The concert schedule this fall is full of annual favorites, a few new surprises and Silicon Valley’s first large-scale mult-day technology conference and music festival.

VivaFest!
Aug 31 to Sep 28, Downtown San Jose; prices vary.
The 22nd annual celebration of mariachis and Mexican culture wraps up Sept. 28 with an evening of Latin alternative music from both sides of the border. Headliners Kinky leaped into international fame with their self-titled 2002 debut that jumbled funky electronica with guitar rock and traditional sounds from their native Monterrey, Mexico. Four albums later, they remain true to their name, joyously throwing kinks into the pop music machine. Filling out the bill is Carla Morrison, whose latest release, “DŽjenme Llorar (Let Me Cry),” was nominated for four Latin Grammys. Her dreamy and spare sonic landscapes that recall Mazzy Star and the Cowboy Junkies will seem immediately familiar to any indie fan. The L.A.-based sextet La Santa Cecilia spans traditional forms of Latin music—cumbia, bossa nova, tango—to produce music that is at turns haunting and rousing, and the Mexican-American collaborative Sistema Bomb gives a hip-hop remix to the traditional music of Veracruz. The month-long ÁVivaFest! will also present music and dance workshops, a film series, free outdoor music and other cultural events throughout downtown San Jose. (Richard Faulk)

Uproar Festival
Sep 11, Shoreline Amphitheatre; tickets start at $20.
Grunge veterans Alice in Chains and Lollapalooza founders Jane’s Addiction—can it really be 25 years since Nothing’s Shocking dropped?—headline the main stage at Uproar, which also features two other stages loaded with hard rock bands. Elsewhere, Toronto rocker Darko Jones channels David Lee Roth’s inner clown while serving up an eclectic set that cites everything from ’70s power pop to Scandinavian death metal. On the indie side of the genre, Beware of Darkness blasts Stooges-like freakouts, while traditionalists will enjoy the way Dead Daisies delivers straightforward, feel good rock & roll. But the true rock cognoscenti won’t want to miss second stage headliners Walking Papers. With ties both to grunge grandfathers Screaming Trees and Pearl Jam as well as Guns ‘N’ Roses, this Seattle outfit combines the swagger of Aerosmith with the brooding sounds and stories of Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds. (RF)

Rock The Bells
Sep 14-15, Shoreline Amphitheatre; tickets start at $65.50.
Hip-hop’s answer to Coachella celebrates its 10th anniversary at Shoreline Amphitheatre this year with two different lineups over two days and the festival’s most controversial move to date—virtual performances from deceased rappers Eazy E (N.W.A.) and Ol’ Dirty Bastard (Wu-Tang Clan) performing with their former crews. Other highlights include Too Short and E-40’s first Shoreline performance since 2004 (they were reportedly banned from the venue after a KMEL Summer Jam went sideways that year), A$AP Mob, Kid Cudi, Girl Talk, Juicy J, Deltron 3030, Trinidad James and many more. Check back for more details and interviews with the team behind the virtual performances in the Sep 11 issue of Metro. (Matt Crawford)

Swingin’ Utters
Sep 20, the Blank Club, $13.
San Francisco punk rockers the Swingin’ Utters are finally back with a new album. The band hits the road with the Dropkick Murphys this fall in support of Poorly Formed, finishing Sep 20 with a headlining gig at the Blank Club without the Murphys. The new album ventures into post-punk and garage rock territory, though the usual Swinging Utters’ punk sound with Irish-folk subtleties remains intact. (Stephen Layton)

Bassnectar
Sep 21, Event Center at San Jose State University, $35
Fans of the DJ and producer dub themselves “Bassheads” and it’ll come as no surprise that they like bass. Lorin Ashton, the San Jose native behind Bassnectar, is more than happy to provide. He’s grown from working local parties and Burning Man to become a leader in America’s still-growing EDM scene. Side one of his most recent Immersive Music mixtape contains a remix of Nina Simone’s “Feeling Good,” alongside a remix of obscure Portland prog/folk/metal band Agalloch. His original material blends genres as well, with anything from dubstep and glitch to Ashton’s first love, heavy metal. Side Two of Immersive Music is set to drop in mid-September right before the tour starts, but fans can always expect a trickle of tracks from the prolific producer. (SL)

C2SV Festival
Sep 26-29, downtown San Jose; tickets start at $55
With new venues and restaurants already starting a renaissance for nightlife offerings in downtown San Jose, the C2SV Festival continues forward momentum with four nights of music at 12 venues during one long weekend. Topped by a headlining performance from Iggy and the Stooges at St. James Park, the lineup features San Francisco fuzz rock favorites Thee Oh Sees, modern funk producer and Stones Throw affiliate Dam-Funk, Silicon Valley electro-rockers the Limousines, revolutionary hip-hop from the Coup, LA hardcore vets Off!, alt-rock pioneers the Lemonheads and more than 50 other acts. A tech conference accompanies the festival, with dozens of Silicon Valley CEOs and business leaders at San Jose McEnery Convention Center and a keynote speech from Stooges guitarists James Williamson. (Metro is a sponsor of C2SV)

Conor Oberst
Oct 3, Mountain Winery, $37.50-$47.50
It’s been difficult to keep track of former Bright Eyes frontman Conor Oberst this summer. In between touring with his newly reunited punk band the Desaparecidos and a couple of shows with his Mystic Valley band, Oberst will be playing some solo shows in California and Nevada, including San Francisco’s Hardly Strictly Bluegrass. For his solo appearance at the Mountain Winery in October, the warbly singer will play material from Bright Eyes, Mystic Valley Band and the folk supergroup Monsters of Folk. Oberst’s Saddle Creek label reissued six out-of-print Bright Eyes records last year, and I’m Wide Awake, It’s Morning was recently certified gold. Maybe a Bright Eyes reunion should be added to his burgeoning docket as well. (SL)

Hardly Strictly Bluegrass
Oct 4-6, Golden Gate Park, San Francisco; Free
The final lineup announcement is still pending, but lineup leaks from Hardly Strictly Bluegrass organizers look promising this year with Santa Cruz trio the Devil Makes Three, Allah-Las, Conor Oberst, Nicki Bluhm & the Gramblers among the younger acts on the bill, with HSB vets Boz Scaggs, Chris Isaak, Robert Earl Keen, Bonnie Raitt, Patty Griffin and Natalie Maines rounding out the lineup. With six stages over three days, this free festival in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park draws more than 500,000 people. (MC)

Paramore
Oct 18, SAP Center, $39.50-$49.50
Paramore will headline the newly renamed SAP Center on Oct 18, supported by Hellogoodbye and Metric. The alt-rock band released its first full-length album in four years in April, debuting at No. 1 on the Billboard charts. It is the first album recorded without co-founding members Josh and Zac Farro, guitarist and drummer respectively, who left the band at the end of 2010 with a scathing blog post accusing Paramore of being a “manufactured product of a major label.” Maybe after seven years someone finally decided to break it to them. Paramore has also recently announced a four day cruise/music festival slated to set sail next March, after completion of their international “Self-Titled” tour. The band will be performing on the high seas alongside dozens of other acts including Tegan & Sara. (SL)

Treasure Island Music Festival
Oct 19-20, Treasure Island, $85 and up
An armada of bands, 26 strong, rallies in the middle of San Francisco Bay for this weekend-long festival. Setting the tenor for day one is the twitchy, cerebral, but irresistibly danceable Atoms for Peace. This unlikely super-group pairing of Radiohead’s Thom Yorke and Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist Flea is supported by trip-hop pioneer Tricky, whose recent release False Idols is a return to his ’90s peak. Relative youngsters Phantogram fit right in with their menacing and seductive beats, while Little Dragon deliver New Wave neo-soul by way of Sweden. L.A.’s Poolside brings a welcome burst of sunshine with their signature “daytime disco” sounds while Diplo’s Major Lazer plugs in his dancehall sound system. Original loser Beck ushers in day two, featuring the many faces of indie pop, from the trickstery Animal Collective to the smooth rusticity of Lord Huron and the plangent garage rock of Palm Violets. James Blake’s dubstep infused singer-songwriter ballads may be the perfect recipe to soothe a Sunday morning hangover. (RF)

“I got into music quite early,” says Lila Downs, the Grammy-winning singer/actress whose music blends traditional Mexican folk music, jazz, rock and soul—and who is one of the headliners for this year’s VivaFest! at HP Pavilion on September 16.

“According to my mother,” Downs says, “I started imitating traditional Mexican musicians, and also American musicians like Bob Dylan, when I was little. I went to school, and studied anthropology and voice. Then I dropped out of college and followed the Grateful Dead. That really brought me full circle to a whole other relationship with music—to the notion of community and a realization about how similar we really are as people.”

This eclectic start, Downs says, inspired her to approach music in the same way as the Dead and other jam bands, while incorporating themes from her multiethnic background: “I’m American and a Mexican at the same time, and Indian on top of that, from a native group called Mixtec. My grandma and my mom always spoke in their native language. That was also was cause for some discrimination in Mexico when I was growing up.”

Her latest album, Pecados y Milagros (Sins and Miracles) was released last fall, and is a bit of a departure from her previous efforts, but it was still hugely successful. The New York Times called it “sleek modern Mexican pop with a thrilling, chameleonic voice at its center,” and it debuted at number one on the Billboard Top Latin Albums.

Part of the appeal of the album, Downs believes, is that, as she’s matured, she’s tapped more deeply into her religious faith.

“I think as you get older, your music just kind of melts into what your trying to say,” Downs explains. “My writing isn’t so explicit anymore; it’s more about metaphor. Faith is a very unusual, amazing quality that humans have, and it comes in so many varieties and ways you can interpret it.
“For Mexicans, it’s a very particular interpretation with its Christian and Catholic iconography, but it’s not only that, it’s a belief in nature, of mystical spirits and the spirits of old revolutionaries and things like that. My mother even says to me, ‘Whoever you think is dead or has passed, put his [image] up on the altar, and we’ll ask for miracles.’”

She continues, “So it’s a very apocryphal kind of religion, and I find it very liberating in these times. Especially in Mexico, which has been going through a wave of violence for quite a while now. In these desperate times you tend to think a lot about God.”

Her faith isn’t without its beneficiaries. Downs has long been celebrated for her social activism. She is still eager to help make a difference in peoples’ lives.

Silicon Valley hosts a strong lineup of fall concerts with some of the biggest names in pop, indie rock and electronic music and the debut of SVSX.

Wobbleland
Aug. 31, 7pm; San Jose Civic; $50-$70. Some fans of Wobbleland have expressed disappointment that this year’s lineup isn’t loaded with the same dubstep star power as one that took San Francisco by storm in 2011. But they’re missing the point—nobody on that bill was famous yet outside of the electronic underground. Wobbleland is an underground party designed to let thousands of scantily clad fans get their spines rocked by these artists before they become phenoms. This year’s rave will pump untold decibels of bass into the San Jose Civic courtesy of headliner Flux Pavilion. Flux is best known for his Bassnectar-type dubstep anthem “Bass Cannon,” but fans of Kanye and Jay-Z are more likely to recognize his track “I Can’t Stop,” which was sampled on their “Who Gon Stop Me” album last year. The rest of the Wobbleland roster, aside from maybe Cypress Hill’s DJ Muggs, comes straight from the underground: Zomboy, Barenoize, Bare, Grizzly, NastyNasty, Megalodon and more.

VivaFest!
Sept. 8-16; downtown San Jose; Sept. 16 HP Pavilion show, 7pm, $30 and up. Creative director of VivaFest!, Dan Guerrero, has brought an epic vision and a flair for spectacle to what started out a couple of decades ago as a folksy tribute to the well-known but poorly understood Mexican mariachi tradition. Guerrero is the kind of producer who believes that if something is worth doing, it’s worth doing bigger, so it’s no surprise that the centerpiece of his show this year has Gigante in the title. I mean, the organizers of any festival celebrating Mexican culture would be beside themselves to have Latin music star Lila Downs; Chicano Cali favorites Ozomatli; Mariachi Vargas de Tecalitlan, which was responsible for popularizing mariachi internationally in the 1980s; and legendary cantina chanteuse Paquita la del Barrio. But Guerrero has wrapped all four of them into one show at HP Pavilion on Sept. 16, “Domingo Gigante: A Night of Stars.” The festival will also feature their yearly free Outdoor Feria del Mariachi the same day on HP’s arena green. Besides the Super Sunday extravaganza, there will be a film series, historical walks, mariachi and dance workshops, and more.

SVSX
Sept. 22; downtown San Jose
The South Bay music scene thrives off the intersection of underground culture and high-tech empire. It’s no surprise that in the land of start-ups, the music revolution of the last few years has been born in the garages and on the laptops of a new generation of talent. The Silicon Valley Sound eXperience—SVSX—is a showcase for that revolution, supporting the local music scene with stages on which to make the next advance. This debut year will feature the first SVSX music awards and a club crawl brimming with the best and brightest on the South Bay scene. Artists like Will Sprott, whose unique songwriting and arrangements with the Mumlers opened the floodgates to the wave of eclectic and sometimes unclassifiable bands that have risen up here in the last few years. Like Anya and the Get Down, whose mash-up of rock, reggae and dubstep threatens to break big at any moment. Like Careless Hearts, the Shitkickers and the other bands scheduled to perform. They are all the sound of the Silicon Valley experience.

Harmony by the Bay
Sept. 29, 2pm; Shoreline, Mountain View; $49.50-$79. The Harmony Festival in Santa Rosa was known for a weird mix of performers; last year’s bill featured the Flaming Lips, Primus and breakbeat master Chango B, along with bluegrass and Afrobeat. In March, organizers announced that, after 33 years, money woes had done in the three-day festival, at least for the time being—and then surprised everyone with the debut of this South Bay spin-off festival, a joint venture among Harmony’s organizers, KFOG and Live Nation. Pared down to a one-day, two-stage setup, HBTB attempts to carry over the eclecticism of its namesake, with alt headliners Kimbra, the Shins, Tegan and Sara, plus reggae-rockers the Dirty Heads, bluegrass fixture Alison Krauss, electro-tribal strangesters Beats Antique and reggae legend Jimmy Cliff.