Thursday, March 30
A preview of Bailen's May release "Tired Hearts" suggests that the harmony-loving, New York City sibling trio — twins David and Daniel Bailen and younger sister Julia — comes across as an indie answer to Fleetwood Mac, with "Here We Are Again" talking about 10 degrees in Minnesota (7:30 p.m. Parkway Theater, $20-$27); celebrating 25 years together, Oregon's Pink Martini returns with its heady swingin' cabaret jazz (7:30 p.m. Pantages Theatre, $60-$75); veteran L.A. singer-songwriter Karla Bonoff, whose songs became hits for Linda Ronstadt, Bonnie Raitt and Wynonna Judd, had a few hits of her own, namely "Personally" and "Somebody's Eyes" (7 p.m. the Dakota, $40-$45); the Butanes, Curt Obeda's blues and soul band, are back in Northeast Minneapolis (7 p.m. Shaw's, free).
Friday, March 31
1. Ber: With millions of streams for her viral hits "Meant to Be" and "Your Internet Sucks" and steady airplay locally on the Current for her latest "Boys Who Kiss You in the Car," this 24-year-old pop-crafting Bemidji native is on the verge of international stardom even while settling into the Twin Cities music scene. She lived abroad in England and Norway for five years and came home with a record deal, resulting in her hooky new EP "Halfway," laden with sometimes tenderly lovelorn and sometimes charmingly snarky love songs. Read a profile of Ber in Friday's Star Tribune. (7 p.m. 7th St. Entry, 701 1st Av. N., Mpls., sold out.)
2. Ezra Collective: The jazzy London ensemble is picking up new followers of late, thanks to the effervescent party jam "Life Goes On" featuring Sampa the Great receiving airplay on the Current and other public-radio stations. The 7-year-old quintet's sophomore album, 2022's "Where I'm Meant to Be," is a delicious throw-it-into-the-blender mix of jazz, Afrobeat, reggae, salsa, funk and hip-hop, with cameos from Emeli Sande, Kojey Radical, Nao and Sampa. The intoxicating, strikingly sophisticated collection, which includes a cosmic treatment of Sun Ra's "Love in Outer Space," suggests a groovy party coming to downtown Minneapolis. (7 p.m. the Dakota, 1010 Nicollet Mall, Mpls., $30-$35, dakotacooks.com)
Also: Memphis rapper Key Glock is a protégé of Young Dolph who has racked up viral traction with singles including "Russian Cream" and "Ambition for Cash" (8 p.m. the Fillmore, all ages, $40); newly reformed '00s-era Twin Cities powerhouse rockers Houston have a new EP they are celebrating with Poster Children (10 p.m. Icehouse, $12-$15); Australian soul singer Emma Donovan blends her Indigenous roots and storytelling in her groovy and funky sounds (8 p.m. Cedar Cultural Center, $20-$25).
Saturday, April 1
3. John Mayer: The beauty of doing a solo show even in an arena is there are no restrictions dictated by set lists, production cues or the band's familiarity with songs. Such is the case with Mayer's current Solo Acoustic Tour. He even has the freedom to play electric guitar and answer requests from signs held by fans. Not only does he survey his 22-year recording career, but he is also known to toss in covers of Beyonce, Tom Petty and, of course, the Grateful Dead as well as brand new originals. Sounds like a Mayerhead's dream concert. Opening is talented singer-songwriter Joy Oladokun, who is preparing to drop her fourth album, "Proof of Life," in April. (7 p.m. Xcel Energy Center, 199 W. Kellogg Blvd., St. Paul, $54.50-$995, ticketmaster.com)
4. Haley: With her second daughter due in June and a new album in the pipeline, the brightly voiced Twin Cities indie-rock mainstay is throwing a big hurrah before hunkering down for a while. She's promising a preview of the Beatrix Potter-inspired new record, "Hunca Munca," plus some old faves and covers with a cast of friends along for fun, including Diane, Lamar, Tender Ness, Ian Allison, Al Church and Jeremy Ylvisaker. (7:30 p.m. the Hook & Ladder Mission Room, 3010 Minnehaha Av. S., Mpls., $15-$25, thehookmpls.com)
5. Lissie: Women's History Month wraps up at the Woman's Club of Minneapolis with this Decorah, Iowa, folk-rock howler's appearance in all-female promotions crew Sue McLean & Associates' Music & Storytellers series. A decade-since her breakout single "When I'm Alone," the singer born Elisabeth Maurus has made the Twin Cities her music base with bandmates and dedicated fans here. She also enjoyed another fruitful year on the road in 2022 promoting her resilient and harrowing new album, "Carving Canyons." Bubbling-under indie-pop singer Ber opens this intimate solo gig. (7:30 p.m. Woman's Club, 410 Oak Grove St., Mpls., $40-$50, etix.com)
6. Ronnie Baker Brooks/Bobby Rush: This blues twin bill pairs Chicago's Brooks, the son of the late bluesman Lonnie Brooks, with Mississippi's Rush, a legendary 89-year-old entertainer. Brooks is a top-shelf guitarist and a good friend of Minneapolis music stalwart Jellybean Johnson, who produced Brooks' 2006 LP and toured with him. Rush, who won his first Grammy at age 83, picked up his second Grammy for 2020's "Rawer Than Raw" and earned rave reviews for his plain-spoken but unvarnished 2021 memoir "I Ain't Studdin' Ya: My American Blues Story." (7:30 p.m. Medina Entertainment Center, 500 Highway 55, Medina, $34-$49, medinaentertainment.com)
Also: Vasen, the beloved Swedish string duo that has been gigging for 37 years, returns to what used to be called Snoose Boulevard in Minneapolis (8 p.m. Cedar Cultural Center, $22-$27); neo-classical string duo the OK Factor and neo-bluegrass pickers Sprig of That celebrate their new releases, "OKX" and "Bloom," respectively (8 p.m. Parkway Theater, $15-$40); Erin Schwab and Dane Stauffer, Twin Cities entertainers with a sense of humor, offer an April Fools program featuring "Why Do Fools Fall in Love," "What Kind of Fool Am I," "What a Fool Believes" and "Chain of Fools" (6:30 p.m. Crooners, $25-$35); the Shabby Road Orchestra, an ensemble of 12 veteran Minnesota musicians, interprets late-period Beatles songs (8 p.m. Crooners, $40-$50); Twin Cities jazz-soul ensemble Jay Young & Lyric Factory featuring Ginger Commodore salute influential women artists, from Aretha to Blondie (7 p.m. the Dakota, $20-$25); fresh off Run Westy Run's killer album release, Kraig Jarret Johnson returns to his solo tunes and more with friends (9 p.m. Aster Cafe, $15); Minneapolis hip-hop vet Carnage the Executioner is hosting his "Return to the Show Stealer" taping with guests such as Illism, Lewiee Blaze and J'Mere (7:30 p.m. Hook & Ladder Theater, $10-$15); a slim amount of tickets are still available to Dessa's trip down to Red Wing's ornate performance hall (7:30 p.m. Sheldon Theatre, $21-$39); First Avenue hosts its "Danceteria Through the Decades" dance party with DJs including Roy Freedom, Dean Vaccaro, Sophia Eris and Keezy to mark its 53rd anniversary (7 p.m. start, $10-$15).
Sunday, April 2
7. Winter Jazz Festival: New York trumpeter Bruce Harris, who has played with everyone from Wynton Marsalis and Tony Bennett to Rihanna and Lady Gaga, will be backed by some of Minnesota's finest jazz musicians at this day-long fest. Also performing in Crooners' three rooms are guitarist Tim Sparks, Dave Graf's Friendly Five, Gypsy Mania, New Orleans traditionalists Southside Aces, vocalists extraordinaire Ginger Commodore and Connie Evingson, and pianist Rick Carlson. (2 p.m. Crooners, 6161 Hwy 65, Fridley, $45-$125, croonersmn.eventbrite.com)
8. Cantus and Cantus: On their many travels, members of the Minneapolis-based low-voice ensemble Cantus have been periodically asked if they're the Cantus that sings in Disney's "Frozen." They were being mistaken for a wonderful women's choir from the arctic environs of Trondheim, Norway, that's since won top honors for a female chamber choir at the 2018 World Choir Games. The two groups will at last meet onstage, exchanging songs and joining voices on predominantly Nordic repertoire. The concert will also be livestreamed, available through April 16. (3 p.m. the O'Shaughnessy, St. Catherine University, 2004 Randolph Ave., St. Paul; $5-$75, oshag.stkate.edu.)
Also: Montreal's Chiiild brings his self-described and aptly described "synthetic soul" (8 p.m. 7th Street Entry, $20-$25); Jazz88 (KBEM-FM) will honor "Minnesota Jazz Legends" Denny Malmberg, Douglas Ewart, Joan Griffith and the late Butch Thompson, backed by the Phil Aaron Trio (2 p.m. Minnesota History Center, $10-$20); Culture Zoom, a Twin Cities duo featuring Mark Bloom and Geoff Jones, braid Jewish and African American music (2:30 p.m. Highland Park Community Center, $15-$20); Larry McDonough Quartet explores the music of the late great jazzman Wayne Shorter (8 p.m. Aster Cafe, $10).
Monday, April 3
Cafe Accordion Orchestra, which Twin Cities singer/accordionist Dan Newton founded in 1992, plays an unlikely but exciting mix of French musette, gypsy jazz, Tin Pan Alley and Latin sounds (7 p.m. the Dakota, $15-$25).
Tuesday, April 4
9. Lil Wayne: He has a terrible track record for making his gigs in the Twin Cities — see: three cancellations in a row in the 2010s — but New Orleans' little rap giant does have a reputation for solid, energetic performances when he does show up. This one's the kickoff date for his so-called Welcome to Tha Carter Tour, a more intimate and back-to-basics outing that seems like a good alternative to his last time in town on a rather silly arena tour with Blink-182. He just dropped a braggadocios new single ahead of the trek, "Kant Nobody," to show he means business. (7 p.m. the Fillmore, 525 N. 5th St., Mpls., $210-$350, livenation.com)
10. Victor Wooten & the Wooten Brothers: The bad-ass bass man funked up Twin Cities guitar hero Cory Wong's concert this month at the Palace Theatre, and now he returns with the Wooten Brothers, the oldest of his many ensembles. The youngest of five brothers, he began performing with his older sibs in Hawaii, where their dad was stationed in the Air Force. Over the years, Wooten has been in many groups, notably Bela Fleck & the Flecktones and Bass Extremes, which last year dropped "S'Low Down," a less-is-more project with cameos from Ron Carter, Marcus Miller, Bootsy Collins, Oteil Burbridge and others. The Wooten Brothers — including drummer Futureman of the Flecktones and keyboardist Joseph of Steve Miller Band — are on tour together for the first time since the 2010 death of saxophonist Rudy Wooten. (6: 30 & 8:30 p.m. the Dakota, 1010 Nicollet Mall, Mpls., $40-$50, dakotacooks.com)
Also: Rowdy and rhythmic Twin Cities rock quartet the 4onthefloor hits the town with rootsy and bluesy picker Mike Munson (9 p.m. Icehouse, $20).
Wednesday, April 5
Immanuel Wilkins Quartet, led by the 25-year-old alto saxophonist from Philly, injected spiritualism into their sophomore CD, last year's "The 7th Hand," which takes a hard left-handed turn on the 26-minute free jazz piece "Lift" (7 p.m. the Dakota, $30-$35).
Classical music critic Rob Hubbard contributed to this column.
