With Living Blues praising the artist for his "sizzling, slow-burning, gritty blues and rock" and "shimmering, swampy, downright funky vibes drenched with ... pure and crisp lead runs and fluid, jet-fueled solos," Tommy Castro and the ensemble the Painkillers headline an October 10 concert event at Davenport's Redstone Room, Blues Revue simplifying the plaudits by declaring, "Tommy Castro can do no wrong.”

Appearing as the first guests in Quad City Arts' 2024-25 Visiting Artists series, three of Hawai‘i’s most delightful performers – Lehua Kalima, Shawn Pimental, and Kawika Kahiapo – have come together with hula dancer Pono Fernandez as Kulāiwi, their September 30 through October 5 residency boasting an October 3 public performance at Moline's Sound Conservatory, and allowing the ensemble to share with audiences their exceptional songwriting and cultural talents.

Held as part of the unique concert series held in Davenport's intimate and cozy Redstone Room, the October 4 Songwriter Sessions event will find guests treat to a seated evening of tunes hosted by David G. Smith, with additionally winning performances delivered by Jeni Grouws, Kevin Gordon, and featured guest Eva Kendall.

Inviting classical-music lovers to immerse themselves in the haunting beauty and virtuosity of two iconic composers, Moline's Sound Conservatory, on October 4, will host Matthieu Bergheau Presents Rachmaninoff & Scriabin, an evening with the French pianist praised by Interlude's Doug Thomas as an artist whose playing "shines with a sense of natural, an absence of artefacts, and a focus on the narrative of the musical journey."

A New York City-based guitarist and banjoist whose music fuses a wide range of traditions including punk rock, jazz, pop, and metal, Brandon Seabrook headlines a special October 10 concert at Rock Island's Rozz-Tox, the artist revered for work that feeds off tactile sensations; rapid tremolo picking, and extreme physicality, as well as hallucinatory soundscapes, angular composition, and a massive dynamic range that can change in a nanosecond.

Touring in support of their August release The Future Is Our Way Out that NME called "a debut album that seamlessly cherry-picks the best of bygone eras," the Chicago-based, five-piece ensemble Brigitte Calls Me Baby headlines an October 5 engagement at Davenport's Raccoon Motel, the band also lauded by Spin magazine as a group whose "music offers a feast of multi-generational cultural cues."

Lauded for their inspired blend of pop and garage rock, and noted for their "California" being used as the theme song to the TV smash The O.C., Los Angeles outfit Phantom Planet headlines an October 5 concert at Davenport's Raccoon Motel, the group's credits including opening for the revered likes of Guns N' Roses, Sting, Elvis Costello, The Zombies, Maroon 5, Ludacris, and Panic! at the Disco.

Touring in support of his most recent album I Saw the Arkansas, a recording that Turn Up the Amp said "delivers contemplative, heartfelt, expressive vignettes with a classic '90s country sound," country singer/songwriter Dylan Earl headlines an October 7 engagement at Davenport's Raccoon Motel, the artist's latest also lauded by Holler Country as a work that "bristles with restless energy."

With smash pop and rock hits performed by the intensely gifted tribute artist Brian Harris and his five-piece ensemble The Mad Hatters Band, the repertoires of two iconic artists will be celebrated at Mt. Carroll's Timber Lake Playhouse on October 5, with the stage event The Piano Men: Simply Billy & Simply Elton delivering a night of incredible music and showmanship by two of history's most venerable and beloved talents.

From the vaudeville circuit to Broadway, Harold Arlen composed songs that have remained popular for almost 100 years, and on October 5, the Coralville Center for the Performing Arts' American Songbook series will celebrate that legacy in Over the Rainbow: The Music of Harold Arlen, a night of unforgettable tunes including “Somewhere Over the Rainbow,” “It’s Only a Paper Moon,” “Stormy Weather,” I’ve Got the World on a String,” and “The Man That Got Away."

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