Music notes: Classic America rocks the Arcada

Seeing America

America, the classic pop-rock band behind such hits as “Horse With No Name” and “Sister Golden Hair,” formed in the early 1970s in London, England. (The members all had American fathers and British mothers.) The band was originally a trio, but now only Gerry Buckley and Dewey Bunnell remain — both of them original members. They'll appear this weekend in the suburbs to run through all the hits that America racked up during the band's long career.

8 p.m. Friday, Nov. 15, at the Arcada Theatre, 105 E. Main Street, St. Charles. Tickets start at $59. Go to oshows.com.

Thrash pioneers

The “thrash metal” genre emerged in the late 1970s and early 1980s. It combined the heavy sound and guitar-based athleticism of heavy metal with the speed and anger of hard-core punk. Slayer, a group formed in California in 1981, is considered one of the key architects of the sound (the others being Metallica, Megadeth and Anthrax). The future of the acclaimed band seemed in doubt earlier this year when guitarist and songwriter Jeff Hanneman died after battling a liver disease. But the band decided to soldier on, and it's on the road now, focusing on songs from its first decade of existence.

7:30 p.m. Friday, Nov. 15, at the Aragon Ballroom, 1106 W. Lawrence Ave., Chicago. $45. Go to jamusa.com.

Think Pink

Pink doesn't seem to generate the kind of coverage that Katy Perry, Lady Gaga and Beyoncé get, but she stands as one of the most successful pop acts of the past decade, winning multiple Grammy awards and selling a reported 40 million albums. Pink brings her powerhouse voice, her punk-tinged style and her flair for spectacle to the suburbs next week.

7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 20, at the Allstate Arena, 6920 N. Mannheim Road, Rosemont. Tickets start at $39.50. Go to ticketmaster.com.