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Have a Very Wilco Holiday With Your Complete Concert Calendar: Dec. 10-16

Pretty much all the music you can catch in the Twin Cities this week.

Photos provided|

Girl in Red, Wilco

The year is winding down, but there's still plenty of music being made or, at the very least, performed live for your entertainment.

Tuesday, December 10

DJ Cam Jones @ Acadia

Blue Tuesday: Dinner & Jazz @ Berlin

International Reggae All Stars @ Bunker’s

Leslie Vincent @ Crooners

Shaun Johnson Big Band @ Dakota

Alex Gelking @ Dark Horse

St. Dominic’s Trio @ Driftwood

Karaoke with On Call Entertainment @ Eagles 34

Open Mic Night @ The Garage

JS Ondara with Courtney Hartman @ Icehouse

Cedar Avenue Big Band @ Jazz Central

Dan Gjetlen and Talking Strings @ Metronome

Nova Jazz Orchestra @ Minnesota Music Cafe

Timeless Tuesdays with Mixie @ Mortimers

Minneapolis Southwest High School @ Orchestra Hall

  • Girl in Red with Sunday (1994) @ Palace TheatreRacket’s style rules (we actually do kinda have them) forbid me from all-capping an album title just because the artist does. But I will defy that edict in the case of Girl in Red’s I’M DOING IT AGAIN BABY! because Marie Ulven Ringheim is just an all-caps kinda girl. “Hey I took a shower today,” she boasts on the lead track, “I’m Back,” which suggests that a bout with depression may have delayed the new release while acknowledging that “time doesn’t stop for a sad little girl.” (Her last album was in 2021, which wasn’t all that long ago, but three years can feel like forever when you’re 25.) Unashamed enough of her neediness to call a song “Pick Me,” Ringheim gets dumped and rejected a bunch here, often (she says) because she’s too intense for them. Hell, I thought she was a little much myself till Chappell Roan set the bar for pop star overexuberance so high. The music world can always use another queer pop girl, but a Norwegian with no chill? Now that’s a breakthrough in representation.—Keith Harris

Zen Open Jam @ Palmer’s

Jeffrey Foucault (Album Release) with Erik Koskinen @ Parkway

Artist Showcase @ Sociable Cider Works

Industrial Strength with DJ Sin @ Terminal Bar

Worker’s Playtime: Mike Munson @ 331 Club

December Conspiracy Series featuring El Drifte, Jared McCloud @ 331 Club

Machine Girl @ Varsity

DL4 with Cole Diamond @ White Squirrel

Izzy Cruz with Willing Done, Woodzen @ White Squirrel

Wednesday, December 11

Shady Babies Open Mic @ Acadia

The Passion Park Experience @ Amsterdam

MN Songwriter Showcase with Nick Hensley @ Aster Cafe

Imminent Standards Trio @ Berlin

Twine @ Bunker’s

Arne Fogel @ Crooners

We’re Singing Up Joy 4 Christmas @ Crooners

Kathleen Johnson’s Holiday Hang @ Dakota

Miss Shannon’s Swing Night @ Eagles 34

Luminare Christmas @ Fitzgerald Theatre

Big Woods Brass Band @ Minnesota Music Cafe

Mortiholics Residency @ Mortimers

Tony DeSare @ Orchestra Hall

Better Mistakes @ Palmer’s

Sarah Jane Music School Showcase @ Pilllar Forum

Connor McRae Trio @ Schooner Tavern

Fend, Admiral Fox, NATL PARK SRVC, and Joe Bartel @ 7th St Entry

Jazz Night @ Terminal Bar

Harold’s House Party on KFAI with Jeff Ray and the Stakes @ 331 Club

Bob Frey @ 331 Club

Rooin, Dog Gamn, & Dream Vandals @ Underground Music Venue

Colin Stough & Will Moseley @ Varsity

Molly Maher & Her Disbelievers @ White Squirrel

Lords of the Universe with Home Team Quarterback, Alpine Shepherd Boy @ White Squirrel

Thursday, December 12

Babi Miamii @ Acadia

Natalie Fideler with Cassandra Johnson & Corzine @ Amsterdam

KRSM Nite @ Arbeiter Brewing

John Swardson @ Aster Cafe

Tim Sparks & Ben Abrahamson @ Berlin

Nathan Hanson’s Rope Ladder @ Berlin

Outfront Queer Homecoming @ Black Hart

Jay Bee & the Routine @ Bunker’s

Neon Night: Cyberpunk Edgerunners @ Can Can Wonderland

Mr. Sun Plays Ellington’s Nutcracker @ Cedar Cultural Center

Arne Fogel @ Crooners

We’re Singing Up Joy 4 Christmas @ Crooners

Gunhild Carling @ Dakota

The Outcats, Red40 @ Driftwood

The Roasters @ Eagles 34

Karaoke with On Call Entertainment @ Eagles 34

Fever Candlelight Christmas Carols @ Granada

Snapped Live Band Open Mic @ Green Room

Cornbread & Friends Holiday Blues Show @ Hook and Ladder

Orange Goodness and the Nunnery @ Hook and Ladder

Kiss the Tiger with the Controversial New “Skinny Pill” @ Icehouse

Fuchsia @ Jazz Central

Stablemates @ Metronome

Rooms on Fire @ Minnesota Music Cafe

Our Eyes At Last Shall See Him @ Orchestra Hall

The Front Porch Swingin’ Liquor Pigs @ Palmer’s

Tina Schlieske & Friends @ Parkway

Cervesa Muscular with Matt Caflisch’s B, and Street Hassle @ Pilllar Forum

Just Luv, Inc @ Schooner Tavern

Daphne Jane with Ella Luna, Ava Levy and Kiernan @ 7th St Entry

Said Kelley, Rachel Kurtz, Katacombs @ 331 Club

The Silent Treatment, The Heavy Sixers (EP Release), Muun Bato, and The 99ers @ Turf Club

Chris Holm @ White Squirrel

NoNo with Asteroid, Somewhere Nice, Someday @ White Squirrel

Friday, December 13

1947 (Single Release) @ Acadia

Waste (EP Release) @ Amsterdam

Jennifer Marie @ Aster Cafe

  • Freak of the Week @ Beast BarbecueWe’re really, really hoping at least one reader begins their day at the alpaca farm (see Saturday's picks for best local events), only to end up in the basement of a BBQ joint dancing their ass off. Because, as Racket readers know, Beast has evolved into one of the hottest dance clubs in town. “I crank it down to 60 degrees before dance parties, because it gets up to 80 by the end,” says John McKinney, Beast’s co-owner-operator and a noted ’90s raver. “Even in the winter, I’m turning on the air conditioner.” For tonight’s special holiday edition of the house/disco/techno/funk party Freak of the Week, you’ve got Berlin’s DJ T-1000 spinning as a headliner, plus veteran local DJ/producer/promoter Nola Rave and fellow local Dedicated Enemy.—Jay Boller

Dan Carpel/Chris Graham/Miguel Hurtado @ Berlin

Room3 @ Berlin

Nudie Nubies Burlesque @ Black Hart

Some Shitty Cover Band @ Bunker’s

Supertask, TRIPP ST, & Mousai @ Cabooze

The Customers, Mean Magic, Tim Casey & the Martyrs @ Cloudland

Erin and Jay Cabaret @ Crooners

Arne Fogel @ Crooners

Dorothy Doring and Adi Yeshaya @ Crooners

José James @ Dakota

Glycerin Tears and Friends @ Driftwood

Dead by 50, Bong Reaper, Die Ghost @ Eagles 34

Steve Clarke & the Working Stiffs with Miss Shannon @ Eagles 34

Santa Rave⏤The Ultimate Holiday Themed Rave @ Fine Line

Emo Nite with Derek Sanders (of Mayday Parade) @ First Avenue

Pity Party, Quietchild, Cause for Concern, Emily and the Space Butterflies @ The Garage

Eva Markham @ Ginkgo Coffee

BeBe Zahara Benet @ Granada

Yam Haus with brotherkenzie @ Green Room

Trailer Trash’s Trashy Little Xmas Show @ Hook and Ladder

Sarah Morris Holiday Show @ Icehouse

Chris Bates: BCE @ Jazz Central

Man Cub with KEPIK, Red Comet, Panduhh, and Psychodelix 

Claudio Simonetti’s Goblin @ The Lyric

The Champagne Drops @ Metronome

GB Leighton @ Minnesota Music Cafe

Crimes Against Ravers Nu Metal Night @ Mortimers

R&B Takeover @ Myth Live

John Denver: A Rocky Mountain Holiday @ Orchestra Hall

VocalEssence: Bach’s Christmas Oratorio @ Orchestra Hall

The Walker Brothers Band @ Padraigs

  • Wilco @ Palace TheatreI’m not nearly as big a fan of Jeff Tweedy and his crew as someone with my demographic stats should be. I appreciate Nels Cline’s improvisatory ability, Jeff Tweedy’s songcraft, and the band’s willingness to dramatically recast its material in a live setting, but their music rewards my concentration without ever quite commanding it, to put it politely. Something in Tweedy’s pleasant but narrow voice just homogenizes their emotional palette. Still, I don’t begrudge the faithful this three-night stand at the Palace, a reconfiguration of a seasonal event the band once called “Winterlude” (also the name of one of my favorite Dylan nonsense songs). They promise no repeats over the course of the weekend, and the only other cities where it’s happening are Tulsa and Austin (the Texas one).—Keith Harris

The Slow Death, Lutheran Heat, and the Right Here @ Palmer’s

The Blenders @ Pantages Theatre

Tina Schlieske & Friends @ Parkway

Den of Thieves @ Pilllar Forum

Jack Knife & the Sharps @ Schooner Tavern

Greg Downey with Some DJ, Montoni, Trance Jesus @ Skyway Theatre

Illiterate Light with Palmyra @ 7th St Entry

Pay Dirt, Darkling, Velour Tomb @ Seward Cafe

Threads Electric, Son/Boy, Poolboy @ 331 Club

A Tribute to the Replacements feat. The Melismatics @ Turf Club

An Electrifying Evening of Black Sabbath & Iron Maiden @ Uptown VFW

Devil Dodger with Mammoth Moth @ White Squirrel

Absolutely Yours with Real Numbers, True Lust @ White Squirrel

Pleezer, Piece of Cake, SMILE Like You Mean It! @ Zhora Darling

Saturday, December 14

Ninety-Five Ninety-Six (Ugly Holiday Sweater Party) @ Acadia

Golden Garters @ Amsterdam

The Farewell Season with Echoes At Midnight @ Aster Cafe

Jovon Williams & Marvelous @ Berlin

Jearlyn Steele @ Berlin

DJ Wicked @ Berlin

Chase & Ovation @ Bunker’s

Sunshine and the NIghtwalkers, Mild Manner @ Can Can Wonderland

Black Co-MingL Navity @ Capri Theater

Mpls Afrobeats Dance Party feat. Fanaka Nation, Bakarii, DJs Kwey and Salif Keita @ Cedar Cultural Center

Poison Ivy and the People, Spit Takes, Tomboyy @ Cloudland

Erin and Jay Cabaret @ Crooners

Maud Hixson and Rick Carlson @ Crooners

Dorothy Doring and Larry McDonough @ Crooners

José James @ Dakota

The Fabulous Hackmasters @ Driftwood

Toussaint Morrison with J.E.M. @ Dusty’s

The Boot R+B, Slow Death, Deadly Cyclamates @ Eagles 34

Heart to Gold (Album Release) with Gully Boys, Gramma and Scrunchies @ Fine Line

The Last Revel with Two Runner @ First Avenue

Lemonbrass Quintet @ Gambit Brewing

Your Last Breath, The Losing Hope, Linus, Moxen @ The Garage

Ellis Delaney @ Ginkgo Coffee

Trio Amigos @ Granada

Yam Haus with Misty Boyce @ Green Room

Pop Wagner @ Icehouse

Dean Granros: 58 Belvedere @ Jazz Central

Chassi with Chango, Mile32, Iman, Speedshift, & Abyss @ The Loft

Rock U Music School @ Metronome

The Champagne Drops @ Metronome

Funktion Junction @ Minnesota Music Cafe

PV$$Y CNTRL feat. Shannon Blowtorch + Sophia Eris @ Mortimers

The Dead South @ Myth Live

VocalEssence Bach’s Christmas Oratorio @ Orchestra Hall

Clover Club @ Padraigs

Mark Johnson @ Padraigs

Skulpture, Warcake, and Two Ghosts @ Palmer's

The Blenders @ Pantages Theatre

Autumn with Observant, Darkling I Listen, Echo Signal @ Pilllar Forum

BASIC: Chris Forsyth, Douglas McCombs, Mikel Patrick Avery with Yr Knives and American Cream @ 7th St Entry

Everett Smithson @ Schooner Tavern

Malachite with Mvrrow, PolyD3monic, M.A.Y. @ Studio B

Robert Dixon, EFMI, West on Wellesley @ Terminal Bar

Voltage Controller @ 331 Club

Del-Viles, Nathan Walker, Craig. Sensitive @ 331 Club

Wax Appeal @ TRXX WRHS

Martin Zellar with Laamar @ Turf Club

Bush @ Uptown Theater

Malamanya @ Uptown VFW

A Very Cozy Christmas Tour @ Varsity

The Bored with the Deeper Kind @ White Squirrel

Wolves Of Hubbard (EP Release) with Sun Patches, Ruben @ White Squirrel

MURF, The Cult of Nasty, & Müllet @ Zhora Darling

Sunday, December 15

Soulkeeper with Our Common Collapse, Bejalvin, Fallingwithscissors @ Amsterdam

Swing Brunch with Patty & the Buttons @ Aster Cafe

Curated by Ross Hutchens (feat. Sard) @ Berlin

Mary Brewster’s Sparkle @ Black Hart

Dr. Mambo’s Combo @ Bunker’s

Steve Saleka’s 24-Piece One-Man Band @ Can Can Wonderland

Riverside Swing Band @ Crooners

Sherwin & Pam Linton and The Cotton Kings @ Crooners

Los Lobos @ Dakota

Phine and Friends, Shotgun Ragtime @ Driftwood

Lenz and Frenz @ Dual Citizen

Tailspin @ Eagles 34

Rogue Tango @ Eagles 34

Twin CIties Country Dancers @ Eagles 34

Karaoke with Reina Starr @ Eagles 34

DayFunk @ Eat Street Crossing

Music of Taylor Swift & More for Kids with Bri & The Antiheroes @ First Avenue

Brother Ali with Ant with Dee-1 and MaLLy @ First Avenue

DJ Swiftie @ Granada

Synastry Sundays @ Green Room

Chosen by the Funk @ Hook and Ladder

Darnell Davis @ Icehouse

Jack Schabert Jazz Orchestra @ Metronome

Sunday Jazz Series: NxtGen @ Metronome 

Red Hot Django Peppers @ Metronome

Butter Boys, Ghost Kitchen, Deletist, Covergirl Hot 100 @ Mortimers

Merry and Bright @ Orchestra Hall

Church of Cornbread @ Palmer's

West Bank Social Club @ Palmer's

The Blenders @ Pantages Theatre

SimpleGifts with Billy McLaughlin @ Parkway

Music Jam @ Schooner Tavern

A Skylit Drive with Odds of an Afterthought @ 7th St Entry

Robert Wilkinson @ 331 Club

Switchyard @ 331 Club

Eleven Degenerates @ 331 Club

Magical Holiday Gala @ Turf Club

Poppa Foster @ White Squirrel

Karaoke @ White Squirrel

Monday, December 16

Carinda’s Variety Open Mic @ Acadia

Joe Westerlund & Trever Hagen @ Berlin

Phil Heywood and Tim Sparks @ Crooners

Bradley Greenwald @ Crooners

The Peterson Family @ Dakota

Open Mic @ Driftwood

Tango Desperados Practilonga @ Eagles 34

Other Country Ensemble @ Eagles 34

Square Dancing @ Eagles 34

Josh Ritter @ Fitzgerald Theater

Aby Wolf with Kavyesh Kaviraj, Pete James Johnson, + Laurels String Quartet @ Icehouse

MN Hard Bop Collective @ Metronome

Autotune Karaoke @ Mortimers

Cowaoke with Ben Moooker @ Palmer's

Open Mic @ Sociable Cider Werks

Open Mic @ Terminal Bar

Blue Groove @ 331 Club

Roe Family Singers @ 331 Club

Acoustic Jam Session @ Utepils Brewing

Blue Earth Collective @ White Squirrel

Ausgang City with Canadian Girlfriend, Joey Thursday @ White Squirrel

Lori Dokken, Judi Vinar, & Rachel Holder @ Woman’s Club of Minneapolis

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