Stars Fitzgerald's, October 12

Even if they hadn't released an album called North, which they did this year on Dave Matthews-founded ATO Records, Stars would be difficult to mistake for as anything but Canadian. There's something both distant and friendly in their appealing blend of indie-rock and synth-pop, fronted by Amy Millan and Torquil Campbell as an ongoing dialogue about heart and home. Dusted with strings and disco beats, North walks a fine line between intimacy and pop ambition. Between this and Metric Monday night, a good week for local fans of the extended Broken Social Scene family. CHRIS GRAY

Eyes Lips Eyes Walters, October 12

Walters has a brand-new temporary Web site up at www.waltersdowntown.com, so this seems like a good time to plug a show over there. Here's a good one: Utah-originated band Eyes Lips Eyes, who claim to "put the Provo in provocative" and have drawn comparisons to the B-52's, Strokes and the Rapture, stop by tonight with a pair of worthy local indie-rockers in the Wheel Workers and Winter Wallace. Eyes Lips Eyes also plays a 5:30 p.m. in-store at Heights Vinyl, 3122 White Oak. CHRIS GRAY

B L A C K I E NotsuoH, October 12

Local B L A C K I E fans take note: Friday is the confrontational yet introspective noise-rapper's last scheduled Houston-area show of the calendar year, before he heads off on a West Coast tour. His good friends Muhammid Ali and ???777??? help him out. CHRIS GRAY