It took a while. It took some merchandise, ticket sales, enthusiasm and a basic corporate understanding of present-day music trends, but, finally, our little desert town is pretty much on the concert map full-time.
In the next three months there will be a surplus of diverse and extravagant artists featured in Albuquerque; some revered far and wide across the world, and some credited for creating genres that didn’t exist only a few years ago.
September alone is packed with tours. Canadian electro-dance punk outfit MSTRKRFT (pronounced Master-craft) released their third album OPERATOR last month. They’re playing El Rey Theater on Thursday for $15, only two days before world-renowned Gipsy Kings take to the same venue later that weekend. The show is exclusive to ages 21 and over.
Gipsy Kings will play Sept. 3, and tickets range from $55 to $60. Ambient instrumentalists El Ten Eleven will also be gracing the El Rey stage closer to the middle of the month on Sept. 16. Tickets are $12, with the show exclusive to ages 21 and over.
The Sunshine Theater is also featuring an extensive September line up. Prog-rock story tellers Coheed and Cambria are performing on Sept. 20 to promote their latest album, The Color Before the Sun. The record is a change in direction from the band’s usual style, being the first non-conceptual album in its catalog.
Tickets are currently going for $30. However, most enthusiasts have their eyes on Die Antwoord’s Sept. 27 concert at Sunshine. The South African rave/hip-hop fusion group are exalted for their vigorous live performances that energize audiences in a way that’s simply unparalleled.
Pop-punk titans Yellowcard are playing their eponymous final album on a world-wide farewell tour before the band breaks up after a 20 year long career. They will be live at Sunshine on Oct. 11 for $20 at a 13+ ages show.
Subsequently, one week later, the venue will be hosting rap artist Danny Brown on his Exhibition 2016 tour. Brown’s show is $25 for all ages and will highlight new music from his upcoming record Atrocity Exhibition. As noted by his recent singles “When it Rain” and “Pneumonia,” the album will mark an experimental shift in the rapper’s aesthetic.
Launchpad is a smaller venue that is suited for more intimate shows. Post-metal three-piece Russian Circles frequent the venue and are returning again armed with the group’s sixth album, Guidance, released earlier this month.
They will be playing Sept. 6 for $12. The band harnesses a powerful energy and stage presence, not unlike indie folk punk group AJJ that will be returning to the same venue a month later on Oct. 5 for $13. AJJ, formerly known as Andrew Jackson Jihad, released its latest album, The Bible 2, just last week.
Local bands will also be busy gigging in the upcoming months. Albuquerque natives Five Mile Float are opening for British indie-rockers The Crookes at The Co-op venue on Sept. 29; the venue is open for all ages and tickets are running at $10.
Additionally, local post-hardcore five-piece Crushed!? will be having their newest album’s release show at Burt’s Tiki Lounge on Oct. 1, paired with a sister show at the Fly Honey Warehouse a week from that on Oct. 8.
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