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
Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band at Blue Cross Arena (War Memorial) — March 7, 2008
The Boss brought the Magic tour to Rochester’s Blue Cross Arena on March 6, 2008 — a sold-out, 12,428-capacity show. Springsteen delivered a 25-song set including a tour debut of…
Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band at HSBC Arena (now KeyBank Center) — March 7, 2008
The night after Rochester, Springsteen and the E Street Band crossed upstate to Buffalo’s HSBC Arena on March 7, 2008 — another sellout at 18,875. The Magic tour was the…
St. Vincent at Upstate Concert Hall — March 7, 2015
Annie Clark — St. Vincent — brought her critically acclaimed art-rock to Upstate Concert Hall. Fresh off her self-titled album that won the Grammy for Best Alternative Music Album, this…
Maroon 5 at Times Union Center — March 7, 2017
Adam Levine and Maroon 5 brought the M5 On The Road tour to the Times Union Center. Love them or hate them, Maroon 5 was one of the biggest pop…
Aerosmith at Alive at Five / Albany area venue — March 8, 1980
Aerosmith on the Night in the Ruts tour — this was the band at their most combustible. Joe Perry had just left, Jimmy Crespo was in. The archive places them…
Cheap Trick (w/ UFO) at RPI Field House — March 8, 1981
Cheap Trick and UFO at the RPI Field House — two of the hardest-working live bands of the late ’70s and early ’80s on one bill. Cheap Trick was riding…
The Black Crowes at Palace Theatre — March 8, 1999
The Black Crowes on the Souled Out tour at the Palace Theatre. Chris and Rich Robinson were still firing on all cylinders, delivering the kind of raw, loose, blues-soaked rock…
The Charlie Daniels Band at Proctor’s Theatre — March 9, 1979
Charlie Daniels at Proctor’s Theatre in 1979 — the year “The Devil Went Down to Georgia” became one of the biggest songs in the country. Daniels and his band were…
The Kinks at Palace Theatre — March 9, 1980
Ray Davies and The Kinks at the Palace Theatre. One of the most important British Invasion bands — the creators of “You Really Got Me,” “Waterloo Sunset,” and “Lola” —…
Phil Collins at Marine Midland Arena (now KeyBank Center) — March 9, 1997
Phil Collins on the Trip Into the Light World Tour at Buffalo’s Marine Midland Arena on March 8, 1997. The Genesis frontman turned solo superstar was still one of the…