No, Elvis isn’t playing the Apollo, but I can’t resist a good opportunity to post that photo. It’s so iconic. However, Elvis Costello is playing in NYC this week. He’s one of a few interesting artists playing shows in the NYC metro area….which is what I post over on Live Music Blog every week. Check it out:

LMB NYC: This Week’s Concert Calendar – Oct 3 – 9

Read on for the highlights as I see ’em…

Early in the week, we’ve got Explosions in the Sky with the Antlers at the beautiful Wellmont Theatre (in Montclair, NJ). Elvis Costello — who I mentioned last week — continues to bring his “Spectacular Spinning Songbook” to the area, with a two-night stand at the aforementioned Wellmont. And Portishead – fresh off their weekend duties at the ATP festival this week – is also sticking around town, with two nights at the Hammerstein.

For some reason, the early part of the week seems to have a lot of the big highlights, with an especially bumpin’ Wednesday night that includes the following: Black Star, Mos Def & Talib Kweli @ Irving Plaza, Deadmau5 @ Roseland Ballroom, James Blake and Chairlift @ Webster Hall, Ted Leo at Knitting Factory, and the aforementioned Portishead show @ the Hammerstein. But personally I think I’m most interested in Wednesday night’s lineup at Le Poisson Rouge where Toubab Krewe’s sharing a bill with Zongo Junction and Superhuman Happiness. Long-time readers already know how much I love me some Toubab, but I’m also digging what I’m hearing from Zongo Junction and Superhuman Happiness. Another interesting Wednesday-night option is Fang Island at Glasslands, which is perfect if you’re more in the mood for some triumphant dual-guitar pyrotechnics.

Thursday, I’ve got my money on Ducktails at Glasslands, which I’d recommend for those who dig the droney, woozy psych-rock of bands like Real Estate, The War on Drugs, and Woods. But for something even more out there, I’d jump to Saturday night, when Anamanaguchi plays the Museum Of The Moving Images in Astoria. These dudes do an interesting form of 8-bit punk rock (no, seriously, they hacked some old NES gaming systems to make some rockin’ live video game music…surprisingly good times).