Listen to the sweet, earnest indie rock of Tyler, TX band Eisley live Thursday, May 24, at South Texas College with The Myriad, and Vedera. I just discovered Eisley recently, but I’ve really fallen for the band’s delicate approach. They remind me a bit of Great Northern or The Sundays.

Eisley has a whopping 15 tracks available for streaming at their MySpace page, so give ‘em a listen and check out the video below for “Telescope Eyes.”

I just got wind that Mexican pop band Belanova will play McAllen’s Las Palmas club on Sunday, May 18. This is one show pop music fans won’t want to miss.

If you took Devo’s blips, added Mates of State’s endless optimism, a little Sonny and Cher sunburst and some no-nonsense Latin grooves, you’d have the makings for a pretty tasty Belanova milkshake. That’s a completely superficial summation of the band’s sound, but gimme a break. I just discovered them today.

You can find tons of Belanova eye candy on YouTube. Check out the band’s video for “Rosa Pastel.” It’s one of my fav so far …

It’s still early in the week, but we already have some local concert news for you. This week, Valley music fans can look forward to catching Texas country legend Pat Green, pop rockers forever the Sickest Kids, emo rockers Alesana and Blues on the hill in Harlingen. Check out our Events Calendar for more info and keep reading to find out a little more about these artists.

Alesana
Emo screamo band Alesana performs this Wednesday at South Texas college with, reportedly, The Chariot, SkyEatsAirplane, LoveHateHero, Our Last Night and others. Check out Alesana’s MySpace page to get a sampling of the band’s sound, which features lots of Gollum-esque screaming.

Pat Green
Texas music legend Pat Green performs Thursday at the Las Palmas Racetrack in Mission. PopMatters has an excellent interview with Green and you can learn more about him at his official Web site.

Forever the Sickest Kids
Pop rockers Forever the Sickest Kids return to the RGV on Sunday to play South Texas College with The Cab, Danger Radio, The Maine and Metro Station. Check out our photo gallery from their Spring Break show a few months back.

Belanova
Latin Grammy-nominated Mexican synth-pop band Belanova will take the stage at Las Palmas on Sunday in McAllen. Check out sound and video clips at the band’s official Web site.

And don’t forget, Blues on the Hill is Saturday at Harlingen’s McKelvey Park.

2008 is here and Spring Break is fast approaching. Louie’s Backyard has announced a few of the big acts music fans can look forward to catching on South Padre Island this Spring Break.

According to WhosYourPadre.com, Paul Wall, Cartel, Rooney, The Crash Moderns, All Time Low and Forever the Sickest Kids will hit Louie’s in March. Not a bad start, but it’s pretty heavy on the indie/teenemo side. I hope we’ll see some more decent hip-hop acts hit local stages come March.

Check out the list here for more info on the bands and check out Rooney’s video for “When did Your Heart Go Missing?’ below.

A post on Flyleaf’s MySpace page tells us that the alt-metal band will visit the Valley on March 21. Flyleaf will headline a show at Dodge Arena after it ends a long tour through Europe supporting Korn.

The Belton, Texas band has toured with Breaking Benjamin, 3 Doors Down, Disturbed , Stonesour and they played the main stage at the 2006 Family Values Tour. Their music has appeared in the recent movies “Live Free or Die Hard” and “Resident Evil: Extinction.” The band members, who say they are all of Christian faith, donated proceeds from sales of their “Music as a Weapon” EP to the international Christian relief organization World Vision.

Click here for Dodge Arena ticket info and check out Flyleaf’s video for “I’m So Sick” below.

Tonight, McAllen’s Cine EL Rey will hold a celebration “in honor of the Virgin Mary” starting at 7 p.m. featuring local acts GoLightly Project, Brandon Garcia plus Brandy Bee Serrata, he daughter of tejano legend Jessy Serrata, and more.

The event will also feature dramatic plays and dancing. It’s only $10. Get more info on the event here.

I caught The Misfits on Monday night with about 400 other punk rock fans at McAllen’s Cine El Rey, and my ears are still ringing. You can read an official review of the show here. We also have a photo gallery of the concert and a video featuring local fans.

I must admit that I’m not a big Misfits fan. I don’t own any of their music and I would never consider tattooing their logo on any part of my body. I had interviewed former front man Michale Graves a few times and he was a nice fellow, and I knew a bit about the band’s influential history. So, I figured it would be a fun show, and I was not disappointed. I had a good time, but I wasn’t as into the music as this guy …

That’s the kind of reaction The Misfits got all night. People loved them. Everyone knew every word to every song. I never knew the RGV was full of so many punk rawk fans. Everyone was screaming, dancing and the crowd-surfers never stopped (I stopped counting at 12). The good people from Chapa’s Bar the Pit Productions and Cine El Rey delivered a great early X-mas gift to Valley music lovers by bringing these guys down.

Opening bands Threat of Tomorrow, the Livends and Superzero