With the year winding down and the holiday season approaching, the concert scene in Japan gets pretty quiet. Although there will be a few international acts headed here in the middle of December, your best shot for a live performance might be checking out local acts before they go into hibernation for New Year's holidays.

Of the acts coming over, there still might be a few tickets left for Brazilian hipsters CSS, the always charming Elvis Costello and slightly mature boy band The Wanted.

CSS will be playing Nagoya's Club Quattro on Dec. 11 (052-264-8211), Osaka's Umeda Club Quattro on Dec. 12 (06-6535-5569) and Ex Theater Roppongi in Tokyo on Dec. 14 (03-3444-6751). Tickets for all shows are ¥6,000 in advance, and starting times are 7 p.m. for the Tokyo gig and 7:30 p.m. for the other two. Costello will have three gigs with his band The Imposters at Ex Theater Roppongi from Dec. 11 to Dec. 13 (7:30 p.m. start; ¥8,000; 03-3444-6751) before heading to Namba Zepp in Osaka on Dec. 15 (6 p.m. start; ¥7,500-¥8,5000; 06-6535-5569). Costello is touring in support his new album "Wise Up Ghost," a collaborative effort with hip-hop outfit The Roots. The Wanted, meanwhile, will be playing Shin Kiba Studio Coast in Tokyo on Dec. 18 (03-3499-6669) and Morinomiya Piloti Hall (06-7732-8888). Both shows will be ¥6,000 and start at 7 p.m.