J.ROCC, THE THRONES, BAND OF SKULLS, THE SLITS AND BRETT DENNEN

FRIDAY DECEMBER 11

Adrien Broom

Free bird: Grace Potter & the Nocturnals

Chris Greco

The Slits: Not exactly typical girls

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More About

• DJ Scratch
• DJ Spinna
• Nicolette Larson
• Ari Up
• Mikael Wood

BAND OF SKULLS AT THE TROUBADOUR
This young English trio is perhaps the smallest-time act on the million-selling New Moon soundtrack, where it rubs elbows with the A-list likes of Thom Yorke, Muse and Death Cab for Cutie. Yet Band of Skulls’ sound is anything but little: On their excellently titled debut, Baby Darling Doll Face Honey (issued in the U.S. by Steve Bing’s Santa Monica-based Shangri-La Music), singer-guitarist Russell Marsden, singer-bassist Emma Richardson and drummer Matt Hayward bring an expansive postshoegaze sensibility to the sort of raw-garage stylings we’ve heard lately from the White Stripes and the Kills; the name of one tune, “Death by Diamonds and Pearls,” goes a long way in describing the band’s sexy-threatening appeal. Catch them now before more of the Twilight nation catches on. Also Saturday with Passion Pit at the Fox Theatre in Pomona. (Mikael Wood)

FLAVORS 1990s PARTY FEATURING DJ SPINNA, J.ROCC, DJ SCRATCH AT THE ECHOPLEX
With so much anticipation building toward the next decade, it’s good that a handful of superstar DJs is getting together to remind us that’s it’s okay to look back. The “Flavors 1990s Party” aims to celebrate the best hip-hop and R&B of that goldmine of a period, which was perhaps most notable for blurring the lines between those two previously distinct genres — New Jack Swing, anybody? You should already know J.Rocc for his work on the Stones Throw label and for founding the local, legendary Beat Junkies crew back in 1992. DJ Spinna is a house and hip-hop luminary who’s produced tracks for everyone from Mos Def to Motown, not to mention contributed cuts to Spike Lee’s Bamboozled. But even in such exceptional company, it’s hard to beat DJ Scratch’s résumé. In 1988, he won the But even in such exceptional company, it’s hard to beat DJ Scratch’s résumé. In 1988, he won the scratch “Battle For World Supremacy.” He was EPMD’s DJ, and even schooled Run DMC’s Jam Master Jay on technique. Ever had your jaw drop whilst listening to a Babyface track? Perhaps it’s time. (Chris Martins)


SATURDAY DECEMBER 12

ESPERS AT THE CHURCH IN OCEAN PARK
There’s a certain kind of hazy, luminous winter morning that’ll suit well your tea stirring as you put the needle down on the new Espers III (Drag City). Not quite as hard-edged, trippy and genre-spanning as their previous II, the new collection finds the Philadelphia band attempting drowsy focus on those evanescent flickers of last night’s dreams, conjured with a bewitchingly vague but acidic folk-rock adorned with proggy touches of odd time signature and extended structure. The band features singer Meg Baird’s earthy/unearthly vocals, a pleasingly round-toned drum thockery, and a choice fuzz-sustain lead guitar that suggests the spidery stuff in the neglected corners of your heart or head. There is something subdued and sad coursing its way through Espers, but hear how they shake the blanket of sonic satisfaction; the sun will always find a way to seep through the mist. (John Payne)

BRETT DENNEN, GRACE POTTER & THE NOCTURNALS AT THE WILTERN
There’s no getting around the fact that Grace Potter & the Nocturnals remain the guiltiest of pleasures. Despite being lumped in with the jam-band scene, the Vermont group actually have more of a bluesy (albeit stubbornly retro) classic-rock sound. The Nocturnals can easily stretch it out on extended rambles, such as their glowing remake of Neil Young’s “Down by the River,” but their tasteful lead guitarist, Scott Tournet, generally plays with more melodic flair and restrained eloquence than your usual aimlessly soft-plucking jam-band noodler. Potter is a fiery keyboardist and passionately soulful singer, but her otherwise enjoyable original songs are considerably hamstrung — at least so far — by cringe-inducing lyrical clichés. (There’s also an unintentionally hilarious bit of Spinal Tap awkwardness in the group’s dispute with recently departed bassist Bryan Dondero, who claimed in a blog post that Potter told him she didn’t approve of the clothes he wore and “some of the things you do, like putting your foot on the monitor or [jumping] on the riser at really inappropriate moments.” Oh, the horror!) Headliner Brett Dennen is a marginally better lyricist, but his sleepy, easy-listening tunes and jivey, mush-mouthed delivery combine to make him less interesting than the harder-rocking Nocturnals, who should have far more commercial (and musical) potential once Potter finds her own lyrical voice. (Falling James)

NICOLETTE LARSON TRIBUTE AT THE TALKING STICK
The pop-country singer Nicolette Larson died too young, at the age of 45, in 1997, as a result of cerebral edema. While she’s most often remembered for her hit version of Neil Young’s “Lotta Love” in 1978, she also worked with Linda Ronstadt, Emmylou Harris, the Doobie Brothers, Carlene Carter and even Van Halen. Her friends and family are determined to keep her memory alive. with the latest installment in a series of benefits for the Nicolette Larson Pediatric Endowment at Mattel Children’s Hospital/UCLA. (Admission is free tonight, but all donations go to the endowment.) While the announced lineup doesn’t include Larson’s more famous colleagues, it does feature her former producer, Andrew Gold (best known for the soft-rock hit “Lonely Boy”), her daughter Elsie May Larson-Kunkel, and such veteran singer-songwriters as Paul Zollo, Lisa Nemzo, Randy Sacks, Mark Pocket Goldberg, Jeff Kossack, Debra Davis, Freebo, Lois Blaisch, Lisa Turner, Severin Browne, Rosemary Butler, Mare Lennon and host Mark Islam. The show starts at 7 p.m. (Falling James)


SUNDAY DECEMBER 13