Listen with caution: Canadian punk band PUP’s name may be an abbreviation for “pathetic waste of potential,” but don’t let that fool you—its fourth album, THE UNRAVELING OF PUPTHEBAND, marks a clever new marriage between melody and chaos. And according to lead singer Stefan Babcock, chaos is where PUP feels most at home, saying “there is nothing more PUP than a slow and inevitable descent into self-destruction.” The record kicks off with “Four Chords,” also referred to as “the stupidest piano ballad of all time” by Babcock. Other highlights include the mournful, anthemic “Matilda,” and “Robot Writes A Love Song,” a nervy, synth-filled tune written from the perspective of a computer being overwhelmed unto death by human emotions.
Wednesday 9/21. $27-30, 8pm. The Jefferson Theater, 110 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. jeffersontheater.com