Thursday, July 4
After recording some of their well-received new album, "Sonic Ranch," at Creation Audio in Minneapolis and seeing their mid-'90s hit "Out of My Head" gain new life in a prominent "Ted Lasso" scene, Texas-pop-rock darlings Fastball return to Minnesota for a fireworks-accompanied party opening for fellow '90s radio favorites Sister Hazel (5-10 p.m. Mystic Lake Casino, free); celebrate freedom with Minnesota's long-running kings of the boogie Lamont Cranston (8 p.m. Belvedere tent at Crooners, $35-$45).
Friday, July 5
1. Mike Campbell and the Dirty Knobs: The former longtime guitarist for Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers and later short time with Fleetwood Mac, Campbell is finally coming into his own with his side project that's become full time. He seems more confident on the Knobs' third album in four years, the just released "Vagabonds, Virgins & Misfits," on which he receives help from Graham Nash, Lucinda Williams and Chris Stapleton. The band is revamped with Steve Ferrone returning to the drum kit and Chris Holt now on guitar and keyboards. And, yes, they will do a few Petty songs. Shannon McNally opens. (8 p.m. Fitzgerald Theater, 10 E. Exchange St., St. Paul, $52.50 and up, axs.com)
2. The Kid Laroi: A protégé of Juice Wrld, this Aussie rapper/singer, 20, has been making a name for himself on collabs with Justin Bieber (the No. 1 hit "Stay") and Miley Cyrus ("Without You"). The well-connected L.A. resident also has teamed up with Jungkook, Machine Gun Kelly, Lil Yachty, Future, Robert Glasper, Lil Durk and Polo G, among others, and he landed a tune, "Forever & Again," on the "Barbie" soundtrack. Oh, yeah, on his First Time Tour, the Kid LaRoi is garnering attention for dating Canadian pop star Tate McRae. Glaive and Chase Shakur open. (7:30 p.m. the Armory, 500 S. 6th St., Mpls., $26 and up, ticketmaster.com)
3. Miranda Lambert: It's been a minute since the much-acclaimed country star has had a hit (2021′s "Drunk (And I Don't Wanna Go Home)" with Elle King). But she has a new collaboration with white-hot Lainey Wilson coming called "Good Horses." And Lambert dropped a new single, "Wranglers," in May, and she's been teasing another one, "For Anyone Who Needs to Move On," on social media. Yes, Lambert is going to deliver a new recorded-in-Texas album this year (it's "very country," she promises of her 10th studio effort). Meanwhile, the feisty Texan has a jukebox full of classics from "From the House That Built Me" to "Kerosene" to fill a set list. (8 p.m. Grand Casino Hinckley Amphitheater, $90-$150, etix.com)
Also: Twin Cities indie-rock vet Darren Jackson is back with his first album in five years as Kid Dakota, "Praegustator," which he's celebrating with a release party also featuring FènixDion and Dylan Safar (9:30 p.m. Icehouse, $15-$25); the 45-piece U.S. Air Force Band of Mid-America celebrates Independence Day (7:30 p.m. Lake Harriet Band Shell, free); veteran vocalist Anne Hampton Callaway is touring behind "Finding Beauty: Originals Vol. 1," which features guests Melissa Manchester, Tierney Sutton and Kurt Elling (7 p.m., also Sat., Crooners, $42-$52); veteran Scottish singer-songwriter Al Stewart brings back the '70s classics "Year of the Cat" and "Time Passages" with his band, the Empty Pockets (7 p.m., also Sat., the Dakota, $50-$65).
Saturday, July 6
4. Trampled by Turtles: The harborside homecoming concert by the high-wired acoustic string band that played its first gig 21 years ago up the shore at Sir Benedict's Tavern has turned into one of Duluth's most popular annual events, with Trampled fans from all over coming to take part. This year's installment comes between the sextet's spring tour dates with Turnpike Troubadours and fall shows with the Avett Brothers. Big crowds are their norm these days. Indiana's harmonious rock unit Houndmouth of "Sedona" fame opens. (6 p.m. Bayfront Festival Park, 350 Harbor Dr., Duluth, resale tickets only, first-avenue.com)
5. Taste of Minnesota: In its second iteration in downtown Minneapolis, the resurrected Taste of Minnesota is aiming for a little hometown flavor with its music. The Wallflowers return on Saturday to the Twin Cities, where frontman Jakob Dylan spent many childhood summers with his father, Bob Dylan. Headlining on Saturday is country powerhouse Martina McBride of "Independence Day" fame. Sunday's big attraction is Minneapolis-launched Morris Day & the Time, preceded by original Time members Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis. Other local musicians round out the lineups including Sounds of Blackness, Johnny Holm Band, Sophia Eris and Gear Daddies. (noon to 8 p.m. Sat. & Sun. Nicollet Mall, Mpls., free, tasteofmn.com)
6. The Baseball Project: Playing sidemen in this baseball-themed all-star band might still be the only chance to regularly catch former R.E.M. members Peter Buck and Mike Mills in action, as they reiterated their commitment to not stage a reunion at their other band's Songwriters Hall of Fame induction last month. Seeing them back on tour after last year's album "Grand Salami Time!," you can witness what keeps them running the bases with this fun team led by Steve Wynn (Dream Syndicate) and Scott McCaughey (Young Fresh Fellows) and featuring ex-Minnesotan Linda Pitmon (Zuzu's Petals) on drums. Please, though, nobody ruin the fun by mentioning Kent Hrbek to the Braves-loving Mills. (8 p.m. Turf Club, 1601 University Av. W., St. Paul, resale tickets only, axs.com)
Also: A band that famously shut down Austin's SXSW music fest for decades, rowdy Chicagoan rockers the Waco Brothers with British punk hero Jon Langford of the Mekons are out promoting their first album in eight years, "The Men That God Forgot" (8 p.m., Cedar Cultural Center, $23-$28); Tennessee's "Comatose"-singing pop-punker JXDN, aka Jaden Hossler, owes his rising stardom to TikTok and Blink-182′s Travis Barker, who produced his debut album (6:45 p.m., First Avenue, all ages, $34); the Bang, Boom, Bash Party on the Palmer's patio features local garage-rock and twang-rock mainstays High on Stress, the Silverteens, the Boot, Spit Takes and more (3 p.m. Palmer's Bar, $10-$20); Twin Cities vocal stalwart Jearlyn Steele's versatility and memory will be tested in "The Pianist Knows Best" as keyboardist Sean Turner picks the repertoire (6:30 p.m. Dunsmore Room at Crooners, $35-$45).
Sunday, July 7
7. Niall Horan: Harry who?! OK, One Direction's resident Irishman still has a long way to go in surpassing the success of a certain other ex-member of the U.K. boy band. But Horan has made great headway in recent years starting with his second solo album, 2020′s "Heartbreak Weather." A TV stint as a coach on "The Voice" last year dovetailed nicely into this year's release of "The Show," an album that blends in sunny L.A. flavor and synth-pop influences, as evidenced by his latest hit single, "Heaven." Horan's first arena-headlining U.S. solo tour features alternating 1D songs in the setlists and New Yorker Del Water Gap as an opener. (7:30 p.m. Xcel Energy Center, 199 W. Kellogg Blvd., St. Paul, $25-$255, ticketmaster.com)
8. Marcia Ball: Always with one foot in Louisiana and the other in Texas, Ball brings her piano boogie back to downtown Minneapolis following an action-packed first half of the year that included a star-studded 75th birthday weekend bash in Austin and a heated return to New Orleans' Jazz Fest. She was also named best keyboardist in Living Blues magazine's readers poll. Her live shows are still defined by a swampy groove yet masterful instrumentation, blending Dr. John and Professor Longhair with the cosmic twang of Austin's '70s scene. (7 p.m. the Dakota, 1010 Nicollet Mall, Mpls., $40-$45, dakotacooks.com)
Also: Taste of Minnesota's music schedule continues with free performances by Morris Day & the Time, Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, Sounds of Blackness and more (noon-8 p.m., Nicollet Mall); alt-twangy Twin Cities singer-songwriters Becky Kapell and Sarah Morris and their bands are pairing up (7 p.m. Icehouse, $20-$25); the Brass Messengers are hosting a free holiday-weekend wrap-up blowout at the 331 Club (7 p.m.); Minnesota's Honky-Tonk Jump gets into the Western swing of things with a program of Bob Wills music (4:30 p.m. Crooners, $25-$35); the New Standards, the Twin Cities trio for all occasions, have found another outdoor venue in which to showcase pop hits as lounge jazz (7 p.m., Hewing Hotel roof, $45).
Monday, July 8
Minnesota Orchestra takes it outside for four concerts that give you a taste of their world-renowned way with classical fare (Beethoven, Edvard Grieg and Carlos Simon), lighter pops pieces (Leroy Anderson and John Philip Sousa) and film music from John Williams. Norman Huynh conducts. (7:30 p.m. Mon., Lake Harriet Band Shell; 8:30 p.m. Wed. Hilde Center for the Performing Arts, Plymouth; 7:30 p.m. July 11, Lakefront Park Bandshell, Hudson, Wis.; 8 p.m. July 13, Lake Park Bandshell, Winona, free); old radio favorites from different decades, REO Speedwagon, remembered for "Keep on Lovin' You" fame, and Train, known for "Drops of Jupiter (Tell Me)," travel to Wisconsin (6:30 p.m. Somerset Amphitheater, $36 and up); well-traveled jazz pianist Benny Green, who used to be a regular visitor to the Dakota, is back (7 p.m., $30-$40).
Tuesday, July 9
Blues guitar vet Walter Trout, who spent the 1980s touring with Canned Heat and then John Mayall's Bluesbreakers, is out in support of his 21st studio album, this year's "Broken" (6:30 & 9 p.m. the Dakota, $35-$45); Mike Love brings the Beach Boys to the Land of 10,000 Lakes for some fun, fun, fun (7:30 p.m. Mayo Event Center, Mankato, and 7 p.m. Wed. Ledge Amphitheater, Waite Park, $47 and up).
Wednesday, July 10
9. Etran de L'Aïr: Offering the kind of hypnotic Tuareg desert-funk guitar grooves of fellow Nigerien acts such as Bombino and Mdou Moctar, this band has been kicking around North Africa and Europe for more than two decades and is also now starting to catch on with North American audiences. The trio just played Wilco's Solid Sound Festival to raves in Massachusetts and is stopping by the Twin Cities on its way to the Winnipeg Folk Festival. It's on a cool international double bill here with Mexico City's psychedelic rockers Diles Que No Me Maten. (8 p.m. Turf Club, 1601 University Av. W., St. Paul, $22-$25, axs.com)
10. Arturo Sandoval: His friend and mentor Dizzy Gillespie helped the Cuban jazz trumpeter defect to the United States in 1990. A forceful musician and entertaining showman, Sandoval has been prolific as a bandleader as well as a sideman. He's played on more than 125 albums, including projects by Frank Sinatra, Luis Miguel, Alicia Keys, Kurt Elling and, of course, Gillespie. A winner of 10 Grammys, Sandoval will do double duty in Minneapolis — with the JazzMN Orchestra on Wednesday and with his own combo on Thursday. (6:30 & 8:30 p.m. Wed. the Dakota, $45-$65 and 6:30 & 8:30 p.m. Thu. $30-$55, dakotacooks.com)
Also: Carl (A.C.) Newman and his beloved Canadian power-pop band the New Pornographers are returning to town without sometime-member Neko Case in tow, but with lots of fresh tunes off last year's fun album "Continue as a Guest" and excellent local openers Rogue Valley (8 p.m. First Ave, $40); Berlin jazz club returns from a weeklong break with experimental band Rabeca (7 p.m., free).
Classical music writer Rob Hubbard contributed to this roundup.
