Rock Picks: Seun Kuti, Thievery Corporation, Robert Plant & Alison Krauss

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 25

 Marco Benevento, Reed Mathis, Matt Chamberlain at Largo

Romantic gambler Janiva Magness

Youri Lenquette

Seun Kuti: Fire dancer

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More About

• Sam Phillips
• Mr. T
• Janiva Magness
• Bluegrass
• Hip-Hop and Rap

On his debut solo album, Invisible Baby (Hyena), “post-jazz” keyboard killer Marco Benevento expands the often-stilted sound palette of jazz/“players music” in passionately performed and curious, colorful compositions that feature snakily protracted melodic themes, fantastically off-the-wall harmonic concepts, and a toy shop of textural discoveries layering his fiery acoustic piano with a lot of skull-scratching Mellotron quirk and some way-pleasing noodle on circuit-bent toys like Speak & Spells, cheap-o Casio keyboards and a maelstrom of banjos, a vintage church pump organ, drum loops and glockenspiels. What this gifted conceptualizer is doing can be located somewhere at the crossroads of jazz-jam-band-rock-pop and “serious” art music; for this show, he’ll be joined by bassist Reed Mathis and drummer Matt Chamberlain. (John Payne)

Also playing Wednesday:

TOM PETTY & THE HEARTBREAKERS, STEVE WINWOOD at the Hollywood Bowl; T.I. at the Wiltern; GEORGE MICHAEL at the Forum; AMOS LEE at Amoeba Music; CRYPTACIZE, BECKY STARK, PALMS at the Echo; LKN at Mr. T’s Bowl; TRV$, DJ AM at the Roxy; THAILAND at Silverlake Lounge; ABE VIGODA at the Smell; CHEATIN’ KIND at Taix.

THURSDAY, JUNE 26

Sam Phillips at Largo

“I love you when you don’t do anything/When you’re useless, I love you more,” Sam Phillips declares on the title track of her new CD, Don’t Do Anything (Nonesuch). It’s such a relief and a rarity to hear someone in our fast-paced, competitive society say it’s okay to stop racing around in circles. Phillips gives us permission to think, to see things that are under the surface, things that don’t “matter.” She first came to attention as the Christian pop singer Leslie Phillips, but she’s worlds away from such a fluffy and simple beginning. Even folks who don’t subscribe to the Jesus myth are likely to get something out of Don’t Do Anything, which replaces the sanctimonious and smug bossiness of typical Christian music with something more artistic and deeply personal. Most of the songs are stripped down with lovely, non-flashy cello and violin accents from the Section Quartet. “My Career in Chemistry” pairs sly lyrics with Jay Bellerose’s clattering drums and guitarist Eric Gorfain’s “dancing molecules.” Such tracks as “Under the Night” and “No Explanations” are pushed along with little more than Phillips’ throbbing, lurking guitar, whose fuzzy distortion wonderfully contrasts her airy, dreamy singing. (Falling James)

Also playing Thursday:

BONEDADDYS, CROWN CITY ROCKERS at the Santa Monica Pier, 7 p.m.; EPMD, GRANDMASTER FLASH at Crash Mansion; THE MOVIES at the Echo; MEIKO at the Hotel Café; EVERCLEAR, SOUL ASYLUM, CAMPER VAN BEETHOVEN at House of Blues; REVEREND PEYTON’S BIG DAMN BAND,THE DOLLYROTS, HAZELDEN at Safari Sam’s; LKN at Silverlake Lounge; OLIVER FUTURE, GRAY KID at Spaceland; DANNY B. HARVEY, JAKE LA BOTZ at Taix; L.A. GUNS, JANI LANE at the Whisky.