The Big Gigs: 10 best concerts to see in the Twin Cities this week

1. Robert Glasper: A Glasper weekend is not quite the same as his Robtober takeover of the Blue Note Jazz Club in New York City, where a parade of special guests joins him. As demonstrated in his two Dakota engagements in 2023, the pianist’s expansive, genre-blending music is rooted in jazz but he brings in elements of hip-hop, R&B, gospel, rock and pop. He’s just as likely to pull out a Phil Collins tune, a Radiohead riff or a Kendrick Lamar joint. The five-time Grammy winner is comfortable in any genre, as he has demonstrated on his collaborations with Common, Herbie Hancock, Christina Aguilera, Mary J. Blige and Stevie Wonder, among others. (6:30 & 9 p.m. Thu.-Sat. the Dakota, 1010 Nicollet Mall, Mpls., $55-$75, dakotacooks.com)

2. Zeitgeist and No Exit: The foremost contemporary music ensembles of Minnesota and Cleveland renew their annual collaboration before taking it to Ohio. Zeitgeist performs works by John Cage and Jin Hi Kim, while Cleveland’s No Exit offers a new piece by Timothy Beyer and James Praznik and premieres pieces by much-decorated American composer Douglas Knehans and Mexico’s Luis Daniel Jiménez. (7:30 p.m. Thu. Hastings Art Center, 216 E. 4th St., Hastings; 7:30 p.m. Fri. MetroNOME Brewery, 385 Broadway, St. Paul; 4 p.m. Sat., Anderson Center at Tower View, 163 Tower View Drive, Red Wing. $15-$20. zeitgeistnewmusic.org)

Also: One of the Twin Cities’ best Americana rock bands Farewell Milwaukee has a rare-of-late gig with openers A Piano in Every Home (8 p.m. Turf Club, $15-$20); two nights before playing next door in the Mainroom as part of Ber’s band, young pop-rock journeyman Landon Conrath continues his January residency in 7th St. Entry with Keep for Cheap (8 p.m., $15-$20); veteran bar-rocker GB Leighton settles in for a more intimate western suburban gig (8 p.m. 318 Cafe, $30).

3. G. Love & Special Sauce: Back in the mid-’90s, when Mary Lucia and Brian Oake delivered the hippest mixology of tunes on the ground-breaking Twin Cities radio station REV 105, one of their staples was a trio from Philadelphia that mixed hip-hop, blues and soul. G. Love and crew with the upright bass celebrated “Baby’s Got Sauce” and “Cold Beverages,” which even got a little attention on MTV. With regular visits to the Uptown Bar and later First Avenue, G. Love & Special Sauce have become mainstays over the course of 30 years and nine studio albums, the most recent of which was 2022’s rewarding albeit uneven “Philadelphia Mississippi” with a parade of guests including North Mississippi Allstars, Schoolly D, Alvin Youngblood Hart, Jontavious Willis and Christone “Kingfish” Ingram. (8 p.m. First Avenue, 701 1st Av. N., Mpls., $45-$40, axs.com)

4. A Holy Place to Be: Acoustic Bowie: Timed to what would’ve been David Bowie’s 78th birthday on Wednesday — he died just two days after his 69th in 2016 — this tribute to the transformative British rock god is an offshoot of the “electric” shows put on by many of the same Twin Cities music vets at First Ave in years past. In this case, they emphasize the more tender, melodic and poetic side of his music and keep it quiet enough to invite audience singalongs. Ringleaders John Eller and Chris “Little Man” Perricelli always recruit a rotating cast of guest singers, including lots of women and other rebel rebels (8 p.m. Hook & Ladder Theater, 3010 Minnehaha Av. S., Mpls., $25-$38, thehookmpls.com)

Also: Another fun tribute show that promises to be louder, members of the Silent Treatment, Impaler, the 99ers and other local bands will cover the Cramps, Iggy & the Stooges and the Clash as the Goo Goo Mucks, the World’s Forgotten Boys and RudeGirl (8 p.m. Turf Club, $12-$15); Self-Titled, a local band led by Tommy Vote, salutes guitar god Jeff Beck (8 p.m. Crooners, $32.31-$43.47); veteran Minnesota troubadour Michael Monroe offers a program of tunes by the underappreciated Twin Cities singer/guitarist Michael Johnson of “Bluer Than Blue” fame (8 p.m. 318 Cafe, $32).

5. Ber: After performing mid-lineup at the Current’s 19th birthday party and the Best New Bands of 2023 showcase, northern Minnesota native Berit Dybing is headlining First Ave’s Mainroom for the first time and is mighty excited, per social media posts. “I’ve dreamed of playing this room since I was 8,” the viral indie-pop heartache specialist enthused. The big gig comes after another year of sporadic touring and random song drops with production support from the duo Now Now, including the five-song EP “Room for You,” highlighted by the title track and romantic piano ballad “It’s Impressive.” Another new single, “Oh, to Be Cool,” revisits the fun pop-punk snarkiness of her 2022-23 breakout hits “Boys Who Kiss You in Their Car” and “Slutphase.” Ryan Kemp’s Chutes opens. (7:30 p.m. First Avenue, 701 1st Av. N., Mpls. $25, axs.com)

6. Big Head Todd & the Monsters: An ever-touring band that has long counted the Twin Cities as one of its strongholds, Colorado’s blues-rocky songwriter Todd Park Mohr and his namesake crew are rightfully hyping their longevity this time around. We are the third stop on their 40th anniversary celebration tour, which won’t entirely be a trip down memory lane since they also just dropped their first album in seven years in 2024, “Her Way Out.” Still, the many faithful fans here can expect to hear more than “Bittersweet” from the band’s late-’80s/early-’90s ascent. A special treat just for us, longtime chum Glen Phillips of Toad the Wet Sprocket is joining them as the opener. (7:30 p.m. Palace Theatre, 17 W. 7th Place, St. Paul. $35-$75, axs.com)

7. A Tribute to Dolly Parton. From the same group of young twangers and rockers who put on the popular Shania Twain celebrations at the Turf Club, this revue will showcase the many colors of the American icon on her 79th birthday. It’s also a revue of sorts for a lot of the top women singing in the Twin Cities music scene these days, all of who line up to get their Dolly on. They include Davina Sowers, Faith Boblett, Jaedyn James, Sarah Morris, Savannah Smith and Molly Brandt. (8 p.m. Fine Line, 318 1st Av. N., Mpls., $18, first-avenue.com)

Also: Fans of harmonious, wryly romantic Americana rock bands such as Dawes and the Avetts will likely did local newcomer Benny Everett, who’s celebrating the release of his new seven-song album “Dreams Are Free” with his band the Best Intentions and openers the Gated Community (8 p.m. Turf Club, $15-$20); started during the long lull between gigs by Jeff Lynne’s E.L.O. in the Twin Cities, local tribute band E.L.nO will wig out to celebrate its 20th anniversary (7:30 p.m. Parkway Theater, $35-$45).

8. Honky Tonk Jump: It don’t mean a thing if it ain’t got that Western swing. And this local crew knows how to deliver a tribute to Bob Wills, the king of Western swing. Three top-shelf players — accordion ace Dan Newton, fiddler supreme Richard Kriehn and pedal steel stud Joe Savage — lead this jazzy, swingin’ ensemble through the classic tunes of Ernest Tubb, Spade Cooley, Hank Williams and Wills. Cowboy/girl hats are optional, dance shoes/boots are mandatory. (4:30 p.m. Crooners, 6161 Hwy 65, Fridley, $32.31-$43.47, eventbrite.com)

9. One Voice: “Time & (Trans)formation” is the title of this pair of concerts by one of America’s largest choirs made up of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender singers and their straight allies. The program will feature music that invites some New Year’s-appropriate examination of how we change and how we spend our time. Kimberly Waigwa will conduct works by such transgender and gender-expansive composers as Mari Esabel Valverde, Stevie Hirner and Emily Boyajian. (3 p.m. Sun. the O’Shaughnessy, St. Catherine University, 2004 Randolph Av., St. Paul; 4 p.m. Jan. 26 Ordway Concert Hall, 345 Washington St., St. Paul, $15-$29, onevoicemn.org)

Also: Week Two of acoustic blues maestro Charlie Parr’s annual January residency at the Turf Club features Iowa’s cultish home taper Samuel Locke Ward, who has collaborated with Mike Watt and Jad Fair (7:30 p.m., $20-$25); the local Travis Anderson Trio interpret animated movie music, from Disney to Pixar (7 p.m. the Dakota, $15-$25); versatile vocalist Jennifer Grimm joins the Larry McDonough Quartet as a prelude to a screening of the Edward R. Murrow vs. Joseph McCarthy dramatic movie “Good Night, and Good Luck” (7 p.m. Parkway Theater, $10-$15); versatile salsa music orchestra Charanga Tropical will heat up Icehouse again with another of its monthly Sunday afternoon dance parties (5 p.m., $15); saxophonist Jovon Williams and his quartet perform for the jazz series from Minnesota Public Radio’s Carbon Sound (7 p.m. Berlin, free).

Onward goes another of the Turf Club’s beloved January residencies, as harmonious sibling retro-twangers the Cactus Blossoms return to the vintage St. Paul bar with La Crosse-reared opener Luke Callen, who recently released an album produced by Erik Koskinen (7:30 p.m., $25-$30); Twin Cities vocal luminary Prudence Johnson joins Dan Newton’s Cafe Accordion Orchestra (7 p.m. the Dakota, $30-$40).

Zacc Harris, the jazz guitar ace who moved to the Twin Cities 20 years ago, offers selections from his November release, “Chasing Shadows,” with his group featuring Brandon Wozniak, Bryan Nichols, Chris Bates and Pete James Johnson (7 p.m. the Dakota, $20-$25); country guitar ace Dan Lowinger’s band DL4 is playing tribute to Lefty Frizzell in its weekly set (6-8 p.m. White Squirrel Bar, free).

10. Been Stellar: Back in town just three months after adding to the shaggy-headed sonic bombast as Fontaines D.C.’s opening band at the Fillmore, this coyly named New York quintet has earned the kind of hype that has been a hindrance to many a young New York band before them. The former NYU students channel British shoegaze and Seattle grunge alongside their NYC-brand of guttural rock, a mixture even more potent on stage than on their debut album, “Scream from New York, NY.” They’re returning to Minneapolis’ favorite small room with visually driven New York musician Malice K opening (8 p.m. 7th St. Entry, 701 1st Av. N., Mpls., $15-$20, axs.com)

Also: Nick Wayne, director of musical theater at Minnesota State Mankato, leads a tribute to the late beach bum Jimmy Buffett (5:30 p.m. Crooners, $37.39-$49.05); outlaw country specialist Cole Diamond is back for another of his monthly Whiskey Wednesday gigs (8-11 p.m. Palmer’s Bar, free).

Classical music critic Rob Hubbard contributed to this column.