Singer-Songwriter Dave Pirner, guitarist Jeremy Tapparo, drummer Michael Bland, keyboardist Ivan Neville, The String Genius Quartet and the Robert Robinson Gospel Singers will echo Soul Asylum’s original 1993 “MTV Unplugged” at The Vogel in Red Bank on April 16. The show will include longtime concert favorites “Farmer John” and “What Will Become Of Me,” which were never properly recorded in a studio. Consider this their “Unplugged” tour.

Florida Pop-Rock trio Arrows In Action will undoubtedly play “Stop Talking” and the three other new songs off their upcoming “deluxe version” of I Think I’ve Heard This Before album when opening for Massachusetts indie band Boys Like Girls. The band describes “Stop Talking” in a press release as “the culmination of many seemingly unrelated influences that is uniquely us. The bass riff and orchestral samples drive the almost cabaret-style verse but the chorus still launches into hooky melodies and guitars over a fat dance beat.”

With their new Chain Of Command EP out on the Blue Grape label, Albany hard rockers Flatwounds will stop in New Brunswick at the Cinco de Mayo Mexican Restaurant to blast those in attendance to smithereens.  Singer Colin O’Hare, guitarist Matt Degnan, bassist David Granger and drummer Wade Coonrad sprinkle their hardcore with ‘90s alt-rock.

Main Street in Asbury Park will be rockin’ when Fozzy plays the Wild Air Beer Works but get there early to see metal band Who On Earth whose 2022 Blame debut showed the influences of Black Sabbath, Iron Maiden, Metallica, Alice In Chains and Tool. They even do “Hold The Line” by Toto. Last year’s Smoke & Mirrors EP included some sharp, socially reflective lyrics. A new full-length is due later this year. 

Bassist-Composer Mark Wade will bring his trio with pianist Cecelia Coleman and drummer Scott Neumann to Main Street at 7:00 for a special CD Release show in celebration of his New Stages album on Dot Time Records (March 27 release). His sound captures the alluring spontaneity of jazz crossed with the sterling classicism of centuries past. “I try to take inspiration wherever I can find it,” he says. “Good music is good music, no matter what label you want to put on it. I’ve  played jazz and classical music professionally now for years, and some of the most inspiring sounds I’ve heard were from my experiences playing classical music in the orchestra.”

The Exit 102 Band from Monmouth County will light up Tim Kerwin’s Tavern in Middlesex April 4. Their patented “Sounds Of The Jersey Shore” show is a powerhouse, high-energy, fan-interactive party with soul, blues and the kind of rock’n’roll that you can’t sit down for. They will also be performing April 17 at the Five Dimes Brewery on Red Bank.

Steve Forbert was Compromised in 2015 so that album has been remixed, remastered and retitled as Things That I See. It’s been 50 years since his groundbreaking Alive On Arrival debut and he’s still the same wisecracking commenter on life’s foibles. His voice has weathered into the warm embrace of an old friend. His songs have been recorded by Rosanne Cash, Keith Urban, Marty Stuart and Webb Wilder.

Within Princeton University’s Alexander Hall, is the Richardson Auditorium. That’s where the “St. Matthew Passion,” written by Johann Sebastian Bach in 1727 for solo voice, choir and orchestra, will ring out through the Hall. Gabriel Crouch and Michael McCormick will direct the University’s annual Spring Concert with the solo voice of Julian Gregory of The King’s Singers and the baroque orchestra known as The Sebastians.

New Brunswick heavy pop-punk-hardcore band Homebase marks its fourth year of existence by hitting the Meat Locker in Montclair April 3 with Jam Poetry, Losing Color and Solgrave. Matt Valentin (Guitar/Vocals), Antonio Valentino (Vocals), Chris Ochoa (Drums), Arturo Cordova (Guitar) and Dave Caruso Josh (Bass) are psyched to play live their new five-song EP—Close To Something—as well as their signature song “Bold” and the popular “Nuff Said.”

What a quartet! Keyboardist John Medeski, who rose to fame in the trio known as Medeski, Martin & Wood, bassist Jorge Roeder, drummer Kenny Wolleson and guitarist Julian Lage will perform at the South Orange Performing Arts Center on April 2.

Toronto’s alt-pop Pony starts its tour in Jersey City April 2 with Cleveland’s Heart Attack Man and Hoboken’s Phoneboy. Clearly Cursed, by Pony, is just out.  Singer Sam Bielanski says the title track was inspired by a visit to a psychic. “She read my tarot cards and told me I had a dark spirit attachment which she could easily vanquish for $1,500 so I decided to co-exist with it.”

It’s been over 40 years of Gipsy King magic. “Historia” is the new single. They’ve sold 26 million albums and have had over two billion streams. Their “Bamboleo” and “Djobi Djoba” are anthems. Their music has been used in Hollywood films. Their Catalan rhumba and Flamenco lineage are but a base for the wild excursions of jamming brothers Cosso and Mikeal Baliardo as they move and groove in support of their dad, guitarist Tonino Baliardo. Expect a party as it’s the last show of the tour.

The septet known as The Pink Floyd Project features two lead singers, lead guitar, bass, keyboards, drums, sax, video and “Sound FX.” Founder/Band Director/Lead Guitarist/Technical Director Leo Madrazo started the band during the Covid lockdown “transforming isolation into inspiration,” as he likes to say. It took six months but now they’re something all Pink Floyd fans should see. But do they do “See Emily Play”?

Florida Guitarist-Vocalist-Composer Selwyn Birchwood’s “Electric Swamp Funkin’ Blues” tour hits Tuckerton Mar. 28 at Lizzie Rose. The Alligator Records recording artist is one of Joe Bonamassa’s favorite bluesmen. He’s 6’4, plays barefoot, and totally commands the stage. As he says, “you would be hard-pressed to find an album or a band that sounds exactly like mine and that has been and always will be the goal. I pride myself in writing songs so that when you hear a band like us, you hear a band that sounds just like…US!”

Those in Hudson County should consider themselves lucky as the hotly anticipated documentary film Billy Preston: That’s The Way God Planned It will be screened at WFMU’s Monty Hall in Jersey City March 28. Preston died in 2006 at 59 after a turbulent, tragic, fascinating life filled with his onstage and in-studio joyousness profoundly affecting (and improving) the music of The Beatles, Stones, Streisand and Clapton.

Bassist-Composer-Arranger-Producer-Blues Man Mike Griot knows no boundaries when it comes to genre. Thus, his latest project, “The Soul of Burt Bacharach,” comes complete with a 17-piece orchestra performing the music of composer Burt Bacharach [1928-2023] whose work with Dionne Warwick, Dusty Springfield, Tom Jones, BJ Thomas, Herb Alpert and The Carpenters has been well-documented. It’s been reported that over a thousand singers have recorded his compositions. WBGO Radio Personality David Popkin hosts.

Guitarist Geoff Thorpe says, "In your face! Catchy riffs! Blistering solos, with a heavy metal and punk rock attitude! The new Vicious Rumors single 'Abusement Park' from The Devil's Asylum album has the band at the top of its craft! Imagine a nightmare theme park gone horror with machine gun guitars and kick drums with a melodic and harmony-filled chorus in true Vicious Rumors style. After being forced to push back the tours due to my broken shoulder, the guys and I are looking forward to getting the band back on the road. So come and celebrate Heavy Metal with us performing classics, deep cuts and new album tracks.”

Oliver Wakeman—son of the legendary Yes keyboardist Rick Wakeman—is supporting the 20^th Anniversary Edition of his Mother’s Ruin album by touring with his dad. They hit Englewood March 25 and then close the tour in Red Bank at The Vogel March 29. Oliver, 53, and Rick, 76, should do material from Yes and Strawbs as the son was in both bands.

Happy Birthday to Rodney Green, the drummer/owner of this Teaneck club. To celebrate, Freddie Hendrix and Jeb Patton will jam it on out with Green. Trumpeter Hendrix, a graduate of William Paterson University in Wayne, and performed and recorded with Christian McBride and Wynton Marsalis. Pianist Patton is the longtime collaborator of the legendary Heath Brothers. 

George Baier continues his Tuesdays at Mama’s Café in Hackettstown on March 19. This is the venue where Jake Thistle, at nine years old, got his start. Now that Thistle has made it into the American Idol Top 20, a lot more attention will be focused on singer-songwriter Baier who mentored the younger artist during his formative years.

Singer-Songwriter-Producer Josh Joplin has transformed the boundaries of indie-rock into confessional territory. He’ll be celebrating the 2001 release of Useful Music—produced by Jerry Harrison of Talking Heads—as well as performing selections from his five other albums on a solo tour that will land him in Hillsborough March 18, and also in Montclair March 21 (with Jeffrey Gaines) at Outpost In The Burbs.

Tommaso Perazzo, the Italian pianist-composer-organist, graduated from the Conservatorium van Amsterdam before getting his Masters in jazz piano at the Manhattan School of Music. In studying with Camden’s legendary Buster Williams, 87, and Miguel Zenon, he combines two schools of pianistic flourish, trad plus Latin.

This promises to be a blow-the-roof-off gig for Juke lead guitarist Glenn Alexander and his Shadowland featuring The Asbury Juke Horns and Special Guest Bobby Lynch. Lynch is a piano-thumping blues-rock cat who should add immeasurably to Alexander’s multi-genre approach.

New York City husband-wife team St. Lucia have been at it for 13 years. They’re touring in support of their fifth album, Fate Morgana: Dawn, described in a press release as “a sprawling psychedelic pop journey that explores themes of isolation, escapism and personal growth, weaving together elements of dance music, cinematic scores and bold experimentation.” 

Joe Bonamassa’s new album, BB King’s Blues Summit 100 (KTBA Records), is out and his tour is under way. He’ll stop in Red Bank March 8 at the Count Basie PAC. Joe is a true blues hero as 29 of his 50 albums—including with Black Country Communion and Rock Candy Funk Party—have hit #1 on the Billboard Blues Chart. Breakthrough is his current studio album and it’s a doozy. He produces other artists, has started numerous indie labels and even runs his own management company.

He played sax and flute in the Smithsonian Orchestra and the Mingus Big Band. He’s been in bands with Rufus Reid and Chick Corea. He currently teaches at William Paterson University on Pompton Road in Wayne where the Shea Center is nestled right on campus, and you can “Meet The Artist” in a special 2:00 p.m. Q&A session the day of the show.

The duo known as Tiny Cities will be going back to school when it opens for the Sarah Borges Band at The Old Franklin Schoolhouse in Metuchen on March 1.   Melissa and Dennis will be debuting songs off their Beginning Of The End EP on Hidden Tracks Records. Reviews have been overwhelmingly positive as they’ve been called “best new artist of 2025” and “one of the most compelling indie voices of the moment.” 

Fifty years on, Pilobolus has stretched the creative limits of interpretive dance into its own image, that of a rebel arts organism that knows no limits. They go where professional dance troups do not dare. The new presentation, Other Worlds Collection, inhabits acrobatics, sensuality and humor. As directed by playwright Aaron Posner, with music composed by podcaster Aaron Posner and multi-instrumentalist Stuart Bogie, Pilobolus will also do a deep dive into its own past.

The all-original Monmouth County band known as December Morning will be playing songs from its Stolen Days EP which they describe as “hard rock with a splash of progressive.” Its five songs include a cover of the 1990 Alice In Chains song “Man in the Box.”