Rock Picks: Neil Young, the Pogues, Michelle Shocked

Pinback at the Wiltern

“Beard-pop” and “dreamo” are kinda neat terms (and pretty funny), but you’ll struggle to genre-tag San Diego’s Pinback (Zach Smith and the mega-prolific Rob Crow), whose bass/guitar basket-weaves and wistfully distracted vocals are filling theaters precisely by being themselves. Like something that’s been on your mind all day, Pinback’s inevitably melodic mini (p)operas are drum-machine-insistent and ache for resolution: always comforting yet rarely conclusive (hence our hitting “repeat”, um, repeatedly). Last month’s fourth full-length, Autumn of the Seraphs, while a fine effort — particularly the opener, “From Nothing to Nowhere,” which marries the meshed propulsion of the Cure’s “Primary” to summery Breeders/Belly vocals — will always be viewed relative to its predecessor, the probably career-defining Summer in Abaddon: beautiful, brave and slightly uneasy in its breeziness. Fleshed-out to a full band live, Pinback’s shows re-conjure the brainy, occasionally otherworldly glacial harmony of their recordings. (Paul Rogers)

Also playing Sunday:

HOT HOT HEAT at Henry Fonda Theater; GLASSJAW at Avalon; FREE MORAL AGENTS at Alex’s Bar; MIKE STINSON at the Echo, 5 p.m.; JOSIE COTTON at Key Club; UNION 13, LA RESISTENCIA at Knitting Factory; NEIL HAMBURGER, HARVEY SID FISHER at Spaceland.

{mosimage}Monday, October 29

Ghostface Killah & the Rhythm Roots Allstars, Rakim, Brother Ali at House of Blues

Had Ghostface Killah grown up in a different time, he might have been an epic poet. But as a dude reared in Staten Island with his fellow members of the Wu-Tang Clan, rap was his vehicle. Killah has written some of the most dynamic, well-crafted tracks in the genre’s history. To wit: In “Shakey Dog,” from last year’s Fishscale, Ghostface’s alter ego, Tony Starks, is in the backseat of a car eating French fries with ketchup on the way to snuff an enemy. He spills tartar sauce on his new shoes. His partner is a stutterer known for his brutality (“some Curly, Moe, Larry shit”). They park, and pass an old lady, who “keep[s] a shottie cocked in the hallway.” They surprise their victim while he’s watching Sanford and Son and eating plantains and a T-bone steak. Gnarly death ensues. For this tour, Ghostface performs with a live band, the Rhythm Roots Allstars, alongside brilliant rappers Rakim and Brother Ali. Also at Vault 350, Wed. (Randall Roberts)

Also playing Monday:

BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN & THE E STREET BAND at L.A. Sports Arena; TEGAN & SARA, NORTHERN STATE at Orpheum Theatre; QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE at Nokia Theatre; CASTLEDOOR at the Echo; WADDY WACHTEL at the Joint; ABE LINCOLN STORY, OLLIN at Mr. T’s Bowl; OLIVER FUTURE, STEVE BARTON & THE OBLIVION CLICK at Spaceland.

{mosimage}Tuesday, October 30

New Young Pony Club at the Echo

“Hey, my swan song sounds like a remedy,” Tahita Bulmer sings on “Grey,” from New Young Pony Club’s recent CD, Fantastic Playroom (Modular). While it seems a little early for a swan song considering that this is the London group’s debut album, her electronics-laced new-wave music is indeed an effective remedy for doom and gloom. The New Young Ponies crank up a series of deliciously fizzy dance-pop tracks such as “Ice Cream” (featured in a recently ubiquitous TV commercial), where Bulmer pouts with an appealingly robotic sultriness over Lou Hayter’s bubbling keyboards: “We could be a sweet team/melting in your vice dream... seasick like Sid & Nancy.” The quintet claim that they’re influenced by “vodka, cake and emotion,” and Bulmer’s lyrics betray more wit and insight than most dance-club machinists. “I make a mold of me to make a mockery... another scar to emphasize who you are/a second skin, the label I might have been,” she chants on the fashion dilemma “Tight Fit” amid Andy Spence’s funk guitar and Sarah Jones’ addictive grooves. (Falling James)

Neil Young, Pegi Young at Nokia Theatre

The open road stretches like a vein throughout Neil Young’s long-running career. This “Human Highway” is a way to get places, a chance to escape, a symbol of freedom and a white-line metaphor for uncovering one’s true self. “There’s a long highway in your mind/a spirit road that you must find,” Neil Young advises on “Spirit Road,” from his new album, Chrome Dreams II (Reprise). The track lopes along steadily and a little bleary-eyed like a classic Crazy Horse tune, crackling and popping with Young’s trademark firework sparkles of guitar and ghostly consoling harmonies. Chrome Dreams II encompasses several of the chameleonic Young’s personas, ranging from the sweet-and-steadfast optimism of the R&B-flavored “The Believer” and the piano hymn “The Way” (brightened with a children’s chorus) to the luridly lurching rocker “Dirty Old Man.” For this tour, Young’s backed by bassist Rick Rosas, Crazy Horse drummer Ralph Molina and pedal-steel whiz Ben Keith, giving him the flexibility to switch from fragile balladry to thundering rockers. Keeping it all down-home, Neil’s wife, Pegi Young, steps out of the shadows with a set of rueful and lovingly crafted country songs from her self-titled solo debut. (Falling James)

New Buffalo at the Orpheum Theatre