Domino effect: After months of nonstop touring, Americana folk act Shovels & Rope was ready to slow things down on its latest album, Manticore. Then COVID-19 stalled the music industry, and the husband-and-wife duo decided to revisit and expand the songs that were originally intended to include nothing but acoustic guitar and piano. The result is a record that’s deeply personal yet universally relatable, with songs that take a raw look at the human experience, social justice, homelessness, parental love, marital strife, and more. There’s even an ode to James Dean in the opener “Domino,” a foot-tapping, fast-moving song about the actor’s ghost and America’s reaction to his death.
Wednesday 4/13. $30-35, 8pm. The Jefferson Theater, 110 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. jeffersontheater.com