Lucero, Thursday, October 29:Some styles of music just donaE™t fit with storytelling.A  Others require it.A  For that latter group, made up of backstreet bards and barroom lyricists, narrative is so essential that the music might as well not exist without it.A  Lucero is keenly aware of the importance of character development and story arc in its particular vein of punk-fueled Americana.A  These are songs about frustration and heartache, glory and hope from characters who take shape in the span of three minutes, and they represent some of the best examples of how to tie form, function, and feeling together.A  Interweaving the grit and urgency of punk, the sounds and moods of country, and the lyrical mastery of a gifted storyteller, Lucero offers the kind of anthemic and ambitious music that results in greatness, the kind of music to turn to for the rest of your life.A  While the band clearly pays homage to a number of greats, LuceroaE™s fresh approach makes their music much more than just a simple reworking of its influences (Springsteen, the Replacements, Uncle Tupelo).A  In other words, Lucero isnaE™t feeding off a legacy, but becoming part of one. With Jack Oblivian, John Paul Keith & the One Four Fives. Crocodile, 2200 Second Ave. 441-7416. 8 p.m. $16. Note by NICHOLAS HALL

The Henry Clay People, Thursday, October 29:Named for a 19th Century Secretary of State, clearly inspired by Pavement and other quirky aE™90s commodities early on, the Southern California-formed Henry Clay People have since broadened their horizons to include sunny aE™60s hooks and a sort of slacker twang. Now based in L.A., the increasingly solid quintet released last yearaE™s For Cheap Or For Free on the in-house label of L.A.aE™s popular Aquarium Drunkard blog and were recently handpicked by the breakout act The Airborne Toxic Event to tour with them this fall. ThataE™s quite a break for a band thataE™s been toiling in obscurity and self-releasing cryptically titled output for most of the past decade. As comeuppance goes, then, itaE™s a satisfying development. Armed with crunchy nuggets like aEœThis AinaE™t A SceneaE and aEœYou Can Be Timeless,aE the Henry Clay People are looking more and more like L.A.aE™s answer to Blitzen Trapper, combining classic rock and indie with woolly aplomb.A With Red Cortaz. Showbox SoDo, 1700 1st Ave. S., 652-0444. 8 p.m. $18 adv./$20 DOS. Note by DOUG WALLEN

Andre Nickatina, Friday, October 30:Though inextricably linked to his pal, the late, legendary Mac Dre, Andre Nickatina, the rapper formerly known as Dre Dog, is very much his own man. Sure, he rides lo-fi beats with that peculiar Bay Area bounce in his delivery a la Mac. And sure, Nickatina raps about the hustleraE™s code in albums with titles such as Daiquiri Factory Cocaine Raps Vol. 2 (which makes Ghostface KillahaE™s Fishscale sound like it's drying out on the boat deck). But Nickatina has his own style, as is obvious to anyone who listens to his collaboration with Mac on 2008aE™s A Tale of Two Andres. Nickatina is a true West Coast underground champaE”heaE™s never broken out into the mainstreamaE”with the catalogue and years in the game to back it up. Studio Seven, 110 S. Horton St. 286-1312. 8 p.m. $27 adv./$30 DOS. All ages. Note by KEVIN CAPP

Esperanza Spalding, Friday, October 30 through Sunday, November 1:Upright bassist Esperanza SpaldingaE™s take on jazz brims with Latin rhythms, smooth soul, and polished pop songwriting while gracefully sidestepping the many dangerous clichAcs that tend to plague other artists who tread the same ground. SpaldingaE™s distinct, reedy voice works in her favor, and her high pitch brings a measure of harmonic contrast to the rest of the music that instantly sets her work apart. She knows how to use that voice, too, maneuvering her way around a choice phrase like an expert. And, much as she does with her choice of genres, Spalding avoids clichAcs with her lyrics, turning out agile verses that would easily ensnare other singers. They say if you die in a dream, you die in real life / Well, I just died in your arms, lost in your eyes... is but one example of how Spalding concocts sparkling, unexpected poetry out of otherwise banal ingredients. While her presentation is perfect for conservative-minded jazz listeners, SpaldingaE™s creative ingenuity and overall spark should also appeal to fans of more impressionistic fare. Meanwhile, the fat grooves that result from her dynamic bass-drum interplay certainly donaE™t hurt, either. Dimitriou's Jazz Alley, 2033 Sixth Ave. 441-9729. 7:30 p.m. and 10 p.m. $25.50. All ages. Note by SABY REYES-KULKARNI

Glenn Or Glennda, Saturday, October 31:Who doesnaE™t love screaming Misfits lyrics on Halloween night? aEœI turned into a martianaE¦woah-oh-OH!aE aEœKennedyaE™s shattered head hits concreteaE¦run Jackie run.aE And everyoneaE™s favorite: aEœI got something to sayaE¦I raped your mother today!aE Whether they intended to or not, the Misfits wrote the soundtrack for every PBR-sloshed kegger thrown by punk rockers on October 31, and what better way to celebrate that than a Misfits cover band? Formed by local favorite Bill Bullock, Glenn Or Glenda is Misfits covers done right. Not only do they rage, but they keep the Misfits spirit alive by adding a twist: Each member dresses like the opposite sex. Get it? Glenn or Glennda? Danzig would be proud. With Dead Vampires, Event Staph, Poop Attack. Funhouse, 206 Fifth Ave. N. 374-8400. 9:30 p.m. $6. Note by BRIAN J. BARR

Blues Control, Sunday, November 1:Russ Waterhouse and Lea Cho are Blues Control, the Queens, New York duo that makes a righteous racket with guitars, organs, tape loops, drones, and beats. Capable of creating pristine grooves or bottom-of-the-bong sludge, Blues Control veers from psych- and acid-rock to garage-rock to noise-punk to quasi-jazz fusion to hypnotic trip-hop. The shifts are fascinating on album, and even more exhilarating and engrossing onstage, where theyaE™re known to improvise madly. The pair has opened for everyone from Animal Collective to Fucked Up to Bill Callahan, which makes no sense and perfect sense all at once aE“ youaE™ll understand better when you catch them live. And youaE™ll definitely want to catch them live.A With Little Claw, Brother Raven. Funhouse, 206 Fifth Ave. N. 374-8400. 9:30 p.m. $7. Note by MICHAEL ALAN GOLDBERG

William Elliot Whitmore, Sunday, November 1:When people talk about someone having aEœan old soul,aEA theyaE™re talking about people like William Elliot Whitmore.A  Though barely into his third decade, WhitmoreaE™s music sounds like it should be issuing from the mind and mouth of someone at least double that.A  His songs chronicle lives of hard-fought survival, both practical and spiritual, usually accompanied by nothing more than sparse banjo or guitar.A  Tales of woe are WhitmoreaE™s element, and he sings his laments with a gravelly, pained voice that sounds steeped in whiskey and brimstone.A  That voice is WhitmoreaE™s strongest asset, lending a visceral credibility to material that would make most musicians his age seem like imposters trying to fill their grandfatheraE™s boots, penning songs about lives they havenaE™t had time to live.A  When Whitmore sings about run-ins with aEœJohnny LawaE, itaE™s not a brash young man fighting against authority, itaE™s a pained, resigned stoic airing his grievances.A  Resignation and hope are never far apart in WhitmoreaE™s lexicon, and he demonstrates this most starkly on his latest, Animals in the Dark.A  The album keeps most of WhitmoreaE™s hallmarks, simply adding a bit of backbone to a set that includes calls to action alongside his usual cries of outrage. With Hoots and Hellmouth. Tractor Tavern, 5213 Ballard Ave. N.W. 789-3599. 8 p.m. $8 adv./$10 DOS. Note by NICHOLAS HALL

Langhorne Slim, Monday, November 2:Langhorne SlimaE™s latest effort, Be Set Free, isnaE™t exactly a departure from his last, self titled record. In many ways, this is Langhorne Slim, part deux. The biggest difference between the two albums isnaE™t the music aE“ both feature SlimaE™s signature folky twang aE“ but their themes. While SlimaE™s first album was all about falling in love, this album pertains to the hardship of leaving, and then coming back home to, that love. Recorded while the ever-transient Slim resided in Portland, Be Set Free gets some additional Northwestern flavor from the production skills of the DecemberistsaE™ Chris Funk and Emerald City luminary Tucker Martine. And while his records are always good, the thing that makes me sing his praises, the thing that sets him apart and makes him someone you look forward to seeing time and again, is his inspired live show. A natural born roadhouse revivalist, SlimaE™s sexy Southern sing -a-longs combine the best of whatA  hootenanny and honky tonk have to offer. Tractor Tavern, 5213 Ballard Ave. N.W. 789-3599. 8 p.m. $8 adv./$10 DOS. Note by MAaE™CHELL DUMA LAVASSAR

mAom, Monday, November 2:Icelandic folktronica collective mAom has undergone a marked transformation since losing their creepy-kid-sounding lead singers three years ago aE“ absent those eerie vocals, mAomaE™s music has taken on a more relaxed, almost pastoral sound, as evidenced on their latest full-length, Sing Along to Songs You DonaE™t Know. The standard electronic touches are fused with ukuleles, weeping cellos and violins, and, occasionally, a parakeet singing along in the background. Some of the old weird cultish overtones remain, though aE“ vocals are layered in unison, in one song chanting, aEœYou are so beautiful to us/ We want to lock you in our house/ We want to eat you with a spoon.aE But the most interesting detail in mAomaE™s melancholic new music is its undertow of political unrest aE“ the record was written last year against the backdrop of IcelandaE™s devastating financial collapse and subsequent civil dissent. aEœThe Smell of Today is Sweet Like Breastmilk in the WindaE is particularly suggestive aE“ despite the hyperactive cowbell that sounds throughout, it is essentially a mournful requiem for aEœthis fleeting world of our fathers, eternal world of our mothers,aE ultimately concluding that aEœwords are only lies.aE With Sin Fan Bous. Showbox at the Market, 1426 First Ave. 628-3151. 8 p.m. $16 adv./$18 DOS. All ages. Note by E. THOMPSON

Mickey Avalon, Tuesday, November 3:ItaE™s easy to buy that Mickey Avalon is a former heroin junkie and prostitute. The rapper is notorious for lewd lyrics meditating on sex and drugsaE”subjects heaE™s an expert on, thanks to his upbringing in Hollywood. A What is hard to buy is that Avalon rarely listens to hip hop. He loves country music; Gillian Welsh and Lucinda Williams especially. But the disconnect isnaE™t at all evident on hook and beat-heavy tracks like aEœMy DickaE and aEœJane Fonda.aE Avalon excels at crafting grossly offensive rhymes, and he has a teasing drawl thataE™s appropriate for delivering such raunchy content. Then again, the inflection might just be a result of all the tequila he drinksaE”and soaks the crowd withaE”during live shows. With Beardo, Ke$ha. Showbox at the Market, 1426 First Ave. 628-3151. 7 p.m. $19.50 adv./$25 DOS. All ages. Note by ERIKA HOBART

Regina Spektor, Tuesday, November 3:Listening to Regina Spektor is very much like listening to a precocious childaE”incredibly endearing, but also a little annoying. The Soviet-born, New York-bred songstress crams her piano pop melodies with eccentric lyrics and vocal techniques. Her fifth studio album, Far, is no exception. On it, Spektor sings about finding a wallet with as much passion as she does about the power of God. But itaE™s when she loosens up that she really shines. The albumaE™s stand out track, aEœDance Anthem of the aE˜80s,aE is an infectious B-52s-inspired gem on which she chirps, aEœIaE™m walking through the city like a drunk, but not/With my slip showing a little, like a drunk, but not.aE ItaE™s lovely instances like these that save Spektor when she gets too brainy for her own good. Paramount Theatre, 911 Pine St. 877-STG-4TIX. Note by ERIKA HOBART

c Beowulf Sheehan