Boston’s House of Blues was a full on hootenanny. The 502s, proudly billing themselves as “The Happiest Band on Earth,” lived up to the title in full, leading a roomful of fans through a nonstop celebration that spanned from the opening note to the final encore.

There’s sold-out, and then there’s really sold-out. On Wednesday night at Boston’s Roadrunner, The Beaches showed they’re the kind of band that makes a room feel like it’s about to burst at the seams. The last time the Toronto four-piece rolled through town, they topped out at The Royale. Before that, they were just another opener hoping for a few new fans. This time, they had the biggest club in the city on lock, and I’ve never seen it so packed.

On a cool fall evening in Cambridge, Coral Moons turned The Sinclair into their own personal living room. The local-roots indie quartet kicked off the fall leg of their tour on September 10 with a set that felt both celebratory and grounded. It was a proper homecoming for a band that’s spent the summer on the road.

On Wednesday, September 3, Portland, Maine, felt like it was showing off. The skies were clear, the air had just a hint of fall crispness, and Thompson’s Point was packed for the first night of Vance Joy’s American tour. Maine is known for bringing autumn in early, and this show made the season’s arrival feel celebratory.

By the time the sun dipped low over Thompson’s Point, the crowd was already moving. Portland’s waterfront venue was buzzing with energy Saturday night as Lake Street Dive returned for their annual summer stop, joined by the high-energy force that is Sammy Rae & The Friends.

“Brian Wilson was on my mind a lot with that song,” she says. “He lived a life always spotted by issues with his mental health, and it wasn’t fully understood. I was raised by very strong men, and the most beautiful moments were when they gave themselves permission to cry. That was powerful.”

It had been exactly eight years since Katy Perry last played Boston, a fact she gleefully pointed out at TD Garden on August 8, the eighth day of the eighth month. The symmetry didn’t stop there: her stage was shaped like an infinity symbol, and for much of the night she seemed suspended somewhere between pop concert and high-wire circus act.

At this year’s Levitate Music Festival, Samantha McKaige and her band brought a mix of raw earnestness and offbeat charm to their set. They then carried that same energy straight into a backstage conversation that veered between heartfelt reflection and Sting karaoke.

Lily Fitts didn’t set out to be a musician. Not really. She was studying microbiology and biochemistry at UMass Amherst. An aspiring doctor with a dog named Duncan and a guitar that mostly stayed off the stage. Music was her escape. A coping mechanism. A hobby.

Now? She’s coming off a headline show at Hyde Park, has just released her debut album Getting By – of which Duncan himself graced the cover – and she’s gearing up for her first sold-out U.S. tour. 

Leave it to Ben & Jerry’s to host a concert that hits every sensory pleasure point. Free ice cream? Check. Golden hour lighting against a backdrop of Vermont’s green mountains? Check. A double bill featuring one of blues rock’s reigning legends and its teenage heir apparent? Big check.

Incredible headliners Mt. Joy, Courtney Barnett, and Waxahatchee anchor incredible music festival in Western Massachusetts, the Green River Festival.

The birds were singing backup.

It’s the kind of detail you’d think was poetic license if you hadn’t been there. But as Coral Moons opened this year’s Green River Festival with a breezy, soul-tinged set, actual birds chirped in harmony above the Back Porch Stage.

It was a Tuesday night in Foxborough. But you’d never have guessed that from the crowd rocking inside Gillette Stadium.

If you’ve ever wondered what it feels like to be inside a snow globe during a technicolor blizzard, OK Go’s show at The Royale last night had your answer: pure, euphoric chaos. The Chicago-born band transformed the downtown Boston venue into a sensory playground of confetti, crowd banter, and joyful absurdity.

Peach Pit and Briston Maroney braved the rain and brought the magic to NYC’s Pier 17 with harmonicas, ponchos, and a skyline-streaked encore you had to see to believe.

On May 21, Samia brought her “Bloodless Tour” to Boston’s House of Blues, delivering a performance that blended intimacy with a bit of indie-pop flair. The venue buzzed with anticipation, and the presence of the majority of Boston’s photography scene let those in the know understand they were in for something special.