Rock Picks: Cat Power, Mountain Goats, Chapin Sisters

It's Casual at the Scene

There's Brian Wilson's fun-in-the-sun musical exploration of Los Angeles, and then there's Eddie Solis'. The It's Casual singer-guitarist isn't afraid to confront the anger, frustration and agony that come with living in a city consumed with big dreams and bigger egos. He's joined by drummer Wal Rashidi, and the duo perform a nonstop barrage of Slip It In-era Black Flag mixed with the showmanship of Kiss. Simplicity is key to It's Casual's sound as Rashidi plays a minimal kit consisting of a bass drum, snare, hi-hat and one cymbal while the duo gets their bottom end from a bass amp run through Solis' guitar setup. The group's Stop Listening to Bad Music and The New Los Angeles make for the perfect soundtrack to rush-hour traffic, thanks to songs such as "LAPD," a track featuring the lyrics "Los Angeles/there's too many people/I want them to go away/Even LAPD's afraid" repeated three times. (Ryan Ritchie)

David Noles

Shape-shifter Kárin Tatoyan

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• John Payne
• Karin Tatoyan
• Cat Power
• Phill Niblock
• Henry Fonda

Also playing Tuesday:

RAVEONETTES, BE YOUR OWN PET at El Rey Theatre (see Music feature); LINKIN PARK, COHEED & CAMBRIA at Staples Center; TEX BEAUMONT at 14 Below; BAD RELIGION at House of Blues; SIERRA SWAN, CARINA ROUND at Largo; KIND HEARTS & CORONETS at Safari Sam's; AMNION, LUKE TOP, LAYER at Spaceland.

 WEDNESDAY, MARCH 5

Howlin' Rain at Spaceland

Remember the good ol' days? War? Protest? Goin' to jail? Well, forget all that, because tonight you'll hear some of the finest good-time rock jams in an evening so laid back, it'd make Perry Como seem riddled with tension. Founded in 2004 in San Francisco, Howlin' Rain — Comets on Fire singer Ethan Miller, Sunburned Hand of the Man drummer John Molodney and itinerant troubadour Ian Gradek — became a more relaxing respite from their comparatively raucous scree and jocular twaddle. They unveil tracks from their sophomore album, Magnificent Fiend, on Birdman, as well as Wild Life, a limited-edition CD on microlabel 3 Lobed Recordings — songs filled with fuzz and organ and grooves without ruts. "Tattooable melodies," "monster jams" and Latin rhythms: Yes, they're all here, straight from the bottom of the Grand Canyon of New Weird America — ranting, howling and prestidigitating all the way up into the ether. Also at Amoeba Music, Thurs. (David Cotner)

The Hackensaw Boys at Tangier

The Hackensaw Boys aren't your suit-and-tie bluegrass traditionalists. Nor are they trashgrass punkers or hippie newgrassers (then they might be called the Hackysack Boys). They do, however, attack old-time-style mountain music with rock & roll vengeance. On their current disc, Look Out, they rampage through spirited tunes like "F.D.R." and "Sweet Petunia" with a flurry of banjo, fiddle and guitar picking while also demonstrating steady hands on midtempo tracks such as "Baltimore" and "Radio." Despite their cornball nicknames (like Cousin Spits and the Kooky Eyed Fox), these guys aren't a hillbilly hokum act. Their ragged-but-right approach shows respect for their elders — they recently served as bluegrass icon Charlie Louvin's band — and their energetic performances have won favor with the jam-band kids. They even have a connection with the indie-rock world as Modest Mouse's Tom Pelosi is an auxiliary Hackensaw-ist. These Virginia boys are bound to turn Tangier into a hootin' and hollerin', foot-stompin' backwoods jamboree. (Michael Berick)

Also playing Wednesday:

CHRISETTE MICHELE at El Rey Theatre; RUFUS WAINWRIGHT at USC's Bovard Auditorium; FOO FIGHTERS, SERJ TANKIAN at the Forum; JIM BIANCO at Amoeba Music; RAVENS MORELAND, LIVE NUDE at the Derby; BAD RELIGION at House of Blues; FISHTANK ENSEMBLE at the Mint; NU-TRA, LONDON BROIL at Safari Sam's; THEE EMERGENCY at the Scene; LONESOME SPURS at Taix; MOUNTAIN GOATS, JEFFREY & THE JITTERS at the Troubadour; KENNY EDMONDS at Vault 350.

 THURSDAY, MARCH 6

Twilight Sleep, Karin Tatoyan at the EchoKarin Tatoyan was born in a small town in Alabama and raised in Indiana before moving to Los Angeles, where she's been kicking around the unplugged coffeehouse scene for several years now. She recently metamorphosed into an electronics-based singer, backed in live performances by multi-instrumentalist the One Second Time Machine, a.k.a. Thomas Greene. Tatoyan colorfully describes her music as the "translation of my insides beaming via satellite," and she intones "Radio Cures," from her 2007 EP, The History of Stains, with an interstellar Bjork-style breathiness. "Fit In" unfolds with a Kate Bush sense of wonder, and the EP's title track swirls inside languid pop guitars. "Ver Cha Bess" sparkles via magic guitar harmonics while foreboding cello strokes seesaw under her plaintive pleas. Headliners Twilight Sleep have a similarly ethereal sound on their new EP, Race to the Bottom of the Sea. Tracy Marcellino coos with a dreamy haziness over partner Raj Lathigara's network of electronics and sound effects amid the sleek and wintry soundscape "Don't Fire Your Guns" before fading away into the spare echoes of the gentle "Broken Record." Space is still the place. (Falling James)

Also playing Thursday:

FOO FIGHTERS, SERJ TANKIAN at the Forum; THE BILLYBONES, RUBBER CITY REBELS at the Airliner; HOWLIN' RAIN at Amoeba Music, 7 p.m.; THE KRIS SPECIAL at Mr. T's Bowl; ROONEY, BRETT DENNEN at the Roxy; MONOTONIX, ANAVAN, BAD DUDES at the Smell; VAN HUNT at Temple Bar; EEK-A-MOUSE, PATO BANTON at Vault 350.