The 10 Best Concerts in Dallas This Week: Edgefest, Cypress Hill & More

Although nothing can even out the tragic loss of the artist formerly known as Prince, getting a surprise visual album from Beyoncé is as decent an opposite reaction as you could hope for. If you need help during these tough times, there are plenty of tributes in Dallas already in progress or planned alongside these concerts this week. If you need more musical distractions, consider the below. 

Half Moon Run
8 p.m. Monday, April 25, at Club Dada, 2720 Elm St., $15-$17
Half Moon Run's expansive, haunting indie rock echoes bands like Local Natives or even Alt-J. But their defining feature is an ability to turn rhythms and beats in on themselves to create looping, entrancing grooves. Despite only having one drummer and one bassist, it sometimes feels like the band has a four-man rhythm section that's perfectly in sync. Whenever the band locks in for a song transition, they're absolutely a force to be reckoned with. Matt Wood

Atlas Genius
7 p.m. Tuesday, April 26, at Granada Theater, 3524 Greenville Ave, $21
Atlas Genius can effortlessly switch between tight, funky synthpop and expansive, atmospheric rock on a dime. In their lead single "Trojans," lead singer Keith Jeffrey spurts short lyrical bursts in between guitar hits, singing about a past relationship that continues to find its way into his mind despite his best efforts. It's a clever little line that isn't over-explained, and it indicates that Atlas Genius possess a subtlety that you can still dance to. MW 

Cypress Hill
7 p.m. Wednesday, April 27, at House of Blues, 200 N. Lamar St., 214-978-2583 or houseofblues.com/dallas,$25-$35
The Los Angeles hip-hop group returns to Dallas. The tour commemorates the 25th anniversary of their self-titled debut album and is presented by Boom 94.5, who continue their run of bringing in legendary acts such as LL Cool J, Master P, Whodini and many others, which is befitting of the station’s classic hip-hop format. Fans, exhale and take note: Last month frontman B-Real told HipHopDX that Cypress Hill are wrapping up a new album titled Elephants on Acid. Mikel Galicia

Parquet Courts
With Lee Ranaldo and Nots, 8 p.m. Thursday, April 28, at Granada Theater, 3524 Greenville Ave., 214-824-9933 or granadatheater.com, $22-$35/$24-$39 at the door
Parquet Courts is a walking contradiction. They’re based out of Brooklyn, but they formed in Denton. They’ve got a distinctively punk outlook, but they tend to dress like the TA for your political science seminar. They cite both Sergei Prokofiev and Houston’s Swishahouse record label as influences, but sound like a ‘90s New York guitar band. They play massive festivals and the grimiest, dingiest DIY venues. On their latest record, Human Performances, they recall both Velvet Underground (“One Man No City”) and Bill Callahan (“It’s Gonna Happen”). They scorn social media outlets such as Twitter, but keep a sardonic blog which meticulously records all the times they’ve been referred to as “slackers” in the press? This band might be everything at once. Elliot Wright

Denton Arts and Jazz Festival
Friday-Sunday, April 29-May 1, Quakertown Park, 321 E. McKinney St., Free
Every April, thousands of North Texas musicians, aficionados, artists and party-lovers from all walks of life come out of the woodwork and converge on a 20-acre historic park in Denton to enjoy seven stages of music and an arts exhibition space of 17,000 square feet. Thousands more travel from across the state for the Denton Arts & Jazz Festival, which averages 200,000 attendees and is now in its 36th year. It's like starting summer a month early. Think of it as a walk in the park mixed with a hike through the annals of Texas music, with a side helping of local art. It offers a glimpse of some of the best performers Texas has to offer and a giant, juried art show. Mixed with sunburn, beer and thousands of people, it's one big party in the park you don't want to miss. Amelia Jaycen

Highly Suspect
7 p.m. Friday, April 29, at Club Dada, 2720 Elm St., $15-$17
Though they started as a cover band, Highly Suspect managed to separate themselves by starting songs with lines like, "I wish everyone I knew was dead/So that I'd never have to pick up the phone." But hell, you have to respect the frankness from the Cape Cod trio. Their blunt lyrics are reminiscent of early Green Day, but their sound is firmly rooted in post-2000 alternative rock. Growling guitar riffs crackle beneath Johnny Stevens' higher register vocals, yet the combination feels bluesy at times. Their influences aren't clear cut, which is something to be excited about. MW

Vice Palace Two-Year Anniversary Party
With Street Sects, Sealion, Dezi 5, Party Static and more, 7 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, April 30-May 1, at RBC, 2617 Commerce St, $12-$40
Arthur Peña, founder and director of Vice Palace, will close out the roving venue’s second year with a two-day show at RBC in Deep Ellum featuring a lineup of local talent. The event is both a retrospective and a hint of what to expect from year three. Peña’s cassette label, Vice Palace Tapes, will also be unveiling its first releases for the event. Vice Palace: Year Two will unfold over two nights and feature DJs on RBC’s upstairs patio while bands perform on the main stage inside. Jeremy Hallock

Boom 94.5 Fest
Master P, Mystical, Kurtis Blow and more, 11 a.m. Saturday, April 30, at Fair Park, 1438 Coliseum Drive, 972-331-5400 or boom945.com, $25/$30 at the door.
Clap your hands everybody, if you like that song “The Breaks,” cause Kurtis Blow is playing a show and these are the dates. Well, date actually. Dallas’ second-favorite hip-hop radio station is bringing a cavalcade of ‘90s icons and footnotes, along with older and newer artists, for a day-long stroll through “The Evolution of Hip-Hop.” Legends like Blow, Big Daddy Kane and the duo of Jalil and Ecstasy of Whodini will connect the dots between themselves and more contemporary MCs like Master P (who’s reuniting the No Limit crew for this show), Mystikal and Houston’s favorite son, Mike Jones. Who’s that last one again? Well, if you’re not sure, stick around until Da Brat takes the stage and become one with the funk. The event will be hosted by Boom 94.5’s on-air talent, but don’t let that dissuade you from digging through this crate of rap's fossils. Nick Bostick

Edgefest
With Cage the Elephant, the 1975, Silversun Pickups and ore, 12 p.m. Saturday, April 30, at Toyota Stadium, 9200 World Cup Way, Frisco, 214-866-8000 or kdge.com, $10.21-$225
102.1 The Edge’s annual day-long, two-stage concert on the home turf of FC Dallas is back for its 26th edition. This year features a bill rich with today’s alt-rock heavy hitters, like Cage the Elephant, the 1975, Silversun Pickups, Chvrches and more. The lineup closely reflects the station’s format, as it always has in years past, but this year’s haul is particularly impressive as six of the bands have albums released within the past year that charted in the top 10 of the Billboard 200. For those looking for legacy acts on the comeback trail, Blue October and Good Charlotte round out the bill and each have new albums releasing this year. Mikel Galicia

Brian Wilson
7 p.m. Sunday, May 1, at Verizon Theatre, 1001 Performance Place, Grand Prairie, 972-854-5111 or verizontheatre.com, $35-$89.75
Dennis and Carl Wilson may be dead, so this is the closest thing to the Beach Boys that’s left.  Sure, original Beach Boy Mike Love — you know, the jerk who prevented what would have been one of the greatest albums of the 20th century, Smile, from happening — currently has the rights to the name. Billed as the Beach Boys, Love travels all over the world with a bunch of clowns, stinking up fairgrounds. But Bryan Wilson wrote every classic Beach Boys song (“Kokomo” is not a classic, so don’t even go there) and he has an incredibly talented band. To paraphrase Bob Dylan, Wilson should donate his ear to the Smithsonian. He gave pop music credibility, even getting recognition from Leonard Bernstein. Wilson transcended genres and became, quite simply, a great composer. Pet Sounds is one of the greatest albums ever made and this is a chance to see it performed in its entirety. Jeremy Hallock