Jay-Z plays TD Garden on March 11 and Alicia Keys plays Agganis Arena on March 22

Another great month for one of the country’s best music scenes.  This month offers concert occasions for every music fans.  Lots of fun indie pop is coming through the city.  Let them warm you up as winter slowly withdraws into spring.  Two of New York’s biggest stars, Jay-Z and Alicia Keys, come up to Boston this month, playing two of the city’s largest venues, the TD Garden and the Agganis Arena.  Escape midterms for at least one concert this month.  Hop on those tickets soon.  Many of these shows will sell out.  Some of them are already sold out, leaving you to beg for your friend’s extra ticket, take your chances with scalpers, or buy the higher priced tickets from a secondary seller.

3/2: Surfer Blood, Great Scott:

Get ready for this fun, indie rock band from Florida to rock a bar sure to be filled this night with Pabst and Pitchfork lovers.

3/3: Tally Hall, Great Scott:

Light and poppy, Tally Hall come across as one of the sillier bands in indie rock.

3/4: Joe Pug, Great Scott:

The Allston bar brings in a great artist for the third night in a row in row in singer-songwriter Joe Pug.  Joe Pug has garnered a following for himself by mailing free sampler CD’s to anyone who asks and making his EP available for download free on his website.  He now tours in support of his first full-length, Messenger.

3/5: Cage the Elephant, Paradise Rock Club:

There ain’t gonna be no rest for the wicked at this show.  Cage the Elephant will keep your bodies moving for the whole show.

3/5: Margaret Glaspy, Club Passim:

Glaspy brings her charm and soulful folk back to Club Passim, a familiar venue for the Massachusetts singer-songwriter.

3/6: Hey Mama, Paradise Rock Club:

Led by the duet of Avi Salloway and Celia Woodsmith, this band makes music the way rocking roots music should be made: full of blues, soul, emotion, and fire.

3/11: Jay-Z, TD Garden:

Jay-Z is coming to Boston with Young Jeezy and Trey Songz.  Need we say more?

3/12-3/17: Dropkick Murphys, House of Blues:

What better way to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day in Boston than by going to one of of the Murphys’ seven shows leading up to March 17?

3/17: Joanna Newsom, Sanders Theatre:

Newsom brings her harp and “unique” voice to Harvard’s wonderfully acoustic theater.

3/18: Mat Kearney and Ingrid Michaelson, House of Blues:

Two talented pop artists co-headline this Thursday night at the House of Blues.

3/19: Disco Biscuits, House of Blues:

The band that defined the genre of trance fusion/jamtronica comes to Boston.  If you’re into jam bands, you need to be at this show.  Consider yourself forewarned: the band’s shows have been known to be associated with heavy drug use.  “Disco Biscuit,” itself, is a street term for MDMA.

3/20: Air, Berklee Performance Center:

Creating a very different sort of electronica-influenced music, this French duo has been putting out beautiful ambient music for over a decade now.

3/21: Roz Raskin and the Rice Cakes, The Middle East Upstairs:

This young indie-pop group from Providence performs upbeat, but soft acoustic tunes sure to make you a fan.

3/22: Alicia Keys, Agganis Arena:

On the first day back from break, the beautiful R&B singer from New York performs at Boston University’s Agganis Arena.

3/25: Toubab Krewe, Harper’s Ferry:

A festival favorite, the instrumental band, Toubab Krewe, fuses the music of Mali with US southern music and jam rock.

3/27: Spoon with Deerhunter, House of Blues:

Two of  this past decade’s most popular indie rock bands are still going strong and touring together.

3/28: Beach House, Paradise Rock Club:

The Baltimore dream pop band’s January release, Teen Dream, further raised the bar created by their first two albums.  They now tour in support of their best CD, thus far.

3/31: Miike Snow, Paradise Rock Club:

Everyone knows the best indie pop and electropop comes from Sweden.

NOICE IRONIC RAP SKILLZ!

Presenting: A handful of good songs that happen to have a Harvard shout-out in them. Why? Because we love lists and we love us.

Tapes N Tapes – Insistor
Bob Dylan – Baby Let Me Follow You Down
Jay-Z - What More Can I say?
Pavement – Gangsters and Pranksters
The Lonely Island - Natalie’s Rap
Estelle – Magnificent
and more!

Check them all out after the jump!

Honorable Mentions:

Nina Simone – I Love to Love
Dropkick Murphys – Warrior’s Code

And even though they don’t explicitly mention Harvard, they did go here. Let’s face it, this could be your new anthem:
Chester French ft. Janelle Monae – Nerd Girl

That’s all, folks! Feel free to add some of your favorite Harvard-y songs to the comments!

photo credit NBC