Long Live Live Music
A look back at some of my favourite concerts of 2025
Five hundred twenty-five thousand, six hundred minutes. How does one measure a year? For me, the 364 days gone are measured in love. The love of family. The love of friends. And, the love of live music. From Michigan to Minneapolis, in venues large and small — churches to football stadiums — I took in a concert, on average, every couple of weeks. As another year ends, I offer my Top 15 shows of 2025.
Ann Arbor Folk Festival, Hill Auditorium, Ann Arbor, Michigan, January 24-25.
Read my review of this historic folk festival now in its 48th year.
Mount Eerie, The Concert Hall, Toronto, Ontario April 15.
What made this show special was attending it with my son and seeing his excitement at meeting Phil Elverum and getting the singer-songwriter to sign a copy of his vinyl before the show.
Bill King Jazz Trio, The Jazz Room, Waterloo, Ontario, April 19.
In 2025, Bill took Substack by storm, writing on everything from politics to music. I was fortunate to catch the talented musician and friend in my hometown at this intimate venue. Bill later released this show via Bandcamp.
Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds, Meridien Hall, Toronto April 23.
I interviewed Nick for GRAMMY.com in the fall of 2024, but had never seen him live until this magical night in Toronto this past April. I wrote about the transcendental power of this performance here.
Meadows Music Festival, Fergus, Ontario, May 31.
This was my first time attending this outdoor daylong festival now in its fourth year; it was a memorable one, jam-packed with jams from Canadian acts like Skye Wallace, Lowest of the Low and JJ Wilde. The night finished with an energetic, guitar-driven rock ‘n’ roll marathon from Big Wreck and The Glorious Sons.
Noisemaker 10th anniversary, Paris Presbyterian Church, Paris, Ontario, June 12.
On a Thursday night in June, like-minded music lovers gathered to celebrate the 10th anniversary of concert promotions and artist management firm Noisemaker, with performances from Danny Michel, Great Lake Swimmers, Joel Plaskett, Terra Lightfoot, the EastPointers, the Skydiggers and more. The night closed with a sing-along, captured below, led by Plaskett. Communion in a church never felt so good.
Billy Corgan and the Machines of God, House of Blues, Cleveland, Ohio, June 23.
Another artist I interviewed in 2025 and also witnessed live. After chatting with Corgan in this wide-ranging conversation for GRAMMY.com, I drove to Cleveland, Ohio to catch this great set live at the House of Blues.
Hillside Festival Guelph, Ontario, July 19-21. Too many highlights to capture from what has now become one of my favourite annual music festivals just down the highway from my hometown. From Steve Poltz to Ruby Waters to many new discoveries such as Etran de L’air, vieuxfarkatoure and Hurray for the Riff Raff, these three days in Guelph lingered long.
Alison Krauss & Union Station with Jerry Douglas Toronto, Massey Hall, August 19. Returned for the first time in 2025 to a special place I was fortunate to write a book about. What made this show stand out was that it was the only concert of the year I attended with my dad.
The Waterboys, Toronto, The Danforth Music Hall, September 11. This was my first time seeing this band. They did not disappoint. My only complaint is that I would have loved to have seen a fiddle, rather than keyboards, on my favourite song, “Fisherman’s Blues.”
Farm Aid 40 Minneapolis, Minnesota, Huntington Bank Stadium, September 20.
Get a taste of this incredible day of music, that came to the state of the 10,000 lakes for the first time.
Hayes Carll, The Horseshoe Tavern, Toronto, September 30.
I first discovered this Texas singer-songwriter in the early 2000s. I was drawn to his roots-rock sound and his lyrics that are thought-provoking and dripping with sarcasm. One of the rare shows in 2025 that I took in at the historic Toronto venue that I’m currently working to deadline on a follow-up to my first book. On the last day of September, the Horseshoe was sold-out and many Canadian artists like the Great Lake Swimmers (Tony Dekker) came to watch Carll play songs from his most recent record, We’re Only Human, which in this scribe’s opinion was one of the year’s best records.
Sarah McLachlan, Peterborough Memorial Centre, Peterborough, Ontario, November 9. One of the best interviews I had in 2025 was with this Canadian songwriter. My son and I caught her on the final night of the artist’s Fumbling Towards Ecstasy anniversary tour.
Neil Young at 80 Tribute Massey Hall, Toronto, November 12
A show at my favourite venue, where an all-star cast of Canadian musicians would pay tribute to my all-time favourite artist, this event was already teed up to be a special night and it did not disappoint. NY80 was the musical highlight of the year. I wrote about some of those in this Facebook post. CityNews also recaps the night here. For some cool black and white behind-the-scenes photos, and an artist’s perspective on this memorable night, read this Substack post from Joel Plaskett.
Terra Lightfoot, Bridgeworks, Hamilton, Ontario, December 5
Lightfoot’s return to her old hometown was an intimate affair at Bridgeworks. The singer-songwriter played her latest record, Home Front, in its entirety before turning the amps up in the second half — ending the show with a blistering rendition of Neil Young’s “Rockin’ in the Free World.”