The 7 Concerts You Musn’t Miss This Summer

This year’s Outside Lands lineup was announced yesterday.

Tomorrow, tickets go on sale.

That gives you 24 hours to decide if D’Angelo 2.0, Sir Elton John and a gaggle of other buzzworthy song-and-dance acts me braving the throngs of half-baked juvenilia that will annex our usually bucolic Golden Gate Park.

Of course, it being summer and the local scene being a lively one, Outside Lands isn’t your only option for good eats and better beats in the coming months.

Below? A rundown of the full gamut. Something for everyone — trust.

Best “Summer” Concert That’s Actually 55 and Misty
The aforementioned Outside Lands, August 7th-9th. Tickets on sale tomorrow at 10 A.M.

Best Burner Tickets for Unorganized Dawdlers and the Poors
Burning Man sold out eons ago. So unless you feel like sending $1,000 StubHub’s way, circle July 29th on your calendar to register for the $390 OMG tickets, 1,000 of which will disappear seconds after they go on sale on August 5th.

Best Bands That Old People Think Young People Might Like
Live 105 BFD’s tiki party. You had us at “Modest Mouse.” (And Of Monsters and Men. And Best Coast. And hometown heroes Cathedrals.) Tickets for the June 6th show went on sale 11 days ago, and a handful are still available.

Best Event for Ambulatory Drunks
The SF Street Food Festival (August 15th and 16th). The early-bird “passports” are done and dusted, but the festival remains free and will move to a bigger venue (Pier 70 in Dogpatch). Bonus: they’ve adjusted the drinking rules so imbibers are free to wander drink in hand (rather than chilling in the restricted areas as in previous years).

Best Festival for People Who Don’t Like to Stand a Lot
Because there’s something pleasingly civilized about a music festival at a winery, we’ll be at Huichica at the Gundlach Bundschu Winery in Sonoma (June 12th and 13th) along with the Allah-Las, Atlas Sound and the Fresh and Onlys.

Best Rockin’ Out With Your Pinot Out
BottleRock. No Doubt, Robert Plant, Imagine Dragons and a roster of participating wineries make an “only-in-Napa” (or, “only when I was in college twenty years ago”) experience.

Best Concert Full of Twilight Fans
If you didn’t get your act together in time for Coachella but still want to check out a West Coast fest that requires many hours in the car, there’s always Sasquatch (May 22nd-25th) in Washington. This year’s terrific lineup includes Sleater-Kinney, Ryan Adams, Kendrick Lamar, Lana Del Rey, Robert Planet, Sharon Von Etten and a zillion more.

Photo: Jessica S. via Flickr