Flaw Band at Mr Smalls; Pittsburgh Songwriters at Club Cafe (Fri., 1/5/18)

1) In the early aughts, Flaw were a rising metal band. Their major label debut, 2001’s Through the Eyes, went to number one on Billboard’s Top Heatseekers chart. A song from that album, “Only the Strong,” appeared on The Scorpion King soundtrack. In 2002, they played Ozzfest. And in 2004, they recorded their sophomore album, Endangered Species. However, 12 years of record label disputes and internal tensions would make Endangered Species the band’s last album, save a self-released LP, the appropriately titled Home Grown Studio Sessions. That is, until 2016, when the band put all that behind them and released the also appropriately titled Divided We Fall. Flaw formed in Louisville, Kentucky, in 1996. Their frontman, Chris Volz, also sang lead vocals for the now-defunct nü-metal group Five.Bolt.Main. They released a companion EP of B-sides, United We Stand, in 2017, and they are touring this year, including a stop at Mr. Smalls. Reign of Z opens.8 p.m. 400 Lincoln Ave., Millvale. (CM)

2) Start 2018 off right with Pittsburgh Songwriters Ring in the New Year at Club Cafe. Spencer Allan Patrick, from Aliquippa, has a song about one of Pittsburgh’s most recognizable bridges, plus other great tunes. Jeremy Caywood will be fresh off his appearance at the first Pittsburgh Plays Petty tribute show. Amy Mmhmm is a mainstay on many an acoustic stage. Kevin Finn’s music, such as the songs heard on 2017’s Sound & Echo, invokes long stretches of American countryside. And Vit DeBacco harks back to singer-songwriter Howie Day on tracks like “Wish It Would Rain.” This early show will be the perfect warm-up to late-show headliners Old Game, Sam Vicari, and Brazilian Wax. 7 p.m. 56-58 S. 12th St., South Side. (CM)

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