Clockwise from top left: Jon Batiste, Beck, Run The Jewels, Tinashe, The Eagles, The Black Angels, Jayhawks, Lucy Dacus, Eyelids and Fred Armisen. Staff and courtesy composite. Concerts began returning in 2021 as artists cautiously hit the road, still balancing their safety and health with their livelihoods. Some of…

Joji performs at The Warfield in San Francisco on Nov. 20, 2021. Nathan McKinley/STAFF. SAN FRANCISCO — Joji made one of the best albums of 2020. Nectar showed tremendous growth for the Japan-born artist, showing that he was capable of getting beyond his start as, first, an Internet personality…

Ricky Martin performs at SAP Center in San Jose on Nov. 14, 2021. Roman Gokhman/STAFF. SAN JOSE — It’s tough to pull off a truly equal co-headlining arena show. You usually get one of two things: The final act hordes all the production tricks, or the first act is…

Bleachers perform at The Masonic in San Francisco on Oct. 16, 2021. Steve Carlson/STAFF. SAN FRANCISCO — Jack Antonoff is a huge star now, thanks to his contributions to the music of other stars—deservedly so. As a happy side effect, his band Bleachers is now drawing much larger crowds…

In This Moment performs at The Warfield in San Francisco on Oct. 3, 2021. Nate McKinley/STAFF. SAN FRANCISCO — The San Francisco Giants win the NL West earlier in the day, but for hard rock fans, the night belonged to a triple billing of heavy hitters. The In Between…

Alanis Morissette performs at Concord Pavilion in Concord, Calif. on Sept. 29, 2021. Roman Gokhman/STAFF. Garbage photos: Sean Liming/STAFF. CONCORD — Alanis Morissette has such a powerful voice. More than 25 years after her breakthrough album, 1995’s Jagged Little Pill, you may forget how many hits that album begot…

Micky Dolenz (L) and Michael Nesmith of the Monkees perform at San Jose Civic in San Jose on Sept. 15, 2021. Roman Gokhman/STAFF. SAN JOSE — Storytelling and classic songs held equal weight at a concert with Michael Nesmith and Micky Dolenz of the Monkees at The Civic Wednesday night.…

Foo Fighters perform at BottleRock Napa Valley at the Napa Valley Expo on Sept. 5, 2021. Photos: Adam Pardee/STAFF with the exception of Foo Fighters (courtesy BottleRock Napa Valley). NAPA — With Sunday came the final day of BottleRock Napa Valley’s grand reopening. Despite the long layoff, everything seemed…

Miley Cyrus performs at BottleRock Napa on Sept. 4, 2021. Photos: Adam Pardee/STAFF unless otherwise noted. NAPA — Miley Cyrus has rebelled against the constructs that limited her for many years now, and that didn’t change at her co-headlining slot at BottleRock Napa Valley on Saturday. She used the…

The Highwomen perform at BottleRock Napa Valley at the Napa Valley Expo on Sept. 3, 2021. Adam Pardee/STAFF. NAPA — After country star Chris Stapleton, himself a replacement to Stevie Nicks, suddenly became ill the day before BottleRock Napa Valley was to start, the festival’s producers acted quickly. They realized…