Bob Mould: Patch the Sky

Rolling Stone calls Patch the Sky "prime-era, intense Mould." Bob Mould’s 13th solo studio album will be released on Friday, and in just a month he's headlining two shows at First Avenue's Mainroom — a room with which he has a long history. It's gonna get loud.

Davina and the Vagabonds: Nicollet and Tenth

The new live album by Davina and the Vagabonds was recorded at guess which Minneapolis intersection? You got it — at the Dakota Jazz Club, where the soulful pop-jazz band will be playing a three-night release party on April 21, 22, and 24. The album captures the feel of one of Davina's much-loved live shows at a venue the band calls their "second home," and will be available this Friday.

Night Moves: Pennied Days

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Can you believe Night Moves have never headlined First Avenue's Mainroom? They'll be topping the bill for the first time on April 14 as they celebrate the release of their second album Pennied Days — out this Friday. The second single is called "Carl Sagan," and you could totally imagine Neil deGrasse Tyson blasting it while he cruises around in the Ship of the Imagination.

Candace: New Future

"Although the trio originally hails from Minnesota, Candace has a distinctly West Coast sound," writes the Portland Mercury. "It's as though they saw into the future and knew the Northwest was destined to be their home." Well, maybe. At any rate, the band formerly known as Is/Is have a new album called, appropriately, New Future. Recorded in their new hometown of Portland with Neil Weir of Old Blackberry Way, it's out today on Found Object Records.

Mark Mallman: The End is Not the End

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Local rock icon Mark Mallman is back with what might be his strongest album ever: The End is Not the End will appeal if you like the idea of "Brandon Flowers fronting the Talking Heads," according to Substream Magazine. You can pick out your own influences — Mallman himself acknowledges a debt to David Bowie circa Scary Monsters — as you sink into this sincere, cinematic LP that seems certain to find its way onto many local summer soundtracks, and possibly onto best-of lists when 2016 winds to a close. The album drops Friday, and Mallman is playing back-to-back gigs at Icehouse on Friday and Saturday.

Enemy Planes: Beta Lowdown

It's a nice feeling when you've won a global battle of the bands before you've even released your debut album, and that's the enviable circumstance Enemy Planes find themselves in as they get ready to drop the dark disco beats of Beta Lowdown this Friday. Just back from working SXSW, the band don't have any local shows currently planned — but you might be able to grab some of their signature Albatross Kolsch while supplies last at Day Block Brewing Company.

Kitten Forever: 7 Hearts

Swapping instruments is a gimmick for some bands, but it's just a matter of course for the ferocious punk trio Kitten Forever, whose 7 Hearts is out this Friday. The fact that they were hand-picked to open for Babes in Toyland's recent tour says all their is to say about Kitten Forever's ferocious attack and badass attitude. They're playing a release show April 2 at the Triple Rock, supported by a wowzer lineup of openers including Bruise Violet, Cherry Cola, and Royal Brat.

Big Cats: What If It Doesn't Get Better?

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The title of his new album, producer Big Cats assured Andrea Swensson on last Sunday's Local Show, is actually hopeful: it suggests that our fates are in our own hands. Big Cats has realized his own destiny with the help of a few famous friends, including Lydia Liza, Eric Mayson, and Gen Devine. The atmospheric album hits this Saturday with a release show at the Amsterdam — featuring Lexii Alijai and Sloslylove, with DJ sets from Claire de Lune. Watch for Jack Spencer's story about Big Cats later this week on the Local Current blog.

RONiiA: Sisters

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RONiiA assembled their new release remotely — with Mark McGee in L.A. while the other band members remained in Minnesota — but you wouldn't know it from listening to the cohesive Sisters EP, which the band are releasing on Thursday at Icehouse.

Nazeem & Spencer Joles: The Album

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What does the future of Twin Cities hip-hop sound like? Probably a lot like Nazeem & Spencer Joles, who just released an explosive new full-length called simply The Album. Muja Messiah, Maria Isa, and Francis Brown make guest turns on the album, which the up-and-coming young artists will celebrate with a release show at the 7th St. Entry on April 14. Hosted by Maria Isa, the show will also include Alibastor Jones, CRAM, and Unknown Creatures.

Lunch Duchess: My Mom Says I Have a Rich Inner Life

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Members of local bands including B.O.Y.F. and Bae Tigre have joined forces to create this new project, a rock band featuring "screams & coos about heartbreak, laziness, and nihilism." Lunch Duchess will be at the Triple Rock on Friday for an EP release show that doubles as a release show for the Backyard Robbers' LP The Limits of Analog. Rupert Angeleyes and a reactivated Catbath are also on the bill.

Totally Awesome Summer: Adventure

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Paging Jill Riley! St. Paul duo Totally Awesome Summer have made an 11-track concept album that pays tribute to the movie Pee-Wee's Big Adventure. You can hear the contributions of "honorary member" Eric Appelwick (Tropical Depression) in this blissed-out LP with tracks like "Bicycle," "Andy," and "Tequila." Adventure will help you forget Pee-Wee's unfortunate new Netflix movie, but will it make you forget the Champs?

Cory Healey's Beautiful Sunshine Band: Beautiful Sunshine

"On his group's debut album," writes Andrea Swensson, "Healey and his cohorts blur the lines that we didn't even know existed between free jazz, bebop, ambient music, and doom metal." Listen to the band's recent After Hours session in The Current's studios, and check them out on Thursday at Vieux Carré.