The Big Gigs: 10 best concerts to see in the Twin Cities this week

1. Soccer Mommy: After opening for the likes of Liz Phair and Luna and playing several of her own small club gigs in the Twin Cities before she was old enough to buy a beer, melodic Nashville indie-rocker Sophie Allison, now 27, has well earned her status as a First Ave Mainroom headliner. Her fourth album as Soccer Mommy, “Evergreen,” continues the Morrissey-like solitary drama she showcased in her 2020 viral hit “Circle the Drain,” but with louder guitars and thicker sonic layers. She’s touring with L.A. bedroom-pop rising star Hana Vu for an opener. (7:30 p.m. First Avenue, 701 1st Av. N., Mpls., $30, axs.com)

Also: Ari Hoenig Trio, led by the reputable New York jazz drummer who has made a dozen albums under his own name, wraps up a two-night stand (6:30 & 8:30 p.m. Berlin, $30); after the Oscars whet appetites for “Wizard of Oz” music, Twin Cities standouts Prudence Johnson and Bradley Greenwald will give a full program of “Oz” songs and other material by Harold Arlen (7:30 p.m. Crooners, $35-$45); on her latest album, 2023’s “Haunted Mountain,” Texas-born singer/songwriter Jolie Holland sings of hardships (she was homeless for a few years) and politics (“cozying up to tyrants and embracing the easiest answers,” she sings) (8 p.m. Cedar Cultural Center, $20-$25); Illinois’ fiery heartland rocker who fronts the Ike Reilly Assassination doesn’t just visit the Twin Cities before Thanksgiving, he’s here again pre-St. Patrick’s Day with the sing-along, nod-to-Minnesota rocker “At Least Another Day” (8 p.m. Turf Club, $33).

2. The Scarlet Goodbye: The first concert at the newly opened riverfront supper club Aster House is doubling as the release party for the second album by Aster proprietor Jeff Arundel’s band with former Soul Asylum guitarist/co-vocalist Dan Murphy. Titled “El Camino Adios,” the record is an elegant and at times haunted-sounding rock album of the Big Star “Third” variety, with occasional strings and even a choir in one of the standout tracks, “Raylene.” Both songwriters revisit a lot of faded memories and lingering regrets throughout the LP. Murphy even pays homage to his old band with a bittersweet heart in “Great Again.” His Golden Smog mate Kraig Johnson opens. (8 p.m. Aster House, 25 SE Main St., Mpls., $15-$20, asterhouse.com; also: acoustic release show 8 p.m. Sat., 318 Cafe, 318 Water St., Excelsior, $21, exploretock.com)

3. Lyra Baroque Orchestra: The Twin Cities’ foremost HIP group (read: “historically informed performance”) has been marking its 40th-anniversary season by inviting the four finalists for its artistic director position to each curate and lead a concert program. It’s clearly a plum position in the early music world, for the finalists are flying in from the Netherlands, Croatia, Spain and New York. This weekend, the candidate is Spanish violinist and conductor Pedro Gandía Martín, who led the Baroque Orchestra of Seville for 21 years. (7:30 p.m. Fri., Mount Olive Lutheran Church, 2830 18th Av. NW., Rochester; 7:30 p.m. Sat., Sundin Music Hall, 1531 Hewitt Av., St. Paul, $10-$35, lyrabaroque.org)

4. Pam Linton: Best known as Minnesota country king Sherwin Linton’s wife and duet partner, Pam has her own online store, the Cotton Patch Boutique, selling clothing, accessories and some of the jewelry she crafts. She also has a new album, “Songs of the Carter Family,” her first since her 2004 debut. With her clear, cheery voice, Linton interprets the familiar including “Keep on the Sunny Side” and “Can the Circle Be Unbroken” as well as the lesser known the nursery rhymey-like “Better Little Than Liar Alone” and the please-come-home, fiddle-fueled “Are You Lonesome Tonight,” not the Elvis Presley song. She steps to the front of the bandstand to celebrate her new album. (7:30 p.m. Crooners, 6161 Hwy 65, Fridley, $30-$40, eventbrite.com)

Also: JoJo, the actress and singer known for “Leave (Get Out)” and “Too Little Too Late” whose recording career has had many starts and stops, returns with a memoir, “Over the Influence,” and a new EP, ”NGL” (8 p.m. First Avenue, $35 and up); two years after breaking big on TikTok with “Late To The Party,” British bedroom-pop singer Emei is garnering further buzz on a U.S. club tour ahead of summer festival dates (7:30 p.m. Fine Line, all ages, $23); the Mississippi Hot Club featuring violinist Alissa “Big Al” Jacobsen brings its gypsy jazz to the North Loop (7:30 p.m. Berlin, $15-$25); Kendrick Lamar collaborator and film and TV scorer Adrian Younge is in town with Jazz Is Dead, featuring a 10-piece orchestra (9 p.m. Turf Club, $22).

5. The Singers: Conductor Matthew Culloton and this excellent 40-voice chamber choir always mark spring with a concert that offers comfort to those experiencing sorrow. If you’ve been dealing with a death or perhaps just pondering the brevity of this life, this might be the concert for you. This year’s edition is centered in France, as the group presents music of Olivier Messiaen and Francis Poulenc, a mass by Gabriel Fauré and the absolutely gorgeous “Requiem” of Maurice Duruflé. (7:30 p.m. Sat., Lutheran Church of the Good Shepherd, 4801 France Av. S., Mpls.; 3 p.m. Sun., House of Hope Presbyterian Church, 797 Summit Av., St. Paul, $36.50, singersmca.org)

6. Suzanne Vega: The esteemed New York singer/songwriter is billing her two-night Minneapolis stand as “Old Songs, New Songs and Other Songs.” For old songs, that must mean the disparate but delectable MTV-era hits “Luka” and “Tom’s Diner.” For new songs, that might mean “Speakers Corner” and “Rats,” which is about those infamous New York denizens that pay no rent. Both are from her May 2 release “Flying with Angels,” her first album of all new material since 2014. (7 p.m. Sat. & Sun. the Dakota, 1010 Nicollet Mall, Mpls., $45-$60, dakotacooks.com)

Also: Phoenix’s the Gin Blossoms reprise “Hey Jealousy” and other ‘90s rock-radio favorites (8 p.m. Treasure Island, $30-$155); rootsy, feel-good Los Angeles rockers Andy Frasco & the U.N. have garnered lots of raves for their high-energy gigs in town and are back previewing a new album, “Growing Pains” (8:30 p.m. Fine Line, $23); Pandora’s Other Box, the local band fronted by three women, will pay tribute to Lilith Fair, that great late 1990s showcase of women performers, with — go figure, a locally famous male emcee — Don Shelby (7:30 p.m. Woman’s Club, $30-$100); Bayou soul man Marc Broussard is touring in support of his 12th album, “Time Is a Thief” (8 p.m. Fitzgerald Theater, $35-$55); carnivalistic electro-rock band Stolyette has a wild new record, “Ghost Fox 2020,” and is hosting a dual release party and Fort Wilson Riot co-leader Jacob Mullis, whose solo album, “New Electric Machine,” echoes Bowie and MGMT with glee (8 p.m. Icehouse, $18-$20); sludgy riff wielders Whiskey Rock ‘n’ Roll Club MPLS are hosting their Winter Rock & Whiskey Warm-Up festival with six other bands, including Sparrowhawk, Big Salt, Bev and Trash Catties (4 p.m. Palmer’s Bar, $10).

7. Mary J. Blige: The queen of hip-hop soul has been getting her flowers in this decade. The documentary “Mary J. Blige’s My Life.” A role in the Aretha biopic “Respect” portraying Dinah Washington. A Super Bowl halftime appearance that earned her a prime-time Emmy. Induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. She’s taking a victory lap this year with the For My Fans Tour. Dressed in a series of fabulous fits, Blige, she of the powerful, soaring voice, is surveying her whole career in about 30 songs (“Not Gon’ Cry,” “My Life,” “Family Affair”) including material from last year’s “Gratitude” album. Opening are Mario and Ne-Yo. (7 p.m. Xcel Energy Center, 199 W. Kellogg Blvd., St. Paul, $64.50-$1,000, ticketmaster.com)

Also: Ireland’s traditional folk singer Karan Casey, the former member of Solas, makes her first Twin Cities appearance since 2020 (7:30 p.m. Celtic Junction, $25); the blues-rocking Teskey Brothers have collected many awards in their homeland of Australia (8 p.m. Uptown Theater, $65 and up); Twin Cities trumpeter Solomon Parham pays tribute to Miles Davis (6:30 p.m. Crooners, $25-$35 ).

8. St. Patrick’s Day gigs: A band that started 23 years ago on St. Patrick’s Day for a Van Morrison tribute set at the 400 Bar, Terry Walsh and his horn-sectioned big band the Belfast Cowboys have moved their annual celebration to the Turf Club and are playing all night (7 p.m. Mon., 1601 W. University Av., St. Paul, $15, axs.com). U2 tribute band Rattle and Hum will elevate the weekend-long St. Patty’s festivities twice at Kieran’s Pub (9 p.m. Sat. & Mon., 85 N. 6th St., Mpls., free). Rowdy Irish rock mainstays the Tim Malloys will wind down a long day of music at Kip’s Irish Pub that also includes Purgatory Creek and Bonnie Drunken Lad. (11 a.m.-11 p.m. Mon., 9970 Wayzata Blvd., St. Louis Park, free)

9. Ladysmith Black Mambazo: This is not your usual St. Patrick’s Day fare but these South African harmonizers are remarkable entertainers with their spirited, uplifting performances of music and showmanship. Founded in 1960 by Joseph Shabalala, the group now features his four sons and two of their cousins. (There have been only two personnel changes since 1993.) Ladysmith Black Mambazo gained international recognition for collaborating with Paul Simon on his landmark “Graceland” album in 1986, and has since won five Grammy Awards and traveled the world singing “Long Walk to Freedom,” indigenous African songs and, of course, Simon’s “Homeless.” (7 & 9 p.m. the Dakota, 1010 Nicollet Mall, Mpls., $35-$60, dakotacooks.com)

10. Lizzo: Thirteen years after she performed some of her first gigs under the same roof with her old group the Chalice, the “Truth Hurts” and “About Damn Time” hitmaker is returning to Minnesota’s Mainroom for one of just three underplay gigs alongside New York and L.A. to begin the roll-out of her new album, “Love in Real Life.” This one should be mighty special, and predictably it sold out mighty fast. The album’s rocky title track and first single suggests the Minnesota expat is learning to shrug off the celeb gossip and online trolling that has plagued her of late, so chances are she’s coming back to party. (9:30 p.m. First Avenue, resale tickets only, first-avenue.com)

Also: Get a taste of the vintage Irish boy band era with Boyzlife featuring Brian McFadden of WestLife and Keith Duffy of BoyZone (7:30 p.m. Parkway Theater, $49-$69); Ginger Commodore, one of the Twin Cities' finest vocalists, pays tribute to the recently deceased Roberta Flack (7 p.m. the Dakota, $25-$30).

[See also: Lizzo will return to First Avenue in March to hype her new album at old stomping grounds]

Altan, the great Irish folk group launched in 1987, makes its near-annual March visit with a new album, “Donegal,” featuring founding lead singer Mairéad Ní Mhaonaigh and Minnesota-based guitarist Dáithí Sproule (7 p.m. the Dakota, $45-$55); Alabama’s guttural twang-rock specialist Lee Baines III is touring without his band the Glory Fires and has Eleganza opening (8 p.m. 7th St. Entry, $15); Marijuana Death Squads is back for another Wednesday sonic meltdown at Icehouse (10 p.m., $10).

Classical music critic Rob Hubbard contributed to this column.