The Best Concerts in Denver This Weekend

Blake Shelton's Friends and Heroes tour, which was initially scheduled for last year, stops at Ball Arena Friday night with Martina McBride, Tracy Byrd, Trace Adkins and Lindsay Ell. Also on tap this weekend are Reggae on the Rocks at Red Rocks, Fastball at Levitt Pavilion Denver and Jammin 101.5’s Hot Summer Nights at Fiddler's Green Amphitheatre with Zapp, Evelyn "Champagne" King, Rose Royce and more.

Here are the best concerts in Denver this weekend:
Big Wild
Friday, August 20, 7:30 p.m.
Red Rocks Amphitheatre
$46.50-$76
Multi-instrumentalist and electronic producer Jackson Stell, who performs under the moniker Big Wild, headlines, while Canadian electronic duo Bob Moses, Australian alt-dance act Crooked Colours and Los Angeles-based DJ and producer Mild Minds are also on the bill.

Blake Shelton
Friday, August 20, 7 p.m.
Ball Arena, 1000 Chopper Circle
$35-$125
Country star Blake Shelton brings his Friends and Heroes tour to Ball Arena with Martina McBride, Tracy Byrd, Trace Adkins and Lindsay Ell.

The Jayhawks
Friday, August 20, 7:30 p.m.
Chautauqua Auditorium, 900 Baseline Road, Boulder
$25-$43
While the Jayhawks formed nearly four decades ago, the Minneapolis alt-country act's critically acclaimed 1992 major-label debut, Hollywood Town Hall, helped the band grow its fan base. Last year the Jayhawks released XOXO, its eleventh studio album and the first that features writing and lead vocal contributions from each of its four members. Gasoline Lollipops Acoustic Trio opens.

Stu Allen & Mars Hotel
Friday, August 20, and Saturday, August 21, 7:30 p.m.
So Many Roads Brewery, 918 West First Avenue
$20
Guitarist and singer Stu Allen, who joined Melvin Seals & JGB in 2004 and appears on Keepers of the Flame, plays two nights, with Dijon Mustang opening Friday and Kings of Prussia on Saturday.
Fastball
Saturday, August 21, 7 p.m.
Levitt Pavilion Denver, 1380 West Florida Avenue
Free/VIP $35
In 1998, Fastball earned a Grammy nomination for the song "The Way" while also shooting to number one on Billboard's Modern Rock Tracks chart. Since then, the act has gone on to release another five albums, including its most recent effort, The Help Machine. Denver indie-rock trio the Patient Zeros opens.

Hydraform
Saturday, August 21, 9 p.m.
Lost Lake, 3602 East Colfax Avenue
$14
Progressive hard-rock quartet Hydraform takes cues from acts like Lamb of God, Tool and System of a Down. Local acts Burdens of Truth, the Leshen and Shepherd are also on the bill.

Jammin 101.5’s Hot Summer Nights
Saturday, August 21, 6:30 p.m.
Fiddler's Green Amphitheatre, Greenwood Village
$37.50-$79.50
Legendary Ohio funk band Zapp, Evelyn "Champagne" King, known for her disco hit "Shame," and R&B group Rose Royce headline Jammin 101.5’s Hot Summer Nights; MC Magic, Baby Bash, Frankie J, Amanda Perez, Tierra and Malo are also on the bill.
Laura Goldhamer
Saturday, August 21, 8 p.m.
Mercury Cafe, 2199 California Street
$15
Folk singer-songwriter, stop-motion animator and instrument inventor Laura Goldhamer shares the bill with Denver pop-punk act Knucklepups and California-based jazzy folk duo Nathan & Jessie.

Reggae on the Rocks
Saturday, August 21, and Sunday, August 22, 2 p.m.
Red Rocks Amphitheatre, 18300 West Alameda Parkway, Morrison
$49.75-$89.75
California reggae-rock act Rebelution headlines both nights of the annual Reggae on the Rocks.  Saturday's lineup also includes Inner Circle, Kabaka Pyramid, Keznamdi, Judge Roughneck and DJ Mackle; Sunday will feature Third World, Kabaka Pyramid, Mykal Rose, Keznamdi, Judge Roughneck and DJ Mackle.

Moenia
Sunday, August 22, 4 p.m.
Levitt Pavilion Denver, 1380 West Florida Avenue
Free/VIP $35
Mexico City-based synth-pop trio Moenia, which formed in 1997, headlines; Denver band Azafran, which is influenced by Mexican rock, opens.

Find more music events in the Westword concert calendar. Organizing a show you'd like to be considered for this list? Send information to [email protected].