Gig Watch: March 2026
Shows not to miss in and around Boston for the month of March.
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We survived the Blizzard of ’26, there’s Spring Training baseball on TV and daylight saving time is upon us, which means it’s high time to climb out of the winter pit and, per my usual recommendation, get to the gig. Here’s some picks for March:
3/3 – Spiritual Cramp @ The Sinclair
San Francisco punks Spiritual Cramp headline The Sinclair with stacked support from Western Mass hardcore rippers Restraining Order, Pat Flynn post-punk project How Much Art and Austin’s Radioactivity.
3/4 – Cat Power @ Roadrunner
Chan Marshall celebrates 20 years of one of her several landmark LPs, The Greatest, at Roadrunner.
3/6 – Michael Shannon and Jason Narducy present R.E.M.’s Life’s Rich Pageant @ Royale
The R.E.M. cover band the world needs now heads back to Boston for a third go-round, this time highlighting the 1986 classic Life’s Rich Pageant (plus a guaranteed marathon of other Stipe & co. favorites).
3/12 – Jeff Conolly Cancer Battle of The Bands 2026 @ Middle East Downstairs
The short but assuredly sweet reunion of Boston legends Mission of Burma (their first performance in nearly a decade) is the big draw at this benefit gig for local scene fixture Jeff Conolly, but the night also boasts sets from Classic Ruins, Unnatural Axe, Hilken Mancini and more.
3/13-3/15 – Dropkick Murphys @ MGM Music Hall and House of Blues
It’s that time of year again: Boston’s favorite antifascist Celtic punks the Dropkick Murphys takeover Lansdowne Street for St. Patrick’s Day weekend, joined by a variety of pals including hardest-working-band-in-hardcore Haywire on all dates.
3/14 – Some Velvet Sidewalk / Minibeast / Lupo Citta @ Deep Cuts
Reunited K Records rockers Some Velvet Sidewalk play their first East Coast shows since 1997 this month, including a stop at Deep Cuts with the mighty Minibeast and Lupo Citta.
3/19 – Julianna Barwick and Mary Lattimore @ Arts at the Armory
Ambient titans Barwick and Lattimore teamed up earlier this year for the stunningly gorgeous collaborative record Tragic Magic, which they’ll bring to the Armory this month.
3/20 – The Hives @ House of Blues
Indefatigable Swedish garage rockers The Hives remain a can’t-miss live band more than three decades into their career, joined on this trek with an extremely fun matchup in Australian punks The Chats.
3/21 – Joyce Manor @ House of Blues
And for a back-to-back of infectious guitar band bills, head back to HoB on Saturday to see Joyce Manor supporting their reliably-excellent new record I Used to Go to This Bar with support from post-hardcore greats Militarie Gun.
3/21 – Black Beach / Pinklids / Nice Guys / Dinos @ Deep Cuts
Up north, Boston noise rockers Black Beach celebrate their new record “Mail Thief” with a stacked release show in Medford.
3/23 – Matt Berninger @ Royale
The National’s Matt Berninger heads out on a solo trek behind last year’s Get Sunk at the Royale.
3/27 – Downtown Boys @ Deep Cuts
Political Providence punks Downtown Boys make their Greater Boston return in the midst of a short New England tour.
3/28 – Drain @ The Palladium
And finally, hardcore heroes Drain take over the Palladium to close out the month for a dose of the pure mania that is their already-legendary live show.