What concerts are you excited about as we close out 2025?
Here is our curated list of the top concerts in DC for the next two months.
So much music, so little time. Your goal is to attend five concerts in the next two months. Believe in yourself!
As always, find local music in yellow. This is the nexus of where you can support local businesses and artists at the same time. There is no such thing as too much live music.
November 2025
Adams Morgan PorchFest (11/1/25) (Local bands and artists! Walk around Adams Morgan and check out some of the DC music scene. More than 25 stages and a 100 bands/artists.)
Margaret Glaspy @ Pearl Street Warehouse (11/1/25)
Oh He Dead @ Songbyrd Music House (11/2/25) (Songbyrd is celebrating 10 years, and as part of the celebration they are featuring a select set of 10 concerts – like this one – with artists that have had an impact on the venue over the years.)
Of Monsters and Men w/ Árný Margrét @ The Anthem (11/3/25) (Icelandic folk pop/rock band Of Monsters and Men released their fourth album this October titled All Is Love and Pain in the Mouse Parade (via Skarkali). They’ve been on hiatus since their last album, 2019’s Fever Dream. I’ve been looking forward to the day they return, having already witnessed them live six times, the last in 2019. Also get there early and witness Árný Margrét opening. Also from Iceland, she’s releasing a deluxe edition of her second album with new recordings (coming later in November) called I Miss You, I Do: The Sjáumst Edition (via One Little Independent Records). ‘Sjáumst’ means ‘see you later’ in Icelandic.)
Rocket @ DC9 (11/6/25)
Eleni Drake @ Comet Ping Pong (11/6/25)
Flowerbomb w/ Caring Less + Peak Bloom @ Comet Ping Pong (11/7/25) (Flowerbomb will be releasing a new single, so you don’t want to miss this one! Get delicious pizza for dinner, then stay and head to the back for the show.)
Folk Bitch Trio @ Songbyrd Music House (11/7/25) (With a name like Folk Bitch Trio these Australian indie rockers hardly need an introduction. Let’s just say that Paste named them a ‘Best of What’s Next’ and Flood says they are a ‘Breaking’ artist. Hopefully, as in ‘breaking’ news and not ‘breakdancing’. They just released their debut album, Would Be a Good Time (via Jagjaguwar), and obviously now would be that good time to have a listen and buy a ticket!)
Color Palette w/ JP Hudson + Little Lungs @ Pie Shop (11/7/25) (Local dream pop band Color Palette will be releasing a new EP.)
Chloe Ament w/ Tori Templet @ DC9 (11/8/25)
Gramma w/ Massie + Friend @ Transmission DC (11/9/25) (If you haven’t made it over to the brand new Transmission DC venue, this show with local indie rock bands is a great opportunity. Transmission has taken over the former Rock and Roll Hotel space and their goal is to ‘fan the flames of the city’s electronic and punk scenes’. It’s three levels of music, should be interesting to see how they’ve updated the space.)
Smokey Brights w/ Milo in the Doldrums + Truth or Dare @ Pie Shop (11/11/25) (Smokey Brights are coming to the Pie Shop in support of their new album, Dashboard Heat (via Share It Music). If you buy the album, some of those proceeds will go to the charity The Vera Project (a nonprofit promoting youth driven engagement in music and art). The rock band is from Seattle, and if you’re a fan of KEXP, the band’s Broken Too EP made KEXP’s Best of 2023 list. Get some pie and get smokey! Both openers are from DC!)
The Wombats @ The Anthem (11/11/25)
Fresh AIR: Artists in Residence Class of 2026 Debut Concert @ Strathmore (11/12/25) (An annual showcase for six emerging artists selected for their Artists in Residence (AIR). From vocals, to keyboard, to percussion, to cello or trumpet, each artist brings a different interpretation of collaborations and their own original works.)
Couch @ 9:30 Club (11/15/25) Sold Out
The Aces w/Lydia Night @ 9:30 Club (11/15/25) Late Show (The Aces return to DC on the strength of their fourth album, Gold Star Baby (self-produced). They performed at both All Things Go festivals in September (NYC and Merriweather), and now kick off a headlining tour starting in November. If you want your indie pop full of new wave and synth, with a sprinkle of disco-pop in the new album, you will enjoy. Also, Lydia Night, the former lead singer for The Regrettes, will open.)
Tom Morello & Friends @ Lincoln Theatre (11/15/25)
The Saints ’73-’78 @ Union Stage (11/16/25)
The Armors w/ Cash on the Nail and Bohemian Waxwing @ The Pocket (11/16/25)
Porchlight @ DC9 (11/17/25) (What’s the best way to discover new music and bands? With the fractured nature of how music is distributed and made available, my go to lately is to check to see what bands and artists our local venues are booking. So when I find something that I like, I put it on this list. Porchlight is an indie rock band from Minneapolis, and why not check them out?)
The Faint w/ Hercules and Love Affair @ 9:30 Club (11/18/25)
Cut Copy @ 9:30 Club (11/19/25)
Anna of the North @ The Atlantis (11/19/25)
Die Spitz w/ Babe Haven @ Black Cat (11/20/25)
Band of Skulls w/ Tom Hamilton @ Black Cat (11/21/25) (A blast from the past. I last witnessed Band of Skulls live in 2019 when they toured for their Love Is All You Love album. The lineup has changed, with only Russell Marsden remaining. The other founding member, Emma Richardson, left in 2022 to join The Pixies.)
Wednesday @ 9:30 Club (11/21 & 11/22/25) 1st Night Sold Out
Argonaut & Wasp w/ Thunderpaw @ DC9 (11/21/25)
A Shrewdness of Apes (unplugged) w/ Ella Gallogly + VJ Hyde + Devin Ocampo & Jerry Busher @ Epicure on King (11/22/25)
KINDA EVIL w/ The Milestones + Ragdollz + Heavy Friends @ Pie Shop (11/22/25)
The Mynabirds @ Galaxy Hut (11/23/25) (The Mynabirds just released their fifth album, It’s Okay To Go Back If You Keep Moving Forward (via Our Secret Handshake). The band was founded by Laura Burhenn, who she spent many years in the music scene in DC before moving back home to Omaha and founding The Mynabirds in 2009. She also toured with The Postal Service as a backup singer in 2013. About the new album she explains, “I felt like I went through a complete ego death with this record — going back to how I first learned to write songs: just me and the piano, late at night, using music as therapy. The record is imperfect, raw, and deeply human, made in a fast-paced, hi-tech time. I joked about calling it AI Could Never.”)
GLOSSER w/ The Infinite Daisy Chains + Massie @ Union Stage (11/28/25)
Laura Tsaggaris @ Miracle Theatre (11/30/25) (Laura’s 5th annual “Get In The Mood” show at Miracle Theatre, featuring songs from her 2021 Christmas album of the same name. It is a fun, festive, family-friendly show that has become a favorite for locals, especially in the Capital Hill neighborhood.)
December 2025
Willa Mae w/ Ryan Wright @ Pie Shop (12/2/2) (Ryan Wright is from Virginia!)
Teethe w/ Aunt Katrina + Vilagerrr @ DC9 (12/4/25) (Teethe is a slowcore band from Texas, touring for their new album, Magic of the Sale (via Winspear). It is their fourth album since 2020, when the four members stopped their solo projects and came together to start playing house shows and recording music in their homes. Check them out!)
Higher Numbers w/ Never Elected @ The Pocket (12/5/25)
Portugal. The Man @ The Anthem (12/5/25) (Portugal. The Man will release their 10th album on November 7th, titled SHISH (via Thrity Tigers). The album songs look into discomfort and vulnerability, wrapped in their unique and ‘warped pop sensiblitiy;. It speaks to lessons from living in Alaska and raising a daughter, who was diagnosed with a rare genetic disorder.)
Ingrid Michaelson w/ Hannah Winkler @ Lincoln Theater (12/6/25) (We love Ingrid, and last saw her perform her holiday show with the National Symphony Orchestra (NSO) in 2021, which also included Hannah Winkler.)
Kind of Christine w/ Hatchetface + Mary Allain @ Pie Shop (12/9/25)
The Beths w/ Phoebe Rings @ 9:30 Club (12/9 & 12/10/25) Both Sold Out ((New Zealand indie rock band The Beths return to DC on the strength of their fourth album, Straight Line Was a Lie (via ANTI). They crafted these songs with ‘existential vertigo’ as the theme. They wrote 10 pages on a typewriter, mostly streams of consciousness, that formed the basis to write the songs during a retreat in LA. I’ve seen them perform twice before, and highly recommend.)
Seán Heely’s Celtic Christmas @ The Strathmore (12/11/25)
The Local Honeys @ DC9 (12/13/25)
S.O.M.E. Benefit Concert @ Songbyrd Music House (12/13/25) (Fundraising event and concert on behalf of So Others Might Eat (S.O.M.E.), featuring local favorites, Pretty Bitter, Dim Wizard, Home Remedies, and Argo and the Violet Queens.)
Miss Monster + Miss Moon @ Pie Shop (12/13/25)
Velvet Divide w/ Unity for the Outcasts + Scoria @ The Pocket (12/13/25)
Béla Fleck & The Flecktones @ The Strathmore (12/14/25) (Touring for Jingle All the Way, featuring jazz-infused takes on seasonal classics and fan favorites from their GRAMMY-winning album of the same name.)
PVRIS @ 9:30 Club (12/15/25)
Mac McAnally @ The Birchmere (12/16 & 12/17/25)
Wrizzards @ The Atlantis (12/27/25) Canceled
The Flaming Lips @ The Anthem (12/31/25)
Bonus!
(Because there is no limit to how many concerts you should attend.)
Khruangbin @ 9:30 Club (11/11/25) Sold Out (You had to sign-up for their fan club to be able to buy tickets, and they went fast. Tickets may become available on IMP’s Ticket Exchange for this show.)
Bill Murray & His Blood Brothers @ Warner Theatre (11/14/25)
The Riverbreaks w/ One Way Out + You Fool! @ Comet Ping Pong (11/14/25)
Ax and The Hatchetmen @ Union Stage (11/15/25)
All Time Low w/ Mayday Parade + Four Year Strong + The Paradox @ The Anthem (11/26/25)
Patti Smith (performing Horses) @ The Anthem (11/28/25) Sold Out
All Them Witches @ 9:30 Club (12/14/25) Sold Out
A DC Journey 