E-Mail This Article to a Friend The best of the fest (continued)

WHILE THE BLACK KEYS raise holy hell at the Paradise, one of NEMO’s best local-music showcases will be rattling the tight confines of the Abbey Lounge, the grungy little Somerville joint just outside of Inman Square that’s become garage band central. The Q Division label, also based in Somerville, is sponsoring a night with its bands the Gentlemen, Bill Janovitz and Crown Victoria, Unbusted, and Señor Happy.

Of these, Unbusted stick closest to the Abbey’s usual garage æsthetic, with straightforward songs built over straightforward chords and equally straightforward guitar. Early this year, the Martha’s Vineyard foursome got a straight-forward push from the moviemaking Farrelly Brothers, who put three Unbusted songs in their conjoined-twins comedy Stuck on You. For a preview of Friday’s gig, you can hear those songs, "Seeds To Sow," "Another Wasted Weekend," and "I Don’t Want To Grow Up," on their Web site at unbusted.com. The Gentlemen, a local supergroup of sorts with members from the Figgs and the Gravel Pit (both of whom specialize in big, balls-out rock), have a new album due in November. This spring, Señor Happy released I’m Sorry, an ambitious disc of subtly depressive lyrics paired with textures that echo alt-rock-era Britpop teamed with distinctly American rock-and-roll vitality. And Janovitz and his outfit Crown Victoria indulge the more writerly side of the Buffalo Tom frontman’s craft, as well as some influences from roots and soul music, on their recently released Fireworks on TV.

On Saturday, Boston’s Dwight Richter Band and Marc Broussard are among the performers at Harpers Ferry in Allston. Twenty-two-year-old singer-songwriter Broussard has just put out his major-label debut, Carencro (Island). Although he’s from the Louisiana town of the same name, he seems to be bucking for Dave Matthews’s recently tarnished sensitive-frat-guy crown. That said, there’s an appealing warmth to his music. Richter is a more interesting artist whose music lives in several worlds. His shows draw a young crowd eager to dance — sometimes slow, close, and romantic — to his personalized blend of vintage soul-blues grooves played to jam-band length and abetted by rock dynamics, all topped with an original singing style that’s appealing in its laconic modernity. Richter also has a new album, Drive Around Town, that you can buy or hear tunes from at the dwightrichterband.com Web site.

GoGirlsMusic, a national Web-rooted venture aiming to promote and empower indie women in music, will do that Friday night with a bill at T.T. the Bear’s in Central Square featuring Damone, the So and So’s, Stargazer Lily, the Knee Hi’s, and the Pink Slips. Waltham’s Damone headline, which seems right since they released their debut for major-label RCA in May. The disc is called From the Attic, but their music is really from the basement and, therefore, the suburbs. It’s a strain of pop that draws gently from punk, hard rock, metal, and the pages of angstful teenage life, all warmed by the tones of singer-guitarist Noelle’s breathy voice. For more about the band, visit damone.net.

Noelle and Damone emerged quickly, but singer Meghan Toohey has been part of the Boston music scene for more than a decade. At first, her career was rooted in the folk clubs, and she came across as a member of the contemporary acoustic singer-songwriter pack, albeit one with stronger and more flexible pipes. But in her new, rocking incarnation as leader of the So and So’s, she’s framed by a more expansive sound that draws on feedback, distortion, and a driving sense of melody. That’s all caught on the So and Sos’ debut album, Give Me Drama (Supertiny), which is available along with MP3s at soandsos.com.

One final recommendation: local outfit Redletter — who combine textured guitar rock with heartfelt songwriting on their self-released debut EP, The Spirit and the Chemicals — headline Copperfield’s, which is barely a foul ball away from Fenway Park, on Saturday. Ricocheting from plain rock-and-roll grind to expansive sonic excursions, they served up a fine set at the Rumble in May. They’ll also play the International Pop Overthrow Festival at T.T. the Bear’s on November 5 along with Señor Happy and the So & So’s.

This Friday, October 1, the Black Keys play the Paradise, 967 Commonwealth Avenue in Boston; call (617) 562-8800. The Gentlemen, Bill Janovitz and Crown Victoria, Unbusted, and Señor Happy play the Abbey Lounge, 3 Beacon Street in Inman Square; call (617) 441-9631. And Damone and the So and So’s play T.T. the Bear’s Place, 10 Brookline Street in Central Square; call (617) 492-BEAR. This Saturday, October 2, the Dwight Richter Band and Marc Broussard are at Harpers Ferry, 158 Brighton Avenue in Allston; call (617) 254-9743. And Redletter are at Copperfield’s, 98 Brookline Avenue in Boston; call (617) 247-8605.