Bo and the Locomotive are standing beneath a neighbor's blossoming tree, playing a new song behind their Dogtown home.

Before Paste Magazine told the nation so, it wasn't presumptuous to say Bo and the Locomotive is one of the best reasons to get excited about St. Louis music.

St. Louis music fans of all stripes gathered at the City Museum for Midwest Mayhem on Thursday evening to celebrate with the city's independent radio station, 88.1 KDHX.

It's been a big spring for Brothers Lazaroff. They stormed South by Southwest, armed with genre-bending remixes of Austin pal Elizabeth McQueen's retro jazz before returning to St. Louis to release their new album, "Science Won."

The lone-man outfit Thankful Tree took the Off Broadway stage after 9 p.m. with looping swells of guitar and brash puffs of harmonica to build the sonic backbones.

The opening act went on an hour later than announced; presumably waiting for the Cinco de Mayo crowd to bring their fiesta to the Old Rock House with them. Once the party got started though, there was funk for all.

"Get my [guitar] strings out of the toliet!" Welcome to a recording session for the new Pretty Little Empire record at Native Sound studios.

Taking place in an empty 2720, a club which normally hosts a slew of reggae and hip hop shows, Union Tree Review's "Excavate" became one of Show Me Show's most thrilling performances.

The Mad Titans did their share to justify opening for the extravagant Mucca Pazza at the Firebird on Friday night, but it wasn't easy.

Bo and the Locomotive started the night off at the Gramophone with a swinging, mostly instrumental tune. From song one, I realized that the tall, guitar-wielding Bo Bulawsky and his band aren't into rushing a melody.

Brothers Lazaroff
"Science Won"
Self-released

Brothers Lazaroff are ever-evolving. From their Austin-inspired alt-country beginnings, they've added new layers of other forms of American music with each album.

Palace plays like an indie band on their way to Broadway. With post-angst four-part harmonies and themed live shows, the St. Louis locals energetically perform pop somewhere in between Queen and Fun.

It could have happened in any dimly-lit bar or club over the past 33 years. Mission of Burma, the iconic post-punk power trio from Boston, could have played any number of venues that have come and gone in St. Louis, but they didn't. In that sense, their show at the Firebird last night was indeed historic.

Kentucky Knife Fight offers up a sound full of razor-edged riffs, incendiary rhythms and enough darkly hopeless love stories to entertain even the most heartless bastards among us. Oh, and don't forget the harmonica.

For a while now, Cherokee has had a strong reputation for supporting the visual arts with its galleries, outdoor festivals and street art. Yet the proliferation of music venues and recording studios, including the five month-old Texas Room, is making Cherokee an increasingly good place to keep your ear to the ground for new homegrown sounds.

While some exceptions could be made for background, I'm willing to bet that for a lot of people, being a fan of Tom Waits from a young age was a lonely feeling.

Friday, March 16

12:30 p.m. Home Slice Pizza. This New York-style pizza joint in south Austin hosts a fantastic day party each year, and this year's lineup is quality.

Noon. Twangfest day party at Jovita's in Austin. This is the first of two Twangfest SXSW day parties presented by 88.1 KDHX, running from noon until 6 p.m.

It was a boisterous birthday bash for the Blind Eyes at Off Broadway on Saturday night, who were celebrating the third anniversary of their debut release, "Modernity."

You've seen it. I've seen it. We've all seen it. The band that employs an entire person just to play maracas. Last night at Blueberry Hill's Duck Room the Jump Starts were having none of that.

When it comes to heartbreaking, shot-shooting, two-stepping, smooth-shuffling country music, Trigger 5's aim is true.

In a quaint Creve Coeur home decked out for the holidays, with the smell of fresh baked Christmas cookies and not one but two Christmas trees, David Arthur, of SimplyEsoteric treated us to songs and stories that were as personal as the backdrop, with a timbre as warm and welcoming as the cookies.

With an indie pop edge and literate subtlety, St. Louis band Vintage Years makes dreamy songs soaked in reverb and gospel soul.

Pretty Little Empire is a force in the St. Louis music scene. The affable quartet's sophomore release "Reasons and Rooms" was one of the best locally-produced records of 2010, and their inspired, rock-solid live sets have only been getting better over time, with no bound in sight.

"You shouldn't do a job just to do it; you should do a job because you give a damn," says Jason Robinson, host of the Mixtape on 88.1 KDHX.