ABOVE: The sincerest form of flattery.

There’s a vast difference between “cover bands” and “tribute bands.” If you know a handful of other musicians’ songs, you can be a cover band. That’s why there’s so many, and the talent gamut is a vast one. To be a tribute band, however, takes total dedication. Not just to play the music exactly as the original artist did, but often to also look like them and act like them. Tribute sets are a rarer thing, but in the near future you have the chance to see two high-level examples right here in the Valley. The first, Hairball, is a massive out-of-town outfit that recreates the 80s hair rock experience with personas, songs, and costumes copped from 20 different acts (like KISS, Twisted Sister, Guns ‘n Roses, Whitesnake, Bon Jovi, Def Leppard, Motley Crüe, Ozzy, AC/DC, Journey, and Poison). And in tow is the Minneapolis group Wicked Garden, which pays homage to 90s alt-rock groups like Alice in Chains, Soundgarden, Pearl Jam, Nirvana, and Stone Temple Pilots.