Home by Hovercraft, Datahowler, Bethan Saturday, March 2, at Dada, $10-$15 Five-piece classical-meets-pop band Home by Hovercraft are finally releasing Are We Chameleons? this week, an album we've been waiting for since the unique operatic group popped up on our radar after announcing they were creating a quirky Marie Antoinette-inspired musical called On the Eve. The piano-led band employs a tuba, mandolin and step dancer, making their genre almost impossible to nail down. Nevertheless, they've chosen spacey hip-hop act Datahowler to share the bill along with producer Roger Greenwalt's (Ben Kweller, The Pierces) golden child Bethan, whose 2012 electro-pop album Chapter 1 had us hooked on the very first page. This is a show not to be missed. -- Rachel Watts
Turisas, Firewind, Stolen Babies, Revengeance, No Rest For The Wicked Thursday, February 28, at The Prophet Bar, $15-$20 If you're heading to Deep Ellum this weekend, you may want to bring a sword and shield or, at least, your Capital One card. Turisas, the Vikings of Folk Metal, storm the Prophet Bar's stage as part of the Guards of Glory tour. Wearing their signature black and red warpaint, these Finnish metalers will inspire fear into the hearts of folksters across the Greater Dallas area. Battle anthems such as "The March of the Varangian Guard," "Stand Up and Fight" and "Battle Metal" will ignite your fighting spirit, and by the end of the night, you'll be screaming "What's in your wallet?" like a mugger stalking Harry Hines Boulevard. -- Christian McPhate
Mount Righteous, Fox and the Bird, Michael Donner Friday, March 1, at Double-Wide, $7 Instrumental marching band Mount Righteous are as big and bold as it gets. Their indie-pop meets straight-up-eighth-grade-marching-band-practice-sounding music has seen many members, making it hard to keep up with how many members there are these days. Nine or ten is the count, I believe, and are what it takes to fuel their gigantic, bubbly, pop sound. The group's shows are few and far between these days, so my advice is to catch them while you can. Local beloveds Fox and the Bird take their straightforward folk sensibility and throw it in a blender on high with beautiful melodies and sing-along, foot-stomping tunes. The Southern Renaissance's Americana frontman Michael Donner opens the show. -- Rachel Watts
Bruce Robison, Kelly Willis Friday, March 1, at The Kessler Theater, $20-$30 A couple of veterans of the Texas music scene are making waves and garnering a great deal of praise for simply working together. Perhaps we should clarify: While Bruce Robison and Kelly Willis have been married for many years now and have played countless shows together, they are just now getting around to releasing their first record of material intended for them as a duo. A Cheater's Game combines a few original Robison tunes with a few classics from Don Williams and Robert Earl Keen mixed in. The result of this it's-about-damn-time collaboration is nothing short of fantastic. The tight chemistry the couple has created over so many years is evident in how they sound like a true duo, instead of the record coming off as a random mixed set of individual duet tunes. -- Kelly Dearmore
Alejandro Escovedo Saturday, March 2, at The Kessler Theater, $20-$30 If there were ever a singer/songwriter who has paid his dues, it is Alejandro Escovedo. Whether it is disease (hepatitis C) or dismal poverty (brought on by the accompanying medical expenses), Escovedo has always found a way to pull himself out of desolation. And what's even more remarkable is how Escovedo keeps making consistently great music. Perhaps there is something to the theory that the deepest depression brings about the highest creative output. Whatever the case, there's not a bum release among Escovedo's impressively diverse catalogue. From 1992's Gravity to the forthcoming Big Station, the guy simply draws from an emotional well that is as deep and intense as anyone playing music today. -- Darryl Smyers
