Kane Brown
On his self-titled 2016 debut, this 23-year-old country newcomer sounds alternately like the kid brother of one of the dudes in Florida Georgia Line or Randy Travis' son. Brown can go smooth-flow bro ("Ain't No Stopping Us Now," "Hometown") or traditional balladeer ("Cold Spot," "Granddaddy's Chair"). Brown has had a Bieber-like ascent, started by posting YouTube videos of his tattooed self covering popular country songs. That led to a record deal with Sony Music Nashville. (7:30 p.m. Sun. Varsity Theater, Mpls., $27-$40, varsitytheater.org.)
JON BREAM
Mark Mallman's Peace on Earth
Minneapolis' adventurous, fun-loving piano rocker picked a helluva year to get serious and promote optimism, an underlying theme on his dramatic 2016 album "The End Is Not the End." Staying positive is also the (welcome) purpose of his holiday show, which will include many guests, such as "Baby, It's Cold Outside" reconstructionists Lydia Liza and Josiah Lemanski plus local Bowie acolyte Venus de Mars. Opening band Porcupine features Hüsker Dü bassist Greg Norton and Story of the Sea drummer Ian Prince. (11 p.m. Sat., Icehouse, Mpls., $10, IcehouseMpls.com.)
CHRIS RIEMENSCHNEIDER
