Columbia concerts: Lucinda Williams, Tech N9ne on approach

A roots-music queen, a Kansas City king and an always-satisfying indie band lead the most recent spate of Columbia concert announcements, all for fall dates at stalwart venue The Blue Note.

Here's a brief look at three very promising shows on approach.

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Sept. 28: Lucinda Williams at The Blue Note

Before moving the Roots N Blues festival from downtown to Stephens Lake Park, organizers booked Lucinda Williams for a trial run in the open-air venue. So it's fitting that, years later, Williams is showing up ahead of the October festival to warm up roots-rock lovers in an informal way.

The Louisiana native is both one of our truly distinguished singer-songwriters, and a rocker who has never lost one bit of her edge. Her 2020 album "Good Souls Better Angels" picked up two Grammy nominations — Williams owns three of the golden gramophones among 17 total nominations. And it features songs that are "are tough and haunted, built on simple blues progressions that twist and pull until they fray," according to Pitchfork's Sam Sodomsky.

Tickets are $35 to $55.

Oct. 8: Whitney at The Blue Note

An afterparty for the second night of this year's Roots N Blues features a Chicago outfit with a strong catalog and serious indie-rock credibility. Whitney knows how to create sweet-sounding tension; "While the music is buoyant, lyrically we’re in bummed-out territory," The Guardian noted upon the band's breakthrough more than a half-decade ago.

By the time Whitney gets to Columbia, it will have sent its fourth record into the atmosphere; "Spark" arrives Sept. 16, and early cut "Real Love" relies on a supremely catchy psychedelic pulse.

Tickets are $29.50 to $45, but free with a festival wristband as capacity allows.

Oct. 13: Tech N9ne at The Blue Note

A Midwest hip-hop icon and a frequent visitor to his neighbors a couple hours east in Columbia, the rapper born Aaron Yates is as Kansas City as they come. Popularizing the sub-genre of horrorcore — known for its darker themes and sound — in the nearly 25 years since releasing his 1999 debut, Tech N9ne is a singular voice.

The rapper's most recent effort, last year's "Asin9ne," featured guests such as E-40, Lil Wayne and Dwayne Johnson — yes, that Dwayne Johnson — and served up "a consistently aggressive and menacing helping of hardcore rap for the underground crowd," according to AllMusic.

King Iso shares the bill. Tickets are $27 to $40.

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Learn more about these shows at https://thebluenote.com/.

Aarik Danielsen is the features and culture editor for the Tribune. Contact him at adanielsen@columbiatribune.com or by calling 573-815-1731. Find him on Twitter @aarikdanielsen.

This article originally appeared on Columbia Daily Tribune: Columbia concerts: Lucinda Williams, Tech N9ne on approach