Slim Cessna’s Auto Club had been exploring the rootsier sides of Americana for a decade by the time Wire critic David Keenan dreamed up the “New Weird America” moniker. Yet to date, the country and gospel outfit’s most ringing endorsement continues to be that of aging gadfly (and fellow Colorado native) Jello Biafra, who signed the band to his Alternative Tentacles label in 2000. Biafra’s nod isn’t that surprising, seeing as how SCAC’s backwater anthems embody both punk sensibilities and snake-handling weirdness. Indeed, with their glasses, banjos, and graying beards, Slim, sidekick Jay Munly, and the rest of the good ol’ boys could pass for a gaggle of greasy outlaws who brew moonshine in mountain trailers. That may not be enough to land the band a music-nerd buzzword of their own, but maybe authenticity is its own reward. Slim Cessna’s Auto Club performs with the Cassettes at 8:30 p.m. at DC9, 1940 9th St. NW. $10. (202) 483-5000.