Concert

As part of their St. Patrick's Day 2026 tour, the Dropkick Murphy's will return to Portland, Maine, at the State Theater in February

Maine’s had its fair share of iconic alternative rock shows over the years. Pearl Jam, Foo Fighters , Red Hot Chili Peppers, Dave Matthews Band, and Smashing Pumpkins...just to name a few have all played in our state, however a surprising number of well-known legends… just haven’t.

The Foo Fighters were blowing up at the time, to the point that the days of playing smaller venues would shortly be behind them, but not until they rocked Portland, Maine, at the State Theatre.

Concord is home to the historic Chubb Theater. Each year, the acts at the Chubb theater bring people from all over the Granite State. Here's the complete lineup so far.

I was going through my ticket stub collection recently – yep, big nerd alert – and noticed that the State Theatre was poppin’ with some big shows in the spring of 2012. People were done with winter, ready to get out of the house, and the State gave us plenty to do.

Two decades have passed since Green Day brought their explosive American Idiot tour to Portland, Maine. Back in April 2005. When word got out that they were playing the Cumberland County Civic Center, Mainers went full meltdown mode—in the best way.

Paul Simon will be at the Boch Center, a/k/a Wang Theater in Boston for three nights, June 10, 12 & 13, 2025

On April 23, 2005, Mötley Crüe brought their Red, White & Crüe Tour to Portland, delivering exactly what fans had hoped for—classic Crue tunes, pyrotechnics, pounding drums, and all the glam-metal theatrics. But the night didn’t go off without a little chaos.

This is the age old question.

On April 18, 2009, Disturbed brought their "Music as a Weapon IV" tour to town with Killswitch Engage, Lacuna Coil, and Chimaira. Before the band gave Portland the show that they had come to love, singer David Draiman opened up about what was an trying and emotional year.

At the time, there was really only one of these 4 bands that played the State Theatre that night that had hit the mainstream. The others? They were bands in the underground scene that were gaining popularity by touring and word of mouth.

​Fifteen years ago, on April 15, 2010. It was a first night of a new leg of the big reunion tour. Alice In Chains made a triumphant return to Portland, Maine, performing at the Cumberland County Civic Center, and the crowd went wild.

Up until 2006, there was also a little-known, totally random loophole in place where you could purchase your concert and event tickets in Maine, without having to pay all of the extra fees that came with them—and it was a place where you’d least expect it inside the Maine Mall.

Time Warping back to March 31, 2016. It was one of those early spring days in Portland, Maine and we were gearing up for one of the biggest shows of the year with Cage The Elephant, Silversun Pickups, Foals and Bear Hands at the Cross Insurance Arena.

Big changes could be coming to Portland’s live music scene, and not everyone is thrilled.

It’s hard to believe it’s been five years since one of my favorite Portland concert spots hosted its last show on March 12, 2020. Against Me! took the stage for what no one knew at the time would be the venue’s farewell show. In a very strang...