Fri. Sept. 14 -- No Wave sax-vocal legend James Chance & the Contortions tore it sideways last night; you'll be jazzed to absorb Chance's deadbeat humor and stepworthy twitch as he funks up "Contort Yourself" and trashes "That's Life." Read my 2003 L.A. Weekly story here and my review of Thursday 'fore long. Don't expect the Contortions much before 11; you can skip the opening band with impunity. At Zebulon, 2478 Fletcher Drive, Frogtown 90039; doors 8:30pm; $20; 21+; www.zebulon.la.
Fri. Sept. 14 -- Dig up your 1990 hair-metal playlist to prep for Jack Russell's Great White ("Rock Me"), plus BulletBoys ("Smooth Up in Ya") and Enuff Z'nuff ("Fly High Michelle"); Eddie Trunk hosts. At the Wiltern, 3790 Wilshire Blvd., LA 90010; doors 7pm; $5-$65; (213) 388-1400; www.livenation.com.
Fri. Sept. 14 -- Wild Don Lewis (analog synth, feedback, voice) and his one-man Small Drone Orchestra drift downstream. With Le Reve Lucide, Ritual Chair. At Coaxial Arts Foundation, 1815 S. Main St., downtown 90015; 8pm; $7; www.coaxialarts.com.
Sat. Sept. 15 -- Testament metal guitar master Alex Skolnick equally enjoys his fusionistic endeavors, here promoting his new "Conundrum" trio record with bassist Nathan Peck, drummer Matt Zebrowski and special guest bassist Stu Hamm. At the Baked Potato, 3787 Cahuenga Blvd. West, Studio City 91604; 9:30 & 11:30pm; $25; (818) 980-1615; www.thebakedpotato.com.
Sat. Sept. 15 -- All-encompassing pianist Alfredo Rodriguez steers a trio with basssist Munir Hossn and drummer Michael Olivera. At Moss Theater in the Herb Alpert Educational Village of New Roads School, 3131 Olympic Blvd., Santa Monica 90404; 8pm; $35 ($25 students); www.jazzbakery.org.
Sat. Sept. 15 -- Theo Saunders & Chuck Manning offer an individual, flexible keys-sax take on traditional jazz, with drummer Mark Stevens and bassist Harvey Newmark. At Desert Rose Restaurant, 1700 N. Hillhurst Ave., Los Feliz 90027; 7-11pm; free, reservations advisable; (323) 666-1166; desertroserestaurant.com.
Sat. Sept. 15 -- Trumpeter Elliott Caine and his ensemble handpick the non-obvious standards and sort in a few well-tuned originals. At Colombo's Restaurant, 1833 Colorado Blvd., Eagle Rock 90041; 9:30pm-midnight; no cover; (323) 254-9138.
Mon. Sept. 17 -- Brits, Germans, Canadians and who-all populate guitarist Tim Hodgkinson's Konk Pack and oudman Gordon Grdina's sextet featuring windman Chris Speed and violist Eyvind Kang. Progress is still an important product. At Zebulon, 2478 Fletcher Drive, Frogtown 90039; doors 8pm; $20; 21+; www.zebulon.la.
Tues. Sept. 18 -- Watta jammin guitar-bass-drums trio: G.E. Stinson, Steuart Liebig & Jim Black, mixing electronix and inspiration the way only veterans can. A fortuitous connection, too. Black (Dave Douglas, Uri Caine), one of today's most comprehensive and sensitive drummers, told Stinson awhile back that he had seen him long ago in the fusionistic Chicago band Shadowfax, opening for Dizzy Gillespie at no less a venue than Disneyland. Says Stinson, "jim said when we ended our set with a couple of Don Cherry songs, it blew his mind, and it was kind of a crucial moment in his musical life. i was stunned to hear that." Recently, after listening to the BB&C album Black did with Tim Berne and Nels Cline, Stinson Facebooked Black with his compliments. It turned out that Black was going to be in L.A. to record with Mark Dresser, and finding an opening at the Whale, they decided to do a gig together. So here we are. Take advantage. Read Matt Piper's deep interview with Mr. Stinson here. At the Blue Whale on the third level of Weller Court Plaza, south of East First Street between South Los Angeles Street and South San Pedro Street, Little Tokyo 90012; 9pm-midnight; $15; 21+; parking $9 underneath off Second Street at the sign of the P in a circle; (213) 620-0908; www.bluewhalemusic.com.
Wed. Sept. 19 -- We're glad that the C in flutist Nicole Mitchell's AACM resume has meant California for several years now; she has a superb band (Joshua White on piano, Eric Revis on bass, Guillermo Brown on drums, Jeff Parker on guitar) and a repertoire of challenging yet listenable original compositions, for which she's won a raft of prizes. At Mr. Musichead Gallery, 7420 Sunset Blvd., Hollywood 90046; 7:30pm; $20-$25; www.justjazz.tv.
Wed. Sept. 19 -- Kneebody purveys the open-spirited grooves and trips; the clean soulfulness of Bowie saxist Donny McCaslin's group makes for a perfect complement. At the Regent Theater, 448 S. Main St., downtown 90013; 8:30pm; $25-$38; 18+; www.ticketfly.com.
Wed. Sept. 19 -- Outblowing Bay Area saxist Phillip Greenlief forms an intriguing trio with ethereal pianist Cathleen Pineda and drummer Tina Raymond, all impressive talents. Highly recommended. At the Santa Monica Public Library, 601 Santa Monica Blvd., Santa Monica 90401; 7:30pm; free; smpl.org; (310) 458-8600.
LATE ADD: Thurs. Sept. 20 -- Multidimensional woodwind player Vince Meghrouni fields a nifty trio with bassist Michael Alvidrez and drummer Bert Karl. At Sunspace, 9683 Sunland Blvd., Shadow Hills 91040; 8-10pm; $10.
Thurs. Sept. 20 -- Windman Glen Garrett, guitarist Grant Geissman and bassist Chris Conner combine for swingin times; great to have a trio of such experienced notables up in the hills. At Sunspace, 9683 Sunland Blvd., Shadow Hills 91040; 8-10pm; $10.
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Sept. 30-Oct. 14 -- Angel City Jazz Fest is closing in, so let the freshest sounds in America captivate ya. This year's performers include Wadada Leo Smith, ROVA Orkestrova, Azar Lawrence, Xenia Rubinos, Craig Taborn and plenty more; check the full lineup here.