The week begins and ends at Tsongas Arena (978-848-6900) in Lowell. At press time, tickets remained for the Pixies’ "final area appearance" tonight (December 2), with Mission of Burma. Both Pixies gigs are available in official-bootleg form on CD; head to www.disclive.com for pre-orders. At the other end of the week — not to mention the other end of the pop spectrum — Kiss FM’s annual "Jingle Ball" stuffs a TRL episode’s worth of cute hitmakers onto the Tsongas stage on December 9. The bad news is that you’ll have to sit through Kelly Clarkson, token emo kids Simple Plan, novelty-song brats Bowling for Soup, Ashlee Simpson, and (worse) her ex-boyfriend Ryan Cabrera. But we’ll do it, if only to get a glimpse of our two semi-guilty pleasures: teenage Foxboro native JoJo — an age-appropriate Christina Aguilera with bigger guitars — and Christina Milian, whose derrrty-pop nugget "Dip It Low" was just the tip of the iceberg.

On Saturday, Providence’s AS220 (401-831-9327) brings in New York’s Dynamite Club, a bass-and-drums duo (and sometime trio) fronted by a Japanese kid, clad only in tighty-whities, whose furious free-jazz-as-punk-rock throwdowns often devolve into on-stage kung fu exhibitions. Also note that the MIA performing at AS220 next Thursday, December 9, are a Providence hip-hop collective with no relation to the Sri Lankan M.I.A.

Dressed like a trio of ante-bellum undertakers, Th’ Legendary Shack Shakers goose up medicine-show Americana into a gothic roots-rock tent revival on their new Believe (Yep Roc); they’re at T.T. the Bear’s Place (617-492-BEAR) in Cambridge on Saturday, the Call (401-757-2255) in Providence on Tuesday, and the Iron Horse (413-584-0610) in Northampton on Wednesday. Although the nation’s foremost Mexican Elvis impersonator dropped off the tour, Los Straitjackets, the universe’s finest Mexican-wrestling-themed surf band, still have a pretty great road show in store with the World Famous Pontani Sisters — the Roaring-’20s-themed burlesque troupe — opening on Wednesday at the Paradise (617-562-8800) in Boston and next Thursday at the Call. Elsewhere, Ani Difranco plays the Palladium (800-477-6849) in Worcester on Friday and Lupo’s at the Strand (401-272-5876) in Providence on Saturday. Medeski Martin & Wood had to cancel their Avalon gig in Boston tonight (December 2) but they’re still on for Pearl Street (413-584-7810) in Northampton on Friday; and one of their number may be making a guest appearance later in the week (see "Sound Bites" for Thursday November 9).