The Big Gigs for week of 6/22

POP/ROCK Foster the People's "Pumped Up Kicks" turned into the song of the summer -- last summer. A full year after the dark but bouncy pop ditty went viral on its way to Billboard's No. 3, the Los Angeles band is running on that song's fumes to the arena where it performed for KDWB's Jingle Ball in December. In the interim, it played with the Beach Boys at the Grammys and Kenny G on "SNL," in each case prompting young fans to ask, "Who?!" That's also what a lot of radio programmers have been asking in regards to the newer singles, "Helena Beat" and "Houdini." Opener Kimbra was kookier than expected opening for her "Somebody I Used to Know" duet partner Gotye in April. Canadian indie-rockers Tokyo Police Club also perform. (8 p.m. Fri., Target Center. $35-$38.) Chris Riemenschneider

Fresh from an East Coast tour that brought them to Joe's Pub in New York and the World Cafe in Philly, the Pines return home for a (hopefully) warm and starlit night on the prairie, as befits their horizon-vast sound. The ambient, Iowa-bred twang-folk duo-turned-septet truly reached golden territory on their latest album for Red House, "Dark So Gold," and will soon join next week's zoo headliner Emmylou Harris for a few dates. Rustic uke-rockers Lucy Michelle & the Velvet Lapelles open in support of their own new album, "Heat." (7:30 p.m. Fri., Minnesota Zoo Amphitheater. $24.) Riemenschneider

In the late '80s, the Smithereens blew up enough to turn the music industry's ear with their classic fuzz-pop hits such as "Blood and Roses," "Behind the Wall of Sleep" and "Only a Memory." The New Jersey quartet never got so big, though, that they turned off a core base of diehard collectors and garage-rock fans, the folks most excited about the group's return with last year's album, simply titled "Smithereens 2011." They always were straight-ahead dudes. Local '80s favorites the Flaming Ohs open. (7 p.m. Sun., Famous Dave's Uptown. $25-$30.) Riemenschneider

The two performances by the Tedeschi Trucks Band were highlights of last year's Minnesota Zoo series. If you don't believe me, listen to their new "Live: Everybody's Talkin'." You can hear the magic of their concert performances, the creative if long-winded arrangements featuring the stunning, versatile guitar of Derek Trucks, the soulful vocals and strong guitar of Susan Tedeschi and the nine other players (including Minnesota-bred singer Mike Mattison) in this adventurous rock/jazz/blues/gospel/R&B band. Standout numbers include the simmeringly soulful "Midnight in Harlem" and covers of Bobby Blue Bland's gritty "That Did It" and Stevie Wonder's funky, jazzed up "Uptight." (7:30 p.m. Sun.-Mon., Minnesota Zoo, $58 & $66.) Jon Bream

Et tu, Korn? The Kalifornia-bred metal kingpins, who long ago outgrew their rap-rock name tag, have jumped on another bandwagon, adding dubstep to their noisy mix. Leader Jonathan Davis enlisted Skrillex and a couple of other DJ/producers to help craft some of the songs on the band's new album, "The Path of Totality." The results aren't as cheesy as you might think, skewing close to the classic Nine Inch Nails sound. Sluggo and JDevil open. (8:30 p.m. Sun., Myth. 18 & older. $39.50.) Riemenschneider

The unlikeliest bar gig of the week has to be a jazz-club gig by Southern rock renegade Col. Bruce Hampton, a cult hero for his work with the Hampton Grease Band, the criminally neglected Late Bronze Age and H.O.R.D.E. Fest favorites the Aquarium Rescue Unit and the Fiji Mariners. The subject of a recent documentary film, the guitarist and singer has often popped up in interesting non-musical places -- as a character in Billy Bob Thornton's Oscar-winning "Sling Blade," as a voice on TV's "Space Ghost" -- while guesting on CDs by Medeski, Martin and Wood, Susan Tedeschi and bluesman CeDell Davis. (9 p.m. Sun., Artists' Quarter, $12.) Tom Surowicz

Onetime New Pornographers member Dan Bejar earned some of his biggest praise yet under his Destroyer alter ego with last year's psychedelic glam-folk opus, "Kaputt," which earned a Polaris Prize nomination and a Pitchfork ranking as second-best album of the year. He's still out with his "Kaputt" band and is also promoting an expanded reissue of 2006's "Destroyer's Rubies." Fellow Canadian Sandro Perri opens. (7:30 p.m. Mon., Cedar Cultural Center. All ages. $15-$18.) Riemenschneider

French-Cameroonian singing sisters Helene and Celia Faussart have done quite well with their group Les Nubians, earning Grammy nominations even though their music -- a mix of smooth retro soul with 1970s flourishes, Afro-pop lite and lite-funk with occasional rapping -- offers far more style than substance. The sisters certainly project well on video. Witness the recent clip "Afrodance" from their new album, "Nu Revolution," which delivers high fashion with a beat. (7 p.m. Tue.-Wed., Dakota Jazz Club, $45.) Surowicz

It sounds like a match made in easy-listening pop heaven. Energetic, engaging piano man Gavin DeGraw, best known for 2004's "I Don't Want to Be" and last year's "Not Over You," teams up with breezy, blasé Cali pop thrush Colbie Caillat, known for the hits "Bubbly" and "Realize" and Grammy-winning collaborations with Taylor Swift and Jason Mraz. (7:30 p.m. Wed., Minnesota Zoo, $56.) Bream

One of the more respected voices in country and Americana circles, Emmylou Harris has distinguished herself as an artist and bandleader. Since she launched her solo career in 1975, her sidemen have included James Burton, Glen D. Hardin, Rodney Crowell, Ricky Skaggs and Buddy Miller. A Country Music Hall of Famer, Harris has won Grammys in four different decades. Last year's "Hard Bargain" didn't win a prize but it's noteworthy because Harris, long known as a formidable song interpreter, wrote 11 of the 13 selections. They're mostly sad tales, including "The Road," her wistful reflections about touring with mentor Gram Parsons. (7:30 p.m. Thu., Minnesota Zoo, $58.) Bream

Three years after their organ-heavy hit "Born Again" raised their profile, Iron Range-rooted folk-rocker Cory Chisel and his Appleton, Wis.-based band the Wandering Sons will release their follow-up album on Tuesday. "Old Believers" was produced by Jack White's Raconteurs pal Brendan Benson. They're starting their tour close to home on their way to opening dates with Norah Jones and a "Letterman" performance. Farewell Milwaukee opens. (9 p.m. Thu., Turf Club. $14.) Riemenschneider

BLUES/ROOTS Blues-rocker Corey Stevens has always had a lot of competition in the arena of guitarists influenced by Stevie Ray Vaughan and Albert King. But now he has competition for the name Corey Stevens. A California rocker by that name released a (blues-free) album last year, and the original Corey Stevens was not amused -- especially since they share a distributor (CDBaby), the MySpace website folks comically can't tell them apart, and the album's cover art obscures Corey No. 2's face under a Corey No. 1-style cowboy hat. Let the buyer beware. (9 p.m. Fri., Famous Dave's Uptown, $8.) Surowicz