Town and The City Festival Returns to Downtown Lowell April 30–May 2

The Town and The City Festival, Lowell’s annual celebration of music, arts, and community, returns for its seventh edition April 30–May 2, 2026, with more than 50 musical acts, comedy, and a literary event spread across venues throughout downtown.

Inspired by the spirit of Lowell native and Beat Generation icon Jack Kerouac, the three-day, venue-hopping festival blends nationally known artists with regional and local favorites. Multi-day passes are on sale now at TheTownandtheCityFestival.com.

2026 Lineup Highlights

This year’s lineup features John Doe (X) and David Lowery (Cracker, Camper Van Beethoven), folk-rock favorites The Felice Brothers, and Boston music mainstays Tanya Donelly (Belly, Throwing Muses) and Chris Brokaw (Come, Codeine, The Lemonheads), who will debut a new collaborative project.

Also on the bill are indie rockers Vundabar, alt-emo band Future Teens, and blues trio GA-20, bringing their Chicago blues sound to the Mill City. Additional highlights include Jon Langford & Friends, Steve Wynn of The Dream Syndicate, singer-songwriter Kris Delmhorst, country-blues artist Cristina Vane, Copilot, and indie folk-pop trio The Wolff Sisters.

“The Town and The City Festival is one of my favorite ways to showcase everything that makes my hometown of Lowell such a vibrant, creative place,” said festival producer Chris Porter. “We bring in nationally touring artists while keeping a strong focus on incredible local and regional talent.”

Full Artist Roster

Additional performers include JVK, Megan From Work, The Ghouls (performing Black Sabbath), Burp. (performing The Beatles), The Deliriants, Western Education, Toluca Lake, Tysk Tysk Tysk, Dee Tension & The Secrets, Dom the Composer, Stay at Home Dads, Other Brother Darryl, The Evolutionists, Abby Moskow, Nigel Wearne, Poorhouse Records Allstars, Dead Vapor, Mike’s Carwash, Tell, Grace Givertz, Sinnet, Joshua Theodore, Krixus, Losing Side, Phantom Ocean, Weatherman, Ron’s Car, Charming Arson, The Darlin’, Make It So, Josh McKelvie, Ruby Red, Beagle Dog, Marcy the Baptist, Your Friends, Jazz Criminals, Everly Estelle, and Ava Sophia.

Comedy, Books, and More

In addition to music, the festival will feature comedy from Tony V, Kristin O’Brien, Jen Howell, Jacques Lambert, and James Hamilton. Author Chris Wrenn will present a reading from his book Fenway Punk: How a Boston Indie Label Scored Big on Baseball’s Greatest Rivalry.

Venues and Tickets

Performances will take place at more than a dozen downtown locations, including Taffeta at Western Avenue Studios, Tescobar, Warp & Weft, Merrimack Repertory Theatre, The Old Court, Thirsty First, The Worthen Café, Smokehouse Tavern, Lala Books, Brew’d Awakening, Cobblestones, and The Last Stop.

The Town and The City Festival is produced by Porter Productions and the Jack Kerouac Foundation, with support from the Revolutionary Valley Convention & Visitors Bureau, the Massachusetts Office of Travel and Tourism, and the Lowell Cultural Council.
The festival runs Thursday, April 30; Friday, May 1; and Saturday, May 2, 2026. Three-day passes are available now for $65, with single-day tickets to be released later in February. More information is available at TheTownandtheCityFestival.com.