Fountains of Wayne, Thursday, Jan. 15, Triple Door: Fountains of Wayne’s power-pop songwriting tandem of Adam Schlesinger and Chris Collingwood crafts smart, guitar-based, effortlessly catchy music that marries rich melodies, spot-on harmonies and relentless hooks to sly, wry, observational lyrics that detail everyday events in the lives of ordinary people, striking a fine balance between humor and pathos. Despite an up-and-down careeraE”they’ve recorded for three labels, been dropped by one, split up for a couple of years, then reunited and received a Grammy nomination as Best New Artist (for their third album!) aE”they’ve maintained a consistently high level of quality through four studio releases over the past 13 years. They’ll be previewing songs off their new album, which should come out this spring. It’ll be interesting to see how the percussive, precise, synth- and effects-heavy pop of their most recent effort, 2007’s Traffic and Weather, translates to the acoustic format. Opening is Jon Auer, another gifted songwriter whose power-pop credentials are unquestionedaE”he’s been the heart and soul of the Posies for more than two decades and helped Alex Chilton resurrect Big Star. Triple Door Mainstage, 216 Union St., 838-4333. 7:30 p.m. $25 adv, $28 dos. All ages.Note by MICHAEL MAHONEY

David Grisman Quintet, Thursday, Jan. 15 through Sunday, Jan. 18, DimitriouaE™s Jazz Alley: The David Grisman Quintet, as any hippie/jazzbo hybrid can tell you, plays aEœdawgaE music. ThataE™s a heady blend of bluegrass, swing, Django-inspired gypsy jazz and assorted Latin flavors. For the uninitiated, track down the latest release on GrismanaE™s Acoustic Disc imprint: a two-set gig recorded at SeattleaE™s very own Jazz Alley in November of 2007. Speaking of Acoustic Disc, the label has also released, for the first time ever, the complete Old & In the Way concert. In 1973 Grisman hooked up with Jerry Garcia, Peter Rowan, Vassar Clements and John Kahn for a one-off performance that helped kick start the progressive bluegrass movement. Old & In the Way are far more folk-oriented than the Quintet, yet both groups embody GrismanaE™s profound love of improv. DimitriouaE™s Jazz Alley, 2033 Sixth Ave. 441-9729. 7:30 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. Thurs.-Sat.; 7:30 p.m. Sun. $32.50. Note by JUSTIN F. FARRAR

Woven Hand, Friday, Jan. 16, Tractor Tavern: JanDavid Eugene Edwards, modern descendent of several respectable touring bands such as 16 Horsepower, has finally come into his own as Woven Hand, a dramatic, driving departure tinged with gothic Gregorian monk-like chanting and dark Appalachian undertones. A sound that refuses to be classified simply as evil bluegrass, it’s so tempting that you won’t even notice Edwards is singing about God most of the time. Backed by virtuoso-caliber touring musicians and still toting along that concertina, Edwards is still capable of the electrifying live shows that established him in the murky waters of mid-90’s alternative. HeaE™s supported by Silver Summit, a menagerie of talented, gorgeous psychedelic wunderkinds from Brooklyn that found a way to cohesively blend their cellos, mandolins, guitars and backing vocals underneath the ethereal, meditative commands and requests of vocalist Sondra Ow Sun-Odeon. Their stage presence will demand your attention; their music will keep it. Tractor Tavern, 5213 Ballard Ave. N.W., 789-3599. 9:30 p.m., $12. Note by RAECHEL SIMS

Cool Nutz. Friday, Jan. 16, Studio Seven: Portland MC Cool Nutz, aka Terrance Scott, is one of the NorthwestaE™s best, a rock of the PDX hip hop scene whoaE™s been putting out music through his and partner Bosco KanteaE™s label, Jus Family Records, since 1992; in 1995, he co-founded and organized the POH-Hop Festival, the first local hip hop festival of its size in Portland. If the Portland hip hop scene is bigger and better than it was fifteen years ago, Cool Nutz is one of the people the city should thank for it. But Cool Nutz is also thankfulaE”after seven albums, heaE™s still making a living off the art on his own. Which is why he named his upcoming release The Miracle (it drops January 20). The album shows off the same skills that got Cool Nutz to where heaE™s at: impeccable, diverse production, lots of soulful singing, clever, playful rhymes and a laid-back flow. And if what he says on his track Wake Up is trueaE”that the Northwest’s about to blow upaE”you know Cool Nutz will be front and center representing the region. Rise and shine, motherfuckers! With Young Buck, Kokaine, E-Dawg, Clemm Rishad & Infinity, DJ Funk Daddy, DJ Pheloneous. Studio Seven, 110 S. Horton St., 286-1312. 9 p.m., $20 adv., $25 dos. All ages. Note by SARA BRICKNER

Dolly Parton Tribute Night, Saturday, Jan. 17, Conor Byrne: This might come as a surprise to most people, but the most famous tribute to country legend Dolly Parton comes from Whitney Houston. The 1995 mega-hit I Will Alway Love You aE” also known as the theme song from The Bodyguard aE” was originally penned and sung by Parton in 1974. That’s right: The warble-y, mountain soprano known for her enormous fake boobs and sequined attire wrote her own songs, many of which were tinged with folk storytelling. Parton is still the most successful female country music artist ever, and any band performing at Conor Byrne’s tribute night has some big, high-heeled pumps to fill. Melancholy alt-country band The Starlings might lack the same upbeat tempo as Parton’s songs, but vocalist Aimee Zoe Tubbs could tackle Just Because I’m A Woman with the same sadness and pride that Parton does. The real challenge for anyone would be a cover of 9 to 5, the song that won Parton an Academy Award and became an anthem for working women. Not even Houston’s vocal range could match the energy of Parton’s songwriting. It takes a real woman to pull it off. Conor Byrne, 5140 Ballard Ave. N.W., 784-3640. 9 p.m. Note by PAIGE RICHMOND

O.A.R., Saturday, Jan. 17, Paramount Theatre: aEœHey man, nice pants.aE aEœThanks.aE aEœAre those khaki?aE aEœUm, I think the tag said aE˜sand.aE™aE aEœFlat fronts?aE aEœNope, pleated.aE aEœCool.aE aEœStretch waist?aE aEœOh yeah, and ya don’t have to iron them, either. Wife loves ’em.aE Do you remember where you got them?aE aEœNot rightly, I’d have to ask the missus.aE aEœWell, do. I’ve got to get myself a pair. Those are some nice pants.aE aEœSay, howaE™s your tendonitis?aEIf the previous conversation sounds like the most boring thing you could ever possibly hear, you’ve obviously never listened to O.A.R. These Rockville, Maryland bros peddle the mundane for folks who really miss the Barenaked Ladies and for whom the Goo Goo Dolls are just too darn edgy. That said, they have a ridiculously dedicated fan base (aEœThis is my 20th show!aE one MySpace fan boasts) and have somehow managed to swim the river of mediocrity straight up the pop charts. Maybe it has something to do with them being total hookers and taking gigs like Fox News Channel’s 2008 New Year’s Eve Party. With Eric Hutchinson. Paramount Theatre, 911 Pine St., 683-1414. 8 p.m., $27 adv., $29.50 dos. All ages. Note by MAaE™CHELL DUMA LAVASSAR

The Knitters, Monday, Jan. 19 and Tuesday, Jan. 20, Tractor Tavern: First emerging in the early aE™80s as a side project of Los Angeles punk band X, the Knitters featured three-fourths of that band aE“ singer Exene Cervenka, singer/bassist John Doe, and drummer D.J. Bonebrake aE“ plus guitarist (and Blasters founder) Dave Alvin and rockabilly bassist Jonny Ray Bartel. Though the groupaE™s X members brought along some of that bandaE™s fire and wit to the KnittersaE™ 1985 debut, Poor Little Critter on the Road, the disc was predominantly a country and blues affair, with originals stacked next to covers of Merle Haggard and Leadbelly tunes. Recognized now as one of the building blocks of the alt-country movement, the album didnaE™t get a follow-up until 2005, when the Knitters reconvened to record the equally rootsy and fun The Modern Sounds of the Knitters. ItaE™s unknown if weaE™ll have to wait 20 more years for a third album, but thereaE™s enough great material from those albums aE“ and plenty of X songs to be tackled aE“ to make tonight a spirited good time. With Dead Rock West. Tractor Tavern, 5213 Ballard Ave. N.W., 789-3599. 8 p.m., $20. Note by MICHAEL ALAN GOLDBERG

Tapes aE˜n Tapes, Tuesday, Jan. 20, Neumos: Americans used to laugh at the British music pressaE™s long-running, silly habit of hyping a band beyond belief aE“ whether that band deserved it or not aE“ and subsequently tearing them to shreds, usually within six months or less. And then we started doing it ourselves. A few years ago, Minneapolis quartet Tapes aE™n Tapes were riding high thanks to the aEœPitchfork effect,aE but it wasnaE™t long after debut album The Loon got re-released in 2006 that the blogger backlash kicked into high gear, and a number of critics both pro and amateur lined up to savage last yearaE™s follow-up, Walk it Off. After the highs and lows, Tapes aE˜n Tapes is back to being just another band again aE“ a good band that more or less takes its cues from the Pixies, Pavement, and Modest Mouse in their love of guitar weirdness, craggy melodies, and skewed song structures. TheyaE™ve been accused of straight-out ripping off those bands, but though some ears will take it that way, others wonaE™t. And as frontman Josh Grier recently told me, aEœEvery band has elements that sound like another band, so fuck it. Who cares? At least weaE™re getting compared to bands we think are awesome. It could be Rush.aE With Wild Light. Neumos, 925 E. Pike St., 709-9467. 8 p.m., $15. All ages. Note by MICHAEL ALAN GOLDBERG