Arctic Monkeys/Wednesday, August 10

Touring in support of their fourth studio album, Suck It and See, British band Arctic Monkeys are heading to Seattle just 10 days into their U.S. tour. The record, which hit stores June 7, features a poppier side of the four-piece, who have traditionally played indie-laced garage rock. “I wanna steal your soul, I wanna rock ‘n’ roll,” sings guitarist and vocalist Alex Turner on “Brick by Brick,” the album’s first single. While the record was an immediate success in both the UK and U.S., fans looking for a carbon copy of 2009’s Humbug better stick to their iTunes. Suck It and See, though polished and ready for heavy radio rotation, plays like a Rooney album with distorted guitar and a half-hit of acid. Depending on one’s taste, that might not be so bad. With the Vaccines. Showbox SoDo, 1700 First Ave. S., 628-3151. 8 p.m. Sold out. All ages. JOE WILLIAMS

Black Stax/Thursday, August 11

Fresh off of headlining the most recent installation of hip-hop instrumentalists Big World Breaks’ seasonal “classics,” Black Stax—the trio of vocalist Felicia Loud and Silent Lambs Project MCs Silas Blak and Jace Ecaj—are hosting their own private night with promises of potions and exclusives. Joined by trumpeter extraordinaire Owuor Arunga, the group’s radiant hip-hop puts a bluesy spin on social commentary—speaking equally, alternately, to the clubs and the classrooms. Regardless of whether they’re playing harder-rapped tracks like recent single “Spell on You” or Loud’s croon on the addictingly upbeat “I Love My Life,” Black Stax has soul in spades. JewelBox/ Rendezvous, 2322 Second Ave., 441-5823. 9 p.m. NICK FELDMAN

Jacques Renault/Thursday, August 11

NYC DJ Jacques Renault takes his name from a tragic and rather unsavory Twin Peaks character, but his brand of sleek, smooth-gliding disco almost certainly has more in common with the luxury-car line that shares the surname than with that portly, Laura Palmer–raping French-Canadian. Both on his own and as half of the duo Runaway, Renault produces the sort of stuff that some wag at this paper previously termed “dance music for old people”: slow-grooving, overtly nostalgic house and disco that even a wizened 30-year-old could stylishly enjoy without breaking a hip. He’s remixed and re-edited acts such as Holy Ghost! and the Phenomenal Handclap Band for esteemed labels including DFA, Italians Do It Better, and Wurst Edits, and his original material and DJ mixes all point to what should be the finest night out that Nectar’s hosted in a while. With Randolph, Blueyedsoul. Nectar, 412 N. 36th St., 632-2020. 8 p.m. $7. ERIC GRANDY

Adele/Friday, August 12

Adele’s 21 is a near-perfect effort, showcasing wise-beyond-her-years songwriting and a voice unparalleled among her peers. My only beef with the soulful songbird are all these face-only promo shots. Good Lord, woman! There is nothing wrong with what’s going on below your neck. You digest your food; you’re not a Squidbilly. You are so much smarter than this size-ist nonsense. I don’t expect you to go full-on Beth Ditto, but when you play into all this “She has a such a pretty face . . . if only” b.s., you’re essentially telling the world that your immeasurable grace, style, and talent aren’t enough, when in fact everything about you is more than enough. With Wanda Jackson. Paramount Theatre, 911 Pine St., 467-5510. 8 p.m. Sold out. All ages. MA’CHELL DUMA LAVASSAR

Mötley Crüe/Friday, August 12

Dear Tween Self: Here’s what age, wisdom, and reality TV have taught me: 1. Mötley Crüe will never get any better than their sexy, raw debut, Too Fast for Love. Stop buying their records. It’s OK if you can’t; in 1991 Kurt Cobain and Paul Westerberg will save you. (P.S., there’s a reason you’re so attracted to Tommy Lee. A big one.) 2. The Decline of Western Civilization Part II: the Metal Years is a cautionary tale, not an aspiration. 3. As much as you think you might, because he doesn’t look like a Real Housewife (?!) yet, you DO NOT want to make out with Bret Michaels. His kissing technique is unfortunate and overly moist. 4. Eventually, you’ll feel old. Just revel in the fact that you were breathing air on planet Earth at the same time as Johnny Thunders, the late, great patron saint of the bozos listed above. —Kisses, Your Grown-Ass Self. With Poison, the New York Dolls. Tacoma Dome, 2727 E. D St., Tacoma, 253-272-3663. 7 p.m. $23–$93. All ages. MA’CHELL DUMA LAVASSAR

Zephyrs/Friday, August 12

Zephyrs is Pierce Adler and Cameron Case, two Redmond 17-year-olds who cite such bands as Sonic Youth, Dinosaur Jr., and Guided by Voices as their musical heroes. Though neither of the two was alive when any of those bands formed, the influence shows in Zephyrs’ bustling, noisy, and textured music. Case plays a cacophonous drum set while Adler jangles along on a resounding guitar and sings in a hyped-up, shouty style. The result is a set of songs that sometimes burst with youthful exuberance and other times swing low into moody adolescent melancholia. Last year, Zephyrs released an EP called Tradewinds, which they characterized as “about nostalgia and not having a boring life”; tonight they celebrate its follow-up, the rip-roaring Bye Sun, which is being released on cassette tape. With Protect Me, Cat 500, Footwork. Cairo, 507 E. Mercer St., 453-4077. 8 p.m. $5. ERIN K. THOMPSON

*EDITOR’S PICK* Wonderful//Friday, August 12

Wonderful’s newest album, Wake Up to Dreamland, is some sonic miles away from the music of the band’s other project, the pop outfit U.S.E. In place of U.S.E’s beat-heavy dance raves, the music on Dreamland is drifting and expansive, evoking a breezy summer day rather than a sweaty nightclub. Songs like “Annabelle” and “Gimme All the Love You Can” employ lilting, sky-high vocal harmonies; “Lovely Life” sways and swells at a serendipitous tempo; “Rainbow Colors,” based on a traditional Nootka Indian song, is a tranquil meditation on beauty and simple pleasures. If the four nature- loving members of Wonderful were Peter Pan’s Lost Boys, Dreamland could be the official anthem of Neverland—because one thing that remained consistent from U.S.E to Wonderful is the always-enchanted feeling of rapturously good vibes. With Josh Ottum. Chop Suey, 1325 E. Madison St., 324-8000. 8 p.m. $8 adv./$10 DOS. ERIN K. THOMPSON

Calexico/Saturday, August 13

Few bands in existence can say that they’ve left as colorful a legacy as Tucson, Ariz., collective Calexico has. Existing in various configurations in the early ’90s, main Calexicans Joey Burns and John Convertino found solid ground and musical inspiration in Tucson, using Calexico to explore the undiscovered dusty trails, giant desert skies, and wild musical heritage of the Southwest. 2000’s Hot Rail found the band incorporating horns and strings into their sound, providing a passport to delve deeper into worldly territory, past some of the spaghetti-Western tropes, while retaining a folk-pop feel. Between their own expansive work and their collaborations with other artists (Arcade Fire and Iron and Wine, among others), Calexico have spent years blazing their own trail, curating a sound and language unmistakably their own. With Amos Lee. Chateau Ste. Michelle, 14111 N.E. 145th St., Woodinville, 425-415-3300. 7 p.m. $35 general/$45 reserved. GREGORY FRANKLIN

Vans Warped Tour/Saturday, August 13

For 16 years, the Vans Warped Tour has offered music lovers big names, sweaty moshing, and all the loving that can possibly be crammed into a row of Porta-Potties at a price far more affordable than that of festivals like Lollapalooza or Bonnaroo. This year, more than 65 bands, including Less Than Jake, Lucero, Sum 41, and Gatsby’s American Dream, will be littered across multiple stages for the all-day affair at the Gorge. However, it’s worth noting the Warped Tour’s recent emphasis on hardcore and screamo, trading the punk-rock roots it was established on in 1995 for heavier acts like August Burns Red, Miss May I, and The Acacia Strain. On a positive note, though, most bands set up a personal tent, giving fans the ability to buy records and memorabilia from the musicians themselves. Also see music lead. Gorge Amphitheatre, 754 Silica Rd. N.W., George, Wash., 628-0888. 11:30 a.m. $33.30. All ages. JOE WILLIAMS

The Go-Go’s/Sunday, August 14

Adele. Sade. Loretta Lynn. Imelda May. k.d. lang. Pat Benatar. The Go-Go’s. We’ll be damned if this week’s Seattle-area programming isn’t brought to you by Emily’s List’s A&R division, so lush is the garden of powerhouse female talent swinging through town this week. Stateside, two of these acts—Benatar and the Go-Go’s—really defined the ’80s. Benatar, who plays the Tulalip Casino on August 11, received too much notoriety for her aerobics-workout look and not enough for her spectacular vocal range. She also claims to have avoided using cocaine during that decade of decadence. Go-Go’s leader Belinda Carlisle makes no such claim; the now-52-year-old was basically a female Slash until sobering up only recently. A high-school cheerleader who grew up in the L.A. area, she was the super-hot party chick everyone secretly wished would fail miserably, but became rich and famous instead. But Carlisle didn’t have to bag a wrinkly studio exec to achieve such comfort; she did it as a pioneering woman of rock. With Girl in a Coma. Woodland Park Zoo, 601 N. 59th St., 548-2500. 6 p.m. Sold out. MIKE SEELY

Diamond Head/Monday, August 15

For every 20 or so Metallica fans who claim “Am I Evil?”, “Helpless,” or “The Prince” as their favorite song by the hard-rock titans, there’s one impassioned Diamond Head fan there to point out that these are not in fact Metallica songs. All these titles appeared on the British band’s 1980 debut, Lightning to the Nations—an album Metallica cribbed heavily from, both in terms of cover-song selection and its melodic, thrashing delivery. While it is somewhat tragic that Diamond Head never achieved the level of success that their early works inspired, it is to Metallica’s credit that Diamond Head remains in the public eye and not a forgotten footnote in the history of the New Wave of British heavy metal. With Zero Down, Elks Blood, Shedu. El Corazon, 109 Eastlake Ave. E., 381-3094. 7 p.m. $17. HANNAH LEVIN