10 Best Concerts of the Week: Flogging Molly, Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds, MGMT and More

St. Patrick's Day comes a week early for us this week as Flogging Molly takes the stage as the Dallas Observer's St. Patrick's Day concert headliner on Saturday. Former Oasis frontman Noel Gallagher brings his High Flying Birds to the Majestic Tuesday; Demi Lovato plays her second gig in town this year on Wednesday; Fort Worth's Dreamy Life Records hosts a local line-up at Andy's Bar in Denton Saturday night and more.


Noel Gallagher' High Flying Birds
8 p.m., Tuesday, March 6, at the Majestic Theatre, 1925 Elm St., 214-880-0137, liveatthemajestic.com, $37.50-$77.50

Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds is the solo moniker for former Oasis frontman Noel Gallagher that features some of the same touring musicians as the '90s English alternative band. Formed in 2010, the band has released three albums. Last year's Who Built the Moon? picks up on Gallagher's time perfecting a Smiths-Beatles-inspired sound with Oasis and is considered his best album yet. Diamond Victoria


Demi Lovato
With DJ Khaled, 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, March 7, American Airlines Center, 2500 Victory Ave., ticketmaster.com, $29 and up
Less than a month after her last Dallas show, Demi Lovato will grace fans with her lyrical stylings once more. Her Tell Me You Love Her tour is underway, and what her show at the AAC might lack in intimacy compared with her recent House of Blues show, it will certainly make up for in spectacle. Coming off a successful sixth studio album and armed with an engaged fan base, Lovato said that a lot of work has gone into the production of the tour. The 25-year-old former Disney starlet is bringing free mental health sessions to every stop. In a partnership with the Cast Foundation, a guest speaker will lead a discussion on mental health before the show. Then Lovato and special guest DJ Khaled will each get a turn to tear the house down and might even team up during the show. While the stage is bigger this time around, Lovato’s evocative lyrics and passionate vocals are sure to please fans. Nicholas Bostick


MGMT
8 p.m. Wednesday, March 7, South Side Ballroom, 1135 S. Lamar St., ticketmaster.com, $45
MGMT shot out of the gates with its syrupy, throwback psych rock in the late ’00s but has since struggled to break fresh ground. The duo tried maximalism (on Congratulations and MGMT), explored popper frontiers (Oracular Spectacular) and attempted yet another reinvention with this year’s Little Dark Age. By stripping their sound to a skeleton, the two sound like they’re having fun for the first time in nearly a decade. The structures are simpler, there are more hooks and the lyrics are the sturdiest the duo has ever put to paper. But the new MGMT isn’t just about taking elements away. In Little Dark Age, the band embraces more electronic components than ever before. It seems more grown up, too — it’s more cynical, more fatalistic and, in a sort of charming way, more burned out. This pie-eyed weariness is refreshing when set against the group’s once-blinding optimism. It also adds a little edge to a band that somewhere along the way forgot how — or refused — to stay relevant. If there was ever a time to give these dudes a second chance, it’s now. Jonathan Patrick


Little Dragon
8 p.m. Thursday, March 8, Granada Theater, 3524 Greenville Ave., granadatheater.com, $36
Hailing from Gothenburg, Sweden, synth-pop band Little Dragon is consistently pushing forward the boundaries of the genre. Its decade-plus career has resulted in five albums of wildly disparate electronica that connects the dots from Motown-inspired funk jams to slow R&B late-night dance burners. It also collaborated with Gorillaz, scored a Grammy nomination, and had some of its most dance-worthy tunes featured on Grey’s Anatomy and The Vampire Diaries. Little Dragon just put out a slinky new single, “Sway Daisy,” which should sound great alongside the plethora of other catalog tracks when the group hits the Granada Theater on Thursday for what should be a memorable evening of fun. Jeff Strowe


A$AP Ferg
With Denzel Curry and IDK, 7 p.m. Friday, Mar. 9, House of Blues, 2200 N. Lamar St., 214-978-2583 or houseofblues.com/dallas, $30 and up
A$AP Mob was in town a few months ago for its collective tour, but the hustling, multitalented A$AP Ferg is already back on the road for his Mad Man tour. The artist released the wildly successful Still Striving mixtape featuring the hit “Plain Jane” last fall but is already gearing up for the release of his next project. He really is a mad man. Last week, Ferg released a track from the upcoming album titled “Kristi YamaGucci,” featuring Denzel Curry and IDK, the two buzzing acts who are also on this tour. A hectic touring schedule is on par for the A$AP mob affiliate, who recently told GQ he gets no enjoyment from sitting at or home or spending time around other rappers — he’d rather be out seeing the world. Lucky you. Mikel Galicia


Junior Brown
With Jason Elmore, 8 p.m., Friday, March 9, at the Kessler, 1230 W. Davis St., thekessler.org, 214-272-8346, $22
Junior Brown was a man ahead of his time, brandishing an instrument more wild than his own voice is deep and rich. He made a name for himself in Austin in the '90s, where he traveled from Cottonwood, Arizona, with his outlaw-tinged country and his double necked guitar and lap steel (a “guit-steel”). His unusual voice and instrumentation have found success on TV — a few years ago he was featured on AMC’s Better Call Saul — and now with a new tour and an 11th album in the works, tentatively titled Deep in the Heart of Me, this American iconoclast is prepared to become more widely known. Tracks like “Hang up and Drive,” “My Wife Thinks You’re Dead” and “Broke Down South of Dallas” are worth the price of admission on their own. Nicholas Bostick


Willie Nelson
8 p.m. Saturday, March 10, Choctaw Grand Theatre, 4216 U.S. Route 69, Durant, Oklahoma, choctawcasinos.com, sold out
Don’t take Willie Nelson for granted. Although he’s on another tour, making up rescheduled tour dates after cancellations, the iconic country and folk outlaw will not always be around. At 84, he’s still putting out records, including a new one out in April called Last Man Standing. His voice, his guitar playing, his originals and covers — they have been around for decades. Whether you’ve caught him at a festival or a theater, the man can move people to tears with his power as a performer and songwriter. We don’t know how much more time we have such a legend around. If you’ve always wanted to see him, head up north for this. Eric Grubbs


Pop Evil
6:30 p.m. Saturday, March 10, House of Blues, 2200 N. Lamar St., 214-978-2583 or houseofblues.com/dallas, $20
Midwestern metal group Pop Evil has been on a roll over the past five years. It landed nine singles on the top 10 of Billboard’s mainstream rock chart since 2013 and is fresh off the release of its eponymous 2018 album. Pop Evil’s ships are coming in, and its Music Over Worlds tour will be pulling into Dallas. Originally formed in 2001, the post-grunge quintet’s latest album has been hailed as an evolution of the band’s nebulous take on genre. Tracks go from headbanging political outrage on “Colors Bleed” and the nu-metal tinged “Art of War” to the more industrial sound of “Nothing but Thieves” or the moody soulfulness of the album’s closing song, “Rewind.” At every twist and turn, Pop Evil explores new corners of its sound, and thankfully the band took more time to fully flesh out the final product after beginning recording last May. After recent lineup changes and successes onstage and off, Pop Evil is beginning to emerge as one of the pre-eminent rock bands of the millennium’s teen years. Your chance to catch ut before it really blows up is here, so grab your tickets while you can. Nicholas Bostick


Flogging Molly
8 p.m., Saturday, March 10, at South Side Ballroom, 1135 S Lamar St., 214-421-2021, $35 and up
The folky punk rock of Flogging Molly will come back to Dallas a week early this year for the Dallas Observer's  St. Patrick's Day concert. Something works just right with this seven-piece band led by hair metal survivor Dave King. The band's latest LP out last year fits right in with their Pogues-style sound. Whether you're trying to stay on the wagon or the wagon isn't on your radar, alcohol isn't necessary to enjoy songs like "Drunken Lullabies" or "What's Left of the Flag." Just bring yourself and prepare to sweat from jumping up and down and lots of clap-alongs. Eric Grubbs


Dreamy Life Records Showcase
with Acid Carousel, Sub-Sahara, Teenage Sexx, Robot Therapy and The Fibs, 8 p.m., Saturday, March 10, at Andy's Bar, 122 N. Locust St.,  940-312-8985, $10
Fort Worth-based Dreamy Life Records is a record store and record label that supports local and national acts. The shop buys and sells vinyl, tapes and CDs and hosts in-house performances. This Saturday, the label heads to Denton for a night of rock n' roll at Andy's Bar. The show features psychedelic outfit Acid Carousel, punk band Teenage Sexx and others. Diamond Victoria