Great music helps keep summer alive into fall

You can’t make me. I refuse to believe it. Nope. No way. What? I can’t hear you with my fingers in my ears. La la la la la.

I won’t openly admit it. Summer is not almost over. It’s not that I don’t like autumn – it’s just that I look forward to warm weather and as little clothing as possible all year long (I’m living in the wrong state, apparently). I’ll wear sandals and skirts until my toes get frostbite and fall off, I’ll swim until well into September, and no one – no one – can take my iced coffee away from me.

But while I’m existing in a state of total denial, you’re probably doing the sensible thing and getting ready for fall and winter. And it is my duty, dear reader, to keep you up-to-date on the cool shows and concerts happening around the state. So here’s your fall show roundup, whether or not I grimace at the mere mention of the phrase “fleece jacket.”

For starters, there are a couple of Really Big Shows set for this fall – one of the biggest being the just-announced Bob Dylan and Elvis Costello concert on Oct. 4 at the Cumberland County Civic Center. Tickets go on sale on Aug. 30, and the opener is soulful folkie Amos Lee. Willie Nelson, Merle Haggard and Ray Price will play two dates in Maine next weekend – once at the Augusta Civic Center on Aug. 31 and another on Sept. 1 at the Forum in Presque Isle.

In Portland, the David Crosby and Graham Nash show that was rescheduled from the winter is set to (hopefully) go on Oct. 20 at the Merrill Auditorium. For modern rock fans, Breaking Benjamin, Three Days Grace, Seether and Red will play at the Cumberland County Civic Center on Oct. 28.

Those who enjoy a little dance-ability at their concerts should check out Bela Fleck and the Flecktones at the Stone Mountain Arts Center in Brownfield on Aug. 29 and 30, while Gov’t Mule will rock the Merrill Auditorium in Portland Sept. 11. In what’s sure to be a really fun show, Slightly Stoopid, Fishbone and Supervillians will play on Oct. 13 at Colby College in Waterville.

There are two ska shows set for the Station in Portland in October – the Voodoo Glow Skulls, Left Alone and El Grande on Oct. 15, and local favorites Big D and the Kids Table, the AKA’s and Whole Wheat Bread on Oct. 26.

Folk music fans have much to cheer about this fall – Judy Collins and Nancy Griffith are set for the Merrill Auditorium on Sept. 16, while one month later Aroostook County native Ellis Paul will play at the Chocolate Church in Bath on Oct. 13, along with Lucy Kaplansky.

Back at the Merrill, Celtic fusion musician Loreena McKennitt will play a show during her first tour in nearly 10 years on Oct. 22, while songbird Emmylou Harris will play there on Oct. 19. Shawn Colvin will play two nights at Stone Mountain on Oct. 21 and 22, and Melissa Ferrick will play at the Space Gallery in Portland on Oct. 19.

The dyed-black masses will be thrilled to hear that Sum 41, Amber Pacific and Monty Are I are set for the Station in Portland on Sept. 8, while the following week the Starting Line, Permanent Me and All Time Low will play on Sept. 16. There’s also the rescheduled Finger Eleven show, set for Sept 21, also at the Station.

Metal is always popular here in Maine, and this fall is no exception: Clutch, Lionize, Year Long Disaster and Backyard Tire Fire will play on Aug. 30 at the Station, followed later by Shadows Fall, All That Remains and Protest the Hero on Sept. 11. Closer to home, 103 Ultra Lounge in Orono plays host to Powerman 5000 on Oct. 3 and Mushroomhead, back for their third Maine appearance in two years, on Oct. 12.

The pickings are slim for hip-hop heads over the next few months, but there are a few good shows in September. Rhymefest, best known for co-writing Kanye West’s song “Jesus Walks,” will throw down at Colby College on Sept. 7. Boston-based rapper Akrobatik will perform on Sept. 14 at the Station, and at the end of the month Jedi Mind Tricks and Lab Seven will play there on Sept. 28.

There are a slew of great indie rock shows at the Space Gallery in Portland, including the psychedelic Italians Jennifer Gentle, along with the Dodos and local rockers Phantom Buffalo on Sept. 1. Experimental songwriter Marissa Nadler will play on Sept. 17, and Magnolia Electric Co. and the Watson Twins (best known for collaborating with Rilo Kiley’s Jenny Lewis) are set for Sept. 30. Ethereal indie pop group Winterpills will play two shows in Maine, once at the Space on Sept. 15, and then at the Grand Theatre in Ellsworth on Oct. 12. And rock band Black Mountain is set for the Space on Oct. 7.

Or, you could always go see the “American Idol” tour at the Cumberland County Civic Center on Sept. 4. Sanjaya and Melinda and Jordin, together again! That’s sunshine-y and pop-tastic enough to extend summer well into September.