Lonnie Holley Quartet with Lee Bains

CRITIC’S PICK: Any concert featuring the Lonnie Holley Quartet with special guest Lee Bains + the Glory Fires belongs on the do-not-miss list. This special event marks the only scheduled appearance in Atlanta by this group for the foreseeable future and Holley’s first show at the EARL since his very first public performance back in March 2011. A uniquely gifted, self-taught visionary artist, musician, filmmaker and educator, Holley specializes in a form of improvisational music that defies categorization. His stream-of-consciousness vocals stem from daily thoughts, daydreams, deep memories and current events. The music glides, grooves and rocks along a quantum field generated by his accompanists and directed toward the subconscious receptors of the audience. The notion to “expect the unexpected” is never more applicable than on the occasion of a Lonnie Holley concert. — Doug DeLoach