THE ART OF SHOOTING

>>> Friday, Nov.12

Do you ever get the sensation a band is manipulating you? Do you ever care? The Art of Shooting is an abundantly melodramatic band from Brooklyn; they want very badly for me to feel something when I listen to them. And I do. When those sweeping guitars come in at just the right moment, when lead singer Kelly Irene Corson's vocals layer one on top of the other in a cavalcade of emotion or when her voice meekly mutters "Isn't that your cue to go?" - all of this works on me. At the end of one of the Art of Shooting's giant-sounding songs, I feel wrung out and used, and I like it. To be manipulated - by a band so capable - can be great. - Rev. Adam McKinney

[Le Voyeur, with Technicolor Yawn, Eux Autres, Brotherhood of the Black Squirrel, 10 p.m., no cover, 404 Fourth Ave. E., Olympia, 360.943.5710]

DUSTIN WONG

>>> Saturday, Nov. 13

Infinite Love, the new record from guitarist Dustin Wong, may not be literally infinite, but it sure as hell is ambitiously epic. Clocking in at 1 hour, 20 minutes, Infinite Love is a double LP of visionary instrumental loopage in the Mark McGuire mode. A DVD with deeply psychedelic accompanying visuals comes part and parcel with copies of Infinite Love, and the vinyl version includes an entire EP of additional music called Indigo and Crystal. Taken all together, that makes for quite a hefty artistic statement. "I was just accumulating a lot of songs, and it got to a point where I had a lot, and I wanted to use all of it," says Wong, who first rose to popularity as part of fitful Baltimore act Ponytail, and with fellow guitarist Matt Papich in the far-out ambient group Ecstatic Sunshine. Saturday, Wong - a total shredder - will be at Northern in Olympia. - Jason Baxter

[Northern, with Ben Kamen, Chung Antique, 8 p.m., all-ages, 321 Fourth Ave., Olympia, northernolympia.org]

GOSSIP

>>> Saturday, Nov. 13

The early years of this millennium's musical landscape were confusing. As is the case with the beginnings of any decade, bands began to shake loose the musical bloat of the mainstream and reach back into the past for influences, all while introducing new inspiration. Born out of this confusion was dance-punk and bands like Gossip. Now 10 years old, Gossip's dance-punk has become the exception, not the rule, of indie rock, and their sound has responded by becoming even more refined and laser-direct than before. As always, lead singer Beth Ditto's voice is an irreplaceable commodity for Gossip. She could have been a star in most any decade, in most any genre. Her voice is smoky, soulful, completely in control. When she says dance, it's hard not to listen. - Rev. AM

[Capitol Theater, with The Need, 10 p.m., $10 OFS members, $15 non-members, 206 Fifth Ave. SE, Olympia, 360.754.6670]

GARDENS AND VILLA

>>> Sunday, Nov. 14

Gardens and Villa hail from sunny Santa Barbara, Calif. They have brightly-colored vinyl deckchairs for a MySpace background. Band photos feature them dressed hella casual in bright tones, hangin' on a porch. A year ago, these incriminating aesthetic details would have led uninspired critics to quickly label these guys "chillwave" and then move on, but the band is a prime example of how pervasive summery imagery can be a part of all kinds of music, from chillwave's hyper-compressed grooves to the kind of soaring SoCal pop that G&V specialize in. Their stock and trade are earworm simpatico melodies, falsetto vocals, funky bass warbles, electro-acoustic percussion, and - yes - downy adult-contempo flute flourishes.  Fans of everyone from Passion Pit to the Carpenters, take notice: Here Comes the Sun. - JB

[Le Voyeur, with The Soft Hills, 10 p.m., no cover, 404 Fourth Ave. E, Olympia, 360.943.5710]