Labor Day lineup: Who’s playing

Labor Day Weekend is just a few days away, and hopefully, you won’t be laboring.

Hopefully, the most laborious task you’ll face is a deciding between the espresso martini or the boozy rhubarb fizz at Bar Envie—they’ve got a new late night happy hour (details below).

There’s a lot you can do with three whole sunny September days off. Perhaps you’ll run off to a nearby coastal haven like Santa Barbara, take a hike in Griffith Park or hop on a boat to Catalina Island. You might also do something totally weird like explore the Museum of Jurrasic Technology or visit the gooey La Brea tar pits.

Or you may keep it simple and stay right here in Long Beach, where you can catch one (or several) of the many bands, DJs and other live goings on at a handful of venues around town.

Whether you’re looking to cut a rug at Funky Sole or unwind your Sunday hangover to the sounds of a Hawaiian lap steel guitar, Long Beach has options for you. Here’s what’s going on Friday through Monday.

Friday (Sept. 1)

• DJs Tommy Gunn and JoJo will bring Mad World, a night of 80’s new wave and synth to Alex’s Bar on Friday night. Doors are at 9 p.m. No cover.
• Oi to all of the Long Beach mods out there—Soul Invasion, an evening of 60s soul reggae and ska, will feature live artists Jesse Wagner of The Aggrolites, Greg Lee of Hepcat and Kingstonbeat All Stars at diPiazza. Doors are at 8 p.m. Tickets are $20. More information here.
• LA’s famed and long running Funky Sole dance party is coming to Bamboo Club on Friday night. Resident DJs Music Man Miles and Hector Waluyo will be spinning funk records from the ’60s to now all night long. Doors at 9 p.m. No cover.
• Bar Envie will host DJ Dakin Auret on Friday. He’ll be spinning house records until 2 a.m.
• Human Musik, Smooth Jas, Mindfuk will play at Vine on Friday evening. Doors at 7 p.m. No cover.

Saturday (Sept. 2)

• High energy, indie-punk group Strawberry Fuzz and garage-y punk band Pancho and the Wizards, along with guests Couch Surf, Science in Nature and DJ Yon will be making a whole lot of noise at Alex’s Bar on Saturday. Doors are at 8 p.m. Tickets are $15.45 online.
• The Hardcore Tiki Marketplace Labor Day Weekend Party will bring a full day of tiki vendors, artists, DJs and bands to Bamboo Club on Saturday. Thee Toe Tags, Adult Toys and Killer Dreamer will perform, along with DJs Muezette, Nico Bones and more. Doors open at noon and music will spill into the night. No cover.
• In addition to a pretty mouthwatering lineup of authentic Greek food (spanakopita, anyone?), the Long Beach Greek Festival will also have live music and traditional folk dance performers. The fest opens at noon on Saturday, Sunday and Monday. Tickets are $5. Read more about it here.
• A cast of all female DJs will be playing techno, house and more at the Open Air Party on Saturday. It will be hosted by Secret Service LBC on Belmont Veteran’s Memorial Pier from 2 to 10 p.m. Tickets are available online for $10. More information here.
• Rufrano, The Secret Beach and Thread Count will play at Vine on Saturday. Doors at 7 p.m. No Cover.

Sunday (Sept. 3)

• In case you didn’t get enough of bands with the name “wizard” in them on Saturday, you can hit Alex’s Bar again on Sunday for Glitter Wizard, a glam-metal band of weirdos known for platform boots, vintage synthesizers and obviously, glitter. Check out their Instagram if you don’t believe me. Special guests Billy Tibbals, Jules & The Rollerz, Sandeater and DJ Jerms77 will also be in tow. Doors are at 2 p.m. Tickets are $15.45 online.
• If you’re looking for something a little more relaxing, go see Kimo Delgado & His Hawa’ian Lap Steel Guitar at Bamboo Club from 1 to 4 p.m. No cover.
• Bar Envie is introducing its new late night happy hour this Sunday from 9 p.m. to close with DJs from Mood Society and Deep House Brunch until 2 a.m. This is your opportunity to get that espresso martini or rhubarb fizz we talked about earlier. Happy hour includes boozy floats, boiler makers, $2 off speciality cocktails, $6 well drinks and $2 draft beers.
• Supply and Demand will host bands Armin (touring from San Francisco), Coleco Club and Mod Pods. Doors at 8 p.m. Tickets are $10.
• Vine will host DJ JRG at 4 p.m. Then at 7 p.m., Gertrudus and Marlon Brandi and the Wild Ones will perform.

Monday (Sept. 4)

• It’s Mai-Tai Monday and Bird Calls at Bamboo Club with DJs Lili Bird and Lono Calls. They’ll be spinning exotica, Latin, surf, lounge, jet set, world music and more.
• No Parking on the Dance Floor will bring vendors, artists, DJs Rakaa, Babu, Dialated Peoples and more to the Fourth Street and Cherry parking lot next to Native Sol. The Retro Row party is from noon to 7 p.m. and it’s free.

Bonus: Ok this one isn’t in Long Beach. But if you happen to win the lottery over the weekend or you’re just a really huge Beyonce fan, she’ll be performing in Inglewood at the SoFi Stadium on Labor Day. Tickets (starting around $360) are still available here.

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