We♥KC! May 1-3, 2026 Upcoming concerts / shows (Kansas City, MO / Lawrence, KS metro)
Though under some recent scrutiny, Live Nation returns this week with their $30 Summer Ticket promotion-
Now through May 5, fans will be able to purchase tickets to some 4000 shows (including we assume, a handful in KC) that should make the concert season a little less painful on the wallet.
Details are here (Live Nation’s Summer of Live) and while it’s probably lawn areas and some slower selling shows, it’s a better bang for the buck, and should give a good excuse to check out the Morton Amphitheater, opening in early June.
ake look at the Kansas City / Lawrence KS metro musical happenings for the Weekend from May 1st to May 3rd.
(ticket hyperlinks are embedded in each show’s headline)
FRIDAY MAY 1
Their 2026 “Normal Isn’t” Tour supports their new album of the same name (which released on Feb 6), featuring their distinctive “goth meets punk” sound, compliments of members including Tool singer Maynard James Keenan, Mat Mitchell, and Carina Round. The tour kicked off March 20th in Las Vegas and look for some social commentary on current times and a theatrical, character-driven, and highly produced audio-visual experience.
We caught them live last year in MN, as part of the big Sessanta Celebration. Support is from comedian-musician Dave Hill.
Band of Horses, May 1, Uptown Theater, $58-$78
Band of Horses’ 2026 tour centers on celebrating the 20th anniversary of their 2006 Gold-certified debut album, Everything All the Time, with the album played in its entirety.
Also out is a newly expanded 20th Anniversary Edition, out now via Sub Pop. The expanded 19-track edition is accompanied by an additional LP of bonus tracks, including the 2005 tour EP, previously unreleased studio and live tracks, and rarities like “The End’s Not Near” (as featured on The O.C.) and a demo version of the double Platinum single “The Funeral.”
Expect other BoH favorites in addition to the debut album, and we caught the band live at this same venue, two years ago, on the final show of that acoustic / electric tour, with a memorable set.
AFI w Choir Boy, May 1, Truman, $110
There’s still A Fire Inside-
Following the release of their newest album Silver Bleeds the Black Sun… (released last October via Run for Cover Records) and the premier leg of their first headline tour since 2021 earlier this year, AFI is out on a 10-date second leg of headline North American tour dates with support from Choir Boy.
Newest singles “Behind the Clock,” “Holy Visions” and “Ash Speck in a Green Eye” have re-ignited interest in the band and invokes the band’s nearly constant state of reinvention. The band has made it a point to evolve with every album – sometimes dramatically so – never allowing themselves to become too comfortable in one genre or rest on any of their career laurels.
Glixen, May 1, Bottleneck-Lawrence,$21-$24
Phoenix four-piece showgazers Glixen create a profoundly heavy sonic experience with their music, with a hat tip to their predecessors but resulting in something completely modern. An amalgamation of influences like Björk, My Bloody Valentine, Godflesh, t.A.T.u, and Hum, their sound crawls with intensity and introspection to contrast lead singer Aislinn Ritchie’s lulling vocals.
Second EP, Quiet Pleasures saw them combine syrupy vocals, heartfelt lyricism, and humming riffs to deliver an reverb-drenched EP across five songs and last year’s “Medicine Bow” find a harder-hitting sound, as layers of distortion bloom around tender vocals with introspective lyrics.
We caught them live in Minneapolis at an intimate gig in 2024.
James McMurtry, May 1, Knuckleheads, $36.38
Folk/Americana favorite James McMurtry released The Black Dog and the Wandering Boy last June via New West Records. The 10-song collection was co-produced by McMurtry & Don Dixon (R.E.M., The Smithereens, and who produced his third album in 1995) and is his first album in four years.
The album impressively features appearances by Sarah Jarosz, Charlie Sexton, Bonnie Whitmore, Bukka Allen, and more alongside his trusted backing band, The Martial Law Review, Cornbread on bass, Tim Holt on guitar, and Daren Hess on drums.
In addition to his original compositions, the album features a pair of covers as bookends, “Laredo (Small Dark Something),” an opioid blues & testimony by Jon Dee Graham, and Kris Kristofferson’s “Broken Freedom Song.” McMurtry says, “Kris was one of my major influences as a child. He was the first person that I recognized as a songwriter.”
Toasters w/ Eradicats, May 1, miniBar,$23.73
The ska legends return to KC for what is always and entertaining show, coming out of lower Manhattan NYC back in 1981, to become one the original bands of the so-called American Third Wave of the genre.
Arrive early for KC’s own bubble-grunge quartet The Eradicats who have a recent single “I Ate a Sandwich,” a heartfelt and deeply personal track that reveals a more vulnerable side while maintaining the catchy hooks and playful spirit that define their sound.
The song tells the real-life story of bassist and co-vocalist Kristi’s eating disorder recovery, centered around a small but monumental moment at a teaching conference lunch.
The band features Kristi (bass, vocals), Josh (guitar, vocals), Chris (guitar), and Justin (drums) and first made waves with their debut EP Best in Show, which blends the energy of the Pixies, the wit of They Might Be Giants, and the urgency of ’90s pop-punk with a dash of ska.
SATURDAY MAY 2
Panchiko w Sundots, May 2, Granada- Lawrence, Sold Out
UK sensations Panchiko is undertaking a major 2026 US headline tour following the release of their album Ginkgo, featuring their signature lo-fi dream-pop sound, with dates extending through early May, including this sold-out Lawrence stop.
Expect plenty of the new music from Ginkgo as well as tracks from the previous D>E>A>T>H>M>E>T>A>L.
Arrive early for Sundots, an independent indie-folk/bedroom pop project led by Connecticut-based musician and multi-instrumentalist Drew Collins. Emerging in 2019, the project blends lo-fi indie, slowcore, and ambient elements, and stream-of-consciousness songwriting focusing on youth and introspection.
Joyce Manor w Militarie Gun, Teen Mortgage, Combat, May 2, Liberty Hall- Lawrence,$46-$97
The energetic Torrance, CA trio Joyce Manor continues their I Used to Go to this Bar Tour (named after the album released in January) with a stop in downtown Lawrence at Liberty Hall. It’s a loaded four-act show, so arrive early and expect a fun and revved up evening.
They’re known for their short-and-sweet songcraft without losing an ounce of bite that gained them such repute in the first place, as heard on singles, “All My Friends Are So Depressed”, “I Know Where Mark Chen Lives”, and “Well, 
Whatever It Was,” all produced by SoCal punk legend Brett Gurewitz.
Bill Callahan w Jana Horn, May 2, recordBar, Sold Out
Callahan hits the road at 58 miles per hour this May for a thirteen-show tour in support of his new album, My Days of 58. He just kicked things off in Oklahoma City and makes this early (and already sold-out) stop in KC. Callahan is backed by the core musicians featured on the new record— guitarist Matt Kinsey, saxophonist Dustin Laurenzi and drummer Jim White.
SUNDAY MAY 3
Jason Isbell and The 400 Unit, May 3, Uptown,$105
One of the most highly lauded songwriters of his generation, the six-time GRAMMY winner Jason Isbell is out on a run with his band the 400 Unit, following a well-recieved solo tour, in support of his acoustic album Foxes in the Snow
The newest album was released on his own Southeastern Records last March and captures an artist at the peak of their powers; the virtuosic guitar playing and commanding vocal delivery on this collection is some of the most impressive of an already remarkable recording career. He’s one of the best Americana artists out there, for a reason.
Isbell also reissued Something More Than Free last summer to celebrate ten years of the critically-acclaimed, GRAMMY-winning studio album. The newly remastered edition comes replete with updated mixes and a previously unreleased B-side “Should I Go Missing.” A highly recommended show.
National / International act coming through the Midwest / Kansas City area? Please email details to johnc@weheartmusic.com with a good lead time to be considered for Show Preview and Show Coverage.