aiplannersanta cruz events & things to do in march
Exciting events and experiences happening this month in Santa Cruz.
Santa Cruz Warriors vs San Diefo Clippers
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Santa Cruz Warriors vs Birmingham Squadron
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WILLY TEA TAYLOR, COTTON CLIFTON
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The Freeks w/ Midnight Dumpster Fire, Unholy Things, Chrome Serpent
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Moes Alley presents a head-banging night of stoner rock, punk and everything in between with The Freeks, Midnight Dumpster Fire, Unholy Things and Chrome Serpent!Thursday, March 5, 2026Doors: 7pm / Show: 7:30pm$15 in advance / $20 day of the show21+* All sales are final* Avoid scammers! Only purchase tickets from moesalley.com or ticketweb.com* Tickets requested by email will be delivered 3 days prior to the event* Will Call tickets will be available at the door on the day of the event====THE FREEKSThe Freeks are a raw, psychedelically fuzzed, surge of electric rocknroll - the sound of California heat meeting cosmic chaos. Emerging from the union of two SoCal counties, this crew of rock veterans channels decades of underground energy into a single, pulsing current of fuzz, groove, and liberation. Their music feels alive - not rehearsed or restrained - a living jam that breathes dust and distortion. On stage, The Freeks are pure combustion. Their frontman leads with a chaotic, exuberant energy - part shaman, part showman - driving the band and crowd alike into a state of wild release. Guitars roar like engines in the Mojave night, basslines rumble and hypnotic but always human - a performance that blurs the line between control and surrender. In the desert or in the city, The Freeks deliver the kind of rock that refuses to sit still - electric, expansive, and unapologetically alive.MIDNIGHT DUMPSTER FIREFormed in 2024 in Santa Cruz, CA, Midnight Dumpster Fire blends punk, alt-rock and metal into a hook-driven sound built for loud room and raised fists. MDF pulls influences from Mastodon, Pennywise and QOTSA, delivering high-energy songs that hit hard and stick fast. A true Bay Area underdog, the band is already turning heads after only a handful of shows.UNHOLY THINGSUnholy Things is a heavy rock band out of Santa Cruz, CA built on deep roots, heavy grooves and dark subject matter. Formed in 2024, the band draws inspiration from all forms of rock, metal and punk, creating a sound thats both crushing and haunting-driven by sharp occult-themed lyrics, razor-blade riffs, possessed solos and a swaggering sense of groove.CHROME SERPENTAs heavy as the Pacific fog, Santa Cruzs own Chrome Serpent have crept steadily through the local music scene on a misty blanket of smokey stoner riffs and crushing rhythms since 2020. Birthed from a love of all things hard and heavy, this power trio draws inspiration from a vast array of influences and creates something unique: doomy, sludgy, balls to the wall rock with flare-ups of thrash and punk. Whether jamming with peers on the local dive bar circuit or rocking the outer stretches of the Bay Area like Oakland, Monterey, San Jose and San Francisco, Chrome Serpent can be counted on for Sabbathian itch-scratching, head banging boogies, and a set full of inebriating riffs. After a year hiatus, drummer Stephen Madrano (current Unholy Things) joins Mike Brown and Jesse Polakow (bass and guitar, respectively) in cutting a fresh path forward with new material. Constantly in flux, never stagnant, the music shifts and un-coils, much like the bands cryptic namesake.
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Moe's Alley Presents: Carsie Blanton w/ Devon Sproule *SOLD OUT - THANK YOU!*
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After her long arduous trip to deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza and her subsequent detainment, Carsie has rescheduled her tour. Ticket holder for the show originally scheduled in October 2025 have been fully refunded. You will need to purchase a new ticket for this show. Devon Sproule opens the show! Friday, March 6, 2026Doors: 7pm / Show: 8pm$30 in advance / $35 day of the show21+*All sales are final*Avoid scammers! Only purchase tickets from moesalley.com or ticketweb.com====CARSIE BLANTONCARSIE BLANTON is a songwriter with hooks, chutzpah, and revolutionary optimism. Inspired by artists including Nina Simone and John Prine, her music is a jaunt through American popular song, from sultry jazz to pop-punk protest anthems.Her live shows seek to delight and galvanize, with her Handsome Band serving up juicy three-part harmonies and melodic basslines to drive home each well-crafted refrain. A seasoned performer, she explores the political and the burlesque while bringing her audience together in humor, hope, and camaraderie.Carsies forthcoming album, Body of Work, is an intimately-recorded collection of songs from throughout her catalog, produced by Tyler Chester (Madison Cunningham, Andrew Bird) and featuring fan-favorites such as Fishin with You and Smoke Alarm.Devon SprouleDevon grew up at Twin Oaks intentional community in rural Virginia. She dropped out of high school and started busking in Charlottesville, VA when she was a teenager. In her 20s and 30s she played overseas regularly and collaborated with Tin Angel Records and the Toronto-based band Bernice. She lived in Austin and Berlin and is now based in Charlottesville, VA. Shes married to producer Paul Curreri and they have a kid, Ray, and a dog, Tim. She also plays in a loud band called New Boss and is a bad cook but a very fast shoe-tier.
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Santa Cruz Warriors vs South Bay Lakers
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Lila Downs
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Quarry Ampitheater at UC Santa CruzCarved from a former limestone quarry in the 1960s, the historic Quarry Amphitheater located at the heart of the UC Santa Cruz campus reopened after a major renovation in October 2017, welcoming its first ever night time concert with LA based rockers Chicano Batman. With a deep history of hosting legendary artists, activists and authors including Angela Davis, Ravi Shankar, Alfred Hitchcock and Cesar Chavez, the Quarry has reopened as a critical gathering space to celebrate live music and community.Referred to as the Red Rocks in the Redwoods, The Quarry is the largest outdoor venue with an existing stage and seating in the greater Santa Cruz community. The Quarry Amphitheaters unique terraced asymmetrical design allows for amazing sight-lines and multiple venue configurations from open floor to reserved seating layouts. At a maximum capacity of 2600, The Quarry now holds the opportunity to become the regions premiere outdoor destination concert venue while also retaining its value as a natural open space.More information: https://www.quarryamphitheater.comOn-Site Parking: $20 per car which includes Shuttle to the Venue. Parking Tickets are not sold in advance. ______
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CHUM
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Santa Cruz Warriors vs South Bay Lakers
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Moe's Alley Presents: Shannon McNally w/ Kentucky Mule (Sunday Matinee Show)
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Moes Alley presents Grammy-nominated Shannon McNally with special guests Kentucky Mule!Sunday, March 8, 2026Doors: 6pm / Show: 7pm$15 in advance / $20 day of the show21+*All sales are final*Avoid scammers! Only purchase tickets from moesalley.com or ticketweb.com====SHANNON MCNALLYGrammy nominee Shannon McNallys live music career began on the jam band circuit of the 1990s with bands like Derek Trucks and Railroad Earth. Since then, her catalog has grown to span the whole of the Americana music spectrum, both writing original songs as well as interpreting the songs of others. She brings a soul-stirring musicality to her craft. Her honest and, at times, elegant voice immediately grabs one by the heartstrings. Not to mention as it turns out, she is also an exceptional electric guitar player.McNally has fourteen albums to her name and a string of single self-releases on her personal label, Queen Maeve Records. Her latest album, Live At Dees, is a career retrospective song list captured over four nights in September of 2022 with a revolving band of Nashville musicians. Showcasing McNallys wonderful storytelling and sense of wry humor, the 18-song disc captures her at her most relaxed in her natural habitat of neighborhood Honky Tonk. For those who have followed McNallys twenty-plus-year career, the thing that sticks with listeners the most about her is the timeless effortlessness she brings to all she does. With an impressive catalog and extensive list of collaborators with whom she has written, recorded, and toured; McNally continues to turn out great music across wide-flung ends of the spectrum, defying genre-fication. At home on any stage, from Lincoln Center to the juke joints of Mississippishe always brings the house down.KENTUCKY MULEKentucky Mule is an alternative country band based in Santa Cruz, California. The vocalist and songwriter, Coleton Joe Tidwell, effortlessly weaves small-town storytelling and metropolitan modernity. Altogether the band tips its cap to the full spectrum of country music while seamlessly blending in their outside influences.
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Western Wednesday #88: Big Sandy & HIs Fly-Rite Boys w/ The Haywoods
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Were swingin into March with a hot Western Wednesday! Big Sandy & HIs Fly-Rite Boys with special guests The Haywoods!Wednesday, March 11, 2026Doors: 7pm / Two-Step Lesson: 7:30pm / Show: 8pm$17 in advance / $20 day of the show21+* All sales are final* Avoid scammers! Only purchase tickets from moesalley.com or ticketweb.com* Tickets requested by email will be delivered 3 days prior to the event* Will Call tickets will be available at the door on the day of the event====BIG SANDY & HIS FLY-RITE BOYSSince forming in 1988 in Southern California, Big Sandy and His Fly-Rite Boys have become one of the worlds most beloved Americana/Roots acts, drawing from the deep musical waters that flow justbeneath the surface of Rock s fertile soil. A childhood passionfor Country, Doo-Wop, and Rhythm & Blues 45s led Sandy (bornRobert Williams) to pursue a singing career as a teenager, beginninga life in music that continues decades later. And as his personalrecord collection continues to grow (75,000 and counting), so doesthe depth of the musical influences that stream through hissongwriting and singing style. A critically acclaimed tribute to Tex-Mex hero Freddy Fender, released at the beginning of the 2020lockdown, points the way forward for Big Sandy and his Fly-Rite Boysas they continue on a path of musical growth. After nearly 35 years onthe road, and more than two dozen releases to their credit, theyremain key figures on the ever-changing Americana circuit, both onrecord and in live appearances.THE HAYWOODSThe Haywoods, are a Sun Records influenced band from Santa Cruz which originally formed in the 1990s. The Haywoods write and perform original songs while giving a nod to the original artists from that Famous Studio in Memphis. The Haywoods have multiple recording credits including their own albums, Sun Studios Tribute and Film soundtrack credits. The Haywoods have shared the stage with: Big Sandy and the Fly Rite Boys ; Kim Lenz ; The Paladins ; Wayne Hancock ; Deke Dickerson to name a few.
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(((folkYEAH))) Presents: LOVE Featuring JOHNNY ECHOLS
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