As is perhaps inevitable with any band that's built a 15-year career and an eight-album discography, fans have been grousing that "Weezer should go back to being Weezer" for years now. With its last release in 2008, its third self-titled disc or "the Red Album," the alt-era survivors and emo progenitors made a partial detour from the arena rock of recent years to return to the willfully naïve, exuberantly bouncy, heart-on-sleeve pop of their first self-titled disc and 1994 debut--though even gems such as "Heart Songs" weren't enough to please the grousers.

The only thing that could make them happy, it seems, would be "Pinkerton, Part 2." But bandleader and primary songwriter River Cuomo would be the first to tell you he could never really return to the troubled period of his life that produced that uniquely soul-baring epic, even if he wanted to.

With the wonderfully titled "Raditude," Cuomo appears to have stopped worrying about his history and fan base and begun to simply indulge his love for and mastery of pop song craft, in particular as it's practiced on the pop charts circa 2009. Though his nasal voice and the band's essential guitar-bass-drums attack will always mark his latest collection of songs as Weezer product, Cuomo could well have sold some of this material to, say, Lady Gaga (the band has been covering her "Poker Face" live of late) or any number of current hip-hop, R&B or pop chart-toppers (Cuomo also wrote a tune for Katy Perry). Guest producers include Polow Da Don,; Weezer has fleshed out and glossed up the poignant and brilliant "Can't Stop Partying," a collaboration with Jermaine Dupri first heard on a 2008 demos collection, with a much snazzier groove and a cameo by Lil Wayne (Weezer and Weezy, side by side!) and "I'm Your Daddy" is the best R. Kelly song that Kelly never wrote.

Of course, Weezer being Weezer, there also are some songs that couldn't have been done anyone else, in particular "(If You're Wondering If I Want You To) I Want You To" and "Put Me Back Together," as well as a mind-boggling detour or two, including the sitar-powered Bollywood jam, "Love Is the Answer." It all combines to make what may be the most uneven and inconsistent album of the group's career, yet it also is one of its most entertaining and just plain fun.

It's hard to ignore a pitch like, "Think pop like Coca-Cola, think raw fun like Ecstasy, think catchy like a lacrosse stick," if only because you want to counter, "No way this band is going to sound like that much fun!" But sure enough, Jesse Palter & the Alter Ego deliver on those promises with a strong four-song EP currently streaming on the Web at www.myspace.com/jessepalterthealterego and www.palterego.com.

Vocalist Jesse Palter and multi-instrumentalist Sam Barsh began their collaboration in 2006. Both had enviable reputations in the jazz world--Palter was named "Outstanding Jazz Vocalist" for three years in a row at the Detroit Music Awards before moving to Chicago, while Barsh has played with names such as Cassandra Wilson, Bobby McFerrin and the Brand New Heavies--but the goal of the Alter Ego was to bring their considerable chops to the often simplistic genre of dance-pop, creating irresistible hooks and undeniable grooves that are as smart and sophisticated as they are silly good-time fun.

In other words, Lady Gaga, watch out! (The band recently played Martyr's; watch its Web sites for other upcoming gigs.)

(The Austin, TX, promoters behind Lollapalooza, C3 Presents, won a deal with the city to bring more entertainment to Soldier Field more than a year ago, but they have as yet done nothing with it. That, however, is another story.)

Bon Jovi tickets go on sale Monday, Nov. 16, at 10 a.m. through www.ticketmaster.com, (312) 559-1212. Regular ticket prices were not announced. There also are VIP and Fan Club packages available starting at 9 p.m. tonight through www.bonjovi.com.

So, you ask, isn't it odd for next year's big summer concerts to be coming on sale before Chicago has even seen the first snow of this season? What's up with that?

Well, you buy your ticket and you pay your money now (plus egregious Ticketmaster service fees, of course), and your hard-earned cash sits for 9 months in the bank accounts of the promoters, the bands and the ticket sellers, accruing interest that might otherwise have gone into your bank account.

Better Jon Bon Jovi and Bono eke out a few more dollars than their fans keep that money, right? Because they really need it for the mortgages on their third or fourth vacation homes, no doubt.

The original lineup of David Yow, Duane Denison, David Wm Sims and Mac McNeilly will be joined by openers Disappears, and tickets will go on sale at noon Saturday, Nov. 7, via www.metrochicago.com and at the Metro box office. Tickets are $51 in advance and $61 the day of show.

Whether it's been as a member of Ultramagnetic MCs, as Black Elvis or as Dr. Octagon, rapper Kool Keith has long been one of the most creative, innovative and wonderfully weird forces in hip-hop. He'll perform at Reggie's Rock Club, 2109 S. State, after opening sets by Shala and Robust starting at 10 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 7. Tickets are $20 via www.ticketweb.com; for more information, call (312) 949-0121 or visit www.reggieslive.com.

Prices are $252.00, $97.00, $57.00 and $32.00, plus egregious service fees.

It may have been a noble effort to raise money for charity. But the new disc of massacred holiday standards is nonetheless a miserable listening experience.

Thankfully, there wasn't a harsh, croaking rendition of "Hark the Herald Angels Sing," an endless, torturous version of "Little Drummer Boy" or a weird threat-not-a promise take on "I'll Be Home for Christmas" in evidence Thursday night as the favorite son of Hibbing, Minn., played the first of a three-night stand at the Aragon Ballroom.

In fact, in his patently perverse, willfully noncommercial, change-it-up-every-night and "zag whenever they expect me to zig" style, Dylan completely ignored his new album. Instead, the man whose taped introduction branded him "the poet laureate of rock 'n' roll" gave us a typically atypical night, mixing a heavy sampling of songs from the last three studio albums before "Christmas in the Heart" with a handful of his most memorable anthems.

As usual, many of these songs were barely recognizable, as Dylan shuffled, rewrote, rearranged and just plain messed with them however the spirit of the moment struck him.

One notable failure: A particularly unsubtle and heavy-handed thrashing of "Just Like a Woman," part of a generally sluggish start to the two-hour show. (Dylan began promptly at 7:30 p.m., and there was no opening act.)

Among the standout high points: a revved-up "Tweedle Dee & Tweedle Dum"; "Stuck Inside of Mobile with the Memphis Blues Again," which was turned inside out and upside down; a rollicking and rambunctious "Highway 61 Revisited," and a tense and dramatic "Ain't Talkin'."

After a particularly inspired and reliably consistent stretch in the '90s, when his shows were marked by their furious guitar rave-ups and intense interaction with his crack band, Dylan's concerts have become much more uneven and sluggish in recent years. The star has spent much of his time onstage rigidly standing behind an electronic keyboard, reportedly because arthritis has made his guitar playing more difficult.

And the voice... oh, that voice. Even though of us who've applauded its harsh punk charms, forgiven its infamous limitations and championed it as a direct conduit to the songwriter's soul must admit that it's becoming ever harsher, more limited and sloppier, without an appreciable increase in soulfulness.

The current tour marks the return of Austin, TX, guitarist Charlie Sexton, one of Dylan's best ever sidemen, and a big reason why those '90s shows were so fiery. But the bandleader still spent much of Thursday night behind that dreaded synthesizer. When he did don a guitar, he hardly moved and barely acknowledged Sexton, second guitarist Stu Kimball and bassist Tony Garnier at his right side, much less drummer George Recile behind him.

Indeed, the only time Dylan seemed undiminished was when he blowing harp. His harmonica propelled "Ballad of a Thin Man," the last song before the encore, and the evening's climax.

Overall, this was a better night with Bob than the last few this critic has had, but it was far from the best.

The most hardcore fans will contend that any night with their hero is a privilege mere mortals should gratefully welcome without complaints. But I bet that even many of them are glad to have been spared his particularly unique reading of "Winter Wonderland."

Sure, March 17 to 21 still seems a ways off. But it's never too early for local musicians, indie business folks and fans to start thinking about the South by Southwest Music Festival, the music industry's largest annual gathering, and those are the dates when it will descend on Austin, TX, in 2010.

Meanwhile, festival promoters are holding a "SXSW Music Mixer party" on Tuesday, Nov. 10, at the Hideout, 1354 West Wabansia, from 6 to 8 p.m. According to the SXSW release:

"Staffers from the music conference, festival and sales departments will be on hand to discuss SXSW 10's new features. We'll be giving away a SXSW Music badge to a lucky contest winner, so bring your business card to drop in the fishbowl. Space and free beverages are limited, so RSVP now to MusicRSVP@sxsw.com!"

One of the most exciting bands to emerge in the new millennium, the Strokes have spent much of the time since their 2001 debut "Is This It" lowering the expectations set by that classically New York, Velvet Underground-influenced explosion of droning melodies, speed-fueled guitars and runaway subway train rhythms. "Room on Fire" (2003) and "First Impressions of Earth" (2006) were hardly dismal efforts, but neither expanded the basic formula the way the Velvets continually stretched the boundaries of their sound, and the wait for album number four has officially grown interminable as band members are torn by the constant distractions of various solo projects.

Now the group's voice, primary songwriter and laidback if undeniable leader has given us his solo bow, a concise, eight-track, 40-minute set that takes its name from an Oscar Wilde essay ("Phrases and Philosophies for Use of the Young") and which veers far and wide for the sort of stylistic diversity sorely missing in the Strokes. Unfortunately, the results only make a fan miss that band more.

Julian Casablancas' delightfully laconic vocals remain as appealing as ever, and he still flaunts an unerring ear for hooks so casual and seemingly effortless you forget how infectious they are. These talents shine on the opening "Out of the Blue" and "Left & Right in the Dark," as well as the dark but frenetic "River of Brake Lights." But these suffer from the sterile computer rhythms; why use a drum machine when you have one of the greatest human rhythm machines in rock with Strokes drummer Fabrizio Moretti?

Elsewhere, though memorable melodies still abound, Casablancas sounds painfully out of his element--a New Yorker dressed head to toe in black leather stranded on a sunny beach. Witness the misguided lo-fi dance track "11th Dimension," the awkward computer-orchestrated ballad "Glass" or the bizarre drunken blues/uptight freak-folk of "Ludlow St." One wishes that producers Jason Lader and Mike Mogis (Bright Eyes) would have provided a bit more guidance. But one wishes even more for the return of Casablancas' old prep school mates.

At a time when the horrors of reality easily trump the vivid imaginations of the most wicked fantasists, what is a band that regularly traffics in gore and blasphemy to do? Unsurprisingly, Slayer's 10th studio album is among the most overtly political of its long and punishing career, with songs such as the title track, "Hate Worldwide," "Public Display of Dismemberment," "Americon" and "Not of This God," and four different CD covers that, when combined, create a map of the world covered in blood and bones.

Of course, as the many devoted fans of this most extreme and influential of thrash bands will cheerfully testify, the core of its appeal has never been the lyrics that raise the ire of blue bloods; those just help set the mood for one of the most unrelentingly powerful sounds in rock. And amid rumors of its impending retirement from live performance (apparently false) and with hardly any of the new tunes written before the band entered the studio (a departure from its usual methodology), Slayer incorporated more of the hardcore punk influence than it's displayed since the mid '80s, attacking with an undiminished fury belying the fact that it's fast approaching the third decade of its career.

How can these gents defy the inevitable aging process that has sidelined so many other monstrous metal bands? Perhaps steel-throated bassist-vocalist Tom Araya is offering a clue when he howls about "drinking blood for vanity" in "Beauty Through Order," though he swears this pleasant ditty actually is about "the first known female serial killer," Hungarian Countess Elizabeth Báthory, who was said to be fond of bathing in the blood of virgins. In any event, like the rest of this disc, the song will send fans of "Twilight" and "The Vampire Diaries" running in horror, and the Slayer faithful wouldn't have it any other way.

A veteran of the Second City Touring Company, suburban Chicago native Denise La Grassa made her mark in that talented troupe with a bit called "Make-A-Song," writing and performing tunes on the spot based on any topic the audience shouted out. That loose, carefree and immediate vibe still permeates her third album, the recent D.I.Y. release "April Dreams," but don't let it fool you into thinking the music is tossed-off.

With an impressive but never showy range and a self-assured, conversational delivery that brings to mind a jazzier Aimee Mann, La Grassa offers uniquely personal and melodically powerful takes on romance in standout originals such as "Yesterday's Replay" and "Best Day," while local producer Matt Thompson (the Mighty Blue Kings, Frisbee) captures the spare but perfect accompaniment of a four-piece backing band.

Currently based in downstate Bloomington, La Grassa regularly gigs throughout the Midwest. Check her Website, www.deniselagrassa.com, for dates, and sample her music there or at www.myspace.com/deniselagrassa.

No word as yet about when tickets will come on sale.