10 Best Concerts of the Week: The Magnetic Fields, Drive-by Truckers, Mavis Staples and More

It is a top-heavy concert week in North Texas with all the top concerts taking place between Thursday and Saturday. That means some serious decisions need to be made in the coming days. On Thursday, Dallas music fans can stay local with alt-country icons Drive-By Truckers or get experimental with The Magnetic Fields. Those looking for a drive can get out and see local heroes Rosegarden Funeral Party in Fort Worth, and those looking for a much longer drive can see The Killers at the Choctaw Casino. On Friday, everything is everywhere all at once. Pepper gets mellow in Deep Ellum, while The Wee-Beasties turn up the party in Denton. Mavis Staples puts on a special show in Garland, and Vandoliers kick it in Fort Worth. Finally, on Saturday, Luke Combs brings the honky tonk to North Texas' biggest stage, and Flickerstick makes a long awaited return to Fort Worth. Thankfully, you'll have the rest of the weekend to breathe. Drive-By Truckers
7 p.m. Thursday, March 23, Granada Theater, 3524 Greenville Ave. $35 at prekindle.com

Co-founded by Patterson Hood, the son of David Hood from the highly influential Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section, Drive-By Truckers have been creating deeply meaningful Southern rock for 25 years now and have released something in just about every one of those years. In 2021, the band put out two full-length records. The Unraveling came out in January and was filled with songs of political angst, which the Truckers have dealt with quite seriously throughout their career. The New OK, which came out in October, included outtakes from The Unraveling recordings and dealt less with politics and more with personal issues (and a cover of a Ramones song). Releasing these two companion albums in a single year allowed fans to see the many sides of the Drive-By Truckers, both in terms of music and lyrics. The band will play in support of its latest release, Welcome 2 Club XIII, Thursday night with opening support from Margo Cilker.
The Magnetic Fields
7 p.m. Thursday, March 23, The Kessler, 1230 W. Davis St. $36+ at prekindle.com

Known for its sprawling albums and short songs, experimental pop band The Magnetic Fields play the second of two nights at The Kessler in Oak Cliff this Thursday. Perhaps best known for a three-disc concept album 69 Love Songs in 1999, The Magnetic Fields have always had a desire to explore emotions using as many instruments and songs as necessary to capture the theme. 69 Love Songs in particular made frequent use of synthesizers. The album was followed by a trilogy of albums, none of which used synthesizers. The Magnetic Fields followed these releases with 2012's Love at the Bottom of the Sea, which was really just a traditional synth-pop record, but that was followed in 2017 by 50 Song Memoir, which at 50 songs spread across five discs was anything but traditional. The band released a 12th album, Quickies, in 2020, but will finally be touring for it for the first time in Texas.
Rosegarden Funeral Party
7 p.m. Thursday, March 23, Tulips, 112 St. Louis Ave., Fort Worth. $10 at prekindle.com

Over the course of the last couple of years, Dallas darkwave band Rosegarden Funeral Party has been working on two projects. The first is the band's monthly "Take Cover" series, in which they release a song and a video with a special guest, covering artists such as David Bowie and Tears For Fears with musicians the likes of Poppy Xander of Helium Queens, Scott White and Michael Doty of Duell, Scarlett McPherson of King Clam and Lorelei K. The second project is the band's new 13-song album, In the Wake of Fire. The band released the album back in 2021, but they have been keeping any potential new material very close to to their heart. The band will be playing its Fort Worth show after sets by Overshare and Ester Shank.
The Killers
7:30 p.m. Thursday, March 23, Choctaw Grand Theater, 4216 U.S. Highway 69, Durant, OK. $165+ at ticketmaster.com

For years, Las Vegas rock band The Killers was known for its anthemic, stadium-ready songs such as "Somebody Told Me," "When You Were Young" and "Human." During the pandemic, however, the band took a more restrained approach to recording its latest release, Pressure Machine. Marking the return of guitarist Dave Keuning, Pressure Machine is written as a concept album centered on lead singer Brandon Flowers' childhood in Nephi, Utah. Drawing lyrical influences from Bruce Springsteen and modernist fiction, the album has more in common with the heartland rock of John Mellencamp than it does with The Killers' past efforts.
Pepper
7 p.m. Friday, March 24, Deep Ellum Art Co. 3200 Commerce St. $58+ at stubhub.com

Hawaiian reggae-rock band Pepper kicked off its career in 1997 after the death of Bradley Nowell put Pepper's biggest influence, Sublime, to rest. After 25 years, Pepper has established itself as more than just another third-wave ska band, building a solid fan base on the foundation of an engaging and truly fun live performance. It is no wonder that the band's small show at Deep Ellum Art Co. this Friday has sold out, with very few tickets out there available through resellers. Pepper hasn't shown a whole lot of variation in style the past two-and-a-half decades, but it is that same consistency of music that keeps fans coming back for more. After all, if the formula works, why change it? Pepper hasn't released a full album since 2019's Local Motion, but it has been releasing singles with fellow travelers Slightly Stoopid, Kash'd Out and The Movement in recent years. Charleston, South Carolina, reggae-rock artist Joe Samba opens the show.
Vandoliers
7 p.m. Friday, March 24, Magnolia Motor Lounge, 3005 Morton St., Fort Worth. $20+ at outhousetickets.com

Alternative country in the purest sense of the term, Vandoliers was founded in 2015 after vocalist Joshua Fleming's fellow members in punk band The Phuss went their separate ways. Since then, Vandoliers have brought that punk rock ethos to the sounds of outlaw country from the '60s and '70s. Out of commission for most of 2020, thanks to the pandemic, Vandoliers came roaring back in February with the release of their latest singles "Every Saturday Night" and "Waiting on a Train." Throughout the year, The Vandoliers have been getting their touring muscles back in shape, playing little shows at home and around the country, as they did with Celtic punk band Flogging Molly last spring. The band plays an intimate performance Friday night at Magnolia Motor Lounge in Fort Worth with The Band Laredo and Mason and the Gin Line.
The Wee-Beasties
7 p.m. Friday, March 24, Rubber Gloves, 411 E. Sycamore St., Denton. $20 at the door.

The Wee-Beasties top a four-band lineup Friday night in Deep Ellum after sets by SolShifter, Little Baby Tendencies and Austin psychobilly band The Flametrick Subs. Last summer, the band released its epic new album Party With Us!, working with producer Robert Hokamp of Brave Combo. For an 11-piece, symphonic brass punk collective that has built its reputation on some of the most insane live performances, Party With Us! is a pristine collection of music that perfectly showcases the true musical talent behind the spectacle. There are hardcore songs, ska songs, mid-tempo Southern punk epics, reggae mysteries — it's an album that's as fun to listen to as the band is to see live, mainly because the album was made with its cult-like fanbase clearly in mind. The band is about to kick off a nationwide tour, but it will start in Denton, the town that has loved and supported them for years.
Mavis Staples
7:30 p.m. Friday, March 24, Granville Arts Center, 300 N. Fifth St. $35+ at prekindle.com

R&B and gospel singer, actress and civil rights activist Mavis Staples will offer a special performance this Friday night presented by Garland Cultural Arts. To call Staples a legend or an icon would be an understatement. In her lifetime, besides belting out The Staples Singers' biggest hits, "I'll Take You There" and "Let's Do It Again," Staples marched with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., performed at John F. Kennedy’s inauguration and sang in President Barack Obama’s White House. Staples has never shied away from collaboration either, working with artists such as Prince, Bob Dylan and Arcade Fire throughout her impressive career. To list all the awards and accolades Staples has received over her 83 years of life would be nearly impossible, but most recently she earned a Grammy Award for the songwriting work she did on Jon Batiste's 2022 Album of the Year, We Are.
Luke Combs
5:45 p.m. Saturday, March 25, AT&T Stadium, 1 AT&T Way, Arlington. $159+ at ticketmaster.com

This weekend, North Carolina country musician Luke Combs pulls out all the stops in Arlington for a full night of country music that is sure to make AT&T Stadium feel like the biggest honky tonk on the planet. Combs will be bringing country music singer-songwriters Riley Green, Brent Cobb and Lainey Wilson as well as Lubbock country band Flatland Cavalry along for Saturday's all-night show. The concert has been sold out for some time, but there are still plenty of verified resale tickets available on the Ticketmaster website for fans who don't want to miss out. The concert is scheduled for the day after Combs releases his fourth studio album, Gettin' Old, the follow-up to his 2022 album Growin' Up, which earned Combs a Grammy Award nomination for Best Country Album. The two albums were recorded at the same time and are intended to be companions to each other.
Flickerstick
8 p.m. Saturday, March 25, Tannahill's Tavern & Music Hall, 122 E. Exchange, Ste. 200, Fort Worth. $36.99+ at ticketmaster.com

Alternative rock band Flickerstick got started in Denton in 1997, doing the local band thing for about three years before it got the call to compete on the VH1 series Bands On the Run in 2001. The show followed four bands from around the country. In the show, each band was assigned to play a gig in a selected city and asked to set the prices and promote the shows themselves. The bands were given $20 a day per band member as well as gas, phone cards and a hotel room. The act that made the most money from ticket and merchandise sales won $50,000 in cash, $100,000 in equipment from Guitar Center, a showcase in front of recording executives and a fully produced music video to be aired on VH1. The winner was Flickerstick, and the result was the now locally legendary album Welcoming Home the Astronauts. Now, after over 13 years on hiatus, Flickerstick is back with all five original members for this Fort Worth show.