With the semester drawing to a close and summer quickly approaching, students are preparing themselves for one of their favorite vacation pastimes. Summer concerts.

Although many of the large events will be passing through the area early, such as the Red Hot Chili Peppers and the final Kiss tour, the summer still holds many quality tours to attend. Living in this part of the nation may leave many students feeling isolated, but there are a great deal of events coming to our neighboring metropolitan areas.

One of the biggest festivals this summer is the Ozzfest 2000. Organized by the infamous John "Ozzy" Osbourne, the Ozzfest will feature twenty of the industry's heaviest bands, including Pantera, Ministry, Godsmack, and Incubus.

"I always try to surprise you with my shows," Osbourne said, "and I ain't going to let you down this time."

The Ozzfest will be coming to Sandstone Amphitheater in Bonner Springs, Kan. on Aug. 16.

Another of the summer's big heavy-metal concerts is Metallica's Summer Sanitarium Tour. They will be headlining for Kid Rock, Korn, System of a Down, and Powerman 2000. These "monsters of rock" will be coming to Gateway International Speedway in St. Louis on July 3.

The other large-scale summer tour that battles the Ozzfest for capacity attendance every year is the Warped Tour. However, this year it will not be coming to the four-state area. Instead, the closest this festival will be to Missouri is Dallas, Tex. on Aug. 4 when they play Artists Square.

Headlining the Warped Tour '00 is Green Day, who will be supported by the Mighty Mighty Bosstones, NOFX, the Long Beach Dub All Stars, Snapcase, and TSOL. There are a great deal of other artists on the bill, and each city will have different bands on the second stage, along with professional skateboarders, roller-bladers, and bicyclists riding the Vans' ramps and structures at each venue.

Traditionally, the Warped Tour has been held in St. Louis, the Sandstone Amphitheater, and Lawrence, Kan., yet this year promoters seemed to pass through this part of the country.

Even though the aggressive, California-style rockers of the Warped Tour will not be coming to nearby arenas, Bad Religion and Blink 182 won't disappoint pop-punk enthusiasts. On tour with Fenix-TX, they will play Kemper Arena in Kansas City on June 30 and the Kiel Center in St. Louis on July 1.

At the end of July, Kansas City hosts its annual Blues & Jazz Festival. This year's performers include Rev. Billy C. Wirth, Lonnie Brooks, Lone Star Shootout, Phillip Walker, and Long John Hunter. Along with local musicians from the Kansas City area, this three-day event begins in Penn Valley Park on July 2.

Springfield will be hosting their own festival this summer, which will highlight country and rock greats from the 1970s and 1980s. The Third Annual Route 66 Music Festival begins June 16 and also spans three days.

Included on the entertainment roster are Styx, the Little River Band, KC & the Sunshine Band, Joe Walsh, Dwight Yoakam, and Credence Clearwater Revisited. Also playing will be Neal McCoy, Mindy McCready, Rhett Atkins, and local artists, the Websters.

In Joplin, there will be a few festivals and benefits that students can attend. One business promises local music all summer long.

"We feature music throughout the week and on the weekends, and it varies," said Craig Jones, manager of Woody's Woodfire Pizza. "We will be having a festival this summer but I'm not sure exactly the date that it's going to take place."

Woody's also hosts "open mic night" for aspiring area musicians who wish to come perform their music.

Isaiah Smith, local independent promoter and musician, also stated there would continue to be local music playing through the summer in Joplin, even with the demise of the Sound Factory.

"Since the Sound Factory closed, there aren't really any places left for the local bands to play," said Smith, a sophomore computer science major. "We're looking into different places to play for local musicians."

Now that places for bands to play have become scarce, Smith plans to rely on the city's resources.

"We're going to do some free shows at Schifferdecker Park," Smith said. "We're going to have people bring canned goods and we'll donate them to charity."

Other large concerts passing through the summer include Nine Inch Nails, Kenny Rogers, 311, N'Sync, and Diana Ross and the Supremes. Concertgoers should remember to use good judgment on their long road trips to the events, and especially on the drive home.

Published by The Chart on 4-28-00.