★★★★☆
New wave pioneers Depeche Mode played a mammoth arena show at Twickenham Stadium, as part of their ongoing Memento Mori World Tour – Dave Gahan and Martin Gore’s first concert tour without Andy Fletcher. whynow went to watch.
★★★★★
Diving into their diverse discography at Hillsborough Park, Arctic Monkeys rolled back the years with a blistering set that offered something for every kind of fan.
★★★★☆
Red Velvet bring their iconic Queendom to London, taking fans on a journey through their musical performance. Armed with the best discography in K-pop and excellent vocals, they remind us it’s more than a concert, but an experience – even with group member Joy’s absence.
★★★★★
Beyoncé confirms there really is no one on her level at the fifth and final show of her Tottenham Hotspur Stadium residency. Ali Shutler went to watch the glittering spectacle.
★★★★☆
Unknown Mortal Orchestra provided a whistle-stop dive into their terrific catalogue at Troxy, placing emphasis on the rock in their psych-rock output.
★★★☆☆
Prima Queen took to London’s Lafayette amid a current run of headline UK shows, in a gig that demonstrated just why they’re ones to watch – and how much more they’ll give in years ahead.
★★★★☆
London’s long-heralded art-rockers HMLTD put on a creative tour de force at the Institute of Contemporary Arts, reeling off from the wild and varied work of their latest album, The Worm.
★★★★☆
As Yard Act say goodbye to their debut album The Overload, they’re starting to break more new ground. The Leeds-based four-piece played their biggest ever headline show at London’s Troxy this week, including on Friday night. Ali Shutler went to watch.
★★★★☆
Duran Duran proved they are still pop-rock giants never scared to reinvent themselves, with a nostalgia-fuelled set at the O2. whynow went to watch.
★★★☆☆
JME and his special guest mates played a relentless set at Bristol’s Motion, as part of the Boy Better Know co-founder’s ‘Grime MC FM’ event series. Whilst grime prides itself on intensity, with no let-ups, the show was only really ever in one gear.
★★★★☆
Panda Bear and Sonic Boom revelled in the joyous spirit of their collaborative psych-pop album Reset at Hackney’s gem of a venue, Studio 9294.
★★★★☆
Mimi Webb exudes confidence at Hammersmith’s Eventim Apollo, demonstrating why she’s pop’s next big thing.
★★★★☆
Gary Numan played his 1000th live show this weekend, at Camden’s Electric Ballroom. Emily Swingle paid a visit to watch this milestone achievement…
Here’s some of the best gigs in London this month, featuring Kelela, Big Thief, Daniel Caesar, Billy Nomates and more.
★★★★★
Following the release of her debut album Voice Notes, Yazmin Lacey played a sumptuous set, providing a welcome antidote to a rainy Friday on the last day of March.
★★★★☆
Alex G crafted a rapturous set at Roundhouse, with tunes from his most recent album, God Save The Animals, peppered with songs from his wide-ranging catalogue. Read our review.
★★★★☆
Beartooth made it to Wembley Arena in slightly absurd circumstances. Sunday’s show was supposed to happen in Brixton Academy a year ago, but first, a certain spiky little virus got in the way, and second, the tragic incident at the original venue in December meant another venue had to be found.
★★★★☆
Fall Out Boy have fine-tuned lyrical intimacy to an art; renowned for their heart-on-sleeve verses and diary entry anthems, the emo staples have well and truly proved they can “write it better than you ever felt it”.
★★★★☆
Loyle Carner weaved old favourites amongst tracks from his latest album, in a set that balanced intimacy and power in equal measure at Wembley’s OVO Arena.
★★★★☆
Warming up for their Royal Albert Hall headliner, genre-busting iconoclasts Killing Joke perform their first two albums in sequence to 350 acolytes.
★★★★☆
Dry Cleaning brought their strange, surreal and often sublime sound to the Roundhouse – where they’d even put a real-life Gary Ashby on the guestlist.
One thing you can never deny Yungblud is the effort and energy that goes into his shows. We speak to Sam Tozer, the creative director and show designer for the Doncaster artist, about what it takes to devise the playful theatrics behind Yungblud’s latest arena concerts.
Get ready for a month full of eclectic live music performances across London's venues featuring British and international talents. Here's our London March gigs guide.
★★★★★
Over nearly two decades, Rolo Tomassi have amassed an ardent following without a modicum of mainstream attention. At their largest show to date, the Sheffielders indulge in the fruits of their labour, welcoming 1,500 loyalists to an evening of immaculate emotion.
★★★★☆
Sheffield outfit Reverend and the Makers rolled back the years to deliver welcome upbeat indie at Islington Assembly Hall – and even took to the streets to do so.
★★☆☆☆
You Me At Six take on Ally Pally on Saturday night, in a predictable show that adheres to the “arena rock 101” handbook.
In what seems a surprising collaboration, Machine Gun Kelly has announced a one-off show at the Royal Albert Hall on Wednesday 31 May, with tickets available later this week.
★★★★★
Merely nine months after headlining Alexandra Palace to 10,000 people, Mogwai have returned to the capital for an intimate extravaganza of 600 attendees. However, the shrunken surroundings only add to the triumph and impact of their unexpectedly successful songs.
★★★★☆
Friday night saw 600 of Beabadoobee’s most determined fans filling London’s Lafayette as part of the Brits Week roster of balloted, intimate gigs in support of War Child. This surprise show came sandwiched between the end of the singer’s sell-out solo world tours and prior to her next bout of shows supporting Taylor Swift next month.
★★★★★
Toronto rock paragons Metric embraced avant-garde synthpop on 2022’s Formentera. During their supporting tour (and first UK run in half a decade), Emily Haines et al. match the ambition of their album with a two-hour career retrospective stuffed with hooks.
