Modest Mouse
Just 18 months ago, the band Modest Mouse was playing old favorites and tunes from its weird and wonderful new “The Golden Casket” for a big crowd on the lawn at White Oak Music Hall. But things took a terrible turn late last year when drummer Jeremiah Green died of cancer. That leaves frontman Isaac Brock as the lone original Mouse member. Only Brock knows what comes next for the band. But he has three decades of songs from which to pull. And fans have been reminded to see their favorite bands while they can.
When:8 p.m. Wednesday
Where:Bayou Music Center, 520 Texas
Details:$40-$69.50; 713-230-1600,bayoumusiccenter.com
Andrew Dansby
'Wicked'
The fifth-longest running show in Broadway history returns to Houston for yet another run. So if you're in the mood for a return trip to Oz or to hear the songs “Defying Gravity,” “Popular” and “For Good" again, here's your chance.
When:Through July 2
Where:The Hobby Center, 800 Bagby
Details:$54 and up;houston.broadway.com
Cary Darling
KimoKawaii Anime
For anime fans who still had an itch to scratch after Comicpalooza, KimoKawaii is timed perfectly. The anime experience gets its name from a Japanese phrase that means “disturbing but cute,” which tracks. In its second year, KimoKawaii operates as these conventions do, with all sorts of artist and vendors, panels, voice actor guests and a cosplay contest. Among those guests: Bob Bergen (Looney Tunes, “Spirited Away”), Chris Patton (“Dragon Ball Z”), Tyler Walker (“My Hero Academia”) and Ray Hurd (“Dragon Ball Super: Broly”).
When:June 3-4
Where:Lone Star Convention and Expo Center, 9055 Airport, Conroe
Details:Day passes $25-$30, weekend passes $50-$250;kimokawaii.net
Andrew Dansby
Accordion Kings and Queens
Summer finally feels like it has arrived with the annual Accordion Kings and Queens event, which Texas Folklife has put on for 34 years. The event is as billed, a celebration of the squeezebox, with a mix of rising young talent and established stars. Among the performers this year are Cedric Watson and Bijou Creole, Grupo Imagen, Alex Meixner Band and the young players who won Texas Folklife’s Big Squeeze Youth Accordion Contest.
When:7 p.m. June 3
Where:Miller Outdoor Theatre, 6000 Hermann Park Drive
Details:Free; 832-487-7102,milleroutdoortheatre.com
Andrew Dansby
Gulf Coast Cruinniú
爱尔兰音乐表演者从爱尔兰和the U.S. will take part in the Gulf Coast Cruinniú festival this weekend. The event — its name means "gathering" — includes workshops for various instruments, dancing and storytelling. There will also be plenty of live music, including a big Saturday night concert. Among the performers are singer-songwriter-guitarist John Doyle of the much-loved band Solas. Also performing will be Sligo native and banjo virtuoso Theresa O'Grady and fiddler Caintlin Warebelow of Warbelow Range, who also was featured in the hit Broadway show "Come From Away."
When:June 2-4
Where:University of St. Thomas' Jones Hall, 3910 Yoakum
Details:Concert ticket $25, workshops $150-$200;gulfcoastirish.org
Andrew Dansby
Mary Chapin Carpenter
Thirty years later, Mary Chapin Carpenter’s commercial success in Nashville seems all the more incredible, considering she made hits that were equal parts substantive and hooky during peak Hat Act years. Country radio has moved on, which has only allowed Carpenter to lean further into her writing, with songs that are big-question thoughtful and poetically assembled, the work of a master craftsperson who has only gotten better at that craft. Her latest is “The Dirt and the Stars,” which is full of restlessness and contemplation.
When:8 p.m. June 3
Where:Grand 1894 Opera House, 2020 Postoffice, Galveston
Details:$35-$85; 409-765-1894,thegrand.com
Andrew Dansby