Kansas to play the Arcada in St. Charles

Kansas, one of a slew of rock bands named after geographic locations that hit it big in the 1970s, will bring its progressive stadium rock to the suburbs this weekend. The band filled arenas in its heyday on the strength of such megahits as "Carry On Wayward Son" and "Dust in the Wind." Here's a chance to see if the band can still deliver the goods on stage.

Info: 8:30 p.m. Friday, Oct. 8, at the Arcada Theater, 105 E. Main St., St. Charles. $29 to $69. Call (630) 962-7000 or go to thearcada.com.

Urban folkSuzanne Vega helped reinvigorate the image of folky singer-songwriters in the '80s with her distinctive voice and contemporary lyrics. In the '90s, she took her music in a startling direction by adding industrial beats and sound effects. (I still spin that "99.9 F" record from 1992.) Today, she's reinterpreting her body of work on a series of stripped-down acoustic records, the second of which "Close Up, Vol 2: People and Places" is out next week.Info: 8 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 9, at Fermilab's Ramsey Auditorium in Wilson Hall, located off Pine Street east of Kirk Road in Batavia. $15-$29. Call (630) 840-ARTS.Roots musicFormer Pretenders singer Chrissie Hynde's latest project is a collaboration with Welsh singer JP Jones; The two produce a driving rock sound peppered with folk, blues and country elements. Info: JP, Chrissie and the Fairground Boys play at 8 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 10, at the Park West, 322 W. Armitage, Chicago. $25. Go to jamusa.com.