This week’s hot concerts

Although few acts from the `90s still wave the ska-punk flag, this the veteran SC-based horror/ska-punk trio, who was once managed by Joey Ramone, does so by combining subdued ska guitar rhythms with the goth-punk of the Misfits (including the Elvis-style croon), breakneck metallic distortion and a nod to old school rock n’ roll.

The songs he wrote with early MTV staple Men at Work remain in regular rotation at radio, but the band’s former frontman is enjoying renewed interest in those old songs and his new album “Next Year People” thanks to appearances on “Scrubs,” last summer’s tour with Barenaked Ladies, and as a recent guest on “Late Night with Jimmy Fallon.”

While many current artists mine `50s and `60s R&B and soul, this British powerhouse is the real deal. He was nominated for a Grammy ten years ago for his debut, but with an assist from Daptone Records’ producer Gabriel Roth (aka Bosco Mann) his new album, “Hold On!” captures not just the sound of classic R&B, but the grit and spirit.

The New Orleans rock quartet best known for the 2007 hit “Typical” and tracks from “Transformers” and “Twilight,” outdid itself (and caught the attention of Ellen Degeeneres) with the beautifully uplifting video for “Monument” which features a real Mississippi widower who turned his home into a museum to honor his late wife.

On its new album “The Southern Surreal” the high energy roots rock and rockabilly takes a dark turn into seedy Southern gothic mythology and haunted folktales populated with witches, ghosts, and doom. Who better to help mine that dark matter than actor Billy Bob Thornton, who guests on the band’s first album in five years?

This story was originally published February 4, 2016 at 2:53 PM with the headline "This week’s hot concerts."