Fri.-Sat. Nov. 11-12 -- Pianist Larry Karush has been ripping up the world of music and pasting it back together in new & fascinating forms like papier maché with his star quintet featuring flutist Danilo Lozano, bassist Chris Colangelo and telepathic percussionists Randy Gloss & Brad Dutz. Big reco. At the Blue Whale on the third floor of Weller Court Plaza, south of East First Street between South Los Angeles Street and South San Pedro Street, Little Tokyo 90012; 9pm-midnight; $10; validated parking underneath off Second Street at the sign of the P in a circle; (213) 620-0908; www.bluewhalemusic.com.
Sat. Nov. 12 -- Carl Stone, great lava head of electronic music, returns to his SoCal archaeological dig to excavate his '70s music and build new malleable monuments along with harpsichordist Gloria Cheng and pipa player Min Xiao Fen. At the Getty Center in the Sepulveda Pass; 7:30pm; $15, students & seniors $10; reserve seats at www.getty.edu or (310) 440-7300.
Sat. Nov. 12 -- Matt Pike is rock, infusing High on Fire with rock essence & presence to go with the screaming rock horror. With Indian (sludge & chaos), It's Casual (raging like Black Flag) and more. At the Viper Room, 8852 Sunset Blvd., West Hollywood 90069; HoF probably around midnight; $20; (310) 652-7869; www.viperroom.com.
Sat. Nov. 12 -- Do you enjoy theatrical heavy clumsy offensive metal? Then you probably already know about GWAR. With growling bashers Warbeast and others. At House of Blues, 8430 Sunset Blvd., West Hollywood 90069; headliner around midnight; $28; (323) 848-5800; www.livenation.com.
Sun. Nov. 13 -- Kingsizemaybe, but only if you're asking the wrong questions, otherwise the answer to hanging with partyin' country rockster Gary Eaton and the gang is "definitely." At the Redwood Bar & Grill, 316 W. Second St., downtown; (310) 245-0273; www.theredwoodbar.com.
Mon. Nov. 14 -- If you stand on your head for 10 minutes while listening to Charlie Parker, it might end up sounding like Empty Cage Quartet, i.e. very little like bebop but refreshingly disoriented. Tonight you oughta be able to leave with at least three cheap CDs: a selection from the fine catalog of Empty Cage (windman Jason Mears, trumpeter Kris Tiner, drummer Paul Kikuchi and bassist Ivan Johnson), as well as the new "Bridges" by Tin Bag (Tiner's lonely melodic desertscape with guitarist Mike Baggetta) and "Portable Sanctuary Vol. 1" (Kikuchi's wide-open textural meditation with trombonist Stuart Dempster, guitarist Bill Horist and percussionists Jesse Olsen bay & Alex Vittum). But your bones will remember the music with or without the souvenirs. At the Blue Whale on the third floor of Weller Court Plaza, south of East First Street between South Los Angeles Street and South San Pedro Street, Little Tokyo 90012; 9pm-midnight; $10; validated parking underneath off Second Street at the sign of the P in a circle; (213) 620-0908; www.bluewhalemusic.com.
Tues. Nov. 15 -- Ex-Megadeth guitarist Chris Poland returns with Ohm (featuring bassist Robert Pagliari and drummer David Eagle) after only a month. Well, good! Git yer fusiony funk on. At the Baked Potato, 3787 Cahuenga Blvd. West, Studio City 91604; 9:30 & 11:30pm; $15; (818) 980-1615; www.thebakedpotato.com.
Wed. Nov. 16 -- Can't miss with tonight's combination of dub & reggae from the past, present and future. Upstairs in the Echo, Dub Trio (pictured) can conjure onstage the kind of addled riddim glory that you thought could only be produced by a mixologist with 24 hands; their new "IV" goes in a dark metallic direction, scorching your gut while pumping your butt. Downstairs in the EchoPlex, Nyabinghi legends Ras Michael & the Sons of Negus dig deep into beats you haven't heard since the womb (or previous lives); Brazilian melodica master Dubiterian opens, and the mind-expanding Dub Club selectors rock the house all night. Check in to see if the two clubs will be connected, as they ought to be, but I can't confirm. If not, Dub Trio will be a separate $12 cover. At the EchoPlex, 1154 Glendale Blvd., Echo Park 90026; ; $15 ($10 before 10pm); www.attheecho.com; (213) 413-8200.
Wed. Nov. 16 -- The fluidly brilliant vibes-piano duo of Nick Mancini & Vardan Ovsepian is joined part-time by cellist Artyom Manukyan. At Royal-T, 8910 Washington Blvd., Culver City 90232; 8pm; $10, $5 students; (310) 559-6300; www.royal-t.org.
Read Don Heckman’s jazz picks here and MoshKing's metal listings here. Read John Payne's plutonic Bluefat.com here.