Upstate New York runs on rock and roll. In any given week the region’s stages light up with arena headliners, reunited legends, rising indie acts, and the bar bands that turn a Tuesday into a night worth leaving the house for. The lawn at Saratoga Performing Arts Center, the amphitheaters at Darien Lake, CMAC, and Bethel Woods, the riverfront at Artpark, and club rooms like Empire Live in Albany give touring rock a home in every corner of the state.
This page is your live, always-current guide to every rock concert on our radar across Upstate NY — classic rock and arena anthems, hard rock and metal-leaning bills, alt and indie, jam, and everything in between. Shows are listed with the soonest dates first, so the next night out is always at the top.
We cover the whole region: the Capital Region and Saratoga, Western NY and Buffalo, the Hudson Valley, Central NY and Syracuse, the Finger Lakes, the Southern Tier, and the North Country. New tours, festival lineups, and on-sale dates land here as soon as they’re announced, and we flag presales and ticket links so you can lock in seats before they’re gone.
More guides: Country Concerts in Upstate New York · Comedy Shows in Upstate New York · Hip-Hop Concerts in Upstate New York
By region: Rock Concerts in Albany & the Capital Region · Rock Concerts in Buffalo & Western NY · Rock Concerts in the Hudson Valley · Rock Concerts in Syracuse & Central NY · Rock Concerts in the Finger Lakes
Bonnie Raitt at Palace Theatre — March 12, 2016
Bonnie Raitt on the Dig in Deep tour at the Palace Theatre. The slide guitar queen and one of the finest voices in American music, Raitt has been a treasure…
The Pretenders at JB Scott’s — March 13, 1980
Chrissie Hynde and The Pretenders at JB Scott’s in Albany — the legendary club caught them on their debut album tour. “Brass in Pocket” was climbing the charts, and The…
Alice Cooper at Clifton Park Arena — March 13, 1990
Alice Cooper on the Trash tour at the Clifton Park Arena. Cooper was in the middle of a massive commercial comeback with “Poison” and the Trash album. The godfather of…
Billy Joel at Pepsi Arena — March 13, 1999
The Piano Man himself at the Pepsi Arena. Billy Joel — Long Island’s greatest export — has always had a special relationship with New York State audiences. His arena shows…
The Band / Hot Tuna / Roy Buchanan at Palace Theatre — March 14, 1987
A triple bill of legends at the Palace Theatre: The Band (Robbie Robertson’s former group, still touring with Levon Helm, Rick Danko, and Garth Hudson), Hot Tuna (Jorma Kaukonen and…
Weezer / Pixies at Times Union Center — March 14, 2019
Weezer and Pixies on a co-headlining bill at the Times Union Center — two of the most influential alternative rock bands of all time sharing a stage. The Pixies invented…
Styx at Palace Theatre — March 15, 1978
Styx on The Grand Illusion tour at the Palace Theatre — the album that broke them wide open. “Come Sail Away” was on the radio, and Styx was transforming from…
Roy Orbison at Palace Theatre — March 10, 1988
Roy Orbison at the Palace Theatre in 1988 — the year of his miraculous comeback. “Mystery Girl” was in the works, the Traveling Wilburys were about to form, and Orbison…
Trey Anastasio at Troy Savings Bank Music Hall — March 10, 2017
Phish’s Trey Anastasio in the acoustically pristine Troy Savings Bank Music Hall — an intimate solo/small-band setting that showcased his musicianship in ways that a festival stage never could. The…
The Allman Brothers Band at Mid-Hudson Civic Center — March 7, 1992
The Allman Brothers Band at the Mid-Hudson Civic Center in Poughkeepsie on March 7, 1992 — just days before their now-legendary first extended run at New York City’s Beacon Theatre,…