WED/19
BROKEN SOCIAL SCENE, LAND OF TALK Eclectic Canadian cooperative BSS's noisy intricacies and dreamy shimmer had hipsters on their knees long before TV on the Radio. They produced three albums, plenty of genuflection, and helped launch several careers, including, most prominently, Feist's. $22.50-$25. 8 p.m. Variety Playhouse. 404-524-7354. www.variety-playhouse.com. -- Chris Parker
SKELETONS New York City experimental weirdos Skeletons are touring in support of their third full length, Money. The album is a creepy, crawly exorcism of the root of all evil. Chiming guitars, thumps and minor-key mantras subtly percolate for this beautifully haunted dirge of warped virtuosity. $5. 10 p.m. Eyedrum. 404-522-0655. www.eyedrum.org. -- Chad Radford
THURS/20
NEIL HALSTEAD, LONG KNIVES As the former Slowdive frontman and bearded troubadour behind Mojave 3, Halstead writes songs that play off the soft, natural notes of the nylon strings on his guitar. Long Knives open. $12. 9 p.m. The Earl. 404-522-3950. www.badearl.com. -- CR
PAPA GROWS FUNK These Big Easy regulars bring a steamy gumbo of New Orleans-certified swamp funk through town every few months, but you can never overdose on their sweaty shows or steamy, rubbery grooves. $10. 8 p.m. Smith's Olde Bar. 404-875-1522. www.smithsoldebar.com. -- Hal Horowitz
FRI/21
ATLANTA SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA & CHORUS Contemporary opera goes nuclear with Gerald Finley singing "Dr. Atomic" by John Adams, based on physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer and the human dilemmas faced by him and his colleagues at Los Alamos. Repeat show Sunday, 3 p.m. $21-$73. 8 p.m. Symphony Hall, Woodruff Arts Center. 404-733-4900. www.atlantasymphony.org. -- Mark Gresham
CASTANETS, MILES BENJAMIN ANTHONY JOHNSON, MEEKS FAMILY Castanets singer/songwriter Raymond Raposa's scruffy folk shuffles stoned through minimalist guitar arrangements shaded by ambient electronic clutter. Raposa's creaking vocals contribute to the music's haunted air, like Will Oldham's hippy brother crashing on Iron & Wine's couch. $10. 10 p.m. Drunken Unicorn. 404-870-0575. www.thedrunkenunicorn.net. -- CP
DARRELL SCOTT, MARK ERELLI He may be the best songwriter in Nashville these days, but Scott's performances are just as good as his words. These are songs that make you listen, and stay with you afterward. Erelli opens. $20-$25. 8 p.m. Eddie's Attic. 404-377-4976. www.eddiesattic.com. -- James Kelly
LEE BOYS, SOUL STASH It's gonna be a hot night of holy rollin' good times, with the energetic Lee Boys and the smokin' sacred steel. Musical praising with a touch of devilishness never sounded so good. Soul Stash opens. $10, 9 p.m. Smith's Olde Bar. 404-875-1522. www.smithsoldebar.com. -- JK
TINSLEY ELLIS, DELTA MOON One of Atlanta's unsung musical heroes brings his journeyman blues rock home for an annual Thanksgiving week appearance. Like holiday dinner, it's a hefty, belt-loosening meal of meaty guitar licks smothered with succulent rootsy fixings. $15. 8:30 p.m. Variety Playhouse. 404-524-7354. www.variety-playhouse.com. -- HH
SAT/22
AMY RAY, JENNIFER O'CONNOR, THE HOLLAND DUTCH Indigo Girl Ray's third solo disc, Didn't It Feel Kinder, wraps her rock agitprop in midtempo bounce with a dash of roots and soul. O'Connor's dark wit, cool-for-school delivery and aching rock balladry are nigh irresistible. $15-$17.50. 8:30 p.m. Variety Playhouse. 404-524-7354. www.variety-playhouse.com. -- CP
GÖRAN SÖLLSCHER With prodigious musicality and a flowing, unstrained performance style, classical guitarist Söllscher is known for finely etched articulation and tasty tonal range from doux to sec. His blended program includes classics and his own arrangements. $40. 8:15 p.m. Spivey Hall. 678-466-4200. www.spiveyhall.org. -- MG
MARY WEISS, REIGNING SOUND, THE BOOZE It's fire and ice between the Reigning Sound's raw fury and Weiss' sultry vocal slink. Sound frontman Greg Cartwright lent his band's supple garage-soul power while producing the former Shangri-Las singer's solo debut last year. $15-$18. 8 p.m. The Earl. 404-522-3950. www.badearl.com. -- CP
ROCKET 350, GHOSTRIDERS CAR CLUB, JIMMY & THE TEASERS Tonight is a veritable cornucopia of roots music: hard-edged rockabilly with Rocket 350, big-band twang by the Ghostriders, and the garage rock of Jimmy & the Teasers. A schizo lineup, but guaranteed fun. $8. 9 p.m. Star Bar. 404-681-9018. www.starbar.net. -- JK
SUN/23
EMORY MASTERSINGERS & WOMEN'S CHORALE A round robin of up-and-coming conductors lead the MasterSingers in a clutch of choral standards. Graduate assistant Brock Terry leads the Women's Chorale in Benjamin Britten's holiday favorite, "A Ceremony of Carols." Free. 4 p.m. Emerson Hall, Schwartz Center. 404-727-5050. www.arts.emory.edu. -- MG
MON/24
B.B. KING As living legends go, King's still vital on stage, his new album is his finest in decades -- it's worth the inflated ticket price to see him somewhere other than Chastain. $65.50-$86.50. 7:30 p.m. The Tabernacle. 404-659-9022. www.livenation.com. -- HH
GANG GANG DANCE, RAINBOW ARABIA, NOMEN NOVUM Gang Gang Dance stands tall at the forefront of New York's indie avant-garde by crafting a jumbled mass of dance-art-punk-electro skronks. Likeminded acts Rainbow Arabia from Los Angeles, and local freak rock duo Nomen Novum open. $10-$12. 9 p.m. The Earl. 404-522-3950. www.badearl.com. -- CR
TUES/25
HR (HUMAN RIGHTS), OUTLAW NATION, LIONIZE, AMUL 9 The enigmatic and somewhat deranged former Bad Brains frontman returns to Atlanta to unleash a whirlwind of Rasta-charged punk anthems. Outlaw Nation, Lionize and Amul 9 are also on the bill. $12. 8 p.m. The Earl. 404-522-3950. www.badearl.com. -- CR
Bands/performers/venues wishing to be included in Sound Menu's noted-acts boxes may send recordings, press material and schedules two weeks in advance to Creative Loafing c/o Rodney Carmichael, 384 Northyards Blvd., Suite 600, Atlanta, GA 30313, or e-mail information to: rodney.carmichael@creativeloafing.com. To be included in the listings only, e-mail venue and band schedules by Thursday at noon (for the issue that comes out the following Wednesday) to soundboard@creativeloafing.com.
