal exemplification of postmodern music. The Brooklyn via Tel Aviv husband and wife duo’s name combines Charles Bukowski’s fictionalized persona, Hank Chinaski, with the name of one of the poet’s girlfriends, Pamela “Cupcakes” Wood. And if that sounds far out, just wait till you hear the music. Full of brazen contradictions, surprising permutations and deliberate subversion, the pair’s zany electro-pop-rock sound is, in turns, funky and abrasive, shimmering and coarse — and it is really without precedent. Live, Hank and Cupcakes is like falling into a kaleidoscope.
While keeping the ‘80s alive with high-flying falsetto, synthesizer, heavy beats and dance grooves, ATX‘s Sphynx remains contemporary when paying tribute to the decade of excess. $5, 9pm, 502 Bar, 502 Embassy Oaks, 257-8125 —James Courtney, Shannon Sweet
Saturday, February 28 W.C. Clark
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W.C. Clark
The godfather of Austin blues, 75-year-old W.C. Clark is one of the all-time Lone Star greats, joining Lightnin’ Hopkins and Stevie Ray Vaughan as one of the most distinctive voices in Texas blues. $10, 9pm, Luna, 6740 San Pedro, 804-2433 —Matt Stieb
Saturday, February 28
Aliens WITH Halos
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Aliens WITH Halos
As a part of the multimedia label Dreamland Collective, Aliens WITH Halos is chill to the lowest degree. On “The Source,” the songstress’s sultry vocals are backed by trip-hop beats and melodious, spacey tidal waves of sound. In addition to AWH’s tunes, there’ll be a shoe and toiletries drive, so be sure to feel the groove for both the music and good causes. Free, 6pm, Espresso Gallery, 529 San Pedro, 354-2233 —Shannon Sweet
Sunday, March 1
2Cellos
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2Cellos
The Croatian duo of Luka Šulić and Stjepan Hauser came to fame like so many on YouTube, delivering a wide-eyed rendition of a well-known song (Michael Jackson’s “Smooth Criminal”). Unlike many one-hit digital wonders, 2Cellos has kept the success up with thoughtful and layered takes on the contemporary pop songbook. $29 - $110, 7:30pm, Majestic Theatre, 224 E. Houston, 226-5700 —Matt Stieb
Sunday, March 1
The Brandenburg Concertos
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Conductor Akiko Fujimoto
In one of the all-time classical music snubs, J.S. Bach presented a series of six concertos to the Margrave of Brandenburg in 1721. Bach never received thanks or payment for the works, but they are now remembered as the finest Baroque pieces around — a distinction that unfortunately does not pay. This program showcases three of the six concertos: No. 3 featuring strings, No. 5 featuring violin, flute and harpsichord, and No. 1 featuring oboes and horns, with conductor Akiko Fujimoto, flautist Martha Long, violinist Eric Gratz and harpsichordist Gösta Funck. $30, 7pm, San Fernando Cathedral, 115 Main Plaza, (210) 227-1297 —Matt Stieb
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