Thursday, December 13, 2012

This week's hot concerts


Trey Songz
7 p.m. Friday, December 14, Bojangles’ Coliseum, 3400 E. Independence Blvd. $60.35-$81.90. www.ticketmaster.com
The modern day R. Kelly straddles raunchiness and romanticism like he balances party-starting hip-hop and contemporary R&B slow jams on his latest album “Chapter V.” He teams with recent Grammy nominees Miguel and Elle Varner.

Sick Puppies
7 p.m. Friday, December 14, Amos’, 1423 S. Tryon St. $20-$23. www.etix.com
WEND 106.5 holds its annual Not So Acoustic Xmas concert with this Aussie trio who is as steeped in late `90s hard rock as the station itself. The group might reveal material from its upcoming 2013 album. With Breaking Laces and Churchill.

Nnenna Freelon and John Brown Big Band
8 p.m. Saturday, December 15, McGlohon Theater, 345 N. College St. $29.50-$39.50. 704-372-1000.
The inaugural event to bring a quarterly swing jazz series to Charlotte was a big success. This time Duke University’s Brown and his big band welcome renowned guest vocalist Freelon for a show heavy on holiday favorites.

Mount Moriah
8 p.m. Saturday, December 15, Evening Muse, 3227 N. Davidson St. $8-$10. 704-376-3737.
This triangle area critical darling’s sadly soulful debut was one of “Shuffle Magazine’s” 2011 best of the Carolinas’. With its gospel-tinged indie-Americana debut and a heavier, fuller follow-up slated for February, this is a regional act to watch.

Suzy Boggus
8 p.m. Saturday, December 15, Don Gibson Theater, 318 S. Washington St., Shelby. $24.50. www.dongibsontheater.com
Although she hasn’t had a bona fide hit single in over a decade, the country singer had eleven Top 40 country songs during the height of her career in the late `80s and `90s. She hasn’t slowed down. She’ll perform a special Christmas show.

Crushed Out
10 p.m. Saturday, December 15, Evening Muse, 3227 N. Davidson St. $7-$9 704-376-3737.
In the spirit of raw garage rock duos, the pair formerly known as Boom Chick! share an affinity for slide blues, dramatic messy riffing, and unpredictability with bands like the White Stripes, early Stones, and Stooges with an added sprinkle of rockabilly playfulness.

Thomas Rhett
11 p.m. Saturday, December 15, Coyote Joe’s, 4621 Wilkinson Blvd. $12-$15. www.etix.com
In the mid-`90s this second generation country singer’s father Rhett Akins had a handful of hits including “That Ain’t My Truck” and “Don’t Get Me Started.” The 22-year-old follows in Dad’s footsteps co-writing Jason Aldean’s “I Ain’t Ready to Quit” and charting his own solo career.

The Gathering
4 p.m. Sunday, December 16, McGee Theatre at The Batte Center, Wingate University, 403 N. Camden Rd. $25. www.carolinatix.org
Last winter The Carolina Chocolate Drops’ Rhiannon Giddens and Polecat Creek’s Lauralyn Dossett headed up this “gathering” to release a unique holiday cd based in part on Dossett’s song cycle for symphony and string band and other songs the musicians unearthed. This holiday performance is a rare one as the participants all have successful full-time gigs.

Trioscapes
8 p.m. Sunday, December 16, Milestone, 3400 Tuckaseegee Rd. $5-$7. www.etix.com
Between the Buried and Me bassist Dan Briggs is one third of this experimental heavy fusion outfit who delivers similarly heady workouts on traditional rock instruments that you’d expect from a BTBAM vet. With likeminded musical adventurers Hectagons! HRVRD, and Blossoms.

The Business
8 p.m. Tuesday, December 18, Tremont, 400 W. Tremont Ave. $10-$12. www.ticketfly.com
The English anti-racist Oi! band has been around almost as long as punk rock. Its influential version of UK street punk remains as snotty, defiant, and urgent as ever with shouted choruses that beg for fist pumping sing-alongs.