Swallow Hill's Shady Grove Picnic Series at Four Mile Historic Park is surely one of those hidden gems of summer: It's laid-back and easy, cheap for families and full of great music and musicians, most of them also hidden gems and many of them locals. Opportunity knocks, people: Danny Barnes, a founder of the astounding punk-grass combo Bad Livers, who's rubbed elbows with everyone from Bill Frisell to Dave Matthews, will wrap his fast fingers around the banjo and guitar for something he calls "folktronics" -- a completely original self-directed genre that comes from a place where the traditional and the experimental meet and do business -- at tonight's outdoor concert. Yee-ha! Another accomplished banjoist, Jake Schepps, will open the show with Hi-Beams string player Greg Schochet, beginning at 6:30 p.m. Bring your own basket and lawn chairs early to enjoy the bucolic ambiance of the park, located at 715 S. Forest Street.
Concerts continue weekly on Wednesdays through August 26 (including one on July 8 with the imaginative up-and-coming local star John Common). Admission is $2 to $10 at the gate. Go to Swallow Hill's website or call 303-777-1003 to learn more.
For more ways to rock the night and kill the day, go to westword.com/calendar.
