As ticket prices climb, Sonic Lunch remains a free outdoor entertainment source all summer long.
The average ticket price for a live music concert in the United States was $119.65 last year according to Pollstar. That’s slightly less than the post-pandemic high of $128.29 per ticket, but it is still 27.21% higher than the $87.19 average ticket cost in 2019. That is actually why Matthew Altruda said is proud of Sonic Lunch and excited for the series’ nineteenth season.
“I’m really glad that Sonic Lunch is free and [we’re] making music really accessible to people. As we all know, everyone is really hurting right now, financially… it’s paid its toll on everyone, and entertainment sadly gets cut out of the budget for a lot of people. It makes me really thankful that Bank of Ann Arbor is able to do this. It really fits the vision of music—it should be free, it should be shared, it should be part of the community, it should be the great messenger, and I’m really thankful for that this season,” Altruda explains. “I know a lot of people who want to go to concerts but aren’t, because it’s too expensive, between Ticket Master and Live Nation…Taking your family to a concert nowadays is like $400. And the people who are missing out are the kids and the teens, who have absolutely zero chance of affording those things. So just making music accessible, and community building with it so everyone can share it, is the vision of Sonic Lunch. It’s more important than ever.”
Altruda said this year’s lineup is heavy on new voices—people like Mei Semones.
“I grew up in Ann Arbor so it will be nice to be at home with my family, and I’m also excited to be part of such a great series,” Semones said. She said Sonic Lunch fans should expect her to come with songs mixing English and Japanese lyrics with major influences from “bossa, samba, grunge, math rock, etc.”
The lineup was announced to drivers on their morning commute, May 6, as it always is. For those who missed it, here’s this year’s lineup:
- June 4 – Lindsay Lou – Opener: Kate Peterson
- June 11 – The Accidentals with Emma Zinck – Opener: Ember & Ash
- June 18 – Grace Potter – Opener: Jetty Rae
- June 25 – Rio Kosta – Opener: Shane Maux
- July 2 – Laith Al-Saadi – Opener: Chris Buhalis
- July 9 – Theo Katzman – Opener: The Rebel Eves
- July 23 – Devon Gilfillian – Opener: Al Bettis
- July 30 – Joe Hertler and the Rainbow Seekers – Opener: Young Ritual
- August 6 – Michigander – Opener: Metal Bubble Trio
- August 13 – Racing Mount Pleasant – Opener: Lost Mary
- August 20 – Ax and the Hatchetmen – Opener: Ohly
- August 27 – Mavis Staples – Opener: Mei Semones
Sonic Lunch is sponsored chiefly by the Bank of Ann Arbor. They are also supported by 107-one, which Altruda has his Sunday show, Treetown Sound.
Lindsay Lou is excited about returning to Sonic Lunch and said she’ll be bringing a lot of new music along with lots of old favorites.
“I’ve toured Michigan the last two years with my Honeymoon Trio. But Sonic Lunch is going to be special because it’s bringing together all these different elements. I’ll have my bass player from the Honeymoon Trio, Emma Rose; and I’ll have my mandolin and guitar player from the Queen of Time touring band, Mimi Naja; and that will sort of be a Honeymoon Trio vibes. But me and my partner, Kyle Tuttle, also had a project called Super Flex, and one of those Super Flex songs made it onto the record… It’s going to be a really sweet coming together with friends that I’ve played music with for a long time, in various configurations,” Lou said.
Sonic Lunch is always a two act show. The warm up act starts shortly after 11 a.m. nearly every Thursday of the summer, followed by a longer set by the main act. They will be taking just one Thursday off this year, to accommodate the Ann Arbor Art Fair.
Drew Saunders is a freelance business and environmental journalist who grew up just outside of Ann Arbor. He covers local business developments, embraces his foodie side with reviews restaurants, obsesses over Michigan's environmental state, loves movies, and feels spoiled by the music he gets to review for Ann Arbor!
