A Styles all his own

The Girls Against Boys website calls singer/guitarist Scott McCloud's Paramount Styles a "soloish" project. Which is true - McCloud's intimate acoustic tunes are at the center of Paramount Styles' . . . well . . . style. But just as important is the pulsing rhythm section and atmospheric keyboard and piano flourishes from his Styles bandmates. The group plays the Middle East Upstairs tonight with Jeff Hanson, who sings bucolic folk-pop with a near-falsetto voice, and Boston's A Dead Pixel, an indie rock band with folk leanings. 18+ 9 p.m. $9. Middle East Upstairs, 480 Massachusetts Ave., Cambridge. 617-864-3278. www.mideastclub.com