Top concerts playing Phoenix in May 2024: Justin Timberlake, Luke Combs, Rolling Stones
We’ve got two huge tours playing State Farm Stadium in Glendale this month — the Rolling Stones on their first tour since losing drummer Charlie Watts in support of their first album of original material in nearly 20 years, and country singer Luke Combs, who required two nights at the stadium to meet demand for tickets to his latest tour.
There are also some massive arena tours headed our way, from Pepe Aguilar to Colombian musical sensation Feid to Romeo Santos reuniting Aventura and Justin Timberlake for the first time in five years.
And we’re not out of festival season yet, despite those rising temperatures.
The Flaming Lips will headline Pure Imagination on a bill that also features Tanya Tucker (two names rarely featured in a single sentence) while Boots in the Park returns to Tempe with Kane Brown as the main attraction.
Here’s a look at the biggest concerts coming to metro Phoenix in May 2024.
Marisela
Sometimes known as the Latin Madonna, this Mexican-American singer found success on the Latin pop scene of the '80s, topping Billboard's Latin Songs chart with a 1990 cover of the Barbara George hit "I Know (You Don't Love Me No More)," titled "Ya No."
Details: 8:30 p.m. Friday, May 3. Celebrity Theatre, 440 N. 32nd St., Phoenix. $59-$159. 602-267-1600, celebritytheatre.com.
Mamma Coal's Dolly Hoot
Arizona songwriters salute the legacy of country legend Dolly Parton, covering her greatest hits with the backing of an all-star band. Artists performing include the Tucson country singer whose name is in the title, Mamma Coal, with Grant Bloom, Crystal Stark, Steff Koeppen (of Steff and the Articles), Brea Burns, Taylor Glasheen, Katie Mae, Taryn Cantrell (of Great American Regret), Laura Hamlin (of Salt River String Band), Agnia Del Carmen and DJ Dana.
Details: 7:30 p.m. Friday, May 3. Crescent Ballroom, 308 N. Second Ave., Phoenix. $18; $15 in advance. 602-716-2222, crescentphx.com.
The Psychedelic Furs
Led by the distinctive rasp of Richard Butler, the Furs are best remembered for such '80s New Wave classics as "Love My Way," "Pretty in Pink" and "Heartbreak Beat." And they're still adding to that legacy. Their latest album, 2020's "Made of Rain," became their second-highest-charting UK album ever and appeared in year-end lists at Mojo, Uncut, Classic Pop and more. They're joined by roots-punk legends John Doe & Exene Cervenka of X.
Details: 8 p.m. Saturday, May 4. Celebrity Theatre, 440 N. 32nd St., Phoenix. $35-$85. 602-267-1600, celebritytheatre.com.
Cinco de Mayo Phoenix Festival
A year after celebrating its 30th anniversary, the Cinco de Mayo Phoenix Festival returns to downtown Phoenix with Latin-funk sensations War and San Diego reggae band Big Mountain as well as local acts throughout the day, including the amazing Las Calakas and Znora. The family-friendly event also features lucha libre, ballet folklorico, mariachi serenades, a free Kids Zone with games, giveaways, traditional Mexican food, margaritas and more.
Details: Noon-10 p.m. Sunday, May 5. First Avenue and Washington Street, Phoenix. $5 before 5 p.m.; $10 after 5 p.m. cincophx.com.
Pepe Aguilar
Pepe Aguilar is joined by family members on the Jaripeo Hasta Los Huesos Tour, rooted in Mexican tradition with a new look, production and theme that honors one of Mexico's most recognized celebrations, the Day of the Dead. The concert will take audiences on a journey that stretches back to the earliest days of the Aguilar Dynasty, spanning several generations, from hits by the legendary Antonio Aguilar to the music of Leonardo and ángela Aguilar, as well as Antonio Aguilar Jr.
Details: 7 p.m. Sunday, May 5. Desert Diamond Arena, 9400 W. Maryland Ave., Glendale. $35.50 and up. 623-772-3800, desertdiamondarena.com.
Codiciado
Erick Aragón, the musician known as Codiciado, is bringing his highly anticipated Ando Enfocado Tour to Phoenix. Formerly the driving force behind the hugely successful Grupo Codiciado, Aragón has taken the solo spotlight by storm, breaking stereotypes through his lyrics, fashion, attitude and live performances. His blend of traditional and contemporary regional Mexican sounds, combined with powerful vocals and stage presence, has garnered him a loyal following and critical acclaim.
Details: 8 p.m. Sunday, May 5. Arizona Financial Theatre, 400 W. Washington St., Phoenix. $53 and up. 800-745-3000, ticketmaster.com.
Cypress Hill
These hip-hop sensations were at the forefront of the West Coast rap scene in the early ‘90s, sending both sides of their debut single — “How I Could Just Kill a Man” and “The Phuncky Feel One” — to the top of Billboard’s rap charts. Their biggest hit is the classic “Insane in the Brain” from their second album. As a nod to Cypress Hill's long-standing pro-marijuana advocacy and activism, $1 of each ticket sold throughout the 13-date We Legalized It Tour will be donated to the non-profit, The Last Prisoner Project.
Details: 7:30 p.m. Sunday, May 5. Marquee Theatre, 730 N. Mill Ave., Tempe. $77.96 and up. 480-829-0607, luckymanonline.com.
Chandler Symphony Orchestra
Celebrate Cinco de Mayo with Chandler Symphony Orchestra, led by music director and conductor Vanja Gjumar Nikolovski, performing Tchaikovsky’s "Symphony No. 5," Codina’s "Zacatecas," Marquez’s "Danzon No. 2" and Copland’s "El Salon Mexico." This orchestra is made up of professionally trained musicians volunteering their time and talent to bring classical music to the community. Admission is by donation.
Details: 3 p.m. Sunday, May 5. Chandler Center for the Arts, 250 N. Arizona Ave. Donations accepted. 480-782-2680, chandlercenter.org.
The Rolling Stones
This is the Rolling Stones' third time at State Farm Stadium, their first since losing Charlie Watts, the jazz-loving, sharp-dressing drummer who died in 2021. Wondering whether this could be the last time is perhaps a bit more grounded in reality in 2024 than it was in 1989 when Mick Jagger was moved to respond to the question at a press conference announcing their tour in support of "Steel Wheels" with “First asked in 1966!” But don't mistake this for a pilgrimage. The Stones' last Valley show in 2019 was a wonderfully unpolished thrill, put across with the signature cocktail of swagger and reckless abandon they've been chasing all along. Plus, they're touring on their first new album of original material in nearly 20 years and it's as good as anything they've done since "Tattoo You" in 1981.
Details: 8 p.m. Tuesday, May 7. State Farm Stadium, 1 Cardinals Way, Glendale. $63 and up. 800-745-3000, seatgeek.com.
Interpol
They were the toast of the post-punk revival, topping Pitchfork's year-end album list in 2002 with their first album, "Turn on the Bright Lights," and following through with the just-as-likely-to-be-showered-in-comparisons-to-Joy-Division mainstream breakthrough, "Antics," in 2004. When their latest album hit the streets in 2022, Spin magazine responded with "'The Other Side of Make-Believe' maintains the charm and intrigue that made Interpol indie darlings 20 years ago, but it also finds the band aging gracefully — these brooding New York boys are now men who embrace their emotions." And don't miss the opening set by local shoegaze revivalists Glixen.
Details: 6:25 p.m. Wednesday, May 8. Mesa Amphitheatre, 263 N. Center St. $55; $50 in advance. 480-644-2560, mesaamp.com.
Benny the Butcher
This Buffalo rapper is part of the hip-hop collective Griselda, founded by his cousins Westside Gunn and Conway the Machine and also featuring the great Mach-Hommy. He's joined on the Everybody Can't Go Tour by Boldy James. The tour takes its name from a brilliant new album HipHopDX hailed as "the latest addition to the empirical evidence piling up in favor of Benny The Butcher’s craftiness with words."
Details: 8 p.m. Wednesday, May 8. Marquee Theatre, 730 N. Mill Ave., Tempe. $46.60 and up. 480-829-0607, luckymanonline.com.
Celebrating Charlie Watts
Members of the Rolling Stones' touring band — including longtime keyboard player Chuck Leavell, bassist Daryll Jones, saxophonist Tim Ries and backup singer Bernard Fowler — will celebrate the life and legacy of Charlie Watts a day after the Rolling Stones play State Farm Stadium. They're joined by local jazz greatest Lewis Nash and Stan Sorenson. The show will feature jazz and world music arrangements of Rolling Stones classics. Ries, who leads the band with Fowler, has been playing with the Stones since 1999 and has release two albums of reinvented Stones songs, "The Rolling Stones Project" and "Stones World." Fowler has been touring with the Stones for more than three decades.
Details: 7 p.m. Wednesday, May 8. Musical Instrument Museum, 4725 E. Mayo Blvd., Phoenix. $59.50. 480-478-6000, mim.org.
Livingston
Born in Denton, Texas, this singer-songwriter rose to fame posting covers on TikTok. He’s touring the States in support of “A Hometown Odyssey,” a full-length debut that makes the most of his elastic vocal range and cathartic lyrics as it makes its way through such obvious highlights as “Shadow,” with its reassuring chorus of “It's not the devil at your door / It's just your shadow on the floor,” to the soulful majesty of the piano-driven “Last Man Standing.”
Details: 8 p.m. Wednesday, May 8. Crescent Ballroom, 308 N. Second Ave., Phoenix. $19.50-$89. 602-716-2222, crescentphx.com.
Aventura
Romeo Santos, the "King of Bachata," has reunited his group Aventura for a U.S. tour titled Cerrando Ciclos. This tour is said to be the last time Santos and Aventura will join forces on stage, offering an opportunity to relive the hits that defined an era in Latin music. Aventura took bachata to new heights while blending modern rhythms with the authentic essence of the genre. In a message to fans on social media, Santos said, "I want you to join me on a journey where I will be definitively closing cycles. Because it is not the same to remember beautiful times as it is to be a prisoner of the past. We cannot stagnate in the nostalgia of yesterday, but rather move forward, discover new horizons and show other facets.”
Details: 8 p.m. Thursday, May 9. Desert Diamond Arena, 9400 W. Maryland Ave., Glendale. $59 and up. 623-772-3800, desertdiamondarena.com.
Adam Ant
I caught this '80s icon revisiting "Kings of the Wild Frontier" in its entirety in Tucson in 2017 and it was everything a fan could hope to witness. As I wrote at the time: "As tempting as it may have been to make some sort of reference to 'Stand and Deliver' here, I will say that he did deliver, but he didn’t do much standing, dancing and working the stage with a youthful exuberance most entertainers half his age would do well to aspire to in his black leather pants and dashing pirate garb.” He's joined on the Antmusic 2024 Tour by fellow veterans of the New Wave years the English Beat.
Details: 8 p.m. Friday, May 10. Celebrity Theatre, 440 N. 32nd St., Phoenix. $45-$120. 602-267-1600, celebritytheatre.com.
Phoenix Boys Choir
Phoenix Boys Choir's concert season concludes with Skyward, an energetic and exhilarating program of popular, contemporary and familiar music in collaboration with Simply Three, the Mesa-based trio of Glen McDaniel, Nick Villalobos and Zack Clark known for their high-octane performances and viral music videos. The concert also features the world premiere of Raphael Fusco's "It's a Long Way," the first-place entry in the 2023 New Works Rising Choral Composition Competition.
Details: 7 p.m. Friday, May 10. Mesa Arts Center, 1 E. Main St. $16-$43. 480-644-6500, mesaartscenter.com. 3 p.m. Saturday, May 11. Orpheum Theatre, 203 W. Adams St., Phoenix. $15-$40. 800-282-4842, etix.com.
Robin Wilson and Stephen Ashbrook
The Crescent Ballroom website has been billing this show as "iconic Phoenix alt-rock." And other than the fact that we'd have gone with Tempe, that seems right. Wilson is, of course, the singer for the legendary Gin Blossoms, who went from one of Mill Avenue's hottest reasons to get drunk to modern-rock radio hitmakers thanks to the quadruple-platinum success of 1992's "New Miserable Experience." Now based in Portland, Oregon, Ashbrook was another major player on the Tempe music scene that flourished in the '90s, fronting Satellite.
Details: 8 p.m. Friday, May 10. Crescent Ballroom, 308 N. Second Ave., Phoenix. $25-$35. 602-716-2222, crescentphx.com.
21 Savage
The Grammy-winning rapper is headed to Phoenix as part of a 30-city American Dream Tour with special guests J.I.D, Nardo Wick and 21 Lil Harold, in support of the chart-topping album for which the tour was named. This is 21 Savage's first metro Phoenix concert since September when he came through town with Drake on the co-headlining It's All a Blur Tour.
Details: 7 p.m. Saturday, May 11. Talking Stick Resort Amphitheatre, 2121 N. 83rd Ave., Phoenix. $41.30 and up. 602-254-7200, livenation.com.
Feid
Colombian musical phenomenon Feid has promised a groundbreaking musical journey to showcase his energy, dynamic stage presence and hit songs when the FerxxoCalipsis Tour arrives in Phoenix in support of last year's "Mor, No Le Temas a la Oscuridad," his first release to go Top 40 on the U.S. album charts. He may be best known in the mainstream for collaborating with Bad Bunny on the hit song "Perro Negro."
Details: 8 p.m. Saturday, May 11. Footprint Center, 201 E. Jefferson St., Phoenix. $64.99 and up. 602-379-7800, ticketmaster.com.
Riley Green
The country singer is touring the States in continued support of "Ain’t My Last Rodeo," a 2023 release that spawned his biggest hit to date, a re-recording of the title track to his first album, "Different 'Round Here," as a duet with Luke Combs. In a press release, Green said, “’Ain’t My Last Rodeo’ is inspired by what I know best: hard work, life outdoors and family and it’s going to be fun adding these new songs to our full set.”
Details: 7:30 p.m. Saturday, May 11. Arizona Financial Theatre, 400 W. Washington St., Phoenix. Verified resale prices vary. 800-745-3000, ticketmaster.com.
Chris Isaak
The man has worn his share of hats since "Wicked Game" turned up in David Lynch's "Wild at Heart." He's been a talk-show host, a sitcom star, a SWAT commander in "The Silence of the Lambs," No. 68 on of VH1's list of sexiest artists and a singer whose music continues to embody the qualities that made his early records so evocative. "First Comes the Night," his latest non-holiday effort, finds Isaak channeling the sound and spirit of the Sun recording artists he saluted on "Beyond the Sun," especially Roy Orbison and Elvis Presley, while sounding more timeless than retro.
Details: 7:30 p.m. Saturday, May 11. Celebrity Theatre, 440 N. 32nd St., Phoenix. $40-$55. 602-267-1600, celebritytheatre.com.
XIXA
This is part of Scottsdale Center for the Performing Arts' new outdoor concert series, where artists perform as night falls on the West Bowl and audiences relax in the grass. It's been a minute since Gabriel Sullivan and Brian Lopez of Tucson's XIXA member Brian Lopez began incorporating chicha, an intoxicating Peruvian blend of cumbias and psychedelic rock, into a sound they labeled mystic desert rock. On "Genesis," their latest full-length effort, those elements are filtered through their love of old Spaghetti Western scores, Tejano and a brooding vocal presence, courtesy of Sullivan, that often ventures into territory best described as gothic. They're joined by Phoenix-based Latin folk fusion band Medio Pinto.
Details: 6:30 p.m. Thursday, May 9. Scottsdale Civic Center West Bowl, 7380 E. Second St. $25. 480-499-8587, scottsdaleperformingarts.org.
Waxahatchee
The Telegraph hailed Katie Crutchfield's latest Waxahatchee album, "Tigers Blood," as "another beautiful slice of country-tinged magic that never descends into nostalgia." This is true. It's also true that "Tiger's Blood" finds the American stalwart, as NME wrote, "at the top of her game." And the top of Crutchfield's game is pretty daunting stuff. The Skinny praised her previous release, "Saint Cloud," as "the high watermark of modern Americana, gorgeous in its arrangements and sumptuous in its emotional literacy."
Details: 8 p.m. Monday, May 13. The Van Buren, 401 W. Van Buren St., Phoenix. $30. 866-468-3399, thevanburenphx.com.
Meatbodies
When he’s not playing bass in Ty Segall’s band Fuzz, Chad Ubovich is carrying the torch for psychedelic music at the helm of Meatbodies, whose latest album, “Flora Ocean Tiger Bloom,” eases the listener into the acid with the trance-inducing stoner rock of “The Assignment,” one of four tracks on this headphone record for the ages that passes the six-minute threshold without wearing out its welcome. As Dusted magazine sums it up, “It is a sprawling, roaring, wild beast of an album.” And there’s no reason to believe it won’t be even better live, especially in a room the size of Rebel Lounge.
Details: 8 p.m. Tuesday, May 14. Rebel Lounge, 2303 E. Indian School Road, Phoenix. $17. 602-296-7013, therebellounge.com.
Marcus King
The young blues guitarist is touring the States in support of “Mood Swings,” a new album produced by Rick Rubin. Drawing on King’s darkest moments, the album became a beacon of hope for King, who once believed he was destined to die at his own hand, as he created it. A review in Variety suggested that "the album can overall best be described as: What if Al Green also played a mean axe and made a record about dealing with anxiety and depression?” Rolling Stone was equally impressed, saying, "The lyrical conventions of a hand-me-down genre are enlivened with genuinely personal urgency."
Details: 8 p.m. Wednesday, May 15. The Van Buren, 401 W. Van Buren St., Phoenix. $30. 866-468-3399, thevanburenphx.com.
Wednesday
Wednesday's "Rat Saw God" was arguably last year's finest hour by an artist you could reasonably label "rock," an unvarnished treasure that effortlessly blurs the lines between Americana, indie-rock and shoegaze in a feedback-laden squall of sound, at times descending into pure cacophony as it does on "Bull Believer," where Karly Hartzman's tortured howls are underscored by utter chaos. As Sputnikmusic raved: "Without polish or overproduction, Wednesday sound is a powerful exclamation of a narrative, full of noise, beauty, and deeply relatable feelings and stories. It may not feel perfect, but it’s real." I would, however, argue that it couldn't hope to feel more perfect than it does.
Details: 8 p.m. Wednesday, May 15. Crescent Ballroom, 308 N. Second Ave., Phoenix. $20. 602-716-2222, crescentphx.com.
Jacob Collier
The tour is in support of the British singer-songwriter's long-awaited “Djesse Vol. 4." Five years have passed since Collier embarked on the musical journey of “Djesse," a four-part series that’s already won five Grammys. Collier announced “Djesse Vol. 4” the day after he headlined the Hollywood Bowl and shared a new single called “Little Blue” featuring Brandi Carlile.
Details: 7 p.m. Thursday, May 16. Arizona Financial Theatre, 400 W. Washington St., Phoenix. $46.50 and up. 800-745-3000, ticketmaster.com.
Alvvays
These Toronto-based dream-pop sensations, led by Molly Rankin, earned a Best Alternative Music Performance Grammy nomination for "Belinda Says," a highlight of their latest album, "Blue Rev." No Ripcord heard the album as a huge step forward, writing, "It’s not simply an incremental improvement. It’s a quantum leap. As far as third albums go, it’s their 'Forever Changes,' 'Summerteeth,' and 'The Meadowlands' rolled into one ... It truly is one for the ages."
Details: 8 p.m. Thursday, May 16. The Van Buren, 401 W. Van Buren St., Phoenix. $41.75. 866-468-3399, thevanburenphx.com.
Pure Imagination Festival in Prescott
The Flaming Lips will headline Pure Imagination on a tour celebrating the 20th anniversary of their seminal “Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots” album when the festival returns to Watson Lake in historic Prescott, Arizona. It’s an impressively eclectic lineup, from the willfully eccentric, psychedelic splendor of the Flaming Lips to country music legend Tanya Tucker, indie dance-pop duo Sylvan Esso and alternative hip-hop pioneers the Pharcyde. Other performers include Danielle Ponder, The National Parks, Sarah Shook & the Disarmers, Brian Chartrand, Ponderosa Grove, the Irie, Galactagogues and BG NFTY.
Details: Saturday, May 18. Watson Lake Park, 3101 Watson Lake Park Road, Prescott. pureimaginationfestival.com.
The Belishow
The Belishow is a Latin music package tour with Tito Double P, Tony Aguirre, Dareyes de la Sierra, El Padrinito Toys and a surprise guest artist. Tito Double P is Peso Pluma's cousin. After years of writing together, the cousins released two live albums, "Disco en Vivo," and "Disco en Vivo, Vol. 2," in 2020. Tito Double P has written many of his cousin's hits, including “El Belicón,” “AMG,” “El Gavilán,” “Sembrando,” “El Hechizo,” “Las Morras,” “PRC,” “Chanel” and “Siempre Pendientes.”
Details: 8:45 p.m. Saturday, May 18. Mullett Arena, 411 S. Packard Drive, Tempe. $55 and up. mullettarena.com.
Fayuca
Gabo Fayuca and his bandmates filter their reggae through Latin alternative, ska-punk and a hint of prog-rock. And on last year's four-song "Where the Colors Grow," they managed to sharpen their pop sensibilities, updating their sound while also playing to their strengths, especially on that title track. They're joined by Pijama Piyama, whose sound is on the psychedelic side of Latin jazz, and El Dusty.
Details: 8 p.m. Saturday, May 18. Crescent Ballroom, 308 N. Second Ave., Phoenix. $20-$30. 602-716-2222, crescentphx.com.
Boots in the Park at Tempe Beach Park
Country star Kane Brown will headline the latest edition of Boots in the Park at Tempe Beach Park with Lee Brice, Tyler Hubbard, Parmalee, Dylan Schneider and Luwiss Lux. It also features line dancing, beer and craft cocktails, locally curated food vendors, and art installations.
Details: Noon Sunday, May 19. Tempe Beach Park, 80 W. Rio Salado Parkway. $99 and up. bootsinthepark.com.
Warpaint
The L.A.-based indie-rock veterans brought home raves in 2022 for "Radiate Like This," their first release in nearly six years, arriving 12 years after their acclaimed debut. Mojo hailed it as their finest work to date while Record Collector called it "an unmitigated joy" in the course of a review that raved "The four women click and connect in a way so rare that theoretically you could put the four greatest musicians in the world in a room and this level of rhythmic transcendence just wouldn’t happen." That's high praise.
Details: 8 p.m. Sunday, May 19. The Van Buren, 401 W. Van Buren St., Phoenix. $41.75. 866-468-3399, thevanburenphx.com.
Bryson Tiller
The contemporary R&B star arrives in support of a self-titled album said to be a personal narrative that weaves together Tiller’s signature blend of trap and soulful R&B with fresh rap and pop elements. The album's lead single, "Whatever She Wants," became his highest-charting entry on the Billboard Hot 100 since his breakthrough single, the seven-times-platinum "Don't." Tiller's other hits include "Exchange," "Sorry Not Sorry," "Let Me Explain," "Run Me Dry" and "Insecure."
Details: 8 p.m. Monday, May 20. Arizona Financial Theatre, 400 W. Washington St., Phoenix. Resale ticket prices vary. 800-745-3000, ticketmaster.com.
Justin Timberlake
The Forget Tomorrow World Tour is Timberlake's first tour in five years. Fans can expect to hear songs from “Everything I Thought It Was,” his sixth consecutive release to crack the Top 5 on the Billboard album charts, including the hit single “Selfish,” in addition to the multiplatinum smashes you'd expect to hear from Timberlake. In March, a one-off concert at The Wiltern in Los Angeles included a surprise reunion with his NSYNC bandmates, with the group playing a medley of hits and the album track “Paradise.”
Details: 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, May 21. Footprint Center, 201 E. Jefferson St., Phoenix. Resale ticket prices vary. 602-379-7800, ticketmaster.com.
Gunna
Gunna is bringing the Bittersweet Tour to town with special guest Flo Milli. Born in College Park, Georgia, Gunna hit the mainstream in 2018 with the 10-times-platinum breakthrough single "Drip Too Hard," which peaked at No. 4 on Billboard's Hot 100. He's cracked the Top 10 twice since then, with the quadruple-platinum "Lemonade" in 2020 and the triple-platinum "(Expletive)UMean" in 2023.
Details: 8 p.m. Tuesday, May 21. Arizona Financial Theatre, 400 W. Washington St., Phoenix. $54.50 and up. 800-745-3000, ticketmaster.com.
Roar
"Diamond Destroyer of Death," these local rockers' latest effort, is a modern masterpiece of psychedelic chamber pop that feels a bit like an album-length suite. There's a dynamic range that guarantees the moments meant to be majestic are, in fact, a thing of wonder, from the time they hit you with the cinematic splendor of the chorus that appears as if by magic on an opener called "Copperfield," when Owen Evans tells you "I can make the world disappear." And it kind of does disappear for the length of the album that transports you to a world of Evans' making.
Details: 8 p.m. Tuesday, May 21. Crescent Ballroom, 308 N. Second Ave., Phoenix. $18; $15 in advance. 602-716-2222, crescentphx.com.
Cloud Nothings
Cloud Nothings really came into their own on 2012's "Attack on Memory," an explosive assault on the senses produced by Steve Albini, a man whose reputation rests on capturing that sort of racket. Twelve years later, they're touring the States in support of "Final Summer," an album whose electrifying sound is topped by Dylan Baldi’s impassioned delivery of songs that filter heartache through a ray of hope to cathartic effect. As he puts it on the title track, “I need to be happy with what I've got for me." And as No Ripcord rightly notes, the album “comes rich with gargantuan hooks that make you feel alive.”
Details: 8:30 p.m. Wednesday, May 22. Rebel Lounge, 2303 E. Indian School Road, Phoenix. $23. 602-296-7013, therebellounge.com.
Amon Amarth
The Swedish death-metal veterans, whose name is Sindarin for Mount Doom, a volcano in J.R.R. Tolkien's Middle-earth, are back in the States at the helm of the Metal Crushes All Tour, their biggest North American tour to date, with special guests Cannibal Corpse, Obituary, and Frozen Soul. Their breakthrough album, "Twilight of the Thunder God," was No. 6 on Metal Hammer's countdown of 2008's best albums. Kerrang! said 2022's "The Great Heathen Army" was "perhaps the strongest collection" they've released since then.
Details: 6:30 p.m. Thursday, May 23. Arizona Financial Theatre, 400 W. Washington St., Phoenix. $61 and up. 800-745-3000, ticketmaster.com.
Maggie Rogers
Rogers is headed our way in support of "Don’t Forget Me" on a tour that features special guests the Japanese House, the critically acclaimed project of Amber Bain. She headlined M3F Fest in 2023, telling the crowd, "This is my first time ever headlining a festival in the United States.” It was a shocking revelation, given the total command of the stage the former Best New Artist Grammy nominee displayed in that performance. It seems she’s something of a natural, contagious, energetic presence with the kind of voice that’s bound to stop a person in their tracks with its passion and power.
Details: 7:30 p.m. Friday, May 24. Arizona Financial Theatre, 400 W. Washington St., Phoenix. $40.75 and up. 800-745-3000, ticketmaster.com.
The Color 8
The Color 8 have been mashing up genres, from metal to R&B, jazz, reggae, hip-hop and punk, since 2015. On “Tryna Get Paid,” their latest effort, highlights range from the punkish intensity of an EP-opening collaboration with the Dropout Kings to the soulful chorus hook of the majestic title track and the EP-closing hip-hop slow jam comparing your love to narcotics. A local four-piece consisting of saxophonist Ashton Vaughn Charles, drummer Wisco3, aptly named guitarist Kal the Guitar Hero and bassist Jerm, they’ve amassed more than 160,000 followers on social media and thousands of monthly listeners on streaming platforms. They're joined by Shrinkray.
Details: 8 p.m. Friday, May 24. Crescent Ballroom, 308 N. Second Ave., Phoenix. $23; $18 in advance. 602-716-2222, crescentphx.com.
Adnan Sami
Hailed as the Sultan of Music by the Times of India and awarded the Padma Shri, the fourth-highest civilian award in the Republic of India, Adnan Sami performs Indian and Western music in Hindi, Urdu, English, Telugu, Tamil and Kannada. He's also been hailed as the fastest keyboard player in the world by no less an authority than Keyboard magazine, so prepare to be dazzled.
Details: 8 p.m. Saturday, May 25. Arizona Financial Theatre, 400 W. Washington St., Phoenix. $52.50 and up. 800-745-3000, ticketmaster.com.
Belanova
The Grammy-nominated Mexican pop stars are back in the States, celebrating their 24th anniversary on a 12-city tour. Belanova stormed onto the Mexican pop scene in the 2000s, captivating audiences with Denisse Guerrero's smooth vocals, and the synth-pop melodies created by Edgar Huerta on keyboards, and Ricardo "Richie" Arreola on bass and guitar. Their unique blend of electropop, sprinkled with anime and nightclub influences, led to chart-topping hits like “Rosa Pastel" and “Por Ti.”
Details: 8 p.m. Sunday, May 26. Arizona Financial Theatre, 400 W. Washington St., Phoenix. $53 and up. 800-745-3000, ticketmaster.com.
Mon Laferte
The Chilean-Mexican powerhouse, renowned for her genre-bending music and powerful stage presence, is touring the States on "Autopoiética,” an album Rolling Stone hailed as “a fever dream painted in garish primary colors… hypnotic and subversive ... never afraid of its own intensity.” With more than 1.5 million digital records sold in Latin America, Mon Laferte is not just the best-selling Chilean artist of the 21st century but also a critically acclaimed singer-songwriter with four Latin Grammys to her credit.
Details: 8 p.m. Tuesday, May 28. Arizona Financial Theatre, 400 W. Washington St., Phoenix. $86.50 and up. 800-745-3000, ticketmaster.com.
The Kid Laroi
The Australian rapper brings the First Time Tour to downtown Phoenix with special guests Glaive and Chase Shakur. His U.S. hits include "Without You," which features Miley Cyrus on the remix, and "Stay" with Justin Bieber. A review in the Guardian a few years back said, "At the first of two headline shows at Brixton Academy, he sweats out his setlist like a fever, tearing through two-minute tracks titled like confessions of teen rage."
Details: 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, May 29. Arizona Financial Theatre, 400 W. Washington St., Phoenix. $43 and up. 800-745-3000, ticketmaster.com.
Blackberry Smoke
These Southern-rock standard bearers are touring the States in support of "Be Right Here," a great new album Uncut called "a minor classic of the genre." Classic Rock magazine praised the songwriting, starting its review with "Can it really be 20 years since Blackberry Smoke rolled up to the back porch looking like they’d just fallen off the back of a pick-up truck and were willing to work for food? As the adage goes, they’ve come a long way since then, although geographically they’re still based pretty close to the homes they grew up in."
Details: 8 p.m. Friday, May 31. Marquee Theatre, 730 N. Mill Ave., Tempe. $46.60 and up. 480-829-0607,
Madison Beer
This singer's career got a bit of a boost when Justin Bieber tweeted a link to the cover of Etta James' "At Last" she'd shared on YouTube, causing Beer to trend on Twitter. A decade later, she's touring the States in support of last year's "Silence Between Songs," a sophomore effort that was nominated in the first-year Grammy category, Best Immersive Audio Album. Beer has said the album was inspired by the Beach Boys, Lana Del Rey and Tame Impala. Beats Per Minutes said, "The main strengths of this album lie in Beer’s powerful voice and transparent lyrics."
Details: 7:30 p.m. Friday, May 31. The Van Buren, 401 W. Van Buren St., Phoenix. Resale ticket prices vary. 866-468-3399, thevanburenphx.com.
Luke Combs
The two-time Country Music Association Entertainer of the Year is playing 25 U.S. stadium shows in 2024 on his Growin’ Up and Gettin’ Old Tour, including two performances at State Farm Stadium in Glendale. Special guests at Friday's show will be Cody Jinks, Charles Wesley Godwin, Hailey Whitters and the Wilder Blue, while the Saturday show will feature Jordan Davis, Drew Parker and Colby Acuff.
Details: 5:45 p.m. Friday and Saturday, May 31-June 1. State Farm Stadium, 1 Cardinals Way, Glendale. $41 and up. 800-745-3000, seatgeek.com.
Music of Jerry Riopelle
Jerry Riopelle was living in Los Angeles when his career took off in Arizona — a breakthrough largely fueled by heavy spins on freeform FM station KDKB (93.3). His shows became a New Year's Eve tradition in the Valley, where Riopelle enjoyed the life of an adopted local hero. The singer died of complications from cancer on Christmas Eve 2018. Members of his band (David Plenn, John Harris, Llory McDonald, Paul Riopelle, David Goodstein and Tara Austin) will reassemble with special guest singers to celebrate the local legend and the 50th anniversary of "Saving Grace," an album that dominated the Phoenix airwaves in the '70s.
Details: 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday, May 31-June 1. Talking Stick Resort, Loop 101 and Pima Road, Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community. $40 and up. 480-850-7734, talkingstickresort.com.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Top Phoenix concerts in May: Justin Timberlake, Luke Combs, Rolling Stones