On Our Radar is our editorial watchlist. These are the shows, exhibits, performances, and events that have caught our attention for one reason or another. Sometimes it’s the lineup. Sometimes it’s the venue. Sometimes it’s just a feeling that something special is about to happen. This is where we highlight what we’re excited about and why we think it’s worth your time.
The Little Prince Comes to Life with Flutter Productions
One weekend of theatre, dance, music, and imagination opens July 9-12 at the Performing Arts Center of Rapid City.
Flutter Productions opens its adaptation of The Little Prince on Thursday, July 9, for a one-weekend run. Based on Antoine de Saint-Exupéry’s beloved novella, the production follows a young prince whose journey from planet to planet explores friendship, love, curiosity, and the often puzzling world of adults.
Flutter’s adaptation blends spoken dialogue, American Sign Language, contemporary dance, puppetry, and an original score by Andrew Grace, with choreography by Sara Olivier.
Founded in 2008 by artistic director Heather Pickering, Flutter became part of Black Hills Works in 2015. Since joining the organization, the company has continued producing original works and adaptations featuring performers, dancers, musicians, designers, and artists from across the Black Hills.
Black Hills Works was founded in 1958 by families seeking greater opportunities for people with disabilities in western South Dakota. Today, the organization provides residential, employment, educational, and community programs throughout the region. Its community enterprises include the Suzie Cappa Art Center, where professional artists create, exhibit, and sell their work, and Flutter Productions, its all-ability theatre company.
That collaboration is reflected throughout The Little Prince. The cast includes returning Flutter performers alongside students making their stage debut, community theatre actors, dancers, educators, and artists from across the region. Behind the scenes, Pickering directs and designs the production with an original score by Andrew Grace, choreography by longtime collaborator Sara Olivier, lighting design by Julia Mathew, and stage management by Heidi Dehn, who appeared in Flutter’s original production nearly two decades ago.
The Little Prince runs Thursday, July 9, through Sunday, July 12, in the Historic Theater at the Performing Arts Center of Rapid City. Tickets are available through Flutter Productions or by calling 605-394-1786 during box office hours and beginning one hour before each performance.
On Saturday, July 11, TYNAN brings the TYNAN TIME Tour to the Box Elder Event Center for an all-ages night of heavy bass music, immersive production, and a lineup that organizers say could become one of the biggest dubstep shows the region has hosted. Joining TYNAN are Black Hole Era, Nizzbeats, OVRPWRD, and Flo Slo. Doors open at 7 p.m. with music beginning at 8 p.m.
For Black Hills Bass founders Reed Lindbloom, Michael Liberatore and Aric Buhler, landing TYNAN was THE artist they had been hoping to bring to western South Dakota.
“We were connected with The Box to organize a collaborative EDM show,” Lindbloom said. “Shortly after the first meeting, TYNAN released his TYNAN TIME album with an album release tour on the horizon. Being fans for so long, Michael and I knew this was the time to bring him to the Black Hills.”
[smartslider3 slider=”16″]
The Oklahoma City producer has spent the past decade building a reputation as one of bass music’s most creative performers, blending dubstep, trap, and experimental sound design into live sets that are as playful as they are unpredictable. Releases on labels including Monstercat, Bassrush, Wakaan, Cyclops Recordings, and Disciple, along with performances beside artists such as DJ Diesel, Barely Alive, Riot Ten, Ray Volpe, and Levity, have helped establish him as one of the genre’s standout names. His debut album, TYNAN TIME, released earlier this year, launched the tour now making a stop in Box Elder.
Liberatore believes it’s a milestone for the local scene.
“TYNAN is set up to be one of, if not the biggest dubstep act the Black Hills music market has ever seen to date,” he said. “We’re excited to bring him to such an incredible venue with very accommodating amenities like The Box has to offer.”
While TYNAN may be the headliner, Lindbloom hopes to introduces new people to a music community that has been growing in the Black Hills.
“Honestly, the most common surprise is that it even exists in the first place,” he said. “It seems like every event, we meet someone that is pleasantly surprised to see such music here. It is such a wonderful community that grows day by day.”
That community has become one of the things Black Hills Bass is proudest of.
“Every venue we have had the pleasure of working with has voiced a common takeaway: ‘This crowd was respectful of our staff and our space,’” Lindbloom said. “It really helps us keep loving this music scene when it contains such wonderful people.”
Although the idea began while Lindbloom was in college in Spearfish, he and Liberatore officially founded Black Hills Bass in 2023 after reconnecting through mutual friends at Stupid Happy Collective. Joined by co-owner Aric Buhler, they’re working to bring nationally touring electronic artists to western South Dakota instead of asking local fans to travel hundreds of miles for the experience.
“It’s worth it largely because we know the struggle,” Lindbloom said. “Wanting to go to a show to see a touring act usually means taking several days off work just to travel and attend the event, and not to mention the usually hundreds of dollars you’d spend on gas, airfare, rideshare, and lodging.”
Instead, he says, they’re trying to bring that experience home.
“This way, instead of turning the big concert in the big city into an expensive vacation, we’re essentially bringing the big concert to you.”
For anyone attending their first bass music show, Lindbloom says to expect something much larger than many people imagine.
“I would liken the experience to an arena-style concert, but with more subwoofers,” he said. “Think of it as a sensory encapsulating experience, with the combination of music you can not only hear but feel, as well as a light and laser show to rival that of a big city production, right here in our own backyard.”
He also has one piece of advice for newcomers.
“Don’t be afraid to dance. There’s no right way to do it, and nobody is judging the way you express how the music makes you feel. A stranger in life is a neighbor on the dancefloor.”
Long before the first bass drop, months of planning have already gone into transforming the Box Elder Event Center into a full-scale electronic music production.
“10000%,” Lindbloom said when asked if people underestimate what goes into a show like this. “The planning, labor, and technical knowledge that go into the shows is insane. We are fortunate enough to have many friends that pour into this community like we do, and can help provide the skilled needs and assets to make an event of this magnitude occur.”
He credits Stupid Happy Collective owners Lucian Bedard, Austin Settje, and Owen Mechling, along with Katie Griffin and the Box Elder Event Center team, for helping make the show possible.
Black Hills Bass has already brought artists including RUVLO and Myrias to the region, but Lindbloom sees TYNAN as another step toward proving nationally touring electronic acts can find an audience here.
“This is just the beginning,” he said. “We kicked off Black Hills Bass shows by bringing out RUVLO. Next came Myrias. Now TYNAN. More is on the horizon. We can feel it.”
TYNAN takes the stage Saturday, July 11, at the Box Elder Event Center. Doors open at 7 p.m., music begins at 8 p.m., at the time of publication, VIP Meet and Greet tickets are currently sold out with limited GA and VIP remaining Guests staying next door at the Courtyard by Marriott can also purchase a special event package that includes two general admission tickets and breakfast for two.
Returns With a Bigger Footprint and a Growing Town Behind It
Long before the lights come up at Outlaw Square, downtown Deadwood turns into a walking music festival. Beginning at 11 a.m., local and regional blues musicians rotate through venues across town, giving festivalgoers a chance to hear a set, wander to the next stop, grab lunch, and discover another artist before everyone eventually gathers for an evening of national touring acts. It’s a format that encourages exploration instead of asking people to spend an entire day in one place.
Now in its second year, the Deadwood Blues Festival returns July 10-12 with Grammy-winning headliners, a full afternoon Blues Crawl, late-night jam sessions, VIP events, and a Sunday Blues Brunch. After a successful inaugural year, organizers have expanded the festival while keeping one idea at the center: bring nationally recognized blues artists to the Black Hills while creating opportunities for regional musicians to share the same weekend.
Behind the scenes, the Deadwood Blues Festival is organized by Randy and Molly Brown, Bill and Jody Rectenwald, Steve Jacobs, and Ethan Burmeister. That six-person partnership coordinates the festival year-round, but according to Randy Brown, it takes more than 60 volunteers, venue managers, drivers, hospitality staff, and business owners to bring the weekend together. With ten venues participating across downtown, the festival has become a collaborative effort shared by businesses throughout Deadwood.
Start Downtown Before the Headliners
One of the easiest ways to get more out of the festival is to arrive early.
The Saturday Blues Crawl features rotating performances at venues throughout downtown Deadwood, including Saloon No. 10, Deadwood Mountain Grand, Scott Jacobs Studio, Deadwood Tobacco, Best Brews, The Landmark Hotel, Celebrity Hotel, and the Deadwood Elks. Every couple of hours the music moves, giving people a reason to keep exploring town while hearing a wide variety of blues styles.
The regional lineup includes artists many Black Hills audiences already know, including Johnny Hastings & Stillhouse Down, Brandon Sprague, Bodhi Linde, Tyler Bills Trio, Hector Anchondo, Joe Waters, Angela Easley, and Erica Brown. Some have spent years performing around the region, while others may be new discoveries for festivalgoers.
Amani Burnham
At 21 years old, Amani Burnham is the youngest artist on this year’s lineup, but don’t mistake him for an opening act that’s simply paying his dues. Long before releasing a full-length album, Burnham was turning heads online with videos of his explosive guitar playing, earning a recording contract with the legendary Blind Pig Records and a growing reputation as one of blues music’s brightest young talents.
His debut album, Roots & Wings, draws inspiration from artists like Muddy Waters, Stevie Ray Vaughan, and Jimi Hendrix while bringing his own perspective to the music. Playing with his thumb instead of a guitar pick, Burnham delivers a style that’s both technically impressive and deeply expressive, pairing blistering solos with thoughtful songwriting that reflects his Ethiopian roots and his place in a new generation of blues musicians.
Ruthie Foster
For years, Ruthie Foster was the artist other musicians couldn’t stop talking about. Raised in a family rooted in gospel music, she developed a voice that could move effortlessly between blues, soul, folk, and Americana, while writing songs that felt just as personal as they did timeless. Critical acclaim followed, along with five Grammy nominations, but the win itself didn’t arrive until earlier this year.
Her latest album, Mileage, earned the 2025 Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Blues Album, giving Foster her first Grammy while also marking the first Grammy win in the history of the legendary Sun Records label. It was a milestone decades in the making for an artist who has quietly built one of the most respected careers in contemporary blues.
Keb’ Mo’
Five Grammy Awards. Fourteen Blues Foundation Awards. Seven No. 1 blues albums. On paper, Keb’ Mo’ has already accomplished just about everything a blues musician could hope to achieve. After more than 30 years of touring, recording, and collaborating with some of the biggest names in American music, he continues to approach every performance with the same warmth and easygoing style that first put him on the map.
Born and raised in Compton, California, Keb’ Mo’ spent years working behind the scenes as a guitarist, songwriter, and arranger before introducing the world to his own music in 1994. His songs pull from Delta blues, folk, Americana, country, and soul, creating a sound that feels rooted in tradition without ever sounding trapped by it. Along the way, he’s shared stages and studios with artists including Taj Mahal, Bonnie Raitt, Willie Nelson, Lyle Lovett, and The Chicks, while his music has appeared everywhere from television soundtracks to performances at The White House.
When the Main Stage Ends
Some of last year’s favorite festival memories happened after the official schedule was over.
Deadwood Tobacco once again hosts late-night All-Star Blues Jams on both Friday and Saturday evenings, where musicians from across the festival are invited to climb onstage together. Last year those sessions grew organically as performers stopped in after their own sets, eventually leading to an unforgettable night that included Christone “Kingfish” Ingram joining the jam alongside other festival musicians. No one knows exactly who might show up this year, which is part of what keeps people coming back after the main concert ends.
If you’re making a weekend of it, Sunday morning wraps things up with the Blues Brunch at SpringHill Suites at Cadillac Jack’s. It’s a relaxed way to close out the festival before everyone heads home.
Whether you’re coming for Keb’ Mo’, hoping to discover your next favorite blues artist, or simply looking for an excuse to spend a Saturday wandering downtown Deadwood with live music around every corner, the festival offers plenty of ways to experience the weekend beyond the main stage.
See How It All Began
Before the second Deadwood Blues Festival kicks off, it’s worth looking back at the first. This short documentary follows the organizers through the challenges of launching a brand-new music festival, from finding financial support to earning the trust of artists, businesses, and the community. It’s an honest look at the work that happens long before the first note is played.
Festival organizer Randy Brown recently sat down with Ruthie Foster for an extended conversation covering her career, songwriting, and the long road that led to her Grammy win. If you’re planning to catch her set Saturday evening, it’s a great conversation to listen to beforehand.
A reunion at 707 Nightlife and a new documentary at the Dahl Arts Center celebrate the scene that transformed Rapid City’s DIY music culture.
This weekend, more than a dozen bands will take the stage at 707 Nightlife for what organizers say will be the final Rapid City Punk Rock Reunion. At the same time, the Dahl Arts Center will premiere the first episode of Who the F** Wants to Play in Rapid City, SD?*, a documentary exploring the history of the Rapid City punk scene.
For decades, it all existed in memories, old photographs, cassette tapes, and photocopied flyers. This weekend, the reunion and documentary bring those stories back into public view while inviting a new audience to experience an influence that reached far beyond the bands that first built it.
When I first started digging into this story, I expected to write about a reunion concert. Instead, nearly every conversation circled back to the same idea: this was never just about the music. It was about the values the music carried with it.
[smartslider3 slider=”14″]
If there is a moment when Rapid City Punk found its footing, many people point to a benefit concert held in January 1986. Stevens High School student Amy Metzger had recently been diagnosed with cancer, and local bands Social Joke and Dissent joined fellow musician Steve Gwinn to organize a fundraiser at the Knights of Columbus Hall. For many who were there, it was the first time Rapid City’s underground music community saw itself as something larger than a handful of scattered bands and friend groups. Many of the people who were there describe that night as the beginning of a culture that expected people to look out for one another.
Troy Zoller remembers the night vividly. As a founding member of Dissent, one of the bands that organized the benefit, he was among the musicians who watched something unexpected happen as the crowd filled the Knights of Columbus Hall.
“We all came back after that show, and we were just high as hell,” Zoller recalled. “That was amazing. Let’s do it again.”
Today, Zoller describes the benefit as an “icebreaker” that brought people “out of the woodwork.” Looking back, he believes it was the first time many people realized they weren’t isolated groups of musicians and friends, they were part of a something.
I stumbled into the punk scene about a decade after the Amy Metzger Benefit, when it had already become part of the fabric of Rapid City. Looking back, punk wasn’t the music that defined my group of friends, It was the net that caught us as we fell through the cracks. We were the kids who didn’t quite fit into the established circles at school, and punk shows became one of the places where we found each other. Only years later did I realize that our experience wasn’t separate from the story Zoller was telling, it was a continuation of it.
Zoller sees that spirit continuing today, even if it looks different than it did in 1986. He says younger generations don’t need to recreate it exactly as it was or treat it with reverence. Instead, he hopes they build something of their own while carrying forward the values that made it meaningful in the first place.
“A lot of what we tried to focus on was not so much the music, but building a better person,” he said. “Encouraging each other to be better people through community.”
Long before social media made promoting independent music simple, Rapid City’s punk scene survived on a network of people willing to do the work themselves. Shows spread through word of mouth, hand-drawn flyers, photocopied zines, and college radio long before a Facebook event or Instagram post could reach hundreds of people overnight.
At the center of that network was KTEQ, the student-run radio station at the South Dakota School of Mines & Technology. For many young musicians and fans, it was the first place they heard bands that rarely reached western South Dakota. The station became both a classroom and a connector, exposing listeners to underground music while helping local bands discover a wider world beyond the Black Hills.
Long before social media, organizing a punk show meant doing nearly everything yourself. Bands were discovered through KTEQ or by word of mouth. Flyers were designed by hand, photocopied, and taped to telephone poles. Promoters borrowed sound systems, found places for touring musicians to sleep, and turned church halls, recreation centers, rented buildings, coffee shops, and basements into temporary venues. Every successful show depended on people willing to do the work because nobody else was going to do it for them.
As I talked with Troy, I kept coming back to one question: why Rapid City? Why did an isolated city in western South Dakota become a place that touring punk bands sought out? Part of the answer was geography. Rapid City was large enough to sustain a scene but remote enough that bands crossing the Northern Plains had relatively few places to play. Just as important was the reputation local organizers built. If a touring band made the trip, they knew someone would find a venue, put on a show, and probably offer a couch for the night before the van rolled toward the next town. That reputation spread quickly. Over the years, Green Day, Operation Ivy, Fugazi, Social Distortion, The Offspring, At the Drive-In, and many many more nationally recognized acts all made their way to Rapid City.
[smartslider3 slider=”15″]
Walking into one of those shows didn’t feel like stepping into a polished concert. The rooms were usually dark, the music was loud, fast, and deliberately raw. Distorted guitars bounced off concrete walls while shouted vocals cut through the room and feedback ricocheted through the room. There was little separation between the audience and the band, if you stood near the front, your toes nearly touched the stage.
The music challenged authority, questioned convention, and gave people an outlet for frustration. People remember a scene that demanded integrity as much as individuality. While punk challenged authority and questioned convention, there was little patience for racism, bullying, or people who preyed on others. Respect wasn’t optional, it was part of the culture.
This weekend, former bandmates will share a stage together once again while audiences at the Dahl Arts Center watch the first chapter of a story that, until recently, had largely survived through, memories, old photographs, cassette tapes, and web archives.
Meanwhile, nearly forty years after that first show at the Knights of Columbus Hall, another generation is already writing the next chapter. Grassroots groups like the Rapid City Gutter Punks are doing the same work that has kept underground music alive in Rapid City for decades: creating opportunities instead of waiting for them, opening doors instead of guarding them, and carrying forward a culture built on creativity, integrity, and respect. It doesn’t look exactly like it did in 1986, and that’s precisely what Troy Zoller hoped for.
Rapid City Punk Rock Reunion Location: 707 Nightlife, Rapid City Dates: Thursday, Friday, and Saturday
Doors Open: 4:30 p.m. each day Music Begins: 6 p.m.
Wristbands will be available at the door for those who haven’t pre-purchased. Wristbands allow re-entry throughout the evening. The venue will have two indoor bar stations, along with an outdoor bar area.
Estimated Set Times
Thursday
Carrion Crawlers | 6:00–6:45 p.m.
Continuum | 7:00–7:50 p.m.
MothermayI | 8:00–9:00 p.m.
Chesterfield | 9:15–10:00 p.m.
Black Dots | 10:15–11:15 p.m.
Friday
Diane Selwyn | 6:00–6:45 p.m.
PX | 7:00–7:50 p.m.
Red40 | 8:10–8:45 p.m.
Kult of Indifference | 9:00–9:40 p.m.
Dissent | 9:50–10:50 p.m.
The Sophomore Effort | 11:00 p.m.–Midnight
Saturday
Social Joke | 6:00–7:00 p.m.
Buddies | 7:20–8:20 p.m.
Clusterfux | 8:40–9:30 p.m.
Arc Angles | 9:40–10:40 p.m.
Log Jam | 11:00 p.m.–12:30 a.m.
Who the F** Wants to Play in Rapid City, SD?*, a documentary exploring the history of the Rapid City punk scene.
For Jack Batchelder, preserving those stories became its own DIY project. As a young teenager in the early 1990s, he watched people only a few years older than himself start bands, release their own records, promote concerts, and build opportunities without waiting for permission. The experience stayed with him. In 2016, he began interviewing members of the scene, eventually setting the project aside after a series of setbacks before returning to it this spring with a goal of premiering the first episode during reunion weekend.
“I’m not a professional filmmaker or documentarian, just someone who has been inspired by the community and DIY ethic of the Rapid City punk scene and believes these things deserve to be documented.” Batchelder says.
The first episode of Who the F** Wants to Play in Rapid City, SD?* introduces the story of the scene as a whole, while future installments will explore KTEQ, local venues, promoters, bands, and many of the people whose work happened away from the stage. Like the volunteers who preserved old recordings, saved handmade flyers, and built the Rapid City Punk Rock Archive, Batchelder sees documentation as another form of stewardship. If nobody records these stories, eventually they disappear.
When the group takes the stage at The Custer Beacon before Custer’s Fourth of July fireworks, it won’t be a touring band or even a permanent one. It’s a one-night gathering of musicians who spend the rest of the year leading their own projects, backing other artists, and filling stages across western South Dakota.
Alex Massa laughs when he tries to describe it.
“It’s kind of a super band situation,” he said. “We do a little bit of original music, but really kind of form it in the spirit of the super bands that happened during the New Orleans Jazz Fest, where cats from all different styles and genres and scenes kind of come together just to shred with one another.”
That idea has brought together guitarist Chris Mangione, bassist and sousaphone player Jimmy Reed, drummer Eric Boyd, trombonist Danny Thornburg, saxophonist Sivan Hoch, and Alex Massa on trumpet and vocals.
Mangione brings jazz and classical guitar into the mix after years in music education. Reed is a familiar face with groups like The Pocket Junkies, the Blue Collar Brass Band, the Reed Brothers Band, and backing soul artist Tanner Johns. Boyd performs with blues, funk, rock, jazz, and Americana projects throughout the Black Hills. Hoch, a Black Hills-based multi-instrumentalist, leads The Pocket Junkies and appears on The Fat Trio’s debut album, Dancing With Trolls. Thornburg leads the South Dakota Jazz Orchestra and performs with his own Funky All-Stars, while Massa has spent years building collaborative music projects through Improvise Arts..
The common thread isn’t a genre or a set list, it’s a group of musicians who already know how to listen to one another.
“Everybody in the scene has their own strengths,” Massa said. “I think that’s what makes the Black Hills music scene really unique.”
The result is a show built on a foundation of funk, fusion, jazz, American standards, original music, and improvisation.
Massa said he normally avoids holiday performances, preferring to let musicians spend those days with family. When the invitation came to play before Custer’s fireworks during America’s 250th birthday celebration, he saw an opportunity to honor the music that shaped the country itself.
“All of that music really centers and celebrates what made American culture great, which is Black music and Black culture,” Massa said. “Every single music that is native to the United States of America was born” from the Black American experience.
Rather than turning the evening into a patriotic spectacle, Massa said he sees the show as a way to honor the people who carry the country in ordinary, necessary ways: the musicians, workers, neighbors, and service industry staff who keep small towns alive long after the fireworks are over.
“It’s all of us with our boots on the ground,” he said, describing everyone from musicians playing winter bar gigs to nurses, restaurant workers, janitors, and the people who keep communities running.
The Black Hills All-Stars perform Saturday, July 4, at The Custer Beacon ahead of Custer’s fireworks display.
A Reggae Takeover Comes to Prairie Dog Taproom This Friday
Beginning at 4 p.m., the Hill City venue will host a three-band reggae showcase featuring Camp Comfort, High Rise, and The Alley Kats. The afternoon brings together three regional bands with different takes on reggae, all sharing one stage for an evening built around laid-back rhythms, live music, and a summer afternoon in the Hills.
4:00 PM • High Rise |
6:00 PM • The Alley Kats |
8:00 PM • Camp Comfort
Before you head to Prairie Dog, here’s a quick introduction to each band.
Event not found. ID tried: 7167
Camp Comfort
For Black Hills audiences, Camp Comfort has become one of the region’s most recognizable reggae bands. Blending roots reggae with rock, funk, blues, and jam-band influences, they’ve spent years building a following across western South Dakota while sharing stages with touring artists and returning regularly to venues throughout the Hills. Their live shows are known for stretching songs, keeping the groove moving, and creating the kind of atmosphere that encourages people to settle in and stay awhile.
High Rise
Formed in the Black Hills in 2014, High Rise mixes reggae with rock and alternative influences while keeping one foot planted firmly in the groove. The band has become a familiar name at regional festivals and venues over the past decade, helping establish a steady reggae presence in a part of the country where the genre isn’t always expected. Their songs balance upbeat rhythms with thoughtful songwriting and a live sound that fits just as well on an outdoor stage as it does in a neighborhood venue.
The Alley Kats
Hailing from neighboring Wyoming, The Alley Kats describe their sound as “Positive Vibration Beach Rock.” Their original music blends reggae with rock, funk, and coastal influences that feel right at home during a summer holiday weekend. Led by Austin Taylor and Connor Crosby, the band has spent the past several years performing throughout the Mountain West and rounds out Friday’s lineup with another distinct take on reggae.
Whether you’re already a reggae fan or just looking for something a little different from the usual Fourth of July weekend lineup, Prairie Dog Taproom is offering an afternoon where the offbeat becomes the main event.
On Thursday, July 2, The Matthews Opera House will hand the stage over to two musicians who have spent more than a decade proving that a pair of banjos, two voices, and well-written songs can hold a room all on their own.
The Lowest Pair returns to the road this year behind Always As Young As We’ll Ever Be, their eighth album and first full studio release in six years. Produced by Tucker Martine, whose work includes artists like The Decemberists, the record expands the duo’s sound without losing the close harmonies and thoughtful songwriting that first earned them a following on the Americana and folk circuit.
Made up of Kendl Winter and Palmer T. Lee, The Lowest Pair has never been easy to fit into a single genre. Their music borrows from old-time string bands, folk traditions, bluegrass, and indie songwriting, but it never feels locked into any one style. At the center of it all are two musicians who know how to leave space for each other, letting melodies and stories do as much of the work as the instruments.
That approach has taken them from festival stages and listening rooms across the country to critical recognition, with national outlets including NPR and The Bluegrass Situation highlighting their songwriting over the years. They have built their reputation the old-fashioned way: by touring steadily and giving audiences a reason to come back the next time they’re in town.
It’s also the kind of show that fits naturally inside the Matthews Opera House.
For more than a century, the historic downtown Spearfish venue has hosted everything from community theater and regional performers to nationally touring artists. Its intimate setting makes it one of the Black Hills’ best rooms for acoustic music, where every lyric and every quiet moment can actually be heard.
Doors open at 6:30 p.m., with music beginning at 7 p.m. General admission tickets are $25, and seating is limited.
If your playlist leans toward artists like Gillian Welch, Watchhouse, or Nickel Creek, this is the kind of concert that will be right up your alley.
The Lowest Pair performs Thursday, July 2, at The Matthews Opera House in Spearfish. Tickets are available through The Matthews, and with a room this size, it’s worth picking them up before Thursday night.
Every Room Has Something Happening at Dilly Dally to the Dahl Friday Night
Dilly Dally to the Dahl returns Friday, June 26, from 5 to 8:30 p.m. as the Dahl’s annual community appreciation night. Rather than following a single program, the evening invites guests to explore the building at their own pace, discovering performances, exhibits, demonstrations, and hands-on activities around every corner.
The Adelstein Gallery will feature Tailings, a guest-curated exhibition by Marty Two Bulls Jr., who will spend the evening visiting with guests about the artwork and the ideas behind the exhibition. In the Cultural Café, artwork created by students during the Rapid City Arts Council’s summer camps will be on display, while Ms. Jewels leads a collaborative community mural that anyone can help create.
The Open Pottery Studio will offer live demonstrations by instructors Spencer Walton and Michelle Langemeier, giving visitors a chance to watch finished pieces take shape from raw clay. A building-wide scavenger hunt encourages guests of all ages to keep exploring, making sure no gallery or hallway goes unnoticed.
Short performances will rotate through the Mark & Carolyn Mollers Cyclorama Room throughout the evening. The Moreno Family Dancers, led by Jeremiah Moreno and the Stampede Drum Group, will share traditional and contemporary Lakota songs and dances while explaining the cultural significance behind the performances. Catalyst Theater Company, a downtown Rapid City nonprofit founded in 2023, will present a short production featuring members of its cast.
Beginning at 7 p.m., the John T. Vucurevich Event Center shifts the focus to music with the Emerging Performing Artists Spotlight. Kokopelli’s Cousin, a local community drumming group known for gathering beneath “Grandma Cottonwood” in Jackson Park, opens the evening before Caprice Clarinets takes the stage. The duo of Peggy Lovrien and Valerie Andrews brings decades of musical experience together, with Andrews returning to the clarinet after a 50-year break and now performing with several regional ensembles.
Food, drinks, artist talks, gallery exhibits, performances, and interactive activities are all included throughout the evening. Friends of the Dahl receive their first drink free at the Highmark Federal Credit Union-sponsored bar, which will also offer beer, wine, and soda.
Whether you spend twenty minutes or the entire evening inside the building, Dilly Dally is designed for wandering. Chances are you’ll leave having discovered a gallery, artist, or performance you weren’t expecting to find.
Authentic Unlimited and Carson Peters Headline Bluegrass Festival June 26–28.
The Black Hills Bluegrass & BBQ Festival returns June 26–28 at Elk Creek Resort near Piedmont, bringing together national touring acts, regional performers, local musicians, workshops, campground jams, and a tradition that stretches back to 1980.
While the lineup includes award-winning performers and nationally recognized names, the festival has always been about more than the evening concerts. The weekend is built around participation. Campers arrive with instruments in hand. Workshops fill Saturday morning. Musicians who have never met before are placed together in the annual Band Scramble. Long after the scheduled performances end, picking circles often continue around campsites.
That hands-on approach is part of what has allowed the festival to endure through multiple venue changes and generations of musicians. The festival began in 1980 with the goal of bringing bluegrass musicians and fans together for a weekend in the Black Hills.
This year’s lineup is led by Authentic Unlimited, one of the most decorated groups currently touring in bluegrass music. Formed by former members of Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver, the band has quickly earned recognition on the national stage with multiple International Bluegrass Music Association awards and appearances at the Grand Ole Opry
Also appearing is Carson Peters & Iron Mountain. Many music fans first encountered Peters as a child fiddle prodigy performing on national television. Today, he fronts one of the strongest young traditional bluegrass bands on the road, combining fast-paced musicianship with a deep respect for the genre’s roots.
The festival’s touring acts are joined by a mix of family bands and regional performers including Murphy Ridge, Cynthia Ridge, Pearlgrace & Co., and Tequa Bluegrass Band.
Saturday afternoon the spotlight shines closer to home during the festival’s Local Showcase.
Mary Temple & Friends, Rhubarb Jam, and Humbletown will each take the stage, highlighting musicians from the region alongside the national touring artists.
Workshops covering fiddle, banjo, guitar, mandolin, bass, and beginner-level instruction give players an opportunity to learn directly from experienced musicians. A dedicated kids workshop helps introduce younger players to the music, while the Band Scramble pairs participants into temporary groups that rehearse together before performing later that afternoon.
The result is a festival where the audience and performers often overlap. One campsite may hold a touring musician. The next might contain someone attending their first workshop. By Sunday morning, both could be sharing songs during the festival’s gospel show.
The Black Hills Bluegrass & BBQ Festival runs June 26–28 at Elk Creek Resort near Piedmont. Admission is free, though donations are appreciated. Attendees are encouraged to bring lawn chairs and shade, and camping is available on-site.
