HIT PICK

Gladhand, Saturday, January 27, at the Mercury Cafe, is made up of five rather modest folks: The closest thing to a boast bassist Mike Brown can come up with after being asked about new and exciting happenings involving the band is, "Well, we're going to have T-shirts soon." So you'll have to take it from us that Gladhand is one of the city's most entertaining live acts, a frantic melange of pop-rock sounds, showy costumes and constant motion. The act is almost finished recording tunes for You Just Squished Mr. Itchy Fish, a CD set for an early-summer release, but the live focus is on newer material about which Brown divulges practically nothing. Obviously, he does all his Gladhanding on stage.