The mysterious Montreal quartet Les Georges Leningrad sound like they crawled out of a wormhole in time. Chunks of Deux Hot Dogs Moutarde Chou's post-punk stew might remind you of the Slits or Kleenex, but it's so anachronistic that it might be a nightmare of our future, a polyglot zombie set loose on North America. The bent strings, keyboard bleats, and retarded beats are a familiar fare that is rendered totally alien.

Simple bass rumblings and binary drums sound like the dub experiments of Flying Lizards crossed with the spacier moments of now-wave supergroup Lake of Dracula. Though it's hard to make out words, voiced by an aural doppelgänger of Nina Hagen, one gets the thrust of cartoon violence and Esperanto lessons by way of Philip K. Dick. "Lollipoplady" 's plunky bass and junkyard percussion free up the feral mutterings of the female singer. The co-ed vocals on "Georges V" sound truly demented and reluctantly dancey. "Didi Xtra" sounds like Glass Candy and the Shattered Theatre when they were good, but way more fucked-up. Keyboards twitch and stutter with bipolar energy, and the filler songs are way weirder than the rock songs – saxophone skree, warbling records, and minimal keyboard mood-killers add lumps to the groove. The improbably mellow and folksy "Unimpermeable" even busts out an accordion. LGL's theatrics hint at a damaged vision of their own skewed universe, the kind that must be seen to be believed. Les Georges Leningrad make their West Coast debut Thurs/26, former Clit Stop, S.F. (415) 861-2883. (George Chen)

Aceyalone
Love and Hate (Project Blowed)

Aceyalone is the rapper most likely to be consistent to a fault. Every time he opens his mouth, he's writing love letters to language, whispering secrets to syllables – lyricism isn't just his job, it's also his all-consuming passion. Yet for all his mastery over the written, Acey isn't quite as adroit with the musical – a problem that recurs to the point of being cliché. Alas, the chain isn't broken on his latest solo effort, Love and Hate. Acey finds himself once again dogged by whimpering tracks that can't match his verbal virtuosity. Paint-by-numbers production leaves "Lost Your Mind" wandering, while the glitchy, electro-buzz of "In Stereo" and "Take Off" fizzle, not sizzle. Stronger efforts, like the plush ripeness of "The Saga Continues" or the dark smog of "City of Shit," provide some balance, but it's mostly Acey's talents that turn the tide. His brilliance shines with the incisive political bite of "Ms. Amerikkka" and the playful egotism of "Junkman" and "Ace Cowboy." Bay Area cameos abound, including crooner Goapele and bruiser Casual, but it's still Acey's show wherever he goes. The veteran lyricist might be lacking the right sonic support, but at least his wit and word are as keen as ever. Aceyalone plays July 3, Fillmore, S.F. (415) 421-TIXS. (Oliver Wang)

Kaito
Band Red (spinART)

Four people's for-the-people party music, Kaito's You've Seen Us ... You Must Have Seen Us ... (Devil in the Woods) transcended its potentially tired indie trappings to become one of 2001's most exhilarating dance rock revelations. Now, with their second LP, the Norwich, England, combo keep up their own manic, panicked pace. Splitting the diff between Clinic's overcaffeinated frenzy and a Ritalin-deprived Elastica, Band Red makes good on its predecessor's frayed-nerve verve and racing, arrhythmic chaos with more of the same bugged-out beats. But while the art-school cool of "Try Me Out" and "Should I" makes for some of Kaito's best moments, the album is so similar to Seen Us that it's only as enjoyable as your tolerance for predictability allows.

Likewise, the quartet's ace in the hole remains singer-guitarist Nikki Colk. Shouting and slur-singing like she's got a mouthful of marbles, the LiLiPUT disciple sounds like she's drowning in her own giddy obsession with non sequiturs and garbled gobbledygook ("Shake that re-pronounce / Manual contrast!," "Arhh ohh on ree!"). Colk's anxiety-ridden warbling hasn't changed much in the past two years, but it's still compellingly off-kilter enough to warrant repeated listens. Which is why, despite its déjà vu-inducing songs, Band Red ultimately succeeds as a worthy sequel to See Us. Still, it's hard not to wonder what would've resulted had Kaito taken their party a little further out of bounds this time. Kaito play July 2, Bottom of the Hill, S.F. (415) 621-4455. (Jimmy Draper)

Thermals
More Parts Per Million (Sub Pop)

Northwestern indie rock supergroup the Thermals' debut album, More Parts Per Million, doesn't quite fall into the rubric of lo-fi – and who wants to use their registered trademarked "no-fi" – so can we agree to call it "now-fi"? The term slips on and hugs the curves of your zeitgeist as snugly as a sticky, hot article of thermal thunderwear. That's because this recording sounds as now as striped shirts, bondage pants, and newspaper boys' caps. About as now as the '80s. Which isn't too current, sure, but can you blame a band that was born only yesterday – spring 2002, to be precise.