STORY OF THE YEAR, EVERY TIME I DIE
nnWe’re not laughing at Every Time I Die, we’re laughing with them. While most of their hardcore/metal contemporaries strike ultra-serious poses, the five young Buffalo, N.Y., bucks embrace self-deprecating humor. Their anything-goes style helped advance the group’s recent experimentations in genre, as they shattered expectations of how a metal act should look and sound. Gutter Phenomenon channels ETID’s inner Southern man, adopting a more melodic, rock-oriented tone. Vocalist Keith Buckley still screams, but his ferocious roar is peppered with sporadic crooning. Not bad for a bunch of cut-ups. Ice, 108 S. 500 West, 6:30 p.m. All-ages. Tickets: 24tix.com.
nnFriday 1/6nnSCHOOL OF ROCK BENEFIT
nnNot everyone can be a rock star, but every hardworking musician deserves at least a fighting chance. That’s why several Paul Green School of Rock professors are working not just for, but also on, the weekend. The Red Bennies, Form of Rocket and Starmy hope to turn an otherwise routine gig into some lucky kid’s chance of a lifetime. Ideally, tonight’s event will pack in 200 to 300 people at $10 bucks a head'enough to fund one student’s $2,000 Paul Green School of Rock education. The Urban Lounge, 241 S. 500 East, 10 p.m. Info: 746-0557, MySpace.com/TheUrbanLounge.
nnMOTION CITY SOUNDTRACK
nnThen there are kids whose rock dreams involve nothing but sweet powder, sick air and enough lucrative sponsorships to keep their gear tight. The Park City Ski Team helps aspiring Shane McConkeys achieve such goals'for a price. Fund-raising efforts account for nearly half of the program’s annual budget, including scholarships. This year, rather than host a boring silver-spoon dinner, ski-team organizers invited Minneapolis, Minn.-based Motion City Soundtrack to pack in generous audiences with their catchy pop-punk sound. For those feeling particularly flush, $40 “Super Tickets” are available. They include a signed CD, commemorative laminate super pass and VIP seating in the balcony with a private cash bar. For everyone else, $20 gets you a night of feel-good fun. Harry O’s, 427 S. Main, Park City, 8 p.m. Tickets: 24tix.com.
nnAlso Friday: Showdown to SXSW: All-Ages Night (Sugarbeats, The Circuit); The Heaters, Books About UFOs (Burt’s Tiki Lounge)
nnSaturday 1/7nnSHOWDOWN TO SXSW PRELIMS
nnSeveral years ago, City Weekly’s Showdown to South by Southwest snagged a bad rep for sending the “wrong” band to Austin’s legendary music festival. A small, yet influential, group of local musicians staged an informal strike, refusing to enter future contests on grounds that “You guys blow'screw off.” So we looked for ways to stop “blowing” and start providing a reason for quality acts to rejoin the annual competition. We recruited more qualified judges and made an effort to include our Northern neighbors by adding a venue in Ogden. The campaign resulted in a promising lineup of over 40 talented acts, old, new, popular and otherwise. Brewskis, Burt’s Tiki Lounge, Cabana Club, Coyotz, Monk’s, Todd’s Bar & Grill, The Whiskey and Zanzibar, 9 p.m. Schedule: SLWeekly.com.
nnAlso Saturday: The Adonis, Cub Country (Urban Lounge)
nnTuesday 1/10nnDOUBLE-DIPPED CREAM DREAM
nnJack Black recently wowed mainstream audiences with his role in King Kong, a lengthy, pimped-out remake that should snag him a seat at the Oscars (where he’ll watch other people pick up awards). The rest of us are more excited about his role in 2006’s Tenacious D in The Pick of Destiny, a cinematic/musical masterpiece-in-the-making starring Black and his faithful'if hetero'life-partner, Kyle Gass, who cast his bets on the film’s success in 2004: “It’s definitely the funniest movie on paper that I’ve ever read.” Destiny charts the band’s career, but for a more immediate, comprehensive musical history, turn to local Tenacious D tribute group Double-Dipped Cream Dream. It was only a matter of time before someone re-covered the Greatest Song in the World. Burt’s Tiki Lounge, 726 S. State, 10 p.m. Info: 521-0572, MySpace.com/BurtsTikiLounge.
nnAlso Tuesday: Reel Big Fish (Ice); The Actual (Lo-Fi’s Cafe); Medic, Purr Bats, Buttery Muffins (Urban Lounge'see Music)
nnWednesday 1/11nnRobert Earl Keen (Harry O’s); Showdown to SXSW Semi-Finals (Urban Lounge, Egos)
nnComing UpnnSparrow’s Gate (Lo-Fi’s Cafe, Jan. 13). Violet Run (Burt’s Tiki Lounge, Jan. 13). Showdown to SXSW Finals (Club Vegas, Jan. 14). Michael Franti & Spearhead (Suede, Jan. 20). KBER Salt Lake Soundcheck (Club Vegas, Jan. 21). G. Love & Special Sauce (Suede, Jan. 21). Pennywise (Great Saltair, Jan. 23). Les Claypool’s Electric Apricot (Suede, Jan. 23). Toby Keith (Delta Center, Jan. 26). Duncan Sheik (Suede, Feb. 1).