The Aggrolites ~ Saturday, May 30
Over the past seven years, the Aggrolites have established a reputation for being a bit retrograde. Though this has occasionally earned them some degree of critical scorn, the band wholeheartedly embraces their throwback aesthetic, choosing to act as if they're one of the original reggae/ska/funk acts to whom they so frequently draw comparison. Rather than using their influences as a jumping-off point, they have chosen to become their influences. This sense of pure musical continuity is readily apparent on The Aggrolites IV, soon to be released on Hellcat Records. From the funk swagger of album opener "Firecracker" to the breezy reggae feel of the aptly titled "Reggae Summertime," the album veritably sweats classic reggae, ska, and soul. For those craving something a little different, the sweetheart-of-the-(reggae)-rodeo feel of "Brother Jacob" should fit the bill, with its swinging shuffle and mournful saga of love, death, and vengeance. Though the Aggrolites may not be out to reinvent the wheel, the one they're turning sounds pretty damn sweet. With the Georgetown Orbits. The Crocodile, 2200 Second Ave., 441-7416. 8 p.m. $13 adv. NICHOLAS HALL
Adam Voith
The Cotton Jones family at home.
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Jenny Lewis ~ Sunday, May 31
Last fall, I watched Jenny Lewis and her backing band, which includes her boyfriend, singer/songwriter/guitarist Johnathan Rice, put on a tremendous, impassioned performance in a theatre on the outskirts of Philadelphia that wasn't even half full. The tickets weren't particularly expensive, the weather wasn't atrocious, the parking there isn't a nightmare. I thought to myself, "Why aren't there more people here? Are they mad because they think she's destroying Rilo Kiley with this solo career of hers? Are they sad that she ditched the Watson Twins? Are they tired of people hyping her up and insisting how 'hot' she is? Is she just the poor man's/woman's Neko Case?" And then I went home, thought about her amazing voice and the excellent show she just put on, listened to her then-new Acid Tongue and its stylin', captivating '70s Laurel Canyon country-pop, and came to the only conclusion possible for the lousy attendance: People can be really fucking stupid. Seattle, don't be stupid. Just go. You'll thank me. With the Sadies, Mimicking Birds.Showbox at the Market, 1426 First Ave., 628-3151. 8 p.m. $20 adv./$22 DOS. All ages. MICHAEL ALAN GOLDBERG
Mount Eerie ~ Monday, June 1
Phil Elverum has gone by any number of aliases during his 10-plus years of making music. A few years ago, he even changed the spelling of his last name. (It used to be Elvrum.) He was known as the Microphones until 2003, when he released an album titled Mount Eerie. Since then, he's been using that as his moniker. When Elverum released a 7-inch in 2007 and credited it to the Microphones, rumors started floating that he'd again drop the Mount Eerie handle. He's unpredictable in other ways, too: A prolific songwriter, he's known for recording short-run singles that are only available for purchase at his live shows. A few years ago, he performed five shows in one day in Portland, at a number of mystery locations around town. But whatever he calls himself—and no matter how unusual his musical career—Elverum's music has remained the same. On some compositions, there are electronic drum kits keeping a tinkling beat; on others, it's just the Anacortes native and his guitar. But every song is identified by Elverum's slightly off-key half-singing, half-talking vocals. "What I am going to do with my life/Now that you're gone?" he sings on "Who," a Mount Eerie tune. These are haunting compositions about life's unbearable weight, and there's no better musician than Elverum to carry that load. With Clues, Aqueduct. Neumos, 925 E. Pike St., 709-9467. 8 p.m. $12 adv. All ages. PAIGE RICHMOND
