THE CEDRIC BURNSIDE PROJECT

The grandson of bluesman R.L. Burnside learned North Mississippi hill country blues by playing drums in his granddad’s band until the elder Burnside’s death in 2005. Cedric isn’t quite the guitarist R.L. was, but those Mississippi Fred McDowell guitar-roots may have been passed down because Cedric does exhibit the familial gift for imbuing one chord with a wide array of tempos and personalities. So much so that the Blues Music Awards named Cedric’s 2009 release, The Two Man Wrecking Crew, its Best New Artist Debut, and he won Drummer of the Year in 2010. One imagines his granddad’s sitting down in heaven with a ass pocket of whiskey, beaming. $8. Double Door Inn.

LYLE LOVETT

He long ago unraveled the country music tags, and for more than a quarter century Lovett has upheld his perch as a distinct and original songwriter. Lovett was initially a traditional country revivalist, but he has evolved and morphed into a loveable oddball with the unmistakable croon of an astute wordsmith, where twang, Western swing, folk, pop, and big-band swing are all interwoven. Touring in support of his latest recording, Release Me, this is a perfect double bill with fellow musical troubadour John Hiatt opening. $49.50-$89.50 Sold out. McGlohon Theatre.

JUSTIN FAIRCLOTH The Houston brother headlines an evening of solo work from artists who (mostly) don’t typically appear in that setting. A top-notch keyboardist and songwriter with his brother Matt in the long-running (and now) five-piece ensemble the Houston Brothers, Faircloth’s strength is a knack for igniting mid-tempo, minor-key melodies into stormy conflagrations that just as quickly subside back into their serene origins. And no matter what anybody says, it’s every bit as “Carolina” as its twangy cousins. With Stephen Warwick (sans Secondhand Stories), Lindsay Horne (new CD coming) and Jason Herring (minus the Mystery Plan). Petra’s Piano Bar.

MUTEMATH Stringing everything from ambient and synth-dance to scattered pop into their sound, MuteMath evoke a killer indie radio station. Their adventurism takes the combo on varied musical alleys, but in the end they merge into a chilled, deft hybrid. Even with frenzied instrumentation, with funky rock guitars and jazzy breaks, there’s always an underlying feeling, a vibe that says lean back and groove-along with the hipsters. The New Orleans combo’s latest is Odd Soul. With Canon Blue. $28-$31. Amos' Southend.

THOSE MANIC SEAS Teleprompter-driven vocals notwithstanding, Richmond’s Those Manic Seas sounds like 2002 all over again. There’s the asymmetrical, sinuous guitar of pre-Good News for People Who Love Bad News Isaac Brock, the disco-rock stomp of early-‘00s Brooklyn indie, and just enough hints of U2 and Radiohead to give the whole thing a radio-ready glaze. Yet Those Manic Seas educate these largely out-of-use rock tropes with bits and pieces of things that have come since, such as persistent delay-loaded guitar work that implies an after-hours Explosions in the Sky. Tommy’s Pub.

MUSIC OF MICHAEL JACKSON This is almost too weird to be true, and if it didn’t cost what it does I’d recommend going for the spectacle alone. As what it is — a sort of Dollywood-level pop-martyr worship — it succeeds, though a wholesale focus on sentimentality is a disservice to Jackson’s blistering personal insights (“Man in the Mirror”) and outright wounded lash-outs (“Leave Me Alone”). The legendary, late rock critic Lester Bangs warned against exactly this kind of errant idolatry in his John Lennon obit — and we see the inhuman pedestal Lennon has been forced to stand upon in subsequent decades. So — seriously — go to this to see history in the making, as the human complexity and imperfections of this late, talented musician are steamrolled into a homogenous rock idol persona. Hell, give it a few years and we’ll get one of these for Whitney Houston. Gotta mine these celebrity deaths while they’re still ripe. $44.50-$71.45. Ovens Auditorium.

EUGENE ROBINSON Eugene Robinson’s set may end up being the most visceral and fascinating portion of this evening. The vocalist for San Francisco’s long-lived avant-rock outfit Oxbow, who just happens to be built like six tanks, is also an author. This tough-as-shit brainiac (he’s also a Stanford graduate) will tell stories and read passages from his books, one of which is about fighting and happens to be nonfiction. Suffice to say, spoken word is rarely this intense and engaging. Scott Kelly of post-metal standard-bearers Neurosis and Nate Hall of rural psych-doom juggernaut US Christmas, who both are releasing solo albums this year, round out the evening.. $10. Snug Harbor.

DEAD CONFEDERATE First, the cause. This evening is billed as the Uncle Sam Jam, or a Night of Giving Back, and is sponsored by the Echo Foundation. The locally based organization brings world renowned humanitarians (Elie Wiesel, for one) to Charlotte to galvanize the locals into democratic action of the communally uplifting variety — what Rick Santorum would consider Godless socialism. Anyway, this night of raffles, giveaways and music features the Athens-based Dead Confederate headlining. If you like your Southern rawk with a heavy dose of psychedelic shoegaze, then these gents — with their fondness for reverb and a recent turn toward the more melodic — could be your cuppa. All money raised will be donated to The Footsteps Program funded by The Echo Foundation. With the Houston Brothers, T. Hardy Morris and the Outfit, and DJ Brad Pressley. $10 (Free to foundation members). The Chop Shop.

THE WINTER SOUNDS Not too long ago, this Nashville quintet went to Chicago and played a swanky company Christmas party, recorded a Daytrotter session, and played sets at Martyr’s and for a local high school choir class. Which is actually a neat summation of the music — it’s just exotic enough to sound like that one Decembrists’ record the suits get along with; it’s rooted in enough folk tradition to sound good pared down live in the studio; it’s just Portlandia enough for the indie bar crowd; and it’s just glockenspiel-friendly enough to reveal its high school band-grad roots and Polyphonic Spree fan-club membership past. None of that, by the way, is meant as insult. With Secret Hospital, Andy D (not the Doorbum, btw) and Hunter Park. $6. Snug Harbor.

ANALOG DAZE/THE BLACKHOUNDS Self-described as “jangledelic,” this Charlotte three-piece lets that Rickenbacker ring while raising a considerable racket. But Analog Daze’s brand of jangle is less British invasion, and more the dusty psychedelia of 80’s paisley underground outfits like True West and Green on Red. Guitarist Craig Hanks’ fretwork come straight outta The Dream Syndicate’s “Medicine Show”. But the Daze is also grounded in the acid punk-gone-country ethos of The Meat Puppets, while KJ Johnson’s full throated ramshackle vocals summon up The Replacements on a five day bender. Tinged with country sorrow and wide-open-road Americana, the Queen City-based BlackHounds rock hard and rootsy. Come for the keening harmonies and scorched earth twin guitars that stick to your ribs, but stay for the solid songwriting that burrows into your brain. $10. Double Door Inn.