Live Music in San Antonio This Week: Powdered Wig Machine, Red Clay Strays, Dirty River

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Ashley Bueno

Surrealist band Powdered Wig Machine fuses sketch comedy, drag and punk rock.

This week, San Antonio music fans can play it sonically safe or venture well off the beaten path.

On the safe side — and that's not a slight, only to say these bands play in familiar musical territory — the Dirty River Jazz Band will perform toe-tapping Dixieland and the Red Clay Strays will mix country, rock and soul. Meanwhile, the zany art punks Powdered Wig Machine and "Western space grunge" purveyors Dexter and the Moon Rocks promise something considerably more ... um ... out there.

Let's take a look.

Wednesday, June 26

Dirty River Jazz Band

Dirty River Jazz Band plays traditional jazz in the spirit of San Antonio legend Jim Cullum Jr. The group specializes in infectious Dixieland with nary a hint of the dissonant phrasing and freeform exploration that turns some listeners away from jazz. With the SA Botanical Garden — one of SA’s most cherished nature areas — as the setting, attendees will take a Prohibition-style drink class. Seems perfect for a musical date night. $48, 6:30 p.m., San Antonio Botanical Center, 555 Funston Place, (210) 536-1400, sabot.org. — Bill Baird

Thursday, June 27

Powdered Wig Machine, Haunt Me

San Antonio-based artrock band Powdered Wig Machine is playing its last concert of the summer as part of Texas Public Radio's Summer Night City Series. This is your last chance to catch Patricia (guitarist-singer Brandon Pittman's female alter ego with a wig full of roaches) and her band before they take time off to write and record new music. PWM will be joined by SA post-punk and darkwave act Haunt Me. Free, 5 p.m., Texas Public Radio Headquarters, 321. W. Commerce St., tpr.org. — Stephanie Koithan

Sound Cream Sunset Sessions: Boyblk

Civic Park at Hemisfair is a wondrous reimagining of our shared downtown space, with springs to splash in, ample seating, shady trees and an expansive lawn. To help activate this newly opened space, a series of evening concerts has emerged, promoted by mobile DJ unit Sound Cream, which has been throwing dance party events for a few years now. For this installment, house music DJ Boyblk will rev up the crowds with a creative electronic approach. Dallas Magazine even recognized Boyblk as its 2023 DJ of the Year. Free, 7:30 p.m., Civic Park at Hemisfair, 210 S. Alamo St., hemisfair.org. — BB

Friday, June 28

Red Clay Strays

The Red Clay Strays burst onto the scene in the last few years with a country-rock sound delivered with a heaping helping of soul. The Mobile, Alabama quintet got its start as a cover band trio in 2016 and started performing its own songs after a lineup addition. The band’s momentum was broken by the pandemic, but the single “Wondering Why” went viral on TikTok last year. $34.50-$75.00, 8 p.m., Boeing Center at Tech Port, 3331 General Hudnell Drive, (210) 600-3699, boeingcentertechport.com. — Danny Cervantes

Saturday, June 29

Dexter and the Moon Rocks

Fans of Abilene’s Dexter and the Moon Rocks have dubbed the group’s sound “Western space grunge,” which is certainly appropriate. A fusion of alt-rock and red-dirt country, the band draws from diverse influences including Turnpike Troubadours and Arctic Monkeys. Dexter and the Moon Rocks also boast an aesthetic that leans into pulpy ’50s-era sci-fi. The group’s latest single, “Sad In Carolina,” is an upbeat ditty that will get toes tapping. $25-$85, 8 p.m., Stable Hall, 307 Pearl Parkway, stablehall.com. — DC