Photo: Robert Semmer/Deerhunter

Deerhunter plays Metro on Tuesday, September 10.

HIDEOUT BLOCK PARTY & A.V. FEST
9/6 at 4:30, 9/7 at 12:30 The acts this year might get a little unpredictable. College-rock headliners Young the Giant might don fur coats for a cover of R. Kelly’s “Ignition”; wild horse singer-songwriter Neko Case is likely to give stage time to her backup singer, the local siren Kelly Hogan; and might Hideout Block Party mayor Jeff Tweedy appear in his collaborator Mavis Staples’s set? The one sure bet: Retro cover band Girl Group Chicago will blow everyone away. $60. Hideout, 1354 W Wabansia. hideoutchicago.com.

KAKI KING
9/6 at 8 The youngest player and only female represented on Rolling Stone’s list of new guitar gods, this Atlanta-based musician turns guitar picking into an art form. Songs ranging from improvised jazz swings to ebullient dream pop are surgically explored using every inch of the fretboard. $18–$25. City Winery Chicago, 1200 W Randolph. citywinery.com/chicago.

LINCOLN HALL
9/13 at 10 Charli XCX. Euro’s newest club kid was born under disco balls and raised on Spiceworld. $15.
9/23 at 7:30 Arctic Monkeys. Ever since working with Queens of the Stone Age frontman Josh Homme, the Brit rockers’ hijinks (“I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor”) have been slicked back for biker gang riffs (“R U Mine?”). Both records are equally as danceable. $34. The Riviera, 4746 N Racine. jamusa.com.
9/30 at 8 MS MR. Not to be confused with Mr. Mister, this band of New York art students move pop music through an hourglass—slowed down to allow it to come together piece by piece. Piano trances, weepy strings, and monolithic drums are the perfect buildup to the singer Lizzy Plapinger’s emotional outbursts. $17.50. 2424 N Lincoln. lincolnhallchicago.com.

METRO
9/10 at 9 Deerhunter. The frontman Bradford Cox is Aldous Huxley in a Baby Jane getup. Often smeared in fake blood and blinded by wigs, the singer can’t mask his raging love affair with the band’s artful noise and ambient hypnosis. Go early for the deft guitarist Marnie Stern. $21.
9/11 at 9 Chvrches. Second chances don’t come often. If you missed Glasgow’s newest synth squad in June, take this opportunity to see them before they blow up like Blondie. $21.
9/12 at 7 Icona Pop. The song title “I Love It” hints at the reviews that have come in for the Swedish party duo in recent years. If Studio 54 were still raging, this would be the house band. $21.
9/27–28 at 6 Cold Waves II. What began as a tribute after the 2012 passing of the local sound tech Jamie Duffy has morphed into a two-day festival that stirs the dormant stars of industrial music. It’s your one shot to see Acucrack, Revolting Cocks, Die Warzau, 16 Volt, and Prong together. $33–$125.
3730 N Clark. metrochicago.com.

PHOENIX
9/28 at 7:30 Although the title of the indie synth-pop quartet’s new album Bankrupt! might suggest otherwise, Phoenix draws from the creative vault that produced gems like “1901” and “Lisztomania.” After headlining Lollapalooza, the group shakes the ceiling in this more intimate setting. $42. Aragon, 1106 W Lawrence. jamusa.com.

CHELSEA WOLFE Critic’s Pick
9/21 at 8 Although her music sounds like she could be part of the Illuminati, the only otherworld singer-songwriter Chelsea Wolfe belongs to on Pain Is Beauty is nature itself—fitting for an artist who pillages forests of sound to construct dense orchestras of drone metal and art folk. $15. Bottom Lounge, 1375 W Lake. bottomlounge.com.

THE XX
9/26 at 7 The singers Romy Madley-Croft and Oliver Sim sound like two lovers lost at sea, even though they’ve been standing next to each other since their rapid ascent in 2009. In the grand canyon of loneliness they build, the English trio fills the spaces with storm clouds and echoing dance beats. For Morrissey fans who have endured three cancellations this year, the XX is the next best thing. $37. Aragon, 1106 W Lawrence. jamusa.com.

More events:
Theatre: Comedies, Dramas, Musicals | Music: Classical, New Music, Opera | Music: Jazz
Best of the Rest | Music: Rock, Pop, Hip Hop | Dance | Music: Classic Rock, Blues, Soul
Music: Folk, Country, World | Art Fairs and Galleries | Museums