M83
Named after spiral galaxy Messier 83, M83’s epic song-scapes are as sprawling and crystal clear as the night skies viewed from a mountaintop observatory. French visionary, synth wizard and seer Anthony Gonzalez is M83, and these days he’s a bit of a wide-eyed optimist. Exchanging the Eno-esque ambience and dark My Bloody Valentine-style murk of earlier efforts for sleek neon tones and symphonic grandeur, Gonzalez’s recent work retains the cinematic sweep of yore, but applies it to pop songs. M83’s newest disc, Hurry up, We’re Dreaming, is a throwback to that most 1970’s of artifacts, the double LP. Though Smashing Pumpkins and Pink Floyd are cited as influences, M83’s adrenalized grandeur is closest to Manfred Mann’s proggy-but-tuneful early '70s stand-out “Joybringer.” With his yelping Peter Gabriel vocals, Gonzalez adds a dash of the ornate ’80s brat-pack sound left over from M83’s Saturdays=Youth. The result is clear, but not brittle, a sonic swirl that evokes the exhilaration of youth, when everything was possible and a little frightening as well. $44.50. Oct. 7, 8 p.m. The Fillmore, 1000 N.C. Music Factory Blvd. 704-549-5555.

BRAINSTORM
This Portland, Ore., outfit was voted Best New Band of 2011 by the Willamette Week, and in that competitive, Brooklyn-of-the-West-Coast cauldron, an imprimatur like that has to say something about the band, doesn’t it? Well, Brainstorm has just released its debut, Heat Waves, so the rest of us can decide on our own. Instantly notable are the cumbia rhythms, West African guitar lines, tuba and polyrhythmic harmonies that weave into an international art pop located somewhere between Le Loup, Fool’s Gold and Bitter Orca-era Dirty Projectors (Robby Moncrieff produced this one, too). What separates the songs from those acts, though, is a tangible ’70s soul undercurrent that results in more on-the-nose melodies. That’s great on tracks like “Death Bells,” whose inescapable riffs and three-part harmonies tap into a joy that completely belies the song title; it’s less impressive on a track like “Maybe A Memory,” where Brainstorm sounds like Hall & Oates lost in a Ghanaian desert. That’s thankfully the exception among these 10 tracks. Built around the duo of Adam Baz and Patrick Phillips in 2008 (bassist/singer Tamara Barnes recently joined), the band would seem to have a bright future even besides the fact that they’ve tapped into one of today’s most popular musical currents. With Dinosaur Feathers. $5. Oct. 7, 10 p.m. Snug Harbor, 1228 Gordon St. 704-333-9799.

JT AND THE DRAGPIPES
Fronted by Charlotte-area rockabilly fixtures Jem Crossland and Tommy Ray, JT and the Dragpipes smoke their tires, slick their hair back and cruise into your ears with ’50s style and grit. Backed by Austin Granger on stand-up bass and former Drat drummer John Marlow on the skins, the quartet plays a solid mixture of covers and originals (including some Crossland and Tommy Ray and the Ray-Guns tunes) filled with slapped bass and greased-up guitar riffs. Is it groundbreaking stuff? It’s not trying to be. The playful guitar work of the frontmen simply takes a defibrillator to a bygone era; reinjecting life into a classic style. The band’s foot-tapping, swing-dancing sounds just might wail enough to blow your top. So, don’t be a square — get your jeans rolled right, your ’do slicked back and enjoy the ride, daddy-o. Oct. 6, 8 p.m. Puckett’s Farm Equipment, 2740 W. Sugar Creek Road. 704-597-8230.

CROWFIELD
Initially, Crowfield may sound like a run-of-the-mill rock combo. But pay attention and, with repeat listens, the band’s songs fit snugly and unfold into straightforward, yet inviting, listenable roots-rock. Crowfield’s music is colored with psychedelic guitars, nicely woven lyrics and put together by a band that creates a big-yet-cohesive sound. They can hum along with acoustic songs that plead “use your inside voices, please,” to full-on rockers. The combo has the ability to hone in on stories and wrap them in music minus the unnecessary theatrics. The result is an honest sound from musicians who relish in the fact that, in the end, it’s simply about making good music, the type that sounds as warmly familiar years down the road as it does now. RIYL: Bodeans, Southern rock. With Noah. $10-$12. Oct. 6, 8 p.m. Evening Muse, 3227 N. Davidson St. 704-376-3737.

GRACE POTTER & THE NOCTURNALS
Not too long ago, Grace Potter was a jeans-and-T-shirt girl with mousy hair that let her vocals command attention. Her bluesy grit came via a thunderous vocal power that won over small audiences on a regular basis. Times have changed. These days, Potter shows off her long locks and even longer legs as she struts about big stages, front-and-center. The music is a bit more mainstream — enough that she opened for Kenny Chesney and Tim McGraw at Bank of America Stadium this past summer. However, beneath all the glitz and glam is the same lyrical prowess that won fans from the beginning, and the same Hammond organ that drives her music forward with vintage blues power. Don’t let the bigger venue fool you. Put on a blindfold and the music will still see you through. With Rayland Baxter. $25-$60. Oct. 5, 8 p.m. Time Warner Cable Uptown Amphitheatre, 1000 N.C. Music Factory Blvd.

WHITE RABBITS
White Rabbits have come a long way from their 2007 debut, Fort Nightly, where their “honky-tonk calypso” mix of music hall influences, ska riddims and pensive lyrics recalled The Specials. Two things have happened to the Brooklyn-by-way-of-Columbia, Mo., sextet. One: The lyrics turned moodier, the message more fractured. Two: White Rabbits have fallen under the spell of Spoon. Enigmatic indie-pop superstars Spoon can hardly complain about this, since said spell is of their own weaving. Spoon’s Britt Daniel produced White Rabbits’ sophomore LP, while frequent Spoon producer Mike McCarthy helmed the band’s current effort, Milk Famous. As a result, the Rabbits sound a lot like — you guessed it, Spoon. Back-masked synths, reverberating piano and eerie near-falsettos chart a tortured journey through Spoon-ish dark lands. With intricate dual drums, White Rabbits still pack a textural wallop, but their songs — and identity — are missing. Add cut-and-paste lyrics that resonate as much as refrigerator-magnet poetry, and the Rabbits cross over from haunting restraint to willful obscurity. With Easter Island. $12-$15. Oct. 4, 8:30 p.m. Visulite Theatre, 1615 Elizabeth Ave. 704-358-9200. .