Festival season in the Lehigh Valley has arrived and music fans are enjoying the final days of Musikfest, gearing up for the grandstand shows at the Great Allentown Fair, and rocking out with all the music the dog days of summer bring with them.
Whether it’s Black Sabbitch or the Back Keys, Heart or Ace Frehley of Kiss, August is action packed with the best of the best.
Read below for this month’s best Lehigh Valley concerts.
Descendents
When: 7 p.m. Friday, Aug. 8
Where: Archer Music Hall, 939 Hamilton St., Allentown
How much: $46-$114
Tickets: livenation.com/ 610-798-1466
Musical style: Punk, hardcore, pop punk
Known for hits like: “Good Good Things,” “I’m the One,” “Hope,” “Suburban Home” and “’Merican”
Meet the band: Formed in 1977 in Manhattan Beach, California, the Descendents are a melodic hardcore band that have dabbled in pop punk and skate punk over the years, while maintaining their indistinguishable signature sound. They’ve released eight albums since their inception, and multiple live records, compilations and EPs. They’re widely regarded as one of the most influential punk bands in the world, cited as a major influence by the likes of Blink-182, Green Day, Dave Grohl, Mike Watt, Offspring and more.
Check them out if you like: Black Flag, Minor Threat, Rancid, Screeching Weasel, Misfits, Dead Kennedys, Bad Brains
Third Eye Blind
When: 7 p.m. Friday, Aug. 8
Where: Wind Creek Steel Stage at PNC Plaza, SteelStacks Campus (South Side) Bethlehem
How much: $47-$120.50
Tickets: www.steelstacks.org/ 610-332-1300
Musical style: Alternative, post-grunge, pop rock
Known for hits like: “Semi-Charmed Life,” “Jumper,” “How’s It Going to Be,” “Never Let You Go” and “Graduate”
Meet the band: Formed in San Francisco in 1993, Third Eye Blind signed with Elektra in 1996. In 1997 they hit the mainstream charts with their debut album, the self-titled “Third Eye Blind,” featuring the hits, “Semi-Charmed Life,” “Jumper,” and “How’s It Going to Be.” The album spent 106 weeks on the Billboard charts, and was certified six times platinum by the RIAA in August 2001. To date, the band has sold over 12 million records.
Check them out if you like: Everclear, Lit, Eve 6, Matchbox 20, Fuel, Marcy Playground, Tonic
Black Keys
When: 7 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 10
Where: Wind Creek Steel Stage at PNC Plaza, SteelStacks Campus (South Side) Bethlehem
How much: $62.50
Tickets: www.steelstacks.org/ 610-332-1300
Musical style: Garage rock, indie, blues rock
Known for hits like: “Lonely Boy,” “Howlin’ For You,” “Gold on the Ceiling,” “Tighten Up” and “Little Black Submarines”
Meet the band: Childhood friends Dan Auerbach and Patrick Carney started The Black Keys in 2001 in Akron, Ohio, recording music in basements and self-producing their records. They garnered a cult following early on, and with the release of the album, “Brothers,” in 2010, entered the mainstream music charts. Since then, they’ve won numerous Grammy Awards, Brit Awards, MTV Music Awards and more.
Check them out if you like: The Raconteurs, The White Stripes, The Hives, Jet, Spoon, The Rolling Stones, Queens of the Stone Age
Alice Cooper
When: 8 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 16
Where: Wind Creek Event Center, 77 Wind Creek Blvd., Bethlehem
How much: $59.50-$129.50
Tickets: ticketmaster.com/ 610-297-7414
Musical style: Hard rock, glam, heavy metal
Known for hits like: “Schools Out,” “Poison,” “I’m Eighteen,” “No More Mr. Nice Guy” and “Feed My Frankenstein”
Meet the band: Renowned by many as the “Godfather of Shock Rock,” Alice Cooper has been at it since 1964. He’s sold over 50 million records, and his 1972 hit, “School’s Out,” was a Top 10 in the U.S. and No. 1 in the UK. The album of the same name went to No. 2 on the U.S. charts and sold over a million copies. In 1988, after years of being in and out of the spotlight, he released the album, “Trash,” which was nominated for a Grammy and earned him the No. 7 spot on the U.S. charts and No. 2 in the UK with the single “Poison.”
Check him out if you like: Ozzy Osbourne, Motley Crue, Kiss, Warrant, Judas Priest, Joan Jett & The Blackhearts, Blue Oyster Cult
Black Sabbitch
When: 8 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 16
Where: Sellersville Theater, 24 W. Temple Ave., Sellersville
How much: $25-$56.50
Tickets: www.st94.com/ 215-257-5808
Musical style: Heavy metal, hard rock, progressive metal
Known for hits like: Covers of Black Sabbath songs including “War Pigs,” “Sabbath Bloody Sabbath,” “Into the Void,” “Wheels of Confusion” and “Paranoid”
Meet the band: Based out of Los Angeles, Black Sabbitch are the all-female answer to Black Sabbath, performing the band’s hits and deep cuts with ferocious energy, precision and remarkable style going beyond the bounds of a typical tribute band. They were personally chosen by Sharon and Ozzy Osbourne to open the inaugural Ozzfiesta, by Paul Stanley to join Kiss on the final Kiss Kruise, and by Dave Grohl to perform at Cal Jam alongside Foo Fighters and Iggy Pop.
Check them out if you like: Black Sabbath, Ozzy Osbourne, Metallica, Iron Maiden, Dio, Judas Priest, Alice Cooper
David Lee Roth
When: 7:30 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 17
Where: Wind Creek Event Center, 77 Wind Creek Blvd., Bethlehem
How much: $59.50-$129.50
Tickets: ticketmaster.com/ 610-297-7414
Musical style: Hard rock, heavy metal, pop rock
Known for hits like: “California Girls,” “Just a Gigolo,” “I Ain’t Got Nobody,” “Just Like Paradise” and “Yankee Rose”
Meet the artist: Best known as the flamboyant frontman of Van Halen, David Lee Roth was pivotal in launching the band to stardom wailing out hits like “Panama,” “Hot for Teacher,” and “Runnin’ with the Devil” before his departure from the group in 1985. During his tenure with Van Halen, they sold over 80 million records. As a solo artist he’s released multiple RIAA-certified gold and platinum albums.
Check him out if you like: Van Halen, Sammy Hagar, Great White, Ratt, Kiss, Poison, Def Leppard
Heart
When: 7 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 27
Where: Allentown Fairgrounds, 302 N 17th St.
How much: $119-$141
Tickets: ticketmaster.com/ 610-297-7414
Musical style: Arena rock, glam rock, heavy metal
Known for hits like: “Barracuda,” “Crazy on You,” “Alone,” “All I Wanna Do Is Make Love to You” and “Magic Man”
Honors: Heart has had several Top 40 hits including, “Magic Man,” “Crazy on You,” “Barracuda,” “What About Love,” “Never” and “All I Wanna Do Is Make Love to You.” Their songs These Dreams,” and “Alone” went to number one on the charts. They’ve had 10 albums on the Billboard 200 and have sold over 35 million records. Nancy Wilson sang on Heart’s firstNo. 1 single, “These Dreams,” and has composed music for a number of films including “Say Anything,” “Almost Famous” and “Jerry Maguire.” Heart was inducted into the Rock andRoll Hall of Fame in 2012.
Check them out if you like: Pat Benatar, Styx, Night Ranger, The Cars, Journey, The Runaways, Rick Springfield
Ace Frehley
When: 7 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 30
Where: Allentown Fairgrounds, 302 N 17th St.
How much: $61.40
Tickets: ticketmaster.com/ 610-297-7414
Musical style: Hard rock, heavy metal, glam rock
Known for hits like: “New York Groove,” “Rip it out,” “Do Ya,” “Rock Soldiers” and “Hide Your Heart.” Also, with Kiss, “Rock and Roll All Night” and “Detroit Rock City.”
Honors: He was the lead-guitarist and cofounder of the band Kiss. He was ranked the 14th Greatest Metal Guitarist of All Time by Guitar World magazine. His first solo album went platinum with the song “New York Groove” hitting the Top 20 in the US. His autobiography, “No Regrets – A Rock ‘N’ Roll Memoir,” was No. 10 on the New York Time’s Best Seller list at the time of its release.
Check him out if you like: Kiss, AC/DC, Motley Crew, Skid Row, Van Halen, Thin Lizzy, Aerosmith, Queen, Alice Cooper
Jay Honstetter is a freelance writer.
