SUNSHINE? USUALLY. SMILES? ALWAYS. The audience at a Sounds Like Summer Concert Series event.

Summer is once again brazenly upon us and the feral mix of humidity and sunshine is beginning to make my skin crack. “This is what we wait for all year!” I mutter to myself reaching for the slick bottle of sunscreen. I have had the privilege of attending nearly every Sounds Like Summer Concert Series show this year, with the exception of July 4: The rain stopped the show, but the neighborhood fireworks certainly won the war. Even now, weeks later it seems they’re still celebrating their soggy victory.

At this point of the summer we are about halfway done with Sounds Like Summer for the season. For those of us at Volume One, the whole night can be a bit stressful to put together. It’s an all-out sprint to get things set up and ready for the droves of fans, vendors, and sponsors to descend upon the park, but there are worse ways to spend a Thursday night. As a musician myself, I have played a few of these over the years and it’s one we always looked forward to. To see it still going strong to me is a testament to the community craving experiences created by people, which I think is a good omen of things to come. 

People will always need people, and I hope we never forget that. Like clockwork, at the end of the night I find a place on a stone just about when the last band is on their final song. I take a look around and soak in everything. I see the sun going down through the trees, and the river reflecting orange. I see friends and families enjoying each other’s company while the band drums along, and I think to myself, “This is one of the things people do best.”