PNC Bank Arts Center

Hello everybody! 

I have already written about two outdoor concert venues in the area, so let’s finish the trifecta off with the other major outdoor arena in the New York City Metropolitan Area: The PNC Bank Arts Center in Holmdel, New Jersey! 

Much like the other two outdoor summer concert venues I have written about, they already have a stacked schedule of shows this summer. Unlike Jones Beach Theater and The Hartford HealthCare Amphitheater, this venue can hold 17,500 people, as it has 7,000 seats, but what makes it different is the fact that it has a grass area that can hold about 10,500 people.

I am now going to go over the shows that they are going to have this summer. A few warnings before I get started. First, a lot of the shows that are part of their lineup are at the other two venues, so I will be talking about some artists for either the second or third time, in which case, I’m sorry, but I don’t care because it’s my blog and I choose what I write about. Second, there are some shows here that are… interesting to say the least, and I’m sure you’ll know which ones I am talking about when I get to them. 

So, with all that out of the way, let’s get started!

The first show they have on May 28 is easily one of if not the most bizarre show I have ever seen at any of the outdoor concert venues I have written about, as it’s a double header with Tommy James & The Shondells and Peter Noone from Herman’s Hermits. For those of you who don’t know who they are, which is every one of you, they are two 60s pop singers who are famous for songs like Mony Mony, Crimson & Clover, I Think We’re Alone Now, I’m Henry The VIII I Am, Mrs. Brown, You’ve Got A Lovely Daughter, and I’m Into Something Good. Their presence at PNC Bank Arts Center is bizarre because they are both at points in their careers where they perform at small theaters, and an outdoor venue seems way too big for them in my opinion. Also, does anybody even know who they are anymore? I mean, old people definitely know who they are, but would they really go to an outdoor summer concert that starts at 7:30, where they would be more likely to sit on the grass than in a chair?

The next show they have on June 5 is one that is certainly an interesting choice: Kid Rock, who will be joined by country singer Jon Pardi as part of his Freedom 250 Tour. Yeah, this is a certain type of show that will attract a certain type of audience. I’m not going to discourage anyone from going to see this show, but I will say that I will judge you so hard for the rest of our lives if you go see this show.

The next show they have on June 9 is one that is fascinating to me: MGK, or Machine Gun Kelly as he is known by “close friends” and “family,” but he is also being joined by rappers Wiz Khalifa and De’Wayne. The reason why I find this so fascinating is because I feel that MGK is one of the biggest stars out there currently, and he is joined by Wiz Khalifa, who was on The Masked Singer, which I feel is a show for celebrities whose careers are no longer at the high point they might have been at years ago.

The next show they have on June 11 is some guy named Tommy Lynn, who is there performing a Neil Diamond Tribute, proving that even venues that can book the biggest artists imaginable will still go for tribute shows.

The next show they have on June 18 is some country singer named Riley Green, who will be joined by three other country singers named Justin Moore, Drake White, and Hannah McFarland, and if the fact that I don’t know who any of them are and the fact that I said they are country singers didn’t tell you they are country singers, the name of the tour is “Cowboy As It Gets.”

The next show they have on June 19 is a 2000s R&B double header with Ashanti and Trey Songz.

The next show they have on June 21 is alternative rock singer Jack Johnson, who will be joined by Latin Pop Group Hermanos Gutierrez. I’m just going to put this question out to the world right now. Is Jack Johnson predominantly a summer performer? Because the only two times I have seen that he was on tour was during the summer at outdoor concert venues, and I have never seen any news about him performing anywhere during any other season.

The next show they have on June 22 is rock singer Sammy Hagar with other rock singer Rick Springfield and some rock band called Dauzat St. Marie. This show seems very normal, but wait until you hear what the name of the tour is: The Best Of All Worlds. Yeah, I’m pretty sure we all just thought of the same thing after reading that name. I really have to wonder, can Miley Cyrus sue due to similarity in the name of the tour and her Hannah Montana song?

The next show they have on June 26 is 2000s rock band Evanescence with two other rock bands called Spiritbox and Nova Twins. I am just going to say this right now: This will definitely be an amazing show, because in my opinion, Amy Lee is such an amazing singer.

The next show they have on June 27 is a double header of iconic 70s rock bands: Santana & The Doobie Brothers.

The next show they have on June 28 is some rock band called Godsmack with two other rock bands called Stone Temple Pilots and Dorothy, and the fact that I had to say they are some rock bands should tell you that I am not familiar with them, and I don’t think any of you are either.

The next show they have on July 1 is a celebration of America’s 250th Birthday with performances from some band called American Bombshell and The United States Army Field Band.

The next show they have on July 2 is rock band Goose, and while I was doing some research on them, I found that they are originally from Wilton, Connecticut. I did not know that they formed in a local town, so this is proof that I can learn interesting stuff as I am writing.

The next show they have on July 5 is rock band The Guess Who with Don Felder from The Eagles, and the reason why they are performing at such a big venue is because their two most famous members, Burton Cummings and Randy Bachman, have rejoined the band. 

The next show they have on July 10 is one of the biggest country singers of all time: Tim McGraw, who will be joined by some rock band called 49 Winchester. Also, I am going to keep calling him one of the biggest country singers of all time because I don’t know that many others that are at his level.

The next show they have on July 11 is violinist Lindsey Stirling, who will be joined by some artist named PVRIS, and if someone is a violinist and is performing at PNC Bank Arts Center, then that means that she is absolutely amazing.

The next show they have on July 12 is Weird Al Yankovic, who will be joined by Puddles Pity Party, and in my mind, if a comedian is performing at this type of venue, they are at the top of their field.

The next show they have on July 15 is yet another artist that has been on hiatus for so many years and is back this year and is just as popular as ever because the world decided that they are: The Pussycat Dolls with special guests Lil Kim and Mya.

The next show they have on July 17 is another big country music show with Jason Aldean, Chase Matthew, Mackenzie Carpenter, and Dee Jay Silver.

The next show they have on July 18 is a perfect show for all you 80s yacht rock fans, because you get to see Toto, Christopher Cross, and The Romantics.

The next show they have on July 19 is the perfect show for all you fans of romantic 2000s R&B, a double header with Ne-Yo and Akon.

The next show they have on July 22 is 2000s rock band Muse with two other rock bands called Bloc Party and The Temper Trap. I only know one song by Muse, and I am not familiar with the other two bands, so that shows you how much they mean to me.

The next show they have on July 23 is one of the most alternative rock shows I have ever seen with three bands that are regulars at these types of venues: Dirty Heads, 311, and Ocean Alley.

The next show they have on July 24 is a band that is a regular almost year after year at these types of venues over the summer: Train, who will be joined this year by Barenaked Ladies and Matt Nathanson, who is the guy who sings Come On, Get Higher, for those of you who have no idea who he is.

The next show they have on July 25 is one that I am still surprised is happening: legendary rock singer John Mellencamp. As I said in my Jones Beach blog post, I’m surprised because he has publicly said several times that he has switched over to performing in theaters due to the crazy behavior of people at arenas and other large venues, as he wanted his performances to have the same type of rules as a Broadway show, and here he is performing at the exact type of venue that he has publicly criticized, sometimes even during his own shows.

The next show they have on July 26 is a very interesting one: a double header with 70s rock bands Lynyrd Skynyrd and Foreigner. What makes this interesting is that assuming Lou Gramm is not part of this tour, which there is enough evidence to suggest that he isn’t, this will be the first tour with two bands that feature absolutely no original members in either band.

The next show they have on July 31 is one that is interesting in every sense of the word imaginable: legendary rock band Motley Crue. I say it’s interesting because of just about every messed up thing that has ever happened with this band, from the smaller ones like the fact that they are going on tour again after very publicly declaring that they were on a farewell tour almost a decade ago, and the fact that Vince Neil just cannot sing anymore whatsoever, to the more major controversies like their history of behavior towards women and drug troubles, Vince Neil killing the passenger in his car in a drunk driving accident, Tommy Lee’s history of issues, and longtime guitarist Mick Mars being controversially forced out of the band, which led to a lawsuit against the band. It’s certainly interesting that after all this, they are still very popular and performing at huge venues.

The next show they have on August 4 is one that is certainly going to be a lot of fun: Jimmy Buffett’s Coral Reefer Band.

The next show they have on August 5 is heavy metal band Five Finger Death Punch, who will be joined by country singer Cody Jinks and rock band Eva Under Fire. I know absolutely nothing about any of these three artists, other than the fact that Five Finger Death Punch has one of the best names for a band I have ever seen.

The next show they have on August 15 is Beatstock, which is a dance concert tour that features way too many artists to list right here.

The next show they have on August 19 is one of the best female pop singers of the 2010s: Kesha, who will be joined by electro-funk duo Chromeo, and Erika Jayne from The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, who is also a DJ.

The next show they have on August 21 is the most 80s thing I have ever seen, new wave singer Howard Jones with three other new wave artists: Wang Chung, The English Beat, and Modern English, and it is hosted by some guy named Richard Blade. Here’s a fun fact that I just felt like sharing with you all: When I first told my dad about the show, and I said that The English Beat was going to be there, he said that the audience was going to go crazy when they performed their song Save It For Later, to which I started thinking to myself that nobody there would know that song, to which I then realized that an audience of people who went to see Howard Jones and other new wave artists would be the only people who would know that song. 

The next show they have on August 26 is one that genuinely makes me uncomfortable. The reason for that is because it is Rob Zombie and Marilyn Manson with a rock band called The Hu, and a rock band called Orgy. Putting aside the incredibly adorable name of the last artist I just mentioned here, what makes this so uncomfortable for me is the presence of Marilyn Manson. This is because of all the very credible abuse allegations against him that tell me that society will never get to a point where it will do the right thing and listen to women, and that their abusers will just continue to live normal lives. I’m sorry that this took such a serious turn, but they were the ones who booked Marilyn Manson. 

The next show they have on August 29 is a Jerry Garcia Symphonic Celebration, which will include musicians like Melvin Seals, Tom Hamilton from Aerosmith, and Grahame Lesh.

The next show they have on September 2 is electronic music duo Empire Of The Sun, who are famous for the song Walking On A Dream, and will be joined by two other electronic music groups called Polo & Pan and Midnight Generation, the latter of which doesn’t even have a Wikipedia page, so that tells you how famous they are.

The next show they have on September 3 is one that is certainly going to be a very fun party: Pitbull with Lil Jon. 

The next show they have on September 6 is rock band Breaking Benjamin, who will be joined by three other artists named Chevelle, STARSET, and Kami Kehoe, and I know absolutely nothing about all four of these artists.

The next show they have on September 9 is some rock band called BABYMETAL, who will be joined by Halestrom and some artist named Violent Vira. The funny thing is that in this case, I am already more familiar with the supporting act Halestrom than I am with the actual headliner.

The next show they have on September 11 is a big show for fans of rap music: The Farewell Tour of Wu-Tang Clan, who will be joined by Bone Thugs-N-Harmony.

The next show they have on September 12 is perfect for all you fans of 90s female hip hop and R&B, a triple header with TLC, Salt N Pepa, and En Vogue.

The last show they have on September 17 is O.A.R., who, just like at the other two venues I have written about, will be joined by Gavin DeGraw and KT Tunstall.

Overall, there are certainly some interesting shows coming here this summer! So, if you want to make a big journey to New Jersey, go ahead and check them out!