Pop Venues in Long Beach, CA

Fingerprints Music is a five-thousand-square-foot record store on Atlantic Avenue in Long Beach that has been one of the most respected independent music retailers in Southern California since 1992, and its in-store concert series has made it a live performance destination in its own right. Owner Rand Foster has built Fingerprints around a philosophy of community, curation, and connection: the store carries thousands of new and used records, CDs, cassettes, and 8-tracks ranging from hits to obscurities, and the staff's depth of knowledge is as much a feature as the inventory itself. Live at Fingerprints, the in-store performance series, brings artists of all scales into the shop for intimate sets that put performers directly in front of a crowd that showed up specifically to hear them in one of the most personal settings a record store can offer. The series has hosted an extraordinary range of artists over the years, from local debut performers to nationally touring acts doing exclusive in-store appearances. Record release events, listening parties, and signing sessions round out a calendar that keeps the store as active a cultural space as any dedicated venue in the city. The experience of seeing a show at Fingerprints is unlike a club date: the audience is standing in the aisles between vinyl bins, you are close enough to the performer to count the strings on their guitar, and the room is filled with people who actively love music in the way that only regular record store visitors tend to. For Long Beach, Fingerprints is not just a store; it is a musical institution with a three-decade track record of bringing people and music together in the right spirit.

Gallagher's Pub & Grill sits on East Broadway in Belmont Shore, one of the most walkable and lively neighborhood corridors in Long Beach. Opened in 2006 by third-generation restaurateur Ciaran Gallagher, who grew up working in his father's Irish restaurants in Northern Ireland and Spain before eventually landing in California, the pub carries a genuine sense of heritage without being a theme bar. The interior is warm and spacious, with multiple televisions for sports, a covered outdoor patio where dogs are welcome, and a consistent crowd that mixes local regulars with visitors drawn in by the neighborhood's energy. Live music appears on select weekends and special occasions, typically featuring local and regional acts. The lineup skews toward rock, pop, Irish folk, and acoustic acts, with karaoke rounds out the entertainment calendar on off nights. The kitchen is open throughout the day and serves what regulars describe as gourmet Irish, including a celebrated cheeseburger and a notable brunch program on weekends with a bottomless mimosa option that has developed its own following. Gallagher's occupies a particular niche in the Long Beach music landscape: it is a neighborhood bar first and a music venue second, which means the audience for live shows is largely a local crowd of regulars who are genuinely receptive and engaged. The vibe is convivial and unpretentious, and the Long Beach crowd tends to show up and stay.

Gaslamp Long Beach is a full-service music venue, bar, and kitchen on East Pacific Coast Highway in Long Beach, operating on a themed nightly concert schedule that has made it one of the most consistent live music destinations in the South Bay. Thursday is Country Night with line dancing, Friday brings the resident 80s tribute band Knyght Ryder with DJ Jonney Miles spinning between sets, Saturday is concert night featuring tribute bands and touring national acts, and Sunday runs a no-cover brunch with live music from noon to 4pm. The fourth Monday of every month is reserved for the Tom Kubis Big Band Orchestra. The Saturday concert series has hosted an impressive range of tribute acts covering artists including Led Zeppelin, Neil Diamond, Bon Jovi, No Doubt, Sublime, Depeche Mode, U2, The Go-Go's, and many others, with occasional original touring artists filling the calendar as well. The room holds 600 and is configured as a proper concert venue with a full stage, sound system, and table seating available for dining and bottle service. The food menu is genuine restaurant fare — eggs benedict, short rib hash, breakfast burritos, chicken bowls, Buffalo cauliflower — and the kitchen and bar operate in full through every show night. The combination of themed weekly programming, quality tribute bookings, Sunday brunch with no cover, and the Tom Kubis Big Band monthly residency gives Gaslamp an unusually complete weekly calendar for a venue its size. Age requirements can vary by show; check individual event listings. For Long Beach residents and visitors who want a full night out that includes dinner, dancing, and a live band, Gaslamp is one of the most reliably programmed rooms in the region.