[ACOUSTIC INDIE POP] + SAT, DEC. 20

Olympia's Wauby usually play plugged-in, sunshiny indie pop, but this Saturday they'll be going acoustic. Still, as much as the vibrancy of their synths will be absent from their Le Voyeur set, there isn't much that can dampen the enthusiasm that Wauby bring to their party. If anything, the acoustic strumming could help to dirty up their sound a little, which would be a welcome change. Wauby bring a contagious burst of optimism to their music, which is almost naively, goofily upbeat. In the Northwest in particular, and in indie music in general, it can be easy to slip into the cozy, closed-off confines of cynicism, so it can be a relief to encounter a band as unabashedly positive as Wauby. This all-ages show will also feature a cavalcade of bands that bring the fuzz. {REV. ADAM MCKINNEY}

WAUBY, w/ the Straws, Captain Algebra, Whitewoodfunk, Fuzz Bomb, the Ground, 4 p.m., Le Voyeur, 404 E. Fourth Ave., Olympia, $5, 360.943.5710

[HAIR METAL] + SAT, DEC. 20

Snobbery aside, if I wail, "Don't need nothin'! ... but a -" chances are you know the next two words of that lyric. And if I ask what the phrase "every night has its dawn" implies, almost anyone can extend that musical simile to cowboys and roses. Over a quarter-century after the release of Poison's second album, the one with the puerile name Open Up and Say...Ahh!, its singles are still radio fixtures. Since his first solo album in 1998, Poison lead singer Bret Michaels (born Bret Michael Sychak) has become something of a media luminary. His VH1 show Rock of Love led to a win on Celebrity Apprentice 3, earning $640,000 for diabetes research, and inclusion in Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock. More recently, he's toured with Def Leppard, recorded with Miley Cyrus, hosted a Travel Channel series and powered through the life-threatening double whammy of a brain hemorrhage and unrelated TIA. Man, ya gotta respect a survivor. "But I guess that's why they say. ..." Oh, you know the rest. {CHRISTIAN CARVAJAL}

BRET MICHAELS, 8 p.m. Lucky Eagle Casino, 12888 188th Ave. SW, Rochester, $35-$70, 800.720.1788

[ART ROCK] + SAT, DEC. 20

The Fabulous Downey Brothers are aggressively, endearingly strange. Half performance art, half spiky art-rock, the Olympia band always bring a surging current of off-putting energy to their live performances. Calling on the daring New Wave of late ‘70s/early ‘80s groups like Talking Heads, Devo, and Adam Ant, the Fabulous Downey Brothers clothe their jumpy music in bizarre costumes and jerky dance moves. Usually, the band members wear what looks like cut-out pieces of shag carpeting molded into geometric shapes around their heads, making them resemble a sort of warped children's band. This show will also feature a rare performance from the video game-obsessed, pop-punk-worshipping Cutwinkles, who always bring a goofy vibe to their live set. Also, there will be a band called Jurassic Twat, and how great is that? {REV. AM}

THE FABULOUS DOWNEY BROTHERS, w/ the Cutwinkles, Jurassic Twat, 9 p.m., Half Pint Pizza Pub, 2710 Sixth Ave., Tacoma, no cover, 253.272.2531