Category: Music This Week

• Songstress: After dueting with Shawn Colvin in the mid-1980s NYC folk boom, Lucy Kaplansky pivoted to earning a doctorate in clinical psychology and starting a private practice, but continued to sing. She added harmonies to Colvin’s debut album Steady On, backed Nanci Griffith on a couple of songs, and finally released her first solo LP, Flesh and Bone,in 1996. Thursday, March 26, 7:30 p.m., Flying Goose Brew Pub, 40 Andover Road, New London, $30, 526-6899.

• Convincing: The journey to channeling Johnny Cash began when Shawn Barker walked into auditions for the rock ’n’ roll origin musical Million Dollar Quartet with a rockabilly haircut and his eyes on the Elvis Presley role. The director had different ideas, though, and his decision pointed Barker to a new path and a multi-decade career starring in his tribute act, The Man In Black. Friday, March 27, 7:30 p.m., Nashua Center for the Arts, 201 Main St., Nashua, $25 and up, etix.com.

• Rocktivists: Now that Rage Against the Machine is off the road, bands like Evil Empire continue to carry the torch. The Connecticut act re-creates the group’s politically charged rap-metal sound, including Tom Morello’s hypnotic guitar and Zach de la Rocha’s frantic vocalizing. They’re joined by Lounge Fly, a tribute to Stone Temple Pilots, another band that sadly also won’t be touring again. Saturday, March 28, at 8 p.m., Tupelo Music Hall, 10 A St., Derry, $44, tupelohall.com.

• Pipe power: Though often mixed up with another band, the Red Hot Chilli Pipers is oceans away from the SoCal alt rockers — these guys lead with bagpipes. Winning top honors on the U.K. TV talent show When Will I Be Famous in 2007 launched the nine-piece group, who blend trad songs like “Flowers of Scotland” with bag rock covers of Journey, Coldplay and Snow Patrol. Thursday, March 19, 7:30 p.m., Nashua Center for the Arts, 201 Main St., Nashua, $35 and up, etix.com.

• Hometown girl: In his Hippo review of Looking For The Light, the latest LP from Amanda McCarthy, Eric W. Saeger praised “ear-grabbing” songs like “Vodka” and its “peak KT Tunstall”-evoking chorus. The New Hampshire native is now based in Nashville, but she comes back often. She’s a guest on Matt Connarton’s Unleashed show March 21 at 9 a.m. on WMNH 95.3 FM. Friday, March 20, 6:30 p.m., San Francisco Kitchen, 133 Main St., Nashua, amancamccarthy.com.

• Song spinner: Released last year, Something About a Horse from Ian Galipeau is a solid collection of songs, including the countrified “A Father’s Love” and “Say Goodbye,” its melancholy counterpart. “Call It Home” is another standout, a rollicking, funny tune about first-time home ownership. Galipeau plays an afternoon set of his originals at a popular craft brewery. Saturday, March 21, 4 p.m., Great North Aleworks, 1050 Holt Ave., No. 14, Manchester, iangalipeaumusic.com.

• Join together: A trio of regional indie bands, New England Triple Stack is in the midst of a spring tour. Sneaky Miles began as a stripped down folk-flavored trio but has grown in sound and size. Jon Nolan & Good Co. offers a dreamy, pop-limned Americana, and Speed Of Sound is a new Maine-based group that includes Beatles disciple Spencer Albee on keys, guitar and vocals. Thursday, March 12, at 7 p.m., Bungalow Bar & Grill, 333 Valley St., Manchester, $20, dice.fm.

• Gender benders: One good measure of the musical caliber delivered by all-female tribute act The Iron Maidens is the number of members who’ve moved on to bigger things, like Nita Krauss, Alice Cooper’s guitarist since 2014. The current lineup is Nikki Stringfield and Shani Kimelman on guitars, singer Kirsten Rosenberg and Linda McDonald and Wanda Ortiz on drums and bass. Friday, March 13, at 9 p.m., Wally’s, 144 Ashworth Ave., Hampton Beach, $34, ticketmaster.com.

• Culture connection: Enjoy an evening of traditional Celtic music from O’Meachair, Woodson and Finley, a group that includes Diarmuid Ó Meachair from Cúil Aodha, County Cork, a traditional Irish accordion and melodeon player as well as a singer in the old sean-nós style, joined by Mainers Will Woodson on flute and uilleann pipes and fiddler Cait Finley, in an intimate setting. Saturday, March 14, at 7 p.m., Blasty Bough Brewing, 3 Griffin Road, Epsom, $25, blastybough.com.

• Irish afternoon: Formed County Sligo in the late 1980s, Dervish was honored with a lifetime achievement award from the BBC in 2019 for being, in the words of the network, “an icon of Irish music.” In February, the band’s PBS special The Great Irish Songbook debuted, featuring guests David Gray, Imelda May, Moya Brennan of Clannad, Indigo Girls, Kate Rusby and Brian Kennedy. Sunday, March 15, at 2 p.m., Rex Theatre, 23 Amherst St., Manchester, $44, palacetheatre.org.

• SoCal sounds: The first of two unique shows from tribute band Live From Laurel Canyon dives into the music of Joni Mitchell and James Taylor, two songwriters who came from different homes to make career-defining albums — Blue and Sweet Baby James, respectively — in sunny California. The following night is a look at the evolution of SoCal folk rock. Wednesday, March 18, 7:30 p.m., Jimmy’s Jazz & Blues Club, 135 Congress St., Portsmouth, $22 and up, ticketmaster.com.

• Roots player: Paul Driscoll, an alt folk and country singer/guitarist who’s played out in the region for more than a decade. He mixes originals with covers from artists like Tom Waits, the Steeldrivers and Colter Wall. Check out his spare cover of John Hartford’s “Gentle On My Mind,” a late ’60s hit for Glen Campbell — it’s a gem, and it’s up on his YouTube page. Thursday, March 5, at 5 p.m., The Local, 15 E. Main St., Warner, nhmusiccollective.com.

• Irish import: Mark the arrival St. Patrick’s Day season with music from Téada, a traditional band from Sligo, Ireland, celebrating 25 years together in 2026. The six-person group has toured the world, performing treasures like “Ríl Liadroma / The Green Cockade / The Mourne Mountains” and “March at Kilmore.” Their take on the timeless “Patriot Game” is a standout. Friday, March 6, at 7:30 p.m., Dana Center, 100 Saint Anselm Drive, Manchester, $29.50 and up, anselm.edu.

• Local lights: A four-band show leans into punk, garage rock and power pop with Fun City Fan Club atop the bill. The raucous quartet released a delightful debut LP last year, Yuck, recorded at Rocking Horse Studio with Josh Kimball, who’s also their drummer. They’re joined by Cozy Throne, a Patti Smith-channeling band that would have fit in at CBGB in the mid-’70s, Cape Crush and Donaher. Saturday, March 7, at 8 p.m., Shaskeen Pub, 909 Elm St., Manchester, $15 at the door, 21+.

• Bach rock: With her pioneering trio Take3, violinist Lindsay Deutsch was way ahead of Bridgerton turning pop hits like Teddy Swims’ “Lose Control” into string quartet renditions. Deutsch is joined by former Take3 piano player Jason Stoll for a show that takes works from “rock stars of yesteryear” like Bach and Beethoven and lines them up with music by modern performers. Saturday, March 7, at 7:30 p.m., Concord City Auditorium, 2 Prince St., Concord, $24, eventbrite.com.

• Piano man: At an intimate afternoon show in BNH Stage’s upstairs lounge, Andrew North will perform selections from Strider, a piano-forward “headphone album.” The lively calypso-flavored opener “Build a Fort” sets a mood removed from North’s jammy band The Rangers. The album, he writes, “occupies a quieter space, closer to a desk lamp than a spotlight,” that’s ideal for focused listening. Sunday, March 8, 4 p.m., The Cantin Room, 16 S. Main St., Concord, $20, ccanh.com.

• Blues power: Though Willie J. Laws will be there, the 16th Annual New England Winter Blues Festival favors singers over guitar slingers. John Németh tops the bill, joined by singing harmonica players Kevin Burt, Darrell Nulisch and Nick David, who created the event. Németh, wrote No Depression in 2022, “is one of the best soul singers in the business, with a floor-to-ceiling range.” Thursday, Feb. 26, 7 p.m., Rex Theatre, 23 Amherst St., Manchester, $40, palacetheatre.org.

• Eighties glow: Hearken back to the days of MTV with Neon Wave totally covering The Cure, Duran Duran, The Fixx, and others. Their letter-perfect redo of Corey Hart’s “Sunglasses at Night” is a set highlight, and they also do a banging version of David Bowie’s “Let’s Dance.” The band recently added singer Natalie Turgeon to the fold, but it’s not clear she’ll be at this show. Friday, Feb. 27, 8 p.m., Stumble Inn, 20 Rockingham Road, Londonderry, neonwaveband.com.

• Glimmer twins: With Keith Call as Mick Jagger, and Bernie Bollendorf doing Keith Richards, Classic Stones Live™ are, writes Dan Geringer of the Philadelphia Daily News, “the spitting image Rolling Stones tribute band.” Their secret weapon, he continued, is their ability to “demonstrate the dramatic difference between a cover band that plays the tunes and a tribute band that lives them.” Saturday, Feb. 28, 8 p.m., Tupelo Music Hall, 10 A St., Derry, $44, tupelohall.com.

• Sunday grass: Brunch and bluegrass combine with The Bottom Dollars, a harmony-rich trio that includes ubiquitous fiddler Betsy Green (Hazel Project, The Green Sisters), Dave Shaw (Bear Bridge Band, Newfound Grass) on mandolin and banjo, and guitarist Tim FitzGerald. The group performs originals and revives many neglected but quite worthy songs from the bluegrass canon. Sunday, March 1, noon, Chapel + Main Brewing, 83 Main St., Dover, chapelandmain.com.

• Roots master: In the course of a nearly 50-year career, Keb’ Mo’ has won multiple Grammys, performed at the White House and Carnegie Hall, and collaborated with a who’s who of the music world, including Jackson Browne, The Chicks, Bonnie Raitt and Willie Nelson. The singer, guitarist and arranger even has acting skills, appearing on The West Wing and Sesame Street. Tuesday, March 3, 7:30 p.m., Nashua Center for the Arts, 201 Main St., Nashua, $68 and up, etix.com.

• Metal moments: The weekend starts early with four bands on the heavier side gathering at Showcase 603. Abel Blood, from Manchester, brings the dirge-y, 11-minute epic “Mental Note” and the sinister “Keeping Pace With the Elephants.” Next is Nashua quartet Stoned Shadows; the bracing “Losing My Mind” is a standout. Rounding out the bill are Mercury Burns First and Project H. Catch them all Thursday, Feb. 19, at 8 p.m., Shaskeen Pub, 909 Elm St., Manchester, abelblood.bandcamp.com.

• Modern country: With a new album, Oklahoma Stars, due in days, Houston Bernard plays at a Nashua craft brewery. The title song is a power ballad sweetened with love and honeysuckle, but when the NEMA-winning country singer gets rocking, he’s even better. Friday, Feb. 20, 7:30 p.m., Lost Cowboy Brewing, 546 Amherst St., Nashua, houstonbernard.com.

• Comedy tonight: A local brewery with a nice saison collaboration hosts a comedy show headlined by Corey Manning, a motivational speaker who helps others beat challenges by day and keeps it funny when the sun goes down. Joining him is a deep lineup of area comics including Mona Forgione, Bill Douglas, Joe Nahme, Ryan Ellington and Nathaniel Allen. Saturday, Feb. 21, 7 p.m., Sunstone Brewing Co., 298 Rockingham Road, Londonderry, $15, eventbrite.com.

• Classical beats: Their 2020 release Take The Stairs earned Black Violin a Grammy nomination. Led by Kev Marcus on violin and Wil Baptiste on viola, the group mashes up classical music and hip-hop. Saturday, Feb. 21, 7:30 p.m., Nashua Center for the Arts, 201 Main St., Nashua, $57 and up at nashuacenterforthearts.com.