One of the Triangle's coolest recurrent local-music traditions is the "Have a Holly Raleigh Christmas" series of holiday-music albums, now in its fourth year. And this year's edition skews younger than ever, because it doubles as a childrens record -- just in time for Saturday's annual Raleigh Christmas Parade. For details, see the story in Friday's paper.

Behold the super-cool video for Dexter Romweber's "People, Places and Things," which was primarily filmed at Romweber's own home right here in the Triangle. As director Jerry Stifelman says, "It was like filming in Elvis' house, only an alternative Elvis who never sacrificed his muse to play in Vegas wearing a sparkled jumpsuit."

Lyle Lovett, the man too cool for school, passed through North Carolina Tuesday night to play over in Charlotte. Click through for a report.

Bang on a Can All-Stars, the new-music group renowned for offbeat musical projects, brings another one to Chapel Hill on Tuesday night. Click through for information on that plus the inevitable back-verbiage.

Texas singer/songwriter/all-around-funny-dude Robert Earl Keen plays in Raleigh on Wednesday night. Click through for a spot of verbiage on him, past as well as present.

Originally, the reborn Six String Cafe was scheduled to open next week in its new location on Buck Jones Road in Cary. But that has been postponed, due to holdups in the inspection, approval and permit process. The latest bulletin from owner David Sardinha:

Well folks, these things happen. We have to delay our planned opening next week as we try to work through the final approval steps. Please hang in there. The place is looking great and we are booking some great shows in the coming weeks. Of course, as soon as we have a better handle on any information we will keep you posted.
 
Thanks for your support and patience.

Like a lot of performers of a certain age, Frankie Valli doesn't like to hear the word "comeback." To his way of thinking, he never left. But there's no denying that Valli is back in a brighter spotlight nowadays thanks to "Jersey Boys," the musical history of his group the Four Seasons. "Jersey Boys" played at Raleigh's memorial Auditorium over the summer, and Valli will be singing in the same venue on Wednesday. For details on that and lots more, see the interview in Friday's paper.

Lambchop and Alejandro Escovedo play Friday night in Durham, and we've got loads of verbiage about both. See the click-through for more.

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(Thanks, Doug.)

The weather outside is frightful, with more of the same forecast through tonight. But organizers insist that the Red Bull Soundclash will go on as scheduled in Raleigh Thursday night, outside Hibernian Pub at North Street and Glenwood Avenue.

Weather aside, it's an intriguing event featuring two of our finest local acts, romantic indie-pop band The Love Language and the intercontinental hip-hop ensemble The Foreign Exchange. The format has them facing off on stages at opposite ends of the street with the audience in the middle, going back and forth in a performance that is supposed to fall somewhere between competition and collaboration. Could be interesting, could be a mess -- and it's sure to be cold and wet. But at least there will be a tent to huddle under, so come on out if you can. It gets going at 8:00 tonight, and admission is free.

If you'd rather stick with indoor events, a fine bet would be Tir Na Nog's weekly "Local Beer Local Band" night -- tonight featuring Violet Vector and the Lovely Lovelies plus pop genius Mitch Easter. That starts at 9:00, and it's also free.