Tuesday, September 14 was a guitar-centric evening at New York’s Terminal 5. For one, Slash was headlining the sold out show, and yes, some Guns’n’Roses tracks were performed! Hand selected openers and emerging act, TAB the Band, held their own against the blessed-by-fame dude, as they filled the 3,000-person capacity venue with raucous rock tracks, biting guitar riffs, and an air of humor. TAB jumped into high gear with “The House of El Ron” and barely took breaks as they pressed on with songs from their January release, “Zoo Noises:” “Bought and Sold,” “Run Away,” “She Said No (I Love You),” and “Lookin’ Pretty, Pretty,” which was featured on HBO’s “Entourage.” “Sticky Wickets “Little Water,” and “Heavy Idea,” the “oldies,” drew in the crowd, amping them up for the two-plus hour Slash extravaganza. www.TABtheBand.com – Meijin Bruttomesso

The Art of Shooting’s music presents the question: The lady or the tiger? The quartet’s melodramatic indie rock swings through a pendulum of extreme moods. Kelly Irene Corson’s voice can be deceptively sweet in one instance and then become rough in the next with the rest of the band following suit. This is most evident in “The Birdcage,” which volleys through this juxtaposition with ease. The band evokes comparisons to Rainer Maria and Bettie Serveert for their strong female frontwomen that can play both the lady and the tiger cards without batting a lash. It will be interesting to see this eminently electric band play an intimate (acoustic?) set at Rockwood Music Hall on 10.07. You can also catch them at CMJ on 10.19 at The Alphabet Lounge. – Nancy Chow

Family Records’ Pearl and the Beard are back with a new EP. This charming trio (featured in The Deli’s Best of NYC 2009 year End Poll) plays folk pop enriched by spotless male-female 3 part harmonies and cello parts. Now when we say "spotless" we mean that these guys can really sing and perfectly harmonize with each other, which is like a rare blessing – yeah because that’s how angels sing, right? You can witness this in this live video they recorded to promote the CD. You can also stream their album here. Don’t miss the CD release party at The Living Room on 09.24!

Interesting and unconventional bill Saturday night at Googie’s Lounge (above The Living Room). Performing will be multi-instrumentalist, Phil “Philthy” Lassiter (pictured), whose blend of soul, R&B, funk, and everything else has earned him the description “the lovechild of Andre 3000 and Aretha Franklin, with James Brown laying down the blessing.” Lassiter has been primarily recognized as one of the premier horn section arrangers in the music business — (he even scooped up 3 Grammy Awards from his work with a number of different multi-platinum artists like Timbaland, Regina Belle, and Kirk Franklin) — and it wasn’t until recently that Lassiter moved to New York from Nashville, TN and began playing his solo material, so his performance is highly anticipated. The sounds of Dominic Sinesio are equally as varied, drawing from classic 70’s rock, jazz, and soul, a la Steely Dan and Stevie Wonder, to overtones of 80’s-era Sting. Opening for the two New York-based artists will be talented Nashville singer/songwriter (and Deli Nashville Editor) Erin Manning, with her rather unique vaudeville-meets-rock style.