THE SHOWDOWN: His main squeeze, a saxophone

POSTED: Tuesday, September 6, 2011, 1:00 PM

Tuesday: The early revival pop-rock of the cleaned up Share the Joy has more California sunshine than prior releases from the Brooklyn trio, Vivian Girls. Sure, they like to sing about boys, but that’s no less rock ‘n’ roll than guys singing about chicks. 9 p.m., $10-$12, w/ Widowspeak & Ninjessa, Johnny Brenda’s, 1201 N. Frankford Ave., 215-739-9684.

Wednesday: Perpetual Groove isn’t new to the jam band world. Their live shows are based around spacey synths, syncopated bass and busy guitar work. Duh. But as the summer festival circuit winds down, this is your chance to see them without having to stand in a field with a couple thousand smelly, sandal-wearing, rock-trading, PB&J-selling-to-get-tickets-to-the-next-show types. 9 p.m., $12-$15, w/ The Heavy Pets & Greg D, The Blockley, 3801 Chestnut St., 215-222-1234.

Thursday: The soundscapes created by Active Child’s Pat Grossi shimmer and bring light into the room, but they don’t clear out the cold draft coming in from the window. Grossi’s singing paired with his synth is as comforting as much as it is haunting and lonely. Whatever, it’s so chillwave, dude. 7 p.m., $10-$12, w/ Young Athletes League, First Unitarian Church Side Chapel, 215 Chestnut St., 215-821-7575.

Friday: TV on the Radio has been busy lately while seemingly staying under the radar. However, lead singer Tunde Adebimpe got a pair of acting pants and starred in Jonathan Demme’s Rachel Getting Married. Guitarist Dave Sitek moved to L.A. and put out a solo album. Then the rest of the band met him out west to record Nine Types of Light which came out in April. Check out the video below to see the movie they made to go along with the album. 7:30 p.m., $25-$39.50, w/ Broken Social Scene, Mann Center, 5201 Parkside Ave., 215-893-1999.

Saturday: Peter Bjorn and John’s indie-pop rock-rock hasn’t quite reached the commercial success of “Young Folks” of years ago. Gimme Some has the same bounce and optimism PB&J (haha) has always seemed to accomplish without any effort. Bet being from Sweden has something to do with it. 9 p.m., $18.50-$21, w/ Memoryhouse & Work Drugs, Trocadero, 1003 Arch St., 215-922-6888.

Sunday: Mos Def and Talib Kweli haven’t dropped a new album as Black Star since 1998. Obviously they’ve both been pretty tied up with other projects since. But there is rumor of their follow-up finally seeing the light of day after a track leaked and tour was booked. Curious, huh? 6 p.m., $36, TLA, 334 South St., 215-922-1011.

(brian.wilensky@citypaper.net)

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Featuring everything from event roundups to concert reviews and sex talk, City Paper's Critical Mass is a space for off-the-wall coverage of Philly's A&E scene.

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