The Best Concerts in Denver This Weekend

Umphrey’s McGee, Excision, Billie Eilish and CloZee have all sold out their shows this weekend. But that doesn’t mean you can’t spend a night at the opera, see Rob Schneider’s daughter play country music, catch a hardcore show with Circle Jerks or rock out to some Philadelphia indie. It’s Denver. You have options.

Here are the best concerts in and around town this week:

The Districts
Friday, March 18, 9 p.m.
Bluebird Theater, 3317 East Colfax Avenue
$22.75
Philadelphia indie-rock outfit the Districts expanded their sonic horizons on their latest album, Great American Painting. Guitarist and singer Rob Grote drew inspiration from the band’s near-miss when it was scheduled to play a Paris show in 2015 and the neighboring venue suffered a terrorist attack. But he also spent time in the Washington woods ruminating on life and dropping acid with a seventy-something Vietnam veteran who kept tripping videos in stock.

Elle King
Friday, March 18, 9 p.m.
Gothic Theatre, 3263 South Broadway, Englewood
$32.50-$35
Elle King is bringing her raspy-voiced brand of Americana/blues rock to the Gothic Theatre. She is currently on her “Drunk (and I Don’t Wanna Go Home)” tour. After two years of being locked inside, neither do we. Yes, she is Rob Schneider’s kid. No, we won’t hold that against her. She’s more talented than her dad, anyway.

Umphrey’s McGee
Friday, March 18, 8 p.m.
Saturday, March 19, 8 p.m.
Sunday, March 20, 8 p.m.
Belly Up Aspen, 450 South Galena Street, Aspen
Sold Out (waitlist available)
Prog-rock jam band Umphrey’s McGee has sold out its three-night run at Belly Up Aspen. If you want to take in the sextet’s genre-melting blend of metal, funk, jazz, blues, reggae, electronic and folk stylings, you’ll have to do it on Spotify or buy the vinyl this time around. But the venue is offering a waitlist for those hopeful fans praying that someone, somewhere can’t find a babysitter.

Excision
Friday, March 18, 6 p.m.
Saturday, March 19, 6 p.m.
1STBANK Center, 11450 Broomfield Lane, Broomfield
Sold out
Canadian DJ Excision has sold out two nights at the 1STBANK Center, with Ghastly, Kai Wachi, Grex, YDG and  Fransis Derelle on the first night’s bill and Barely Alive, Dion Timmer, Kompany, Calcium, Sippy Versa on the second. Would-be attendees are encouraged to keep checking back for tickets that may or may not become available. Should you be lucky enough to procure that golden ticket, remember: Dubstep hits on the third beat. Get the rhythm down ahead of time, or you might look silly.

Circle Jerks
Saturday, March 19, 8 p.m.
Ogden Theatre, 935 East Colfax Avenue
$30-$35
Circle Jerks frontman Keith Morris is a sight to behold. Drugs almost killed him, and one time he went into a diabetic coma and crashed his car in front of Amoeba Records in Los Angeles. But he survived, and we are all the more fortunate for that. He is the archetype for manic stage presence, and Circle Jerks is a legendary California hardcore band, second only to Black Flag; the former’s debut record, Group Sex, is arguably better than the latter’s Damaged. With this show, you also get Detroit and Reno hardcore courtesy of Negative Approach and 7 Seconds, respectively.

Boulder Opera: Il Trovatore
Saturday, March 19, 7 p.m.
Sunday, March 20, 3 p.m.
Dairy Center for the Arts, 2590 Walnut Street, Boulder
$28.25-$62.15
It can be hard to discern what’s actually being talked about in opera, especially if you aren’t blessed with fluency in Italian or German. More power to you if you are. But Verdi’s Il Trovatore is intriguing, with promises of vengeance and murder. It’s held in four acts, titled “The Duel,” “The Gypsy Woman,” “Son of the Gypsy Woman” and “The Punishment.” Honestly, those sound like chapters in a Quentin Tarantino film. Maybe he can rip this off.

Outlaw Country Revisited
Saturday, March 19, 7 p.m.
Marquis Theater, 2009 Larimer Street.
$10
Outlaw country is a badass strain of an often unfairly maligned genre. Time has taken many of its biggest names: Waylon Jennings, Merle Haggard, Johnny Cash, etc. But that doesn’t mean you can’t bust out your black leather vest and dirty jeans and take in a show. Outlaw Country Revisited includes members of several Colorado country bands. The show includes the music of Waylon Jennings, Willie Nelson, Merle Haggard, Johnny Cash, Tanya Tucker, Loretta Lynn and more.

Billie Eilish
Saturday, March 19, 7:30 p.m.
Ball Arena, 1000 Chopper Circle
Sold Out
Billie Eilish has called her world tour “Happier Than Ever” — perhaps because  she’s raking in that sweet cash after having sold out Ball Arena. If you want to see Billie perform with Los Angeles rapper Dckwrth, you’ll have to keep logging into the Ticketmaster website, which, like the other sold-out shows, invites fans to keep checking back. Hope springs eternal.

CloZee
Sunday, March 20, 8 p.m.
Cervantes’ Masterpiece Ballroom, 2637 Welton Street
Sold Out
French electronic producer (and now Colorado resident) Chloé Herry makes spacey, downtempo electronic music and performs as CloZee. She’s sold out her Sunday set at Cervantes’ Masterpiece Ballroom. But that’s a good thing, because according to the venue, all profits from the show benefit Mike and Candice Morganstern, who lost their home in the Marshall fire that struck Boulder County earlier this year.

Have events you want included on this list? Send the details to editorial@westword.com. Looking for more to do? Visit the Westword calendar.