Twin Cities concerts of the week: Avetts with Trampled, Ranky Tanky, Maggie Rogers, Post Malone

The big gigs for Sept. 20-26, also including Sophie Allison, Michael Feinstein, Avril Lavigne, Donna Grantis and the Melvins & Redd Kross.

September 20, 2019 at 9:27PM
Scott Avett and Seth Avett of the Avett Brothers.
Scott Avett and Seth Avett of the Avett Brothers. (Marci Schmitt — Invision/AP/The Minnesota Star Tribune)

Avett Brothers & Trampled by Turtles: Either of these rootsy and brotherly bands could play Treasure Island's new amphitheater on their own at this point in their resilient careers, which is proof that they're pairing up there in part just for the fun of it. And the show really should be a hoot, especially at this somewhat out-there but well-equipped outdoor venue. Trampled is the home-turf favorite but is leaving the headlining slot to the poppy yet bluegrassy North Carolina visitors, who touch on the serious news of the day but maintain a hopeful and fun spirit on their new album, "Closer Than Together." (7 p.m. Sat., Treasure Island Casino Amphitheater, 5734 Sturgeon Lake Road, Red Wing, only $79 seats remain, ticketmaster.com.)

Soccer Mommy: Nashville indie rocker Sophie Allison, 22, falls somewhere between Mac DeMarco and Sharon Van Etten with her lo-fi, mellow-cool guitar-heavy tunes and sly lyrical style. She just dropped a cool version of the Dixie Chicks' "Wide Open Spaces" as welcome filler while she works out the follow-up to last year's acclaimed Fat Possum release, "Clean." (9 p.m. Fri., Amsterdam Bar & Hall, St. Paul, $18.)

Michael Feinstein: The cabaret king has been an assistant to Ira Gershwin, prolific recording artist, pops conductor, educator, NPR radio host, proprietor of eponymous nightclubs (New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles) and popular singer/pianist of the Great American Songbook, the role he will play in Minneapolis, on the closing of a two-night engagement. (7 & 9:30 p.m. Fri., Dakota, $50-$90.)

Joseph: The sister trio from Portland, Ore., made a strong impression with dramatic harmonies but fun approach at 89.3 the Current's birthday party in 2012, and now it's back touting its week-old album "I'm Alone, No You're Not," produced by Conor Oberst's Omaha cohort Mike Mogis. (9 p.m. Fri., First Avenue, $25.)

Craig Paquette: The Thunderheads guitarist is stepping out with his first solo album, "Won't Last Forever," a Rich Mattson-produced collection with the obvious but heartfelt Neil Young and Bob Dylan influences. Mattson's Northstars and the Thunderheads also will play the release party. (7:30 p.m. Sat., the Hook & Ladder, $10-$15.)

Ranky Tanky: Thanks to support from NPR's Terry Gross, this South Carolina quintet's self-titled debut made it to No. 1 on Billboard's jazz chart last year. But it would be criminally limiting to consider Ranky Tanky a jazz ensemble. The genre-blending group is rootsy, old-timey yet modern, assimilating elements of jazz, blues, spirituals, R&B, folk, African music, kids' music — you name it. It's all good music, with former "American Idol" contestant Quiana Parler standing out on exciting and uplifting vocals. (7 p.m. Sun., Dakota, $40-$45, dakotacooks.com.)

Andy Grammer: A Twin Cities favorite, this L.A. popster must have been listening to a lot of Imagine Dragons because several tunes, notably the singles "My Own Hero" and "Don't Give Up on Me," on his new album, "Naive," have big, surging choruses reminiscent of ID hits. It's quite a change from "Honey, I'm Good," the radio triumph that first endeared him to local listeners. (6:30 p.m. Sun., Varsity, sold out)

Roadstock '19: Nicollet Avenue's Open Streets fest and this classic south Minneapolis record store's 33⅓ anniversary make a pretty good twofer excuse for this outdoor bash, featuring '60s-flavored guitar pop and garage rock from the Magnolias, the Carnegies, the Silverteens and the Roky Erickson tribute band the Psychedelic Sounds Of ... (11:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Sun., Roadrunner Records, 4304 Nicollet Av. S., Mpls., free.)

Donna Grantis: On her modern jazz-rock-funk fusion journey, the former 3rdEyeGirl guitarist has put together two bands — one in her home base of Minneapolis and another for East Coast gigs. This time, she mashes up the groups, bringing in New York keyboardist Jason Linder and drummer Jason Thomas plus tabla player Suphala, her secret weapon. (7 p.m. Tue., Dakota, $35-$45.)

Avril Lavigne: Sidelined for a spell by Lyme disease, this Canadian pop singer returned this year with her first album in six years. The title track of "Head Above Water" got some traction in Christian radio circles, but the record, though aspirational, is just the "Sk8er Boi" and "Complicated" hitmaker maturing, though her voice retains its girlish emotionalism. (8 p.m. Tue., State Theatre, $40.50-$180.50.)

The Melvins & Redd Kross: These two '80s underground bands each heavily influenced the alt-rock hitmakers of the '90s. They're on a lengthy fall tour together that finds Melvins drummer Dale Crover also serving behind Redd Kross brothers Jeff and Steve McDonald, who just dropped their first album in six years via Merge, "Beyond the Door." (8 p.m. Tue., First Avenue, $22.)

Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real: Featured prominently behind Bradley Cooper on screen and on the "A Star Is Born" soundtrack last year, Willie Nelson's bluesy, Southern-rocky son has come into his own in recent years and is returning to Minneapolis fresh off Farm Aid and another tour backing Neil Young. He and his band just dropped their second Fantasy album, "Turn Off the News (Build a Garden)." Texas' funky Latino rockers Los Coast open. (8 p.m. Wed., Varsity Theater, $33.)

Candy Dulfer: Last seen in the Twin Cities jamming with Maceo Parker, the Dutch jazz-funk saxophonist has played with a galaxy of stars, including Prince, Eurythmics, Van Morrison, Mavis Staples and Pink Floyd. In 2017, Dulfer, now 50, published her autobiography, "Sax, Candy and Rock 'n' Roll," in Dutch, but she promises an English edition. (7 & 9 p.m. Thu.-next Fri., Dakota, $35-$50.)

Post Malone: This month's release of his third album, "Hollywood's Bleeding," has only added to the already high anticipation for the "Rockstar" hitmaker's first local headlining tour stop since his 2017 breakout, which had to be turned into a two-night stand truly based on demand. The new record is mighty goofy — his Ozzy Osbourne collaboration is just part of the crazy train — but it's also a lot of fun and very catchy, as the Dallas singer/rapper openly touts himself as a pop star more than a hip-hop thug. His "Sunflower" partner Swae Lee opens. (8 p.m. Thu. & next Fri., Xcel Energy Center, 175 W. Kellogg Blvd., St. Paul, $50-$377, ticketmaster.com.)

Maggie Rogers: Along with Billie Eilish, this Maryland singer-songwriter is one of the most impressive pop newcomers of 2019. Buoyed by a First Avenue performance and a "Saturday Night Live" appearance before her debut album, "Heard It in a Past Life," was released in January, the 25-year-old combines pop-styled lyrics with electronica instrumentation. Part Lorde and part Florence Welch, Rogers is a strong-voiced, literate popster who sings about identity and romance with 20-something authority. (8 p.m. Thu., Armory, Mpls., $32.50 and up, ticketmaster.com, sold out.)

Charlie Parr & Jack Klatt: These two gifted, timeless song pickers raised on the sounds of Minneapolis' West Bank blues scene both have new albums coming out on national labels in the coming weeks and are pairing up for a twofer in-store set. (7 p.m. Thu., Electric Fetus, Mpls., free.)

Post Malone
Post Malone (Marci Schmitt — Invision/AP/The Minnesota Star Tribune)

about the writers

Chris Riemenschneider

Critic / Reporter

Chris Riemenschneider has been covering the Twin Cities music scene since 2001, long enough for Prince to shout him out during "Play That Funky Music (White Boy)." The St. Paul native authored the book "First Avenue: Minnesota's Mainroom" and previously worked as a music critic at the Austin American-Statesman in Texas.

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Jon Bream

Critic / Reporter

Jon Bream has been a music critic at the Star Tribune since 1975, making him the longest tenured pop critic at a U.S. daily newspaper. He has attended more than 8,000 concerts and written four books (on Prince, Led Zeppelin, Neil Diamond and Bob Dylan). Thus far, he has ignored readers’ suggestions that he take a music-appreciation class.

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