The best live music venues in Los Angeles
Your complete guide to live music Los Angeles style, from concert calendars to iconic venues and more
When it comes to live music venues, Los Angeles reigns. Ours is a storied history, from the rambling folk history of Woody Guthrie to the rock ’n’ rolling, raunchy ways of bands like the Doors, Van Halen and Motley Crue. And to this day, the city remains one of the best for amazing concerts—and amazingly free concerts—not in small part due to its wide array of venues, from gorgeous outdoor amphitheatres to hole-in-the-wall clubs and dive bars. There’s a steady stream of impressive local talent here, and no big-name artist completes a tour without stopping in L.A. We’ve got it all, when it comes to live music in Los Angeles and we’re damn lucky—see for yourself below.
The 19 best live music venues in Los Angeles
1. Hollywood Bowl
This gorgeous outdoor amphitheater has been hosting concerts since the LA Philharmonic first played here in 1922. Nestled in an aesthetically blessed fold of the Hollywood Hills, the 18,000-seat venue can bring out the romantic in the terminally cynical. It’s the summer home of the LA Phil, but it’s hosted everyone from the Beatles to Big Bird. Today, summers at the Bowl are a mix of classical concerts and the biggest names from all genres, from rock and pop to country and musical theater.
2. Teragram Ballroom
Shows at this 600-person Westlake spot are consistently indie rock, which makes sense: Owner Michael Swier is the man behind New York City’s Bowery Ballroom, Mercury Lounge and Music Hall of Williamsburg. Shows are priced reasonably, and you can grab a bite beforehand at the venue’s built-in bar and restaurant.
3. The Theatre at Ace Hotel
When the Ace Hotel opened in early 2014, we didn’t just gain a super hip hotel in DTLA: We also got a jaw-droppingly beautiful 1920s movie house-turned-performing arts space, which has since billed an impressive lineup of performances, concerts, movie nights, lectures and more. The former flagship United Artists Theater is a 1,600-seat house perfect for folk acts, solo artists and beloved indie bands.
4. Troubadour
This storied club has a rich musical history: Randy Newman got his start here, and Elton John made his US debut on its stage in 1970. It hasn’t lapsed into irrelevance in the time since, often showcasing bands on the rise—those shows sell out quick. The sound is great and the views are decent from almost anywhere in the room—just stay out from under the balcony.
5. Greek Theatre
This pleasant, open-air, 6,000-seat theatre stages big summer shows by acts both national and local. It’s a bit like seeing a concert in the woods, and rivals the Hollywood Bowl in terms of L.A.’s most magical outdoor music venue. The only downside: The “stacked” parking means getting out of the parking lot often takes longer than the show, and VIP “Quick Parking” is a pricey $75.
6. The Satellite
This sprawling dive, formerly known as Spaceland, remains the leading L.A. shrine to all things indie. The parking is a combat sport, but the venue has good sound and an upstairs lounge with a less-crowded bar and a photo booth (that actually works, on good nights!). The Monday night program, which features free monthly residencies for buzzy local bands on their way up, is always worth a look.
7. Hollywood Forever Cemetery
Aside from popular posthumous celebs, Hollywood Forever is also home to summer outdoor movie screenings; Cinespia-hosted sleepovers with projected films, live music and games; as well as a number of unique concert events (past performers include Bon Iver, Lana del Rey and Karen O, to name just a few). Whether on the lawn or in the Masonic Lodge, seeing a show here is a little bit magical, and the bands booked here are always top notch and perfectly suited to play to a crowd of both living and dead.
8. Largo at the Coronet
We like venues that take good care of their performers, and that’s clearly the case at L.A.’s home for cultured, bankable singer-songwriters and brilliant comedians. The likes of Aimee Mann, the Watkins Family, Andrew Bird and perennial hot-ticket artist-in-residence Jon Brion ply their trade in the remarkably intimate 280-seat space.
9. Walt Disney Concert Hall
As the $274-million crown jewel of the Music Center, Disney Hall opened in 2003 to rave reviews. The novelty hasn't yet worn off: Both inside and out, this is a terrific venue. Designed by Frank Gehry, the hall features a 2,265-capacity auditorium with an open platform stage and a stunning pipe organ. The hall is the home of the LA Philharmonic and the LA Master Chorale, but the schedule is surprisingly varied (Björk, Sigur Rós, Sylvan Esso, Nick Cave and Iron & Wine have all played here).
10. El Rey Theatre
It might be a gorgeous Art Deco relic, but the 800-capacity El Rey runs a roster that’s decidedly dust-free. From Joji to Empress Of to the Lemon Twigs, the schedule is full of acts du jour, with the older but still-interesting likes of Yo La Tengo, Raphael Saadiq and Hot Chip also appearing. Sound and sightlines are both excellent.
Just announced
SOUND/STAGE
Ever wondered what a show would look like at the Hollywood Bowl with no crowd? You can find out—for free—with the launch of this new video series from the LA Phil. SOUND/STAGE features seven shows filmed at the temporarily shuttered Bowl, plus a number of chamber music performances recorded at the nearby Ford and the Walt Disney Concert Hall. You’ll find sets from Common, Carlos Vives and Yuja Wang as well as orchestral suites conducted by Gustavo Dudamel. The sets are free to watch (though donations are encouraged) and will stream weekly from March 5 through June 25. And if you’re really missing the Bowl—are we the only ones who got a little weepy watching the preview video?—you can relive past performances with a radio series from KCRW as well as some highlights on KCET and PBS.
The Weeknd
When R&B singer Abel Tesfaye released his debut mixtape, House of Balloons, in 2011, he did so hidden behind the Weeknd moniker: faceless and nameless, with no pictures, concerts or interviews. Since then, he’s made the leap from mystery-cloaked DIY buzz magnet to pro-hyped superstar drenched in drugged out psychosexual fantasy with ’80s funk basslines and a glossy pop shimmer.
Skirball Stages
The Skirball’s summertime Sunset Concerts series couldn’t go down as planned last year, but the museum has instead decided to take things virtual. The series, which includes sets shot at the museum, started with Gavin Turek and Ak Dan Gwang Chil; Aditya Prakash Ensemble and Rini; Dustbowl Revival and Mames Babegenush; and Las Cafeteras and Xenia França—all of which are available on a YouTube archive. You can catch another show this February from Joachim Cooder and Amythyst Kiah. If you’re hungry, you can swing by the Skirball before the show to pick up a prix-fixe menu themed to the performers.
Justin Bieber
When he’s not signing Anne Frank’s guestbook or breaking up and getting back together with fellow teen pop idol Selena Gomez, Justin Bieber also performs arena tours around the globe.
The latest L.A. music news
This superb soundtrack transforms as you walk around Griffith Park
As you hike up to the Griffith Observatory, a serene orchestra of brass and woodwinds starts to give way to spacey ambiance, which crescendos in a Blade Runner-like drone of synths toward the top of the hill, punctuated by a bubble of Apollo 11 radio chatter on the front lawn of the celestial landmark. It’s sublime, it’s totally free and it’s actually sitting in your pocket right now. This is Soundwalk, a new location-based musical piece from Pulitzer Prize-winning composer and sound artist Ellen Reid. You simply download a free smartphone app (available on both iOS and Android), and as you walk through Griffith Park the music will seamlessly transition between over 100 tracks composed for the area and recorded by a mix of orchestral ensembles and the renowned Kronos Quartet. There’s no set path you need to follow, and due to how the different tracks overlap, no two hikes will sound exactly the same. Up Fern Dell, for example, you’ll be greeted with a bombastic overture that transitions into a jazzy backdrop by the Trails, with fragments of strings and choral passages that layer on top of them as you venture between the two. The soundtrack mixes minutes-long compositions that blanket entire areas with short stings that are tied to a much more specific location, like a smoky sax line by the James Dean statue or a tribute to “While My Guitar Gently Weeps” by the George Harrison Tree. Courtesy Eclipse Projects Soundwalk covers pretty much all of the trails on the western por
Coachella won’t be happening this spring—but, come on, you already knew that
January typically means Coachella lineup announcement time. But this year, unsurprisingly, we haven’t really heard anything about Coachella and its country sibling Stagecoach. It should come as no surprise then that Riverside County has officially canceled both of the festivals. On Friday, public health officer Dr. Cameron Kaiser issued a statement that “the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival and the Stagecoach Country Music Festival currently scheduled for April 2021 are hereby canceled.” Festival promoter Goldenvoice has yet publicly comment on the cancellation, nor has it mentioned anything about new dates. Due to the pandemic, Public Health Officer Dr. Cameron Kaiser today (Jan. 29) signed a public health order canceling Coachella Valley Music and Arts, Stagecoach Country Music festivals planned for April 2021. We look forward to when the events may return. https://t.co/YAIn8uTea9 — Dr. Cameron Kaiser (@RivCoDoc) January 29, 2021 The language in the order is nearly identical to a similar one issued surrounding last year’s fest—so we imagine the reference to “concerns of a fall resurgence” is just a holdover from that. And whereas last year’s order specified that the fests were canceled “for the calendar year 2020,” this one just seems to narrow in on that April 2021 date. In March of 2020—just a day before the state’s ban on large events—Goldenvoice announced that it was postponing Coachella and Stagecoach until October. By June, the fests were flat-out ca
Pitchfork Music Festival is streaming some of its best sets at a Downtown L.A. drive-in
Back when we still had live events, L.A. was no slouch in the music festival department. But we’ll admit that we were always a little jealous of Chicago’s Pitchfork Music Festival. Well, it turns out that now Angelenos will be able to get a retrospective taste of the summer fest. On September 26, you’ll be able to roll up to a pop-up drive-in at Downtown’s Hotel Figueroa and watch previous Pitchfork Musical Festival performances from the likes of LCD Soundsystem, Solange, Robyn, Run the Jewels and more. In addition, the event (which celebrates the music fest’s 15th anniversary) will also feature an in-person DJ set from A-Trak. Courtesy Pitchfork Dubbed the Best of Pitchfork Music Festival, the rest of the screening reads like a dream lineup, with sets over the past few years from Angel Olsen, Beach House, Big Thief, Blood Orange, Carly Rae Jepsen, Charli XCX, Danny Brown, FKA twigs, Grimes, Jamila Woods, Kamasi Washington, Mitski, Perfume Genius, Rico Nasty and Wilco. Tickets are on sale now for $39 per car (you’ll need to stay inside of your vehicle, and masks are, of course, required). You’ll have two chances to watch the compilation: a 7pm DJ set and 8pm screening, followed by a 9:45pm set and 10:30pm screening. All ticket proceeds will be donated the Movement for Black Lives, a coalition of organizations that fight for the interests and betterment of Black communities. And if you can’t make it to the drive-in screening, not to worry: Pitchfork will stream the compi
Silver Lake’s the Satellite is done with live shows and plans to reopen as a restaurant
The dance parties and free Monday night shows will be no more along Silver Lake Boulevard: After a decade—and many more before that under different names—the Satellite will no longer host live music. In a message posted to its Instagram account on Friday, the Silver Lake venue says that it’s removing its stage and slowly pivoting to more of a restaurant and bar. “To all of the Satellite fans out there, I am sorry to say that we will no longer be doing live shows or dance parties,” the post reads. View this post on Instagram To all of the Satellite fans out there, I am sorry to say that we will no longer be doing live shows or dance parties. We would like to thank you for all the support you have shown us over the years. We shut our doors March 12 after the bands started canceling shows due to the corona virus and the Government shutting down the bars and nightclubs just a few days later. It has really hit us hard. We can no longer afford to wait for the day we will be allowed to have shows again. If we do that, we will not have the money to continue and will be forced to close forever. We are currently removing the stage and redesigning the club to be more of a place to get good quality drinks and food. We will be re-opening the kitchen and doing a complete redesign. Due to the lack of funds, this will not happen quickly. We will be opening in the parking lot for food and drinks as soon as we have the kitchen re-opened or the government lets us hire a food truck
Where to see live music in Los Angeles
Music festivals near Los Angeles
