There's so much camaraderie going on in the Pittsburgh music scene these days it could make you sick if you were some cynical, anti-solidarity type inclined to abhor all things rock 'n' roll.

There's most likely five or so of you somewhere, and you're all probably wrinkled. But for folks who dig hand-holding, back-patting musicianship (in the most platonic of contexts), Pittsburgh seems to be where it's at.

"Everyone in the city is just working together," Craig Stuart, organist of 'Burgh band Shade, said. "There are different scenes, yet there aren't any deep rivalries like there were at one point. Everybody just feels strongly about the city and wants to promote the bands."

Good thing those rivalries are over, 'cause we certainly wouldn't want a scuffle at tonight's Roustabout!, where Shade will hit up the Darkhorse Tavern, 128 E. College Ave., with fellow Steel City indie-pop-rockers (and fellow Roust veterans) Black Tie Revue. As usual, the 21-and-over weekly showcase is slated for 10:30ish and the cover's $3.

First things first. Introductions: Shade's a seven-year-old, five-piece band whose recently released disc, Fedra, was praised in indie-rock bible Spin Magazine for its "synth-heavy hooks with abrasive guitar shards straight out of the shoegazer handbook."

Black Tie Revue's the moog-heavy, two-year-old group that fancies The Cars and will be playing the infamous South by Southwest Festival in March along with the likes of Hot Hot Heat, Nada Surf, Sleater-Kinney and countless other esteemed acts. That from a band that just released its first EP?

"We're only having 1000 copies pressed, so that's not a whole lot, but in the grand scheme of things, this is going to become a collector's item for future diehard Black Tie Revue fans," Jesse Meredith, the Revue's keyboardist (and former drummer, but that's another story) said.

Despite being woken from a power nap, Meredith's all cheer -- that is, except when narrating the band's daunting history, which includes a van fire, instrument theft and a guitarist's relocation to Las Vegas in the name of progressive politics.

"The good does outweigh the bad," he stresses. "There are a lot of good bands out there that are all depressing and mellow, and certainly they serve a purpose in life, but we just want to dance and have fun, and play rock music and look good."

The guys just got off a self-imposed two-month break to rest and rejuvenate. Now they're back and ready to write and record the next album.

Most of these songs will be written spontaneously, Stuart guesses, because all the Shadesters (with the exception of the drummer) share an apartment, which does more than help pool rent money -- it fosters a collective creative spirit, to put it in florid words Shade would probably never utter.

Both Stuart and bassist Brad Kiefer agree Shade's pumped to play tonight's Roustabout! because the lovey-dovey Happy Valley vibe reminds them of what's going down in Pittsburgh.

"People just trust it," said Kiefer, who co-owns prominent Pittsburgh label Lovely Recordings in addition to playing with Shade. "People aren't showing up just to see one band and leave, but for the whole event in general. Regardless of who's playing, you know it's going to be an awesome night."