The Lawrence Arms are breathing new life into that most unfortunate of rock subsets, pop-punk. Having more to do with brash-yet-melodic forebears such as The Buzzcocks than with the watered down, spiky-haired, boy-band simpering of Blink-182 or the Riot Grrrl lite of Avril Lavigne, The Lawrence Arms know how to make true punk, in all its anti-glory, that also manages to capture the simple beauty of a finely crafted pop song. If you’re looking for a band that can thrash out three minutes of mayhem and still leave you with a tune to whistle all week, this is it. 8:30 p.m. Walter’s on Washington, 4215 Washington. For information, call 713-862-2513 or visit www.4215Washington.com. $10 to $12

Tue., Oct. 30, 8:30 p.m., 2007

This article appears in Oct 25-31, 2007.

Nicholas L. Hall is a husband and father who earns his keep playing a video game that controls the U.S. power grid. He also writes for the Houston Press about food, booze and music, in an attempt to keep...