High-concept cover bands succeed when they breathe new life into something old and familiar. Dread Zeppelin started doing it in the 1990s, with its Elvis impersonator meets reggae band take on Led Zeppelin’s catalog. Today Mac Sabbath takes the form to its most bizarre extreme: exploring the proto-doom and heavy metal of Black Sabbath while dressed as mutant (and unauthorized) characters from the marketing world of McDonald’s. The result is, in a word, sacrilegious. It’s also hysterically funny. But what’s most important is that it works. The band’s fast food-themed parody lyrics somehow fit well onto the classic sludge of Ozzy and his pals.

Mac Sabbath
Thu, 8pm, $18+
The Ritz, San Jose

It’s that time once again! Prepare your virgin dipping cups for the slaughter and make your french friesian bargains with Beelzeburger. Mac Sabbath return to The Ritz this Saturday with their trademarked brand of “drive-thru metal,” playing faithful musical covers of Black Sabbath tunes with McDonald’s-themed lyrics. Also this week, longtime host of “Masterpiece Theatre,” Alan Cumming, comes to Stanford to sing Sappy Songs, and the classically trained pianist and emcee Kev Choice rocks the mic at Cafe Stritch.

Alan Cumming: Sappy Songs
Thu, 7:30pm, $30+
Bing Concert Hall, Stanford
Sure, he’s starred in Hamlet and a one-man adaptation of MacBeth, but he’s only human, after all. The Scottish actor and longtime host of PBS’s Masterpiece Mystery also has a passion for sappy songs. Hence, the title of his touring show, in which he sings songs like “Why” by Annie Lennox, “Dinner at Eight” by Rufus Wainwright, “Somewhere Only We Know” by Keane, and “Goodnight Saigon” by Billy Joel. Oh yeah. And then there’s his medley of hits by Adele, Lady Gaga, Katy Perry, titled “Someone Like the Edge of Firework.” Well played, Alan. Well played. (NV)

Helena Legend & Kennedy Jones
Fri, 10pm, $10+
Pure Lounge, Sunnyvale
Rising EDM talent Helena Legend rolls through Pure Lounge with the versatile and fuzzy-faced producer Kennedy Jones on The Beauty and The Beard Tour. Legend recently inked a deal with the SPIN Artist Agency—home to Avicii, Oliver Heldens and Armin Van Buuren. Jones dropped a collection of remixes a few months back. Both have rocked festival stages all over the world—including Tomorrowland, Ultra Music Festival and EDC Las Vegas. Together they promise to lead a night of high-energy, bass-heavy and twerk-inducing tunes. (BS)

Bob Saget
Fri, 7:30pm, $27+
San Jose Improv
When it comes to family-friendly comedy, Bob Saget is the jack-of-all-trades. Well known for his role as Danny Tanner in the ABC classic sitcom Full House, Saget is an American actor, stand-up comedian, writer, director, producer and game show host. However, as a Grammy-nominated stand-up comedian for over 30 years, he’s found success through edgy humor and vulgarity, paradoxical to his role as the father in Full House. The former host of America’s Funniest Home Videos will be sharing all of his uproarious and uncensored jokes at the San Jose Improv, with multiple sets this weekend. (BS)

LoCash
Fri, 7pm, $15
Club Rodeo, San Jose
Kickin’ up dust and cranking out hits, LoCash knows how to throw a party. This country duo started off behind the scenes, writing hit songs for Keith Urban and Tim McGraw. Now, they’re celebrating their very own success. Last year’s certified gold single, “I Love This Life,” peaked at No. 2 on the Billboard’s Country Airplay chart and their 2016 album, The Fighters, debuted at No. 16 on the Top Country Albums chart. With swinging electric guitar interludes and twangy, banjo-driven songs, LoCash are hitting all the right marks. (VS)

Kev Choice Ensemble
Fri, 8:30pm, Free
Cafe Stritch, San Jose
A classically trained pianist with a love for hip-hop and a master’s degree in jazz, Kev Choice is redefining the modern archetype for musicians. Fresh out of grad school, he joined Lauryn Hill on tour as her musical director. But he’s more than a member of the band.  After years of working with artists, Choice dropped his first full-length album, 88 Steps to Eternity, in 2016. On the record, he spins together jazzy hip-hop arrangements with a killer flow. The Oakland-based pianist, emcee and producer rolls through the South Bay this weekend. (VS)

Battle of the Zae 7
Sat, 1pm, $20
BackBar SoFa, San Jose
Be there for the rap battle! It’s going to be inter-spectacular. Fantabulous. It’ll blow your socks off. But seriously. Deltron 3030 references aside, the seventh annual Battle of the Zae is bound to be lit. This Dirtbag Dan-founded competition features some of the best battle-tested emcees around—all going head-to-head over dope beats. The stakes are high: BOTZ serves as a farm league for aspiring rhymesayers. Rappers from all over the country fly in for a shot at the crown and greater recognition. Be there! Battle of the Zae 7. It’s instupituous! (NV)

Mac Sabbath
Sat, 8pm, $18+
The Ritz, San Jose
Steal a hamburger at this show and your soul will be cast into eternal damnation. Talk shit about Grimace’s weight and Ronald Osbourne (Mac Sabbath’s hellish Ozzy Osbourne/Ronald McDonald-hybrid frontman) will bite your head off like a damn Fruit Bat McNugget. If you haven’t heard of Mac Sabbath yet, you should just stop reading now and YouTube “Frying Pan”—their take on Sabbath’s “Iron Man.” The McDonald’s-themed Black Sabbath cover band is known for their way-over-the-top live shows, and recommended if you enjoy things like “fun” and “having a good time.” (MH)

iHeart80s Party
Sat, 7:15pm, $48+
SAP Center, San Jose
If you live in constant fear of being Rick Rolled, watch out! The man himself, Rick Astley, will be at the SAP Center as part of the iHeart80s tour, hitting the Shark Tank this weekend. Astley will be joined by a long list of ’80s pop icons—including New Kids on the Block, UB40, Eddie Money, Night Ranger (“Sister Christian”), Starship (“Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now”) and Colin Hay of Men at Work. That is, without a doubt, the strangest tour package this writer has seen, but there’s no denying that it has something for anyone who loves the ’80s. Uhhhh…Dayglo! Shoulder pads! Miami Vice! Reagan! (MH)

Orgy
Sun, 7pm, $20+
The Ritz, San Jose
The Set to Stun Tour features two space-aged alt-metal acts. The Boston-based Powerman 5000—led by Rob Zombie’s younger brother and lead vocalist, Spider—mixes sci-fi movie camp with industrial metal electronics and made a big splash around 1999 with their album Tonight the Stars Revolt! San Francisco-by-way-of-L.A. death pop outfit Orgy scored their biggest hit covering the retrofuturistic sounds of “Blue Monday,” by New Wave visionaries New Order. Both bands have toured with nü-metal legends like Korn, Limp Bizkit and the rest of the Family Values Tour cohort. (BS)

If we are to believe Mike Odd, there aren’t many who know the true identity of Ronald Osborne, frontman for the L.A.-based, McDonald’s-themed Black Sabbath cover band, Mac Sabbath.

Odd, the leader of weirdo-rock outfit Rosemary’s Billygoat, moonlights as Mac Sabbath’s manager and sole spokesperson—a role he says he was unwittingly lured into when an anonymous tipster convinced him to go grab lunch at a Chatsworth “franchise of a certain multinational fast food conglomerate, which shall remain nameless.”

For legal reasons, Odd explains, he never uses “the M-word.”

It was there, whilst “devouring a cheeseburger,” that he was approached by a “crazed looking clown.”

That clown was Osborne—who leads Mac Sabbath dressed like a demonic Ronald McDonald, replete with a fiery red wig, red-and-yellow jumpsuit, and shiny, oversized shoes. Instead of wearing a permanent red-and-white smile on his face, Osborne’s mug is made up to resemble a crimson, chalky skull.

His backing band is no less committed. Mac Sabbath’s guitarist, Slayer McCheese, wears a giant, foam cheeseburger on his head, with two eyes, a nose, and a pair of massive tusks jutting from the bottom bun. Grimalice, the group’s bassist, resembles a deranged Grimace, with tweaked-out eyes, a skullet hairdo and a floppy tongue. The Slamburglar keeps time, in his flat-brimmed fedora, black-and-white striped shirt, and Zorro-esque mask and cape.

The band’s songs feature arrangements that directly correspond to Black Sabbath hits, only with satirical lyrics, which take aim at the fast food industry. In “Frying Pan,” a play on Black Sabbath’s “Iron Man,” Osborne sings, “Cows we’re going to grind/Hope your stomach is well lined/Do I have the gall/Chopping onions makes me ball.”

During their first meeting, Osborne invited Odd to see Mac Sabbath perform—reportedly in the basement of a Southern California fast food restaurant. From there, much like many a fast food customer, Odd says he was hooked. He agreed to represent the band.

That was sometime in 2013, Odd says. Since then, his life has gotten exponentially weirder.

According to Odd, Osborne only meets with him in full costume, and has steadfastly maintained that he arrived in the present day through a wormhole, which transported him from the year 1970. “He meets me in weird locations, with weird secret messages delivered,” Odd says. “I’ve been drawn into something. It’s really hard to explain, frankly.”

Indeed, over the course of our conversation Odd frequently breaks into laughter. He seems both genuinely amused and confused by the band he represents. If it’s all an act (he flatly denies rumors that he and Osborne are one and the same) his incredulous tone and fits of nervous chortling have me fooled.

Some have also speculated that Osborne’s is actually Jello Biafra of The Dead Kennedys. However, despite Mac Sabbath’s growing profile—they’ve been featured in plenty of music blogs, on Fox News, and even had one of their music videos shared on Black Sabbath’s official Facebook page—no one has yet been able to conclusively disprove Osborne’s wormhole origin story.

Perhaps it’s better that way. Consider professional wrestling—or bizarro hip-hop artist RiFF RAFF, the Joaquin Phoenix’s mockumentary, <i>I’m Still Here</i>, or Andy Kaufman, who to this day has people believing he faked his death. When a performance artist is that committed to his or her act, does it really matter what the truth is?

Osborne is nothing if not committed to his character. He calls Mac Sabbath’s music “drive thru metal,” and claims there are many other artists who are attempting to rip him off: “Burger King Diamond is his nemesis,” Odd says, before rattling off a slew of other names, including “Chick Filet-C/DC,” “Dokken Donuts,” “Twisted Sizzler” and “Iron Mai-Denny’s”—none of which seem to be real.

“I don’t think that much that goes on in his mind is real,” Odd says, laughing again. He’ll get really angry when you start talking about cell phones or the Internet. He’ll get upset and you might get a chocolate shake in your face.”

Odd says Osborne’s antics can make it difficult for him to do his job. “I mean, trying to figure out exactly what’s going on and what I’m supposed to be saying to you guys (the press)—it’s all vague and very strange.”

Nonetheless, it works, Odd says. And furthermore, “It’s fun.”

Mac Sabbath play The Ritz on Friday, Aug. 7, at 8pm. More info.