Texan singer-songwriter Jolie Holland plays the Roundhouse, the Scissor Sisters play free in Trafalgar square and Mekon are at Fabric. David Smyth selects the cream of this weekend's gigs...

Jolie Holland
Roundhouse, NW1
The Texan singer-songwriter has nurtured a devoted fanbase since leaving the Be Good Tanyas, with Tom Waits the most notable among their number. Latest album Springtime Can Kill You features vintage folk and jazz as appealing as anything she has produced, timeless sounds perfect for 3am listening. (0870 389 1846). Sat 16 Sep, 7pm.

Scissor Sisters
Trafalgar Square, WC2
Well, they were never going to make their comeback with a low-key show in a jazz club, were they? New York's rainbow warriors launch their new album by taking over central London for the weekend's biggest party. Expect songs from the Seventies, costumes from Mars and the odd lewd joke about Nelson's column. (www.motorola.com/red). Sat 16 Sep, 6pm.

Mekon
Fabric, EC1
The dance producer from the influential Wall of Sound stable unites most of the guest stars from latest album Something Came Up on stage, for one night only. Marc Almond, rapper Roxanne Shante and Alan Vega from Suicide will all be there. (020 7336 8898). Fri 15 Sep, 9.30pm-5am.

Matmos
Koko, NW1
Best known for their work with Bjˆrk, the brainy electronic duo have surpassed themselves on latest album The Rose Has Teeth in the Mouth of a Beast, a hugely ambitious project that takes a dead gay icon as each song's subject matter, including William S Burroughs and Joe Meek. (0870 432 5527) Sun 17 Sep, 7.30pm.

Don't Look Back: Tindersticks
Barbican, EC2
Continuing the series in which cult bands perform their finest albums track by track, Nottingham's Tindersticks prepare to march sombrely through the majestic sounds of their untitled second album. (020 7638 4141). Sun 17 Sep, 8pm.