For real this time: Live music is back. And now, so are our weekly concert recommendations. March is shaping up to be the busiest month for gigs since 2019, and there's no end in sight through the rest of 2022. Check back every week for a curated guide to what's happening in music venues around the Twin Cities.
Friday, Feb. 25
K. Flay: Chicago's hard-to-peg, easy-to-like wordsmith rocker has returned to the road with a new EP in tow, "Inside Voices," featuring the wry anthem "Good Girl" and guest stints by Tom Morello and Travis Barker. She sounds extra-anxious to rock again. (8 p.m., First Avenue, Mpls., $27, first-avenue.com)
Also Friday: Country powerhouse Wynonna Judd (8 p.m., Mystic Lake, $35-$55); Minnesota Orchestra's Rachmaninoff's Symphonic Dances with cellist Jean-Guihen Queyras (8 p.m. Fri. & Sat., Orchestra Hall, $30-99); Rezz (8 p.m., the Armory, $35+); cabaret queen Marilyn Maye (7 p.m. and Sat., Crooners, $55-$60); Yungblud (7:30 p.m., the Fillmore, $30-$50), Pert Near Sandstone's Winter String Gathering (8 p.m. Fri. & Sat., Cedar Cultural Center, $17-$20).
Saturday, Feb. 26
Beach House: Ethereal-voiced French native Victoria Legrand and her Baltimore-based electro-pop bandmate Alex Scally came out of quarantine with their most ambitious album yet. "Once Twice Melody" is a sprawling double-LP collection that's cohesively soothing and moving. Despite their often somber sound, the duo puts on a surprisingly vibrant live show with help from drummer James Barone. Nigerian electronic experimenter Colloboh opens. (8 p.m. Sat., Palace Theatre, 17 W. 7th Place, St. Paul, $45, first-avenue.com)
Bettye LaVette: In the first year of the pandemic, the veteran vocal stylist was inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame, and she released the deeply penetrating "Blackbirds," interpreting tunes associated with Black women, including Nina Simone, Billie Holiday and Dinah Washington. LaVette gives these songs her own spin of pain and sadness, but she sounds hopeful in a liberating take on the Beatles' "Blackbird," making it about a Black woman finally flying after a long struggle. (7 p.m. Sat., Dakota, 1010 Nicollet Mall, Mpls., $40-$60, dakotacooks.com)
Also Saturday: GNR guitarist Slash rocks with vocalist Myles Kennedy (8 p.m., Mystic Lake, $49-$119); Kip Moore (8 p.m., First Ave, $40-$42); Rock from the Heart benefit with Grand Funk Railroad (8 p.m., Pantages Theatre, $49-$29); Crash Test Dummies (7:30 p.m., Fitzgerald Theater, $45-$72); the Smithereens with Marshall Crenshaw (8 p.m., Medina Entertainment Center, $31-$43); Matt Wilson & His Orchestra (8 p.m., Parkway Theater, sold out); Tired Eyes tribute to Neil Young (8 p.m., the Hook & Ladder, $15).
Sunday, Feb. 27
Imagine Dragons: The "Radioactive" hitmakers are back on the road following the September release of their fifth album, "Mercury, Act 1." Mega-producer Rick Rubin didn't do much to change the band's approach to making rock anthems that sound tailored to comic book movies, such as their recent theme for the Netflix's "Arcane." (7 p.m., Target Center, Mpls., $36-$26, ticketmaster.com)
Caroline Shaw: One of America's hottest composers, the Pulitzer Prize winner will both sing and play viola in a concert of her work presented by the Chamber Music Society of Minnesota. (4 p.m., Sundin Music Hall, Hamline University, 1531 Hewitt Av., St. Paul, $15-$25, students/children free with paid adult, 651-560-0206 or chambermusicmn.org)
Take 6: The jazzy, Grammy-winning Alabama sextet was creating cool a cappella sounds before the members of Pentatonix were born. (6 & 8 p.m. Sun. & 7 & 9 p.m. Mon., the Dakota, Mpls., $40-$50, dakotacooks.com)
Also Sunday: The Marias (8 p.m., First Ave, $20).
Tuesday, March 1
Gang of Four: The highly influential British post-punk band that made its mark with 1979's hard-grooving classic album "Entertainment!" is still making records and touring following the death of founding guitarist Andy Gill. Original singer Jon King and drummer Hugo Burnham and '80s-era bassist Sara Lee have recruited Slint guitarist David Pajo for this tour. (7:30 p.m. Tue., Varsity Theater, Mpls., $28, livenation.com)
Also Tuesday: North Carolina rapper Cordae (8 p.m., First Ave, $25); veteran bassist Victor Wooten of Bela Fleck's Flecktones (7 & 9 p.m. Tue. & Wed., Dakota, $35-$60); Olympia, Wash.-based Microphones (7:30 p.m., Cedar Cultural Center, $25); Mardi Gras party with Southside Aces (8 p.m., Icehouse, $12-$17); Sylvania Estrada (8 p.m., Turf Club, $15).
Thursday, March 3
Khruangbin: Like Cory Wong, this Houston trio — whose name means "airplane" in Thai — is bringing instrumental music back. The hard-to-define group blends a wide range of sounds (surf rock, funk, disco, psychedelia, jazz, global music) into a chill but intoxicating mix, with occasional vocals and snippets of covers by everyone from AC/DC to A Tribe Called Quest. Bewigged guitarist Mark Speer dazzles with his fretwork as drummer DJ Johnson handles the seamless rhythmic changes and bewigged bassist Laura Lee fills in the beats. Saxophonist Nubya Garcia opens. (8 p.m. March 3-4, Palace Theatre, 17 W. 7th Pl., St. Paul, $49.50-$75, axs.com)
Wet Leg: With its wry, oddball hit "Chaise Longue" leading the way, this British electro-rock duo from the Isle of Wight generated a buzz across the English Channel that has quickly spread across then the Atlantic. Singers Rhian Teasdale and Hester Chambers blend post-punk snarl with danceable B-52's on their debut album coming in April, which they'll hype at Texas' South by Southwest conference. Their Minnesota stopover got bumped up to First Avenue's main room. (8 p.m. Thu., First Ave, $20, axs.com)
Dirty Dozen Brass Band: The mainstays of New Orleans' still-thriving second-line brass band scene are bringing the Mardi Gras spirit north at the behest of the Dakota, and they're bringing one of Louisiana's best zydeco dance bands of the modern era, Nathan & the Zydeco Cha Chas. A guaranteed party. (6:30 & 9:30 p.m., Dakota, $30-$50, dakotacooks.com)
Also Thursday: Last night of Erik Koskinen's residency (8 p.m., Icehouse, $12-$17); John Moreland with Will Johnson (7:30 p.m., Cedar Cultural Center, $20).
