She’s made you laugh, maybe cry, cringe, scratch your head…or possibly turned you off altogether. In a nutshell, these are just a few of the responses audiences have had to film-actress-turned-punk-rock-frontwoman Juliette Lewis and her band, the Licks. Best known for her gut-wrenching performances in Cape Fear and Natural Born Killers, Lewis has been trying some different things in the past years. Together since 2003, the Licks’ last release was 2006’s Four on the Floor, a reference to a rhythmic drum beat that doesn’t come close to describing the crazy energy that builds onstage and explodes out of Lewis, who has said that of her music, “You either feel it or you don’t.” Apparently their former drummer wasn’t feeling it, as he walked out right before recording and left the band with a void to fill. This may have been a great karmic move, as the masterful Dave Grohl (Nirvana, Foo Fighters) stepped in to take over drums in the studio. With a powerful team behind her, Lewis penned a hard-driving record of alternative pop, new wave and old school rock laced with the elements of desire and its consequences, with dreams, love and redemption—and let’s not forget betrayal—and the basic human need for it all. If she’s as captivating on stage as she has been on screen, prepare to be gravitationally pulled in even deeper by the force that is Juliette Lewis. Opening bands include Needle Up!, Amnesty Box and Cryptic Haze.

Saturday, July 21 at 7pm (doors). Buffalo Icon, 391 Ellicott Street (842-0167/thebuffaloicon.com).

$12 advance, $15 at the door (Tickets.com).