Twin Cities concerts of the week: Mariah Carey, Cheap Trick, the Monkees and Shinedown

Cheap Trick: Robin Zander's alright, Rick Nielsen's alright, they just seem a little weird. In a good way. That's been part of the charm of this Rockford, Ill., power-pop foursome since the 1970s. The charismatic Zander still boasts his divinely Lennonesque voice, the cartoonish Nielsen still delivers fast, flashy guitar work. Tom Petersson is steady on bass and Daxx Nielsen, Rick's son, is a solid replacement for the quirky Bun E. Carlos on drums. The Rock Hall of Fame quartet's 2017 album "We're All Right" rocks harder and faster than usual, and that's alright. (8 p.m. Fri., Mystic Lake Casino Showroom, Prior Lake, $39-$99, ticketmaster.com.)

Christine Lavin: Topical, political and funny, this New Yorker comes from the old school of folk music, but her messages and humor are contemporary. She connects with your funny bone, through her book "Cold Pizza for Breakfast: A Mem-wha?" (she toured with Bob Dylan's Rolling Thunder Revue for a week) or such tunes as "Your Funeral, Discuss," "Santa Lost a Ho" or "New York Kicked Paris in the Derriere." Lavin hosts knitting circles one hour prior to her show. Bring your own needles and yarn. (8 p.m. Fri., Cedar Cultural Center, Mpls., $22-$25)

Black Market Brass: After the kind of lull that naturally comes with an 8- to 12-member ensemble whose members all have other bands, the Twin Cities' leading Afrobeat group is back in action and has a new cassette to tout. Innovative jazz-funky rocker Taylor Seaberg's Black Velvet Punks opens. (9 p.m. Fri., 7th St. Entry, Mpls., $12-$15.)

Matt Nathanson: A longtime Twin Cities favorite thanks to airplay on Cities 97, the "Come on Get Higher" hitmaker nurses a breakup on last fall's "Sings His Sad Heart," but he does it with a cheery tunefulness and the right balance of earnestness and humor. (7 p.m. Fri., Varsity Theater, Mpls., $68)

Arne Fogel: The affable and knowledgable Twin Cities radio personality, music historian and crooner celebrates 50 years in the biz. He'll tell stories and sing songs, with pianist Rick Carlson and special guest Jennifer Eckes. (7:30 p.m. Fri.-Sat. & 2 p.m. Sun. Bloomington Center for the Arts, $22).

Mike Doughty: Nearly two decades into his shape-shifting solo career, the locally beloved New York singer/songwriter has opted to look back on "Ruby Vroom," the breakout freak-poet/jazz-rock album by his old band Soul Coughing, issued 25 years ago this year. He'll perform the record in its entirety and more each night. "Teenage Dirtbag"-singing indie vets Wheatus open. (9 p.m. Sat. & 8 p.m. Sun., First Avenue, Mpls., $30; Sat. is sold out.)

Habib Koité: The great guitarist from Mali brings his distinctively bluesy, flamenco-y West African sounds to St. Paul's intimate basement listening room. Unfortunately his countryman Bassekou Kouyaté, who was supposed to be part of this show, had to cancel because of visa issues. (8 p.m. Sat., Vieux Carre, $40-$45)

Winger & Lita Ford: Beavis & Butt-head favorite Kip Winger and his namesake band pair up with one of the few hair-metal acts of the MTV era prettier than them: Lita Ford, the guitar hero of Runaways punk fame who landed the 1988 hit "Kiss Me Deadly" and still packs a wallop in concert. (8 p.m. Sat., Medina Entertainment Center, $35-$45.)

Building Bridges With Music: For the 10th year, St John's Episcopal Church in the Linden Hills neighborhood continues its various charitable projects in San Lucas, Guatemala. They'll raise money with the help of Twin Cities' good-time twangers Trailer Trash and local Americana aces Frankie Lee and Molly Maher. (5 p.m. Sat., Lee's Liquor Lounge, Mpls., $20-$25.)

The Revivalists: A rootsy and soulful New Orleans rock ensemble that sonically falls somewhere between Hozier and Nathaniel Rateliff's Night Sweats, the octet landed a modest hit in 2015 with "Wish I Knew You" but has made a bigger mark as a festival-ready live act. The group sounds all the more radio-friendly on its new album, "Take Good Care," and is gearing up for a big April that includes its first "Austin City Limits" TV taping and a choice slot at the New Orleans Jazz Fest. Nashville tunesmith Rayland Baxter opens. (8 p.m. Sat., Palace Theatre, 17 W. 7th Place, St. Paul, $40-$65, eTix.com.)

The Flesh Eaters: Like the Los Angeles version of Golden Smog, this all-star ensemble features members of some of the city's most revered '80s bands, including John Doe and DJ Bonebrake of X, Dave Alvin and Bill Bateman of the Blasters, and Steve Berlin of Los Lobos, all of whom joined to rally around group founder Chris Desjardins. Their new album, "I Used to Be Pretty," beautifully channels Iggy/Patti-style punk. Stormy power trio Porcupine with Hüsker Dü's Greg Norton opens. (8:30 p.m. Sat., Turf Club, sold out.)

Kurt Elling: The Grammy-winning Gustavus Adolphus grad reinforces his reputation as one of the most adventurous jazz vocalists of the past two decades with last year's "The Questions," on which he reinvents such familiar gems as Bob Dylan's "A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall" and Paul Simon's "American Song" with meditative interpretations, aided by saxophonist/producer Branford Marsalis. (7 & 9 p.m. Sun. Dakota, $30-$45)

Shinedown: The post-grunge Florida hard-rock quartet is still racking up mainstream rock hits a decade since it broke big with such slick but dramatic songs as "Second Chance" and "If You Only Knew." Their latest hit, the piano-lightened "Get Up," comes off the sixth album, "Attention Attention." They're heading up a three-part arena lineup of modern-rock faves with "Last Resort" vets Papa Roach and Asking Alexandria. (7 p.m. Mon., Target Center, Mpls. $43-$78.50. 1-888-929-7849 or axs.com)

Veronica Swift: The young New York jazz singer is gaining a winning reputation. She finished second in the prestigious Thelonious Monk Jazz Competition in 2015 and has toured with Wynton Marsalis and the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra. The daughter of the late bebop pianist Hod O'Brien and singer Stephanie Nakasian, Swift is convincing enough to corral the distinguished Benny Green Trio to accompany her on tour. (7 & 9 p.m. Mon., Dakota, Mpls., $20-$40)

Jungle: Akin to Minneapolis' own "Funkytown" hitmakers Lipps Inc., this British group started as a producers' studio project and has grown into a seven-piece ensemble. Their slick, breezy, top-down brand of funk-pop caught on in 2014 with the singles "Platoon" and "Busy Earnin'," and now they've blended in '70s R&B influences for their sophomore album, "For Ever." This is one theater show that requires the Palace's general-admission floor for dancing. Houses, aka L.A. songwriter/producer Dexter Tortoriello, opens. (8 p.m. Tue., Palace Theatre, St. Paul, $20, eTix.com.)

Anoushka Shankar: Daughter of sitar guru Ravi Shankar and sister of pop goddess Norah Jones, she is a progressive practitioner of the sitar, mixing electronics with the traditional Indian sounds. (7:30 p.m. Tue., the O'Shaughnessy, St. Catherine University, St. Paul, $21-$45)

Mariah Carey: After cameo performances at a radio-station concert in Shakopee and a "Today" show broadcast at Mall of America, the songbird supreme will finally make her overdue Twin Cities concert debut. Judging by the two-dozen tunes on recent set lists, there should be plenty from her 1990s heyday as well as a good helping from last year's "Caution," an overlooked collection of ballads and mid-tempo R&B with personal touches throughout. (8 p.m. Wed., State Theatre, Mpls., $67.95-$499.95)

Kip Moore: In concert, this Georgia country star has sounded like a cross between Mellencamp and Bon Jovi, with Springsteen's three-electric-guitar attack. That won't be the case when Moore goes acoustic to deliver "Somethin' 'Bout a Truck," "More Girls Like You" and "Last Shot," as he promotes his acoustic EP, "Room to Spare," (8 p.m. Thu., State Theatre, $29.50-$49.50)

The Monkees: The timing wasn't ideal. Micky Dolenz and Michael Nesmith were long scheduled to hit the road as the Monkees in March, but their former bandmate Peter Tork died of cancer Feb. 21. Since the Monkees have always been pros, they are following through on their 12-concert tour. They promise "I'm a Believer" and other Pre-Fab Four hits, deep tracks, some Nesmith solo numbers and tributes to Tork and their other late mate, Davy Jones. (8 p.m. Thu., Mystic Lake Casino showroom, Prior Lake, $39-$79)

Palmer T. Lee: After making a name for himself with fun-loving bluegrass band the Boys and the Barrels and the more solemn-sounding folk duo the Lowest Pair, Minneapolis singer/songwriter Palmer T. Lee just issued first album under his own name, "Winebringer." It's all acoustic like his other efforts, but discernibly different, with only a smattering of banjo and fiddle accompaniment and more of a stark, folky tone. His hometown release party was postponed in January due to … what else? Humbird opens. (7:30 p.m. Thu., Hook & Ladder Theater, $9-$12).