Select chronological listings.
LACMA on Wilshire Boulevard's Miracle Mile offers FREE outdoor jazz concerts every Friday at 6pm. Fri. May 26: spirit singer Dwight Trible. Fri. June 2: saxist Keschia Potter. Fri. June 9: soul-stirring pianist Theo Saunders. Fri. June 16: modernistic jazz with roots from Katalyst. Fri. June 23: Highland Park House Band. Full calendar here.
ETA, a bar in Highland Park, brings top local (etc.) jazz. Check in anytime here, as it often books on short notice. Fri. May 26: keyboardist Brandon Coleman's energetic quartet featuring Taiki Tsuyama, Ryan Porter & Lyndon Rochelle.
The World Stage in Leimert Park has Friday 8pm PT (and sometimes Saturday) in-person presentations with occasional simultaneous live streams of righteous jazz; keep up with the schedule here. Fri. May 26: vocalist Arnae Batson. Fri. June 2: Latin violinist Dayren Santamaria. Fri. June 9: perennial windman and educator Charles Owens. Fri. June 16: Pan Afrikan Peoples Arkestra. Fri. June 23: trumpeter in resurgence Nolan Shaheed. Fri. June 30: vocalist Nailah Porter. Check here for replays of past shows on the World Stage YouTube channel. Donations encouraged here.
The Whisky on Sunset Strip books metal etc. Fri. May 26: former Misfits monster Doyle. Sun. June 4: Japanese metal vets Loudness. Wed. June 14: Otep. Fri. June 30: Venom Inc., Exhumed. Sat. & Sun. July 1 & 2: Robby Krieger. Wed. Sept. 6: Uli Jon Roth. Calendar here.
The Baked Potato in Universal City presents fusion (etc.) concerts at 8 & 10pm. Fri.-Sun. May 26-28: trumpeter John Daversa Progressive Big Band. Wed. May 31: Danny Janklow Elevation. Sat. June 3: metaljazz at its finest, guitarist Jeff Kollman and Cosmosquad. Sun. June 11: tradition-plus from Joeless Shoe. Fri. June 23: Luis Conte. Wed. June 28: Mike Garson Trio. Fri. & Sat. Aug. 3 & 4: Greg Howe. Full schedule here.
The LAX-area bar Sam First offers 7:30pm and 9pm jazz shows, in person and sometimes STREAMING. Sat. May 27: classiest and most original coolsters around, L.A. Jazz Quartet. This and most Tuesdays: jams with world-class pianist Gerald Clayton. Fri. & Sat. June 9 & 10: pianist Eric Reed, with Ralph Moore on sax. Thurs. June 22: fusion superbassist Max Gerl Trio. Fri. June 23: guitarist Jacques Lesure. Look here for full schedule and options.
The Wiltern (Wilton & Western) occasionally harbors metal. Sat. May 27: ancient German and Brazilian metal from Kreator, Sepultura. Sat. Sept. 2: Kamelot. Full calendar here.
2220 Arts + Archives (Beverly Blvd. near Alvarado) hosts a variety of cultural presentations including jazz & electronic. Sat. & Sun. May 27 & 28: Iannis Xenakis Retrospective featuring a screening of the late avant composer's film "Persepolis" (Sat.) and a concert of his music (Sun.) Listings here.
The Mint (Pico & Crescent Heights) has mostly Sunday jazz shows. Sun. May 28: Jonah Shin Jazz Collective and Sam Hirsh Trio. Sun. June 4: Tritone Asylum Big Band and Sam Hirsh Trio. Sun. June 11: Doug MacDonald Trio and Sam Hirsh Trio. Sun. June 25: Low Poly Cactus and Sam Hirsh Trio. Check listings here.
Piano Spheres always has topflight outward programming from the classically trained world at the Thayer or Zipper halls downtown. Tues. May 30: pianist Aron Kallay explores ecstatic states via the music of Scriabin, Frances White et al., with the aid of pianist Vicki Ray. Calendar here.
Inglewood's midsize YouTube Theater brings variety programming. Fri. June 2: Euro metal with Helloween, Hammerfall. Fri. June 30: primeval Norwegian black metal from Emperor. Tues. July 25: Dream Theater, Devin Townsend, Animals As Leaders. Wed. Oct. 11: Dethklok, Babymetal. Calendar here.
The Broad Stage in Santa Monica holds occasional jazz presentations. Sat. June 3: deep-thinking pianist Jason Moran, highly recommended whether playing with Charles Lloyd or as here, on his own, where you can hear the full scope of his harmonic ideas and historical knowledge. Tickets here.
The Fonda Theater in Hollywood has occasional metal & world. Sat. June 3: Malian desert nomads Tinariwen. Calendar here.
Open Gate Theater has moved its long-running and invaluable avant concert series from the Eagle Rock Cultural Center mostly to the Neighborhood Unitarian Universalist Church, 301 N. Orange Grove Ave., Pasadena. Sun. June 4, 7pm at Center for the Arts, 2225 Colorado Blvd., Eagle Rock: Vlatkovich/Liebig/Powell and Intangible, featuring Gamin (piri, taepyeonso, saenghwang), Robert Reigle (tenor saxophone), Jeff Schwartz (bass) and Tim Feeney (percussion). Keep up with events here.
Keep up with the well-curated Vernacular New-Music Series at Oracle Tavern in a hideaway west of Chinatown two Mondays a month here. Mon. June 5, 8pm: TBA.
The Regent downtown books some heavy music. Tues. June 6: vegetarian death metal from San Diego's Cattle Decapitation (read MetalJazz's review of their new record here. Sat. June 10: Dark Funeral. Sat. July 15: Havok. Full lineup here.
Catalina's Jazz Club in Hollywood hosts mostly mainstream jazz and singers, but there are exceptions. Wed. June 7: Adaawe international women's group. Check full calendar here.
The Mayan downtown has jazz and rock sometimes. Thurs. June 8: Brazilian percussion legend Hermeto Pascoal. Sun. & Mon. Aug. 6 & 7: Brazilian composer-singer Arthur Verocai with orchestra. Calendar here.
The Kia Forum in Inglewood revs some metal. Fri. June 9: Avenged Sevenfold. Mon. & Tues. Sept. 11 & 12: Ghost. Listings here.
Alva's Showroom in San Pedro brings in some intriguing music from the edges in addition to tributes and stuff. Full lineup here. Sat. June 10: sharply honed electric-guitar fusionisms from Nili Brosh Band.
Keep up with L.A. Jazz Society events, including its Young Musician Showcases, here. Sun. June 11: Vibe Summit.
The Paramount in Boyle Heights hosts concerts presented by Just Jazz. Wed. June 14: bubbling improv from Black Whole. Thurs. June 22: drift & ooze from the quintet of bassist Seajun Kwon. Details here.
Highland Park's Lodge Room occasionally books jazz, metal, heft and influential obscurities. Thurs. June 15: original Jamaican dubster Scientist. Sun. June 18: Joyce e Tutty Moreno e João Donato. Thurs. June 22: Pere Ubu featuring Mike Watt & the Missingmen. Sat. July 22: Acid King. Thurs. Aug. 3: Vieux Farka Touré. Thurs. Sept. 14: Kamaal Williams. Sat. Sept. 30: The Avengers. Full schedule here.
Thurs. June 15, 7pm: Bassist John von Seggern presents an immersive audiovisual electronically augmented experience in the historic environs of Los Feliz's Philosophical Research Society, using programs he created for ambient icon Jon Hassell. Sounds like a boggler. More info and tix here.
REDCAT (beneath downtown's Disney Hall) presents some experimental music and jazz. Fri. & Sat. June 16 & 17: Partch. Calendar here.
MacArthur Park's Levitt Pavilion, 2230 W. Sixth St., has jazz again this summer. Sat. June 17, 7pm: Pan Afrikan Peoples Arkestra. Sun. June 18, 5pm: Katalyst Collective. Full calendar here.
The Hollywood Bowl has some jazz etc. Sat. & Sun. June 17 & 18: Hollywood Bowl Jazz Festival featuring Kamasi Washington, Poncho Sanchez (Sat.) and West Coast Get Down featuring Kamasi Washington, Digable Planets (Sun.). Sun. July 23: Reggae Night with Beres Hammond, Steel Pulse. Wed. Aug. 9: Joe Bonamassa With Orchestra. Fri. Aug. 11: Ruben Blades. Wed. Aug. 23: Herbie Hancock celebrates Wayne Shorter. Wed. Sept. 6: Buddy Guy. Fri. Nov. 3: Kiss 'em goodbye. Details here.
Vibrato, a luxurious restaurant high up in Bel Air, books mostly mainstream jazz. Sun. June 18: Louie Cruz Beltran. Full schedule here.
Wed. June 28, 8pm: Just Jazz presents South African pianist Nduduzu Makhathini at MusicHead Gallery in Hollywood. Tickets here.
This summer's free summer Sunday Grand Performances at downtown's California Plaza include some jazz. Sun. July 15: Jazz Is Dead presents Garrett Sarracho. Sun. Aug. 19: Mark De Clive-Lowe presents Jazz Is in the House. Website here.
1720 (east of downtown, south of the 10 freeway) books metal etc. Tues. July 18: Analepsy. Tues. Sept. 19: Angelmaker. Full calendar here.
Atwater's adventurous avant/modern/world club Zebulon offers surprises from the present and past. Mon. & Tues. July 24 & 25: Sun Ra Arkestra. Sat. Nov. 4: MSSV (Mike Baggetta, Stephen Hodges & Mike Watt). Full calendar here.
Fri.-Sun. Aug. 25-27: Metallica plates SoFi Stadium. Tickets here.
The Orpheum downtown rocks and jazzes at times. Sun. Sept. 24: Snarky Puppy. Tickets here.
Downtown's Belasco Theater stages some rock & metal shows. Fri. Sept 29: Wolfmother. Calendar & tix here.
The Canyon in Agoura Hills books its share of metal, fusion and original good stuff. Fri. Oct. 3: Orianthi. Calendar here.
Downtown's Disney Hall presents some jazz and events of note beyond classical. Wed. Nov. 8: Brad Mehldau Trio. Tickets here.
Thurs. Dec. 7: Aerosmith lands in L.A. on its "final" tour, at The Forum. This Joe thinks it's time to quit campaigning. Sell your plane and buy tickets here.
Florida death founders Obituary's April livestream party is available on demand through May; tickets here.
Santa Monica's Jacaranda music series presents a great selection of forward-looking modern classical and world music. Inquire regularly here.
The Jazz Salon presents top singers on Thursdays at downtown's Los Angeles Athletic Club. Check in here.