Daniel Nailen

JUSTIN TOWNES EARLE, THE STATE ROOM, Friday, Dec. 20  and Saturday, Dec. 21, 9 p.m., $30

Let’s hope this is a new holiday tradition in the making for Salt Lake City. For the second year in a row, Justin Townes Earle is stopping by our fair city to deliver a solo show of his excellent songwriting, intricate guitar-picking and magnetic stage presence. Earle hasn’t released any new music since 2012’s excellent Nothing’s Gonna Change the Way You Feel About Me Now, but that shouldn’t matter a bit. He’ll draw from that set and his other albums to create an excellent show–he always does. Here’s hoping his between-song banter and attitude is in fighting form, as it was earlier this year when he played a bluegrass festival at Gallivan Center. Jay William Henderson opens the sold-out show Friday night. Morgan Snow opens on Saturday.

TWENTY FEET FROM STARDOM, OGDEN’S PEERY’S EGYPTIAN THEATRE, Thursday, 7 p.m., Free

Simply put, this was one of my favorite movies of 2013, an engaging tribute to the backup singers that have meant so much to the history of American popular music–and rarely getting the attention they deserve. Imagine Lou Reed’s “Walk on the Wild Side” or the Rolling Stones’ “Gimme Shelter” without the waiting vocals coming through loud and clear to accompany Lou and Mick Jagger. Director Morgan Neville uses his film to introduce us to names who should be legends, and up-and-coming artists who are trying to break out from the back of the stage. The ladies’ stories are remarkable, and famous faces like Bruce Springsteen, Jagger and Sting offer their thoughts on the women whose voices are integral to their own songs. This screening is free and presented by the Utah Film Center and Weber State University Shaw Gallery, and is worth checking out for the sheer majesty of the killer Peery’s Egyptian Theatre in downtown Ogden. And did I mention–free popcorn! I’ll be part of a Q&A after the screening, so hang out a bit after the movie’s over.

Going into The Lower Lights’ Christmas show, expectations high based on past years’ concerts by the collective of Utah musicians, I wondered what the group might do to keep the show fresh in its fourth year.

One could argue that the group has no reason to change much in their holiday shows. With 20-plus musicians and singers on stage, a packed, beautiful room at the Salt Lake Masonic Temple, and a catalog of Christmas classics at their disposal, The Lower Lights could really do the same show, year after year, and it would remain a treat to hear the folks on stage sharing stories and voices at the height of the holiday season.

Even so, it’s not too far a slide into overly sentimental, by-the-numbers seasonal pabulum if you’re not careful. Thankfully, the thoughtful folks involved with The Lower Lights know that keeping things interesting for themselves equates to better shows for the fans, and that came through Thursday night when I caught the third of four sold-out Lower Lights shows this December.

The band came armed with a new album of holiday songs, The Lower Lights Sing Noel, as well as guests like Jay William Henderson and members of The Hollering Pines. With non-stop changes to the combinations of musicians on stage happening throughout the show, the proceedings always felt fresh, even for those of us who have gone to the Lower Lights holiday shows for four straight years.

Ryan Tanner and Sarah Sample started the show with a singalong that immediately helped the kids in the audience get involved and focus on songs like “Maybe This Christmas,” “Jingle Bells” and “Joy to the World.”

The staged filled musicians after that short few songs, blossoming into full arrangements of “I Saw Three Ships,” “Once in Royal David’s City,” “Angels We Have Heard on High” and the annual highlight of “Silver Bells,” on which a tasty Dylan Schorer guitar solo offered perfect accompaniment to the harmonies of Tanner, Sample and Debra Fotheringham.

Gospel came through on songs like “River of Jordan” and “Go Tell It On The Mountain,” but the holiday fare offered the most highlights. Among them: Cherie Call’s take on “Mary’s Lullaby,” the version of “Still, Still, Still” featuring Marie Bradshaw, Kiki Jane Buehner and Corinne Gentry, and Tanner’s passionate introduction of “I Heard the Bells.”

The Lower Lights’ Christmas concert has gone from one night, to two night, to—this year—four nights, and there’s no reason to think the appeal of this show, by these musicians, will slow any time soon. Consider this your first warning for 2014—get your tickets early.

MIDLAKE, THE URBAN LOUNGE, Tuesday, Dec. 10, 9 p.m., $15

It’s hard to believe it’s been seven years since Texas crew Midlake released The Trials of Van Occupanther, an expansive set of lush folk-rock than earned them a lot of national attention. It was certainly the first I had heard of them, and the buzz drew me to a Salt Lake City tour stop from the band. From what I can recall, they sounded fine, but were a rather staid group on stage. 2010 album The Courage of Others was as appealing as its predecessor, but the band’s new release, Antiphon, might take long-time fans of the band a little getting used to. Gone from the band since their last release is singer and primary songwriter Tim Smith, who quit about a year ago as the band worked on its fourth album. Guitarist and former backup vocalist Eric Pulido is now front and center, and Midlake added a couple of guys from their expanded touring lineup for Antiphon, and the resulting songs will still ring familiar for fans of the older albums, but there’s no denying the change in vocalists is a big one to get used to. Fellow Texan Sarah Jaffe opens the show, and is well worth your getting there in time for her set.