On the Beat: Sept. 24-Sept. 30

DIONNE FARRIS

Jesse Winchester

The draft-dodging Memphis singer - headlining the Trenton War Memorial’s Patriots Theatre (125 W. State St., Trenton) tonight – always has his motherland on his mind when constructing a brand of Biloxi folk from over the border in Canada throughout his ’70s heyday. Even with a songwriting style deep-rooted in Americana – including popular numbers “Yankee Lady” and “Mississippi, You’re On My Mind – Winchester’s draft status kept him from touring the states until 1977 when President Jimmy Carter granted the folk icon amnesty. He’s also known for his work with Jimmy Buffet, Reba McEntire and Elvis Costello. Show starts at 7 p.m. Tickets cost $30. All-ages.

Dionne Farris

Before winning a Grammy in the early ’90s and bringing the idea of rap alternatives to the mainstream, the Arrested Development singer – headlining The Record Collector (358 Farnsworth Ave., Bordentown) tonight – was a Bordentown Regional High School drama queen with a golden voice, who, rumor has it, became a controversial person of interest in 1987 when she was picked to play a black Annie in the school’s musical. You have to start somewhere, right? Farris went solo after a few years and a Lollapalooza slot with the Afro centric hit makers – picking up a Grammy nod for her crossover R&B hit “I Know” in ’95 and a monumental performance on “Saturday Night Live.” According to the promoter, Farris has never played her hometown. About 100 tickets are available. Show starts at 7:30 p.m. Tickets cost $20 in advance, $25 at the door. All-ages.

Rorschach

The Paramus crass-core slime-ballers - who transformed into New Brunswick’s Deadguy by Rorschach’s 1993 dismantling - reunion at Asbury Lanes (209 4th Ave., Asbury Park) tonight. Show starts at 8 p.m. The Black Kites and Torchrearer round out the bill. Tickets cost $12. All-ages.

DJ Randy Now

Bruce Springsteen’s 60, so the City Gardens icon celebrates rock ’n’ roll aging with an “All Bruce! All Night!” spin cycle at Jester’s Café (233 Farnsworth Ave., Bordentown) tomorrow night. If Bruce recorded it, Now’s got it. And when his rare vinyls are in rotation, it’s “E Street Shuffl(ing)” all night long. Sets start at 10 p.m. Free. 21-plus.

A Dream Worth Dying For

Bensalem screamcore sentimentalists – opening for Tomorrow Never Dies at Championships Sports Bar and Grill (931 Chambers St., Trenton) on Saturday – finds tiny spaces in-between their dog-barking vocal terrors for small doses of mawkish melody. Go if you think Atreyu should be pushed into a ditch of hypodermic needles, believe Victory Records still puts out innovative “hardcore,” and if you score with chicks even when wearing black nail polish to the prom. Show starts at noon. Slutty Earth, Jaws of Gerberus, Centuries, Skattered and Among the Forgotten play, too. Tickets cost $10. All-ages.

The Blue Pages

The emo-pop pretty-boy Bostonians play The All Call Inn (214 Weber Ave., Ewing) with ragga-rockers 14 Points on Saturday night. Show starts at 9 p.m. A Love Like Pi plays, too. Tickets cost $5. 21-plus.

Dinosaur Eyelids

Gripping psyche-metal meltdowns – elephant riding through Championships Sports Bar and Grill (931 Chambers St., Trenton) Saturday night - uncover the Skillman group’s affection for chugging, Clutch-influenced stoner-core. Also for fans of Fu Manchu, muttonchops and Kyuss. Show starts at 9 p.m. Sincerely ME and AJ Destefano play, too. Tickets cost $8. 21-plus.

Amy Speace

The Judy Collins-managed cowgirl from Jersey City plays way-too-honest blues-pop for Aimee Mann fans - pours her heart out onto the floor of The Record Collector (358 Farnsworth Ave., Bordentown) on Saturday night. Also fun for Sarah McLachlan and Sheryl Crow fans. Show starts at 7:30. The Bongos’ James Mastro joins Speace on stage. Kim Yarson, opens. Tickets cost $12 in advance, $15 at the door. All-ages.

DJ Pat Money

Rider’s big man on campus’ pop mixes at The All Call Inn (214 Weber Ave., Ewing) Tuesday night makes college co-ed crazy. Sets start at 9. Free. 21-plus.

Scott Frost’s On The Beat concert listing appears in The Trentonian every Thursday. If your band is playing around town, email the On the Beat webline at djscott111@aol.com.

In My Ears: Converge, Sounds, Saosin, Young Widows, Every Time I Die, Tigercity, Teenage Bottle Rocket ...

IN MY EARS

My hard drive's been loading up big time recently with new rock tracks. Many know that I tend to move toward dance tracks these days, but that doesn't mean I don't get my devil horns out from time to time. In fact, my boys in Between the Buried & Me will be in Philly next month with In Flames, and Converge (for whom we're offering a free download from, below) will be in town in November with Mastodon and High On Fire.

Now, On The Beat loves to give away free stuff to its readers. So we're hooking you up with some new crunchy stuff for you to chow down on. Included are new tracks from Every Time I Die and Saosin (pictured right playing The Warped Tour in Oceanport, NY). I also threw in a Sounds track I can't get out of my head, new Radiohead songs floating all around the blog universe these days, and Thursday's tourmates, Young Widows.

SAOSIN

Infamous for being Anthony Green's (Circa Survive) first band, the L.A. emo punks released "In Search of Solid Ground" on Sept. 8, and it's as expected: typical cry-core that falls from in technicality to Buck County's favorite sons. "The Worst of Me" is the lead single off of "In Search ..."

CONVERGE

The buzzing lead track off the insane-core vets soon-to-be released new record, "Ask To Fall," "Dark Horse" continues to prove Converge gets sicker and sicker with every CD. Kind of sounds like you're rising a bull, too. Record comes out Oct. 20. They hit Philly's cement box, the Electric Factory, on Nov. 1.

TIGERCITY

Don't know what to quite make of this Brooklyn band. "Ancient Lover"- the title track of its soon-to-be-released EP - is sort of a bling-folk mix of Chromeo, hip-hop-y Beck, Passion Pit and MGMT. The record's hip-hop disco rock feel shows the influence of New York's Chuck Brody, the man machine behind recent releases from Northern State, Peter Bjorn and John and Ghostface Killah.

EVERY TIME I DIE

The New York screamcore crazyheads - hitting up the Electric Factory in Philly Oct. 3 with Bring Me the Horizon - dropped "New Just Aesthetics" on Sept. 11. Lightning fast and head bashing, but sophisticatedly constructed overall hardcore for fans of A Life Once Lost. Great title names, too. Like this ditty, "That Marvelous Slut."

YOUNG WIDOWS

Buzzing post-punk from the Jade Tree family, the Kentucky bunch turned some heads at last week's Thursday show in Philly. You'd like if you remember Helmet and like crunchy peanut butter. "Delay Your Pressure" comes from Young Widows' 2008 record, "Old Wounds."

RADIOHEAD

The Brit giants released two new tracks to the blog world the last several weeks. Gloomy stuff. Here they are: "Harry Patch (In Memory Of)," "These Are My Twisted Words"

THE SOUNDS

Didn't really have love for the Swedish pop rockers' "Crossing the Rubicon" disc until Deejay Non-Chalant started dropping remixes of "No One Sleeps When I'm Awake." Now I can't the tracks, like "Beatbox" out of my head. Seems like the group's dodging anything punk on the new record - instead going for futuristic disco in a blend of Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Paramore and Blondie.

TEENAGE BOTTLE ROCKET

Wyoming Ramones-core is not something I've bounced to in quite a while, but when the gang's Fat Wreak Chords debut, "They Came From the Shadows," slid into my mailbox last week, I had to give it whirl. Dug it, too, and looking forward to their Oct. 22 Philly show at The Barbery. Quick-witted pop-punk with obvious coming from The Queers and Screaching Weasel, "Bigger Than Kiss," could have been written by Nerf Herder or if The Donnas had penises.

Salt-N-Pepa, Naughty By Nature, Coolio, 2 Live Crew: OLD SCHOOLING IN TRENTON

SALT-N-PEPA

NAUGHTY BY NATURE

COOLIO

2 LIVE CREW

COOLIO