Pants tops New Year’s bash at The Swamp

It’s been a wacky year for James Pants.

He’s become a new dad, toured all over the world, moved from Spokane to the Midwest, and made oddly instructive cooking videos along with strangely hilarious trailers for his new album, the retro-hip-hop cult-themed psychedelic late-night pleaser, “Seven Seals.”

And after all that, Papa Pants is playing a show on New Year’s Eve in Spokane at The Swamp.

He passed up gigs in New York and San Francisco and is instead flying in for a 2010 party with his old cohort Ben Cater, aka DJ Supervillain.

For the New Year’s Eve show, Supervillain will be spinning a “2010 Space Odyssey” mix while Pants will be doing whatever he wants, just as he does on his new album, released earlier this month.

Laced with lo-fi electronics and ghostly fuzzed rap/sung vocals, “Seven Seals” darkly departs from the upbeat flashback beats on his 2008 full-length debut, “Welcome.”

It’s not necessarily a new direction for Pants. “Seven Seals” is just something he had to get out of his system, he said.

Pants, aka James Singleton, says he already has a third album in the works, a sort of tropical counterpunch to “Seven Seals.”

James Pants and DJ Supervillain drop the beat at 9 p.m. on New Year’s Eve at The Swamp, 1904 W. Fifth Ave. Cover is $5 (21 and older welcome).

Here’s a roundup of more New Year’s Eve club highlights:

A Club: The old Casbah space is being recast as a nightclub specializing in live music. It shape-shifts into the A Club, with a New Year’s Eve grand opening party featuring local indie-jazz-pop-rockers Mon Cheri.

With a maximum capacity around 400, the 7,000-square-foot former dance studio at 416 W. Sprague Ave. has full sprinklers and multiple sized rooms to accommodate everything from lesser-known locals to bigger-name touring acts, said manager Steve Johannis.

Mon Cheri will be performing with its extended seven-piece lineup. The party starts at 9 p.m. Cover is $10 (21 and older welcome).

Lion’s Lair: Infamous for their breakups and reunions, the members of The High Holies have been apart longer than they’ve been together over the last five years, but they’ve managed to re-form again.

The High Holies Reunion show with Space Age Fur happens on New Year’s Eve at 9 p.m. at The Lion’s Lair, 205 W. Riverside Ave. Cover is $5

The Blvd.: Get out your aggressions and bring in the New Year with the Punk Rock New Year’s Eve show with locals The Deadones, Lack of Respect, Laylah’s Drink, Random Noise and Riverside Breakdown.

Music starts at 9 p.m. at The Blvd., 230 W. Riverside Ave. Cover is $7 (21 and older welcome).

Cretin Hop: For some all-ages punk-rock action on New Year’s Eve, check out locals PKY, Bestige, Garajmoholics and Natural Selection at 7 p.m. at The Cretin Hop, 1317 N. Howard St. Cover is $5, all ages welcome.

The Knitting Factory Concert House: You can actually get paid to spend New Year’s Eve at The Knitting Factory, as there will be a $2,010 cash-and-prizes balloon drop at the stroke of New Year.

DJ Prophesy will be spinning jams starting at 9 p.m. at The Knitting Factory Concert House, 919 W. Sprague Ave. Cost: $10 (21 and older welcome).