The Ides of Christmas

The Arcada Theatre brings back an annual tradition: The Ides of March Christmas with Jim Peterik. Catch the rock band as they play their hits, plus maybe a few hard-core holiday favorites. A few surprise guests also will be on hand to rock the night.

8 p.m. Friday, Dec. 16, at the Arcada Theatre, 105 E. Main St., St. Charles. $39-$49. (630) 962-7000 or arcadalive.com.

Buncha Characters

Shed the shivers with some musical sunshine: Indie rock band Minor Characters dabbles in strums and chords at once both classically pop and comfortably tropical. Not too light and not too heavy, Minor Characters’ music is just right — like that fun, chill early evening set at a breezy summer music festival. Minor Characters — featuring Roselle natives Andrew Pelletier and Thomas Benko, as well as Shelby Pollard and Adam Wayne — will be joined by fellow Chicago rock bands Furr and Great Moon.

9 p.m. Friday, Dec. 16, at Empty Bottle, 1035 N. Western Ave., Chicago. $8-$10. (773) 276-3600 or emptybottle.com.

Steamrolling into the holidays

With Mannheim Steamroller’s revolutionary 1984 album “Christmas,” Chip Davis and his new-age progressive rock group put a fresh and sparkly face on many well-loved holiday classics. And 32 years later, his take on favorite carols still draws huge crowds to live performances. If you’re in need of a dose of cheer (complete with a light show), head to Rosemont for this holiday tradition.

8 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 17, at the Rosemont Theatre, 5400 N. River Road, Rosemont. $39-$199. (847) 671-5100 or rosemont.com/theatre/events/mannheim-steamroller.

Palatine’s Ripp returns

Pop rock singer-songwriter Andrew Ripp climbed into the spotlight writing a song popster Ryan Cabrera took to the Billboard charts. But it was his emotive vocals that really launched the career of the Palatine native. Now residing in Nashville, Ripp is making a visit to the old neighborhood with a show at City Winery, joined by Chicago acoustic jam rock band Stellar Road.

8 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 20, at City Winery, 1200 W. Randolph St., Chicago. $15-$20. (312) 733-9463 or citywinery.com.

— Brian Shamie