As autumn rolls around, Cadenza recommends a trio of television debuts and local concerts to get your first-semester pop culture consumption off to a promising start.

OG Maco at Lux (Sep 4)

Arising from Atlanta’s fertile hip-hop scene, OG Maco scored a minor viral hit with the combustible “U Guessed It” in 2014. Like the best work of his innovative peers, the song is loose and vibrant, featuring vocals that hit like ragged exclamation points atop a minimalist beat. Maco followed his song with a self-titled EP that played with a wide variety of instrumental and percussive timbres, producing a friction that heightened his incendiary presence. This year’s “15” couldn’t match the explosiveness of “OG Maco,” but it demonstrated his stylistic curiosity no less. Maco’s volatility could make for an electrifying set at the Lux Entertainment Lounge (formerly known as the Coliseum Music Lounge), which opened in July. —Mark Matousek

Other concerts

Next Wednesday, Modest Mouse will take over the Pageant on the latest sold-out stop on its “Strangers to Ourselves” tour. If you managed to snag tickets, consider yourself lucky. If not, don’t worry too much; St. Louis is hosting some pretty great indie alternatives this month. On Saturday, Sept. 5, The Wombats (you might have heard their new single, “Greek Tragedy,” on the radio this summer) will be playing an intimate show in Blueberry Hill’s Duck Room. If you’re willing to spend a bit more cash, check out this year’s lineup at LouFest on Sept. 12 and 13. Say what you will about the headliners in comparison to past years, but Hozier puts on a heck of a show, and The Avett Brothers are North Carolina’s special brand of down-home country fun. The LouFest alternative is the much-anticipated alt-J, Walk the Moon and Matt and Kim bill at the Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre on Sept. 18. Don’t miss out on tickets for this—even the opener is an up-and-coming band: Catfish and the Bottlemen. But be careful about blowing all your money this month. Around October, St. Louis will be graced with Vance Joy, Passion Pit, Joywave and Twenty One Pilots. —Kendall Carroll

“Late Show with Stephen Colbert” (Sep 8)

It’s the beginning of a new era for late show fans. David Letterman passed the reins to Stephen Colbert at the end of last season, ending his time on television with a star-studded evening of pure comedy intertwined with softer sentiments and goodbyes. Colbert’s time on the popular evening show is sure to start in a similar fashion; he announced his guests for the premiere week, which begins on Tuesday, Sept. 8, and there’s truly a guest for everyone. Celebrities from film and television like George Clooney and Amy Schumer, as well as Tesla CEO Elon Musk and rapper Kendrick Lamar, are just a few of the famous faces set to grace the “Late Show” stage.
What else can we expect from the new host? Colbert has promised that his show will celebrate women—something we all need right now, in light of Donald Trump—and that he will avoid joking about tragedies such as the South Carolina shooting. In an interview explaining his decision to shut down “The Colbert Report,” he said he felt that the model no longer served to address the national mood. He’s serious about bringing his own flavor to the show and drawing on his guests and the crowd to create a totally new and exhilarating experience each night. —Erica Sloan

“A Season With Notre Dame Football” (Sep 8)

Once one of college football’s great powers, the Fighting Irish have tread water for the past 20 years, frustrating fans with strings of mediocrity punctuated by brief flirtations with greatness. After leading the team to the BCS National Championship Game in 2012-13, coach Brian Kelly faces a critical juncture in his sixth season. Armed with a deep and talented roster, Kelly will need double-digit wins for the second time in his tenure to convince the Irish faithful that he can reverse two decades of mediocrity.
These stakes will add heat to one of sports’ great pressure cookers as Showtime follows the team for a “Hard Knocks”-style documentary series beginning Sept. 8. Whether or not the team fulfills its promise, the tension-laden atmosphere should make for exhilarating television. —Mark Matousek

Trevor Noah’s takeover of “The Daily Show” (Sep 28)

When Jon Stewart announced his departure from “The Daily Show” last year, I was just as devastated as the average super-fan. No more Jon Stewart? What would this mean for late-night comedy? And—gasp—the news? Luckily, the end of Stewart’s reign did not mean the end of “The Daily Show,” and I was thrilled to hear that Trevor Noah would be taking the helm on Sept. 28. The South-African comedian grew up with a black, South-African mother and a white, Swiss father at a time when this type of interracial relationship was illegal.

Since stumbling upon the brand-new comedy scene in South Africa, Noah has become a global sensation; performing all over the world and using humor to explain his experiences and observations regarding race and ethnicity. In addition to touring around the globe, Noah starred in a one-man show, “The Racist,” and was the subject of an award-winning documentary, “You Laugh But It’s True,” in addition to many television appearances. But somehow, it wasn’t until he became a contributor on “The Daily Show” that I began to take notice of this comedian. Since then, I have been impressed and awed by his intelligence and charm, both qualities we also found in Stewart. His South-African citizenship and unusual upbringing provide Noah with an “outsider” status that may add just the right sort of critical eye that “The Daily Show”—and its viewers—needs at this point in our country’s history.—Elena Wandzilak