THURSDAY HIP-HOP MAVI Twenty-four-year-old North Carolinian rapper Mavi, born Omavi Ammu Minder, delivers deeply personal and philosophical musings on mental health struggles, growth, and Black identity and liberation, with a laid-back demeanor and gentle, soul-infused beats. He is a quiet revolutionary. His 2024 album, Shadowbox, deepens and darkens his reflective journey, probing further into substance abuse, depression and despair. And yet, it’s all conveyed on a shimmering bed of mellow vocals, melodic beats, angelic harmonies and sparkling chimes. The juxtaposition of unflinching self-reflection and bright, breezy production only accentuates the heartache. – SONYA BENNETT-BRANDT INFO: Thu, 8pm, The New Parish, 1743 San Pablo Ave., Oakland. $25. 510.227.8177.  THURSDAY EXPERIMENTAL BASIC In 1984, guitarist Robert Quine and drummer/programmer Fred Maher released Basic, an instrumental album blending experimental guitar with dissonant, blurry soundscapes and programmed drum machines. Perceived at its release as a little too avant-garde, it didn’t receive wide recognition. Fast forward to 2024, and BASIC, featuring Chris Forsyth, Douglas McCombs and Mikel Patrick Avery, picks up where Quine left off. BASIC recognizes Basic’s ahead-of-its-time genius and builds on it, riffing on the original’s sonic palette with layers of polyrhythms, post-punk textures and disorienting electronic experimentation while honoring its stripped-back, improvisational ethos​. – SBB INFO: Thu, 8pm, Thee Stork Club, 2330 Telegraph Ave., Oakland. $15/adv, $18/door. 510.859.8709. FRIDAY ROCK  MUMIY TROLL Mumiy Troll’s name may seem fit for the Halloween season, but it’s actually a pun on the Russian title of Tove Jansson’s famous series of children’s books, Moomin. Like those stories, the band takes its fans into otherworldly realities with an adventurous edge. In 2022, they condemned the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and the Kremlin canceled their concerts—a result that would have shaken a different band—but Mumiy Troll is pretty used to extraordinary situations. About a decade ago, they sailed around the world on a 19th-century ship and recorded an album about it. – ADDIE MAHMASSANI INFO: Fri, 8pm, The UC Theatre, 2036 University Ave., Berkeley. $92.50. 510.356.4000. FRIDAY POST-HARDCORE PIANOS BECOME THE TEETH Pianos Become the Teeth merges early screamo with hardcore punk influence. Their debut album, Old Pride, received heaps of praise; the magazine Rock Sound gave it a nine out of 10, saying the band had a “why-just-write-a-song-when-you-can-write-an-epic” attitude. Vocalist Kyle Durfey has continued to pen beautifully dark, ever-personal lyrics on four more studio albums, with the most recent, Drift, leaning into shoegaze. Fans of other post-rock and post-hardcore bands like Touché Amoré, Explosions in the Sky and Mogwai will find a lot to love in this long-running Maryland outfit. – AM INFO: Fri, 8pm, Cornerstone, 2367 Shattuck Ave., Berkeley. $26/adv, $31/door. 510.214.8600. FRIDAY  THEATER  ‘AJAX, OUR HEROES, OUR AMERICA’ Is there nobility in a country that disenfranchises its citizens, glorifies titans claiming and possessing territory and material goods belonging to others, and looks away from countless travesties of justice? Can it be found in the plight of a homeless American veteran suffering from a dissociative identity disorder that has him believing he is Ajax, the proud and muscular mythological Greek warrior? If there are answers—or even aspirational suggestions—to be found, they will likely come from this dynamo theater troupe. They might be tiny, but Inferno Theater is big on inviting audiences to confront their better and worse angels. Expect surprise and hope for revelation. Runs weekends through Nov. 3. – LOU FANCHER INFO: Fri, 8pm, Studio 12, 2525 Eighth St., Berkeley. $30. 510.825.0449. SATURDAY  LATIN LILA DOWNS This special Día de Muertos concert includes Folklorico dancing, a mariachi band and zingy visual projections—but it doesn’t need them. Why? Because all things flashy and fantastic go dim in the light of Lila Downs’ spectacular voice. The Oaxacan native, honored with several Grammys, is covering songs from her latest album, La Sánchez. Written during the pandemic’s turbulent times and completed despite the sudden loss of her work and life partner, saxophonist Paul Cohen, the songs speak of love, independence, maternal influences and ultimately, drawing closer to hope and homeland. Mesmerizing and moving Mexican rancheras, northern cumbias and corridos receive top treatment from this modern-day muse. – LF INFO: Sat, 8pm, Paramount Theatre, 2025 Broadway, Oakland. $54-$161. 510.893.2300. SATURDAY COMEDY  MARK NORMAND  Fans of stand-up comedy, late-night talk shows and podcasts might know the name Mark Normand. The New Orleans comic has appeared on Conan O’Brien’s show, The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon and The Late Show With Stephen Colbert, and is a frequent guest on The Joe Rogan Experience. For good reason, too. His 2020 special, Out to Lunch, accrued more than 12 million views on YouTube, leading to last year’s one-hour Netflix special, Soup to Nuts, which stayed on the streaming site’s top 10 list for weeks. But what else can one expect from a comedian Jerry Seinfeld described as “the best young up-and-coming comic”? – MAT WEIR  INFO: Sat, 7pm, Fox Theater, 1807 Telegraph Ave., Oakland. $37-$124+. 510.302.2250.   SATURDAY JAZZ JUNE CAVLAN  Santa Cruz native June Cavlan is a rising jazz singer in New York City who’s getting set to celebrate the release of her debut album, A Portrait of June (La Reserve Records), at Birdland next month. In the meantime, she’s touring with a stellar young band featuring pianist Connor Rohrer, who has recently been on the road with ascendant star Samara Joy, bassist Aidan McCarthy and drummer Max Marsillo. Savvy social media posts have helped raise Cavlan’s visibility, but it’s her sumptuous sound—warm, lustrous and unfailingly on-pitch—that makes her one of the most exciting new voices in a scene brimming with excellent singers. – ANDREW GILBERT INFO: Sat, 7:30pm, The Sound Room, 3022 Broadway, Oakland. $32-$35. 510.708.9691. SUNDAY GARAGE  PSYCOTIC PINEAPPLE  Formed in Berkeley in the mid-’70s, this chaotic psych-garage-rock band embraces the proto-punk moniker with wild energy and no-holds-barred humor. Although Where’s the Party—their only album—came out in 1980, it retains a relevant sound with emblazoned punk energy set to catchy tunes with memorable hooks and earworm choruses. They’re one of those rare bands ahead of their time, and the rest of us took a couple of decades to catch up to them. Sadly, Psycotic Pineapple doesn’t play live as often as they once did, so shows like Sunday’s matinee are a savored treat, like the last slice of Hawaiian pizza. – MW  INFO: Sun, 4pm, Ivy Room, 860 San Pablo Ave., Albany. $15. 510.526.5888. SUNDAY JAZZ SEAN MASON QUARTET  Last month, Sean Mason was back at the Monterey Jazz Festival, leading his own quartet following a banner year that saw the release of an intimate but wide-open duo project with Catherine Russell and his impressive debut album, The Southern Suite. As a less-is-more stylist who distills the essence to essentials, Mason has worked with masters such as Wynton Marsalis, Herlin Riley and Branford Marsalis. For his date at the Freight, he’s joined by Wynton Marsalis Septet, drummer Domo Branch, Juilliard-trained bassist Corentin Le Hir and trumpeter Tony Glausi—a highly versatile improviser who also performs with saxophonist/composer Remy Le Boeuf’s Assembly of Shadows. – AG INFO: Sun, 7pm, Freight & Salvage, 2020 Addison St., Berkeley. $34/adv, $39/door. 510.644.2020.