Off the Mother Road

Angels Over Demons takes the stage at Skidmore's Holiday Bowl, a bowling alley venue that has been hosting live music long enough that the combination no longer feels strange. The...

Mike Moxie and the Easy Sinners bring their greasy, road-worn Americana to Canteen Brewhouse, with Jim Deveney opening the afternoon. Canteen is off the Central corridor, but it's a brewery...

FFTY Band takes the outdoor stage at Casa Vieja in Corrales for a three-hour afternoon set the day after the Fourth. Casa Vieja's courtyard setting in the village of Corrales...

Weatherman Said takes the Effingbar & Grill stage for a Sunday early-evening set, wrapping up by 8 p.m. and leaving the rest of your night open. The bar has a...

Brandon Post brings a live set to Hops & Dough Taproom on a Sunday evening in early July, the kind of low-key post-holiday slot that tends to draw a relaxed,...

Voz Norteña brings their norteño set to the Triple Sevens Saloon inside Isleta Resort, a casino lounge that runs late and keeps the drinks moving. The room skews toward regulars...

Boss Hogg takes the Dragon Horn Tavern stage on a Sunday afternoon in early July, which puts this squarely in post-holiday, low-pressure territory if the Fourth left you wanting more but not harder. Dragon Horn runs metro, off Central, so build in a few extra minutes if you're coming from the corridor. Admission details weren't...

Casey James Brooks plays El Pinto's cantina stage, one of the more comfortable outdoor-adjacent rooms in Albuquerque for a summer evening set. El Pinto is a destination in its own right, so the crowd here tends to be relaxed and already in a good mood before the first note lands. This one is off the...

Paul Stephenson brings his acoustic set to Hops & Dough Taproom, a craft beer spot off the Route 66 corridor that draws a neighborhood crowd more interested in the pint than the performance. That's not a knock on Stephenson, who holds a room well, but go in knowing the room, not a seated listening venue....

Dirty Brown Jug Band brings their roots-and-grit sound to Steel Bender Brew Yard on a Tuesday evening in July. Steel Bender's yard setup works in your favor here, giving the music room to breathe in a way that a tight indoor stage would not. This one is off the Central corridor, but the brewery draws...