Along with the Minnesota Zoo's Music in the Zoo series lineup, there was a glut of concerts announced Monday morning. Here's a roundup:
*Nothing says America like the Beach Boys, what with their stories of hot-rods, bikini babes and inner-band lawsuits. The copyright holders of the Beach Boys name on tour, co-founder Mike Love and longtime member Bruce Johnston, will play a special July 4 concert at Mystic Lake Casino & Hotel, which is bringing back its outdoor concert set-up just for the occasion. Tickets go on sale Friday at 10 a.m. for $32-$69 through Ticketmaster or the casino's box office (952-496-6563). Those $32 tickets are for the lawn, where blankets and folding chairs will be allowed, but not coolers.
*If Def Leppard and Tesla are your cup of tea but not Styx and the Minnesota State Fair, Xcel Energy Center is offering fans a chance to see those first two bands with a different middle-slot group, Foreigner, just a couple months after the fair on Oct. 5. As if Styx and Foreigner draw such wildly different audiences. Tickets to the X show go on sale Saturday at 10 a.m. through Ticketmaster and the arena box office at prices not yet announced (other cities are in the $30-$100 range). Def Leppard's Aug. 27 date with Styx and Tesla at the fair grandstand is sold out except for VIP seats.
*After playing the zoo last summer, Counting Crows will be back in town for another outdoor gig Sept. 13 at Cabooze Plaza with openers Citizen Cope and Hollis Brown. Tickets go on sale Friday at 10 a.m. through Ticketmaster for $50.
*A cool little festival worthy of a road trip, Omaha's Aug. 15 Maha Festival will include a pair of Minnesota favorites, Atmosphere and the Jayhawks, along with Rock the Garden headliner Modest Mouse, the Purity Ring, the double-V bands (Wavves and Alvvays), Ex-Hex, Speedy Ortiz, the Good Life and more. Tickets are on sale now for $50.
