Rock Picks: Amadou & Mariam, Manimal Festival, Marianne Faithfull, Gil Scott-Heron

Also playing Saturday:

Amanda Merten

School of Seven Bells: Trance figures

The gun was loaded: Teenage Jesus’ Lydia Lunch.

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THE PHARCYDE at the Key Club; CROSBY, STILLS & NASH at the Greek Theatre; LADYHAWKE at Avalon; JOLIE HOLLAND, MICHAEL HURLEY at Largo at the Coronet; L.A. PHILHARMONIC feat. DAVID HIDALGO, HERBIE HANCOCK, TAJ MAHAL, LOS CENZONTLES at the Hollywood Bowl; NEW MODEL ARMY at the Knitting Factory; MING & PING, WOODEN PONIES at the Bootleg Theater; YOU ME & IOWA, RADARS TO THE SKY, THE VELTEXANS at Spaceland; BODY & SOUL feat. FRANCOIS K, DANNY KRIVIT, JOE KLAUSSELL at House of Blues.

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 4

Kylie Minogue at the Hollywood Bowl
It used to be so easy to dismiss seemingly manufactured dance-music mavens like Kylie Minogue, but that was before independent music embraced dance and poppy electronica, and held DJs, turntablists and mixmasters in high regard. The line between multidimensional diva and endlessly programmable femme-bot is a blurry mess nowadays, and Kylie Minogue is strategically centered in the midst of it. She’s been remixed by iconic, electronic heavies like Chemical Brothers and Fischerspooner, and therefore acquired some definite club cred since the days of “Loco-Motion.” (And the Stannard and Gallagher–produced “Love at First Sight” is arguably one of the catchiest dance hits of all time.) But it’s possible her anything-goes fashion prowess has given her career the biggest boost overall. Like Madonna once was, she’s Jean Paul Gaultier’s It-Girl now, and that brings us to the hard-to-believe fact that this is Minogue’s first U.S. tour, and, subsequently, her first show in L.A. — remember, she’s been performing since 1989. In terms of over-the-top eye candy, tonight’s multimillion-dollar spectacle of costumes and staging — including more than a few custom-made Gaultier wardrobe changes throughout the night — shouldn’t disappoint. (Wendy Gilmartin)

Gil Scott-Heron at El Rey Theatre
Gil Scott-Heron has become a touchstone for the hip-hop generation, and the proof is in the loads of instances he’s been sampled by the likes of Kanye, Mos Def, Common and Jay-Z, to name a few. Politically wry, poetically gifted and infinitely cool, Gil Scott-Heron’s sampled voice serves as a musical talisman for a solid, meaningful track in the minds of many rappers and producers these days. And, as it turns out, the feeling is mutual. Scott-Heron has fully embraced hip-hop and an inventive, electronic process of remixing and sampling his own work on recent releases — but that’s to be expected with his well-known, groundbreaking history blending the lines between soul, spoken word and jazz, not to mention the experimental fusion forms he ushered in back in the ’70s and ’80s. But his current work remains grounded on an earthy foundation. Minimal beats, scratchy samples, heartfelt storytelling and visceral imagery — delivered via his signature low and gravelly timbre — make up his yet-to-be-released I’m New Here (out in early 2010). Expect a chilled-out evening meandering through these new tracks and some from the days of “The Bottle” and “We Almost Lost Detroit” too. (Wendy Gilmartin)

Also playing Sunday:

PEDRO THE LION’s DAVID BAZAN at the Troubadour; JACK PENATE, MIIKE SNOW at Spaceland; GOD DETHRONED, ABIGAIL WILLIAMS, WOE OF TITANS at the Key Club; GURF MURLIX at McCabe’s.

MONDAY, OCTOBER 5

School of Seven Bells, Warpaint at the Troubadour
Brooklyn’s School of Seven Bells comprises ex–Secret Machines guitarist Benjamin Curtis and On! Air! Library! sisters Alejandra and Claudia Deheza, who packed in their old bands to join forces on a debut, Alpinisms (Ghostly International), that found the trio shooting for an opulent gossamer pop that stomps. The album’s wide-screen-ish ambitions toward a new kind of pop froth can’t help befuddle with loads of fly-in-the-ointment textural ploys enmeshed in gargantuan guitar waterfalls , odd machine beats and the eerily twin-toned trills of the sisters Deheza. It’s a sort of tightly played (very) contemporary catharsis that sneaks in a seemingly de rigueur edgy aggravation — in a good way, of course. Hazy-dazy openers Warpaint offer an intriguing psychedelic folk-rock-post-punk stew highlighted by some exquisitely ethereal vocal harmonies, which can be further dug into on their Exquisite Corpse EP on the majestic Manimal Vinyl label. (John Payne)

Also playing Monday:

THE BUGS, SAD HORSE, THE MO-ODDS at the Smell; W.P.A., MOLLY JENSEN at Largo at the Coronet; CORREATOWN, EAGLE & TALON, THE VOYEURS, BANDITO ROYALE at the Echo; LIGHT FM, WE BARBARIANS, TIGERS CAN BITE YOU, QUEEN KWONG at Spaceland; JONNEINE ZAPATA, THE FARAWAY PLACES, INTERNATIONAL TENNIS CHAMPIONS at the Silverlake Lounge.

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 6

Breakestra, DJ Jeremy Sole, DJ Day, Simple Citizens at El Rey Theatre
L.A. funk-soul outfit Breakestra has got a rich history in this city of reinventing old-school break-beats in an even older school context: the big band. With a core of eight players (sometimes many, many more) and led by husky-voiced Root Down founder “Music Man” Miles Tackett, the Breakestra collective has been throwing incredible local shows for the better part of 13 years, bolstered by instrumental prowess and old-fashioned showmanship. The group’s second studio LP, Dusk Till Dawn, was just released last week via Strut Records, and this show celebrates that loving tribute to fallen Root Down comrade DJ Dusk. Considering, it could be a guest-filled night for Breakestra, who’ve collaborated with members of Jurassic 5, People Under the Stairs and Stones Throw Records, to name a few. KCRW’s DJ Jeremy Sole also appears, no doubt spinning an eclectic mix of funky strains from around the world. Palm Springs–based producer DJ Day is taking a break from his residency at the Ace Hotel to stop in as well, and live-music rap crew Simple Citizens opens. (Chris Martins)