After parents’ minivans, packed tight with a year’s worth of stuff, pull away, Columbia will be a different place entirely. Students will close their textbooks for a final (or, if you’re like me, first and final) time. It’ll probably feel desolate and a little lazy without masses of students rushing around campus. Whether you need to establish residency, just can’t bear to leave lovely Columbia or are sticking around to work this summer, these concerts should keep you entertained until the masses return in the fall.
1. Christina Perri, May 16, The Blue Note — Break up with your significant other for the summer? Come see a poor man’s Adele moan and whine in real life! If you’re lucky, she might perform that song she recorded for the Twilight soundtrack.
2. Sallie Ford and the Sound Outside, May 16, Mojo’s — You won’t be surprised that this bluesy, folksy, kind of old-timey band hails from Portland, Ore. The quartet is basically straight out of Portlandia. If Perri’s angst is too much for you, celebrate the end of finals at this show.
3. Heartless Bastards, May 25, Mojo’s – This garage rock band straight out of Austin, Texas is headed from one college town to another to promote _Arrow_, its most recent album. Let’s just hope the Heartless Bastards are friendlier than their name lets on.
4. mewithoutYou, June 1, The Blue Note — Get your flannel ready. MewithoutYou will perform songs from its new album, _Ten Stories_, released May 15, right down the road this summer. If you’re planning on attending this one, you’d better get started on your hipster beard ASAP.
5. fun., June 9, The Pageant in St. Louis – I can already tell you exactly what the set list will look like for this one, with “We Are Young” (remember, that song from Glee?) coming in for the encore. Actually, don’t quote me on that, I never guess the encore right. But if you fancy a trip to the city (and want to spend it with masses of high school girls), add this to your itinerary.
6. “Blind” Boone Ragtime Festival, June 11-13, Missouri Theatre – Get a little culture in your system this summer at Columbia’s annual ragtime and jazz festival. The event is an entire weekend long, so you really have no excuse not to be there. Lots of local acts, like the Sedalia Ragtime Orchestra, are lined up to perform.
7. Girl Talk, June 15, Ninth Street Summerfest – For Summerfest, an event sponsored by The Blue Note, Girl Talk will perform outside on Ninth Street. Regardless of your music taste, it should be a blast to sing, dance and hang out in the street. And you can student charge the $25 ticket, so you can have a good time on Mom’s dime!
8. Ingrid Michaelson, June 16, The Pageant in St. Louis – Ingrid and her ukulele are just enough charm to outweigh the ridiculous gas prices and half-asleep drive home it will take to see her perform live. Grab a few friends and make a day out of it in the city!
