Details about all of these concerts can be found below. Be sure to check out Phoenix New Times’ live music listings for more shows happening around town from Monday, May 22, to Thursday, May 25.
Quinn XCII
Monday, May 22The Van Buren, 401 West Van Buren StreetSay what you will about his penchant for colorful headwear, but indie singer-songwriter Mikael Temrowski, better known as Quinn XCII, has never shied away from laying his soul bare in his music. Starting with his 2015 EP, “Change of Scenery,” the artist has explored his innermost thoughts, emotions, and mental health struggles in his catchy songs, which mix pop, hip-hop, electronica, and soul elements. The album was a success, helping propel him from a college kid making bedroom pop to an indie darling. His next few albums — including 2019's “From Michigan with Love," 2020's "A Letter to My Younger Self," and 2021's "Change of Scenery II" — have all charted on the Billboard 200. His latest release, this year’s “The People’s Champ,” showcases his predilection for self-examination, as it's been described by critics as “[balancing] a soulful hip-hop vibe with lyrical pop introspection.” With A R I Z O N A and Julia Wolf; 7:30 p.m., $49.50 via livenation.com. Benjamin Leatherman
Dead & Company
Tuesday, May 23 Talking Stick Resort Amphitheatre, 2121 North 83rd AvenueSince the Grateful Dead formed in the ’60s, the music of Jerry Garcia, Bob Weir, and countless other contributors has gained a true cult status. Even after Garcia’s death in 1995, the band kept on truckin’ over the past three decades. Following the band’s 50th-anniversary Fare Thee Well tour in 2015, they began touring as Dead & Company. The lineup includes John Mayer on lead guitar and vocals alongside original members Bob Weir on rhythm guitar, and Mickey Hart on drums. Bassist and percussionist Oteil Burbridge, keyboard player Jeff Chimenti, and drummer Jay Lane are also in the mix. Mayer’s strong blues background aids in the faithful delivery of wavy riffs from the days of Garcia. If you’ve somehow never seen Dead & Company perform live, your final chance to do so in the Valley happens this week and they’re currently in the midst of their final tour. 7 p.m., $61.50 via livenation.com. Kayla Clancy
The Sisters of Mercy
Wednesday, May 24 Marquee Theatre, 730 North Mill Avenue, TempeBreak out your fishnets and grab your black lipstick: the godfathers of goth rock are coming to town. When it comes to the gloomy genre, few musicians take themselves as deathly seriously as Andrew Eldritch, the perpetually sunglasses-wearing leader of the magisterial Sisters. It’s a seriousness that’s justified: The Sisters make widescreen goth epics. You can practically see the smoke machines working overtime when you hit play on “Floodland” and “Vision Thing.” They are monumental works, the edifices from which an entire subculture of leather and lace continues to squat in and build out from. While their philosophies as singers couldn’t be more different, it’s hard not to listen to Eldritch’s work with the Sisters and not think of the high drama of Meat Loaf’s work with Jim Steinem. The Sisters’ albums feels like a photo negative of “Bat Out of Hell:” that same sense of operatic drama and grand scope, but with a reptilian reserve in place of Meat Loaf’s sweat-drenched emoting. Like a gorgon, you never see Eldritch’s eyes: he’s too busy using his music to turn you to stone. 8 p.m., $57-$80 via seetickets.us. Ashley Naftule
Lizzo
Wednesday, May 24 Footprint Center, 201 East Jefferson SteetIf you could bottle up whatever fuel energizes Lizzo, you’d have an energy drink so potent it could make hearts explode. The female rapper/singer/actress has inspired one insipid round of discourse after another over her zaftig frame and boundless body positivity. This hand-wringing is made all the more ridiculous by her Herculean displays of athleticism in concert. How many of her haters could dance nonstop, sing, and play the goddamn flute while leading a band through a dozen or so songs? Beyond her mind-boggling stamina, Lizzo’s most impressive quality is her easy command of pop styles. From “Juice” to “Truth Hurts” and “Good as Hell,” Lizzo’s smash hits show off her savvy instincts for combining modern lyrical sensibilities and a fresh attitude with classic ’80s and ’90s sounds. Imagine every song you’ve ever heard at a mall food court given a shiny coat of paint and a catchier hook thrown on top of it and you’ve got yourself a Lizzo album. Her influences may not be particularly original but the ways in which she invests her powerful personality into her songs and turns them into uplifting anthems is unique and 100 percent Lizzo. The haters can stay hungry; Lizzo and her fans will be eating good for years to come. With Latto; 8 p.m., $94.50 via ticketmaster.com. Ashley Naftule
Bob Log III
Wednesday, May 24Yucca Tap Room, 29 West Southern Avenue, TempeAt Bob Log III’s show, he probably won’t get shot out of a cannon. Rest assured, though, if the opportunity arises, he’ll be dressed for it. The one-man band’s ensemble is completed by a helmet that is rigged to include a telephone receiver microphone. While that headgear is certainly a focal point, once Log digs into his blues-punk tunes, your eyes get mesmerized by all the other goings-on. There’s the slide guitar work with some intricate finger-picking, the drum section operated by each of Log’s feet hitting corresponding pedals, and the throaty vocals that drip with sass and twang. Tunes like “Shake a Little, Wiggle it, and Jiggle it Too,” “Boob Scotch” and “Manipulate Your Figments” throw this blues-tinged ’50s-style rock and roll dance party into action. Log has been playing Delta blues since his teenage years and was in a couple of other bands (including lo-fi blues duo Doo Rag) before going solo. Don’t be surprised if you find yourself on stage at his live show this week; it’s a common occurrence at his rowdier shindigs. With Shoolda Shook It and Joan of Arkansas; 8 p.m., $12/$15 via ticketweb.com. Amy Young
Tove Lo
Wednesday, May 24 The Van Buren, 401 West Van Buren StreetTove Lo has often been called “the saddest girl in Sweden” but one could make the argument that she’s in the running for the honor of being the horniest girl in Sweden, too. The singer-songwriter is frank about her desires in ways that most pop singers (especially Americans) can only hint at. Whether it’s singing casually about taking in the performance at a sex club in “Habits (Stay High),” rhapsodizing about the feel of a lover's skin on "Talking Body," or titling an album “Lady Wood,” Tove Lo sings anthems for the freaks; prudes need not apply. Part of what makes her music so memorable and arresting is the darker undercurrents in her work. While Tove Lo sings convincingly of the pleasures of debauchery (be it through sex or drugs), she also talks about the loneliness and disconnection that can come sometimes from living on the wild side. She sings about the highs and lows, which gives her music a weight and reality that makes it more believable and interesting than most other try-hard, aren’t-I-naughty pop songs. Even if she’s making some (or most) of this up, she sells it like she’s Meryl Streep with a Swedish accent. With Slayyyter; 8 p.m., $80 via livenation.com. Ashley Naftule
The Slackers
Thursday, May 25Crescent Ballroom, 308 North Second AvenueGoogle the phrase "ska sucks" and you'll encounter various vitriolic rantings about how the musical style blows. It's not a surprise, really, as ska has long been considered the whipping boy among musical misanthropes, who unilaterally deride its seemingly repetitive nature and upbeat spirit, or how bands like Reel Big Fish or Goldfinger bastardized the Jamaican-born sound by combining it with pulsating punk rock hooks and tempo. Oddly enough, however, you'd be hard-pressed to find any criticisms of The Slackers, as the NYC-based sextet has earned a bit of respect among the naysayers. Eschewing the "ska punk" aesthetic, band members have spent the last few decades sticking closer to the genre's dancehall roots by incorporating more soulful sounds like jazz, reggae, and dub into their musical mixture. There's also frenetic energy infusing their Brooklyn-flavored rocksteady, which radiates through the golden tones of the blaring horn section, throbbing keyboards, and emotive lyrics from lead singer Vic Ruggiero that might just turn the hard hearts of all the non-skanking cynics out there. With The Freecoasters and Bowcat; 8 p.m., $20-$30 via ticketweb.com. Benjamin Leatherman
L7
Thursday, May 25 Marquee Theatre, 730 North Mill Avenue, TempeGrunge often gets depicted as a (very) smelly boy’s club, but some of its most vital and enduring acts were fronted by women. Hole’s “Live Through This” is a better album than anything Pearl Jam or Soundgarden ever made, and few bands were as mean or rocked as hard as L7. The fearsome foursome turned heads and broke necks with Donita Sparks and Suzi Gardner’s twin guitar attack. They weren’t a riot grrl band: they were a riot. With 1990's “Smell the Magic,” 1992's “Bricks Are Heavy,” and 1994's “Hungry for Stink,” the berzerker babes of L7 established a body of work that could stand toe to toe with their contemporaries. Their music combined the snotty attitude of punk with sludge metal and hints of swaggering blues music. Listening to an L7 album is like being lowered into a tar pit; it burns and envelopes you, letting no light inside. It’s only fitting their biggest hit was called “Pretend We’re Dead” when they play like they’re trying to bury you alive. 7:30 p.m., $34-$54 via seetickets.us. Ashley Naftule
