THE SHOWDOWN: Watch the hair, will ya?

POSTED: Monday, April 11, 2011, 1:00 PM

Filed Under: Music The Showdown

Monday: With an ear toward the psychedelic folk sounds of the ‘60s, The Curious Mystery spins a dynamic web of organic pop. To go along with their hazy, swirling sounds, there’s an air of mystery as to the band’s origins. Their varied influences don’t really help to pin them down: atonal jazz solos, Middle Eastern drones and syncopated percussion give their music both a worldly and otherworldly sound. Primarily a duo, The Curious Mystery recently expanded for their second album, We Creeling, and may feature several collaborators on their new tour. w/ Ghost/Light, Curious Buddies, 8 p.m., $5-$10, Danger Danger Gallery, 5013 Baltimore Ave.

Tuesday: If last year’s burst of so-called ‘chillwave’ music raised your ire, then give a listen to what Toro Y Moi have cooked up for 2011. Chaz Bundick’s stylish, tropical project indeed features some tin-can production and bubbling synthesizers, but Underneath The Pine is a much more developed statement than last year’s Causers Of This. The new songs are more straightforward and boast some seriously catchy hooks, both vocal and instrumental. Bundick’s new direction shows that the artists behind any musical movement shouldn’t be swept under the rug once the fad has passed. w/ Braids and Adventure, 7:30 p.m., $12, First Unitarian Church, 2125 Chestnut St., 215-563-3980.

Wednesday: Shilpa Ray, leader of the Happy Hookers, is a force. Her instrument of choice, the harmonium, wheezes out extended chord progressions as the rest of the band sculpts a dramatic and often sinister backdrop for Ray’s seedy tales of urban bohemia. Oh, and she belts out these songs with a wail that would make Screamin’ Jay Hawkins proud. The group’s latest, Teenage And Torture, is a cinematic series of seedy vignettes detailing the high highs and low lows of New York life. w/ Acid Mothers Temple, 9 p.m., $12-$13, Johnny Brenda's, 1201 N. Frankford Ave., 215-739-9684.

Thursday: Yes, he’s the son of Crowded House leader Neil Finn, but Liam Finn is hardly one to rest on the laurels of his father’s legacy. A multi-instrumentalist/songwriter, Finn’s live shows are an exhausting showcase of his capabilities at the mic, on the guitar and behind a drum kit. Having just announced a new album (due out in June), Finn will most likely play a good lot of new songs at this show, though he’s made plenty of music since his 2007 debut. Last year, Finn teamed up with some of New Zealand’s other up-and-coming youngsters to form Barb, whose self-titled album featured a love song to Leonardo DiCaprio. w/ The Luyas, 8 p.m., $16-$24, World Cafe Live, 30th St. & Walnut St., 215-222-1400.

Friday: Thanks to all his touching, heartbreaking and all-around wonderful albums, The Mountain Goats’ John Darnielle remains a cult sensation. w/ Megafaun, 9 p.m., $18-$27, TLA, 334 South St., 215-922-1011.

Saturday: Halloween is far too far away, but The Young Werewolves never fail to serve up a little terror regardless of season. The Philly shockabilly trio’s newest material features expanded instrumentation and more intricate arrangements, but they never lose sight of what makes primal rock n’ roll so appealing in the first place. A spitball in your face, a boot in your shins and a beer down your back. Just watch the hair, will ya? w/ The Soundouts, Black Cat Bones & Smoker and The Rollers, 9 p.m., $10, Trocadero Balcony, 10th & Arch Sts., 215-922-6888.

Sunday: That indie-gospel outsiders Danielson are performing in town on a Sunday is more than just a coincidence; it’s a sign. Leader Daniel Smith has been known to travel with a rather large number of musical acolytes, many of whom are members of Smith’s actual family (as opposed to the more communal ‘Famile’). Smith also brings a childlike theatricality to his shows, not unlike the school or church plays from everyone’s youth. To bear witness to Danielson’s performance is to see the creative light that folks like Sufjan Stevens and members of WHY? and Deerhoof have known about for years. Hallelujah! w/ Strapping Fieldhands & Hermit Thrushes, 9 p.m., $10-$12, Johnny Brenda's, 1201 N. Frankford Ave., 215-739-9684.

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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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