Soda or pop? Eagles or Steelers? It's a moot point tonight at Roustabout!, as Pittsburghian gloom-rockers Chalk Outline Party and Philly no-frills rock collective Grammar Debate will settle the score for you at The Darkhorse Tavern, 128 E. College Ave.

Iron City's Chalk Outline Party is blowing up since "Cobra Youth House," the lead single from their recently released EP A Plan Lost in Dreams, has been garnering a great deal of time on the airwaves. As bandleader Aaron Jentzen said, the newfound exposure took the band by surprise.

"At first, we'd just put it out locally, and we really didn't think much about it," Jentzen said. "But then it started picking up and getting a lot of radio play around the country."

Though Chalk Outline Party has undergone a number of lineup changes in recent months, Jentzen has held fast to his role as main lyricist.

"Typically, what I'm trying to do is take two different images, or memories, or experiences that don't necessarily go together, and then shove them together like a car crash," Jentzen said of his lyric-writing process. "I'm dealing more with images other than, you know, 'oh, I love this girl.' As a lyricist, I'm far more influenced by Blonde on Blonde-era Dylan, that surreal thing he was doing."

Chalk Outline Party's sound can, at times, be a bit bleak, but Jentzen said it's not his primary goal to make brooding music.

"I'm a pretty happy person," Jentzen said. "I don't really set out to make music that's forbidding. I really dislike a lot of music that really seems to try to be dark. Goth and things like that -- it just seems very cartoony to me."

Roustabout! organizer Jeff Van Fossan, no stranger to booking Pittsburgh bands at his weekly pet project, mentioned that Chalk Outline Party might actually fit better in another eastern city.

"Chalk Outline Party sounds the most like a New York City band out of all the Pittsburgh bands," Van Fossan said. "I'd describe them as Leonard Cohen fronting Television."

Grammar Debate frontman Joe Lekkas has played Roustabout! before, just not with his current band. Almost a year ago to the day, Lekkas' now-defunct Hilliard played the Wednesday night showcase. As he explained, his new act's sound is quite a ways removed from Hilliard's.

"Hilliard was very Pixies, Social Distortion, angular indie-punk stuff," Lekkas said. "But Grammar Debate is a lot more indie-pop, with a dash of Americana."

Grammar Debate is made up of members of a number of other prominent Philly bands. Lekkas said compiling his own group from several other acts can occasionally be a challenge. "Sometimes it's hard with scheduling," Lekkas said. "But it's been working out pretty good."

Though the music of Grammar Debate is highly collaborative, Lekkas remains the band's sole songwriter.

"I pretty much lay it all down as a demo, and then show it to everybody," Lekkas said of his writing process. "And they each put their signature on it. It's great, because I know everybody's style from their other bands, so they never disappoint."

Van Fossan said he's interested to hear the difference from Lekkas' old band to his new one.

"Hilliard was pretty a fast-paced rock 'n' roll classic-punk sound," Van Fossan said. "But Grammar Debate is a mellower, folk-pop thing."

And, Lekkas said, he's glad to be back.

"We had an awesome time at the Roustabout! we did with Hilliard," Lekkas said. "It's a great scene, because people will come out and really get into the music, even if they haven't heard it before."

Jentzen couldn't agree more.

"We really like the night," Jentzen said. "It's a big party, and we like that. We always have a great time in State College."