Something is coming, looming on the horizon like madness in the spring, leaving chaos and destruction in its wake. GWAR is coming on March 26, and there is no escape.

In the 2020s, the “doom” or “sludge” tag is increasingly self-applied, as an ethos as well as an aesthetic, by bands who create oppressive, cathartic music intended as a reflection of our dismal times. Such are the three bands – Body Void, SERAC, and Everlasting Light – playing Davenport's Raccoon Motel (315 East Second Street) on Friday, December 8.

Fifty-plus years into a career of evil that's spawned 14 studio albums including 2020's The Symbol Remains, Blue Öyster Cult are returning to Davenport for a show at the Rhythm City Casino on Saturday, November 18.

Sarushibai (猿芝居) are a three-piece from Fujioka City, Japan, crashing merrily around the USA in support of their new album 日​陰​者​の​矜​持 (loosely translated to Pride of a Person in the Shadows.) It's a slim, clamorous ten-song rush of energetic power-chord chug.

After a powerhouse tour opener in February, followed by many trials and tribulations, major lineup changes, and a successful European tour, El Perro are returning to Bootleg Hill Honey Meads in Davenport for the penultimate date on a fall run through middle America.

“Rich Men North of Richmond” caught on like a wildfire, and the haze it generated has become nearly impossible to escape. That's not just a glib metaphor - speculations on the origins of singer Oliver Anthony and who or what are behind the song's runaway success are so thick that it's hard to read the monitor.

Those responsible for “Try That in a Small Town” have been accused of holding and promoting racist views; to be racist requires convictions, and it’s unlikely that these hacks have any convictions at all beyond fattening their back accounts.

In its three years of existence, Stompbox has combined niche obsessions with effect-laden heavy rock and metal with professional-quality, highly drinkable beers, bringing a mixed crowd into its airy, naturally lit space at 210 River Drive in Davenport. The venue is celebrating its impending third anniversary with an outdoor show on Saturday, June 17, with music from Zed, Road Soda, Giallows, Rezinator, and a to-be-announced band.

Far from the idyllic Shire-like spring paradise in which it is painted by yearning winter minds, May is an unpredictable month in the Mississippi Valley, a season of change unto itself. The polarity of the season is reflected by this month's musical events: a pair of shows as drastically different as the ever-shifting days of May.

March in the Quad Cities sees the return of spring, or something like it. It also brings a wide variety of live music, from past masters and new faces. My top live picks for March fall into each category, from returning rock veterans to debut performances in the Quad Cities.

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