Twin Cities concerts of the week: Margo Price, Kraig Johnson, L7, Lindi Ortega

Big gigs for April 13-19, also including Laura Veirs, Echosmith and Abdullah Ibrahim.

Margo Price plays First Avenue on Saturday.
Margo Price plays First Avenue on Saturday. (Star Tribune/The Minnesota Star Tribune)

Echosmith: The Los Angeles sibling band behind the smart and catchy 2014 pop gem "Cool Kids" is working to get past one-hit-wonder status with last year's slightly edgier EP "Inside a Dream" and now a club tour. (7 p.m. Fri., First Avenue, all ages, $24-$29, first-avenue.com.)

Kraig Jarret Johnson: After reviving Run Westy Run into more of regular vehicle, the Twin Cities rock vet also of Golden Smog and Jayhawks notoriety got back to writing songs with pal David Poe. He wound up making a spirited new album with his all-star crew, the Program, featuring guitarist Ed Ackerson and drummer Peter Anderson. The eponymous record echoes Johnson's Smog material with more paisley-pop and Kinks-y hues. Their release show features sibling rockers the Shackletons, whose "Minnesota Girls" is in steady rotation at the Current. (8:30 p.m. Fri., Turf Club, 1601 University Av. W., St. Paul, $12-$14, eTix.com.)

Laura Veirs & MN Music Summit: A full day of free musicians panels and a noontime keynote address by Veirs will be topped off by her concert to tout the stirring new album "The Lookout." The Oregon folk-rocker and Carleton College grad is back on the solo horse after her fun stint in Case/Lang/Veirs with k.d. lang and Neko Case. Local greats Jayanthi Kyle and Prairie Fire Lady Choir open. (7:30 p.m. Fri., O'Shaughnessy Auditorium, St. Catherine's University, $25, mnmusiccoalition.org.)

Margo Price: If you haven't leaped on the Price bandwagon yet after several memorable local appearances, her late-2017 sophomore album "American Made" is one more reason to come aboard. The "Hurting on the Bottle" belter — who kicked around Nashville for a decade before finally getting her break — delivers a grade-A Willie Nelson duet on the new LP and shows off her killer band's cool Southern boogie. This will probably last local club date before graduating to theaters. (9 p.m. Sat., First Avenue, $30.)

Lindi Ortega: A Toronto native who moved to Nashville, Ortega began to gain attention with 2012's traditional country "Cigarettes & Truckstops." Her seventh and brand new recording, "Liberty," is a bit of a spaghetti western as concept recording as Ortega, who recently married and moved to Calgary, spins a tale of heartache, revenge and, of course, redemption. The music is dark and cinematic, often more artful than accessible but very rewarding. Hugh Masterson opens. (7 p.m. Sun. Dakota, $25-$30, dakotacooks.com.)

Houndmouth: After an impressive coming-out with the 2015 single "Sedona" and loose, lively performances, the Indiana rock band is getting back on track following the departure of keyboardist/singer Katie Toupin and the happier news of being newly signed to Warner Bros. Records. Hear what they have in store for the label. (8 p.m. Tue., First Avenue, $20.)

Brian Fallon: The well-rounded frontman of Springsteen-channeling New Jersey band the Gaslight Anthem doesn't stray far from his familiar sound on his second solo album, "Sleepwalkers," which he's promoting with both a duo and full band set. Caitlin Rose opens. (8 p.m. Tue., Music Hall Minneapolis, 11 N. 5th St., $25-$35, ticketmaster.com.)

Abdullah Ibrahim: The great jazz pianist formerly known as Dollar Brand, 83, will revisit the music of the Jazz Epistles, his short-lived but influential 1960s South African bebop combo that also featured a young trumpeter named Hugh Masekela. (7 & 9 p.m. Mon. Dakota, $35-$60)

James Hunter Six: With all due respect to Har Mar Superstar, here's a guy who has been singing Sam Cooke-like songs for years. The charming British soul man is part Van Morrison, part Cooke and all passion. His new album on Daptone Records, "Whatever It Takes," definitely expands his range, especially when it comes to happier songs. (He's newly married.) Always a blast of vintage soul. (7 & 9 p.m. Tue. Dakota, $30-$45)

Donna Grantis: The 3rdEyeGirl has put together her own quintet that plays instrumental music. At their Dakota debut last year, the group offered new millennium jazz-rock fusion, sorta like Jeff Beck meets a post-modern Mahavishnu Orchestra. (7 & 9 p.m. Wed. Dakota, $30-$55)

Nancy And Beth: It's TV actors Megan Mullally and Stephanie Hunt doing their serious musical tributes to classic country and pop plus some comedic musical choices, such as a straightahead version of Gucci Mane's "I Don't Love Her." (7:30 p.m. Thu. the Cedar Cultural Center, $30-$35, thecedar.org.)

L7: The early-'90s Los Angeles rockers made a strong impression during the grunge era, most notably with their hit single "Pretend We're Dead." What better way for the quartet's fun-loving but envelope-pushing women to announce their return than with "I Came Back to Bitch," their first of two new singles after an 18-year hiatus? They're touring ahead of their full new album's release in December. Fellow Angelenos the Death Valley Girls open. (8 p.m. Thu., First Avenue, 701 1st Av. N., Mpls., $25, eTix.com.)

Marshall Crenshaw & Bottle Rockets: The veteran Detroit pop craftsmen of "Someday, Someway" fame is pairing with the cult-loved St. Louis twang-rock band as both his openers and backers. (8 p.m. Thu., Turf Club, $20, turfclub.net.)

Kraig Jarret Johnson appears Friday at the Turf Club.
Kraig Jarret Johnson appears Friday at the Turf Club. (The Minnesota Star Tribune)
about the writers

about the writers

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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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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