The Meatmen are not only a quintessential hardcore/punk band, the group’s frontman (and only constant) Tesco Vee is a legend alongside Ian MacKaye and Jello Biafra. Tesco founded the Meatmen in the early 1980s, aiming to offend just about everyone. In 1982 he founded the now legendary Touch And Go label with Necros bassist Corey Rusk, which put out the Meatmen’s first few EPs, followed by the label’s first full length, the notorious We’re The Meatmen...And You Suck—a staple in hardcore collections since its release. The band broke up in 1997, but Tesco has come out of retirement this year with an all new lineup, and judging from the posters that are advertising the tour, it promises to be as shocking and offensive as ever. The Meatmen perform at Mohawk Place on Friday (May 9) at 8pm. Opening are the Assmen, Plates, UV Rays and Able Danger.

Family FUNKtion and the Sitar Jams truly is a family affair, a group of brothers devoted to creating a new musical experience with a combination of psychedelic and classical influences. Formed a lifetime ago—or three lifetimes, to be correct— when the Padmanabha brothers were “rockn’ around the house,” Family FUNKtion has been steadily working on their signature sound on a level with which few bands can compare. Rock, funk, folk, and Indian styles come together, creating music that is groovy and modern but ethnically traditional all the same. Formerly of the group Omkara (which played much more traditional stuff), the brothers—Ravi, Naryan, and Aneal—wanted to take their act into the club scene. They started to play bars and other venues incorporating western instruments—on which they are all three well trained—without laying down the sitar. The trio plays at Soundlab on Saturday (May 10), at 9pm, with special guests the 12/8 Path Band.

One of Nietzsche’s favorite and most popular acts, the Joanna Connor Blues Band continues to draw fans each time they swing through town. Connor took the Chicago blues scene by storm when she arrived on it in the mid-eighties, playing around town with well known combos and wowing audiences with her incredible slide guitar skills before putting together her own band just a few years later. Now a veteran on Blind Pig Records and a fixture in the Windy City, she maintains a regular touring schedule, which luckily has her coming through Buffalo a few times a year. That’s not nearly often enough, but we’ll take it. The Joanna Connor Blues Band plays two shows at Nietzsche’s this Saturday (May 10), at 9 and 11:30pm. Ann Philippone will play an opening set at 8:30pm.

The Meatmen are not only a quintessential hardcore/punk band, the group’s frontman (and only constant) Tesco Vee is a legend alongside Ian MacKaye and Jello Biafra. Tesco founded the Meatmen in the early 1980s, aiming to offend just about everyone. In 1982 he founded the now legendary Touch And Go label with Necros bassist Corey Rusk, which put out the Meatmen’s first few EPs, followed by the label’s first full length, the notorious We’re The Meatmen...And You Suck—a staple in hardcore collections since its release. The band broke up in 1997, but Tesco has come out of retirement this year with an all new lineup, and judging from the posters that are advertising the tour, it promises to be as shocking and offensive as ever. The Meatmen perform at Mohawk Place on Friday (May 9) at 8pm. Opening are the Assmen, Plates, UV Rays and Able Danger.

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