March Charlotte Local Music Concert Guide

By Shirley Griffith

March 2, 2023

Sarah Blumenthal (Alright, Faye) and Madison Lucas (Modern Moxie)

Friday, March 3 at Goodyear Arts at 6 p.m.

Tickets: Free 

For the first time this year, Goodyear Arts will host this free, intimate porch show featuring two of Charlotte’s leading indie singer-songwriters, Sarah Blumenthal Robbins (Alright, Faye) and Madison Lucas (Modern Moxie). Each will perform a rare, special solo set of original music in support of the traveling Lizzie Trouble (of Teens in Trouble) and Tierney Tough (of The Pauses). The current Goodyear Arts exhibit Internal Powers, External Forces, will be open to the public as well. 

Telepathetics

Saturday, March 4 at Snug Harbor at 10 p.m.

Tickets: $12 plus 

Telepathetics are a Rock Hill-based project that blends experimental synth with uninhibited, sneering punk energy in a nod to the avant No Wave genre. Telepathetics’ unapologetic noise rock finds its charm in the magnificently imposing Mike Gentry as frontman and vocalist. Also worthwhile is catching the always intriguing post punk outfit Jenny Bestzt, who will be popping down from Raleigh for the night. Their indie rock and cavernous dark-wave styles create an electrifying live set. 

Jordyn Zaino

Saturday, March 4 at The Milestone at 9 p.m.

Tickets: $10 plus 

Jordyn Zaino is a genre-fluid singer-songwriter who continues to blow crowds away with their vast, expressive vocal prowess and stripped-bare guitar stylings reminiscent of Adult Mom or English musician Nilufer Yanya. Zaino started as a solo performer in 2017 and released their first album, a live recording named “who we weren’t” in 2022, which focuses on moving forward as a healing act despite past disappointments and illusions. 

Braxton Bateman 

Tuesday, March 7 at The Evening Muse at 7 p.m.

Tickets: $20 plus 

Braxton Bateman is an eccentric and heart-led multi-instrumentalist who’s bringing an exciting show, Put Yo Phone Down: Live Music Unplugged to the Evening Muse listening room. Put Yo Phone Down will feature a medley of Bateman’s friends including saxophonist Cannoli, Michael Holt, Darielle Mcduffie, Jalen Robinson, Jesse Williams, and Butler Knowles. All will share the stage in a high energy, warm fusion of syncopated rhythms, bombastic melodies, and improvisational harmony. 

Dipstick

Saturday, March 11 at Snug Harbor at 10 p.m.

Tickets: $10 plus 

Dipstick is a sleazy late ‘90s-2000s era rock-influenced band who dresses the part. It may seem like a gag at first, but the band’s personified and perfected arrangements of psychedelic guitar solos and eclectic percussion pay an accurate and cunning honor to nostalgic titans like Stone Temple Pilots or Sublime. Christian Spence shines when he embodies the fusion of glam, grunge, and filth-pop as the band’s dazzling frontperson. 

Josh Cotterino

Wednesday, March 15 at Snug Harbor at 10 p.m.

Tickets: $10 plus 

For over a decade Josh Cotterino has filled rooms with his intriguing DIY, ‘80s-influenced synth pop. Cotterino brings a psychedelic levity to goth-dom with Cotterino’s contorted vocals wriggling through the forest floor of wiry synth tones. Last month, Cotterino and Nashville musician Devin Lynn released a collaborative track and twisted music video for “Sweat and the City” which will be on Lynn’s forthcoming album.   

Nige Hood, Elijah Rosario, and Kenny Wavinson 

Thursday, March 16 at The Evening Muse at 7 p.m.

Tickets: $20 plus

Nige Hood is an artist whose flow bridges the gap between folk, rap, and alternative stylings in a charismatic and artful way. Whether he’s got his full band behind him or just a beat, Hood’s engaging energy always makes a rewarding set and places him as a gem in the local roster. Nige Hood and Greensboro’s Kenny Wavinson will be opening for Durham-based urban pop artist Elijah Rosario who draws comparisons to contemporaries like PARTYNEXTDOOR and The Weeknd.  

Ghost Trees

Saturday, March 18 at Petra’s at 8 p.m.

Tickets: $7 plus  

Ghost Trees is an avant, free jazz duo from Charlotte composed of musicians Brent Bagwell on tenor saxophone and Seth Nanaa on drums. Listening to Ghost Trees is like viewing abstract art– you take what you need from it, wonder what it’s trying to express, and whether you’ve met that expression inside yourself, too. Their performances are beautiful and improvisational with chaotic transience. The evening also features Asheville’s Okapi and Baltimore, MD’s Piano Trio.

Julian Calendar

Thursday, March 23 at Snug Harbor at 10 p.m.

Tickets: $12 plus

Julian Calendar opens for rockers Eyelids, a band featuring current and former members of Decemberists, Guided By Voices, Camper Van Beethoven, and Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks. Dubbed as Charlotte’s coolest art-punk collective, Julian Calendar pulls influences from genres like post-punk, disco, garage rock, electronica, new wave, and more to dream up a unique style. Among the band’s immensely talented roster are composer Jeremy Fisher and novelist Jeff Jackson, who collaborate on this expansive approach to sound. They’re best heard live or you can check out their newly released EP, Forgeries of the Future.

Yugo

Friday, March 24 at Petra’s at 9 p.m.

Tickets: $10 plus 

Yugo is a shimmering synth-pop band originally from Nashville but now based in Charlotte. Consisting of Jamey Meeker, Josiah Maltby, Daniel Kim, Austin Gray, and Kelly Hollar, Yugo’s music has polished, modern production and an emphasis on electro pop melodies showing clear influence from bands like The 1975 and LANY. The band shares the night with Boston’s effervescent indie pop-rockers The Q-Tip Bandits and Ambyr.

Time Sawyer (Album Release)

Friday, March 31 at The Evening Muse at 7:30 p.m.

Tickets: $20 plus

Time Sawyer is an alt-country folk rock band that has honed its craft playing the festival circuit for years on stages like Merlefest, Bristol Rhythm & Roots, and Floydfest. The band closes out March with an album release party for their new full-length, Dig A Little Deeper. Time Sawyer is known for whittled, storytelling soundscapes that blend folk, soul, and bluegrass into one intentional jamboree. 

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