Curren$y @ Cabooze—The New Orleans rapper first made a splash in the mixtape era of the late ‘00s, and his 2010 breakthrough album, Pilot Talk, included features from Snoop Dogg, Big K.R.I.T., and Mos Def. The rap game being what it is, Curren$y’s moment was short, but he’s still out here grindin’. In recent years he’s released a bunch of collabs with notable producers and other rappers, including this year’s respectable Spiral Staircases with Larry June & the Alchemist. The kind of show you’re only gonna catch at the Cabooze.—Keith Harris

Alash @ Cedar Cultural Center

Art Brut, Christy Costello & the CC Club @ Cloudland—Damn, a nice little score here for the intimate Longfellow venue—two nights of the punky British jokesters, two decades after they first, you know, “Formed a Band.” It may not have become “the song/That makes Israel and Palestine get along” or “as universal as Happy Birthday,” but that first single did capture the “why not?” spirit of DIY. And if it was the enthusiasm of frontman Eddie Argos that always snagged your attention, whether he was describing sex with a new girlfriend or belatedly discovering the Replacements, it was that band, especially lead guitarist Ian Catskilkin, who kept you coming back. Both shows are sold out, but if you join the ticket waitlist there’s still a glimmer of hope.—Keith Harris

Vicky Mountain and Ted Godbout @ Crooners

Anime Jazz @ Crooners

Wes Urbaniak and the Mountain Folk @ Day Block Brewing

Dude Bodies, Dave’s Manual @ Driftwood Char Bar

Mary DuShane & Nick Jordan @ Dubliner Pub

Devil Dodger @ Dubliner Pub

LGBTQ+ Twin Cities Latin Dance @ Eagles 34

Karaoke With On Call Entertainment @ Eagles 34

Class Act, Rubberman @ Eagles 34

VInyl Night @ 56 Brewing

Niko Moon @ Fillmore

Ratboys, villagerrr @ Fine Line—Ratboys are easy to root for. The humble Chicago indie-rock quartet released four serviceable albums after forming in 2010, but didn’t really crack their own code until 2023’s The Window. That album distilled the Ratboys sound—Julia Steiner's delicately chirped vocals, her bandmates swerving from hard-riffing indie to warm Americana to math-rocky Midwest emo—into its ideal form. Steiner & Co. continued that trajectory with February's Singin’ to an Empty Chair, which seems to have cemented the group in the esteem of (what’s left) of the critical establishment.—Jay Boller

Che @ First Avenue—Despite my advanced age, I am determined to keep up with contemporary hip-hop, and contemporary hip-hop is just as determined to stop me. But being so amped you gotta push it into the red over the last style in horrible noise—what’s not to get? On his second album, Rest in Bass (2025), Georgia “rage rap” purveyor Che is more… focused? No that’s not the word. Accomplished? Nah, nah. Uh, true to his dumbass self? Sure, let’s go with that. “Whole Lotta Red for nerds,” Pitchfork’s Alphonse Pierre called it, approvingly, and this here nerd who prefers Carti’s self-titled mixtape to that consensus landmark is onboard. His voice pitched on the verge of hysteria, Che rants over revved up stadium synths, 808s, and miscellaneous electronic clamor about dying young, MDMA, and just generally being a knucklehead. But lyrics aren’t really the point, besides giving you something ignorant like “Her ass clap every time my chain swang” to shout along to. And when his fervor flags, he hands the mic off to well-reviewed avant-rappers like OsamaSon and Xaviersobased, who I’ll maybe learn to enjoy one of these days too.—Keith Harris

Vinyl Night @ Gambit Brewing

Snapped Live Band Open Mic @ Green Room

Dirty P’s Thirsty 3rd Thursdays Club @ Hook and Ladder

The Goddamn Gallows, Jayke Orvis, DJ Dan Lansing @ Hook and Ladder

Trace Bundy @ Icehouse

Acoustic Thursdays @ Mainstreet Bar

Peter Kogan Jazz Presents: Monk’s Music @ Metronome Brewery

Disney in Concert: The Sound of Magic @ Orchestra Hall

KYM and the Kick, Kat and the Hurricane, Joan of Profile @ Pilllar Forum

2428, Rodents @ Schooner Tavern

Oceanic, Borderline @ 7th St Entry

Amy Angeline @ 318 Cafe

Cross Pollination with Knife Emoji, Gasconader @ 331 Club

Oister Boy, Weeklong Weekend, afters, Bright Young Things @ Turf Club

Spencer Douglas, Agony in the Living Room, Virginia's Basement @ Underground Music

Clan of Xymox @ Varsity

Martin Devaney & Friends with Craig Paquette @ White Squirrel

Mid Death Calm, Last Horse, Orchid Club @ White Squirrel

Secret Menu, Jonny Darko, Callback, Clovers Daughter @ Zhora Darling

Friday, April 17

LEROY CURRICULUM x CKOOLIENTE as CHARLIE BROWN ft. Special Guests @ Acadia

Smutty Minnesota Wolf Bird @ Amsterdam

Nicholas David & Dan Ristrom @ Animales

Gentleman Dreadnought @ Aster Cafe

Jake Baldwin/Ted Godbout @ Berlin

Crescent Moon/Andrew Broder (Vinyl Release) @ Berlin

Sophia Eris @ Berlin

Rev. Raven & the Chain Smokin’ Altar Boys @ Blues Saloon

High & Mighty @ Bunker’s

Them Coulee Boys with Kiernan @ Cedar Cultural Center

Art Brut, American Cream Band @ Cloudland—See Thursday’s listings.

Colleen Raye and Phil Kadidlo @ Crooners

The [LOVE] Life of a Showgirl: Ginger Does Gershwin @ Crooners

The Concordia College Jazz Ensemble 1 and Jazz Singers @ Crooners

Big Daddy Kane @ Dakota—Veteran rappers need to eat too, and that’s why I’m glad to see more old-schoolers out on tour playing presumably well-renumerative gigs. Brooklyn’s Big Daddy kept the Cold Chillin’ label in action as surely as label head and beatmaster Marley Marl himself, devising so many dexterous rhymes he could even spare a few for labelmates Biz Markie and Roxanne Shanté. The rapper is now 57, and while I haven’t kept up with him after his great run of early singles, following due diligence I can say that I’d be happy if his set included “Enough!,” the 2020 takedown of police violence recorded with Chuck D, where Kane crams “sorta order,” “before da slaughter,” “mortar,” “reporter,” and “unthought-a” into one line. Still ain’t no half steppin’ here.—Keith Harris

A Shred of Storms and Frost: Quartetmageddon @ Day Block Brewing

Bad Mama, No Time for Fame @ Driftwood Char Bar

Irish Music Session @ Dubliner Pub

Wild Colonial Bhoys @ Dubliner Pub

Closed City Terror @ Eagles 34

Mechanix @ Eagles 34

Feel Free Hi-Fi Special Edition @ Eagles 34

Hayley Williams @ Fillmore—Her newish album, last year's Ego Death at a Bachelorette Party? It's great! Williams has slowly established herself as one of her generation's greatest musical talents. Not bad for a former Warped Tour opener.—Jay Boller

Dance With The Dead and Magic Sword with Megan McDuffee @ Fine Line

Ber @ First Avenue

DJ Breezy X DJ A1 X DJ Famous @ Gidi

The Smallweeds @ Ginkgo Coffee

Los Tigres del Norte @ Grand Casino Arena

Reventon Rave @ Green Room

Hipshaker MPLS @ Hook and Ladder

Ritual, Caster Volor @ Hook and Ladder

Feyleux and Carrellee with The Rope and DJ Gwiingwans @ Icehouse

JLJ Quintet @ Jazz Central

Quail, Wingbeaver, Malamiko @ Klash Coffee

Infekt @ The Loft

Atari @ Mainstreet Bar

Battery Eyes, Supportive Parents, Baltic Avenue Neighborhood Watch, Anslem @ Memory Lanes

The Good, the Bad, the Funky @ Minnesota Music Cafe

Nur-D, Sean Anonymous @ Modist Brewing—Happy birthday, Modist! The North Loop brewery is celebrating its 10th with a weekend of great local music. Friday is rap night: Nur-D brings a full band, with the bill rounded out by Sean Anonymous, Other Productions, and DJ Mike2600 on the turntables. Night two is for the rockers, headlined by punk elders Dillinger Four, who are following up last year’s rarities comp This Shit Is Geniuser with “Don’t Happy Be Worry,” their first song in 18 years. Scrunchies, the Manix, and Rad Enhance are worth catching as well.—Keith Harris

The Japhies (EP Reissue) @ Mortimer’s

The Best of Both Worlds Rave @ Myth Live

Disney in Concert: The Sound of Magic @ Orchestra Hall

Edgar in Concert @ Ordway

Arbor Moon (EP Release) @ Padraigs

Matt Wilson & His Orchestra, Alpha Consumer @ Parkway

High Speed Snowshoes, Agony in the Living Room, Asparagus @ Pilllar Forum

Dan Israel Band, Chickaboom, Troglodyte @ Schooner Tavern

The Astronomers, Byrne @ 7th St Entry

Uada x Mortiss with Rome & Wraith Knight @ Studio B

DJ Nano Byte @ Terminal Bar

POB “unplugged” @ 318 Cafe

Grand Lilac, Harlow, Cowboy Thoughts @ 331 Club

Courtney Marie Andrews, Aubory Bugg @ Turf Club

Something Meets Boy, Larrikins, Moneybones, Big Yikes @ Underground Music

The Ugly Cowboys, Weeklong Weekend, Skeleton Crew @ Underground Music

Feral Dance @ Uptown VFW

Josh Garrels, Taylor Armstrong @ Varsity

Stable Mates @ Volstead’s

Sounds of Schmidt @ White Squirrel

MAUL, Cold Front, RGB Lighthouse, Jantzonia @ Zhora Darling

Saturday, April 18

DJ OG Carter @ Acadia

Golden Garters @ Amsterdam

Tumblin’ Daisies @ Animales

Sallyforth @ Animales

The Songs That Changed Us @ Art House North

The Hillcats @ Aster Cafe

Record Store Day @ Barely Brothers

Saturday Night Vibez: Afropiano Experience @ Bazement

Francesco Cafiso/Joe Block @ Berlin

Civil Disobedience: Blue Note in the Progressive '60s @ Berlin

Ebony & Ivory @ Berlin

Worldwide Discotheque @ Black Hart

The Good, the Bad, and the Funky @ Bunker’s

Underground Saturdays: Spring Bash @ Cabooze

BZ3 Organ Trio @ Capri Theater

Record Store Day @ Caydence Records & Coffee

The Wedding Present, Mark Robinson Sings Unrest @ Cedar Cultural Center

True Green (Album Release), Dustin James, Sandpaper @ Cloudland

Dale Alexander @ Crooners

Jon Ailabouni with Zacc Harris @ Crooners

Pat Metheny @ Dakota

DAMAG3 @ Underground Music

Skidmark Scavengers, Klokwerk, con-crete, kid vibe @ Day Block Brewing

Pat Lenertz & Friends, the Record Club @ Driftwood Char Bar

Tune Pals @ Dubliner Pub

The Bill Patten Trio @ Dusty’s

Peeler, Ladyslipper, Inconsistent, Lana Leone, and Tuffie @ Eagles 34

Women’s Dance @ Eagles 34

The Whiffs @ 56 Brewing

ERNEST, Rhys Rutherford @ First Avenue

Velahsa, the Silverteens, Don’t Tell Ma @ Gambit Brewing

Vibe Maestro (K-Little) x Alfrred @ Gidi

The Rolling Stoners, Clash Mini Rockers @ Green Room

The Jelly Project, Marles in Charge, Poor Lemuel @ Hook and Ladder

Ellis Paul @ Hook and Ladder

Mali Obomsawin Sextet @ Icehouse—Conservatory-trained bassist Mali Obomsawin, a member of the Odanak First Nation, began adorning free jazz compositions with vocals in Wabanaki on her acclaimed 2022 debut, Sweet Tooth. Obomsawin then composed the soundtrack to Julian Brave NoiseCat and Emily Kassie’s remarkable documentary about the horrific legacy of Indian residential schools, Sugarcane. Earlier this week, she’ll perform a short set with John Dieterich of Deerhoof and Andrew Broder prior to a screening at the Walker. But tonight will be dedicated solely to her sextet work, which adds hymns and Québécois folk to the mix.—Keith Harris

Bukkha x Head Inna Bin @ Insight Brewing

Ian Duerr @ Jazz Central

Rime, Small Animal Hospital, Iowethislandabody, Mr. Electric, Stone Harp @ Klash Coffee

Junk FM @ Mainstreet Bar

Face Pulp, Dogsthrowspears, Personhurter, Left in Rot, Hallux @ Memory Lanes

Follow the Firefly @ Metronome Brewery

Maxx Band @ Minnesota Music Cafe

Dillinger Four, Scrunchies, the Manix, Rad Enhancer @ Modist Brewing—see Friday's listings.

The Assortment ft. Michael Grey @ Mortimer’s

Disney in Concert: The Sound of Magic @ Orchestra Hall

Edgar in Concert @ Ordway

Purgatory Creek @ Padraigs

Mixed Company Singers, Heartfelt, PiM Singers @ Parkway

Sunless, Wanderer, Visceral Reaction @ Pilllar Forum

Becky Kapell & the Fat 6 @ Schooner Tavern

NateWantsToBattle, GENWUNNER, Cam Steady @ 7th St Entry

Said The Sky, Shallou, Zensei @ Skyway Theatre

Jibless, EFMI, KVNT, Secret Formula, Black Market Mothership @ Terminal Bar

2 Girls & a Boyd @ 318 Cafe

Valors, the Envies, Edith Head @ 331 Club

Robert Wilkinson @ 331 Club

SYSTEM 15-Year Anniversary @ TRXX WRHS

The Plastic Constellations, Tornavalanche @ Turf Club—If you’ll allow Old Man Harris to wax uncharacteristically nostalgic for a moment: For me, the Plastic Constellations will always be the Hopkins High kids wisecracking on the Foxfire Lounge stage in the late ’90s, unlikely to get through a show without breaking a string or two. (If you’re curious what I said about them back when, have at it.) Of course, they became much more than that before they broke up amicably in 2008; this will be their only show since then aside from a one-off at the Cedar for Modern Radio’s 10th anniversary in 2010. Come for the guitars, stay for the banter.—Keith Harris

S2 E2: FLUID FREQUENCIES – High Frequencies – A 420 Celebration @ Uptown VFW

Leslie Vincent @ Volstead’s

Sounds of Schmidt @ White Squirrel

Sensing Agony, Halfway Down, Maelstrom in the Harbor @ White Squirrel

Terrapin Station @ Zhora Darling

Sunday, April 19

Clover and the Bee @ Animales

Patty and the Buttons @ Aster Cafe

Global Groove Presents: Zim 46 @ Bazemnt

Washington Express: Mississippi @ Berlin

Dr. Mambo’s Combo @ Bunker’s

Yasmin Williams with Nathan Graham @ Cedar Cultural Center

Billboard’s Best Songs of the ’70s @ Crooners

CusCampbell @ Crooners

Pat Metheny @ Dakota

Phine & Friends, Shotgun Ragtime Band @ Driftwood Char Bar

Sweet Rhubarb @ Dubliner Pub

Phil Heywood @ Dubliner Pub

Sunday Trad Session @ Dubliner Pub

Twin Cities Country Dancers @ Eagles 34

Karaoke with Reina Starr @ Eagles 34

Irish Set Dance @ Eagles 34

TC Ramblers @ Eagles 34

Snow tha Product @ First Avenue

Candlelight: Tribute to Drake @ Granada

Candlelight: Best of Hip-Hop on Strings @ Granada

Beth Bombara/Mother Banjo @ Hook and Ladder

Urgent Emergent Performance Art Series, Volume Four: The Poet’s Circle @ Icehouse

Old Men Do Newman @ Jazz Central

32nd Street featuring Becky Sun & Anne Lippin @ Metronome Brewery

Half Baked @ Midway Saloon

Minnesota Youth Symphonies Spring Concert @ Orchestra Hall

Un Milagro de Fe @ Ordway

The Shabby Road Orchestra @ Parkway Theater

Church of Cornbread @ Schooner Tavern

Music Jam @ Schooner Tavern

Wild Party, Capital Soiree @ 7th St Entry

Renaissance Orchestra @ Skyway Theatre

Eleven Degenerates @ 331 Club

Switchyard @ 331 Club

Dessa @ 331 Club

Sounds of Schmidt @ White Squirrel

Karaoke With Ally @ White Squirrel

The Blog Era @ Zhora Darling

Monday, April 20

2nd Annual 420 Festival @ Cabooze

Pedro the Lion @ Caydence Coffee and Records—Cool show, nice score for Caydence, further proof that the East Side gets hipper every day. Unfortunately it’s way sold out.—Keith Harris

R.A.P. Ferreira with GR3G and Student 1 @ Cedar Cultural Center

Flock of Dimes @ Cloudland

Urban Classic Presents Revelation @ Dakota

Fleshpots of Egypt: Hymntap @ Dubliner Pub

Tango Desperados Practilonga @ Eagles 34

Square Dancing @ Eagles 34

Other Country Ensemble @ Eagles 34

Ty Segall, Mod Lang @ First Avenue

Muscle, Echoes of Regret, Flowers 4 Guilt, No Longer Dreaming @ Flying V

The Big Zen20! @ Hook and Ladder

L.A.’s Monday Nights @ Icehouse

Drug League, Blue Diver, Shit Dumpster @ Memory Lanes