Pablo and the Hemphill 7 w/ Darth Vato: Fri at the Wreck Room, 3208 W 7th St, FW. 817-348-8303.

It's been several months since Pablo and the Hemphill 7 last graced the evening stage. Late last year, frontman Joe Vano and his hardworking crew of roots-reggae revivalists decided to take some time off from playing four-hour gigs just about every other night so they could record. The results of their studio work have been trapped inside a temperamental computer. Hopefully, it'll see the light of day soon.

In the meantime, Vano's bandmates have been getting involved in a variety of other projects (and, of course, contributing to the incestuousness of the local scene). Bassist Marcus Lawyer has been working at his home studio, laying down tracks of trance-y trip-hop mystery. Guitarist Steffin Ratliff joined Sleepy Atlantis, the full-time project of one of Vano's former co-workers at the Coffee Haus, Bobby Zanzucchi. Keyboardist-singer Justin Pate added his touch to the funk-jazz outfit Confus-a-tron for awhile before recently taking over the Sleepy Atlantis drum chair. In late July, he'll play keyboards on tour with two bands -- reggae upstarts Darth Vato (whose drummer, Eric Dodson, has been playing with Pablo since Damien Stewart departed to concentrate on Goodwin) and jazzy pop-rockers Horses.

This weekend, Pablo will share the Wreck Room stage with the self-proclaimed "back-stabbing pinche gringos" of Darth Vato, who'll be celebrating the release of their debut full-length Havoc. Produced by Horses frontman Jordan Richardson, the disc is a striking progression from its predecessor, last year's Aloha Chingaso.

On Havoc, the Hemphill 7 connection with the Vatos is evident. It's in Pate's tasty ivory-tickling, Dodson and bassist Steve Seward's deep groove, and the subject matter of at least one particular song, "Situation Overload," one of maybe two or three criminal-minded Fort Worth reggae ditties (the best-known being Pablo's "Little Man and Chiva Joe"). This one was penned by Vato frontman Kerry Dean (no, not the Democratic presidential ticket). Dean is singing with new strength and confidence, and on the basis of a few preliminary spins, Havoc could be the feelin'-good disc of the summer.