There’s usually a post-NMF comedown in terms of the concerts coming through town … but not this year. No, not at all, with legends, presidential candidates, and ’90s alt-rock favorites coming to town while a new festival debuts. Hope you slept well up to now, because you might not get much through next Wednesday.
NEEDTOBREATHE with Ben Rector, Drew Holcomb & The Neighbors and Colony House
6 p.m. Thursday
Chevy Bricktown Events Center | Oklahoma City
The only thing youth pastors love more than taking kids down to Medieval Times is NEEDTOBREATHE, the Christian-but-not-Christian-but-totally-Christian alternative-rock band that makes a habit of performing here in the Bible Belt as often as possible. Falls Creek’s answer to One Direction is joined by polite, Tulsa-raised pop-rocker Ben Rector, folkies Drew Holcomb & the Neighbors, and Steven Curtis Chapman’s sons’ band Colony House. Lock-in after-party at one of those mall-sized non-denominational churches along the Interstate somewhere, we assume.
Queen of the Prairie Festival
Friday-Saturday
Guthrie
Two of Oklahoma’s biggest names — J.D. McPherson and Parker Millsap — headline the festival, but some of the gems are buried deeper into the lineup. Justin Townes Earle is a songwriter’s songwriter, and Valerie June, Nicki Bluhm & the Gamblers, Jonny Fritz and Escondido add plenty of depth to this upstart music-and-camping festival that is working to capture the more offbeat end of Oklahoma’s long-held Americana and folk sensibilities.
Local H with Battleme
7:30 p.m. Friday
The Conservatory | Oklahoma City
Sure, this duo is best known as the minds behind “Bound for the Floor,” a ’90s-alternative gem that has really stood up to the test of time. But they’ve steadily toured, released albums and generally ridden that rocky road better than many of their contemporaries. They put out their eighth studio album, Hey, Killer, in mid-April.
Yellowcard with Finch and The Downtown Fiction
7 p.m. Saturday
Cain’s Ballroom | Tulsa
Don’t act like you don’t still know most of the words to “Ocean Avenue.”
Bob Dylan
8 p.m. Sunday
Civic Center Music Hall | Oklahoma City
Finally! Your chance to see young upstart Bob Dylan who all those FM radio stations have been talking about.
Waka Flocka Flame
7 p.m. Sunday
Cain’s Ballroom | Tulsa
8 p.m. Monday
Farmer’s Market | Oklahoma City
He’s going to be president soon, so you better catch one of the best Southern rappers around while you can. #GucciManeforVP
Mr. Gnome with Kill the Reflection and Nebulae
8 p.m. Monday
The Conservatory | Oklahoma City
Cleveland duo Mr. Gnome melds theatrical indie pop, cosmic psychedelia and college-radio rock with the best of them, joined by some of Oklahoma’s fellow finest at doing just that.
The Soft Moon with Skull Katalog and Galactique
8 p.m. Tuesday
Opolis | Norman
Born Luis Vasquez, The Soft Moon released one of the best albums of the year so far with Deeper, a dark and violent but hook-driven krautrock record that has seriously raised his profile. He opened for Depeche Mode in European arenas last year; who knows how many more opportunities you’ll get to see him in a space as intimate as Opolis.
Mastodon with Clutch & Graveyard
6 p.m. Wednesday
Diamond Ballroom | Oklahoma City
How often do you get to see the creators of history’s best music video (Exhibit A presented below) and the Ace of Cakes dude’s favorite band on the same bill? Also, at some point ear plugs become less about consideration for 50-year-old you’s hearing and more about your immediate survival, and it might just be this intersection of unholy heaviness.
