Denver Post pop music critic Ricardo Baca’s Colorado concert picks for summer 2012.
May
The Fray: May 11-12, Red Rocks
Drake J. Cole: May. 13, Comfort Dental Amphitheatre
Keb’ Mo’: May 20, Mishawaka Amphitheatre (Bellvue)
The Civil Wars: May 23, Ogden Theatre
Van Halen: May 24, Pepsi Center
MeadowGrass Music Festival with Son Volt, Nathaniel Rateliff, Dan Hicks & the Hot Licks: May 25-27, La Foret Conference and Retreat Center (Black Forest)
Denver Day of Rock with Toto, Toad the Wet Sprocket, Fishbone: May 26, 16th Street Mall
LMFAO: May 28, Red Rocks
Of Monsters and Men: May 28, Ogden Theatre
Santigold: May 29, Ogden Theatre
The Shins: May 29, Red Rocks
Bon Iver: May 31, Red Rocks
June
Bassnectar: June 1-2, Red Rocks
Bluegrass at the Fair with Fireweed, Claire Lynch Band, Ryan Shupe & Rubberband: June 1-3, Colorado State Fairgrounds (Pueblo)
Rick Ross, Wiz Khalifa, Tyga: June 8, Comfort Dental Amphitheatre
Indigo Girls: June 9, Arvada Center;June 10, Chautauqua Auditorium
Nickelback: June 10, Pepsi Center
Toby Keith: June 15, Comfort Dental Amphitheatre
Tennis, Paper Bird: June 16, Chautauqua Auditorium
Telluride Bluegrass Festival with John Fogerty, Alison Krauss & Union Station, k.d. lang: June 21-24, Telluride Town Park
Country Jam with Zac Brown Band, Blake Shelton, Trace Adkins: June 21-24, 22 miles west of Grand Junction
Wilco: June 22-23, Red Rocks
Greeley Independence Stampede with Creedence Clearwater Revisited, Montgomery Gentry, others: June 22-July 4, Stampede Arena (Greeley)
Westword Music Showcase with Girl Talk, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, Battles: June 23, Golden Triangle
Def Leppard, Poison: June 25, Pepsi Center
Alan Jackson: June 28, Red Rocks
The Avett Brothers: June 29-30, Red Rocks
Peter Kater, R. Carlos Nakai: June 30, Chautauqua Auditorium
July
String Cheese Incident: July 5-7, Red Rocks
Brandi Carlile: July 14, Red Rocks
Natalie Merchant with the Colorado Symphony: July 17, Denver Botanic Gardens
Emmylou Harris, Steve Martin: July 18, Red Rocks
The Denver Post Underground Music Showcase with Black Moth Super Rainbow, Big Freedia and the Divas, A Place to Bury Strangers, Slim Cessna’s Auto Club: July 19-22, Historic Baker District
Global Dance Festival: July 20-22, Red Rocks
Cheyenne Frontier Days with Zac Brown Band, Brad Paisley, Merle Haggard, Journey: July 20-28, Cheyenne Frontier Nights
Kenny Chesney, Tim McGraw: July 21, Sports Authority Field at Mile High
Lucinda Williams: July 21, Chautauqua Auditorium
James Taylor: July 23-24, Red Rocks
Al Green: July 23, Denver Botanic Gardens
Florence + the Machine: July 25, Red Rocks
RockyGrass Festival with Sam Bush Bluegrass Band, Ralph Stanley, Trampled by Turtles: July 27-29, Planet Bluegrass Ranch (Lyons)
August
Kaskade: Aug. 1, Red Rocks
Aerosmith: Aug. 1, Pepsi Center
James Murphy of LCD Soundsystem (DJ set): Aug. 2, Boulder Theater
Diana Krall: Aug. 6, Denver Botanic Gardens
Passion Pit, Justice: Aug. 7, Red Rocks
Jack White: Aug. 8, Red Rocks
Kiss, Motley Crue: Aug. 8, Comfort Dental Amphitheatre
Blind Pilot: Aug. 11, Chautauqua Auditorium; Aug. 12, Mishawaka Amphitheatre
Joe Cocker, Huey Lewis & the News: Aug. 12, Comfort Dental Amphitheatre
Iron Maiden: Aug. 13, Comfort Dental Amphitheatre
Pretty Lights: Aug. 17-18, Red Rocks
Rocky Mountain Folks Festival with Lyle Lovett, Iron & Wine, Neko Case: Aug. 17-19, Planet Bluegrass Ranch (Lyons)
Crosby, Stills & Nash: Aug. 21, Red Rocks
Norah Jones: Aug. 23, Red Rocks
B.B. King, Tedeschi Trucks Band: Aug. 30, Red Rocks
Jazz Aspen Snowmass with Kid Rock, Sugarland, Steve Miller Band: Aug. 31-Sept. 2, Snowmass Town Park
Phish: Aug. 31-Sept. 2, Dick’s Sporting Goods Park
September
Buddy Guy, Robert Randolph & the Family Band: Sept. 1, Denver Botanic Gardens at Chatfield
Savoy: Sept. 7, Red Rocks
Furthur: Sept 21-23, Red Rocks
Jason Mraz: Sept. 24, Red Rocks
Red Hot Chili Peppers: Sept. 27, Pepsi Center
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Ricardo Baca is the founder and executive editor of , the co-founder of The UMS and an award-winning critic and journalist at The Denver Post.
