Sylvan Esso
Singer Amelia Meath and producer and multi-instrumentalist Nick Sanborn make music filled with contradictions as the electropop duo Sylvan Esso. The structure is simple — vocals and beats — but the sound is complex and expansive. The songs might be upbeat, but things get heavy the closer you pay attention. There’s both fragility and strength. “At the heart of Sylvan Esso is this really fun argument,” Meath has said. “Nick wants things to sound unsettling, but I want you take your shirt off and dance.” The duo’s latest album is the Grammy-nominated “Free Love.” Sylvan Esso plays at 8 p.m. Thursday, May 12, at The Fillmore. Tickets start at $29.50 at livenation.com.
‘Don Quixote’
American Ballet Theatre performs the classic ballet adaptation of the story of Don Quixote and his sidekick Sancho Panza with choreography based on the Russian versions of Marius Petipa and Alexander Gorsky. The Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra performs the score. Presented by the New Orleans Ballet Association at the Mahalia Jackson Theater for the Performing Arts at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, May 14, and 2 p.m. Sunday, May 15. Find tickets via the New Orleans Ballet Association’s website.
Toro y Moi
Chaz Bear, who records and performs as Toro y Moi, released his latest studio album, “Mahal,” in late April. It’s another collection of his soft vocals over electropop, with a dose of ’60s and ’70s psychedelic rock. Bear also stars with Eric Andre in a companion short film, “Goes By So Fast: a Mahal Film.” Uffie opens for Toro y Moi at 8 p.m. Tuesday, May 10, at Republic NOLA. Tickets $30-$45 via eventbrite.com.
‘A Night with Janis Joplin’
In a concert near the end of her life, Janis Joplin reflects on her favorite singers, including Bessie Smith, Aretha Franklin, Odetta and others, as she sings her own hits, including “Piece of My Heart” and “Me and Bobby McGee.” Leslie McDonel stars as Joplin in Randy Johnson’s musical drama at Le Petit Theatre. On its opening weekend, it runs at 7:30 p.m. from Thursday, May 12, through Saturday, May 14, with 3 p.m. matinees on Saturday and Sunday, May 15. The show runs through May 29. Find tickets at Le Petit’s website.
‘the dance floor, the hospital room, and the kitchen table’
The performance piece links the history and lessons of the HIV/AIDS epidemic and COVID-19, drawing on interviews with activists and caretakers in a work about care and queerness. The Show runs at 7:30 p.m. Friday, May 13, 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. Saturday, May 14, and 2 p.m. Sunday, May 15, at the Contemporary Arts Center. There’s information about the performance at the CAC’s website.
Laura Jane Grace, Tim Kasher and Anthony Green
Laura Jane Grace, Tim Kasher and Anthony Green — all punk rock veterans and bandleaders — are doing something a little different on their “Carousel Tour” which runs through May. Each musician has their own set times, but they’re all playing together, blurring bands and trying out new things at each tour stop. Florida emo band Home is Where join Grace, Kasher and Green for their New Orleans stop at 8 p.m. Saturday, May 14, at The Hanger on South Rendon Street. Tickets are $27 at seetickets.us.
Dehd
Chicago lo-fi indie rock trio Dehd is out on tour ahead of the release of the group’s new album “Blue Skies.” The record will be their fourth album and their first on Oxford, Mississippi, label Fat Possum. Dehd plays with 81355 at 7:30 p.m. Monday, May 16, at the Toulouse Theatre. Tickets are $17 at the Toulouse Theatre’s website.
Chelsea Handler
Standup comic Chelsea Handler built her career failing upward, she says, after years of jokes about drinking, a book titled “Are You There Vodka? It’s Me, Chelsea” and chewing over news and celebrity gossip on her E! show “Chelsea Lately.” Her last book, “Chelsea Handler: Life Will be the Death of Me … and You Too!” touched on her time in therapy and reconciling her life. Now she’s on her “Vaccinated and Horny Tour,” and recently announced she’ll record a comedy special in July. She performs stand-up at 8 p.m. Thursday, May 12, at Orpheum Theater. Find tickets via the Orpheum Theater’s website.
‘This Will Not Pass’
New York Times reporters Jonathan Martin and Alexander Burns recently published “This Will Not Pass: Trump, Biden and the Battle for America’s Future,” a comprehensive account of the 2020 election, including Trump’s coup attempt to overturn the election results and the Jan. 6 insurrection. Martin and Burns will speak about their new book with Walter Isaacson at the Garden District Book Shop at 5 p.m. Saturday, May 14. Tickets are $36 and include a copy of the book at the book shop’s website.
Ray LaMontagne
Singer-songwriter Ray LaMontagne took a stripped-down approach to recording his 2020 album “Monovision,” and its tracks mostly feature acoustic guitar and his breathy, earnest vocals. Sierra Ferrell opens at 7:30 p.m. Monday, May 16, at Orpheum Theater. Find tickets via livenation.com.
Charm Taylor
Charm Taylor, formerly the founder and singer of The Honorable South, celebrates the release of her solo album “She is the Future.” She performs with Fuller Effect, Vic Jcome and Flagboy Giz. At 7 p.m. Friday, May 13, at the Broadside. Tickets $25 in advance via a link on Taylor’s Instagram, @charmtayloristhefuture, or $30 at the door.
When you put on “Red Balloon,” you’re tuning into Tank and the Bangas radio. TATB-FM, hosted by Wayne Brady, Questlove and DJ Soul Sister: 50 …
