(Nectar) Local gypsy-dance crew Bucharest Drinking Team headline a bill of reliably sweat-inducing acts, including the sorely underrated Ten Man Brass Band. Here’s the thing: You can roll the dice on an eccentric, troubled performer—say, a Cat Power or a Kool Keith—and witness either a train wreck or a transcendent experience. Or you can smoke a little something with your cool, aging hippie aunt, get your ass on the floor at Nectar, and soak in the guaranteed good vibes of these huge bands banging on drums, tooting on horns, and throwing down. Sometimes it’s nice to know what you’re in for. KYLE FLECK
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(Sunset) The world’s awash with easygoing, white-guy indie rock, so it’s tough to sort out the worthies from the shrug-inducers. That’s why music critics get paid the minuscule bucks—to make these important aesthetic judgments. As far as easygoing, white-guy indie rock goes, San Diego’s the Donkeys are fine. No, they’re not going to change your life, unless it takes amiable strumming, slack melodies, and occasional stylish slouch into psychedelia like the self-explanatory “West Coast Raga” and “East Coast Raga” (off 2011’s Born with Stripes) to transform your world. But if you’re looking for a pleasant diversion on a Tuesday night, the Donkeys—who are supporting their latest album, Ride the Black Wave—got that mellow gold sound for your beached-out mind. DAVE SEGAL
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And here's all our recommended music events—tonight, tomorrow, this weekend, and beyond!