Those up for some groove-ready riddims can hit Crossroads in Garwood June 12 for Save Ferris, the Cali ska punks whose “Get Dancing” single will have you doing just that. Singer Monique Powell is a powerhouse and has been ever since her cheeky rendition of “Come On Eileen” in 1996. The guitars still incessantly riff, the horns still blow hard and fast, and, despite lineup changes, Save Ferris have maintained a modicum of mayhem.

What better way to spend a June Sunday afternoon at 3:00 than to be on Kings Road in Madison at the Community Arts Center for trumpeter Danny Jonokuchi and his quartet with pianist Hyuna Park, bassist Liany Mateo and drummer Kevin Congleton. And get there early because trombonist Alex Marichal walks the tightrope with no net as his trio with bassist Ansh Parikh and drummer Alex Kavlakian use no chords. 

Jersey’s own blues legends will be performing at The Bernie, a basement room that a century ago used to be a speakeasy in the days of Prohibition. They’ll also be at The Laundromat in Morristown on June 12, the Montclair Brewery on June 22 and Shanghai Jazz in Madison on June 28.

His 500+ album appearances with artists of all genres and his dozens of Hollywood film scores barely scratch his surface. Marcus Miller is right up there with the icons of the funky popping bass like Stanley Clarke, Larry Graham, Jaco, Bootsy Collins, Flea, Victor Wooten and Les Claypool. The two-time Grammy Award-winner will obviously be playing tracks from his terrific new Laid Black album.

Boston pop-punkers Ringpop! is on its “Summer Wasted” tour which will take them down the shore at the Asbury Park Brewery on June 6 and The Sanctuary in Butler June 20. You can bet they’ll be playing their new single “Brain Diss.” After five years together, they’ve honed their sugar-rush of a sound to incorporate emo into bubble-punk proportions. They’re all Berklee grads but they don’t let their musical know-how get in the way of their full-on assault. As they like to say, we need “a break from the melodrama.”

Bassist-Composer-Educator Ben Basile—of Big D and the Kids Table—has gone solo. He’ll be previewing songs—a ska, punk, jazz mix—off his Benergy debut on the Sleep Walk Sounds label in the tasting room at All Points West Distillery on Tichenor Street in Newark June 5.

This Floridian blows a wicked sax. He blew with the William Paterson University Jazz Orchestra at Dizzy’s Club in New York City in April. Now he’ll bring his own band to Brvsh Cul7ur3 in Teaneck June 4 at 7:00 p.m.

She’s a real Texas guitar slinger and she’ll be spewing out her brand of blues, country and rock at this year’s Crawfish Fest in Augusta on May 31. Her new Alligator Records album, Truth Is, is pure electricity:  soulful, sophisticated, passionate, romantic and sensual. And just wait until you hear her shred!

Chris Ruggiero, 25, calls it “Livin’ The Dream.” Fresh off his Darlene Love collaboration, Ruggiero will interpret the music of Adele, Lionel Richie, Jay & The Americans and more. Influenced by Justin Timberlake, he says, “I try to make every move and sing every song with a touch of class that reminds the audience of a time when entertainers put their heart and soul into their songs and delivering an exceptional concert was paramount.”

Who wouldn’t want to spend “An Evening With Heart” as the next leg of the iconic band’s national tour is called?

Ann Wilson: “The music we are making at this moment has timeless teeth, muscle, bone and hair, also poetry, soul and emotion.  I'm very proud to be a part of it all and I will give all of myself to it as long as we both shall live. It's magic!”

Nancy Wilson: “I’m super proud of how this band is crafting the ongoing tour. The show continues expanding with elements ranging from kick-ass rock to acoustic campfire jams. We love celebrating and sharing the electric energy of a 100% live on-the-spot real rock show.”

Julia Scott and Dena Blizzard are the “Two Funny ladies” of a stand-up show hosted by 101.5 funnyman DJ Steve Trevelise. This “Night Of Comedy” will be presented at the Drew U Concert Hall on the last day of May. Prepare to laugh.

In the 1700s, the English Catholic Recusants were “faithful witnesses who, during the Reformation, were forced to worship and create music in the privacy of their homes under threat of persecution,” according to Princeton University. The music they made, “rich in imagery and dense with harmonic beauty,” will be interpreted by New York duo A Golden Wire backed by three violas, harp and organ. This free event will take place in the Center’s McAlpin Rehearsal Room at 1:30 in the afternoon.

Celebrating their 20^th year together by touring in support of their eleventh album, Detox, Japan’s ONE OK ROCK will play the Prudential Center in Newark May 30. They recently completed a tour of France with Linkin Park and their own Japanese stadium tour. The current trek will take them to Spain, England and the USA with Australia’s Stand Atlantic opening.

Pianist Luis Perdomo earned his Masters Degree at Queens College. “Studying with Sir Roland Hanna,” he says, “I began to look at jazz and classical in a new and more in-depth way and my playing evolved accordingly.” A longtime sideman in the bands of Ray Barretto, Ravi Coltrane and Miguel Zenon, his stunning series of solo albums—including Universal Mind with drummer Jack DeJohnette—elevated him into a force unto himself.

The Wood Brothers are supporting their current Heart Is The Hero album with a national tour that will take this these Alt-Americana heroes from New York City to the legendary stage of The Stone Pony in Asbury Park May 24.

Andy B will lead his SoulFolk into Highland Park on North Fourth in the lounge at Pino’s Gift Basket Shoppe and Wine Cellar, an atypical venue which features live acoustic music. You can’t get any more acoustic and lively than Andy as he hearkens back to earlier generations of folkies, bluesmen, swingsters and the terminally hip. He’s a character alright and his alternately gruff and tender vocals always hits the right note. The new album, to be released May 18 on Deko Entertainment/ADA Warner Music Group is entitled Tellin’ Myself Weird Little Stories. 

Spring Street in Newton, Sussex County, will roar with the sounds of drummer-producer-composer-arranger-vocalist-guitarist-keyboardist Omar Hakim on May 22. Dude’s played pop, rock’n’roll, R’n’B and jazz-rock fusion in his illustrious career. Whether it’s with Daft Punk, Sting, Bowie, Madonna, Miles Davis, Dire Straits or Weather Report, he stings with ferocity. Now he fronts his Sonic Boom Squad and will preview tracks off his upcoming Come Out To Play CD.

Dylan fans gotta go see this! Pat Guadagno has Rob “The Honeydripper” Paparozzi in his Tired Horses band. Papa played with the Original Blues Brothers Band and it’s his harmonica you hear in the Dylan movie A Complete Unknown. These Horses will be doing an all-Dylan show for Bob Fest, a birthday bash for Dylan’s 84^th. They will be concentrating on Dylan’s “Bootleg Rare & Unreleased” catalog of songs.

Singer-Songwriter-Educator Francesca Fuentes has seen love from both sides now. Her artistic temperament is such that she pours out her heart and soul into her music like early Joni Mitchell. But she’s funkier. Her lyrics encapsulate romance, breakups, mental health and faith. In 2021, her Diary Of Dreams debut introduced an introspective poet with an ear for pure pop hooks. No doubt she will sing her new “I Just Wanna Be Your Lover Again” 

If you’ve watched Bridgerton on NetFlix, Westworld on HBO, Shameless on Showtime or Modern Family on ABC, you’ve heard the classical crossover of The Vitamin String Quartet. With arrangements straight out of the 19th Century, the music of Taylor Swift, Billie Eilish, The Weeknd and Daft Punk never sounded like this! With over two billion streams and seven charting albums, the VSQ will sooth your soul yet blow your mind.

“Keep New Jersey Loud” is the mission statement of Radio Garden State and it will be taking over White Eagle Hall in Jersey City May 17. It’s “a celebration of the Garden State and the people who make it great,” according to organizers. Emerson Woolf & The Wishbones, Reality Suite, John Cozz, DJ April, Creatures Of Chrome, Mark Moran of Weird NJ and others will be there. 

Alabama Pianist-Vocalist Johnny O’Neal, 69, moved to New York City in 1981 to work with Clark Terry during a Blue Note residency where he backed Dizzy Gillespie, Ray Brown, Nancy Wilson, Joe Pass and Kenny Burrell. He was a member of Art Blakey & The Jazz Messengers in ’82 and ’83, and made his Carnegie Hall debut in ’85.

Gridiron’s new Poetry From Pain lands May 30 from Blue Grape Music. The first single, “Still Playing For Keeps,” is already out. The band, known for its hiphop-hardcore mash-up, is spread out between Philadelphia, Delaware and Michigan (must be hard to rehearse!). They even dabble in death metal, and have three records out:  Loyalty At All Costs (2020), Worldwide Brotherhood (2021) and No Good At Goodbyes (2022). 

Chris Ruggiero, 25, calls it “Livin’ The Dream.” Fresh off his Darlene Love collaboration, Ruggiero will interpret the music of Adele, Lionel Richie, Jay & The Americans and more. Influenced by Justin Timberlake, he says, “I try to make every move and sing every song with a touch of class that reminds the audience of a time when entertainers put their heart and soul into their songs and delivering an exceptional concert was paramount.”

Sunset Blvd. Records will release Rock Remaker, a remix EP of last year’s Rockmaker, by The Dandy Warhols, May 16. On May 9, the Oregon band will preview some of its songs at The Stone Pony. “I absolutely love remixes, someone else’s interpretation, or complete destruction of a song,” says guitarist-keyboardist Peter G. Holmstrom. One of the remixed songs, “I Will Never Stop Loving You,” features lead vocals by Debbie Harry. 

They may spill out dancing onto Cedar Lane in Teaneck May 7 when the boss lady of Rio de Janeiro, Sanny Alves, hits Bergen County. The fiery samba and bossa nova singer—who got her start in the band of her father, the celebrated bassist Luiz Alves—will be backed by guitarist Derick Campos and drummer Scott Latzky. After her set, there will be a jam session where audience members will be invited onstage as part of this club’s “Brazilian Night.”

England has a case of Bad Nerves. And they’re Still Nervous. Mick Jagger has sung their praises. So has Billie Joe Armstrong of Green Day, Stone Gossard of Pearl Jam and Simon Le Bon of Duran Duran. They play “ferociously fast distorted pop songs” according to their camp, inspired by The Ramones.  Songs like “You’ve Got The Nerve,” “Antidote,” “USA” and “You Should Know By Now” have made them one of the top global punk attractions of the year. 

Singer-Songwriter Violinist Kishi Bashi—born in Seattle and raised in Virginia—will perform at the White Eagle Hall May 5. It’s a rare opportunity to see this multi-genre artist—known for collaborating with symphony orchestras on his classical-pop fusion—in the intimate environs of this popular Jersey City room. He’s recorded and toured with Regina Spektor, and leads his own electronica band Jupiter One.

South Carolina alt-rockers Winyah—now based in Tennessee—are a new band with a debut, Lot To Learn. With thought-provoking lyrics and a snap-to-it rhythm section that churns along complete with blister lead guitar, their melodies stick to the brain like a tattoo.

Sparks will fly when the Larry Fuller Trio—Pianist Fuller, bassist Lorin Cohen, drummer Carmen Intorre, Jr.—lights up the Madison Community Arts Center on Kings Road at 3:00 in the afternoon with the Metuchen High School Jazz Sextet opening. With Oscar Peterson as his main influence, his swing is the thing, and you can bet he’ll plummet the depths of the “Great American Songbook.”