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Eric Clapton’s Crossroads Guitar Festival Returns to Austin’s Moody Center September 26-27 With Pete Townshend, Trey Anastasio, Joe Bonamassa, and Dozens More

Eric Alper
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Eric Clapton’s Crossroads Guitar Festival Returns to Austin’s Moody Center September 26-27 With Pete Townshend, Trey Anastasio, Joe Bonamassa, and Dozens More

Eric Clapton’s Crossroads Guitar Festival returns for its seventh edition September 26-27 at the Moody Center in Austin, Texas, celebrating the 28th anniversary of the Crossroads Centre Antigua addiction recovery center. Clapton performs both nights alongside a lineup that brings together returning Crossroads veterans Joe Bonamassa, Gary Clark Jr., Billy Gibbons, Buddy Guy, John Mayer, Tedeschi Trucks Band, and Jimmie Vaughan with first-timers Trey Anastasio, Tommy Emmanuel, Julian Lage, and Pete Townshend. The full roster spans blues, jazz, bluegrass, country, and rock in a way that only this festival consistently delivers.

Beyond the main stage performances and all-star collaborations, Guitar Center’s onsite Guitar Center Experience opens two hours before showtime daily, featuring a Legends Collection exhibit showcasing Clapton’s own 1956 Fender Stratocaster and 1964 Gibson ES-335, the latter played during his time with Cream. Guitar Center will also induct a yet-to-be-announced artist into its RockWalk during the festival weekend. Moody Center SVP of Entertainment Michael Owens calls it plainly: “Out of the more than 380 concerts we’ve hosted since opening in 2022, this is poised to be one of the most iconic events ever to take place in our arena.”

Previous editions of Crossroads have taken place in New York, Dallas, and Los Angeles. Austin’s Moody Center, located in the self-proclaimed Live Music Capital of the World, is a natural home for a festival of this scale and significance. Tickets go on sale Friday, April 3 at 10am local time.

Full Lineup (alphabetical):

Trey Anastasio, Joe Bonamassa, Eric Clapton, Gary Clark Jr., Tommy Emmanuel, Billy Gibbons, Buddy Guy, Ben Haggard, Sierra Hull, Marcus King, Sonny Landreth, Julian Lage, Taj Mahal, Pedro Martins, John Mayer, Del McCoury Band, John McLaughlin, Keb’ Mo’, Dirk Powell, Robert Randolph, Kurt Rosenwinkel, Daniel Santiago, Tedeschi Trucks Band, Pete Townshend, Jimmie Vaughan, Bradley Walker & Brothers of the Heart

Turnstile and Death Cab for Cutie Head Up a Stacked 2026 Bumbershoot Lineup in Seattle

Eric Alper
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Turnstile and Death Cab for Cutie Head Up a Stacked 2026 Bumbershoot Lineup in Seattle

Bumbershoot is back for 2026, and the two-day Seattle festival has assembled one of its strongest lineups in years. Turnstile headlines Saturday September 5 on a day that also includes Japanese Breakfast, Bikini Kill, Peaches, Chase and Status, Blood Orange, and rising Seattle hip-hop acts Travis Thompson and Oblé Reed. Death Cab for Cutie close out the festival on Sunday September 6 alongside De La Soul, Orville Peck, Yves Tumor, Sudan Archives, and ATARASHII GAKKO!, with Noname celebrating the 10th anniversary of her breakthrough mixtape ‘Telefone’ in what promises to be one of the weekend’s most memorable sets.

The festival takes place September 5 and 6 at Seattle Center, spread across 74 acres surrounding the iconic Space Needle, with visual art and culinary programming running throughout. Tickets are on sale now in General Admission, GA+ Re-entry, and Deluxe tiers, along with a Sip and Stroll Experience allowing open containers across the campus. Children 12 and under are admitted free with a ticketed adult.

Saturday, September 5:

Turnstile, Japanese Breakfast, Blood Orange, Chase & Status, Bikini Kill, Molchat Doma, Joey Valence & Brae, Peaches, Die Spitz, Silvana Estrada, Pixel Grip, Cain, Culto, Travis Thompson, Oblé Reed, XCOMM, Anthers, Juliet Daniel, Aryana León, Bexley

Sunday, September 6:

Death Cab for Cutie, Orville Peck, De La Soul, Yves Tumor, ATARASHII GAKKO!, Sudan Archives, Tokimonsta, Goldie Boutilier, Noname – 10th Anniversary of ‘Telefone’, 54 Ultra, Sextile, PawPaw Rod, W.I.T.C.H., Takuya Nakamura, Daughters of Venus, Lucha Luna, Hannah Duckworth, Morgan Paris Lanza, American Flats

Pavement Headline Philadelphia’s Make the World Better Benefit Concert July 24 With Ratboys in Support

Eric Alper
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Pavement Headline Philadelphia’s Make the World Better Benefit Concert July 24 With Ratboys in Support

Pavement are heading to Philadelphia’s Dell Music Center on July 24 to headline the first night of the Make the World Better concert weekend, a long-running benefit series organized by R5 Productions that raises funds for revitalizing public spaces across the Philadelphia area. Chicago’s Ratboys join on the first night, while night two features Matador alumni Kurt Vile and the Violators alongside local rising acts They Are Gutting a Body of Water and Twisted Teens. Tickets go on general sale April 3 at 10am ET.

The Philadelphia date is part of a handful of U.S. summer shows for Pavement, taking in Oakland’s Mosswood Meltdown, Portland, Seattle, Chicago, Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium, and a fall appearance at Shaky Knees in Atlanta. Stephen Malkmus, Mark Ibold, Scott “Spiral Stairs” Kannberg, Bob Nastanovich, and Steve West remain one of the most beloved units to emerge from the American underground, responsible for five essential records between 1992 and 1999, from ‘Slanted And Enchanted’ through to ‘Terror Twilight’. Their 2022 reunion saw them headline Primavera Sound and sell out multi-night runs in Los Angeles, New York, and London. Every date on this summer run is worth showing up for.

Tour Dates:

July 17 – Oakland, CA – Mosswood Meltdown Pre-Party

July 18 – Portland, OR – Revolution Hall

July 19 – Seattle, WA – Woodland Park Zoo

July 21 – Saint Paul, MN – Palace Theatre

July 22 – Chicago, IL – The Salt Shed

July 23 – Cleveland, OH – Agora Theater & Ballroom

July 24 – Philadelphia, PA – Make the World Better

July 25 – Richmond, VA – The National

July 27 – Nashville, TN – Ryman Auditorium

Sept 19 – Atlanta, GA – Shaky Knees

Deep Purple Announce North American Summer Tour With Kansas and Jefferson Starship

Eric Alper
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Deep Purple Announce North American Summer Tour With Kansas and Jefferson Starship

Deep Purple are heading back to North America this summer with Kansas as special guest and Jefferson Starship supporting on select dates. The tour kicks off August 4 at Red Hat Amphitheater in Raleigh and runs through September 12 at Nugget Event Center in Sparks, Nevada, with stops in Hollywood, Wantagh, Toronto, Halifax, Detroit, Indianapolis, Calgary, Vancouver, and more. Presale tickets are available now at deeppurple.com using code DPBAND, with VIP experiences also on offer including meet and greet opportunities, limited edition autographed posters, and exclusive merchandise.

Deep Purple last toured in 2024, with one of their most successful shows landing at Zenith Paris in November of that year. This summer run brings together three of classic rock’s most enduring names across 24 dates, and it is exactly the kind of bill that sells out sheds from coast to coast.

Tour Dates:

Aug 4 – Raleigh, NC – Red Hat Amphitheater

Aug 8 – Clearwater, FL – The Daycare Sound

Aug 9 – Hollywood, FL – Hard Rock Casino

Aug 12 – Wantagh, NY – Jones Beach Theater

Aug 13 – Mansfield, MA – Xfinity Center *

Aug 15 – Halifax, NS – Scotiabank Centre *

Aug 17 – Laval, QC – Bell Place *

Aug 18 – Toronto, ON – RBC Amphitheatre *

Aug 19 – Ottawa, ON – Canadian Tire Centre *

Aug 21 – Detroit, MI – Pine Knob

Aug 22 – Salamanca, NY – Seneca Allegany Casino

Aug 24 – Indianapolis, IN – Everwise Amphitheatre

Aug 25 – Highland Park, IL – Ravinia

Aug 27 – Prior Lake, MN – Mystic Lake Casino

Aug 29 – Winnipeg, MB – Canada Life Centre *

Aug 31 – Calgary, AB – Scotiabank Saddledome *

Sept 2 – Abbotsford, BC – Abbotsford Centre *

Sept 4 – Lincoln, CA – Thunder Valley *

Sept 5 – Mountain View, CA – Shoreline Amphitheatre *

Sept 6 – Highland, CA – Yaamava Theatre

Sept 8 – Chula Vista, CA – North Island Credit Union Amp *

Sept 10 – Las Vegas, NV – Planet Hollywood

Sept 11 – Long Beach, CA – Long Beach Amphitheater

Sept 12 – Sparks, NV – Nugget Event Center

*with Jefferson Starship

President Announces 2026 North American Headlining Tour With Support From Cenobia and Showing Teeth

Eric Alper
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President Announces 2026 North American Headlining Tour With Support From Cenobia and Showing Teeth

Fresh off their first-ever full U.S. run supporting Bad Omens, UK-based masked collective President are returning to North America this fall to headline their own coast-to-coast run. Produced by Live Nation, the 26-date tour kicks off September 4 at Brooklyn Bowl in Nashville and wraps October 14 at House of Blues in Dallas, hitting Chicago, Brooklyn, Toronto, Montreal, Boston, Atlanta, Denver, Seattle, Los Angeles, and more along the way. Cenobia and Showing Teeth join as support on select dates. Presales open April 2, with general on sale April 3 at 10am local time.

Operating since 2025 under a cloak of anonymity and refusing to conform to traditional genre or identity structures, President has been building serious momentum with each single and live performance. Their latest track “Mercy” arrives with perfectly executed dynamics, blending memorable melodies and heavy riffs with gritty breakdowns into another fully realized anthem. Multi-million streams in and a headlining tour locked in, President is moving fast and on their own terms.

Tour Dates:

Sept 4 – Nashville, TN – Brooklyn Bowl

Sept 5 – St. Louis, MO – Delmar Hall

Sept 8 – Chicago, IL – Riviera Theatre

Sept 10 – Brooklyn, NY – Brooklyn Paramount

Sept 11 – Toronto, ON – Danforth Music Hall

Sept 12 – Montreal, QC – MTELUS

Sept 13 – Boston, MA – Big Night Live

Sept 15 – Philadelphia, PA – Theatre of Living Arts

Sept 16 – Silver Spring, MD – The Fillmore Silver Spring

Sept 19 – Huntsville, AL – Mars Music Hall

Sept 20 – Charlotte, NC – The Underground

Sept 22 – Buena Vista, FL – House of Blues

Sept 23 – Atlanta, GA – Buckhead Theatre

Sept 25 – Kansas City, MO – Warehouse On Broadway

Sept 26 – Denver, CO – Summit Music Hall

Sept 28 – Salt Lake City, UT – The Depot

Sept 29 – Las Vegas, NV – Brooklyn Bowl

Oct 1 – Garden City, ID – Revolution Concert House & Event Center

Oct 2 – Seattle, WA – The Neptune Theatre

Oct 6 – Berkeley, CA – The UC Theatre

Oct 7 – Los Angeles, CA – The Wiltern

Oct 9 – San Diego, CA – House of Blues

Oct 10 – Phoenix, AZ – The Van Buren

Oct 12 – San Antonio, TX – The Aztec Theatre

Oct 13 – Houston, TX – House of Blues

Oct 14 – Dallas, TX – House of Blues

Rising Country Powerhouse Preston Cooper Hits the Gas at Radio With New Single “One for the Road”

Eric Alper
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Rising Country Powerhouse Preston Cooper Hits the Gas at Radio With New Single “One for the Road”

Preston Cooper is bringing full-throttle energy to country radio with his new single “One For The Road,” out now via Blue Highway Records. Written alongside hitmakers Brad Warren and Brett Warren, the guitar-driven anthem blends heartland storytelling with a rebellious, Black Crowes-inspired edge, painting vivid snapshots of small-town life and open-road freedom. Cooper calls it straight: “It’s one that people have been requesting, so we’re giving it to them just in time to turn it up with the windows down.”

The track has already been making noise well before its radio impact date. “One For The Road” has been adopted as soundtrack music for ESPN’s College GameDay, Fox Sports’ NASCAR coverage, and Fox Sports’ NCAA Ohio State football coverage, and Cooper first sparked early programmer support with a standing-ovation performance at last year’s Country Radio Seminar. “When I wrote this song, it reminded me of what I grew up listening to,” he says. “It stays true to who I am musically and I’m so excited to show the world what I have to offer.”

Cooper carries serious momentum into this release. His breakout 2025 included touring with Riley Green and Kameron Marlowe, the release of his debut album ‘Toledo Talkin”, and a Grand Ole Opry debut introduced by Vince Gill. Most recently he earned his first outside songwriter credits on two of Gill’s February releases, a milestone that speaks to exactly the kind of artist Cooper is becoming.

A summer packed with live shows and festival dates lies ahead, and “One For The Road” is the perfect soundtrack for all of it.

Dua Lipa Takes the Reins as Curator of the 2026 London Literature Festival This October

Eric Alper
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Dua Lipa Takes the Reins as Curator of the 2026 London Literature Festival This October

Dua Lipa is stepping into a new role this fall. The Southbank Centre has announced that the GRAMMY and Brit Award-winning global superstar and founder of the Service95 Book Club will curate the 2026 London Literature Festival, running October 21 through November 1. Lipa will lead events during the opening weekend of October 24-25 and contribute programming throughout the festival in partnership with her Service95 Book Club. “Reading has anchored me through every chapter of my life,” she says. “Curating the Southbank Centre’s London Literature Festival is a dream come true. I’m thrilled to indulge one of my greatest obsessions: books and the brilliant minds behind them.”

The festival marks its 19th edition as part of the Southbank Centre’s 75th anniversary year, taking place during the National Year of Reading. It is the longest-running literature and spoken word festival in London, with previous headliners including Ai Weiwei, Greta Thunberg, Malala Yousafzai, Margaret Atwood, Philip Pullman, Tom Hanks, and Yulia Navalnaya. Self-Esteem held the curator role in 2025. Lipa’s programming will feature a mix of established and emerging writers alongside an array of free events, with a national program reaching one million people across more than 40 towns and cities in all four nations of the UK.

Launched in 2023, Service95 Book Club sees Lipa select a monthly book and sit down with its author for an accompanying podcast. Her advocacy extends beyond the platform itself, with a particular focus on marginalized readers facing barriers to books, including those affected by book bans or incarceration. Bringing that passion to one of London’s most iconic cultural institutions is a natural next step for an artist who has consistently operated well beyond the boundaries of pop music.

This is a significant cultural moment, and the full program will be one worth watching closely as it comes together.

Benson Boone Takes the “Wanted Man Tour” Across North America This Summer

Eric Alper
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Benson Boone Takes the “Wanted Man Tour” Across North America This Summer

Benson Boone is heading back out on the road. The 2026 Wanted Man Tour kicks off July 7 in Pittsburgh and runs through September 3 in Casper, WY, covering 34 arena dates across North America. Presales open Wednesday, April 1, with general on sale following Friday, April 3 at 11am local time. The announcement comes on the heels of a sold-out global American Heart Tour and a headline set at the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium in San Francisco as part of the Super Bowl LX concert series.

Boone arrives at this tour with serious commercial momentum behind him. His second studio album ‘American Heart’, released in June 2025, debuted in the Top 10 in 10 countries including number 2 in the U.S. and Canada and number 1 in Australia and New Zealand. During release week he held 3 songs simultaneously on the Billboard Hot 100, with “Mystical Magical” and “Sorry I’m Here For Someone Else” both surpassing half a billion streams each. His Saturday Night Live debut in May 2025 featured both tracks, and the album’s momentum has shown no signs of slowing.

The foundation for all of it remains “Beautiful Things,” the eight-times platinum breakthrough from his debut album ‘Fireworks & Rollerblades’ that became the number 1 most-streamed song in the world in 2024. It logged 7 weeks at number 1 on the Billboard Global 200, hit number 1 at Top 40, Hot AC, and AC radio, and earned Boone two Billboard Music Awards, an MTV Video Music Award, an iHeartRadio Music Award, and the BMI Champion Award among others. Last April at Coachella, he brought out Brian May of Queen for a viral rendition of “Bohemian Rhapsody,” a moment that encapsulated exactly where Boone sits right now: a genuine superstar operating at full scale.

The Wanted Man Tour is arena-sized and coast-to-coast. Tickets go on sale April 3.

Tour Dates:

July 7 – Pittsburgh, PA – PPG Paints Arena

July 8 – Baltimore, MD – CFG Bank Arena

July 10 – Brooklyn, NY – Barclays Center

July 11 – Brooklyn, NY – Barclays Center

July 13 – Newark, NJ – Prudential Center

July 15 – Boston, MA – TD Garden

July 16 – Albany, NY – MVP Arena

July 18 – Cincinnati, OH – Heritage Bank Center

July 19 – Indianapolis, IN – Gainbridge Fieldhouse

July 22 – Milwaukee, WI – Fiserv Forum

July 24 – Rosemont, IL – Allstate Arena

July 27 – St. Louis, MO – Enterprise Center

July 28 – Tulsa, OK – BOK Center

July 30 – Denver, CO – Ball Arena

Aug 2 – Spokane, WA – Numerica Veterans Arena

Aug 4 – Seattle, WA – Climate Pledge Arena

Aug 5 – Portland, OR – Moda Center

Aug 7 – San Jose, CA – SAP Center at San Jose

Aug 8 – Sacramento, CA – Golden 1 Center

Aug 10 – Los Angeles, CA – Crypto.com Arena

Aug 11 – Los Angeles, CA – Crypto.com Arena

Aug 14 – Las Vegas, NV – T-Mobile Arena

Aug 15 – San Diego, CA – Pechanga Arena

Aug 17 – Phoenix, AZ – Mortgage Matchup Center

Aug 20 – San Antonio, TX – Frost Bank Center

Aug 21 – Dallas, TX – American Airlines Center

Aug 23 – New Orleans, LA – Smoothie King Center

Aug 25 – Jacksonville, FL – VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena

Aug 26 – Charlotte, NC – Spectrum Center

Aug 28 – Birmingham, AL – Legacy Arena at the BJCC

Aug 29 – North Little Rock, AR – Simmons Bank Arena

Aug 31 – Kansas City, MO – T-Mobile Center

Sept 1 – Omaha, NE – CHI Health Center

Sept 3 – Casper, WY – Ford Wyoming Center

Queen Celebrate ‘Queen II’ With Lavish Collector’s Edition Box Set Featuring Remixes, Outtakes, and Unseen Memorabilia

Eric Alper
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Queen Celebrate ‘Queen II’ With Lavish Collector’s Edition Box Set Featuring Remixes, Outtakes, and Unseen Memorabilia

Queen are streaming the newly released ‘Queen II’ Collector’s Edition, out now via Hollywood Records. The lavish 5CD+2LP box set features a brand new 2026 remix and remaster of the album, intimate fly-on-the-wall studio audio, previously unheard outtakes and demos, live tracks, radio sessions, and a 112-page book packed with unseen photographs, handwritten lyrics, diary entries, special memorabilia, and band memories from the recording sessions. Brian May speaks to the album’s significance directly: “Queen II was the single biggest leap we ever made. That’s when we really started making music the way we wanted to, rather than the way we were being pushed into recording it.”

Arguably Queen’s heaviest record, ‘Queen II’ reached number 5 on the UK album charts and delivered the band its first hit single when “Seven Seas Of Rhye” reached number 10 in the UK. The Collector’s Edition is also available in 2xCD Deluxe, Vinyl LP, Vinyl Picture Disc LP, 1xCD, and cassette formats, all featuring the new 2026 mix. For a record this important to the Queen catalogue, this kind of treatment is long overdue and entirely earned.

Steve Martin and Alison Brown Drop Clever “New Cluck Old Hen” Video Featuring Della Mae

Eric Alper
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Steve Martin and Alison Brown Drop Clever “New Cluck Old Hen” Video Featuring Della Mae

GRAMMY Award-winning banjoists Steve Martin and Alison Brown have shared the video for their chart-topping single “New Cluck Old Hen,” premiered by People Magazine and filmed at Brooklyn’s beloved folk venue Jalopy. The track features all-female bluegrass powerhouse quartet Della Mae, with Celia Woodsmith’s emotive lead vocals sitting perfectly alongside Martin’s reimagined lyrics for the traditional Appalachian folk song “Cluck Old Hen.” Martin explains the origin simply: “I always loved the classic American mountain tune ‘Cluck Old Hen.’ Its only problem was it was about chickens. So one day I decided to see if I could give it a new lyric spin. Alison agreed and arranged it with ‘power/bluegrass/fusion.’ Whatever that is.”

Brown knew immediately who belonged on the track. “Once I read Steve’s lyrics I knew Della Mae would be perfect for the song,” she says. “And they totally laid down the law, bringing the perfect combination of bluegrass drive and femme attitude to the track.” Della Mae delivers exactly that, with Kimber Ludiker on fiddle, Avril Smith on guitar, and Vickie Vaughn on bass rounding out a performance that lands as a fitting capstone to Women’s History Month.

“New Cluck Old Hen” appears on Brown and Martin’s debut collaborative album ‘Safe, Sensible and Sane’, out now via Compass Records. The record showcases a wide-ranging evolution of banjo music with contributions from Jackson Browne, Vince Gill, Indigo Girls, Tim O’Brien, Aoife O’Donovan, and Jason Mraz. Billboard named their collaboration with Jackson Browne, “Dear Time,” one of the 100 Best Songs of 2025, and both artists are currently featured in the American Currents exhibit at the Country Music Hall of Fame.

Over three years of collaboration, Martin and Brown have produced 4 number one singles on bluegrass radio and accumulated more than 77 million views across social media platforms. Alison Brown made history as the first female recipient of the IBMA’s Banjo Player of the Year award back in 1991, while Martin was named Entertainer of the Year in 2011 and founded the Steve Martin Banjo Prize, awarding over $500,000 to banjo players across genres. This is a partnership firing on all cylinders, and “New Cluck Old Hen” is the proof.

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That Eric Alper

Eric Alper is a 6-time nominee for Publicist of the Year during Canadian Music Week and has overseen the publicity campaigns for over 183 JUNO Award-nominated albums (and 16 in 2025), 45 Grammy-nominated albums, including 47 JUNO Award, 58 Canadian Folk Music Award, 126 Maple Blues Award-winning albums and is also truly honoured to work with some of the biggest and most important artists of our time.

Contact me: eric@thatericalper.com

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