So is everyone all relaxed after a long holiday weekend?

I hope so because the summer concert season is just starting to swing into high gear, and we’ve got a long, albeit hot, summer ahead of us with tons of great shows coming to the Hampton Roads area.

Jackass Flats.

To kick things off, if you’re into that Sinatra style big band vocals, check out Michael Buble Wednesday evening at the Ted Constant Convocation Center. Tickets are still available, but then again, with tickets ranging from $50-100, that’s to be expected.

Thursday night, head to Doc Taylors (yes, the breakfast/lunch place) in Virginia Beach to see local Richmond boys Jackass Flats doing their progressive style of bluegrass. If I could only do one show this week, this would be it. Although they started out as a bluegrass group in the strictest sense, with banjo, fiddle, pedal steel guitar, stand up bass, they also push those limits and explore all aspects of rock, blues, and Americana. Think Wilco meets Old Crow Medicine Show. Actually, just writing about them, and thinking of the last couple times I’ve seen them, I’m going to have to change this to my show of the week, even though earlier, I had listed another event on here as such. Trust me on this one. You’ll dig it.

For those that are partial to the sounds of country, you’ve got Toby Keith with special guests Joe Nichols and James Otto at the Virginia Beach Amphitheater Friday night. Again, plenty of tickets available, actually hundreds in every Pavilion section, through Ticketmaster at $35-75.

DONAVON (Photo | Naki)

(Concert going tip: Next time you’re headed to a show and have a Pavilion seat, check the interactive seating map Ticketmaster/LiveNation have recently added to their website. The day of the show, log on as if purchasing tickets to see what seats are still open so you can slide down a few sections and not have to worry about anyone coming and complaining you’re in their seats. It helped me get down, literally, and figuratively, to Phish this past weekend!)

Want some psychedelic lights, maybe a short trip away from home, but still in your head, you should try and make it down to the Norva Saturday for The Machine, the premier Pink Floyd cover band, making their bi-annual visit to the Norfolk area for a much easier on the wallet 15 bones, starting at 9pm.

Finally, Sunday. The Jewish Mother. Be there. Donovan Frankenreiter with special guest Mishka opening up. Frankenreiter recently released a new album titled, Revisited, and is currently touring the nation winning over new fans nightly.  If you have plans of seeing Jack Johnson, G. Love, and ALO next week, this is your warm-up show and definitely worth checking out, even if it is a Sunday. Tickets for this are $20 in advance, or $25 the day of the show. I’d suggesting getting tickets early, and better yet, getting to Jew Ma’s early enough to get one of their great sandwiches!

Looking ahead, get your tickets for Interpol at the Norva July 30th, as soon as possible. I can’t stress this enough, this show WILL sell out. More on this in the coming weeks, I just felt it’d be a disservice to not mention it early.

As always, whatever you do, take care of your shoes.