Bad Religion / Wednesday, November 17
Hisham Bharoocha
Down to earth: High Places.
Laura Musselman
Seattle's Madonna, Lisa Dank.
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It's been 31 years since Greg Graffin founded Bad Religion, one of the most literate and intelligent punk bands ever to inspire disillusioned teenagers. Since then, Bad Religion has released 15 albums, including this year's The Dissent of Man, and become notorious for their indictment of modern man and 21st-century digital boys. The band—specifically guitarist Brett Gurewitz—is responsible for the existence of Epitaph Records and teaching punk rockers the meaning of five-dollar words like "assuage," "proliferation," and "ecosystem." Who cares if they haven't released an undeniably amazing album since 1996's Stranger Than Fiction? (2002's The Process of Belief was decent, but compared to Suffer? Come on.) The band predicted the rise of global warming and life-stealing computer programs long before the Prius or Facebook existed. That deserves some respect. With Bouncing Souls, Off With Their Heads. Showbox SoDo, 1700 First Ave. S., 628-3151. 7 p.m. $25. All ages. PAIGE RICHMOND
Collie Buddz / Wednesday, November 17
If you've ever been to a reggae show or house party with any sort of Caribbean leaning, odds are you've rocked to Collie Buddz's 2007 monster hook: "Finally the herbs come around!" Since the release of his self-titled debut that year, the New Orleans–born, Bermuda-raised musician with a tendency toward dancehall and hip-hop has worked with the likes of Busta Rhymes, Beyoncé, and Lil' Flip—all the while attempting to avoid the shadow of the world's Sean Pauls. Now touring on his third full-length, The Last Toke, Buddz may not have kept his grasp on the limelight, but he still has control over the convincing vocals and pop/dub/R&B crossover ability that put him there. With The New Kingston Band, Northwest Sons, DJ Redman. Nectar, 412 N. 36th St., 632-2020. 8 p.m. $18. NICK FELDMAN
Tennis / Wednesday, November 17
In 2009, after six years of scrimping and saving, married couple Patrick Riley and Alaina Moore bought a 30-foot sailboat named Cape Dory. The pair, from Denver, had no sailing experience, but equipped with a copy of The Annapolis Book of Seamanship, they spent eight months journeying up the Eastern seaboard from the Bahamas to Baltimore. Upon their return, they wrote a record about it. The Marathon EP features sweet songs inspired by Wall-of-Sound girl groups like the Shirelles, with fuzzed-out layers of simple keys and guitar and Moore's lively, sophisticated vocals. Come January, Tennis will release their first full-length, Cape Dory, containing even more delightfully radiant songs with titles like "South Carolina," "Bimini Bay," and "Seafarer." With the Golden Blondes. Crocodile, 2200 Second Ave., 441-7416. 8 p.m. $10. ERIN K. THOMPSON
Greg Dulli / Thursday, November 18
Fans of highly emotional, rhythmically driven alternative rock can rejoice. Greg Dulli—the frontman of the Twilight Singers, the Gutter Twins (with grunge hero Mark Lanegan), and the perpetually underrated Afghan Whigs—recently announced two big musical steps forward. First, the Twilight Singers, his more low-key and lovely project, is finally recording a new album, nearly five years after the release of the ever-so-sultry Powder Burns. Second, Dulli—now 45, still shaggy-haired and tortured but no longer known for his perpetual chain-smoking—is embarking on a solo tour. He's performing songs from his entire catalog, which means his set will have a combination of the driving, slightly wild feel of Afghan Whigs songs like "Debonair" and the soft, haunting quality of the Twilight Singers—in short, everything that makes Dulli both a tearjerker and a heartthrob. With Shawn Smith. Crocodile, 2200 Second Ave., 441-7416. 8 p.m. $19. PAIGE RICHMOND
High Places / Thursday, November 18
The L.A.-by-way-of Brooklyn duo High Places—arranger and multi-instrumentalist Rob Barber and singer Mary Pearson—released their second LP, the moody High Places vs. Mankind, in March. The album surprised fans of their carefree 2008 self-titled debut in its overt melancholy—sonically, the music still featured electronic beats mixed with guitar riffs, trippy percussive rhythms, and Pearson's fluid vocals, which shimmer and slither like spirits from the netherworld. But songs like the gypsy-vibed "The Longest Shadow," the smoky "Giving It Up," and the spooky, bassoon-darkened "I Was Born" (Pearson has a degree in bassoon performance) convey a sense of glazed-over resignation. It's lovely stuff, in an eerie, haunting way—not so much dance music as daze music. With Soft Circle, Tiny Vipers. Vera Project, 305 Harrison St., 956-8372. 7:30 p.m. $10. All ages. ERIN K. THOMPSON
Built to Spill / Friday, November 19—Saturday, November 20
If it feels as if Boise rockers Built to Spill have been touring nonstop for the past handful of years, it's because they have been. Remarkably, between the October 2009 release of their seventh studio album, There Is No Enemy, and now, frontman Doug Martsch and bassist Brett Nelson found the time to record The Electric Anthology Project (out last July). The project founded the duo, which uses only drum machines and synthesizers, to create seven '80s New Wave remixes of songs from the band's back catalog. Antics like that certainly please hardcore fans, as will Martsch and company's onstage jams during their two-night stay in Seattle. With Le Fleur, Cober. Showbox at the Market, 1426 First Ave., 628-3151. 8 p.m. $20 adv./$25 DOS. Fri., 21 and over; Sat., all ages. BRYDEN MCGRATH
