Events on Central

A quintet format puts real space between the players, and that breathing room is where jazz either earns its keep or exposes itself. The Hall on Central has decent acoustics for a room that also hosts louder acts, so a group this size should land well there. Grab a ticket in advance through 505 Live...

The Isotopes take on the Sugar Land Space Cowboys in a Triple-A Pacific Coast League night game at one of the better minor league parks in the Southwest. Isotopes Park sits right on Central, which means you can walk to a postgame drink without moving your car, a small luxury that adds up. Tickets through...

Jacob Chavez takes the stage at Tractor Brewing's Nob Hill location, one of the more reliably good rooms on this stretch of Central for catching a local act up close. The ticket link through 505 Live Music suggests this one has a cover, so check before you show up assuming it's a free patio night....

Steve Earle solo means no band to hide behind and no setlist discipline, which at 51 years in is a feature and not a flaw. The KiMo's acoustics reward exactly this format, an intimate room where a single guitar and a ragged voice land harder than they would in a shed venue three times the...

In The Box Annex is bringing their quiz show format into The Box Performance Space, a black-box theater on Central that tends to reward audiences willing to play along with something a little weirder than a bar trivia night. The 45-minute runtime is short by design, so this is probably one piece of a longer...

Soul Puddin brings their funk and soul set to Thirsty Eye, one of the more low-key spots on the Central corridor for catching live music with a beer in hand. The room keeps things casual, which suits this kind of groove-forward act better than a stage with a spotlight and a cover charge attitude. Check...

A full tablao-format flamenco show with dancers, a singer, and a guitarist performing in the kind of intimate room where you feel the footwork in your chest. Hotel Albuquerque's venue has genuine sight lines and decent acoustics, which puts it ahead of most dinner-theater setups in the city. Performers are still TBA, so check back...

Three bailaoras, a cantaor, and a guitarist perform a full tablao program in the intimate theater space inside Hotel Albuquerque, one of the few dedicated flamenco venues operating anywhere on the Route 66 corridor. The room is small enough that you'll feel the footwork in your chest, so closer seats are genuinely better here, not...

Three Kings, one stage: Enchantment Blues & Guitars works through the distinct vocabularies of Freddie King, Albert King, and B.B. King in a single outdoor set at the Museum's long-running summer series. The amphitheater lawn fills up fast on Saturday nights in August, so arriving early gets you grass with a sightline rather than a...

Steve Earle strips it down to voice and guitar for a career-spanning set billed as 51 Years of Songs & Stories, which at this point in his life means you're as likely to hear him talk as sing, and the talking is half the reason to go. The KiMo's 700-seat art deco room is genuinely...