The Big Gigs for week of 5/20

POP/ROCK When Sandra Bernhard joined host Rosanne Cash for a show at a New York museum in January, it was songs and comedy without a net. (They'd met years ago on Letterman and reconnected via Twitter.) The setup will be different at MPR's live radio series "Wits." There is a referee, er, host, John Moe, and John Munson is the music wrangler. Wish them luck because Bernhard is a loose cannon (usually in a good way). Plus, musically, she can pull out anything from Prince to Britney to "Moon River," as well as her own tunes. Cash has her own cache of terrific originals and a wealth of country classics -- and she can hold her own when it comes to wits. The phone-in guest is comedian Eugene Mirman. (8 p.m. Fri., Fitzgerald Theater, $32.) Jon Bream

Not by coincidence, Slobberbone is playing next door to Tommy Stinson the night before it opens for him in Chicago. The North Texas country-rock band put out a pair of gritty, rowdy albums on New West Records (where former 'Mats manager Peter Jesperson now works) before splitting up in the mid-'00s. Frontman Brent Best went on to front the Drams but is putting his old band back together for a short Midwest stint while working on a solo album. (10 p.m. Fri., 7th Street Entry. $12-$15.) Chris Riemenschneider

He started out wanting to be the next Michael Jackson, and wound up as the guy who launched Justin Bieber. In between, Usher has proved to be a steady hitmaker ("Yeah," "U Remind Me," "OMG") and a sexy dancing fool onstage. Opening are Akon, a featured hook singer who also has scored his own hits, and Dev & the Cataracs, another young YouTube discovery. (7:30 p.m. Sat., Target Center, $29.50-$99.50.) Bream

Suburbs singer Chan Poling is taking his New Standards-proven revisionist skills and applying them to movie and TV music in the form of "Score!" The one-night-only show, a taping for the Current 89.3, will feature everything from European film pieces to movie classics by Mancini and Bacharach to some unmistakable pop-culture staples. His all-star support cast will include Jeremy Messersmith, Lucy Michelle, Janey Winterbauer, DeVon Gray and Terry Eason. (8 p.m. Sat., Fitzgerald Theater. $25.) Riemenschneider

As quirky as nearly everything else that Kimya Dawson has done, the former Mouldy Peaches partner and "Juno" soundtrack star is touring with a new all-star hip-hop trio called Hail Mary Mallon, featuring New York indie-rappers Aesop Rock and Rob Sonic with DJ Big Wiz. Named after the real-life Typhoid Mary, the trio will issue its debut album in June on Rhymesayers. Dawson is also about to release a new one titled "Thunder Thighs." (9 p.m. Sat., Triple Rock. Sold out.) Riemenschneider

More than its predecessors, Man Man's fourth album, "Life Fantastic," shows how much of a hoot the psychedelic Philadelphia band can be in concert. Frontman Honus Honus howls like Tom Waits and writes quirky, off-kilter tunes like Frank Zappa, and the rest of his band varies between a Gogol Bordello-like gypsy punk and "Nuggets"-brand garage rock. Fun fun! Semi-maniacal New York punk crooner Shilpa Ray & Her Happy Hookers open. (9 p.m. Mon., First Avenue. 18 & older. $15.) Riemenschneider

Canadian folk-rock champ Bruce Cockburn writes songs that are impassioned, intimate, gripping, political and often hook-filled, while his lead guitar skills are formidable. Another good singer/songwriter, Jenny Scheinman, seen previously in town with Bill Frisell and the Flatlanders (she's versatile!), opens the show and will play violin with Cockburn's band. (7:30 p.m. Mon., Cedar Cultural Center. Sold out.) Tom Surowicz

They are two young, charismatic stars who owe big debts to old-school soul. But Bruno Mars and Janelle Monae have carved careers for themselves by forging new sounds that assimilate many older styles. A singer, songwriter and producer, stylish showman Mars croons hooks for others (B.o.B., Travie McCoy), writes hits for others (Cee Lo Green, Flo Rida) and scores with his own smooth smashes ("Grenade," "Just the Way You Are"). Monae's ambitious sci-fi concept album, "The ArchAndroid," was my favorite CD of 2010, and she's even more impressive in concert -- a dynamic dervish. (7:30 p.m. Wed., Roy Wilkins Auditorium, $33.) Bream

British pop-soul siren Adele is bringing vocals back. She didn't end up with the year's biggest-selling album, "21," because of vampy videos, big-dance beats or an array of guest stars. She did it the old-fashioned way -- with passionate vocals rendering her deeply emotional words set to memorable melodies (thanks in part to Minneapolis' own Dan Wilson, who co-wrote three songs). In concert, she's always nervous, which means she could be a chatterbox or strikingly introverted. Either way, she delivers songs like no other current pop star. Plan B opens. (7:30 p.m. Thu., First Avenue. Sold out.) Bream

Twins fans looking for an all-star-brand team to cheer for may find one in the Baseball Project, the diamond-shaped jewel of a band featuring former Dream Syndicate leader Steve Wynn, his Minneapolis-reared partner Linda Pitmon (ex-Zuzu's Petals) and their pals from the R.E.M. camp, Scott McCaughey and Peter Buck. Their 2010 post-season warmup with Craig Finn, "Don't Call Them Twinkies," is one of two Twins-themed songs on their second album, "Vol. 2: High and Inside." Other tracks include "Ichiro Goes to the Moon," "Buckner's Bolero" and "Here Lies Carl Mays." Even if you're not a baseball fan, the songs are major-league. (7 p.m. Thu., Varsity Theater. $15.) Riemenschneider

With such against-the-grain anthems as "Henry Rollins Is No Fun" and "I Wanna Hump You," Canadian quartet Chixdiggit's slapstick pop/rock flew in the face of its Sup Pop labelmates in the mid-'90s and helped it transition from a dour grunge factory to a free-spirited indie-rock haven. The hockey-loving, Ramones-flavored quartet is back after a five-year hiatus supporting a new album for Fat Wreck Chords, "Safeways, Here We Come." (9 p.m. Thu., Triple Rock. 18 & older. $10.) Riemenschneider

R&B It is being billed as the "Foundations of Funk" when jazz bass ace Christian McBride joins R&B sax maestro Maceo Parker. Known for his work with James Brown and Prince, Parker always puts on a funky good time. He'll have two turntablists (including DJ Logic) and vocalists Martha High and Corey Parker as part of his too-large-for-the-club ensemble. McBride has worked with a who's who of modern jazz as well as Sting, Angelique Kidjo and Michael Bublé. (7:30 p.m. Sun., Orchestra Hall, $22-$60.) Bream

For those of us not lucky enough to catch their gigs at the Maple Leaf Bar every week in New Orleans -- better than any electric show for funk value, and any sauna for sweating it out -- the Rebirth Brass Band thankfully makes the trek north at least once a year to electrify the Cabooze, one of the first bars to book them in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. The veteran horn ensemble dropped a new album in time for Jazz Fest last month, "Rebirth of New Orleans." Local admirers/pals the Jack Brass Band open. (9:30 p.m. Thu., Cabooze. 18 & older. $14-$17.) Riemenschneider

JAZZHaving established himself as the hot new piano master in town -- an invigorating and intrepid soloist -- Bryan Nichols uses his CD debut, "Bright Places," to showcase his original composing. It's fresh and first-rate as well. Nichols' tunes are challenging, sometimes open-ended and free-sounding, often prickly, just as often lyrical. It's "sort of difficult music," in the words of drummer J.T. Bates, and that's meant as a compliment. Nichols' quintet -- including Bates, saxmen Brandon Wozniak and Michael Lewis and bassist James Buckley -- celebrates the new disc this weekend. (9 p.m. Fri.-Sat., Artists' Quarter. $12.) Surowicz

The Nick Haas Trio's second CD, "You Gotta Get Out There," certainly sounds like a team effort. Guitarist Haas carries the melodic load, upright bassist Peter Susag writes the lion's share of the quirky original material and Eron Woods' splashy, aerobic drumming really drives the band. This fine CD offers very modern jazz sounds, brainy and funky, mildly avant in spots. (6 p.m., Sat., Hell's Kitchen. No cover.) Surowicz

Alto saxophonist and composer Pat Moriarty's free jazz trio Insurgent, co-starring pianist Ellen Lease and drummer Phil Hey, welcomes New York City altoist Michael Attias for a show that will be recorded for possible CD. (8 p.m. Sat., Studio Z, 275 E. 4th St., St. Paul. $5-$10.) Surowicz

Four Generations of Miles is a unique Miles Davis tribute band with an unassailable pedigree. An all-heavyweights unit of former Davis sidemen, it includes the last surviving member of the "Kind of Blue" band, drum legend Jimmy Cobb; underrated 1970s Miles sax man Sonny Fortune; bass master Buster Williams and guitar hero Mike Stern, a 1980s fusion-era Miles sideman who can play great bop and modal music, too. (7 & 9 p.m. Tue.-Wed., Dakota Jazz Club. $25-$35.) Surowicz

Blues fans should be excited by a last-minute booking that offers a double dose of gritty Windy City sounds. Energetic crowd-pleaser Tail Dragger, who has one of the great voices of the Chicago blues world, will trade sets with soulful belter Zora Young, a protégé of Sunnyland Slim and the self-styled "Princess of the Blues." (8:30 p.m. Fri., Wilebski's Blues Saloon.) Surowicz

CLASSICALFairy tales are featured in this week's Minnesota Orchestra concerts. Stravinsky's "Firebird Suite" tells the heroic tale of the a magical Firebird who helps defeat the evil sorcerer and rescue the captive princesses, all told with brilliant orchestral colors. Ravel's simple and beautiful "Mother Goose Suite" seems to spring from a child's innocent imagination. The concerts also feature the climax of the orchestra's season-long Rachmaninoff symphony cycle, with the darkly passionate and deeply emotional Third. Mark Wigglesworth conducts. (8 p.m. Fri.-Sat., Orchestra Hall. $22-$84.) William Randall Beard

Osmo Vänskä pulls out the licorice stick for Send Hope to Japan, a benefit for those affected by the Japanese quake and tsunami. He'll sit in with about 50 members of his Minnesota Orchestra. The Minnesota Chorale is also on the bill with Kathy Romey and other guests. Conducting is Akira Mori, familiar to Minnesota audiences for his Minnesota Orchestra stint as assistant under Eiji Oue and his time with the University of Minnesota Symphony Orchestra; he's currently at Drake University in Des Moines. The program includes Copland, Rimsky-Korsakov, Barber and several songs from Japan. (4 p.m. Sun., Benson Hall, Bethel University, 3900 Bethel Dr., Arden Hills. No ticket charge but donations accepted at the door.) Graydon Royce