Music Forecast 9.4–9.10: Buzz Beach Ball, Cake, D.R.I., and more

Joyce Manor, Seahaven
The title of Joyce Manor’s latest album, Never Hungover Again, sounds like a promise just waiting to be broken. Lead singer Barry Johnson’s singing often gets compared with Morrissey’s, and the angst dial for this California pop-punk ensemble tends to be set on high. Johnson’s lyrics seem continually to inform the listener that he is down and you should kick him, but this whole sad-sack routine is shined up slightly by Joyce Manor’s preppy hooks and three-part harmonies. Observe the yin and the yang of this act Thursday at the Jackpot, where fellow California punk band Seahaven is also on deck.

Thursday, September 4, Jackpot Music Hall (943 Massachusetts, Lawrence, 785-832-1085)

Buzz Beach Ball featuring Arctic Monkeys, Weezer and more
The long, hot days of summer roll on, and so do the outdoor concerts. Buzz Beach Ball again takes over Sporting Park, and the string of acts assembled is daunting. Arctic Monkeys — whose definitive 2013 full-length, AM, introduced a new phase in the band’s evolution — headlines alongside Weezer, the 1975, the Mowgli’s, Bear Hands, Ume and a half-dozen other bands. There’s something for just about everyone at this mini-festival. Word to the wise: Parking is tricky at Sporting, so plan accordingly.

Friday, September 5, Sporting Park (1 Sporting Way, Kansas City, Kansas, beachballkc.com)

D.R.I.

Houston’s D.R.I. (Dirty Rotten Imbeciles, in case you’re wondering) is a curious band. Founded in 1982, the thrash-punk group never really took off the way contemporaries D.O.A. and Dead Kennedys did. Where those bands get paragraphs in music-history texts, D.R.I. gets a footnote. Still, that doesn’t diminish what the band has accomplished. It was one of the first to marry hardcore punk music with thrashcore metal, on the 1987 album Crossover. The union proved blessed and successful. The band hasn’t released any new music since 1995 — though there have been rumors for years of a new album in the works — but its touring hasn’t slowed. Friday night at Davey’s, feel superior when you see this oft-overlooked act live.

Friday, September 5, Davey’s Uptown Ramblers Club (3402 Main, 816-753-1909)

Katy Guillen and the Girls

Katy Guillen and the Girls have stolen our hearts countless times since 2013, when they became the latest hometown talent to rise to national recognition, taking fourth place at the International Blues Challenge in Memphis. This past August, they received a Pitch Music Award for Best Emerging Artist. At last, the band has a full-length album to its name: a fierce, untamed collection of skin-searing tracks that draw on Guillen’s uninhibited guitar riffs, the unforgiving tone of Claire Adams’ bass line, and the barely controlled blasting of Stephanie Williams’ drumming. The Girls release the album Saturday at Knuckleheads for what may be the most face-melting show of the month.

Saturday, September 6, Knuckleheads Saloon (2715 Rochester, 816-483-1456)

Cake

If the only thing you really know about Cake is its 2001 hit song “Short Skirt/Long Jacket,” you have plenty to brush up on before Friday’s Crossroads KC show. Aside from that track and the 2011 hit “Sick of You” (off Showroom of Compassion), Cake’s recent concerts have featured deeper cuts. Then again, lead singer John McCrea’s singing is lackadaisical and monotonous in a way that is easy to follow, regardless of the song. If you feel like reeling back the years and reliving the glory of the late 1990s and early aughts — back when a high priority was placed on frustrated, vaguely emo lyrics, and irony was still considered a fresh artistic concept — don’t skip this show.

Friday, September 5, Crossroads KC at Grinders (417 East 18th Street, 785-749-3434)