Roadtrips

edited by Matt Ashare

North Carolina's jitterbugging Squirrel Nut Zippers are finally playing big enough venues for some serious dancing. So try to make room up front for anyone who knows how to do the Charleston, or just improvise your own version of swing-era rug-cutting when the band hit the Roxy (call 331-2211) in Boston on April 4 and Lupo's Heartbreak Hotel (401-272-5876) in Providence the following night -- a benefit for the Amos House. Cigar Store Indians open both shows.

The guys in Max Creek have been doing their own version of Grateful Dead jamming for a quarter of a century now. So it's safe to assume that they'll know what they're doing when their 25th-anniversary tour brings them to the Living Room (401-521-5200) in Providence on April 4 and the Somerville Theatre (call 331-2211) in Somerville on April 5. There's no opening band for either show because that would cut into Creek's jamming time. And if you like what you hear at their shows, you might want to check out the like-minded, if somewhat more pop-oriented, Samples when they swing through the area next week. They'll play April 12 at Avalon (617-262-2424) in Boston and April 17 at Lupo's Heartbreak Hotel.

Two fine singer-songwriters with tortured souls are also on their way to the Northeast. Hailing from Portland, Oregon, Elliot Smith has a punk spirit, pop instincts, and a knack for writing some of the best rough-hewn indie-folk tunes around. He's supporting a new disc on Kill Rock Stars with a tour that lands at the Middle East (864-EAST) in Cambridge on April 10 and at the Elvis Room (603-436-9189) in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, the following night. Former John Mellencamp violinist Lisa Germano also specializes in baring her soul in song, and she'll prove it April 11 at the Paradise (617-562-8800) in Boston and April 12 at Pearl Street (413-584-7771) in Northampton.