Wednesday Sleepers

All showcases subject to change

---

DJ Sun

8pm, Barcelona Following in the footsteps of seminal DJs Shadow and Krush, Houston's DJ Sun blends trance grooves with an Al Green vibe that's supplanted by the South American beats he grew up on in Surinam. A native of the Netherlands, Sun, who spins weekly for KPFT in Houston, has his first LP due out this summer on Alternate Take Records. – Chase Hoffberger

The Bad Rackets

8pm, Red Eyed Fly Austin's Bad Rackets summon the remarkably charged swagger of the Dead Boys and New York Dolls as they pummel gritty pop-punk paeans to busted hearts and failed dreams. The quartet's 2005 debut, Full on Blown Apart (Mortville), is a well-crafted testament to the virtues of two-minute release. "Couple Million Miles" is a natural for your next breakup mix. – Greg Beets

The Service Industry

8pm, Light Bar The work-related power-pop of this Austin sextet alleviates the daily strain of anyone who toils for customers who think they're always right. Former Cher UK frontman Mike McCoy unloads hard-luck nuggets like "Now Wake Up and Die" and "They Fired Me" that land like strategically placed turds in the watery cocktail of irrational American exuberance on the Industry's latest, Limited Coverage (Sauspop). – Greg Beets

Ghosthustler

8pm, Beauty Bar Backyard Electro-funk has found a new home four hours up the road in Denton. The North Texas trio Ghosthustler is making waves on the scene as a distant cousin to the likes of Daft Punk and Junior Boys. Behind Alan Palomo's vocals, Ghosthustler pops European dance with hardly a hint of Texas twang. – Chase Hoffberger

The Story Of

8pm, Smokin' Music This Ohio-to-Austin quintet isn't content to let melodic indie-pop aspirations languish in the living room. The Story Of's intricate, would-be anthems are girded with universal themes of struggle and redemption. Though 2007's The World's Affair stretches thin in spots, few bands have the temerity to reach so far in the first place. – Greg Beets

A.A. Bondy

8pm, Club de Ville Bondy, then using given name Scott, fronted 1990s outfit Verbena, which flirted with minor stardom when Dave Grohl produced the band's major label debut, Into the Pink. After the Birmingham, Ala., trio's dissolution, Bondy began performing under the name A.A. His folkish 2007 debut, American Hearts (Fat Possum), is a stellar and intimate self-portrait. – Michael Bertin

Navruz

9pm, Copa Old-school. Bet you're thinking Brooklyn 1970? Not even close. Try Tashkent, Uzbekistan, and you better break out your sun ray and dutar. While you're at it, grab Sherman and Peabody and the WABAC machine for the traditional Uzbek folk of Navruz. Vets of SXSW 06, the classical folk outfit has roots that extend all the way to about year zero. – Michael Bertin

Jeremy Fisher

9pm, 18th Floor @ Hilton Garden With the highly touted 2007 release of Jeremy Fisher's Goodbye Blue Monday (Wind-Up), Americans are learning what Canadians already knew; the Vancouver-based singer-songwriter's brand of pop-folk, inspired by the likes of Paul Simon and Tom Petty, is timeless. Fisher has been nominated for two Juno Awards, Best New Artist and Best Adult Alternative Album. – Jim Caligiuri

Deer Tick

9pm, Club de Ville The project of Providence, R.I.'s John McCauley, Deer Tick's 2007 debut, War Elephant, served as the inaugural release from Jana Hunter's Feow! label. The 21-year-old songwriter ambles broadly through cuts of rolling folk-pop, garage country, and Animals-esque lo-fi blues, easy shuffling rhythms slanted against the scratchy Jeff Mangum vocals and clever lyrical contortions that nudge toward Devendra Banhart. – Doug Freeman

Goldspot

9pm, Buffalo Billiards Singer-songwriter Siddhartha Khosla spent his early years listening to South Asian music, but the L.A. native fell in love with pop as soon as he figured out how to turn on a radio. Channeling pieces of the Cure and R.E.M., Khosla's vocals hint at a happier Thom Yorke on 2006's Tally of the Yes Men (Union). – Chase Hoffberger

Zykos

9pm, Maggie Mae's This Austin quintet remains committed despite label and personnel shake-ups, unveiling a retooled rock sound with its post-hiatus EP, Keep It Light, released by local label Cult Hero Records. Cully Symington now sits at the drum kit, and Alex Lyon has taken over lead guitar, while Mike Booher and Catherine Davis do the dark-light dance on vox. – Melanie Haupt

Dr. Delay

9pm, Barcelona Dr. Delay's all about the big picture. With samples ranging from Spoon to Notorious B.I.G., the Brooklyn spinner proves you can't put a DJ in a box. Pushing beats for Funk Weapons, Doc's seen the recent release of 2007's Rajaz Meter, 2008's REM Sleep Psych Mix, and a slew of collabos. – Chase Hoffberger

Longwave

9pm, Emo's Main After a couple of albums on RCA – the most recent, There's a Fire, came out in 2005 – Brooklyn melodic rock trio Longwave has gone through a few personnel changes. In addition to a spring tour, the band is in the studio preparing a third LP, currently without a label. – Melanie Haupt

The Low Lows

10pm, Friends Parker & Lily's third and final album, 2004's The Low Lows (Warm), was a bitter and broken end to the couple's relationship and band. Adopting that album's name for his new project and recently transplanting to Austin, Parker Noon remains dedicated to lo-fi shoegaze distortion and laconic, reverbed vocals on this year's sophomore effort, Shining Violence (Misra), as well as his devastating, poetic disillusion of dissolution. – Doug Freeman

Scary Mansion

10pm, Hideout Already a fixture of Brooklyn's anti-folk culture through her artwork and collaborations, Leah Hayes' debut as Scary Mansion sounds more like a deserted Beach House. Every Joke Is Half the Truth (Zum) wanders through Will Oldham's haunted backwoods but with Chan Marshall's quivering breathiness, balancing the poignant and playful against dark droning folk. – Doug Freeman

Intuitive Music Orchestra

10pm, Copa Ian Bederman, the ringleader of the Intuitive Music Orchestra, describes himself thusly: director, scenario, composer, musician, psychologist. Isn't that exactly how Bono describes himself? The ensemble's name must be ironic in that the constructs upon which they build their free-form Slavic folk are anything but intuitive. – Michael Bertin

Los Dynamite

11pm, Opal Divine's Freehouse Mexico City indie rock en español en inglés. Not such a cocky move, at least not compared to the fourpiece titling their debut, MP3-only album Greatest Hits (Noiselab). Vocalist Diego Solórzano calls to mind Fred Schneider of the B-52's, but the guitars ring stadium-ready, so maybe this will be Dynamite's love shack. – Dan Oko

Peel

11pm, Maggie Mae's Rooftop With last year's eponymous debut on Peek-a-Boo Records, Austin's Peel laid down a set of slacker anthems worthy of Pavement. Allison Moore's keys birthed pop slathered with the distortion fuzz of Josh Permenter's guitar and shouted harmonies of Dakota Smith. The quintet's exuberant nihilism balances a disaffected urban malaise and ambitious restlessness, an ethos continued with their upcoming follow-up EP. – Doug Freeman

The Von Bondies

11pm, Emo's Annex Don't look at frontman/guitarist Jason Stollsteimer to reprise his role as Jack White's sparring partner, because this Detroit quintet's future is all about hook-happy modern rock. With a new lineup, the Von Bondies' new LP, Love, Hate and Then There's You (Sire), and an Internet-only EP, We Are Kamikazes Aiming Straight for Your Heart, throw a left-right combo. – Dan Oko

Dead Confederate

11pm, Stubb's Southern rock sure ain't what it used to be. Rocking harder than MMJ or Band of Horses, this droning, young Athens, Ga.-based fivepiece has teamed up with Austin producer Mike McCarthy (Spoon) for their forthcoming album. Tracks from their self-titled EP – "Get Out" and "Tortured Artist Saint" – rattle molars, while the message couldn't be any bleaker. – Dan Oko

Hey Negrita

11pm, Latitude 30 London's Creedence Clearwater Revival. There are other influences in Hey Negrita, but most are obviously American (Johnny Cash, Townes Van Zandt). The band is also featured in We Dreamed America, a SXSW Film Festival selection about British bands playing American roots and country music. – Michael Bertin

Maneja Beto

11pm, Continental Club Austin "indie en español" fivepiece Maneja Beto serves up pan dulce, mixing traditional Latin percussion, Spanish, and indie pop cornerstones into a fetching Texas blend. 2006 LP Accidentes de Longitud y Latitud crossed cumbia with electronica, ignoring genre rules. With a new EP in the can and Alex Chavez's voice in perfect form, prepare to dance. – Darcie Stevens

Capsula

11pm, B.D. Riley's Guitarist Martin Guevara may handle the bulk of Capsula's vocals, but it's bassist Coni L.'s impassioned lyrical contributions that fuel the no-holds-barred attitude of the Argentinean power trio. Fifth LP Songs + Circuits, their 2007 release on Madrid label Discos Liliput, kicks into gear early and breaks for no one. – Chase Hoffberger

Earthless

11pm, Bourbon Rocks Pull up a chair, and get comfy, because San Diego trio Earthless will work it 20 minutes at a time if necessary. This isn't white-suburban-hippy-jam-band fodder, though. It's Krautrock meets the 13th Floor Elevators. – Michael Bertin

Trash Fashion

11:30pm, Tap Room @ Six The DIY debut EP from this London electro-pop quartet, It's a Rave Dave, was issued on DayGlo yellow vinyl, which pretty much tells you everything you need to know about both their sartorial and sonic styles. They'll carpet bomb the dance floor with independently targetable giddy-grenades. And they're so glam, they piss glitter. – Marc Savlov

To Live and Die in LA

12mid, Volume This Oregonian fourpiece does a dead-on Elliott Smith when they want to. They've got some of the same drama but are generally more lively. The title of the quartet's eponymous 2006 debut could be taken from a book, movie, or 2Pac track, but it'd be better if it were borrowed from Wang Chung. – Michael Bertin

David Karsten Daniels

12mid, Central Presbyterian Church Recently transplanted from North Carolina to Seattle, David Karsten Daniels' compositions drift with an equally restless exuberance, lilting behind the nasal pull of his voice. Last year's fourth offering and Fat Cat debut, Sharp Teeth, wandered through moments of stark folk and punched-up, nostalgic piano pop à la Ben Folds filtered through Neutral Milk Hotel. Fear of Flying is slated for release in April. – Doug Freeman

The Oaks

12mid, Wave Having expanded from the duo of Ryan Costello and Matthew Antolick that produced 2006's Our Fathers and the Things They Left Behind, the Oaks now boast a sextet behind their latest self-release, Songs for Waiting. Propelled by deeply literary and socially conscious songwriting influenced by Costello's humanitarian work in Afghanistan, Songs' arrangements meld subtle world rhythms, jazzy piano and brass, and delicate folk harmonies. – Doug Freeman

Alabama3

12mid, Latitude 30 A3, as they're known here stateside, have the worst exposure to name-recognition return ever. Ever wondered who did The Sopranos theme? Hey, live by the bullet ... the Brixton-based ensemble continues its 10-year experiment fusing British acid house with American country and blues with last year's M.O.R. (One Little Indian). (Also: Saturday, March 15, 12mid @ La Zona Rosa) – Michael Bertin

Girl in a Coma

12mid, Continental Club This San Antonio-based all-girl trio inspired by the Smiths has been playing since adolescence. In 2006, they were signed to Joan Jett's Blackheart Records and released their debut, Both Before I'm Gone, on which singer Nina Diaz injects the group's melodic punk with a fierceness that belies her age. The young ladies recently opened for Morrissey for a few dates of his European tour in January. – Melanie Haupt

Awesome Cool Dudes

12mid, Beauty Bar The last we heard from this fun-loving Austin quintet was 2005's Maxin & Relaxin (Furniture), but many members pull double duty in When Dinosaurs Ruled the Earth. Look for a new release on Jagjaguwar this spring, and don't be afraid to request Huey Lewis & the News' "I Want a New Drug." – Melanie Haupt

Bo Pepper

12mid, B.D. Riley's How is it possible that UK-based Bo Pepper remains unsigned when Perez Hilton has decreed that it should be otherwise? Their utterly brilliant indie heart bleeds "bitter pop sounds," and will leave you oozing red on the dance floor. Single "I'm Bored" is the most unboring unsigned track to come out of the UK this year. – Marc Savlov

Cadence Weapon

1am, Habana Calle 6 Patio Edmonton, Alberta's 21-year-old MC Rollie Pemberton is "In Search of the Youth Crew" on his sophomore LP, Afterparty Babies (Epitaph), dedicated to anyone conceived after hours. And just like his 2006 electronic debut, Breaking Kayfabe, Cadence Weapon spits old-school and pointed on Babies, dishing on know-it-alls and independence, this time on top of DJ Weez-L's booty-shaking beats. – Darcie Stevens

Gram Rabbit

1am, Volume Dropping skuzzy dance floor beats and R&B samples into thudding industrial electronica, Gram Rabbit's third LP, RadioAngel & the RobotBeat (Royal Order), pulses unexpected at every turn. The eccentric Joshua Tree, Calif., duo trades licks between Todd Rutherford and Jesika von Rabbit, whose vocals dart between Gwen Stefani dance pop and Shirley Manson's darker edge. – Doug Freeman

Die! Die! Die!

1am, Wave Edgy and raw, Dunedin, New Zealand's Die! Die! Die are punk on a cursory scan, but dig under the thrash and trash, and you'll find solid rock dynamics, as well as bits of 1980s skronk. Name-droppers will note the self-titled debut was engineered by Steve Albini. The more polished follow-up, Promises, Promises (SAF Records), dropped here last month. – Michael Bertin

The Mirrors

1am, Lamberts Texas boy Greg Ashley moved to Oakland to create psychedelic powerhouse the Gris Gris but was already feeling the vibes with his first Houston band, the Mirrors. Birdman's 2007 re-release of their posthumous 2003 sophomore LP, 13 Patient Flowers, put the fivepiece smack dab in the middle of 1967 and brought them back into the light. – Darcie Stevens

Blackholicus

1am, Red 7 Patio Blackholicus resurrects the twin guitar toil and trouble of Britain's late-1970s heavy metal renaissance, which means that pint-sized powerhouse bassist Margaret Myrick plays the role of Bruce Dickinson. The Austin quartet's 2006 debut, Variations in Death Minor, hits all the right themes on lightning rods like "Filthy Cur" and seafaring sagas like "La Fin du Monde." – Greg Beets

Mom

1:10am, St. David's Church Taking a page from the Books, Denton's Mom weaves mesmerizing audio collages through layers of looped and processed acoustic and bowed guitar and violin. The duo, composed of 22-year-olds Joel North and Bruce Blay, debuted last year with Little Brite EP, scrapbook instrumentals and field recordings that sounded like M. Ward unplugged and filtered through Shuta Hasunuma's detailed sound structures. – Austin Powell