I sure picked a lousy time to have a cold! In addition to the big Palmer's farewell blowout, a mess of great touring acts are coming to town. I may sneak out of the house once or twice before I'm back to 100, but I want to be careful—gotta be rested up for Rilo Kiley next week.
Tuesday, September 9
Orlando & the Rumors, berzica, Huhroon, headtriiip @ Amsterdam
International Reggae Allstars @ Bunker’s
Sndwch, Knwbody, Ghoulish @ Cabooze
St. Dominic’s Trio @ Driftwood Char Bar
Karaoke with On Call Entertainment @ Eagles 34
Bonny Light Horseman with Angela Autumn @ Fine Line
- Wet Leg with Mary in the Junkyard @ First Avenue—Propelled by the horny and herky-jerky “Chaise Longue,” postpunkers Wet Leg emerged from the Isle of Wight with so much buzz in 2021 that, the following year, their Amsterdam Bar & Hall date was upgraded to First Ave’s Mainroom. Core members Rhian Teasdale and Hester Chambers rolled out something much more ambitious for their sophomore effort, Moisturizer, which arrived this past July. Killer singles ”Catch These Fists” and “CPR” teased a meatier and more complex sound than the band’s debut, and the visual campaign… well, the lead promo image (above) depicts some sort of ghoul at a family photo sesh, while others feature giant worms, eerie grins, and gnarly fingernails. Moisturizer represents a full-on transformation for a band that might’ve, at least visually, been confused with First Aid Kit years ago—loud, weird, lusty. Rock is back?—Jay Boller
Nova Jazz Orchestra @ Minnesota Music Cafe
Japanese Breakfast with Ginger Root @ Palace Theatre
Artist Showcase @ Sociable Cider Werks
September Conspiracy Series featuring We Are the Willows and the Nunnery @ 331 Club
Workers Playtime with Jake LaBotz @ 331 Club
Kneeland & Moreno (Residency) with Taylor James Donskey, Scott Hefte, & the Bury ‘Em Deep
Wednesday, September 10
Matty O’Reilly & Andy Ulseth with Eric Carlson @ Aster Cafe
The Cherry Pit Presents: Bible Study Open Jam @ Berlin
Bernadette Spray and Friends @ Cedar Cultural Center
Shellshag, Al Scorch, Makin’ Out, Panel @ Cloudland
Jennifer and Kevin Are Friends Indeed @ Crooners
Miss Shannon’s Swing Night @ Eagles 34
Clover’s Daughter (Album Release) @ Green Room
Group Sound Journey @ Hewing Rooftop
MAKR Spins the Classic @ Icehouse
Cedar Avenue Big Band @ Jazz Central
Pat Donohue & Friends @ Midway Saloon
Big Woods Brass @ Minnesota Music Cafe
Mommy Log Balls (Residency) @ Mortimer’s
Mike Wolter & Friends @ Palmer’s
Touch of Malice with Cavernous Maw & Datura Dread @ Pilllar Forum
Boots and Needles, Emmy Woods @ Schooner Tavern
Wade Forster with Shelby Stone @ 7th St Entry
The What-have-yous with 10 Items Or Fewer @ 331 Club
Harold’s House Party on KFAI with Jack Klatt @ 331 Club
NO RESOLVE with Shallow Side and Above Snakes @ Turf Club
LiL G0$HA, CHOPXSTICK, Young Karter, Pretty Trixie, & KASZELLAW @ Underground Music
Paul Bergen & Friends @ White Squirrel
Whiskey Wednesdays with Cole Diamond @ White Squirrel
Thursday, September 11
Wisp with Dream, Ivory, and aldn @ Amsterdam
The Bitter Spills @ Aster Cafe
Jay Bee & the Routine @ Bunker’s
Paperbacks, Toaster Ghost, Oliver Phibes @ Cloudland
ACME Jazz Company with Arne Fogel @ Crooners
Erin McCawley’s Harrison Street Band @ Crooners
The Roundabouts, Zoe Says Go @ Driftwood Char Bar
LGBTQ+ Twin Cities Latin Dance @ Eagles 34
Karaoke with On Call Entertainment @ Eagles 34
Your Own Knife, Slut Intent, Bin, Only Time, Melanerpes @ Flying V
Snapped Live Band Open Night @ Green Room
Big Tasty, Willie Waldman Project @ Hook and Ladder
- Kiss the Tiger (Album Release) @ Icehouse—What drives Kiss the Tiger is the tension between the group’s meaty no-nonsense bar-band rock and Meghan Kreidler’s well-calibrated theatrics. On their new album, Infinite Love, Kreidler tries on a variety of vocal styles, at times even recalling Debbie Harry (though keeping less distance from her material), and the band keeps up with her musically. Definitely a band to see live.—Keith Harris
Buster Baxter @ DJ Big Reece @ Indeed
Lit Lords x Kamiyada @ The Loft
Acoustic Thursdays @ Mainstreet Bar & Grill
Flamin’ Oh’s, Faith Boblett, Lonesome Dan Kase @ Mears Park
Northstar Original Revue @ Midway Saloon
Rooms on Fire @ Minnesota Music Cafe
Gig and Cowboy John @ Minnesota Music Cafe
astrid hubbard flynn & aros e-v @ Mirror Lab
Splitscreen: Innovational Electronics Discovery @ Mortimer’s
The Front Porch Swingin’ Liquor Pigs @ Palmer’s
LB Beistad with Little Lizard and the Cameras @ Pilllar Forum
Edie Rae Band, Mary Strand and the Garage @ Schooner Tavern
Ni/Co with Dylan Brady @ 7th St Entry
The Daily Norm with Emmy Woods and Squinny @ 331 Club
Neal Francis with Daisychain @ Turf Club
Bessie Snow Presents “Apetit” @ Volstead’s
Thomas Sticha @ White Squirrel
Durow with Jantzonia, Cold Sweat, & Rich Garvey @ White Squirrel
Friday, September 12
Bill Giese & Tin Can Telephone with Kismet Rendezvous @ Aster Cafe
Dan Rodriguez & Heather Maloney @ Aster House
Ross Clowser Quartet (Album Release) @ Berlin
Nudie Nubies Burlesque @ Black Hart
Neon Night: Color in Reverse, DJ Nuzmi, DJ Zero @ Can Can Wonderland
Ear Coffee VII feat. 26 Bats!, the Briefly Gorgeous, Hey ILY, and Mouthful @ Cedar Cultural Center
Big Woods Brass Band @ Como Lakeside Pavillion
Colleen Raye and Rick Carlson @ Crooners
Erin and Jay Cabaret @ Crooners
River: The Music of Carole King, Joni Mitchell, and Carly Simon @ Crooners
Montoya Machine with Rogue Royal, Madam Driver, and Destroy the Planet @ Day Block Brewing
The Cameras with Eldest Daughter and Tarias and the Sound @ Day Block Brewing
Blue Lake, Jeffrey Becker and the Gentlemen @ Driftwood Char Bar
Blodwar, Heel, Taste of Vervain, Touch of Malice @ Eagles 34
Juke the Buffalo, the Lime Wires, Butterface @ Eagles 34
- CMAT with Tele Novella @ Fine Line—Ciara Mary-Alice Thompson is a little much—OK, a lot much—with her self-deprecation as massive and wide-ranging as her desires. Three albums in, the Dublin singer-songwriter arrives at a title that aptly sums up her sound of her rootsy electronics—"Euro-Country—though CMAT’s titles rarely tell the whole story. The song “Euro-Country” is about being torn between home and the broader world beyond, while “Lord, Let That Tesla Crash” explores the complexity of mourning. Then again, “Take a Sexy Picture of Me,” which inspired a TikTok dance craze this summer, offers just what the title says, and on “The Jamie Oliver Petrol Station,” Thompson struggles against her irrational hatred of the overexposed celeb chef (“OK don't be a bitch/The man's got kids.”) Chappell Roan fans feeling adventurous should give CMAT a go.—Keith Harris
- Durry with Vial @ First Avenue—Minnesota’s current reigning pop-punk champions continue to make the most of their commitment to underachievement. On their latest album, This Movie Sucks, Durry sibs Austin and Taryn channel a variety of trivial and existential complaints into big, bashed-out choruses, tackling shitty jobs on “idk I just work here” and online rancor on “Bully” (“Everybody's fighting on the internet again”).—Keith Harris
Heatmakers: Beat Battle @ Green Room
Petty Comes Alive: An All-Star Tribute with guests Gregg Hall & the Wrecking Ball @ Hook and Ladder
Transmission Music Presents: A Decades Dance Party with DJ Jake Rudh @ Hook and Ladder
SoulFlower, Quietchild, Pity Party @ Icehouse
Mac Santiago Sextet @ Jazz Central
The Centuries with Lena & the LoveKills @ Uptown VFW
Disconcé: A Beyoncé Dance Party @ Lush
Rough House @ Mainstreet Bar & Grill
The Walker Brothers @ Memory Lanes
Funktion Junction @ Minnesota Music Cafe
Children's Crusade, the Trapezoids, Echo Signal, CRYPT.ID @ Mortimer’s
Los Dos de Tamaulipas @ Myth Live
Yomchi with Waterworks and Clover’s Daughter @ Pilllar Forum
Cole Diamond Band @ Schooner Tavern
Amira Elfeky with Ally Nicholas and The Requiem @ 7th St Entry
Ninajirachi with Somewhere Special @ Studio B
Modern Wildlife, King Sized Coffin, Unattractive Giant Monster @ Terminal Bar
Richard Kriehn with Nicole Wilder & Grace Savard @ 318 Cafe
Ghostmouth, Super Flasher, Pew Pew @ 331 Club
Wargasm with Dropout Kings and Popstar @ Turf Club
Carver Commodore & nobody likes you pat @ Underground Music
Jerry Cantrell @ Uptown Theater
- Frankie Cosmos @ Varsity—Finding herself on the far side of 30 and slightly miffed that she hasn’t magically figured life out yet, onetime bedroom-pop whisperer Greta Kline encourages her band to assert itself ever so slightly on Frankie Cosmos’s sixth album, Different Talking. Though these 17 songs would fit on one side of an old TDK with room to spare, you get the sense that Kline could stretch a song out to a whole three minutes if she wanted. But, like, what’s the point? (She tops out at an epic 2:47, FYI.) Toting around “a tote bag filled with other tote bags” in a city where “everything’s a pothole or a restaurant/And smells like pot,” she can’t “keep from acting like I’m 27” and regrets that “my bitch heart is a fucker.” But there’s something unavoidably optimistic in that bright little voice of hers, and in the way she follows up “I still don’t know what I want” with “I’ll take one of each.” Most importantly, every tune here hits home—maybe because these songs never overstay their welcome.—Keith Harris
R&B Night: Sol & The Resonance, Soul Tribe, SophieeJ @ White Squirrel
Friday I’m in Love @ Zhora Darling
Yuh-huh Go, Malamiko, Soulflower, DJ Luzia Fuchsia @ Zhora Darling
Saturday, September 13
Seismic City, Joe the Mechanic, Timisarocker, Garden Glow @ Acadia
Maranda’s Menagerie @ Amsterdam
Big Tunzy Entertainment @ Bazemnt
Ethan Ostrow/Dan Carpel @ Berlin
Blue Earth Sound (Album Release) @ Berlin
Mary Brewster’s Sparkle @ Black Hart
The 70s Magic Sunshine Band @ Bunker’s
Far Far Away, Atomic Lights, & Maelstrom in the Harbor @ Can Can Wonderland
Caydence Fest Live @ Caydence Coffee and Records
From Barry: The Perfect Pop Songs of Barry Gibb and the Bee Gees @ Crooners
Colleen Raye and Phil Kadidlo @ Crooners
The Quality of Mercer: Johnny Mercer Songs with Maud Hixson & Rick Carlson @ Crooners
One Night Only: Elton John Tribute @ Crooners
Dead Days of Summer: Blues for Allah @ Day Block Brewing
The Fabulous Hackmasters, Frannie Crego, Dragnet, Earload @ Driftwood Char Bar
Is This Thing On?, Grand Lilac, the Envies @ Dusty’s
Andrew Weathers, Adam Linz, Luke Martin, Noah Ophoven-Baldwin @ Eagles 34
- That Mexican OT @ Fillmore—Baytown rapper Virgil Gazca’s abbreviated subtitle stands for “Outta Texas,” and with his warm drawl and rolled Rs he’s been honing his “grito ranchero” sound for about five years now. A 2023 collab with Paul Wall, “Johnny Dang,” brought him into the mainstream, and his latest album, Recess, begins with an obligatory “I hate bein’ famous” intro. But after he gets that out of his system, the rapper gets back to enjoying his proudly lowlife self. He even sings a country jam or two.
Jeremy Jordan & Age of Madness with Alley Eyes @ Fine Line
Hot in Herre⏤2000s Dance Party @ First Avenue
Blame Not the Bard @ Fulton Taproom
The Jazz Room @ A Journey to the Heart of New Orleans @ Granada
GRRRL SCOUT: Off the Cuff @ Hook and Ladder
Self-Evident, Lovely Dark, DOSH @ Icehouse
Skitzo Fonik @ Mainstreet Bar & Grill
Terry Quiet Band @ Midway Saloon
The Good, the Bad, and the Funky @ Minnesota Music Cafe
Jiggs Lee Invasion @ Mystic Lake
2025-2026 Season Sampler @ Orchestra Hall
Sandipan Samajpati @ O’Shaughnessey
Ray Gun Youth with Maalamiko, Berzica, and Magick Flavour Station @ Pilllar Forum
Tommy Bentz Band @ Schooner Tavern
- Selby Ave Jazzfest @ Selby Ave. & N. Milton St.—A community celebration unlike any other for 24 years now, JazzFest is actually a three-day event, with masterclasses at Walker West Music Academy on Friday and Sunday. But the live outdoor event on Saturday is its centerpiece. Hosted by T. Mychael Rambo, the fest features Cory Henry & the Funk Apostles, the Yuko Mabuchi Trio, HeyArlo, and Brio Brass this year. The whole shebang kicks off at 11:30 a.m. with a “flash mob band”—bring your own horn or stringed instrument and join in.—Keith Harris
Nature TV with Runner and Bobby @ 7th St Entry
Michael Monroe & Cryote @ 318 Cafe
USPOP with Jon Reine @ 331 Club
Farewell Milwaukee with LAAMAR and Jacob Mullis @ Turf Club
- AACM@60 @ Walker Art Center—The Chicago-based Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians, an arts org like no other, is hitting the big six-oh this year. And to celebrate how ingeniously the AACM has expanded jazz in challenging directions since the ’60s, the Walker is bringing in trumpeter Wadada Leo Smith and pianist Amina Claudine Myers, two of the AACM’s key figures, to perform their meditative 2024 recording Central Park’s Mosaics of Reservoir, Lake, Paths and Gardens. This event will also celebrate the AACM’s Minnesota connections: Local jazz master Douglas Ewart will play his unique hand-crafted instruments as he leads a group called Inventions, which includes innovative vocalist Mankwe Ndosi and a dynamite rhythm section of Melvin Gibbs and Davu Seru.—Keith Harris
Not A Number with Lost Island & Smokin' Joe @ White Squirrel
Chanel Beads with Maria Somerville @ Zhora Darling
Sunday, September 14
SUSTO with Johnny Delaware @ Amsterdam
- Haim, Dora Jar @ Armory—The music critic establishment generally agreed that the 2020 Haim release, Women In Music Pt. III, represented a serious leveling up for the sisterly rock trio. It took me a bit to warm up to the follow up, June’s I Quit, but now I… simply can’t stop listening to it! Leader Danielle Haim handed co-production duties to ex-Vampire Weekend member Rostam Batmanglij for obvious reasons: The album is a scorched-earth breakup record about her ex-boyfriend/longtime co-producer Ariel Rechtshaid, who comes off really poorly in Danielle's lyrical account of the split. As Danielle spills her guts over 15 tracks, her sisters back her up with the band’s most adventurous run of sounds yet, from the sleek R&B of single “Relationships” to the Modest Mousey indie-rock of “Everybody’s Trying to Figure Me Out” to the raw country-folk of “Blood on the Streets.” It’s my favorite album of 2025 so far.—Jay Boller
Patty and the Buttons @ Aster Cafe
Effy + Kwey Present: Off Wax feat. Mati @ Berlin
Darren Kiely with Ryan McMullan @ Cedar Cultural Center
An Imaginary Soiree at Downton Abbey @ Crooners
Joyful Storm with the Adi Yeshaya Jazz Orchestra @ Crooners
Phine and Friends, Shotgun Ragtime Band @ Driftwood Char Bar
Somewhere Nice Someday, Tehom, askSERPENT, Din Drone @ Eagles 34
Twin Cities Country Dancers @ Eagles 34
Karaoke with Reina Starr @ Eagles 34
Music of Disney + More for Kids @ First Avenue
Noah Reid @ Fitzgerald Theater
Campfire Music Foundation Benefit Concert ft. Mayyadda, MøthKid, & More @ Icehouse
Flash Dance with DJ Shannon Blowtorch @ Lush
Cabaret with Jen-Burleigh Bentz @ Metronome Brewery
Retro Rhythms with DJ Kenny D @ Mortimer’s
- Palmer’s Final Blowout @ Palmer’s—This 11-hour marathon swan song for Palmer’s was assembled to include “who we consider family and loyal supporters,” Picked to Click finisher/Palmer's booker Christy Costello tells the Strib. “Mainly, I picked folks I know who have been supporting Palmer’s by always playing here no matter if it were inside or out.” You can see the sprawling list of names here (Cactus Blossoms, Scrunchies, Nato Coles), but do know that the Brass Messengers intend to lead a NOLA-style jazz funeral from the patio stage into the boozy 119-year-old institution before Cornbread Harris, 98, shuts it down for good from his perch at the piano. For a lot more on what killed Palmer’s and what we’ll miss when it’s gone, please consult the outstanding longread Racket published this past Friday. RIP to a great fucking bar, man.—Jay Boller
- FACS with Upright Forms and Unstable Shapes @ 7th St Entry—There was plenty of competition, but these brooding Chicago postpunks put on the best set I caught at this year’s Caterwaul festival at Mortimer’s. They’re named for Factory Records’ numbering system, they’re more keen on division than joy, and they generate a mood rather than stirring up drama. On their latest, Wish Defense, Brian Case intones lyrics that could be Verso titles (“A revolt against desire”) in a disarmingly plainspoken tone as his architectural but tune-adjacent guitar builds atop the blocky rhythms hewn by drummer Noah Leger and bassist Jonathan Van Herik. Rounding out the lineup are two of the best neo-postpunk bands in town right now, Unstable Shapes and Upright Forms.—Keith Harris
Bumblebee Music @ Sociable Cider Werks
Emmy Woods, Rachel Calvert @ 331 Club
Be'lakor with Solemn Vision @ Turf Club
- Hotline TNT @ Underground Music—Are Hotline TNT local? The folks at the Current seem to think so. But here at Racket we abide by what we call the Hold Steady Rule: A band must be formed within the state of Minnesota or currently reside here to be considered local. Still, I’m happy to give this shoegaze+ unit some love, especially since main man Will Anderson’s playlist of 15 songs that made him “Think It Was Cool to Be From the Twin Cities” include not just the obligatory Prince and 'Mats but also the Big Wu and Love-cars. On their third album, Raspberry Moon, Hotline TNT grow and develop in the way you hope for from a band: Anderson’s vocals emerge from behind the distorted scrim of guitars, the guitars themselves squeal and jangle and thrum in a greater variety of ways, and the “na-na-na” chorus of “Julia’s War” is catchier than most anything the competition’s dreamed up lately.—Keith Harris
Open Jazz Jam with Pete J. Johnson @ Volstead’s
Caitlin Robertson with Wildrose Fox @ White Squirrel
Love Lake, Tender Comrade, & Briefcase @ Zhora Darling
Monday, September 15
Riff Rangers @ Como Lakeside Pavillion
Tango Desperados Practilonga @ Eagles 34
Steve Clarke ‘n’ Band @ Eagles 34
Other Country Ensemble @ Eagles 34
Lawrence El Presents: The Mintroludes @ Icehouse
MN Hard Bop Collective @ Metronome Brewery
Blues Jam with Moses Oakland @ Midway Saloon
Jupiter Johnson with Vice Chair and Perv Googles @ Pilllar Forum
Open Mic Mpls @ Sociable Cider Werks
Womenfolk Presents: Sammie Jean Cohen @ 331 Club
