BETHLEHEM, Pa. — An alt-country band that in the 2000s had two albums in the Top 5 of Billboard's Heatseekers chart will be among concerts headlining the Levitt Pavilion SteelStacks’ 2024 free summer season.
So will a country blues band that has had several discs on the Billboard and iTunes charts.
Carbon Leaf, whose 2006 album "Love, Loss, Hope, Repeal" and 2009 album "Nothing Rhymes with Woman" both rose high on the Heatseekers chart and whose 2004 song "Less Than Ordinary" was Top 5 on the Adult Alternative chart, will perform Friday, May 31, on the Levitt stage.
And The Reverend Payton's Big Damn Band, whose 2008 album "The While Fam Damily" hit No. 4 on the Blues chart and whose 2017 album "The Front Porch" debuted at No. 2 on that chart, will perform Friday, Sept. 13.
"Free music in public places brings people together and brings pure joy."Levitt SteelStacks board Chairwoman Erin Zebertavage
Those shows were among 46 concerts (the same as last year) in the venue's 14th year, announced Sunday at a season reveal event at the ArtsQuest Center at SteelStacks.
"Free music in public places brings people together and brings pure joy," Levitt SteelStacks board Chairwoman Erin Zebertavage, who also is downtown manager of Bethlehem's
SouthSide Arts District, said at the reveal.
Variety, festivals, more
Other highlights of the season will include salsa, brass/funk, gospel, classical crossover, indie rock, pop folk and punk offerings, Levitt officials said.
The season will open Thursday, May 23, with Philadelphia upbeat indie-rock band Dry Reef and continue through Saturday, Sept. 14, when the season again, as it did last year, will close when with a “Local Party” by longtime Lehigh Valley favorite party band The Aardvarks, a mainstay of Bethlehem's Musikfest festival.
There also will be tribute shows, three of which will be first-time Levitt presentations.
Pink Floyd (Brain Damage, May 25), Fleetwood Mac (Rumours ATL, June 20), Frank Sinatra (A Night of Sinatra with Rich DiMare & The Ron Poster Trio, July 12), Adele (Absolute Adele with Jennifer Celia, Aug. 31) and Rush (Anthem, Sept. 7).
On July 4, The Allentown Band returns for a concert of patriotic music.
The series also will include festivals.
On June 27-29, ¡Sabor! Latin Festival will bring Latin heritage and Hispanic culture to the Levitt lawn, with a combination of national Latin acts with Lehigh Valley ties on June 29 when Pablo Batista & Hector Rosado with special guest vocalist Luisito Rosario grace the stage.
On July 6, it will become the main stage for One Earth ReggaeFest, headlined by Long Beach Dub Allstars.
On July 19-20, it will be the site ofBlast Furnace Blues Festival, with headliners Harlem Gospel Travelers and Eric Lindell.
And for 11 days in early August, it becomes AmericaPlatz at Musikfest.
Chief programmer's favorites
But ArtsQuest and Levitt officials often say that discovery of new music Discovery of new music is one of the attractions of the Levitt season, and offered their choices for favorite upcoming shows.
"If I was in a band, this would be the music I'd be making."ArtsQuest Chief Programming Office Patrick Brogan, about Gable Price & Friends
ArtsQuest Chief Programming Officer Patrick Brogan cited folk singer BettySoo on Aug. 22 ("She pulls you in with her voice"), polka/punk/folk guitar-and-violin duo Adrian & Meredith on Aug. 30 (who he said a colleague told him, "That's your best show of the summer"), and indie rockers Gable Price & Friends on Sept. 1 ("If I was in a band, this would be the music I'd be making").
Also, Cuban-born rockers Sweet Lizzy Project on June 6, whom he said has "a little bit of a Joan Jett vibe," blues singer Emily Wolfe on Aug. 23 ("Queens of the Stone Age meets Demi Lovato meets Radiohead") and the pop-rock of Juice on May 30. That band has played at Musikfest and other major festivals.
Brogan also cited Grammy-nominated country-blues-gospel duo The War and Treaty, the national Levitt Pavilion touring act, on July 26. They on Friday were announced as an opening act on several of The Rolling Stones' upcoming tour dates.
Also, indie-rock/funk/pop band Bermuda Search Party, who Brogan said have played several major national music festivals recently.
"It's pretty cool that we get to have them on the Levitt lawn," Brogan said.
Other officials' picks
Among her favorites, Levitt SteelStacks Executive Director Shayna Super listed all-female salsa band Lulada Club on June 7, all-female New Order-inspired brass-funk band Brass Queens on June 14.
"See you on the lawn this summer. Looking forward to it."Levitt SteelStacks board Chairwoman Erin Zebertavage
Zebertavage listed indie-rockers Happy Landing on July 18; and female rock band Patty PerShayla and the Mayhaps on Aug. 16, who she compared to Joan Jett.
Also, doo-wop surf-rockers The McCharmleys on Aug. 17 and Latin-pop-folk singer Gina Chavez on Aug. 24.
"See you on the lawn this summer," Zebertavage said. "Looking forward to it."
Here’s a list of the full season:
Concerts at Levitt Pavilion
May 23 — Dry Reef
May 24 — Bermuda Search Party
May 25 — Brain Damage: A tribute to Pink Floyd
May 28 — Stefanie Johnson Band
May 30 — Juice
May 31 — Carbon Leaf
June 1 — Julia Pratt
June 6 — Sweet Lizzy Project
June 7 — Lulada Club
June 8 — The Vindys
June 13 — Kaleta & Super Yamba Band
June 14 — Brass Queens
June 15 — The Quake Band
June 20 — Rumors ATL: A Fleetwood Mac Tribute
June 21 — Sounds of the Underground: Songwriters of Eastern Pa.
June 22 — Margo Cliker
June 27 — Herencia Jibara
June 29 — Pablo Batista & Hector Rosado with special guest vocalist Luisito Rosario
July 4 — The Allentown Band
July 5 — Bandits on the Run
July 6 — Long Beach Dub Allstars
July 11 — Stella Ruze
July 12 — A Night of Sinatra with Rich DiMare & The Ron Poster Trio
July 13 — Jordan St. Cyr
July 18— Happy Landing
July 19 — Harlem Gospel Travelers
July 20 — Eric Lindell
July 25 — Terrance Simien and the Zydeco Experience
July 26 — The War and Treaty
July 27 — Chance Emerson
Aug. 16 — The McCharmlys
Aug. 17 — Patty PerShayla and The Mayhaps
Aug. 22 — Betty Soo
Aug. 23 — Emily Wolfe
Aug. 24 —Gina Chavez
Aug. 29 — Skerryvore
Aug. 30 — Adrian & Meredith
Aug. 31 — Absolute Adele with Jennifer Cella
Sept. 1 — Gable Price and Friends
Sept. 5 — Los Texmaniacs
Sept. 6 — ARKAI
Sept. 7 — Anthem: A Tribute to Rush
Sept. 12 — Jenny & the Mexicats
Sept. 13 — The Reverend Peyton's Big Damn Band
Sept. 14 — The Aardvarks
