Enjoy live music at The Town and The City Festival

The city's two-day music event takes place April 26-27.

Boston's Muck and the Mires will perform at Smokehouse Tavern.

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It’s time to get on the road (pun intended) and head to The Town and The City Festival. The spirited music and arts festival returns to downtown Lowell on April 26 and 27 to pay homage to the spirit and creativity of novelist and poet native son Jack Kerouac by booking diverse musical genres and artistic disciplines.

Kicking things off Friday evening at The Overlook at Mill No. 5 is Earfull, a series featuring writers and musicians performing in an intimate setting that this year includes alt-rock musician Freda Love Smith and comedian and musician Dave Hill.

Following, more than 50 acts will hit the stage at more than a dozen venues, including Academic Arts Center, Mill No. 5 (including The Overlook, Luna Theater, and the 4th Floor Stage), Taffeta (at Western Ave. Studios), Zorba Music Hall, Warp & Weft, Christ Church United, The Old Court, Thirsty First, The Worthen Cafe, Gallery Z, Smokehouse Tavern, Lala Books, Brew’d Awakening, Navigation Brewery, and Cobblestones.

Designed as a walkable event, a single- or two-day pass gives visitors access to performances across all the participating venues to see bands such as indie-singer/songwriters Syd Straw and Robyn Hitchcock, Everfiner, Bermuda Search Party (the band formerly known as Q-Tip Bandits), Air Traffic Controller, The McCritters, Tell, minibeast, and more.

New this year is Comedy at Cobblestones, an evening of standup funny men and women taking the stage for laughs and entertainment. The weekend will also feature The Town and The City Festival Record Show on April 27 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Mill No. 5., where guests can shop for vinyl and other collectibles from more than 30 vendors.