NYC.com Music Guide

The Decemberists @ Radio City Music Hall, June 10th

2009-06-04T15:48:34-04:00

Super-literate rockers The Decemberists will play Radio City Music Hall on June 10th. The Portland-based band, formerly of local label Kill Rock Stars and now with Capitol, has been bringing their considerable knack for performance to bear on their tour in support of their brilliant new album, The Hazards Of Love. I'm going to keep this short and sweet because the bottom line is that you need to see the Decemberists perform live once before you die. If you see them twice, you might actually become immortal. Sold yet? Not until you get your tickets!

Tags: concert, decemberists, hazards of love, indie, live music, new york city, radio city music hall, rock

The legendary Little Richard @ B.B. King Blues Club, June 7th

2009-06-03T16:57:10-04:00

The inimitable Little Richard will play the B.B. King Blues Club on June 7th. The rock and funk pioneer's acumen is unquestionable—after all, he was one of the first seven artists to be inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall of Fame in 1986—and even at 76, The Originator is still lighting up stages as though a year hasn't passed, let alone fifty-eight of them. You don't know what you've got til it's gone, so get your tickets before they sell out!

Tags: bb king, blues club, boogie woogie, concert, funk, gospel, grill, little richard, live show, lucille, macon, music, new york city, rhythm and blues, rock, the georgia peach, the originator, tutti frutti

Jenny Lewis @ Music Hall Of Williamsburg, June 9th

2009-06-01T14:10:13-04:00

Pop chanteuse Jenny Lewis will play the Music Hall Of Williamsburg on June 9th. Though she's only half of the songwriting talent in her band, Rilo Kiley, her two solo albums and the extensive touring she's done behind them have been distinctly hers. After an acclaimed first effort, Rabbit Fur Coat, last year's Acid Tongue upped the stakes for the already above-the-bar songwriter. Chances are that this will be one of the last times to catch Lewis on the road as a solo act before she goes in to write and record the next Rilo Kiley record, so you'd better get your tickets now!

Tags: acid tongue, brooklyn, city, eclectic, female, folk, gospel, jenny lewis, live concert, music, music hall, new york, pop, rabbit fur coat, rilo kiley, rock, show, tickets, williamsburg

The Hold Steady @ Bowery Ballroom & Music Hall Of Williamsburg, June 8-11

2009-05-29T17:19:16-04:00

Brooklyn-based rockers The Hold Steady will hold court for four days during the New York leg of their current tour, playing the Bowery Ballroom June 8th and 9th and the Music Hall Of Williamsburg June 10th and 11th. The post-punks have remained in relatively good standing with critics since their 2004 debut, Almost Killed Me and up through last year's Stay Positive. Not that it matters what the critics think; Craig Finn and Co. have developed such a feverish following—nowhere bigger than it is in New York—that they sell out even their multiple-night stints. The solution: get your tickets through NYC.com!

Tags: almost killed me, alternative, bowery ballroom, boys and girls in america, brooklyn, concert, craig finn, hold steady, live music, music hall, new york city, rock, separation sunday, show, stay positive, venue, williamsburg

Jam band Phish @ the Nikon, June 2, 4, 5

2009-05-26T15:21:39-04:00

Musical chameleons and current flag-bearers of the "jam band" genre Phish will perform at the Nikon at Jones Beach on June 2nd, 4th, and 5th. The band has proven only slightly less reliable than rappers when it comes to keeping themselves retired, and the group has reunited on more than one occasion since their "hiatus"/"breakup" was announced years ago. Now Phish are full-on touring again, with a headlining spot alongside Bruce Springsteen and the equally tumultuous E Street Band, Nine Inch Nails, and the Beastie Boys at this year's Bonaroo. Chances are, if you want to go to one of these Phish concerts, you want to go to all three, but you probably know the drill by now: you've got to get your tickets before they sell out!

Tags: beastie boys, bonaroo, nine inch nails, oysterhead, phish, springsteen, trey anastasio

Nine Inch Nails & Jane's Addiction @ PNC Center, Nikon, June 6th & 7th

2009-05-22T17:36:41-04:00

In a move reminiscent of Bowie's Earthling tour, superpowers Nine Inch Nails and Jane's Addition will play the PNC Bank Arts Center in Holmdel, NJ on June 6th and the Nikon at Jones Beach on June 7th. It may be another Dave & Goliath match-up, considering Reznor & Co.'s acumen for blistering stage shows that drain the audience and the band equally, but the finally-reunited original Jane's Addiction line-up (back for the first time since their first breakup in 1991) is no dark horse in this bi-headlining tour. Whatever the outcome of the rather Frankstein-esque matchup, the show is guaranteed to be historic and will certainly entertain a capacity crowd. Just because it's Memorial Day weekend doesn't mean you should completely slack off, so get your tickets right now!

Tags: alternative, concert, dave navarro, eric avery, holmdel, industrial, janes addiciton, jones beach, live, music, new york city, nikon, nine inch nails, perry farrell, pnc bank arts center, pop, rock, show, stephen perkins, trent reznor

Reunited rockers the Toadies @ the Fillmore at Irving Plaza, May 27th

2009-05-22T04:10:14-04:00

Not doubt long counted out by the mainstream, the formerly disbanded Toadies reunited in 2006 and have released two albums, Rock Show and No Deliverance, in as many years. Nearly fourteen years after their only hit single, 1994's "Possum Kingdom" off the Rubberneck album, the Toadies are still very much alive, albeit without the exact lineup that brought them to fleeting fame in the previous decade. The Toadies will play to their many fans at the Fillmore East on May 27th, and if you've got the inkling to go, you'd better make up your mind and get your tickets now!

Tags: concert, fillmore, irving plaza, live, music, new york city, possum kingdom, rock, rubberneck, show, toadies

Impossibly-weird guitarist Buckethead @ BB King Blues Club, May 30th

2009-05-20T21:21:10-04:00

Buckethead, the man voted Most Likely To Wear A KFC Bucket On His Head And Play With Guns 'N' Roses by his graduating class, will play the BB King Blues Club on May 30th. Clearly not content with the ordinary, the former GNR guitarist and Primus hanger-on released a box set of thirteen albums of unreleased, original material in 2007 alongside two albums under his other pseudonym Death Cube K, a separate five-disc box set, and a live Praxis album, who also released a long-awaited album in 2008. Listing Buckethead's total output over the last three years would likely destroy the internet, so we'll just mention that his most recent albums, Slaughterhouse On The Prairie and A Real Diamond In The Rough, are full of as much metal-shredding and musical weirdness as we've all come to expect from the man with the white mask and the KFC bucket full of long noodley hair. Buckethead is a renowned guitarist and one of the greatest/weirdest live acts in the known universe, so do yourself a favor and get your tickets now before he returns to his home planet!

Tags: bb king, blues club, buckethead, concert, death cube k, eclectic, guitarist, guns n roses, kfc bucket, live show, may, metal, music, new york city, praxis, primus, rock, various, weirdest man alive

Classic femme rockers The Bangles @ B.B. King Blues Club, May 24th

2009-05-19T21:05:36-04:00

All-female 80s hit-makers, The Bangles, will play the B.B. King Blues Club on May 24th. It's a testament to the continued popularity of Hoffs & Co. that, with only four albums to their credit (three in the 80s and one in 2003), they still pull off national headlining tours. You can be sure everything from All Over The Place right up to Doll Revolution will make its way into the setlist, including all-time greatest hits like "Eternal Flame" and "Walk Like An Egyptian." Make sure you secure a seat early before this show sells out: get your tickets right now at NYC.com!

Tags: 80s, all female, all over the place, bangles hoffs, bb king, blues club, concert, different light, doll revolution, eternal flame, everything, grill, live music, lucille, manic monday, new york, pop, rock, show, walk like an egyptian

Band of Horses @ Carnegie Hall, June 11th

2009-05-19T15:56:37-04:00

Seattle natives and—almost necessarily—Sub Pop artists Band of Horses will play the prestigious Carnegie Hall on June 11th. The band, which has released two albums via the Seattle-based label—are still touring on the strength of 2007's Cease To Begin, which debuted at #35 on the Billboard 200 and rated as one of the top albums of the year, according to Rolling Stone. You can see them in the storied Carnegie Hall, playing songs like the brilliant "Is There A Ghost," but only if you get your tickets right now!

Tags: 2007, alt rock, band of horses, carnegie hall, cease to begin, chuck, concert, country, everything all the time, live music, new york city, numb3rs, one tree hill, penelope, rock, rolling stone, show, top 50