Gillian Welch/Wednesday, July 13
Cara Robbins
Serenity in the land of Gardens & Villa.
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For the current flock of Depression-fetishizing Seattle folkies who've been understandably branded as lacking authenticity, we offer Exhibit A in your defense: Gillian Welch. Reared in Los Angeles by a pair of Hollywood screenwriters, Welch attended college in Santa Cruz and Boston before heading to Nashville in an effort to ground herself in the Southern roots music she'd come to love. That was 20 years ago. Since then, Welch has weathered critical cries of poseurism en route to becoming one of the most respected folk/bluegrass/country artists on the planet. No popular American musician evokes Appalachia so coherently in her compositions; far from tilting at windmills, if there's a charge to be brought against Welch, it's that she's too faithful to her corncob-pipe-smokin', moonshine-runnin', string-pickin' forerunners. On the heels of Seattle stops by fellow twang-time goddesses Lucinda Williams and Alison Krauss, Welch is touring behind The Harrow & the Harvest, her first studio album in eight years. Moore Theatre, 1932 Second Ave., 467-5510. 8 p.m. $30. All ages. MIKE SEELY
Ky-Mani Marley/Wednesday, July 13
Ky-Mani Marley isn't Bob Marley's most famous son. In fact, he's not even among the top three— Ziggy, Damian, and Stephen take those honors. But the reggae legend's 10th-born certainly has his old man's blood, even if he doesn't follow in the family's reggae footsteps. Opting for hip-hop and dance-hall stylings shaped by an inner-city Miami childhood, he has no close musical ties with his half-siblings, and doesn't attract reggae vets waving the elder Marley's flag. Instead he treads the path of a street soldier, with a flow and delivery to match. So while he's not the one to carry on his father's legacy, you have to give him credit for stepping outside the family footsteps. With Gramps Morgan, Kore Ionz. Nectar, 412 N. 36th St., 632-2020. 8 p.m. $25. NICK FELDMAN
Extreme Animals/Thursday, July 14
The first time I heard Extreme Animals was over a shitty desktop PC's speakers in a gloriously run-down punk house just north of the Greek houses on frat row. This was in 2003, before YouTube or Facebook or Soundcloud, and a friend had just turned me on to Paper Rad, a wonderfully low-tech, lowbrow digital-arts collective that's worked in pixels, HTML, and tacky animated gifs back long before any LOLcat-themed sweatshops got around to monetizing such things. Extreme Animals were and remain the collective's premiere musical front, a live duo working with distorted electronics, drum clatter, and willfully smeared vocals that act as the perfect sonic embodiment of Paper Rad's garish and playful visual noise. Opening are local duo Brain Fruit, who approach their experimental instrumental jams—on drums, electronics, and bass—with slightly more somber expressions. With Sam Rousso Soundsystem, Bankie Phones, WIIR. Electric Tea Garden, 1402 E. Pike St., 568-3972. 10 p.m. $6. ERIC GRANDY
Neema/Thursday, July 14-Friday, July 15
Two-night CD-release parties at Neumos seem to be all the rage these days—Blue Scholars did it, Shabazz Palaces did it, and The Physics are about to do two shows in one night for theirs. And to celebrate the release of his fourth record, Black Roses, Neema, aka Mr. 10K (a reference to his 10,000 records sold, though according to Twitter he's now claiming 40K), is throwing his name into the ring. Often leaning toward dark sounds and aggressive flows, the Strange Music affiliate doesn't have the best raps, but can claim an untouchable work ethic and a great eye for supporting talent (as evidenced by his shows' lineups: His first night includes Bay Area hyphy godfather Mistah F.A.B.). With Rockwell Powers, Cash Clepto, Lace Cadence, Latin Rose. Neumos, 925 E. Pike St., 709-9442. 8 p.m. $12 each or $20 for both. All ages Thursday. NICK FELDMAN
WaMü/Thursday, July 14
No relation to the imploded banking behemoth whose name still weirdly adorns the exhibition hall attached to Qwest Field (although I guess Qwest isn't a thing anymore either, so there), Seattle band WaMü—pronounced like the wah-wah pedal plus the lost continent—is the hell-raising, free-form skronk-fest of guitarist Kaz Nomura of PWRFL Power, violinist Eric Ostrowski of Noggin, saxophonist Brittnie Fuller, and drummer Garrett Kelly and vocalist Rachel LeBlanc of My Printer Broke. This is a group deeply steeped in Seattle's experimental and DIY music scenes, and it shows in just how brazenly they push their wanton racket. The sax bleats, the violin shivers, the guitar shreds, the drums rumble, and LeBlanc moans—it's an abrasive sonic morass out of which arises some surprisingly head-banging grooves. Also, sometimes Kaz will do somersaults while playing guitar. WaMü: Too weird to fail. With So Pitted, Lovely Bad Things, Total Shit. Funhouse, 206 Fifth Ave. N., 374-8400. 9:30 p.m. $5. ERIC GRANDY
The Avett Brothers/Friday, July 15
Drifting from their tendency to release an album a year, The Avett Brothers have been hard at work on the follow-up to the band's 2009 major-label debut, I and Love and You. Rick Rubin is back to guide the project, and the Concord, N.C., threesome already has 24 songs recorded. Brothers Scott and Seth Avett on banjo and guitar and standup bassist Bob Crawford have been in the studio since early 2011, though they managed to get a little attention on the side with a February performance at the 53rd Grammy Awards alongside Mumford & Sons and Bob Dylan. Combining bluegrass and country with pop and punk, the three hope to expand on their past success and release a new album that is both well-crafted and mature. With Jessica Lea Mayfield. Everett Events Center, 2000 Hewitt Ave., Everett, 425-322-2645. 7:30 p.m. $35 adv./$40 DOS. All ages. JOE WILLIAMS
