THE NEW PORNOGRAPHERS, THE PAINS OF BEING PURE AT HEART
Canadian supergroup the New Pornographers just released their sixth album, Brill Bruisers, and it's a multi-textured romp of unbridled, peppy guitar pop. Their sound has evolved in the five albums since their surprise 2000 caffeinated-Brit-pop debut, Mass Romantic; Neko Case, A.C. Newman, Dan Bejar, and company are a bit older now, more refined, but their power-pop punch is still strong. Joining them on tour are the Pains of Being Pure at Heart, whose unassuming music glistens with a smooth, poppy panache and is imbued with a molasses-gaze sweetness. Their latest, Days of Abandon, is a jangle-pop gusher, with enough sparkly guitars and stargazing choruses to challenge the '90s Slumberland Records catalog's deliberate cuteness. Swoonworthy! Showbox at the Market, 8 pm, $26.50 adv/$20 DOS.
RETOX, DOOMSDAY STUDENT, HOT NERDS, TRACERS
This is one of the best and freakiest bills I've seen all year, headlined by San Diego's Retox and their aggressively weird and fast math-hardcore. With the Locust member Justin Pearson's frenzied technical assassinations at the helm, the band's spazzed-out blasts of socially aware freak-core are informed by powerviolence, grindcore, and new wave. On their new split with Narrows (ex-Botch), they even manage to sneak in a "Fascination Street" cover. The night's Three One G Records attack continues with Doomsday Student's confrontational noise rock (DS arose from one of the genre's defining bands of the 2000s, Arab on Radar). If atonal skronk, metallic ugliness, and feeling uncomfortable are your things, you'll love the abrasive dance-noise synths of Hot Nerds (another 31G band). Local openers Tracers round out this extremely weird bill. Black Lodge, 8:30 pm.
UNDERAGERS NEVER SAY DIE!
Now for something bittersweet: This will be the last Underage column. I will continue to support all-ages and DIY-spirited music in this paper and hope that you'll also support a radically inclusive culture for live music without age discrimination in Seattle. It's been an excellent three-ish years for me (and more than 10 for the column!), and I'd especially like to thank former music editor Grant Brissey, my former co-columnist Jackson Hathorn, Dave Segal, and Emily Nokes, and, of course, all of Underage's past columnists. Always all-ages forever. 
