LIVE MUSIC IN THE SOUTH SOUND TONIGHT >>>

POP ROCK: L. Alex Guy (as Led to Sea) is one of those artists, like St. Vincent or Andrew Bird, who approaches pop music with the eye of a classical composer, breaking down and rebuilding pop tropes into something resembling fine art. Guy is an accomplished violist, having lent her talents to the likes of Laura Veirs, Mirah, Xiu Xiu, and Seattle's art-punk collective, Degenerate Art Ensemble. Her music can be a challenging, sometimes frustrating, but it always sweeps up through pop and rock on its way back to chamber music, and her voice is always expressive and engaging. It's a constant balancing act, combining classical and pop. But in Led to Sea's case, Guy is able to have her cake and eat it too. With Mirah, Kane Mathis, Thursday, April 22, 8 p.m., all ages, $7, Northern, 321 Fourth Ave., Olympia - Rev. Adam McKinney

HIP-HOP: Tonight, Vancouver, B.C. native turned Portlander Josh Martinez will make a return visit to "Tha O" as he headlines an awesome lineup of hip-hoppers at Olympia's Royal Lounge. The show, put on by Homeland Security, features appearances by The Junkyard Gang and house-party rockers extraordinaire Night Fox - followed by The Elements with Cornerstate, and DJ Deadbeat holdin' down the tables and hosting duties. Junkyard Gang dropped the official re-release of their award-winning album Where In The World Is Taylor Jones? on April 20 - and should certainly be in rare fashion tonight with their West Olympia rock star antics. Thursday, April 22, 8 p.m., The Royal Lounge, 311 Capitol way N., Olympia - Jose S. Gutierrez Jr.

LINK: More live music in the South Sound