Hillbilly, honkey tonk and rockabilly reign this Friday (March 7) at Nietzsche’s, with a send off show for the Skiffle Minstrels featuring special guests Dick Whiskey. Skiffle is a kind of country-folk hybrid with jazz and blues influences, which in this case means you’ll hear covers of classics by Johnny Cash, Bill Monroe, Buck Owens and Hank Williams, Sr., but also possibly some by the Beatles, Cole Porter and Kurt Weil. Minstrels are variety acts that include singing, dancing and comedy, so expect a lot of audience interaction and banter, too. This will kick off a long and much needed hiatus for the Skiffle Minstrels so that the members of this popular band can concentrate on other things, like studio work and traveling. They’ll be back in time for the summer festival season. The show starts at 10pm.

Atlanta, Georgia’s the Black Lips hit it big in the music biz last year after being voted the hardest working band at SXSW by the New York Times (performing 12 shows in three days), a television debut on Conan O’Brien and the release of their fifth album Good Bad Not Evil on VICE Records. Next they’re slated to hit the big screen, starring in a film named Let It Be as a fictitious band called the Renegades. No strangers to theatricality, the Black Lips are infamous for live shows that have included on-stage make out sessions and something involving a live chicken, as well as tried and true antics like nudity, urination and vomiting. Don’t get your hopes too high though—rumor has it they’ve turned it down a notch or two. The show is at Mohawk Place on Saturday (March 8) with Black Lips’ guests Quintron & Miss Pussycat and local support from Handsome Jack.

There’s a techno punk disco dance party scheduled at the Tralf on Sunday (March 9), with the Toronto electronic duo MSTRKRFT (thats’ “masterkraft,” not “mister.”). The collaboration of Jesse F. Keeler (Death From Above 1979) and Al-P (Girlsareshort) came about after the latter produced Death From Above 1979’s well-received second album You’re a Woman, I’m a Machine (2004). MSTRKRFT has perpetuated the buzz created by DFA 1979 with hit singles in the past two years like 2006’s “Easy Love” and the following “Work On You.” Signed to Last Gang records, they got The Looks out in 2006 and are preparing for an as yet untitled LP to be released next fall. It’s Daft Punk gone robot pop with classic four on the floor rhythms and some pretty funny lyrics, too. The show starts at 8pm.

Niagara Falls’ Hard Rock Cafe is springing into the season with a new schedule of live shows, the first of which brings former Tonic frontman Emerson Hart. His debut solo album Cigarettes and Gasoline (Manhattan Records) features the kind of songcraft that Tonic was known for with heartfelt melody and lyrics. Still, it’s a departure that reflects Hart’s relocation to Nashville from L.A. after the breakup of Tonic. There’s a certain sense of serenity on the album and a feeling that this is a songwriter who’s reached a comfortable place. Cigarettes and Gasoline was written in Nashville and New Orleans—songs like “Devastation Hands” reflect the locale—and was released in June of 2007. This is his first solo tour in support. The show is on Tuesday (March 11) at 8pm.