SLCene Suggests: 5 Tips for Your Week

Considering it’s a week with a holiday smack-dab in the middle of it, there is a remarkable series of concerts arriving in Utah to open up July, and I didn’t even have a spot for the legendary surf-guitar dude Dick Dale’s show Sunday night at Liquid Joe’s–you should certainly consider that gig to end your weekend. And Saturday’s Voyeur is off and running at the Salt Lake Acting Company, too.

Here are the other highlights of the week ahead, so start your planning now:

• The B-52s and Squeeze, Red Butte Garden, Monday, July 2, 7 p.m., sold out

I was surprised when this show became one of the first of Red Butte’s summer concert series to sell out, but happily so. In the B-52s, you have one of the best live bands still kicking around from that first burst of what would become “alternative” rock. You might think of the Athens, Georgia, crew as a Top 40 powerhouse from their Cosmic Thing comeback era, but they were weirdo college-rock a good decade before that, delivering tasty dance-rock jams like “Quiche Lorraine,” “Private Idaho” and “Rock Lobster.” I saw them just a couple of years ago, and they sounded great. Joining them is Squeeze, a band I saw probably 20+ years ago at the old Palladium in Sugar House. I put the hyper-literate Brit rockers right up there with some of their peers from the late ’70s and early ’80s, folks like Elvis Costello and Nick Lowe, thanks to tunes  like “Black Coffee in Bed” and “Annie, Get Your Gun.” This is a show I’ve been looking forward to since it was announced. At this point, you’ll have to get tix online or from a scalper, but it will be worth it.

Squeeze opens for B-52s on Monday, July 2.

• Fitz and the Tantrums, The Depot, Tuesday, July 3, 8 p.m., $20

The joining of indie-rock with retro-soul is a movement I can totally get behind, if only because the sound of bands like Fitz and the Tantrums force indie-rock kids to move their butt a little and dance. There’s no denying the sound of this Los Angeles crew that’s only been together since 2008. In those few years, they’ve quickly become a touring favorite, and this all-ages show on the eve of a holiday should be as explosive as any fireworks shows going down around town. Royal Teeth open the show.

Fitz and the Tantrums headline The Depot on Tuesday, July 3.

• The Beach Boys, LaVell Edwards Stadium, Provo, Wednesday, July 4, 8 p.m., $25-$120

Rarely will you find me suggesting a trip into an insane mass of tens of thousands of people gathering to watch fireworks at the end of a day-long so-called “Freedom Festival,” but that’s exactly what I’m doing because of the presence of the Beach Boys on the top of the bill at this year’s Stadium of Fire in Provo. Yes, the Beach Boys have been to Utah many times through the years, but this year’s tour is something special thanks to the presence of the band’s resident genius, Brian Wilson, who is back on the road with the band to celebrate its 50th anniversary. The band also released a new album this year, That’s Why God Made the Radio, that is far better than any 50th anniversary album has a right to, so a trip into Provo for a little classic rock ‘n’ roll and fireworks might not be the worst idea for your midweek holiday.

The Beach Boys headline the Stadium of Fire on July 4.

• Beach House and The Walkmen, Pioneer Park, Thursday, July 5, 7 p.m., $5

And off we go, into a new season of the always awesome Twilight Concert Series. There are big changes in store for this year’s edition, the most significant being that the Thursday night shows at Pioneer Park are no longer free–they’ll cost you $5. That’s still a screaming deal, especially when you consider the quality of artists put together by the Salt Lake City Arts Council for 2012, starting with this double-bill of dream-pop Baltimore duo Beach House and alt-rockers The Walkmen. You can get tickets in advance at 24tix.com, and that would probably be a good idea considering the size of the crowds that descend on the park each week.

Beach House kicks off the Twilight Concert Series on Thursday, July 5.

• Heartbreakers and American Girls: The Songs of Tom Petty, Provo Town Square Parking Terrace, Friday, July 6, 8 p.m., free

The July edition of the monthly summertime Rooftop Concert Series in Provo offers a real treat, courtesy of a batch of musicians recruited by local singer/songwriter Paul Jacobsen and an all-star ad hoc local supergroup. The collection of more than 20 musicians and singers is tackling a set of the woefully underappreciated (in my opinion) Tom Petty. Expect some greatest Petty hits, some deep album cuts and maybe some of his contributions to the Traveling Wilburys, performed by members of local bands like The Devil Whale, The Moth and the Flame, Fictionist, Neon Trees and more. I’m hoping they’ll tackle this gem right here: