New York\u2019s massive fall concert season kicks off this month, and while outdoor-show season is winding down, there are still plenty of enticing open-air gigs on offer this September. You\u2019ll find a couple of those below in our monthly gig roundup, along with psychedelic folk, left-of-center pop, body-moving dancehall, heavy-duty death metal and more.<\/p>\n
ear + NEW YORK + Bby Kell<\/p>\n
East 34th St. Heliport, Sept. 12<\/p>\n
\u201cWe definitely know it when we hear it,\u201d Jonah Paz, half of the buzzy group known as ear, said recently<\/a> when asked what defines the project\u2019s aesthetic. If that description seems vague, it feels fitting when you throw on “Rumspringa,” the recent second full-length from Paz and creative partner Yaelle Avtan. The duo craft a slippery form of homegrown indie pop, weaving together understated vocals, retro-style synths and cryptic samples. Opening this East River\u2013adjacent show are NEW YORK, the deadpan electropop duo of Gretchen Lawrence and Coumba Samba, and rising Atlanta rap eccentric Bby Kell.<\/p>\n Immolation + Ancient Death<\/p>\n Saint Vitus, Sept. 13<\/p>\n The 2024 closure of Saint Vitus was a major blow to the local metal scene, which had revolved around the beloved Greenpoint club for a decade. Headbangers rejoiced at the recent news of the venue\u2019s reopening in Bushwick this month. There\u2019s a killer opening slate of shows, offering ample opportunities to get rowdy and throw the horns<\/a>. Many of the first-round gigs are sold out \u2014 including underplays by heavyweight acts such as Anthrax and Converge \u2014 but you can still grab tix to the second night of a two-day stand by Yonkers death-metal legends Immolation, one of the most respected acts in the international heavy underground.<\/p>\n Grouper<\/p>\n The Town Hall; Sept. 15 and 16<\/p>\n Most singer-songwriters place their voice and instrument at the center of the musical frame, but Liz Harris \u2014 the Oregon artist who has recorded and performed as Grouper for around 20 years \u2014 makes the listener work a little harder. Enveloped in a sonic haze, her songs sound like transmissions from the ocean floor, and the hush around them only highlights their fragile, arresting beauty. Harris doesn\u2019t tour often, so fans of artful, left-of-center songcraft ought to consider these Town Hall gigs mandatory.<\/p>\n Erykah Badu + De La Soul + The Alchemist<\/p>\n Forest Hills Stadium, Sept. 18<\/p>\n \u201cAlchemist seems to wake the dead in us as musicians,\u201d Erykah Badu said recently<\/a> of the seasoned producer and sample wizard she teamed with on the new “Before the World Blows,” her first album in more than 15 years. It\u2019s a perfectly matched collaboration that returns Badu to the vanguard of the alt-R&B sound she helped to pioneer around 30 years ago. Joining the pair on this magical Queens bill are hip-hop gamechangers De La Soul, who have persevered in recent years following the death of co-founder Trugoy the Dove in 2023.<\/p>\n Jada Kingdom + Byron Messia + Trinidad Killa<\/p>\n Club Amazura, Sept. 25<\/p>\n Influenced by Nina Simone and Erykah Badu as much as artists in the dancehall genre she works in, Jada Kingdom specializes in an uncommonly vulnerable take on dancehall, informed by a diverse array of influences that style. (\u201cI got my sound from Nina Simone, a little bit of Erykah Badu, and jazz music,\u201d she once said<\/a>.) The Jamaican singer-songwriter-producer can also bring the party, as evidenced by the cheeky 2018 hit \u201cBanana.\u201d Expect to sample all of her many facets at this Queens dancehall blowout, also featuring Byron Messia, who broke out in 2023 with viral track \u201cTalibans,\u201d and Trinidad Killa, a major player in the soca-inspired subgenre of zess.<\/p>\n Mezame New York<\/p>\n St. Francis Xavier Church, St. Bartholomew\u2019s Church, the Co-Cathedral of St. Joseph, Sept 25-27<\/p>\n Since 2016, Ambient Church has been expanding the concept of sacred music, inviting noted soundscapists and experimental artists to perform in actual churches. This month, the series expands into platform throws itself a three-day festival \u2014 named after the Japanese concept of awakening \u2014 and featuring veteran experimentalists like Charlemagne Palestine, Laraaji and Carl Stone, along with luminaries from the worlds of dance music and cutting-edge pop such as James Ferraro, James K, and Juliana Huxtable. Performances of choral works by iconic 12th century German composer Hildegard of Bingen round out a transcendent weekend, all going down in three Manhattan and Brooklyn churches.<\/p>\n Outline: Flying Lotus + EYE + Olof Dreijer + Black Dice + ByStorm + Carrier + gyrofield + Silicone Valley<\/p>\n Knockdown Center, Sept. 26<\/p>\n Outline, an intermittent series at Queens\u2019s cavernous Knockdown Center, doesn\u2019t conform to any easily defined genre. Instead, it\u2019s more of a vibe, bringing together artists from the cutting edges of club music, indie rock, experimental sound and more. This month\u2019s bill is a real doozy, headlined by eminent beatsmith Flying Lotus, whose aural constructions sound as vibrant and volatile as ever on recent EP “Big Mama,” and rounded out by acts including EYE, leader of Japanese avant-rock institution Boredoms; Olof Dreijer, co-founder of the trailblazing Swedish pop duo the Knife; shapeshifting local underground mainstays Black Dice; and more.<\/p>\n L\u2019Rain<\/p>\n Night Club 101, Sept. 28, 29<\/p>\n Song form is fragile in the musical universe of L\u2019Rain, the musical universe of sonic auteur Taja Cheek, who named the project after her late mother. The Brooklyn artist\u2019s spellbinding, unclassifiable new LP “fata morgana” is one of the most highly acclaimed albums of 2026 so far. It features tracks that morph and mutate, such as \u201csoulless cycle,\u201d which starts off in a soothing art-pop swirl and explodes in a riot of crashing drums. Other songs bloom with heady samples, surreal synths and disorienting vocal effects. These two live shows ought to feel even more immersive.<\/p>\n