Schoolyard Heroes, William Control, Creature Feature, Black Houses
(El Corazón) Every year, around this time, Schoolyard Heroes celebrate the holidays in a way only Schoolyard Heroes can—with a loud, heavy (which refers to both the music and the amount of eyeliner) rock show. The band's annual Home for the Horrordays event takes advantage of the downtime between Christmas and New Year's, and brings together friends and fans for a not-so-silent night. They've upped the ante this year by releasing two new holiday tracks—"Dreidel, Dreidel, Dreidel, Dreidel" is the most hardcore Hanukkah song you'll ever hear, and "I Want Your Soul for Christmas" showcases Ryann Donnelly's more romantic voice crooning over jingle bells... singing about stealing souls for Christmas. Happy holidays! MEGAN SELING

Sirens and Sailors, Johnny O'Donnell & Slam, T.v. Coahran
(Sunset) Hitler-via-Ron Mael—mustached local musician T.v. Coahran plays a ramshackle, vaudevillian brand of rock with irrepressible enthusiasm and a penchant for dramatic vocalizing and mythological lyrical themes. A musical misfit/provocateur, Coahran has put forth a lot of hustle in this town, and it's paying off, with riveting songs that split the difference between Swell Maps and Sparks. Plus, dude's got hella videos on YouTube. Not bad for an unsigned artist who spends a lot of time commenting on The Stranger's music blog, Line Out. DAVE SEGAL

Varmint, Fasten with Pins
(Tractor) Varmint are the country-folk-venerating project of several Seattle jazz/funk/avant-garde ringers, including keyboardist Wayne Horvitz, vocalist Robin Holcomb, and guitarist Tim Young. It may seem like a lark, but they treat these venerable traditional songs and chart-dwelling chestnuts with sincere devotion and, of course, their impeccable chops. Varmint's CD Mr. Man in the Moon features Americana-fied covers of compositions by everyone from Sun Ra to Neil Diamond to Hank Williams. That's range, people. For their first set of the night, they'll focus on Moon. For the second, Varmint's members call themselves the Golden Road and play Grateful Dead cuts from 1966—1971 LPs like Anthem of the Sun, Aoxomoxoa, Workingman's Dead, American Beauty, and The Grateful Dead. You may feel as if you're "Sittin' on Top of the World." (Sorry.) DAVE SEGAL

Listen to Varmint via MySpace.

And see all the rest of tonight's listings here.