What concerts are you excited about as we kick off this new year of 2026?
Here is a list of the top concerts we’re looking forward to over the next two months.
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, so go to more shows than you normally do!
January
Black Masala @ Pearl Street Warehouse (1/10/26)
Cate Le Bon @ The Howard Theatre (1/12/26)
Night Hawk + Makeup Girl + Hotel Sewing Kit @ DC9 (1/16/26)
Brian Aubert @ Songbyrd Music House (1/16/26) (Brian, the lead singer of Silversun Pickups, is doing a solo acoustic show before the band releases their next album in February, titled Tenderhooks.)
Justin Trawick & The Common Good w/ Jane O’Neill @ The Hamilton Live (1/16/26) (Justin’s 15th Annual 29th Birthday Show.)
Cat Janice Band + Elizabeth II + Cathy DiToro + 7 Deadlies @ Jammin Java (1/18/26)
Beats Antique @ 9:30 Club (1/22/26)
Gregory Alan Isakov @ The Anthem (1/24/26) Sold Out
American Television w/ Second Act + Panic Problem + Truth or Dare @ Pie Shop (1/24/26)
Starr & The Czars w/ The Owners @ Comet Ping Pong (1/24/26)
Greg Freeman @ Songbyrd Music House (1/26/26) Sold Out (Greg Freeman is touring for his second album, Burnover (via Canvasback Music/Transgressive Records). Originally from Maryland, living in Vermont, his indie rock songs include an ambling twang and are about ‘grief, alienation, and the clarity that comes from opening up yourself to love.’ ‘Though Burnover is an album about feeling like an outsider and grappling with American myths to create or uncreate a sense of self, it also reflects Freeman’s firm community in his adopted home in Vermont. “I had a choice whether to make this record in Burlington or do it somewhere else,” he says. “I wanted my friends to play on it so the decision was obvious.” He ended up with a collection of songs that burst at the seams with raw immediacy and spark. “With this album, I really just wanted there to be as many things to hold onto as you can.”’)
Ammonite w/ Adele Marie + My Mandy @ Black Cat (1/30/26)
Super Diamond @ 9:30 Club (1/31/26)
Colleen Green w/ Cassie Ramone + Girls on Toast @ Quarry House Tavern (1/29/26)
February
Deep Dive Live @ The Atlantis (2/1/26) (Local bands Venray and Tired All the Time will both be celebrating the release of their respective new albums. And local favorites Flowerbomb round out this formidable trifecta of bands from the DC music scene. The Atlantis’ Deep Dive Live does just that, highlights what’s happening in our local scene. Go!)
TWEN @ Songbyrd Music House (2/4/26)
Stella Prince @ DC9 (2/7/26)
Nine Inch Nails @ Capital One Arena (2/11/26)
Kurt Elling: In the Brass Place with the Strathmore Jazz Orchestra @ Strathmore Music Center (2/13/26)
Runo Plum @ DC9 (2/13/26)
Kristiane @ Pie Shop (2/13/26)
Umphrey’s McGee @ 9:30 Club (2/14 & 2/15/26)
Margo Price @ 9:30 Club (2/17/26)
Eleni Drake @ Comet Ping Pong (2/21/26)
Broke Royals @ Songbyrd Music House (2/21/26) (The Broke Royals are hosting an album release show for their new album titled Campr. The album took shape during a period when songwriter Philip Basnight was interviewing many of his own musical heroes for his DC Rock History Podcast. His guests included Anthony Pirog of The Messthetics, Pete Stahl of Scream, members of Fire Party, and Thurston Moore of Sonic Youth. Those conversations left him with a surprising realization. “At first, talking with all these icons made me feel like I could never do what they do,” Basnight says. “I would love to convincingly make hardcore or punk music. But that isn’t who I am. The songs that come out of me, especially these days, are maybe what you’d call Heartland Rock. Music built on storytelling and melody. Eventually, hearing my heroes talk about how they found their own voices helped me come to terms with finding mine.”)
Nuovo Testamento w/ Dark Chisme @ DC9 (2/24/26)
Maggie Lindemann @ 9:30 Club (2/26/26)
A DC Journey 