With Musikfest in full swing and the end of summer sneaking up on us, the heat is on and the Lehigh Valley is in full ‘fest mode.
From the ‘90s trifecta of Blues Traveler, Gin Blossoms and Spin Doctors, to the trap music of T.I. and the classic emo sounds of Taking Back Sunday and Dashboard Confessional, there’s no shortage of fun to be had to wind down the summer this month.
Read on for more top Lehigh Valley concerts this August.
Rapper T.I. will perform Aug. 5 at Musikfest. Photo courtesy of Musikfest.
Taking Back Sunday performs at Musikfest on Saturday, Aug 8, 2026, in Bethlehem. (Drew A. Kelley, Press-Telegram/SCNG)
Dashboard Confessional performs Monday, Aug. 24, 2026, at Archer Music Hall in Allentown. (Salma Bustos)
Spin Doctors will join Gin Blossoms and Blues Traveler on Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2026, at Levitt Pavilion SteelStacks in Bethlehem. (Shane Miljevic)
Blues Traveler will join Gin Blossoms and Spin Doctors on Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2026, at Levitt Pavilion SteelStacks in Bethlehem. (Graham Fielder)
Gin Blossoms will join Blues Traveler and Spin Doctors on Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2026, at Levitt Pavilion SteelStacks in Bethlehem. (Shervin Lainez)
The Reverend Horton Heat performs Friday, Aug. 28, 2026, at Levitt Pavilion SteelStacks in Bethlehem. (Paul A. Hebert/Invision/AP
King’s X will appear Saturday, Aug. 29, 2026, at Sellersville Theater. (Mark Weiss)
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Rapper T.I. will perform Aug. 5 at Musikfest. Photo courtesy of Musikfest.
T.I.
When: 7 p.m. Wednesday, Aug 5
Where: Wind Creek Steel Stage at PNC Plaza, 711 E. First St., Bethlehem
How much: $78-$400
Tickets: artsquest.org / 610-332-1300
Musical style: Trap, Southern hip hop, gangsta rap
Known for hits like: “Live Your Life,” “Whatever You Like,” “What You Know,” “Dead and Gone” and “Bring ‘Em Out”
Meet the artist: Often cited as a pioneer of trap music, T.I. got his first taste of success guesting on Bone Crusher’s Billboard Hot 100 hit, “Never Scared,” in 2003. His first album was little known, but his following four albums produced a number of Top 40 and Billboard Hot 100 top 10 singles. His sixth album “Paper Trail,” was certified gold in its first week and included the Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 hits “Whatever You Like” and “Live Your Life.” Since then, he’s been nominated for a Grammy Award 19 times, and has won three, in addition to 12 Billboard Music Awards, three BET Awards, and two American Music Awards. His latest album, “Kill the King” was released this past June.
Check him out if you like: Ludacris, Lil Wayne, 2 Chainz, Jay-Z, Gucci Maine, Ja Rule, French Montana
Taking Back Sunday
When: 7 p.m. Saturday, Aug 8
Where: Wind Creek Steel Stage at PNC Plaza, 711 E. First St., Bethlehem
How much: $70-$191
Tickets: artsquest.org / 610-332-1300
Musical style: Pop punk, emo, alternative
Known for hits like: “MakeDamnSure,” “Cute Without the E (Cut from the Team),” “You’re So Last Summer,” “A Decade Under the Influence” and “Liar (It Takes One to Know One)”
Meet the band: In 2006 Taking Back Sunday released their third album, “Louder Now,” and it was a life changer. It went to No. 2 on the Billboard 200 and sold more than 900,000 copies. Since then, the band has gone through multiple line-up changes and has toured relentlessly. Their debut album, “Tell All Your Friends,” is considered a highly influential record and was certified platinum in 2023. The band has released eight studio albums to date.
Check them out if you like: The Used, Brand New, The Starting Line, Say Anything, Jimmy Eat World, Head Automatica, Good Charlotte
Dashboard Confessional
When: 7 p.m. Monday, Aug. 24
Where: Archer Music Hall, 939 Hamilton St., Allentown
How much: $128-$306
Tickets: livenation.com / 610-798-1466
Musical style: Emo, alternative, indie rock
Known for hits like: “Vindicated,” “Hands Down,” “Stolen,” “Don’t Wait” and “Screaming Infidelities”
Meet the band: Created in 1999 in Boca Raton, Florida, Dashboard Confessional was initially started as a solo project for Chris Carrabba of the band Further Seems Forever. He released two albums on his own, left Further Seems Forever, and by 2002 Dashboard Confessional became a full band with three other members. That same year, the band played on MTV Unplugged, and their video for “Screaming Infidelities” won the MTV2 award at the MTV Video Music Awards. Known for taking emo into the mainstream and using social media sites like Myspace and Live Journal to connect with fans, the band continues touring and releasing albums to critical acclaim.
Check them out if you like: Taking Back Sunday, Motion City Soundtrack, The Starting Line, New Found Glory, Jimmy Eat World, The Used, Box Car Racer
Blues Traveler, Gin Blossoms & Spin Doctors
When: 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 25
Where: Levitt Pavilion SteelStacks, 789 E. First St., Bethlehem
How much: $83.50-$183.50
Tickets: artsquest.org / 610-332-1300
Musical style: Alternative, blues rock, jam band
Known for hits like: “Run-Around,” “Hook,” “Hey Jealousy,” “Found Out About You,” “Twin Princes” and “Little Miss Can’t Be Wrong”
Meet the bands: Over 30 years ago Blues Traveler released their Grammy Award-winning breakthrough hit “Run-Around” off their certified six-time platinum album, “four.” In 1992, Gin Blossoms unleashed the quadruple-platinum album “New Miserable Experience,” and the song “Hey Jealousy” was a Top 25 hit on the Billboard Hot 100 and went to No. 4 on Billboard’s Mainstream Rock Tracks. Spin Doctors are currently celebrating the 35th anniversary of their multi-platinum debut album, “Pocket Full of Kryptonite,” featuring the chart topping, Grammy-nominated hit, “Two Princes.” Together, the three bands are touring the trifecta of sound that helped define ‘90s alternative radio.
Check them out if you like: Counting Crows, The Wallflowers, Dave Matthews Band, Everclear, Collective Soul, Fastball, Eve 6
The Reverend Horton Heat
When: 7 p.m. Friday, Aug. 28
Where: Levitt Pavilion SteelStacks, 789 E. First St., Bethlehem
How much: Free
Tickets: artsquest.org / 610-332-1300
Musical style: Psychobilly, rock and roll, rockabilly
Known for hits like: “Psychobilly Freakout,” “Bales of Cocaine,” “Galaxy 500,” “I Can’t Surf” and “Baddest of the Bad”
Meet the band: Reverend Horton Heat has been the creative outlet for Jim Heath and his band since coming together in 1986. They’ve released 10 full-length albums, three “best-of” collections and two DVDs, and have given thousands upon thousands of live performances. The band’s music has been featured on “Beavis and Butthead,” “Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3,” “Homicide: Life on the Street,” “Far Cry 5,” and more. Known for their legendary showmanship, psychobilly sound, and ability to blend country, surf, punk, big band, swing and rockabilly into one all-encompassing force, they are a group not to be missed.
Check them out if you like: The Cramps, Screamin’ Jay Hawkins, The Ventures, Supersuckers, Flat Duo Jets, Social Distortion, Misfits
King’s X
When: 8 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 29
Where: Sellersville Theater, 24 W. Temple Ave.
How much: $55-$92
Tickets: www.st94.com / 215-257-5808
Musical style: Hard rock, progressive metal, art rock
Known for hits like: “Let it Rain,” “Dogman,” “Black the Sky,” “Summerland” and “It’s Love”
Honors: Ranked No. 83 on VH1’s 100 Greatest Artists of Hard Rock, King’s X are largely responsible for kicking off the progressive metal sound. Even though only two of their albums broke into the top 100 charts (“Faith Hope Love” and “Dogman”), they’re considered highly influential and pivotal to the prog metal scene. They’ve had the same lineup for over 30 years, and released 13 studio albums to date, in addition to numerous solo albums, live albums and other projects.
Check them out if you like: Faith No More, Anthrax, Living Colour, Galactic Cowboys, Queensryche, Soundgarden, Fishbone
Jay Honstetter is a freelance writer.