Tonight's Roustabout! will feature some stern lessons about how to put on a loud rock show.
The Hard Lessons, a rock 'n' roll band from Detroit that is no stranger to the State College music scene, will headline the 10 p.m. show at Bar Bleu, 114 S. Garner St., alongside Boston-based band The Sterns.
Jesse Ruegg, promoter for Roustabout!, said The Hard Lessons has performed consistently well over the years.
"They're one of the bands we've booked over the years that just blow my mind every time," Ruegg said. "They never 'phone it in.' They're always on and they're always excited to be playing. The audience picks up on that, and they give it right back to them."
It's no surprise the audience gives an enthusiastic reaction time after time. Augie Visocchi, singer and guitarist, describes the band's live show as "unhinged."
"It's out of control in the best way possible," Visocchi said. "We don't go in with a set list or anything. We just kind of play off what the audience is feeling. We definitely lose it when we're up there. We're like free monkeys that have been trapped in a box all day and finally the zoo lets us out for a little bit."
In addition to their frenetic antics onstage -- which Ruegg said includes "flailing around and jumping off the stage" -- Visocchi also said the presence of male and female singers provides an interesting dynamic.
"I sing and then Ko Ko Louise sings, so there's that whole male-female sexual tension that's happening there," Visocchi said.
The band is also toying with its male-female aspect in its new EP/LP B & G Sides. The band is releasing four consecutive three-track CDs that will feature a song that Visocchi sings -- the "boy side" -- and a song that Louise sings -- the "girl side." The music can be obtained for free at the band's Web site, thehardlessons.com, but those who buy the EPs will be getting more than just music, he said.
"The artwork for each of the four CDs, when you open it up and lay them on the floor, is going to make a big picture that sort of tells the story of the album," Visocchi said. "So all the pieces go together like a puzzle. We're really focusing on making the artwork great."
Even though some in the music industry have questioned the life of the CD, Visocchi said the "music is so much more than just a digital file on a computer."
"There's something really to be said about being able to write a song and put it right up on the Internet," Visocchi said. "At the same time, music has always been about so much more than that. The artwork for the B & G Sides is literally interactive. Without the artwork, you're not going to have the whole story."
Opening for the band will be indie-pop group The Sterns. Unlike The Hard Lessons, this will be the band's first Roustabout! show. Ruegg said the band will provide an interesting dynamic between them and The Hard Lessons.
