1) MASS (1002 S Main) travels back to the mid-’80s for TECH NOIR, a party inspired by the scene in The Terminator where the Arnold-borg tries to kill Sarah Connor in a then-futuristic dance club. If I had to guess, MASS was probably built when that movie was new, most likely for a similar purpose. Anyway, here’s the verbiage for the party; I’m reposting it because I like it: A futuristic dance party for our dystopian present. Come and drink the victory gin without worrying about Big Brother watching you as we cut loose with live performances from Starbass Laboratories and BLKrKRT, DJ’s Vallee and Dopestoevsky will be holding down the vibes all night. Cover for this 18+ event is $5. Here’s the scene from the movie:

2) Go to Lola’s (2736 6th St) on Friday to check out some bands you’ve probably never seen: Annie Void is a garage rock band; Desert Museum’s music sounds like their name would suggest, a stark, shoegazing take on ambient rock; and Fake, whose name is cool but makes finding out about them difficult. Sur Duda is also on this bill. Doors at 8, music at 9, cover is $5, show is all-ages. Here is a video for Dessert Museum:

3) Over in Dallas, the show to beat is the Duell/Junkie/Upsetting/Sealion bill at Ruins (2653 Commerce) on Friday night. Upsetting is about to hit the road, and they could use your support. Hugs and high fives are okay, but buying their merch and paying cover to pack this motherfucker out are preferred. Hugs and high-fives do not put gas in the van’s tank, after all. Here’s Upsetting’s video where they have the spaghetti fight:

4) Post-punk trio Phantomelo are putting out a new single on Saturday at their show at Lola’s. Free diffraction glasses are available to the first 50 people. They make lights give off rainbows, and I think that’s pretty cool. Surf punk band Kyoto Lo-Fi and synth-punk band Vylit are also on this show. Pretty solid bill! Event is all-ages, cover is $10. This is an old Phantomelo video that would definitely look great in diffraction glasses, so maybe get to the show in time to grab a pair:

5) In case you forgot, country star Cody Jinks has always been into heavy music – the bearded, baritone-voiced troubadour once fronted a metal band called Unchecked Aggression for example – and after years building a career along the highways and byways of the C&W-lovin’ world (Europeans love country, and he’s got a huge fanbase there, too), he’s found himself in a position to put together his very own festival. Called Loud and Heavy Fest, the all-day concert on Saturday at Panther Island Pavilion brings some of his favorite acts from both sides of his musical road – I’d never imagine I’d see Corrosion of Conformity on the same poster as Nikki Lane, but here we are. Those two are joined by the Sword, Whiskey Myers, Whitey Morgan, Sunny Sweeney, Colter Wall, Paul Cauthen, and Ward Davis, so basically the lineup hits that spot in the brain of Social Distortion fans who really enjoy Mike Ness’s Hank Williams covers. General admission tickets are $65, and minors 16 and younger must be accompanied by an adult. The event goes from 2pm to midnight. For full info, check out the site. Here’s a Ward Davis song called “Old Wore Out Cowboys,” though Troy Aikman isn’t mentioned at all! HAH! I KILL ME!