You don't need me to tell you that Gully Boys and Soul Asylum (among other worthy acts) are certainly worth checking out for free (with fair admission, yes). Though I guess I kinda just did.
Tuesday, August 29
Dominic Fike with Heather @ Armory
Colin Bracewell @ Bryant Square Park
International Reggae All Stars @ Bunkers
Dave King Residency: Happy Apple @ Dakota
St. Dominic's Trio @ Driftwood
Karaoke With On Call Entertainment @ Eagles 34
Cassandra Cole @ Father Hennepin Bluff Park
- Chloë aka Chloe Bailey with DJ Rosegold @ First Avenue—Judging from her solo debut, In Pieces, Chloë Bailey’s love life has hit more than its share of rough patches. After a gospel choir introduces the young R&B star with celestial grandiosity, she immediately begins fuming over some no-good man and heads to church to "Pray It Away" before she does something dumb. From there, she’s asking “Do you ever wonder… who else is fuckin’ your man?” Damn, girl. Bailey rose to fame with her sister as half of the Beyoncé-anointed duo Chloe x Halle; when the younger Bailey was off filming Disney’s live-action overhaul of The Little Mermaid, Chloë took on a brand new umlaut and got back to work on a shelved solo project. The critics who’ve largely concurred In Pieces is merely a conventional vehicle for Bailey’s talents aren’t entirely off base, but I think they underestimate the rewards of conventional R&B and overestimate Bailey’s gifts a smidge. Though hardly a consistent artistic statement or a redefinition of the genre, In Pieces is the kind of solid R&B album that’s never unwelcome—even if one of the best tracks here is with (oh well) Chris Brown.
Old Guys Play the Blues @ Loring Park
Abby Holliday with Caleb Dee @ 7th St Entry
- Brandi Carlile with Wynonna Judd @ State Fair Grandstand—Long one of those cult singer-songwriters whose cult was so large that broader fame seemed inevitable, Carlile hit her tipping point once she won over the Grammy folks. She's used her recent fame as a force for good, producing Tanya Tucker's 2019 comeback album "While I'm Livin'," teaming up for the feminist supergroup The Highwomen. and shepherding Joni Mitchell's first live performance in about two decades. Live, with longtime bandmates Phil and Tim Hanseroth supporting her, Carlile's rootsy melodramas soar. As for Wynonna Judd, well, saying that today's female country musicians wouldn't be who they were without her example is an understatement.
ABBAsolutely Fab @ State Fair—International Bazaar Stage
Drake Milligan @ State Fair—Leinie Lodge
Heatbox @ State Fair—Schell's Stage
Industrial Strength with DJ Sin @ Terminal Bar
Worker’s Playtime with Jeff Ray @ 331 Club
August Conspiracy Series featuring Emmy Woods & The Red Pine Ramblers and Woodzen @ 331 Club
Mo'ynoq, Nothingness, and Witchden @ Turf Club
Trevor McSpadden & Mary Cutrufello & Dan Lowinger @ White Squirrel
Wednesday, August 30
Hannah von der Hoff (August Residency) with Theyself @ Aster Cafe
Eddie Rae & the Blaze Kings @ The Commons
Maggie's Wednesdays: Mia Dorr @ Crooners
Dodging Potholes, Sidedoors @ Driftwood
The Bad Companions @ Eagles 34
Yoke Lore with girlhouse @ Fine Line
The 2023 Gay Softball World Series Charity Concert feat. Taylor Dayne @ First Avenue
Bonne @ Lake Harriet Bandshell
Big Toe & the Jam @ Minnesota Music Cafe
Alley Mattress, Fend, Party Foul and Speed Limit 5 @ Palmer's
Karaoke Wednesday @ ROK Music Lounge
BZ3 Organ Trio @ Schooner Tavern
- Uncle Jesse's Comb (Album Release) with full catholic, Butter Boys and Splimit @ 7th St Entry—You can tell how old you are by noticing whether the headlining local band's name makes you think of John Stamos or Denver Pyle.
Yung Gravy with bbno$ @ State Fair Grandstand
Ukrainian Village Band @ State Fair—International Bazaar Stage
Nikki Lane @ State Fair—Leinie Lodge
Gully Boys @ State Fair—Schell's Stage
Dennis Caravello @ Terminal Bar
Harold’s House Party on KFAI with Gabe Stillman @ 331 Club
Emmy Woods & The Red Pine Ramblers w. JoJo Green, Solana @ White Squirrel
Thursday, August 31
- Boba Boba (EP Release) @ Acadia—Been to the newly reopened Acadia yet? The release show for this heavy yet trippy band's EP, The Ritual, is a good reason to head on over. I tagged their new single, "Ms. Fortune," in this week's local playlist for a reason, you know.
My Kid Banana (EP Release) @ Amsterdam
Sophie Javna and Steven Hobert @ Aster Cafe
St. Paul and the Broken Bones @ Bauhaus
Jay Bee & the Routine @ Bunkers
Ryan Picone Quartet @ Crooners
Kind of Bill: Celebrating the Birthday and Musical Life of Bill Evans@ Crooners
Charles Lloyd Quartet @ Dakota
Karaoke with On Call Entertainment @ Eagles 34
LGBTQ+ Twin Cities Latin Dance @ Eagles 34
Cat Tales, Butter Boys, Delicate Friend @ Green Room
Baldwin/Harris/Hennig @ Icehouse
The Young Relics @ Minnesota Music Cafe
Mae Simpson, Frogleg @ Minnesota Zoo
The Silent Treatment @ Mortimer's
Hunny Bear, Art Beagles Back Up Band, and Lemon Lob @ Palmer's
Ross Clowser's Interstellar Cowboy Band@ ROK Music Lounge
Cervasa Muscular @ Schooner Tavern
Nate Amor with Kat Perkins @ 7th St Entry
- Duran Duran with Bastille and Nile Rodgers & Chic @ State Fair Grandstand—Is it jerky of me to say that in a just world Nile would be headlining? Or at least billed above freakin' Bastille? Anyway, if musician memoirs are your jam, I highly recommend Rodgers's Le Freak. Musician memoirs are not particularly my jam and I was hooked by his story—from bohemian to Black Panther to disco conceptualist to superstar producer, with a drug addiction overcome along the way. Oh, and also check out South African singer Nakhane's new Bastard Jargon, Rodgers's latest production. And enjoy "Hungry Like the Wolf," I guess.
AfroBeats Dance Party @ State Fair—International Bazaar Stage
Nikki Lane @ State Fair—Leinie Lodge
Fluidic and Marsgar @ 331 Club
The Nadas with Doug Collins and the Receptionists @ Turf Club
Synopsis, Daylight Riot, and Justice Son @ Underground Music Venue
Phantom Fields with Taylor James Donskey @ White Squirrel
- Pearl Jam @ Xcel Energy Center—I have far fewer strong opinions about Pearl Jam than a man of my age is expected to. But I'm unexpectedly spending Thursday night with Eddie and the boys, so I guess it's time for a reckoning. Stay tuned.
Friday, September 1
Rust Belt Ballads (Album Release) @ Acadia
A Pearl Jam Party feat. 120 Minutes and Wayside @ Amsterdam
John Forrest and The Model Citizens, The Over Unders @ Aster Cafe
Dan Ristrom & The Big Throwdown @ Bunkers
Connie Evingson Presents: Hornucopia @ Crooners
Ben Sidran's 80th Birthday Parade @ Crooners
Silk and Soul: The Songs of Boz Scaggs with Mick Sterling @ Crooners
Maggie's Afterglow: Colleen Raye and Rick Carlson @ Crooners
Devon Allman & Donavon Frankenreiter with Jackson Stokes @ Dakota
Matt Caflisch Band, Jon Rodine Band @ Driftwood
Larry Wish (Album Release) @ Eagles 34
killusonline, DJ Kwey, Tysm!, Gramma, REIKI, and DJ Muñeca @ Fine Line
- Taylor Swift Laser Dance Party @ First Avenue—*extremely rockist voice* In my day, lasers were reserved for the true greats like Floyd and Zep.
The Shackletons @ Hook and Ladder
Jeremy Boettcher Trio @ Icehouse
Cover Girl Hot 100 with Murf and Popstar @ Icehouse
Adam Harder-Nussbaum Quartet @ Jazz Central
BOB! (The Music of Dylan) @ Lake Harriet Bandshell
Prairie Fire Lady Choir @ Minnehaha Bandstand
Monique & Xperience @ Minnesota Music Cafe
Cult Vibes, Generifus, Extraterrestrials, and Dummy @ Palmer's
Mad Mojo Jett, Cindy Lawson, and Holly & The Nice Lions @ Palmer's
Endless Textures with Eric Carranza, John C.S. Keston, & Matty Harris @ ROK Music Lounge
- Mati (EP Release) with GR3G and Say Sa’Je @ 7th St Entry—This south Minneapolis rapper Mati, born in Ethiopia, dropped Thoughts in Cursive at the end of July, and he’s finally playing a release show for that solid album. Did I include one of its songs, "Life Notes," on this week's local playlist? Only one way to find out!
Jonas Brothers with Lawrence @ State Fair Grandstand
High & Mighty @ State Fair—International Bazaar Stage
Celebrating Meat Loaf @ State Fair—Leinie Lodge
- First Avenue Goes to the Fair @ State Fair—Schell's Stage—A tip o’ the hat to whoever books the free fair music acts, since this year’s lineup is especially great. Nowhere is that more apparent than with First Avenue’s two-night, genre-sprawling showcase of local sounds both new and Replacements-era. Singer-songwriter Becky Kapell kicks things off Friday, followed by sets from rapper/poet Juice Lord, saxophone looper turned rootsy singer-songwriter Laamar, Minnesota rock legend Tommy Stinson, and young multi-hyphenate XINA. On Saturday, you’ve got alt-R&B man Barlow, soul singer Jaedyn James, country artist Monique Smaz, rowdy '80s rockers Run Westy Run, and Racket fave SYM1. Scene staple Al Church will hold things down with his house band throughout. It’s hard to imagine a better crash course on local sounds than this sampler at the Schell's Stage.
Made In America, Yeah Doggos, and Cooking With Chef @ Terminal Bar
Babie Eyes, Submarine Secrets, Caitlin and Alex @ 331 Club
A Tribute to Shania Twain @ Turf Club
The Musical Bunch @ Uptown VFW
Timisarocker, The Owl-Eyes, Birdhole, Kyrie Nova, Peech @ Uptown VFW
Blue Felix and Hemlock @ White Rock Lounge
The Matt Arthur Contraption with Courtney Yasmineh @ White Squirrel
Saturday, September 2
Tony London: A Tribute To Tony Bennett @ Crooners
Maud Hixson and Rick Carlson (Album Release) @ Crooners
Ben Sidran's 80th Birthday Parade @ Crooners
Mick Sterling Presents A Billy Joel State of Mind @ Crooners
Maggie's Afterglow: Colleen Raye and Rick Carlson @ Crooners
The Disappointments @ Driftwood
Doug Collins and the Receptionists @ Dusty's
Deep Dark Lake, Tiny Daggers, Red Quarters @ Eagles 34
Inspector y Haragán @ First Avenue
Aiden Intro, Social Cig, Parachutes @ Green Room
The Billy Bash @ Hook and Ladder
DJ Shannon Blowtorch Presents Y2K @ Icehouse
Tony Oritz and the Guns of Soul @ Lake Harriet Bandshell
Inside Straight @ Minnesota Music Cafe
In Lieu, Valeska Suratt, Psylo and Shopvac @ Palmer's
Shopvac, Oftener, Jacket @ Pilllar
Evernoir & Leaving Hope @ ROK Music Lounge
Surf Curse with Blood Cookie @ 7th St Entry
- The Hold Steady with Bob Mould Band and Dillinger Four @ State Fair Grandstand—89.3 the Current's Music On-A-Stick showcase this Saturday, featuring locally inspired Brooklyn rockers the Hold Steady, St. Paul-launched punk legend Bob Mould of Hüsker Dü, and Minneapolis punk greats Dillinger Four. If you checked out on the Hold Steady after their two dud '10s records, we beg of you: Check back in. Craig Finn’s band has been back in a major way since 2019, having released three albums that take the group in exciting musical directions while laying the platform for Finn’s still-sharp lyrical meditations on the once-wild characters who’ve aged with him. The last two Hold Steady LPs, 2021's Open Door Policy and this year's The Price of Progress, lack the urgency of those first three, though they showcase an older, wiser group that’s thankfully not content becoming a legacy act. It’s a good time to be a THS fan.
High & Mighty @ State Fair—International Bazaar Stage
Celebrating Meat Loaf @ State Fair—Leinie Lodge
- First Avenue Goes to the Fair @ State Fair—Schell's Stage—See Friday's listings.
Empires of Delirium, Fighting Our Friends, Strongly Disagree @ Terminal Bar
Slap Hazard, The Serfs, Cat People @ 331 Club
Triple Threat Tribute Night feat. Nivrana, Sir Psycho, and Pleezer @ Turf Club
Rock Star Block Star @ Uptown VFW
Blood Driver, Crash Cuddle, The Great Went @ White Squirrel
Francis Emil Johnson, Johanna Mathews, and Garret Nasset @ White Squirrel
Ear Candy: Vol. 1: A Live Electronic Music Series @ White Squirrel
Pearl Jam @ Xcel Energy Center
Sunday, September 3
Nothing But Nice with Dial Tone, Pullstring, and The Dalmatian Club @ Amsterdam
Swing Brunch with Patty & the Buttons @ Aster Cafe
The Larry McDonough Aster Sunday Jazz Series Presents: Watermelon Man – The Music of Herbie Hancock @ Aster Cafe
Tony London: A Tribute To Tony Bennett @ Crooners
Tanner Taylor Presents Peanuts: The Music of Vince Guaraldi @ Crooners
Mick Sterling Presents: Springsteen with Strings @ Crooners
Erica Falls & Vintage Soul @ Dakota
Phine Friends, Shotgun Ragtime @ Driftwood
Craig Baumann and the Story, Dingus, Circle of Heat @ Eagles 34
Twin Cities Country Dancers @ Eagles 34
Karaoke with Reina Starr @ Eagles 34
David von Schlegell and the Everything Bagel, The Sparks, and Francis Emil Johnson @ Icehouse
Willem S Hartong @ Lake Harriet Bandshell
Papa Roof and the Soul Villains @ Lake Harriet Bandshell
Church of Cornbread: Cornbread Harris and His Band @ Palmer's
Michael Gay's Old Country Buffet @ Palmer's
The Ocean Blue, the Hang Ups, and DJ Jake Rudh @ Parkway Theater
Bigg Kiaa with Komari Cloud, DD The Spektrum, and Breezy2Fresh @ 7th St Entry
MSF 50th Annual Amateur Talent Contest Finals @ State Fair Grandstand
Malamanya @ State Fair—International Bazaar Stage
Soul Asylum @ State Fair—Leinie Lodge
Petty Comes Alive! @ State Fair—Schell's Stage
Sean Cosgrove, Bryan Odeen @ White Squirrel
Darsombra, Beach Mountain, Loser Magnet @ White Squirrel
Greta Van Fleet @ Xcel Energy Center
Monday, September 4
Tango Desperados Practilonga @ Eagles 34
LA Buckner (September Residency) with Maya Marchelle and Just Dream. @ Icehouse
Tre Aaron & the Undergroove @ Lake Harriet Bandshell
Sawyer's Dream @ Lake Harriet Bandshell
Blippi @ State Fair Grandstand
Malamanya @ State Fair—International Bazaar Stage
Soul Asylum @ State Fair—Leinie Lodge
Petty Comes Alive! @ State Fair—Schell's Stage
Auto-Tune Karaoke @ Mortimer’s
The Roe Family Singers @ 331 Club
Matt Arthur Contraption @ 331 Club
Portrayal of Guilt with GAG, Fearing and Wanderer @ Turf Club
