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You can substitute country singer Eddie Rabbit for me, and "early" for "rainy," for I love an early night. I love being able to engage in my favorite pastime of seeing live music and get home early enough to make it to the office the next morning. Spanish Moon is really to be commended for the shows they've been booking before their popular Velcro dance night. When I arrived there with dusk illuminating the nearby bridge, Stinking Lizaveta was a couple of peculiar songs into their set. Lizaveta songs consist of a maniacal drum beat, an undulating groove from an electric upright bass, some intricate guitar work that might be mapping the human genome for all its complexity and the sole vocal accompaniment of the guitarist shouting "WOOOOOOOOOO!"

Appropriately, as darkness began to fall, the hammer-of-Thor rock of Torche commenced to lay down the heavy din. It was pretty cool to see heads banging and the occasional fit of air guitar happening in the crowd at 9:30 p.m. I was so giddy with the prospect of getting a good night's sleep that I skipped out on The Sword's set. Hopefully shows like this will start a trend toward a music scene that is more accessible to those of us with a concert shirt heart under our button-down lives.

Does it qualify to be the end of an era, when the era was long over to begin with? Witness the final show by Werewolf, the legendary 80s cover band at The Varsity to find out. As to why they are leaving our temporal plane is anyone's guess; perhaps the carbon footprint of all that hairspray and spandex was weighing too heavily on their consciences.

One of my favorite local bands, Elsah, comes out of hiding this week at the North Gate Tavern, promising a batch of new songs and a renewed vigor. They will be joined by Paul Johnson, formerly of Elsah and member of The Prescriptions.

On their latest album Swimming, French Kicks have dialed back the electronic sheen for a decidedly more rock approach to their nervous yet dreamy music, sounding all the better for it. Frightened Rabbit, the finest Joy Division revisionists in all of Selkirk, U.K., will be joining them onstage at the Spanish Moon.

Go listen to some Bo Diddley this week, either out of respect or just to remind yourself what rock 'n' roll is really supposed to sound like.

Wednesday, June 4

Mike Foster Project at Chelsea's

Evangelina and Clocktower Showdown at North Gate Tavern

Thursday, June 5

The Broken Letters and Horseshoes & Handgrenades at North Gate Tavern

Sweet Root at Boudreaux & Thibodeaux

Friday, June 6

Werewolf at The Varsity

Secret Annexe and Brass Bed at Spanish Moon

The Fiddleworms and Dirtybird at Chelsea's

DJ Bird, The Axes of Evil and Fister at North Gate Tavern

Steve Hagan and Hard Whiskey at Boudreaux & Thibodeaux

John Lisi at Phil Brady's

Lil Dave Thompson at Teddy's Juke Joint

Saturday, June 7

French Kicks and Frightened Rabbit at Spanish Moon

A Band Named Sue at Chelsea's

Elsah, Paul Johnson, The Casuals, and the Way*High Men at North Gate Tavern

The Avenue Cruisers at Boudreaux & Thibodeaux

Neighborhood Stars at Phil Brady's

Diddley Squat at Teddy's Juke Joint

Tuesday, June 10

Saving Abel and Meriwether at The Varsity