The best outdoor concerts in NYC

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JUNE

2,4,5 Phish
To the dismay of the haters, the preeminent post–Grateful Dead jam band is back in action—in a major way. The Vermont quartet’s March reunion performances were heralded by Phans as a return to form (phorm?), which sold out the band’s summer shows from coast to coast. But if Craigslist is any indication, you might be able to cop a spot for around $100. Nikon at Jones Beach Theater. 7:30pm, sold out.

5 TV on the Radio + Dirty Projectors
Two experimental local acts that have also emerged as players on the national scene (or soon-to-be, in the case of Dirty Ps) kick off the season at Rumsey Playfield. The show is sold out, but don’t fret: TV on the Radio also plays a Celebrate Brooklyn show August 11 at the Prospect Park Bandshell, and Dirty Projectors headlines June 19 in its own (free) gig at the McCarren-replacing Williamsburg Waterfront. Central Park SummerStage. 5:30pm, sold out.

7 Nine Inch Nails + Jane’s Addiction
Despite being dubbed the “NIN/JA” tour, the season’s biggest alt-rock package will be anything but stealthy. Trent Reznor has turned over a fan-friendly new leaf, with free downloads, an iPhone app, a regular presence on Twitter, and a taping policy allowing both audio and video documentation. The core members of Jane’s Addiction, reunited for the first time since 1991, are said to be working on new material. And openers Street Sweeper Social Club—a collaboration between Rage Against the Machine’s Tom Morello and the Coup’s Boots Riley—might outscorch the sun-baked pavement. Nikon at Jones Beach Theater. 7pm, $26–$85.

8 David Byrne
Is there any currently touring artist more creatively generous than David Byrne? Not if the show we caught at Radio City Music Hall in February was anything to go by. Byrne’s ongoing tour, Songs of David Byrne and Brian Eno, is half devoted to the pair’s recent, appealingly homespun album, Everything That Happens Will Happen Today. The rest features earlier collaborations, including joyous updates of classic Talking Heads material performed by a tight band, three soulful backing singers and a trio of kinetic dancers. Celebrate Brooklyn at the Prospect Park Bandshell. 8pm, suggested donation $3.

24 Easy Star All-Stars
Stuy Town’s Music on the Oval series is billed as family-friendly; hopefully your family is down for blazing a fat spliff tonight. The All-Stars put reggae and dub spins on classic material, having previously tackled Pink Floyd and Radiohead. Now they’ve gone after the Beatles with the recent Easy Star’s Lonely Hearts Dub Band. The results can be hilarious and are always impressive. FREE Stuyvesant Town Oval. 7pm.

27 Steven Bernstein’s Baby Loves Jazz
Trumpeter Steven Bernstein has the mind of a pop-music savant, the soul of a downtown hipster and the blues-enriched sound of a venerable trad-jazz hornman. Fresh off a tour with Levon Helm and John Prine, Bernstein hits Roosevelt Island with Baby Loves Jazz, a project that offers a swinging take on kiddie fare like “Old MacDonald Had a Farm” and “I’ve Been Working on the Railroad.” FREE Roosevelt Live. 4pm.

JULY

4 Conor Oberst and the Mystic Valley Band + Jenny Lewis
Every July 4, the River to River festival throws a huge, free concert at Battery Park. This year, the day is presided over by one of indie rock’s most thoughtful songwriters, young Manhattanite Conor Oberst, performing with his non–Bright Eyes outfit. Oberst’s songs touch on New York, his Midwest roots and political protest. Talented opener Jenny Lewis has been a child actor and a member of Rilo Kiley; she has lived to sing about both. FREE Battery Park. 3:30pm.

8 Juana Molina + Curumin
Juana Molina began her showbiz career not as a singer-songwriter, but rather as a television comedy star in her native Argentina. Her music is bubbly, poppy and soft—yet deeper and artier than it first seems. At SummerStage, she headlines a night of artists from Argentina and Brazil, including São Paulo’s Curumin. FREE Central Park SummerStage. 7pm.

9 Matt and Kim
Having recently ignited an online firestorm with their video for “Lessons Learned,” which features them streaking through Times Square, this button-cute Brooklyn indie-pop duo serenades its legions of fans at scenic Pier 54. You can safely expect plenty of catcalled requests for nudity—if not the actual thing. FREE Pier 54, Hudson River Park. 7pm.

10 The Pains of Being Pure at Heart
The Pains of Being Pure at Heart may never live down the Jesus and Mary Chain and My Bloody Valentine comparisons (are we the only ones hearing the Stone Roses?), but no matter: The local quartet’s brand of dreamy shoegaze is nonetheless a bright addition to the indie scene. FREE South Street Seaport. 6pm.

13 Wilco + Yo La Tengo
Many hard-core Wilco fans were disappointed by 2007’s Sky Blue Sky, but the recent DVD Ashes of American Flags proves that the Chicago band can still absolutely shred live. If that’s not enough, perhaps a new (flashily titled) full-length, Wilco (The Album), will redeem the group in June. Yo La Tengo makes the trek across the rivers to solidify this never-say-die bill. KeySpan Park. 8pm, $45.

16,17,19 Ponderosa Stomp
Touring the soul and sounds of New Orleans all over the map for the eighth year running, Ponderosa Stomp comes to Lincoln Center, starting with two outdoor shows concentrating on R&B (July 16) and rockabilly (July 17). During the final date, Alice Tully Hall will be rocking to the sounds of Dr. John, the Dixie Cups, Zigaboo Modeliste, Wardell Quezergue and other Big Easy legends. July 16, 17: Damrosch Park Bandshell. 6:30pm, $15. July 19: Alice Tully Hall. 8pm, $30–$40.

18 Q-Tip + Chester French
Adenoidal hip-hop icon Q-Tip, frontman for seminal combo A Tribe Called Quest, serves up some of the loose-limbed, funky jams from his latest solo disc, The Renaissance. Sharing the show is Chester French, a pop duo fledged at Harvard University and currently the toast of the hip-hop elite. FREE Central Park SummerStage. 3pm.

18 Siren Festival with Built to Spill + The Raveonettes + Frightened Rabbit + Monotonix and more
This annual summer festival can be a bitch to deal with, but year in and year out, the lineup makes it worth braving the sweaty crowds. This July’s docket boasts a major coup (Built to Spill) as well as cult artists (the Raveonettes, Monotonix) and emerging indies. More announcements about the lineup are coming down the pike; keep your eyes peeled (siren.villagevoice.com/siren) and stock up on sunscreen. FREE Coney Island. Noon.

19 Rock the Bells with Nas and Damian Marley + The Roots + Big Boi + Common and more
The season’s biggest hip-hop package tour is headlined by Queensbridge hero Nas and reggae royal Damian “Junior Gong” Marley, highlighting material from their new collaborative album, Distant Relatives, which weds Nas’s distinctive spitting with Marley’s hard-hitting beats. The top-to-bottom solid bill also includes the Roots, OutKast’s Big Boi, Common, Busta Rhymes and the GZA, as well as strong comers like the Knux, Mickey Factz and Slaughterhouse. Nikon at Jones Beach Theater. Noon, $40.50–$130.50.

AUGUST

31,1,2 All Points West with Beastie Boys + Yeah Yeah Yeahs + Vampire Weekend + Tool + My Bloody Valentine + Coldplay and more
In addition to solid headliners, APW’s packed bill provides much reason to get a jump on the day with second-tier, first-rate performers like Ra Ra Riot, Flying Lotus, St. Vincent and Akron/Family. Liberty State Park. Noon; $89, three-day pass $199.

1 M. Ward + Mike Watt and Nels Cline
The indie masses will turn out for quiet troubadour M. Ward, still riding high on the smashing success of his She & Him collaboration with Zooey Deschanel. But what’s got us particularly psyched on this bill is the opening act, which pairs erstwhile Minuteman and sometime Stooge Mike Watt with avant-guitar god (and Wilco member) Nels Cline. FREE Central Park SummerStage. 7pm.

3 Béla Fleck and Toumani Diabaté
A meeting of two dazzling virtuosic talents: NYC’s Béla Fleck plays banjo with the kind of lightning skill that makes grown instrumentalists weep, while Mali’s Diabaté approaches the traditional kora with exquisite dexterity. The pairing is a result of Fleck’s estimable Africa Project, a 15-city tour that sought to associate the banjo with its true home continent, and produced some truly breathtaking collaborations. FREE Central Park SummerStage. 7:30pm.

6,7 Rokia Traoré
With her latest disc, Tchamantché, Malian singer Rokia Traoré wraps her beautiful, velvety voice around moody blues and joyous Afrobeats alike. Be prepared to gape at her lovely vocals, and also to get up and shimmy. FREE Aug 6: BAM Rhythm & Blues Festival at MetroTech. Noon. Aug 7: Damrosch Park Bandshell. 7:30pm.

8 Rhys Chatham’s A Crimson Grail + Liquid Liquid
What’s gutsier than booking an avant-garde symphony for 200 electric guitars? Booking it again after it was rained out the first time. Lincoln Center takes another crack at presenting Chatham’s A Crimson Grail—and presumably this time there will be a rain contingency plan. Opening is seminal NYC mutant-disco combo Liquid Liquid, source of the killer groove under Grandmaster Flash’s “White Lines.” FREE Damrosch Park Bandshell. 7:30pm.

11 TV on the Radio
If you couldn’t get into the SummerStage show on June 5, this could be your chance. Celebrate Brooklyn at the Prospect Park Bandshell. 5:30pm, $30.

11,12 Bontaj Roulet: Bonnie Raitt and Taj Mahal
Bonnie Raitt and Taj Mahal both came up long after the classic blues era had passed, yet each artist has been instrumental in carrying their music’s torch, relying on tradition without ever seeming musty or fetishistic. The performers offer solo sets before teaming up for an uplifting finale. Aug 11: New Jersey Performing Arts Center. 8pm, $43.25–$88.25. Aug 12: Celebrate Brooklyn at the Prospect Park Bandshell. 7pm, $39.75–$125.25.

13 Yeasayer The Yeasayer crew has been relatively quiet as of late, which only ups our anticipation of this appearance. While the show is sure to be heavy on tunes from one of 2007’s great records, their All Hour Cymbals, you’ll likely hear new songs, too. Let the electronic neofolk ring out upon the masses! FREE Pier 54, Hudson River Park. 7pm.

14,15 Animal Collective
It may not be rare to catch a New York–area performance from pseudolocals Animal Collective, but it is rare to get them outdoors. The expansive tunes from these experimental luminaries are meant to be heard in full-out jam mode, and we can’t think of a better space for the band’s electronics to get crazy weird. Celebrate Brooklyn at the Prospect Park Bandshell. 5:30pm, $30. Aug 14 sold out.

16 Dinosaur Jr. + The WalkmenBesides sporting the year’s oddest and most awesome cover art—showcasing two stoned-looking giants made of grass—Dino’s forthcoming Farm features some of the strongest tuneage yet. Expect loud, shaggy fun. Also tonight: NYC vets and perennially solid rockers the Walkmen. FREE Central Park SummerStage. 3pm.

INDEX NYC summer concert guide
Your next three months—planned.

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