MUSIC PICKS: SEP 23 - 29 

• Rob Ball

Alanis Morissette and Garbage at USANA Amphitheater
Queen of fiery snark and '90s alt-pop pioneer Alanis Morissette is finally celebrating the 25th anniversary of her breakout album, 1995's Jagged Little Pill, with a postponed tour. Originally slated for 2020 and canceled for the obvious reasons, the tour was going to be rounded out by support from two other '90s staples in Liz Phair and the band Garbage. Since that postponement, though, Phair has dropped off, but there will still be enough hits to go around between the two acts that remain. Morissette will be bringing out the big guns on this tour—playing the songs that made her famous, like the always thrillingly distressing "Ironic" and the sardonic hits like "You Oughta Know" and "Hand in My Pocket." For their part, Garbage will also surely bring some tracks from their own 1995 self-titled debut, like the sultry "Stupid Girl" and "Only Happy When It Rains," modern pop rock tracks that served as an early signpost for what pop would sound like going into the millennium—gleaming edgily with futurism and grimy with industrial aesthetics alike. They'll both be at the USANA Amphitheater on Thursday, Sept. 23. The show is all ages, starts at 7 p.m., and tickets are available for $54 - $1,180. Visit saltlakeamphitheater.com for tickets and more info.

The Doobie Brothers 50th Anniversary Tour
Despite these strange times, time marches on, and anniversaries come—which calls for celebration. Another anniversary tour is making its way to the USANA Amphitheater, this time on Wednesday Sept. 29, and it's a big one. The Doobie Brothers will be inviting all to come join them in celebrating the big 5-0 of the band's existence. It's kind of wild to consider that the incredibly catchy, jangly signature of songs like "Listen to the Music" have been filtering into ears all over the world for the last 50 years, since its release on Toulouse Street in 1972. Their funk- and psychedelic-infused guitar-driven music would go on to encapsulate a golden, glittering image of what rock-as-it-became pop sounded like in the 1970s, and listening takes you right back to that moment, with all its love for funk and soul. They'll find support in their one-time vocalist Michael McDonald, who put sensual hits like "I Keep Forgettin' (Every Time You're Near)" and "Stop, Look, Listen (To Your Heart)" into the world, in the early '80s and in the early millennium respectively (and impressively). See them when they stop in on the 50th Anniversary Tour. The all-ages show starts at 7 p.m., and tickets are available for $39 - $1,385. Visit saltlakeamphitheater.com for more info and tickets.

• Tim Mosenfelder

Modest Mouse Visits Sandy Amp
The first song in Modest Mouse's recently released 2021 album The Golden Casket is called "Fuck Your Acid Trip," a seemingly bad-trip inspired track that proves right off the bat that the band hasn't lost their wacky edge. Less rooted in the kind of indie rock the band helped to establish as a signature sound of 2000s alt, The Golden Casket saw a bit more experimentation from the band, and over a long period of time for them, too. This latest took six years to complete, but no one would say that anyone has forgotten about the band or lost anticipation. Thanks to their status as the inventive indie stalwarts they are, a new album even after six years just feels like nature moving through the seasons—sometimes fall arrives a little late, but it always comes. Modest Mouse boasts scores of loyal fans, who are no doubt excited to see them out on tour again with this brand-new material. They'll find an opener in the cacophonous indie pop band Empath, the kind of band that seem young enough to assume that they probably grew up listening to the bit-older Modest Mouse—and if they did, it's evident in their lively, bubbling-up-and-over style. The all-ages show comes to the Sandy Amphitheater on Monday, September 27 at 7 p.m., and tickets are available for $39.50 - $59.50. Visit sandyamp.com for tickets and info.

Horse Meat Disco Is Back
An ode to a London dance party tradition founded in the early aughts, Horse Meat Disco is a 2000s-born queer revelry that draws on disco while also warping what disco can be—and after finding fame in its home country, it's taken off and endured around the world. That said, it's alive and well in Salt Lake City. Thanks to a group of local dance-music enthusiasts including New City Movement and Nightfreq, our local Horse Meat Disco is back for the first time in 2021. Past HMD events have included all the trappings of disco, from the music to the venue and of course to the attendees—and that means glitter and disco balls. The glitzy genre is in good hands with help from some of SLC's most reliable DJs, Jesse Walker and Matthew Fit, with appearances from the disco-focused tune spinners Interstate Disco and Disco With The Devil. Local party venue The Block will host, which means that this good-time hub will groove until the early hours—because the show starts at 9 p.m. and goes until 5 a.m. The boogie goes down on Saturday, Sept. 25. Visit @nightfreq on Instagram for more info.

• Colin Medley

Andy Shauf and Wild Pink at The Urban Lounge
Get folded into another person's mindscape on Thursday, Sept. 23 by heading out to see Andy Shauf, supported by Wild Pink. Shauf will be touring with his 2020 baby in tow, The Neon Skyline, a beautifully-composed ode to a rambling night out with friends that turns vividly nostalgic, and which is peppered with the kind of perfectly clipped and garnished vignettes that Shauf has been honing for years. His storytelling is immersive just listening, but Shauf has a way of stilling a crowd with his steady gaze that's worth seeing. He'll find good company in the similarly style-minded Wild Pink, who will be touring with their 2021 album A Billion Little Lights in tow. For those who love War on Drugs with a little less capital "A" on the Americana, Wild Pink is the answer. This album, which might be called a breakout, is subtle in a way that could make it a pass-over, but its melodies gently grab your hand and pull you in—unexpected, the way it is when you realize someone you never thought about holding hands with holds your hand, and it's pleasant and warm. That's because there's an emotive current running through it, one maybe tuned up by loving production that gives each part its spot of glimmering light. This show is 21+, starts at 7 p.m. and is $22. Visit theurbanloungeslc.com for tickets and more info.