Jeff Bridges was at a career high in 2010.
He’d won an Oscar that March for the country music-fueled redemption story “Crazy Heart.”
He book-ended that win with a few critically acclaimed blockbusters, playing the villain in “Iron Man” and the hero in “True Grit.”
He even carried blockbuster popcorn fare, like “Tron: Legacy.”
So what did he do next? He took a break. He recorded an album. And now, he’s on tour.
Bridges will play the Moore Theatre at 8 Friday night, backed by his own band, the Abiders, their name a sly reference to one of Bridges’ most popular roles as the Dude in “The Big Lewbowski.”
It’s hard to say if it will be a good show. While critics can’t get enough of the man’s screen work, they’re mixed on his musical output. But at the very least it should be interesting.
Tickets are $37 to $65 at stgpresents.org or 877-784-4849.
For a more reliable act, concertgoers can check out Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, as the long-running band plays the Paramount Theatre at 8 p.m. Sunday.
Cave has seen his popularity grow with the years, as more and more fans are drawn to his darkly atmospheric take on rock. One of his songs, “O Children,” even snuck its way into a memorable scene in “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 1.”
His albums have slowly charted higher and higher as well, with his most recent outing, this year’s “Push the Sky Away,” hitting No. 29 on the Billboard 200.
To put that success in perspective, the album with the track featured in Harry Potter was originally released in 2004 and landed at No. 126 on the charts.
Tickets are $35.75 to $75.75 at stgpresents.org or 877-784-4849.
Alt-rock mainstays Soul Asylum also are heading back to town, as the group tours behind its 2012 album “Delayed Reaction.” The band will play the Neptune Theatre at 8 p.m. Tuesday.
Soul Asylum hit its commercial peak in the early 1990s, amid the grunge boom, when its song, “Runaway Train,” became ubiquitous on rock radio and MTV.
Tickets are $22.50 at stgpresents.org or 877-784-4849.
Indie rapper Tech N9ne is coming to Seattle as well, headlining the Showbox SoDo at 7:30 p.m. Saturday.
The Midwestern rapper has carved out a niche with crazy and sometimes disturbing rhymes. Several of his albums have topped the rap charts.
Tickets are $28 to $32 at showboxonline.com or 888-929-7849.
Meanwhile, the Airborne Toxic Event will play the Showbox at the Market at 9 p.m. Monday.
The literary-minded alt-rock group — its name was inspired by a Don DeLillo novel — is gearing up to release its third studio album, “Such Hot Blood,” later this month.
Tickets are $22.50 to $24 at showboxonline.com or 888-929-7849.
Finally, OMD, a group best known for the 1980s hit “If You Leave,” also will headline the Showbox at the Market, playing at 9 p.m. Saturday.
The long-running electro-pop act — originally known as Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark — is gearing up to release a new album of its own, “English Electric.”
Tickets are $28.50 at showboxonline.com or 888-929-7849.
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