March 23
MUSIC
Besnard Lakes
A question for the fuzz-lovin’ folks in Montreal’s Besnard Lakes: why the humility? You unleash 45 mind-frying minutes of psychedelic pageantry, and rather than shouting your brilliance from the rooftops with an album title worthy of superheroes, you instead opt for the merely mortal The Besnard Lakes Are the Dark Horse (Jagjaguwar, 2007)? Any band that can show the connections between the Beach Boys, Spiritualized, and My Morning Jacket automatically wins the race. (Todd Lavoie)
With the Helio Sequence
and Dirty on Purpose
8:30 p.m., $12
Rickshaw Stop
155 Fell, SF
(415) 861-2011
www.rickshawstop.com
MUSIC
Page France
Someone needs to get out there and publish a fat book celebrating the many virtues of the glockenspiel. There’d better be a chapter devoted to the winsome twinkles in the songs of Maryland’s finest suppliers of sweet sounds, Page France. Last year’s Hello, Dear Wind (Suicide Squeeze) scampers like springtime in the park, and the silvery tones plinking skyward from Mr. Xylophone’s cousin on album highlight “Junkyard” are enough to whisk me back to fourth grade on waves of nostalgia. (Todd Lavoie)
With Casiotone for the Painfully Alone and Headlights
9 p.m., $12
Cafe du Nord
2170 Market, SF
(415) 861-5016
www.cafedunord.com