Wed., Oct. 18

Are the Suicide Girls to this century what Hugh Hefner was to the last? That is, are they taking female sexuality to new boundaries and audiences, smashing through barricades of prudishness with every drop of a bra? Aw, we don't know. We'd be lying if we told you we didn't dig the sexy goings-on - R-rated, we'd say - of these tattooed love gals when they perform, which they are doing once again at the Middle East Downstairs Oct. 18. Legend has it the SG started as a two-person operation out of a Portland, Ore. loft in 2001. In five years suicidegirls.com gets five million visitors a month, and probably makes money we can only dream of. They've got a rather provocative hardcover book out there we've perused a few times. They've got a community of girls that includes over 1000 models - and they're not specimens of standard skin mag beauty. Nope, real girls who are real sexy. In performance, their shtick does sometimes get, well, shticky but we've never walked away without a smile. (Once, we got a pair of Suicide Girls panties for our betrothed.) Now, not only do you get the best-known of the modern burlesque troupes on this bill, you get ace local alt-rock band Read Yellow and all-female Japanese trio Tsu Shi Ma Ma Re, who toured with the Girls before. Starts at 9 p.m. Tickets: $15

472 Massachusetts Ave., Cambridge, 617-864-3278 mideastclub.com