By San Antonio Current Staff on Mon, Sep 26, 2022 at 8:00 am
This week may constitute the busiest few days of live music San Antonio has experienced since the pre-pandemic days.
In a dizzying display of musical diversity, hip-hop favorites Bone Thugs-N-Harmony, metal legends Accept, indie stalwarts The Flaming Lips, song parodist "Weird Al" Yankovic, tough-as-nails rockers Halestorm and jazz vocalist-pianist Diana Krall all will perform over the next few days.
And if none of that strikes your fancy, dig deeper, because there's more out there.
The members of hip-hop sensation $uicideboy$ went from SoundCloud fame to owning and operating their own record label G*59 in fewer than 10 years. Whether it was this duo of cousins' ultra-depressing lyrics or stylized verses about drug abuse, something clearly resonated with fans. Currently one of the most popular outfits in underground rap, the 'boy$ have breached the Billboard charts and collaborated with rock band Blink-182. $143-$470, 6:30 p.m., Freeman Coliseum, 3201 E. Houston St., (210) 226-1177, freemancoliseum.com. — Brianna Espinoza
Andrew Bird, Iron & Wine
If whistling was an Olympic sport, Andrew Bird would be in medal contention. He's best known for the song "Sisyphus" from 2019's aptly titled and Grammy-nominated My Finest Work Yet, which highlights both his whistling and wordsmithing abilities. A violinist with a degree from his hometown Northwestern University, Bird specializes in a brand of indie rock that incorporates influences as diverse as Claude Debussy and Fats Waller. Iron & Wine showcases the intimate, stripped-down vocals of Sam Beam, whose songs are born of deeply revelatory vignettes and remain popular on movie soundtracks and in coffeehouses. $40.50-$84.50, 7:30 p.m., Tobin Center for the Performing Arts, 100 Auditorium Circle, (210) 223-8624, tobincenter.org. — Danny Cervantes
Featuring drums, keys and guitar, the Delvon Lamarr Organ Trio — sometimes known as DLO3 — evoke memories of funky ensembles such as the Meters and Booker T. and the M.G.s. Even so, the group isn't afraid to step outside the patterns of the past. On the track "Cold As Weiss," for example, the chord changes and playing may feel like a traditional organ trio, but the beat ropes in a feel more akin to contemporary electronica. $16.50-$70, 8 p.m., Sam's Burger Joint, 330 E. Grayson St., (210) 223-2830, samsburgerjoint.com. — Mike McMahan
Appropriate to October's approaching spooky season, the Birthday Massacre is steeped in eerie gothic tones. The band leans towards dark wave with plenty of memorable synth melodies. Dress in your finest black for this night of fun graveyard shenanigans — and bring along your clove cigarettes, if you're so inclined. $25-$30, 7:30 p.m., Paper Tiger, 2410 N. St. Mary's St., papertigersatx.com. — BE
An exceptional jazz singer and pianist, Diana Krall has more musical skill in her left pinky than most people do in their whole body. She's had eight albums debut high on the Billboard Jazz Albums chart, and thanks to her pop-crossover appeal, she's raked in multiple Grammys and Juno Awards. Her musical approach resonates because she's able to sound contemporary while channeling the swinging elegance of a bygone jazz era. $59.50-$250, 7:30 p.m., Majestic Theatre, 224 E. Houston St., (210) 226-3333, majesticempire.com. — BE
The key word in '90s rap sensations Bone Thugs-N-Harmony's name has always been "harmony." Beyond being able to spit verses with machine-gun ferocity, members Bizzy Bone, Wish Bone, Layzie Bone, Krayzie Bone and Flesh-N-Bone also have a knack for melding their voices together. After successfully auditioning for Eazy-E's label in a backstage dressing room in their hometown of Cleveland, the group broke out big with 1994's summer anthem "Thuggish Ruggish Bone." Despite a variety of departures and solo projects over the years, the original five-Bone lineup reunited in 2018. $30-$65, 8 p.m., Aztec Theater, 104 N. St. Mary's St., (210) 812-4355, theaztectheatre.com. — DC
Memphis' blackened death-grind sextet Knoll has been shaking up the world of underground metal with a brutal and shockingly vile sound that could be compared to later era Full of Hell yet retains its own unique style. The band's spastic and violent live sets are also likely to win over fans of the heavy stuff. Local acts including Decimate, Incisor and Closed Casket round out the bill. $12-$14, 6 p.m., Vibes Underground, 1223 E. Houston St., (210) 255-3833, facebook.com/vibeseventcenter. — Enrique Bonilla
Pennsylvania-based alt-metal act Halestorm is touring behind its fifth studio album, Back from the Dead, recently released by Atlantic Records. The group's 2012 Grammy win for Best Hard Rock/Metal Performance with the song "Love Bites (So Do I)" made vocalist Lzzy Hale the first woman to win in the category. And make no mistake, Hale's powerhouse vocals are one of the band's key selling points. The Pretty Reckless and New Year's Day round out the tour package. $35.50-$71.50, 7 p.m., Tech Port Center, 3331 General Hudnell Dr, (210) 600-3699, techportcenter.com. — EB
Led by ever-creative genius Wayne Coyne, the Flaming Lips has travelled from its punk-era formation in Oklahoma City to the outer reaches of psychedelic pop and back. Along with winning three Grammy Awards, the group has recorded several full-length cover albums of iconic bands including Pink Floyd, the Beatles and the Stone Roses, bringing along friends including Henry Rollins and Miley Cyrus for assistance. The surprise breakout of "She Don't Use Jelly" in 1994 pushed the eclectic group into the mainstream. In the throes of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Lips performed a concert in which the band and the entire audience were each individually encased in plastic "space bubbles." Expect a delightfully trippy performance. $47.50-$59.50, 8 p.m., Aztec Theatre, 104 N. St. Mary's St., (210) 812-4355, theaztectheatre.com. — DC
Mexican rapper C-Kan and acts MC Davo and Dharius all bring their individual spins to the growing realm of Latin hip-hop. C-Kan has been cranking out socially conscious gangsta rap since the early 2010s but stayed away from the United States while Trump was in the White House. Now that the anti-immigrant reality show president is out of office, C-Kan is again touring north of the border. $19-$58, 8 p.m., Aztec Theatre, 104 N. St. Mary's St., (210) 812-4355, theaztectheatre.com. — BE
Led by founding frontman Sascha Konietzko, German firebrands KMFDM have been delivering a pulsing soundtrack to our quickly approaching dystopian future since the 1980s. The group is best known for industrial dance music tinged with metallic guitars and packaged with propaganda-inspired cover art — a formula that hasn't changed much over the decades. But that's not to say it's gotten stale. The band's latest album, Hyëna, seems to tap into a surging power source deep in the matrix. $30, 8 p.m., Paper Tiger, 2410 N. St. Mary's St., papertigersatx.com. — DC
Sorry to disappoint if you're hoping to hear Yankovic play a setlist full of song parodies such as "White & Nerdy" and "Like a Surgeon." This tour will reportedly focus on original works spanning the quirky singer-accordionist's 14-album discography. The performance comes exactly a month before the Nov. 4 release of the forthcoming biopic Weird: The Al Yankovic Story, in which Daniel Radcliffe — Harry Potter himself — will play the musician and humorist. $39.50-$59.50, 7:30 p.m., Majestic Theatre, 224 E. Houston St., (210) 226-5700, majesticempire.com. — BE
Knocked Loose, Bitter End, Creeping Death
Combining a metalcore sound with a hardcore punk spirit, Knocked Loose is known for venue-leveling live performances and spry dual-guitar harmonies. Recommended for folks who enjoy being pummeled by the likes of Code Orange — especially those who enjoy the breakdowns that drive the kids straight into the pit. Last fall, Knocked Loose surprise-dropped the EP A Tear in the Fabric of Life, so expect to hear material from that release. $29.50-$32, 7 p.m., Vibes Event Center, 1223 E. Houston St., (210) 255-3822, vibeseventcenter.com. — MM
Germany's Accept became U.S. hitmakers with the 1983 smash "Balls to the Wall." If you remember that one, you know the formula it's largely adhered to for five decades. Led by guitarist and sole original member Wolf Hoffmann, the band continues to specialize in Marshall-fueled metal that shifts between anthemic rockers and breakneck scorchers that set the template for speed metal. Openers Narcotic Wasteland, on the other hand, skew toward a modern death metal sound. If the vocals sound familiar, that's because mainman Dallas Toler-Wade used to front Egypt-inspired musical punishers Nile. Narcotic Wasteland became his main project since he parted ways with his previous band in 2016. $30, 7 p.m., 1902 Nightclub, 1174 E. Commerce St., (210) 890-1265, 1902satx.com. — MM
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