Blah Blah Blah

Ironical name aside, Blah Blah’s featured concerts are more like the cream of the crop than the crumbs of the crap. However, this is just one of those weeks when there’s not a whole hell of a lot going on ’sides ArthurBall. (Must be some post-Grammys malaise.) And so this week I will babble to fill space. For example, have you ever considered that the background singers on the ’79 hit “Magnet and Steel” (by Walter Egan) sound exactly like the ladies of the Fleetwood Mac? O.K., on to the shows: Sat., 2/25, Bon Jovi at Arrowhead Pond. Enough said. Mon., 2/27, our friends in The Adored, our very favorite ex-dance punks, play at The Willowz’s showcase. This bill feels like classic Monday-night Spaceland. Tues., 2/28, pop singer-songwriter Richard Swift plays Spaceland, and, speaking of key changes and minor chords, Wed., 3/1, power-poppers-at-heart Matthew Sweet & Susannah Hoffs play the Hotel Café to support their new covers album, featuring beloved gems by the most beautiful bands ever, including The Zombies, The Left Banke, The Beach Boys and others. Did someone say power pop? Meet the next gen. Thurs., 2/2: Dig OK Go at the Fonda, opening for pretty-good pop-punks Motion City Soundtrack. Okay, I’m going. (Kate Sullivan)

FRIDAY

Dengue Fever at Tangier

It takes a village, all right. Start with Dengue Fever’s mixture of space grooves and Southeast Asian pop. Throw in Long Beach’s hypnotic Chhom Nimol, the skin-tight jams of brothers Ethan and Zac Holtzman (on Farfisa and guitars, respectively) and crew, then stir. The resultant taste is a multicultural family affair that can keep a club skanking all night long. The Fever’s self-titled 2003 debut was an easygoing mash-up of Cambodian-pop standards, but their newest joint, Escape From Dragon House, offers up psychedelic originals like “One Thousand Tears of a Tarantula,” “Made of Steam” and the swinging title track. Sure, Nimol sings much of the band’s rump-shaking catalog in her native tongue, but English has been creeping into their set list. Even the xenophobes will go home happy. With Future Pigeon. (Scott Thill)

Advertising disclosure: We may receive compensation for some of the links in our stories. Thank you for supporting LA Weekly and our advertisers.