2010 Music Showcase: 1 night, 50+ bands, 5 bucks this Saturday on Wash. Ave.

Raglani
It's been a year of recovery and rebuilding for Joseph Raglani. The synthesist and sound sculptor had nearly all of his gear stolen on a tour stop in New York last May, and in the ensuing months he has rebuilt his arsenal (which once again includes his beloved Moog Voyager Old School synthesizer) and started playing shows again. The self-described noise artist delights in stringing together and then unraveling various sonic threads, which can range from icy and inhuman to warm and natural. (CS)

Spelling Bee
Despite existing as a band for just over a year, the spasmodic duo of Joseph Hess and Mabel Suen has amassed quite the rap sheet. Be it touring the Midwest, assailing the airwaves, booking shows or combusting onstage, Spelling Bee has proven itself as not only a hyperactive, spazz-rock embodiment of trepanation, but as a musical entity. Spelling Bee is the quintessence of 21st-century DIY. (JL) 
9 p.m., Nara Cafe & Hookah Lounge

Skarekrau Radio
Skarekrau Radio. Innovators of the brain raid. The Sun Ra Arkestra of St. Louis. Nudist Colony. You've heard it all before. The band's irresistible tin-can beats, freight-train rhythms and frenzied howls of ecstasy whirl audiences into equal parts caveman rave and mutant orgy. Unleashing pyschotropic unrest for over twenty years in the name of its god, Kuu, Skarekrau Radio will forever continue to warp-speed down the expressway to yr skull. (JL)

Best Funk/Soul/R&B (Group)

Funky Butt Brass Band
Funky Butt Brass Band has become the go-to horn section in St. Louis. Whether the troupe is backing up other artists in the studio, making its own records or providing a little New Orleans street-band flavor to a live event, Funky Butt has made people pay attention to brass music again in St. Louis. Credit goes to the act's three-pronged attack of stellar musicianship; an undeniable, good-time spirit; and a diverse repertoire that incorporates Tower of Power-style experimental funk grooves and adventurous arrangements. (SM)

Natural Selection
Listening to Natural Selection's recorded material is unfortunately somewhat of a letdown. It's not because the tracks don't groove hard — they do, with a spirit reminiscent of Dennis Chambers' P-Funk days and a nod to Stevie Wonder's beautiful sense of melody. It's just that without being able to see bassist Nick Jost in action, you somehow miss the full impact of the band. With an ultra-wide-stanced pogo dance, he bounces across the stage like some kind of intergalactic tribal-funk shaman — and he never lets the groove drop for a millisecond. Add the persuasive and charismatic nature of frontman Samuel Glover, and you have a modern, interplanetary funk stew with the showmanship and danceability of Chromeo — all executed by a formidable live band. (SM) The Soul Alliance featuring CoCoSoul
Led by musical director Mo Egeston and featuring devastating vocalist CocoSoul, the Soul Alliance is not a musty oldies band. Together the act demolishes the boundaries between funk, R&B — and, yes, soul — with impressive instrumental skill. There may be louder rhythm sections in St. Louis, but the one-two punch of Jason "Dirty Lynt" Moore on drums and Sean "Hollabass" Holland on bass keeps the Soul Alliance as tight as any unit in town. (RK) UG Project
Urban Groov Project (UG Project for short) is co-helmed by veteran sonic-alchemist and keyboardist Mo Egeston and composer and brassman DJ Nune. Along with percussionist Duane "Jingo" Williams, the UG Project plays a funk-based form of jazz fusion that will appeal to electronica heads, experimental hip-hoppers and anyone who wonders what electric Herbie Hancock mashed up with deep house sounds like. (RK)
3 p.m., 11th & Washington Outdoor Stage

Best Funk/Soul/R&B (Solo Artist)

Aloha
Armed with a nationally recognized producer, Bradd Young, and an angelic singing voice, Aloha Mischeaux is aimed squarely at the top of the R&B/pop charts. As a Top 24 contestant on season four of American Idol, Randy Jackson compared Aloha's voice to that of Beyoncé Knowles; the resemblance is undeniable on uptempo tracks such as "Where You At!?!" and "They Be on Me." Aloha recently auditioned for the FOX show Glee and is scheduled to open for John Legend on July 3 as part of Fair Saint Louis. (CC)

Lamar Harris
Musician, songwriter and composer Lamar Harris has added yet another feather to his cap: He can be found spinning records under the alias DJ Nune. Originally recognized for his talent as a horn player, Harris has since developed an unconventional fusion of funk, electronica, jazz and soul music that combines live instrumentation with electronic synths and drum samples. Harris is expected to release his third album, The Here and After, later this year. — Calvin Cox
1:15 a.m., Lola

Teresajenee
Teresajenee is a pure urban R&B singer with a pop soul. Blessed with a voice that's powerful enough for gospel and drawing on influences that range from Elton John and the Jackson Five to the Shirelles and Ella Fitzgerald — or so suggests the stunning and sugary R&B pop single "Sunday" from her debut album The Ecklectic — Teresajenee is more than just St. Louis' answer to Lauryn Hill. She's an idiosyncratic, completely uncategorizable talent. (RK)
10:45 p.m., Lola