A couple of bands screaming for attention

When homegrown rockers Motion City Soundtrack signed a record deal with Epitaph Records back in 2002, a lot of local music scenesters had the same reaction: Who?!

One of the headliners at Sunday's Warped Tour out at Canterbury Park, the guys in MCS made a name for themselves among young, tight-T-wearing, emo-adoring rock fans nationwide before they were widely known at home. And that was before MySpace.

A pair of younger local bands, Gloria and Four Letter Lie, are taking flight in much the same fashion -- and with MySpace's wind at their back.

From the sounds of its MySpace tracks and YouTube clips (more music wasn't available), Gloria falls in line with the emo flavors of the day, a la another young MySpace-buoyed Twin Cities band, Quietdrive, or New Found Glory. The quintet's best track so far is a rousing cover of the Harvey Danger hit "Flagpole Sitta," which I'm guessing its young fans don't even remember.

Gloria signed a deal last year with Southern Cali label Uprising, once a backer of Fall Out Boy. The quintet went out to California to record with New Found Glory producer Paul Miner, but the album's release appears hung up. In the meantime, the band kicks off a tour Saturday at the Triple Rock.

Four Letter Lie, meanwhile, has already been on the road a lot this year and is currently out with A Static Lullaby on a tour that lands Aug. 9 at Station 4. The quintet recorded its sophomore album, "What a Terrible Thing to Say," with another established producer, Matt Goldman (Cartel, UnderOath), for the thriving Chicago indie label Victory Records (Hawthorne Heights, Atreyu).

With its two alternating vocalists and melodies-to-mayhem sonic changeups, FLL has something more interesting going on. The band blends thrash and true punk styles into its emo-y sounds, and it packs a wallop. Its set down at the South by Southwest Conference in March was schizophrenic and hyper -- a hard-hitting antidote to the bubbly indie-rock bands at the fest.

Rock on, Fallujah! Local pop/rock band Catchpenny has one doozy of a tour coming up, with probable stops in Iraq, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia (the dates aren't publicized, for security reasons).

Yes, the quartet leaves Sunday for a 16-gig, 22-day U.S.O. tour in the Middle East, gigs that it landed -- no kidding -- through a military talent rep who saw them at SXSW. Guitarist/keyboardist Zach Schauf said the most daunting thing about the trek so far has been trying to figure out how to meet the 70-pounds-per-item travel maximum. Other than that, he said, "We're not too nervous. I'm sure it'll be quite an adventure."

You can wish the band well tonight when it performs at the Uptown Art Fair (8 p.m., free).

Random mix Palmer's Bar on the West Bank is hosting another free indoor/outdoor Palm Fest on Saturday, 1 p.m. to close. Acts include Spider John Koerner, Willie Murphy, Chooglin', the Brass Kings, Knife World and the Lawson Group, featuring Max Ray, Randy Webb and recently recuperated blues-scene mainstay Charlie Lawson. ... The lineup is set for next weekend's Pizza Luce Block Party, always one of the best of the fest season, including Kill the Vultures, A Night in the Box, Charlie Parr, Crossing Guard and the ever-everywhere Romantica. ...

A campy but clever, drum-machine-accompanied rock duo that's part Tenacious D and part Ween, Small White has a release party tonight at the Turf Club for its second CD, "Do It Till It Ends." ... Ollie Stench's leathered punk band the Hostages also has a release party Saturday at 7th Street Entry for its six-song EP, "Sunday Suicide." ...