One of the best things about living in the Bay Area is the abundance of live music we get to experience from local and touring artists. This year, the KALW Music team got to see some childhood favorites and local legends, bring their listeners together and even open for one of the acts. Plus, there was one pilgrimage to New York for a very special show. We’re also lucky enough to partner with some fantastic venues (check out KALW Presents) so we can spread the magic of live music with our listeners. Read on to relive some of our favorite shows from this year.
BadBadNotGood & Baby Rose at The Warfield
"Easily, BadBadNotGood & Baby Rose at The Warfield was my favorite show of the year. Though I had the privilege of being the opening DJ, the honor was simply being in attendance. I’m wise enough to grasp there’s a lot of unexplainable phenomena in The Universe and experiences we can’t justify with words, but what I felt was simply “transcendental.” Jazz, Brazilian, and soulfulness were all displayed that night, and to be blessed at the end with Baby Rose & BBNG covering D’angelo’s “Untitled” left a huge impression. Give yourself the gift and see BBNG and Baby Rose when you can."
Justin Adams & Mauro Durante at The Freight
"My favorite Bay Area live show was Justin Adams and Mauro Durante at the Freight on November 26. It was a sublime evening that started with 17 KALW/Tangents listeners meeting for a pre-concert meal in Berkeley. And then wow...Mario and Justin blew the audience away. They epitomize the musical cross-pollination and creative fusion at the heart of Tangents.
Adams and Durante bonded over the trance-inducing rhythms and healing qualities of pizzica taranta music and have created a unique music hybrid. Durante is a passionate and at times ecstatic singer and outstanding violinist. However it's his mastery of the frame drum, especially tambourine that sets him apart. If you see Mauro Durante perform, you will not think of a tambourine the same way again. Teamed with the versatile and dynamic guitarist Justin Adams, the music seamlessly shifted from rock and trance blues to southern Italian taranta and African sounds. This show will remain frozen in my memory."
Kathy Kallick & Laurie Lewis at the Hillside Club
"Kathy Kallick and Laurie Lewis started singing together in 1975, when they co-founded the Good Ol’ Persons. As part of their 50th anniversary tour, they gave a concert at Berkeley’s Hillside Club on August 24th. Their band included three outstanding musicians from younger generations — fiddler Annie Staninec, mandolinist Jesse Appleman, and banjo player Christine Wilhoyt — and their repertoire ranged from songs of the Carter Family and Vern & Ray to their own highly-regarded original compositions. Kathy & Laurie’s harmonies are still thrilling, the material compelling, and the camaraderie and joy undeniable. A memorable show at a great venue."
Femi Kuti at the UC Theatre
"Femi Kuti, heir to the creator of the original afrobeat style (Fela Kuti), performed at the UC Theatre in Berkeley on August 9 as part of his "Politics Don Expose Them” tour. I interviewed Femi prior to this show celebrating his new album, Journey Through Life, which he said balances his political messages with personal reflection. His performance featured boundless energy, a potent blend of funk, jazz and highlife. On stage, Femi embodies a “Positive Force” as the name of his band, with remarkable consistency and stamina even at his advanced age. The show was another celebratory moment."
Surprise Chef at The Independent
"On a frigid, foggy summer night in SF, people from all walks of life packed into The Independent for a sweaty, sold-out show from a little-known instrumental combo visiting from Australia.
Surprise Chef perform a blend of cinematic jazz, soul, and funk based on a groove that could get anyone to dance. The stage was set with a vintage keyboard array, tons of hand percussion, and a rat's nest of well-worn guitar pedals. Embracing the retro, analog sounds of '70s film scores, the band released a series of 45s on Big Crown which became collectible and launched their international fanbase.
The chefs performed tracks from their albums Superb, Education & Recreation, and their collaboration with Rich Brian and Ghostface Killah. The vibe in the room was as thick as the smoke while a mixed crowd moved with the band’s every groove. The drummer, Andrew Congues, was like a polyrhythmic clock as the rest of the band found the empty spaces to fit in, creating a Meters-like pocket to move to. It was only their second show in SF, but the sold-out crowd begged them to come back for an encore and return with more of their music. Hope to hear these Aussies back in town soon."
— J Boogie
Los Mirlos at Great American Music Hall
"The best part about Coachella lasting two weekends is that sometimes acts will travel to the Bay to squeeze in a show between their appearances at the festival. Los Mirlos were the first-ever Peruvian band to play the festival, and they performed in San Francisco for the first time as part of their “Ayahuasca 2025” tour. This special treat was reflected in the audience - from throughout the Bay, all the tías, abuelitas, hipsters, and kids (yes, it was an all ages, family style type of show) were squeezed in for the sold out Great American, with Combo Tezeta opening.
Folks befriended their neighbors, looking out for each other while dancing to the psychedelic Amazonian cumbia sounds that have been hitting from the ‘70s til now. Sporting matching leaf print jerseys with coral colored pants, while psychedelic graphics were displayed on the screen behind them, they offered fans an impeccable, joyful performance including crowd favorites like ‘La Danza de los Mirlos,’ ‘Sonido Amazonico,’ and ‘Cumbia de los Pajaritos.’ Grateful I got to witness <3"
The Prodigy at The Warfield
"Seeing The Prodigy back in April felt like visiting a holy site that still shakes. That sold-out Sunday night at The Warfield pulled in everyone touched by their reach–from punks and metalheads to long-retired ravers, proof of how deep their influence runs across genres. Keith Flint’s presence loomed large; you could feel it in every snarling bassline and cracked breakbeat. When the band paused to honor him with a short slideshow, ending on those unmistakable eyes, the room exploded into a roaring, emotional frenzy. Lasers and lights pulsed like a warehouse rave from another lifetime. I’ve loved this band since I was a kid, since The Fat of the Land first rewired my brain, and somehow, decades later, it all still feels urgent. A reminder of why this band still matters."
Zach Bryan at Golden Gate Park
"Friday, August 15, 2025, at San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park Polo Field will go down as one of the most memorable nights of my year. Zach Bryan delivered a performance that was nothing short of outstanding, bringing raw emotion and unfiltered storytelling to an outdoor stage that seemed made for him. Part of the Golden Gate Park Concerts series, the show also featured Kings of Leon and the Turnpike Troubadours, but it was Bryan’s set that truly stole the evening.
The atmosphere was electric from the first note. Thousands of fans swaying under the open sky, the golden light of sunset stretching across the Polo Field—it felt cinematic, like the perfect backdrop for his ruggedly tender voice. Zach’s storytelling is his superpower, and live, it becomes something almost sacred. Every lyric landed with the weight of lived experience, whether he was singing heart-wrenching ballads or stripped-down anthems that had the entire crowd singing along."
— Eryka
Basement Jaxx at The Regency Ballroom
"Without a doubt, Basement Jaxx at The Regency Ballroom is the show I wish I could return to every night. The British DJ duo basically played a greatest hits set peaking with a “Where’s Your Head At” drum and bass breakdown. The visuals - elaborate dancers, larger-than-life costumes, radiant vocalists - are seared into my memory in the best way.
Cleo Sol at Radio City Music Hall (NYC)
"Alongside friends and music aficionados from around the world I made a cross country pilgrimage and descended upon New York City's famed Radio City Music Hall to experience one of UK soul singer Cleo Sol's debut performances in the U.S. I imagine the anticipation and excitement inside the room that night was the closest this generation will ever come to seeing Helen Folasade Adu take the stage for the first time. By the time Cleo walked into the crowd to sing "Know That You Are Loved" we collectively accepted we came to be healed. The very definition of "you had to be there."
Honarable Mentions
Meshell Ndegeocello at SF Jazz
— Charlotte K
Regina Spektor at The Masonic
— Devon Strolovitch
Pointer Sisters at Stern Grove
— LadyRyan
Ritmos Tropicosmos w/ Deseos Primitivos at Thee Stork Club, Oakland
— Maria Yates