Ben Gibbard, David Bazan, Johnathan Rice

Seems like you can’t front a popular indie band these days without being expected to do the acoustic solo-tour thing: Mark Kozelek, Jeff Tweedy, James Mercer, Jim James—they’ve all stripped down and indulged their fans’ desire for naked emotions and oddball covers. Tonight, Death Cab for Cutie’s Ben Gibbard headlines a show that also includes Pedro the Lion mastermind David Bazan and Scottish singer-songwriter Johnathan Rice, who skipped the being-in-a-band phase and proceeded directly to the solo career. Gibbard’s usually pretty entertaining in this context; he does a great “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun.” Expect Bazan to air his frustrations with both the indie-rock and Christian-rock scenes—also a good time, if you’re in the mood.