NJ Natives Done Good Playing Tonight: Pete Yorn, Nicole Atkins, Anthony D'Amato

Jersey Shore native Nicole Atkins plays Maxwell's in Hoboken tonight. She's seen here playing South by Southwest last year. Photo: Flickr user Kirk Stauffer.

Some musicians from the Garden State who've made a big splash are playing shows in the New York/New Jersey area tonight. Montville native Pete Yorn returns for a long-awaited concert at NYC's Terminal 5, his first gig in the area since one at Bowery Ballroom a few months ago that sold out in minutes.

Opening for Yorn is Ben Kweller and Anthony D'Amato, a 23-year-old singer-songwriter who got help writing lyrics from poet Paul Muldoon while attending Princeton University. I first heard of D'Amato when the New York Times did an article about him and his work with Muldoon a couple of months ago.

Nicole Atkins has made a big splash since coming out of Neptune, NJ a few years back, and returns to the state for a show tonight at Maxwell's in Hoboken (which sold out a day or so ago; you may be able to find someone selling extra tickets outside the club). She and her newly named band The Black Sea are supporting their new album "Mondo Amore." (Note: Atkins is playing an early show scheduled to start at 7:30; The Blasters play a late show at the club scheduled for 10 p.m.)

After tonight's Maxwell's gig, Atkins will play a number of set at South by Southwest in Austin next week.