FRIDAY
India Arie
Currently on a two-month tour to support her fifth release, "SongVersation," the Atlanta-based singer is continuing down her soulful path. During the 2000s, Arie was much more visible with hits "Video" and "I Am Not My Hair," as well as a slew of Grammy nominations. She told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution in a recent interview that she feels her new record has returned her to her roots.
8 p.m. Oct. 18. $38-$94. Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre, 2800 Cobb Galleria Parkway, Atlanta. 1-800-745-3000.
Patty Griffin
The folk maven, currently linked to Led Zeppelin god Robert Plant, released “American Kid” earlier this year, her seventh studio album and one of her finest. Recorded in Memphis, Tenn., the striking songs are a tribute to her late father. It’s a compelling piece of work from an artist whose career is full of superlatives. After all, how many songwriters can claim their songs have been covered by everyone from Bette Midler (“Moses”) to Jessica Simpson (“Let Him Fly”)?
8 p.m. Oct. 18. $31-$41. Buckhead Theatre, 3110 Roswell Road, Atlanta. 1-800-745-3000.
Lynyrd Skynyrd, the Marshall Tucker Band and Molly Hatchett
There will be plenty of lighters hoisted in the air and the sound of cowbells fluttering through the air at 97.1 the River’s Southern Rock Revival. This triple bill of Southern rock royalty is headlined by the granddaddies of the fist-pumping anthem, Lynyrd Skynyrd, which is touring behind its latest album, “Last of a Dyin’ Breed.”
7:30 p.m. Oct. 18. $19.50-$89.50. Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre at Encore Park, 2200 Encore Parkway, Alpharetta. 1-800-745-3000.
SATURDAY
Darius Rucker
This year’s Kicks 101.5 Country Fair also features Justin Moore, Randy Houser, Corey Smith, Love and Theft and Sunny Sweeney. Rucker, who just appeared at Chastain in May with Moore, has carved an impressive post-Hootie & the Blowfish career in the country world. He’s amassed six No. 1 hits in his five years as a twang-ier artist, including “Don’t Think I Don’t Think About It,” “Come Back Song” and his recent hit, “Wagon Wheel.”
3:30 p.m. Oct. 19. $28-$79.50. Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre at Encore Park, 2200 Encore Parkway, Alpharetta. 1-800-745-3000.
SUNDAY
Vanessa Carlton
Singer-songwriter-pianist Carlton hasn’t matched the early-2000s commercial success of breakthrough single “A Thousand Miles” or her 2003 guest appearance with Counting Crows on their hit cover of “Big Yellow Taxi.” But Carlton has always kept her talents in the spotlight, whether opening for Stevie Nicks or embarking on her own numerous tour dates. She announced last week during a show in New York that she is pregnant with her first child; a follow-up to 2011’s “Rabbits on the Run” is expected early next year.
With Patrick Sweany. 7:30 p.m. Oct. 20. $30. Terminal West, 887 W. Marietta St. N.W., Atlanta. 404-876-5566.
Kris Kristofferson
Mr. “Me and Bobby McGee” is 77 now and knows he has forgiving audiences. “They’re pretty easy on an old guy,” he recently told the Tampa Bay Times. “All I have to do is play guitar and sing these little chapters of your life that it doesn’t hurt to go over now and then.” The country star — at one time a member of the Highwaymen with Johnny Cash, Willie Nelson and Waylon Jennings — is as beloved for his tunes as he is for his onscreen work. Fans will recall him in “Cisco Pike” and “A Star Is Born,” but a new generation witnessed him in the recent “Dolphin Tale.”
7:30 p.m. Oct. 20. $39.50-$75.50. Symphony Hall, 1280 Peachtree St. N.E., Atlanta. 404-733-5000.
THURSDAY
Neko Case
Her new release comes with a wordy title (“The Worse Things Get, The Harder I Fight, The Harder I Fight, The More I Love You”), but the sixth album from the indie folk-rocker is being praised for its sparse, heartbreaking beauty. The sometime-member of the New Pornographers flirted with mainstream success with 2009’s “Middle Cyclone,” but her fans are content to keep her as their own little secret.
8 p.m. Oct. 24. $31 (advance) and $33.50 (at door). Buckhead Theatre, 3110 Roswell Road, Atlanta. 1-800-745-3000.
Nine Inch Nails
In the ’90s, NIN defined industrial goth-rock with creepy songs (with even creepier videos) “Closer,” “Hurt” and “March of the Pigs.” Leader Trent Reznor has expanded his reach in recent years, even sharing an Oscar for best original score for 2010’s “The Social Network.” But now he and the band are back with “Hesitation Marks,” the first NIN record since 2008, which debuted at No. 1 on Billboard’s Top Rock Albums chart. Joining Reznor on this “Tension 2013” tour are Alessandro Cortini, Josh Eustis, Robin Finck, Lisa Fischer, Sharlotte Gibson, Pino Palladino and Ilan Rubin.
With Godspeed You! Black Emperor. 8 p.m. Oct. 24. $39.50-$99. Philips Arena, 1 Philips Drive, Atlanta. 1-800-745-3000.
About the Author
