GET YOUR LOCAL BANDS ON

What better way to start off 2007 than making good on your resolution to check out more of Chicago's vast local music scene? Come to Metro on Friday night to check out three of the city's finest. Lacona blends high-energy psych-pop with post-rock, Driftless Pony Club plays catchy, well-thought-out rock songs with angular guitars (no, seriously), and Mt St Helens will expand your mind with their rhythmic nuances. Doors are at 8, show is at 9, and admission is FREE if you get there before 9. Admission also gets you into Smart Bar after the show, where Peter Hook of New Order will be DJing as well as Chicago's own Brad Owen (ex-Dignity).