Caro (aka Randy Jones) is at Nectar tonight, and Dave Segal had some kind words to say about the show in this week's Data Breaker:

At Nectar on Thursday, January 8, Orac Records cofounder Caro (aka Randy Jones) returns to live performance for the first time since his stellar Decibel 2008 slot in Havana's parking lot. His funky, Theo Parrish—like tech-house (bolstered by his own Cascadian soul-man vox) betokens tropical good times while also satisfying the geeks with vintage synth tonalities. The Sight Below—who has a recent European tour and a critically lauded album, Glider, on Ghostly International Records under his belt—should serve as the yin to Caro's yang, with his polar shoegazer-rock/minimal techno hybrids. They're brrrrrrilliant.

And this week's U&Cs have four more suggestions for your Thursday night schedule:

John Spalding Memorial Benefit: Helms Alee, Born Anchors, Patrol, Nazca Lines
(Sunset) Tonight is the second of a handful of January shows paying tribute to dearly departed Seattle musician John Spalding (Raft of Dead Monkeys, Ninety Pound Wuss, and most recently solo-project LoveLand), who recently succumbed to a prolonged battle with cancer at age 33. If a man's measure can be found in how many people attend his funeral, then perhaps Spalding's impact as a musician can be gleaned from the number and stature of bands paying him tribute this month, which include a reunited Suffering and the Hideous Thieves, Minus the Bear, Rocky Votolato, the Cave Singers, Past Lives, Triumph of Lethargy, Damien Jurado, Dave Bazan, See Me River, MXPX, and of course tonight's lineup of amp destroyers Helms Alee, the simultaneously screamy and groovy Born Anchors, and moody rockers Patrol. RIP. ERIC GRANDY

Hey Marseilles, Fences, Kate Tucker & the Sons of Sweden
(Tractor) Local singer-songwriter outfit Fences write stripped down, compelling songs about ordinary subjects—girls, estranged fathers, relationships. So what? Boys in America sit down with an acoustic guitar and sing about those very subjects every 2.7 minutes. But there's something that makes Fences' efforts sound more genuine than most. Singer Chris Mansfield's lyrics are delivered with a gentle guitar and coy mumble, forcing you to really listen to hear the stories he tells. It's almost like he's ashamed, like he's playing this song because he has to and he's not quite comfortable about it yet himself, but the only other option is death or insanity. MEGAN SELING

Brightblack Morning Light, Daniel Higgs
(Vera) Still touring behind 2008's instant chill-out classic Motion to Rejoin, Brightblack Morning Light remain one of the most reliable blood-pressure-lowering bands working today. Gospeldelic blues doesn't get any better—or more lusciously lackadaisical and paradisiacal than this. Daniel Higgs is best known as frontman for Dischord drone-rock mainstays Lungfish. These days he more often goes it alone as a mystical troubadour playing jaw harp and banjo. I caught Higgs doing a jaw-harp set at Gallery 1412 about four years ago, and it was mesmerizing. If you're into mutant-insectoid, twangy drones (as heard on his Magic Alphabet CD), Higgs will thoroughly sate you. His 2007 album of banjo compositions, Metempsychotic Melodies, is strangely riveting, too. DAVE SEGAL

Early Man, Toxic Holocaust, Book of Black Earth, Black Breath, H.M.P.
(El Corazón) Drummer Joe Axler of Book of Black Earth has a big-ass tattoo scrawled across his chest that reads "DEATH TO FALSE METAL." What exactly is "false" metal? Avenged Sevenfold? P.O.D.? Spinal Tap? Kip Winger's teeth? Whatever it is, it does not apply to local heavies Book of Black Earth. On new album Horoskopus, BOBE frickin' mean it. And don't even try to argue with them. The release of Horoskopus launches a new U.S. tour for the band. If you miss this gig, the official send-off show is at the Funhouse on January 17. Also on the bill, and touring with a brand-new album, are NYC thrash-metallers Early Man. On new EP Beware the Circling Fin, they sound an awful lot like the early Metallica. Or maybe Megadeth. Eerily so. Does that make them true? Or false? I think I have to see them play it live to decide. KELLY O

Find all the rest of tonight's listings in our online calendar.