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Greetings, Rocktober

October is stacked with good to great shows, including the Buzz Halloweenie Roast, featuring Social Distortion, our own Architects and the Hold Steady (above) on Oct. 27. Here's the roll call. Feel welcome to fill in the omissions. As usual, thanks to Concert Chris and other FB friends.

On the way: Lucinda Williams

She'll be at Liberty Hall on Nov. 11, a Friday. At least we know for sure she won't get rained on this time.

Review: Journey, Foreigner

Arnel Pineda of Journey, which drew almost 8,000 fans to Starlight Theatre on Wednesday. Photos by Susan Pfannmuller/Special to The Star

They could have named this the Reasonable Facsimile Tour. Or the Get What You Came For Tour. Or the It’s the Songs, Not the Singer Revue.

Three bands came to Starlight Theatre on Wednesday night and drew nearly 8.000 fans – a complete sell-out – despite the fact that only one of the bands, Night Ranger, featured any of its original lead vocalists. The two others: Foreigner, which had no original members (guitarist Mick Jones called in sick), and Journey, which is down to two original members (and neither is vocalist Steve Perry, its heyday lead singer).

On the way: John Prine

He'll come to the Midland theater on Dec. 2, a Friday. Tickets on sale at 10 a.m. Friday. Prices: $59.50 and $49.50.

Your Hall of Fame nominees: Release your snark

Here is the 2012 class of nominees, from Beastie Boys to War. Eight of the 15 will make it. If you're interested in the rules and other stuff, go to the official Hall site. Let the disgust and indifference begin.

Review: Uproar Festival

The opportunity to sample a wide variety of sounds is one of the most appealing aspects of most music festivals.  The organizers of the 2011 edition of the Uproar Festival don't seem to share that philosophy.  All ten bands selected to perform in the annual tour that touched down Saturday at Sandstone Amphitheater specialize in a melodic version of mainstream heavy metal.  

Review: Taylor Swift

Photos by Shane Keyser/The Star

The football stadium is where rock megastars go to show off their muscle and might. It’s no place for the small, the slight or the meek. So when Taylor Swift announced that some of the dates in her Speak Now Tour would be at football stadiums, including our own Arrowhead, some of us wondered how her pop anthems, her stage personae and her somewhat infamous voice would translate.

Begin the End: Farewell, R.E.M.

I saw them on this tour, the "Life's Rich Pageant" tour. It was a good day. Oct. 11, 1986. Lenny Dykstra hit a two-run walk-off homer in the bottom of the ninth and my Mets beat the Atros in the National League playoffs. Then we saw R.E.M.at Memorial Hall. Camper Van Beethoven opened. (Here's the setlist.)

There's still some music to be heard in the great outdoors

Summer officially turned to autumn this week, but the outdoor music season still has something left in it. You have five more chances to see a show in the heat of an Indian summer day or under the stars, including two at Starlight, our best outdoor venue:

Review: Steve Earle

Photos by Allison Long/The Star

2011 has become a year of notable anniversaries in music: Nirvana’s “Nevermind” is celebrating its 20th birthday; so is the band Pearl Jam. Less auspiciously but just as notable, this year is also the 25th anniversary of the release of “Guitar Town,” Steve Earle’s acclaimed first album.