Green Velvet
9 p.m. • Rev Ultra Lounge • 18-plus • $15
Some people hate surprises. But when it's a surprise collaborative album from Midwest house and techno titans, even the orneriest dance fans percolate. Last month Chicago's Green Velvet (aka Cajmere) and Detroit techno star Carl Craig dropped their out-of-nowhere "Unity" LP. The joint record steamily blends their respective styles, with hypnotic tracks such as "Manikin" and "Rosalie" showcasing Velvet's penchant for robotic, monotone vocals set to funky, driving beats. The real-life Curtis Jones — the mohawked man behind underground hits "Percolator" and "Answering Machine" — brings his 20-plus years of club-rocking experience to Minneapolis, still smoking from the high-profile collab. Ben Clear, Jack Trash and Zak Michaels open. Michael Rietmulder
Saul Williams
11 p.m. • Dakota Jazz Club • $20
Williams should fit in as easily at our local jazz haven as he did at the punky Triple Rock on recent tours. The New York rapper/poet/singer/writer, who first came to many people's attention in the 1998 spoken-word movie "Slam," continues to push the envelope and avoid being pigeonholed musically. The first track off his upcoming album, "Martyr Loser King," shows a thrashy electronic side. He's touring with young rapper Haleek Maul and New York garage-rock trio Sons of an Illustrious Father. Chris Riemenschneider
Steve Winwood
8 p.m. • State Theatre • $53.50-$100
Winwood has one of the most distinctive voices in the history of rock. He has landed in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame with both Traffic ("Low Spark of High Heeled Boys," "Dear Mr. Fantasy") and Blind Faith ("Can't Find My Way Home"), but he's also the voice of Spencer Davis Group ("Gimme Some Lovin'," "I'm a Man") and such 1980s solo hits as "Higher Love" and "Roll with It." A respected organ player, Winwood is on everything from Jimi Hendrix's "Voodoo Chile" to Miranda Lambert's "Baggage Claim." He likes to jam live, which could explain why his sets are long on musicianship and short on song titles. Opening is Nashville singer-songwriter Marc Scibilia, who is heard singing "This Land Is Your Land" in a recent commercial for Jeep. Jon Bream
KFAI Weekend Bash
7:30 p.m. Fri.-Sat. • Minneapolis Eagles Club • $10 donation
The second in a series of fundraiser concerts to help the Twin Cities' most eclectic community radio station out of a financial hole, the KFAI Weekend Bash is bulging with 30-plus performers spread over three stages and two thematic nights. Night One is a rootsy/acoustic-flavored showcase with Cajun faves the New Riverside Ramblers, ace pickers Steve Kaul, Phil Heywood and Lonesome Dan Kase, bluesmen Dave Babb, Sneaky Pete Bauer and Chris Holm, plus Diane Jarvi, Patty & the Buttons, Jon Rodine and more. The second night boasts a mighty fun garage-rock/punk lineup with Kinda Kinky, the Silverteens, Mrs., Hipbone, Pentacine, Scaphe, Weakwick and others. Chris Riemenschneider
Duluth Homegrown Twin Cities Invasion
9 p.m. • First Avenue • 18-plus • $7
A warm-up to Duluth's all-local answer to South by Southwest (April 26-May 3), the Duluth Homegrown Twin Cities Invasion sends some of the City on a Hill's most active music makers down I-35 for a big big-city showcase. This year's ensemble includes ominous, thrashing prog-metal quartet Wolf Blood, psychedelic song man Toby Thomas Churchill, dance-rock hippies Red Mountain and sultry, new-wavy pop-rockers the Social Disaster. Chris Riemenschneider
MaLLy and Haphduzn
10 p.m. • 7th Street Entry • $7-$10
Two of the most powerful voices in Twin Cities hip-hop, MaLLy and Haphduzn both grew up around the Whittier neighborhood of south Minneapolis with similar calamity-conquering backgrounds, but they only recently came together as collaborators. The old-school-leaning rappers teamed with DJ Last Word (Prof, Get Cryphy) for a throbbing new single, "Squad," which dropped Monday ahead of this "tri-headlining" concert. Mac Irv and Plain Ole Bill open. (10 p.m. Fri., 7th Street Entry, $7-$10.) Chris Riemenschneider
