While my lyric-addled brain conjured a subhead referencing Nitzer Ebb, the concert this blurb hypes is two parts Burqueño and one part Canadian. Land of Enchantment-based swervegaze act REIGHNBEAU and rap and R&B-laced electro artist BK Beats deserve much lauding. But the melting sugar cube atop this cup of green fairy is Toronto/Montreal trio DOOMSQUAD. Composed of three siblings—Allie, Jaclyn and Trevor Blumas—the band has the misfortune of being unfairly compared to Prince Rama, which jumped the shark in 2012 with Top Ten Hits of the End of the World. The dark new age sound of DOOMSQUAD shimmers on their latest, Kalaboogie. Drone, electro and bewitching vox dance widdershins around the current crop of witch house-adjacent poseurs. Get entranced at Sister (407 Central NW) on Thursday, March 20. This 21-plus concert begins to whir and hum at 10pm, and $5 gets you in.
Four Up Sunset Blvd. Ambience
Ozomatli
Courtesy of artist
LA hip-hop/Latin/rock septet Ozomatli has purveyed their uncommon sound for almost two decades now. While the lineup has morphed over the years, the social activism-leaning band’s commitment to progressive politics and the anti-war movement remains as strong as ever. The membership and formation of Ozomatli originated with union organizing and arts education, and the group has served as an international ambassador while remaining true to their core beliefs and raking in accolades. If none of this bleeding heart-jazz warms you up, you may recall Ozomatli’s fusion of Los Angeleno roots—the cacophony of radios blasting “salsa, cumbia, merengue, hip-hop, funk” and more on Sunset Blvd.—from their performance of “Cumbia de los Muertos” soundtracking Drew Barrymore’s ganja cake-fueled boa dance in Never Been Kissed. Experience Ozomatli, along with Burqueño reggae/rock crew ¡Revíva! on Friday, March 21, at Envy (14500 Central SW). This 21-plus party revs up at 9pm, and admission is $22.
Four Up Live By The Sword
The Sword
Brian Tamborello
Austinite metal foursome The Sword began delivering cutting, thrusting noise back in 2003. Excepting original drummer Trivett Wingo’s replacement by Jimmy Vela in 2011, The Sword’s founding members—vocalist/guitarist J.D. Cronise, guitarist Kyle Shutt and bassist Bryan Richie—tirelessly follow in the footsteps of their doom/metal forefathers, such as Black Sabbath and Sleep. The band’s 2012 release Apocryphon was the first Sword recording sans Wingo, and if you can radically differentiate the percussion on Apocryphon from that on Age of Winters, Gods of the Earth or Warp Riders, you should be writing about metal for the Alibi. (Serio. Send an email to samantha@alibi.com.) Slash a path to Launchpad (618 Central SW) on Sunday, March 23, to take in The Sword and Atlanta, Ga.-based heavy, ambient, experimental five-piece O’Brother. This 13-plus shred-fest ramps up at 8pm, and admission is $20.
Four Up Melodic Chaos Reigns
Deafheaven vocalist George Clarke
Courtesy of artist
San Franciscan metal outfit Deafheaven merits a more nuanced description than “black metal.” While 2013’s Sunbather certainly exhibits the harsh vox and relentless ferocity the genre is known for, it’s more than that. Signed by Sargent House, Deafheaven shares an elusive quality with other 2014 roster-mates like Japanese heavy experimental trio Boris, neofolk starlet Chelsea Wolfe and Emma Ruth Rundle (dark, introspective solo work by The Nocturnes founder/Red Sparowes guitarist). While Deafheaven’s vox rest pretty squarely in black metal territory and the accompanying instrumentation doesn’t exactly call to mind the term “easy listening,” it’s not strictly necro. This may present a problem for heshers who relish hard and fast boundaries. But if you’re curious about how one band, one album even, can encompass bloodcurdling and beatific in the same breath, Deafheaven might be your new favorite band. Find out on Thursday, March 27, at Sister (407 Central NW), starting at 10pm. Admission to this 21-plus gig is $10, and Everhard-core brutalist Bath House opens.
