Students staying in town this summer are invited to attend Auburn's Parks and Recreation May Concert Series, a set of free weekly concerts at Town Creek Park.
The concerts will be held every Thursday from 6-7:30 p.m. and feature musicians from several different genres.
"We wanted to offer something for everyone," said Meg Rainey, public relations specialist for Auburn Parks and Recreation.
The lineup includes the bands Crossroads, Martha's Trouble, Auburn Knights Orchestra, Pangea and Dave Potts.
Crossroads, the series' first band to perform, is a local five-piece cover band. Singer Jessica Wilson, junior in elementary education, also writes original songs.
"We play a variety of my generation's '60s and '70s kind of rock 'n' roll, as well as country music from your generation like Taylor Swift or Martina McBride," said Mark Wilson, Jessica's father and one of the band's lead singers.
The band has close ties to the University.
"All of our members are either Auburn University graduates or current students," Wilson said.
Martha's Trouble is an indie folk duo originally from Toronto. Jen and Rob Slocumb constitute the husband-and-wife duo that relocated to Auburn six years ago.
"We were touring a lot in the Southeast and were always gone from Canada," said lead singer Jen Slocumb. "It made sense for us to relocate to the Southeast. Rob's parents retired here seven years ago, and we would come visit when were in town touring."
The duo has released 11 albums, the newest of which is a children's lullaby CD inspired by their two young children, Slocumb said.
Concert-goers should expect to hear original music from the pair.
"Original music is something you can't always find in a lot of college bars, so it's something different," Slocumb said.
Bands will perform in the pavilion by the silo at the park.
"There's a lawn where there is plenty of space for people to spread out, bring picnic blankets, camping chairs and picnic baskets to enjoy a leisurely evening outdoors," Rainey said.
The May concert series is at Town Creek Park, while the fall series is held at Kiesel Park, Rainey said.
"One of the things we like to do with all of our events is rotate around to our different parks and facilities so that citizens can experience the parks in a different way," Rainey said.
Town Creek Park generally has bigger crowds because it is closer to town, Wilson said.
"We get a lot of people who just walk up," Wilson said. "And it's a little more airy than Kiesel. People can stretch out their blankets."
The series is popular among students wanting to relax during and after finals, Rainey said. Since it is free and open to the public, it's a good option for students on a budget.
"We know students are on a limited income, so you can bring a picnic out and enjoy a concert for free," she said.
One year, two students made a dinner date out of it by bringing a bistro set and setting up a small table with chairs under some trees, Rainey said.
"They were near enough so they could hear the music, but away enough that they could enjoy their nice dinner," she said. "It was really cute."
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