The Current

Summer brings large concerts

Tuesday, May 24, 2005 By Alexis Boudreau

Although bands go on tour year-round, summer is when school is out, and therefore that is also when the number of concert-goers are at their highest. Therefore, many venues take as much advantage of this situation as possible. On July 23 at the Tweeter Center near Chicago, you can see 60 bands for just $29.75. Averaging out at less than fifty cents per band, Vans Warped Tour is a popular summer concert experience . Headlining with bands such as The Offspring, Avenged Sevenfold, Motion City Soundtrack, Vans is right in its self proclamation of how it is “The tour that won’t die!” Warped Tour is an opportunity for some lesser-known bands to make a name for themselves in front of millions of teenagers across the country. Not all major concerts are tours, however. For example, from June 30 to July 10, Summerfest is held on 75 acres on Lake Michigan in Milwaukee. Named the world’s largest music festival by the Guinness Book of World Records 2004, Summerfest attracts thousands of people from the midwest. At only $12 for one adult admission, many teenagers are planning to attend Summerfest for at least one of the days to see such performers as Kenny Chesney and Tim McGraw to John Mellencamp and Tom Petty, according to Summerfest.com. The different bands allow for a mixture of all ages, unlike some other tours such as Ozzfest. Already selling out the premium tickets available for the July 30 show at the Tweeter Center and the Aug. 6 show at Alpine Valley Music Center, Ozzfest is a hot rock/metal concert with bands such as Rob Zombie, Mastodon, Black Sabbath, and Iron Maiden. Although the premium (aka “Party Like a Rockstar”) tickets have been sold out, regular tickets are still available for both shows. Nevertheless, with such big-name bands, it is needless to say that it won’t be long before the tickets are unavailable. With free time from lack of school, and money from summer jobs, most teenagers have money to burn during the three months. For less than the price of most new pairs of jeans, they can hit up these venues alone or in groups for days filled with their favorite music.