A good week to catch up on what some Minnesota musicians have been cooking up.
Tuesday, September 12
Colin Bracewell @ Bryant Square Park
International Reggae All Stars @ Bunkers
St. Dominic's Trio @ Driftwood
Karaoke With On Call Entertainment @ Eagles 34
- Tegan and Sara with Carlie Hansen @ First Avenue—Crybaby, Tegan and Sara's first album of new material since 2016, suggests the Quin twins’ romantic lives (or at least their imagined versions of them) have gotten no less dramatic as they’ve entered their forties. The once-folkie-confessional sisters “went pop” a decade ago and never looked back; they love synths-or-is-that-a-guitar and big drums for the sheer whomp of it all, and they write broad lyrics to match. On the new collection, “Fucking Up What Matters” sums up the personal flaws that are their artistic strength; “this bruise ain’t black it’s yellow” is a raw, perfect metaphor for sidling up to an old lover to get hurt again. The show was originally scheduled for last November, when illness sidelined the whole T & S crew.
Rabeca (Residency) with Alex Woods, Dr. Goon and the Daily Tribune @ Icehouse
Cedar Avenue Big Band Open Rehearsal @ Jazz Central
Nova Jazz Orchestra @ Minnesota Music Cafe
DJ Nanobyte Presents "Byte Nyte" @ Palmer's
- Quasi with Ava Mendoza @ 7th St Entry—If you miss Janet Weiss's drumming (and why wouldn’t you?), you should know that Sleater-Kinney's former third wheel has long moonlighted (moonlit?) as the rhythmic half of the sardonic, tunefully clamorous Quasi, with long-ago ex-husband Sam Coomes up front. Their latest, Breaking the Balls of History, is their best in a quarter-century that was not without its high points, and that's in part because the human condition has caught up with Coomes's cranky disposition. Here he rants like a guy who'd hoped he'd die before the world went to shit and batters his distorted rocksichord (yes, that's a real thing, look it up) like there’s no tomorrow. Stuck between "Riots and Jokes," Coomes muses on the cruel indifference of the laws of nature ("Gravity"), the anxious tedium of pandemic isolation ("Doomscrollers"), and the act of settling for “half a half of a hotdog bun” ("Losers Win"). And if you’re worried that he’s giving up the fight with his "last long laugh at the edge of death," remember that in late 2016 while the rest of us were still chewing our nails and crying to our therapists, Coomes was working to get the indie-all-star ACLU/Planned Parenthood/350.org benefit album Battle Hymns ready in time for the inauguration.
Industrial Strength with DJ Sin @ Terminal Bar
Worker’s Playtime with Adam Kiesling (Album Release) @ 331 Club
September Conspiracy Series featuring Mike Munson @ 331 Club
Deterioration, Putrid Stu @ White Rock Lounge
Trevor McSpadden & Mary Cutrufello & Dan Lowinger @ White Squirrel
Mary Jam (Tuesday Residency) with Delicate Friends, Garret Nasset @ White Squirrel
Wednesday, September 13
MN Songwriter Showcase hosted by Nick Hensley @ Aster Cafe
- Bombino with Paul Metzger @ Cedar Cultural Center—If you think Niger's blues-rockin' Mdou Moctar is hot shit on guitar (and he is), you owe it to check out his no-less-amazing Agadez neighbor. Omar "Bombino" Moctar (no relation) didn't make the stateside splash some hoped—he no longer records for Nonesuch or scores name producers like the Black Keys' Dan Auerbach. But from what I've heard of his latest, Sahel, which is out this Friday, he continues to play with both flash and subtlety. Definitely a treat live.
Maggie's Wednesdays: Tom Hunter @ Crooners
Biréli Lagrène & Martin Taylor @ Dakota
Miss Shannon's Swing Night @ Eagles 34
The Bad Companions @ Eagles 34
- Yard Act with Stuck @ Fine Line—A Leeds quartet you don't have to be an Anglophile to groove with, Yard Act rock the kind of postpunk that aspires to dance music rather than the kind that flaunts its own rhythmic deconstruction. I'm not the first to say frontman James Smith sing-speaks like a more reserved Eddie Argos—of Art Brut, that is, a comparison I'm guessing plenty of this young band's American fans are old enough and Anglophile enough to remember. Unlike Argos, I don't always know what Smith is going on about, but I can tell his heart is in the right place; on the band's 2022 debut, The Overload, his targets include racism and other Little Britain stupidities. Yard Act ups its funk quotient even further on its new single, "The Trench Coat Museum," anchored by the kind of bass line that can carry a whole song and more than earning a remix from definitive '80s electro-pop beat-master Arthur Baker. What I’m saying is, you'd better dance at this one.
Fever Candlelight Concert: Hans Zimmer @ Granada
We Are the Willows Vinyl Happy Hour with Mike Kota @ Green Room
Monique and Xperience @ Minnesota Music Cafe
Mortiholcs with Mpls Finest @ Mortimer's
TaikoArts Midwest: Ensō Daiko @ Northrop
Colonel Mustard's Mechanical Orchestra @ Palmer's
Darkwave Wednesday @ ROK Music Lounge
Conor McRae Trio @ Schooner Tavern
VOLA with Bent Knee and Wheel @ 7th St Entry
Harold’s House Party on KFAI with The Infernos @ 331 Club
Matt Sowell, Baby Grant Johnson @ 331 Club
Moon Hooch with Douala Soul Collective @ Turf Club
Lars-Erik Larson & The 2nd Stringers @ White Squirrel
Lord Jeremy’s 2nd Wednesday Residency with Driftless Revelers, Woodzen @ White Squirrel
Thursday, September 14
Kevin Gamble Quartet @ Aster Cafe
Jameson Rodgers with Them Dirty Roses & Shane Profitt @ Buck Hill
Jay Bee & the Routine @ Bunkers
The Beau Baker Band @ The Commons
Alabaster dePlume @ Cedar Cultural Center
Cafe Accordion Orchestra: Jazz and Java with Robert Bell and Tony Balluff @ Crooners
Country Roads: Dennis Curley Sings the Music of John Denver @ Crooners
Karaoke with On Call Entertainment @ Eagles 34
LGBTQ+ Twin Cities Latin Dance @ Eagles 34
Grieves with Marley B, Dwynell Roland and Cuauhtli @ Fine Line
Fever Candlelight Concert: Hans Zimmer @ Granada
The Union Suits, Confused, Tarias, and The Sound @ Green Room
Jackie Kean, Aesha Minor, and Colin Bracewell @ Icehouse
Smiling Cowboys @ Minnesota Music Cafe
No Limits: The B Side @ Minnesota Music Cafe
The Front Porch Swingin' Liquor Pigs @ Palmer's
Critterthing (Album Release) @ ROK Music Lounge
John Magnuson @ Schooner Tavern
Bay Ledges with Mishegas @ 7th St Entry
Minneapolis Songwriter Round: Andrew Hoyt, Michael Koppleman, Joe Kelly, Mark Subialka @ 331 Club
Brandon Wardell with Jamel Johnson @ Turf Club
Squinny with Dusty Forever, White Line Darko @ White Squirrel
- Eric Clapton with Jimmie Vaughn @ Xcel Energy Center—Oh hell yeah, mom and dad are gonna be pissin' away your inheritance in downtown St. Paul tonight.
Friday, September 15
Ghost Kitchen + The Unnamed @ Aster Cafe
- Drive-By Truckers with American Aquarium and Gear Daddies @ Buck Hill—Hell of a triple bill out in Burnsville.
Ray Bonneville with Corey Medina and Brothers @ Cedar Cultural Center
Gregg Peterson and Lori Dokken: Return to Pooh Corner @ Crooners
The R Factor: Michael Jackson Family Review @ Crooners
Reza Khan Featuring Jennifer Grimm and Friends @ Crooners
Maggie's Afterglow: Ginger Commodore and Rick Carlson @ Crooners
The Reckoning Crew @ Driftwood
Swingin' on a Star @ Eagles 34
Artificial Flowers, The Saboteurs, Radiator Girl @ Eagles 34
- Ken Marino & David Wain’s Middle Aged Dad Jam Band @ Fine Line—Says David Wain of the delightful musical project with his buddy from The State: “I’ve got to tell you, with the writers’ strike being in full swing, I’m all for this becoming my main job. If I could be a rock star and support my family, I would do it in a second.”
- Bully with Wombo @ First Avenue—Alicia Bognanno, the howling force behind Bully, is famously from here. The Rosemount-born, Nashville-based musician got her start engineering records with reformed crank Steve Albini, and began churning out her own grungey records in 2015 with Feels Like. Two more same-sounding LPs would follow, but Bognanno tapped into something special with June’s Lucky for You. Produced by fellow Nashvillian JT Daly, Lucky showcases her screamed confessional lyricism with more polish and depth than previous efforts, resulting in Bully's most adventurous album yet. I’ve had it on constant repeat since it dropped via Sub Pop. Wombo opens this homecoming celebration.
Scrunchies with Ovef Ow and McVicker @ The Garage
Chris Pureka with Kym Register @ Granada
- We Are the Willows (EP Release) with Yellow Ostrich and Mike Kota @ Green Room—The three-song EP that Peter Miller's arty pop project celebrates tonight is the typically wistful Everything Changed.
- MAYDA (Album Release) with 5ifth House and Diane @ Hook and Ladder—Snippets of tracks from Mayda's new Infected have surfaced as teasers, suggesting where the inventively soulful funk-rocker might be headed. Sounds like her music's grown a lot—it's been a long time since she released Mrdr Pxp in 2018, after all.
Houston (Album Release) with the Dames @ Icehouse
Joyann Parker Band @ KJ's Hideaway
Coheed and Cambria After Party with Red Eye Ruby @ KJ's Hideaway
Sumo Seven @ Minnesota Music Cafe
The Piano Guys @ Orpheum Theatre
Beethoven’s Second Symphony with Richard Egarr @ Ordway
Coheed and Cambria with Deafheaven @ Palace Theatre
Wild Lyre and Gabriel Douglas @ Palmer's
Emmy Woods & The Red Pine Ramblers, Eric Hagen & The Red River Revival, Woodzen @ Palmer's
The Nunnery and Friends + Courtney Hartman @ The Parkway
Matcha Fever @ ROK Music Lounge
The April Fools @ Schooner Tavern
Brigitte Calls Me Baby with Jack Pfeffer @ 7th St Entry
Francis Emil Johnson Band, The Johnny Sincerely Orchestra, SOLANA @ 331 Club
Salsa Brava Dance Night @ Uptown VFW
Garden Street with Ski Club, Magic Conch @ White Squirrel
- 50 Cent with Busta Rhymes and Jeremih @ Xcel Energy Center—Are 18,000 Minnesotans nostalgic enough to shell out $30-$45 for G-Unit's gangsta-pop charmer? I just checked ticket availability and so far signs are pointing to "No."
Saturday, September 16
10 Items or Fewer w/ Annie Enneking @ Aster Cafe
The Good, the Bad & the Funky @ Bunkers
Cedar Cypher @ Cedar Cultural Center
Lone Piñon with Steam Machine @ Cedar Cultural Center
ABBA-Solutely Fabulous @ Crooners
C. Willi Myles: Know Your Limits @ Crooners
Kevin Kling and Victor Zupanc: Your Ultimate Troubadours @ Crooners
Maggie's Afterglow: Ginger Commodore and Rick Carlson @ Crooners
Sinatra – My Way with Andrew Walesch & His Orchestra @ Dakota
The Bill Patten Trio @ Dusty's
- Obi Original and The Black Atlantics (EP Release) with Chutes and Moise @ Fine Line—The most prominent performer in the Ozone Creations collective, the Nigerian-born Obi Original debuts his new EP, Original Composition.
Big Bubble Rave @ First Avenue
MUUNBATO, DIIE (Vinyl Release), TIME ROOM, Malamiko @ Green Room
Finick (Album Release) @ KJ's Hideaway
Central Standard Time with Andrew Schwandt Trio @ KJ's Hideaway
Big Toe & the Jam @ Minnesota Music Cafe
Beethoven’s Second Symphony with Richard Egarr @ Ordway
First Annual Palmtoberfest & Tribute Band Show @ Palmer's
Laura Hugo, Old Smugglers and Turbo Pastel @ Palmer's
Legwork with lizard lover & creamcumber @ ROK Music Lounge
The Dieselfitters @ Schooner Tavern
Katelyn Tarver with Rosie Darling @ 7th St Entry
The Mavericks with McKinley James @ State Theatre
Animal Head, The Lone Canary @ Terminal Bar
Wish Wash, Lovely Dark, shadingthesun @ 331 Club
Hippie Death Cult with Spirit Mother, Red Desert, and Van Glow Light Show @ Turf Club
- Parliament-Funkadelic feat. George Clinton with George Porter Jr. @ Uptown Theater—Dog only knows the state of George Clinton's mind or body these days, but his soul is still as foul 'n' funky as ever. Uncle Jam was always the ringmaster more than the star attraction, and ask anyone who was there: P-Funk put on a great pair of free shows at the State Fair's Leinie Lodge in 2017. Yes, I know that was six years ago, when George was a spry 76 years old.
Club 90s Presents Guts Night: Olivia Rodrigo Official Dance Party @ Varsity
Pop Wagner Tavern Trio @ White Squirrel
Todd Albright @ White Squirrel
Room 3 with Cyrus, Jada Lynn @ White Squirrel
Sunday, September 17
Queens of the Stone Age with Viagra Boys + Jehnny Beth @ Armory
Swing Brunch with Patty & the Buttons @ Aster Cafe
St. Rangers + Hana Fleur @ Aster Cafe
Erin Schwab Sings Bette Midler with Jay Fuchs @ Crooners
Minneapolis String Project @ Crooners
John Jorgenson Bluegrass Band @ Dakota
Phine Friends, Shotgun Ragtime @ Driftwood
Twin Cities Country Dancers @ Eagles 34
Karaoke with Reina Starr @ Eagles 34
Bowling For Soup with Authority Zero and MEST @ Fine Line
Dean Lewis with Sara Kays @ First Avenue
Weakened Friends with Anita Velveeta, Miss Christine @ The Garage
Futures Rising with Mayyadda @ Hook and Ladder
The Hampden Rounders @ Icehouse
Marcus Wise feat. Kamal Sabri @ Jazz Central
2nd Anniversary Show with Tommy Bentz Band and Erin McCawley’s Harrison St. Band @ KJ's Hideaway
Summoner's Circle, Eshtadur, Synopsis, Better Broken @ Minnesota Music Cafe
Beethoven’s Second Symphony with Richard Egarr @ Ordway
Church of Cornbread: Cornbread Harris and His Band @ Palmer's
West Bank Social Club @ Palmer's
The International Treasures @ The Parkway
Jo Kellen, Max Niemann, and Fellow Travelers @ ROK Music Lounge
¡MAYDAY! with Ubi, 1Ton, Hiway @ 7th St Entry
Pile with Moontype and Wish Wash @ Turf Club
Rob Tossava Benefit Show @ Uptown VFW
Monday, September 18
Bakermiller Pink with Mystery Meat, Drug League, and Jacket @ Amsterdam
Tango Desperados Practilonga @ Eagles 34
Other Country Ensemble @ Eagles 34
Twin Cities Queer Contra Dancing @ Eagles 34
The Walkmen with Yeah Baby @ First Avenue
LA Buckner (September Residency) with Carolyne Naomi w/ Gifted Handz and iLLism @ Icehouse
Auto-Tune Karaoke @ Mortimer’s
DJ Still Hot Dave Presents Hot For The Summer @ Palmer's
sammy rash with good problem @ 7th St Entry
The Roe Family Singers @ 331 Club
Matt Arthur Contraption @ 331 Club
