Quantic
Quantic is the vehicle through which DJ Will Holland indulges his muse. Most recently Holland has been focusing on mixing the rolling Columbian dance music of cumbia with other Afro-Latin forms, and features the superb Columbian drummer/conguero Wilson Viveros, formerly of Guayacan Orquesta. Holland started as a house and breakbeat producer in England, but moved to Columbia in 2007. Horns, keys, and a throbbing bass line contribute to the tropical mélange, which also includes a choice dollop of North American soul. (7:30 p.m. Sun., Cedar, $18-$20.)
Makana
Makana is being billed as a Hawaiian slack-key guitarist, and as a former disciple of Sonny Chillingworth and winner of Best World Music Album at the 1999 Hawaii Music Awards, the Oahu native certainly has that in his repertoire. But Makana has also ranged far from the seductive lilt of the islands. He has variously adopted the pickin' and stark agit-prop of Woody Guthrie (he's written an anthem for Bernie Sanders), the jazzy pizzazz of Django Reinhardt, and the folky shamble of James Taylor. He's even taken his slack-key elegance from balm to balmy on the muzak-laden 2011 disc, "Pure Spa Hawaii." Through it all, his playing is top-notch. Kindred Hawaiian Paula Fuga opens. (7 p.m. Weds., Dakota, $27-$32.)
Vicky Chow and Tristan Perich
The Walker Art Center's Sound Horizon series of free concerts in the gallery is especially strong this year and among the gems on tap is this duo of pianist Vicky Chow and new-music composer Tristan Perich, co-produced by SPCO's Liquid Music series. Chow will get the chance to strut her dynamic virtuosity on Perich's majestic "Surface Image," a piece for piano and electronic, 1-bit sounds. Perich's "Observations," a composition for two crotales (tiny, resonant cymbals set up on a keyboard) and 6-channel, 1-bit music, will round out the program. (6 and 7 p.m. Thurs., Walker, Free.)
