Summer Shindigs

Featured here is electronic dance music and Montrose Beach as its location. Performers include Boys Noize, Eirck Morillo, Duck Sauce, Sasha, Chris Lake, Art Department, Nadia Ali, Serge Devant, Matthew Dear, Nic Fanciulli, Guy Gerber, Visionquest, Steve Lawler, John Dahlback, Lee Foss, Murk, Danny Daze, James Murphy & Pat Mahoney of LCD Sound System and Shit Robot.The festival is for all ages, although the VIP areas are 21+. Admission is $49 for a one-day pass and $89 for two days. VIP tables are also available.

wavefrontmusicfestival.com

TASTE OF RANDOLPH STREET

June 15- 17

LOCATED AT Randolph Street Corridor

Located in the city’s most famous restaurant row, the 15th annual Taste of Randolph Street takes place on Chicago’s Randolph Street corridor. The Taste of Randolph Street is a food-centric festival in the West Loop, a neighborhood that boasts some of the best cuisine in the city.

Home to Stephanie Izard’s Girl & the Goat, Veerasway Indian food with a twist, and Italian-focused Vivó, Randolph Street is the ideal location for a culinary celebration, says the website. Attracting city dwellers and suburbanites in numbers in excess of 100,000, including, in 2010, Vince Vaughn and his wife, Taste of Randolph Street promises to excite and entertain your senses.

Top-rated West Loop neighborhood restaurants come together with talented artisans and eclectic vendors for this three-day cross-cultural celebration. Artisan and restaurant booths are intermixed along two the aligning rows that adorn six blocks of Randolph Street during the three-day festival.

On the six-block stretch of Randolph Street from Peoria Street and Racine Avenue, you can explore handcrafted and merchant goods. Along with two unique stages of incredible live entertainment, this year newly offers a hidden DJ dance stage. Among the many items offered by artisans are handcrafted jewelry pieces, clothing, artwork and a multitude of other fun accessories.

“Taste of Randolph Street is kid-friendly, pet-friendly and hungry-person friendly, so bring your appetite and the fest will provide the rest,” says the website.

This festival benefits the West Loop Gate Community Organization, where residents, visitors and businesses have an active voice in decisions affecting the neighborhood – parks, development, schools, traffic, safety and more. The organization is constantly working to ensure positive growth for the neighborhood, while offering social events and promoting beneficial developments to improve the quality of life in the West Loop.

The taste is located at 900-1200 W. Randolph St., on Randolph Street from Peoria to Racine. Event hours are Friday June 15, 5p.m. – 10p.m., Saturday 12p.m. – 10p.m., and Sunday 12p.m. – 10p.m. Admission to the festival is free but there is a suggested donation of $10.

www.tasterandolph.com

LOLLAPALOOZA

Aug. 3-5

LOCATED AT Grant Park

What started as a touring music festival in 1991 by Jane’s Addiction frontman Perry Farrell, Lollapalooza has become a unique music experience. Today, Lollapalooza takes place every summer in the historic Grant Park, between the iconic Chicago skyline and the shores of Lake Michigan, says the event’s Facebook page.

Thousands of music fans from all over the world take over Grant Park every summer and Lolla continues to be a destination for music lovers of all ages.

This year’s headliners include The Red Hot Chili Peppers, The Black Keys, Black Sabbath, Jack White, Florence + The Machine, Bassnectar, At the Drive-In, The Shins, Justice, Passion Pit and many, many more.

www.lollapalooza.com

CHICAGO BLUES FESTIVAL

June 8-10

LOCATED AT Grant Park

The Chicago Blues Festival is the largest free blues festival in the world and remains the largest of Chicago's Music Festivals.

During three days on five stages, more than 500,000 blues fans prove that Chicago is the "Blues Capital of the World."

Past performers include Bonnie Raitt, Ray Charles, B.B. King, the late Bo Diddley, Buddy Guy and the late Koko Taylor.

The festival, which is held at Grant Park, offers music, food, and other live entertainment for festival-goers to enjoy.

An acceptable event for all ages to attend, the festival is free and offers accommodations for senior citizens and young children.

This year the performers include Joe Louis Walker, Eddie C. Campbell, Texas Johnny Brown, Floyd Taylor, Mavis Staples, Billy Branch and the Sons and Blues, Rev. K M Williams, Paul Kaye and Steady Rollin Bob Margolin, among many others.

www.facebook.com/chicago-blues-festival