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The Hard Lessons, "Wise Up!" and "Hard Lessons" (Self-released)

This Detroit trio plays raw music rooted in garage rock; it has a lo-fi feel but is very much a wall of sound.

These former teachers - Augie, American lit; Ko Ko Louise, history; and the Anvil, music - quit their day jobs to form a band. And the bandmates carry on a fine Motown tradition, as exemplified by White Stripes, the Von Bondies and the Dirt Bombs, of rootsy rock Õn' roll, using synths and blues guitar as their weapons of choice.

"Wise Up!" is a five-song EP that shows off the group's sonic dynamic. "Bamboo" is retro garage that captures that rugged "Detroit blues boogie" but with an electronic bent. "Carey Says (Alright!)" is raw and bluesy with a Õ60s farfisa organ hum, while "Wicked Man" is synth-heavy, electronic New Wave.

The lovely ballad "It Bleeds" is a raw duet with male-female harmonies, and "Move to California" has a country-rock aura with male-female call-and-response vocals.

"Hard Lessons" is a three-song tribute to Neil Young that features two versions of "Hey Hey, My My (Into the Black)." The second version is more funky and has more intense jamming. The opening blues-garage version features Ko Ko Louise on lead vocals, which she imbues with bluesy vulnerability yet strength. Her full-bodied voice is a mixture of Shelby Lynne's, Janis Joplin's and Stevie Nicks' raspy vocals. On "Harvest Moon," it's just her and a solitary, haunting, twangy acoustic guitar.

On the way back from SXSW, the former teachers in the Hard Lessons will call class to order at Atomic Cantina, 315 Gold Ave. S.W. The Dirty Novels and Jackman open the show at 10 p.m. Wednesday. 21 and over. Free. 242-2200.

Listen to "Hey Hey, My My

Monotonix, "Monotonix" (Self-released)

This guitar-drums-and-vocals trio from Tel Aviv, Israel, deals in hard rock with a grungy heavy bottom, and the drummer and guitarist like to settle into a groove ("Lowest Dive"). It has a sludgy, retro texture and reminds of early Black Sabbath ("Summers & Autumns") and the Õ60s-Õ70s hard-rock heyday.

Yonatan Gat's guitar assault is what makes this disc. The weird time structures of "Body Language" provide a six-string workout, yet the keys and piano keep it grounded; while "On the Road" features a funky call-and-response between Ami Shalev's vocals and Gat's guitar's lower register. But drummer Ran Shimoni is no slouch, either. He bashes a martial beat/groove on "No Metal" and pummels away on "Deadly Weapon," a hard-rock reaction to life in the Middle East.

However, a two-instrument trio has its limitations, and the guys can get self-indulgent (the plodding "Wave in the Water") or aimless (the noisy and repetitive "Hand on Hand").

On their way back from Austin's SXSW, Monotonix play at Burt's Tiki Lounge, 313 Gold Ave. S.W. Shoulder Voices opens at 10 p.m. Tuesday. Free. 21 and over only. 247-2878.

Daughters, "Hell Songs" (Hydra Head Records)

Providence, R.I.'s, favorite sons (there are no females), Daughters, is a damaged, art-rock noise quintet that is definitely an acquired taste. This is atonal spaz rock with monotone vocals ("Daughters Spelled Wrong"). But they do have some killer titles ("Feisty Snakewoman").

The method to their madness is improvisational, as "songs" (the 49-second "B X-Ray") segue from one into another; these guys get through 10 tunes in under half an hour. The spastic punk of "Fiery" is loud, declamatory and confrontational as guitars speed by; "Providence by Gaslight" is a schizo shout-out; and "Hyperven Tilationsystem" is math-rock, hyper jazz.

The almost circuslike "Recorded Inside a Pyramid" is built on a linear percussion repetition and guitar progression that becomes more and more brutal (in more ways than one) by the minute; the cello coda is its saving grace.

Though it is not for the squeamish, the adventurous - i.e. fans of oldies but goodies like Frank Zappa and Captain Beefheart, and more contemporary groups like Fatomas or Peeping Tom - might want to take a listen.

You might want to hide your daughters this Tuesday when Daughters descends on the Launchpad, 618 Central S.W., on their return home from SXSW. Big Business, Into the Quick and Blackmarket share the bill at 9 p.m. $7. 21 and over only. 764-8887.

Listen to "Fiery"

David Guetta, "Guetta Blaster" (Perfecto/Ultra Records, out Tuesday)

Parisian David Guetta is a DJ, music producer and club promoter who is famous worldwide, aside from the States (except among clubbers and DJs). He hopes to change that with his U.S. debut.

Guetta wrote the music and produced it, with Chris Willis singing on seven of the 13 tracks. The French house-music pioneer doesn't stray far from the nest, as he delivers an intoxicating mix of house and electro-funk techno.

"Love Don't Let Me Go (Walking Away)" is a mash-up with the Egg's Tocadisco remix of "Walking Away." It's four minutes of techno pop with a New Wave beat that's guaranteed to fill dance floors, as is the dance pop of "Just a Little More Love."

Other dance floor-fillers include the beat-heavy "Stay," "Used to be the One," the electro-funk booty-shaker "Money" and "Last Train," which features Jamaican chanteuse Miss Thing and comes across like dance-trance.

The highlight is "Open Your Eyes," which features the Stereo MCs. With its deep-techno throb and spacey atmospherics, it would fit in nicely in the MCs' canon.

Guetta tips his hat to his influences throughout, as on the Yaz-like "Higher"; the "Sweet Dreams" electro-ballad "Time"; "In Love With Myself" (Depeche Mode); and the New Order ambience of "The World is Mine." Label head Paul Oakenfold offers a down-tempo remix of "This World" to close the disc.

David Guetta has embarked on his first-ever U.S. club tour. It includes stops at SXSW in Austin and at the Winter Music Conference in Miami. His 10-show, eight-city jaunt ends with an appearance at the Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival in Indio, Calif., on April 27.