Mat Kearney returns to the State Theatre, 11 years on

The songwriter brings his new album, Hanging by a Heartstring, to Congress Street on Wednesday, April 28, 2027, his first Portland show since 2015.

The last time Mat Kearney played Portland, the State Theatre had been back in business as a concert hall for five years. When he returns on Wednesday, April 28, 2027, it will be the same room, more than 11 years later. Kearney plays the State Theatre on Congress Street at 8 p.m., with tickets through Ticketmaster. The date was announced Oct. 27.

His last Portland show was Oct. 19, 2015, also at the State. That's a long gap for a songwriter whose mix of indie, folk and rock has always played well in New England, and it means a lot of people in the room next April will be hearing songs live for the first time that they've had on repeat for a decade.

He's coming with new material. Kearney announced *Hanging by a Heartstring* in June 2026 with an Oct. 9 release date, according to Wikipedia, and the ticket listing for Portland carries the album's name. Ahead of the release, he had already introduced several of the new songs on social media, Local Spins reported from a Michigan tour stop this year.

The record follows his self-titled eighth album from 2024, which he described to Atwood Magazine as "the margarita pizza of my music career": the simple, essential version of what he does. That's a good frame for a show like this one. The draw of a Kearney night has always been the songwriting, and a new album gives him a reason to put fresh songs next to the older ones fans already know by heart.

More than 11 years later, it's the same room, and a lot of the same people.

The room deserves its own paragraph. The State Theatre opened in November 1929, designed by Portland architect Herbert W. Rhodes, and its first feature was Gloria Swanson's first talkie, *The Trespasser*, according to Wikipedia). It went through decades of ownership changes, including a stretch in the 1970s and 1980s showing adult films, before reopening in October 2010 as a concert and live-performance venue. Today it holds 1,870, which makes it one of the city's key stops for artists between the clubs and the arenas. Portland Landmarks has written about the building's history, and Cinema Treasures describes its semi-atmospheric Spanish-style design.

Kearney playing the State twice, more than a decade apart, says something about how touring artists see Portland: not as a detour from Boston but as a room worth coming back to.

A few practical notes. It's a Wednesday, so plan dinner on Congress Street or in the Old Port before doors. Tickets have been on sale since the announcement, and for an artist who has stayed away this long, waiting is a gamble. Parking downtown on a weeknight is easier than a Saturday, but leave yourself time.

Eleven years is long enough between visits. In April, Portland finally gets him back.

Sources: JamBase: Mat Kearney at State Theatre (jambase.com); Ticketmaster: Mat Kearney – Hanging by a Heartstring, Portland (ticketmaster.evyy.net); Mat Kearney – Wikipedia (en.wikipedia.org); Local Spins: Tunesmith Mat Kearney set for Meijer Gardens show (localspins.com); Atwood Magazine: Mat Kearney is all-in on his self-titled eighth album (atwoodmagazine.com); State Theatre (Portland, Maine) – Wikipedia (en.wikipedia.org); Portland Landmarks: Did You Know? State Theatre (portlandlandmarks.org); Cinema Treasures: State Theatre (cinematreasures.org)