Live music in Santa Cruz County, CA

An evening of music featuring Billy Pitrone on guitar, Sarah Eblen on bass, Hide Kawatsure on mandolin, Billy Moore on banjo, and Jim Mintun on dobro.

Experience a freeform dance space at Palomar Ballroom in downtown Santa Cruz, now home to twice-weekly SOULARUS gatherings. Hosted and DJed by Daniel Mollner, each session invites you to move in whatever way feels right, whether dancing solo or connecting with others by choice. Sessions are two hours, and the doors close after the first hour. Participants are asked to take responsibility for their own health and safety. Community guidelines encourage authenticity and acceptance, respect for the space and fellow dancers, a focus on embodiment, creativity and community, a drug and alcohol free environment, and keeping conversation off the dance floor. Admission is 20 dollars, cash only at the door. Kids attend free, and you can dance at no cost during your birthday week. Everyone is welcome, including People of Color, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Questioning, Intersex and Same-Gender Loving people, seniors and neurodiverse community members, and people of all shapes, sizes, ages and abilities.

Todd Rundgren brings the Damed If I Do Tour to the Rio Theatre in Santa Cruz. The Philadelphia-born artist is a trailblazing musician, songwriter, and producer who first emerged with The Nazz in the 1960s, then launched a celebrated solo career and founded the progressive rock group Utopia. A self-taught multi-instrumentalist and widely influential producer, he helped shape Meat Loaf’s multi-platinum Bat Out of Hell and has long blended pop, soul, and experimental rock. His songbook includes hits such as Hello It’s Me and I Saw the Light. A pioneer in interactive performance and technology, he created the first interactive television concert in 1978 and introduced an early direct artist subscription service in 1998. His 2018 autobiography, The Individualist, looks back on his creative path and personal story. On this tour he continues to present expansive, career-spanning sets that reach back to 1970s favorites and incorporate modern multimedia elements.

A candlelit tribute to the music of Queen and ABBA transforms The Grove at the Santa Cruz Event Center into an intimate, multi-sensory concert. A Listeso string quartet performs favorites including Dancing Queen, S.O.S., Money, Money, Money, Voulez-Vous, Bohemian Rhapsody, I Want to Break Free, Killer Queen, Waterloo, Super Trouper, Mamma Mia, Don't Stop Me Now, We Will Rock You, We Are the Champions, and Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (A Man After Midnight). The performance lasts 60 minutes, doors open 45 minutes beforehand, and late entry is not allowed. Seating within each zone is assigned on a first come, first served basis. Guests must be at least 8 years old, and anyone under 16 must attend with an adult. The venue is ADA compliant. This is a tribute event with no affiliation, endorsement, or sponsorship from the original artists, their estates, or official representatives.

Felton Music Hall hosts a live concert by Black Flag.

Mark brings 70s favorites to Cocoa Vino in Capitola, blending live music with drinks along the Esplanade. Make a day of it at the beach and follow it with a relaxed set of nostalgic tunes. There is no cover charge.

Big Bad Wolf delivers dance-ready, blues-rooted classic rock that nods to Creedence, The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Steely Dan, Jon Hiatt, John Fogerty, The Hollies, and more. Expect a high-energy party with an off-the-beaten-path twist.

Felton Music Hall hosts a live performance by Balthvs.

Drummer Corey Fonville of Butcher Brown joins organist Sam Fribush in a fresh collaboration that blends the bounce of 90s hip hop with the soul of an R&B organ trio, arriving at a youthful, blue collar jazz sound. The project features a rotating cast of guitarists in the studio, including Charlie Hunter, Alan Good Parker, and Morgan Burrs. Songs such as I Couldn't Love You More and Blue Chips draw on Atlantic Coast moods rooted in North Carolina and Virginia. In 2026 they released their first Fonville x Fribush EP, R&B Organ Trio, featuring Charlie Hunter.