Get ready for a couple of weeks of great music around metro Atlanta. From music festivals to big names on stage, the musicians, singers and DJs are offering a bit of everything.
This weekend sees the return of Music Midtown to Piedmont Park, this year with a third stage amplifying the offerings. Classic rock stalwarts Journey headline on Friday, and the Red Hot Chili Peppers will funk things up on Saturday.
In between are performances from 2 Chainz, Phoenix, Jane’s Addiction, Cake and others (on Friday) and Weezer, Arctic Monkeys, Imagine Dragons, Tegan and Sara, Kendrick Lamar and more (on Saturday).
Tickets for the all-ages shows are $50 for Friday, $85 for Saturday or $110 for a two-day pass (www.musicmidtown.com).
Then comes TomorrowWorld, the massive electronic dance music festival making its U.S. debut about 30 miles south of Atlanta on a sprawling piece of land in Chattahoochee Hills.
The event takes over Sept. 27-29 with an immense spread of nearly 300 DJs performing on seven stages. Mainstream music fans will recognize Calvin Harris, David Guetta, Steve Aoki, Tiesto, Alesso and Afrojack, but the rest of the lineup is golden for those who immerse themselves in the EDM culture.
Tickets start at $127 (www.tomorrowworld.com) and it is a 21-and-older event.
Besides the festivals, plenty of “regular” concerts are heading our way.
All shows take place in Atlanta with tickets available through Ticketmaster (800-745-3000, www.ticketmaster.com) unless otherwise noted.
Miranda Lambert and Dierks Bentley with the Cadillac Three, and Randy Rogers Band. The co-headlining "Locked & Reloaded" tour has been barreling across the country since April. A highlight of the show comes when Bentley joins Lambert for a stripped-down segment during her set. 7 p.m. Thursday. $29.25-$54. Aaron's Amphitheatre at Lakewood.
Big Boi with Killer Mike. The OutKast hero has resumed his "Shoes for Running" tour after injuring his knee onstage earlier this summer. Expect a bunch of OutKast tunes nestled among his solo tunes, hopefully from his excellent "Vicious Lies and Dangerous Rumors" album. 8 p.m. Friday. $26.50. The Masquerade.
John Mayer with Phillip Phillips. For a guy who notoriously suffers from foot-in-mouth disease, Mayer has crafted a mature comeback with the relaxed, Americana-leaning "Paradise Valley." Maybe we can now go back to admiring his guitar skills. Georgia native — and "American Idol" winner — Phillips seems like an ideally rootsy musical wingman. 7:30 p.m. Sept. 27. $36-$75. Lakewood.
KT Tunstall. It's been a quiet near-decade for the Scottish folk-pop singer, at least in the U.S., where she hasn't rivaled the success of "Black Horse and the Cherry Tree" and "Suddenly I See." But her new album, the reflective "Invisible Empire/Crescent Moon," deserves attention. 8 p.m. Sept. 30. $22.50. Variety Playhouse.
Blondie with X. Deborah Harry and the boys can always be relied upon to placate fans with their sublime New Wave hits. But expect to hear some new tunes from Blondie's upcoming 10th studio album, "Ghosts of Download," due in November. 8 p.m. Oct. 1. $38-$48. Buckhead Theatre.
Brian Wilson and Jeff Beck. Talk about a couple of monsters of pop and rock. The two legends will take the stage together, along with Al Jardine and David Marks, and perform classics from their respective catalogs. There might even be some Yardbirds material in the finale. 8 p.m. Oct. 4. $35-$55. Chastain Park Amphitheatre.
Fun. Atlanta is at the tail end of the band's "Most Nights" tour, but hopefully they won't be tired of singing "We Are Young" and "Carry On." Expect new music in early 2014. 8 p.m. Oct. 8. $29.50-$39.50. Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre at Encore Park, Alpharetta.
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