The Rumble Ft. Big Chief Joseph Boudreaux Jr. plays Saturday, June 21, at 4 Peaks. (Submitted photo)

You think you know the 4 Peaks experience: Standing in a starlit pasture near Bend, dancing the night away to the sweet sounds of local, regional and nationally touring artists like Billy Strings (before he was huge), Railroad Earth and moe.

That is, after all, a pretty good summary of the 4 Peaks experience since it started in 2007.

But 4 Peaks is more than just that. It’s also a regular gathering of like-minded music lovers. It’s a place for families to have fun together. It’s a celebration of the summer solstice and an attitude of love and appreciation for the arts. And it’s a resilient and shapeshifting gem within Central Oregon’s music scene, having survived location changes, bureaucratic challenges, a global pandemic and more.

Last but not least, 4 Peaks is Stacy Koff, who co-founded the thing and oversees it to this day. And in 2025, she’s trying something new: 4 Peaks Live at the Tower, which merges the 4 Peaks experience with Koff’s new job as the programming director at Bend’s historic Tower Theatre.

“I’m exactly where I need to be with the people I need to be with, doing exactly what I want to be doing,” Koff said in an interview.

4 Peaks Live at the Tower will be an ongoing concern, wherein Koff applies the 4 Peaks name to shows at the Tower that fit the 4 Peaks aesthetic. But more immediately, 4 Peaks Live at the Tower is this year’s summer solstice celebration — a three-night series of concerts featuring top-shelf funk, rock, bluegrass and jam bands that would fit perfectly on any 4 Peaks stage, no matter where it’s located.

“The Tower is really an awesome venue — it’s got the best sound, the location is great, it’s affordable and it’s a staple in our community,” Koff said. “We’re going to remove some rows of seats, so there will be plenty of room for dancing. People are pumped.”

Those pumped people include both 4 Peaks “festivarians” who are excited about the music, but also folks who would like to enjoy the music but don’t want the outdoor festival experience — baking in the sun, going without a shower, boarding a pet for the weekend and so on.

“Some people just want a night out in town,” Koff said. “And these bands are incredible. I mean, you’re not going to get to see Leftover Salmon play for 500 people very often.”

Speaking of the bands, here’s a quick rundown of who’s playing when for 4 Peaks Live at the Tower:

Friday, June 20

In a world where bands love to tout their genre-boundary-blindness in bios and interviews, Toubab Krewe puts theirs into practice on stage and in their recordings. For two decades, the American quintet has blended heavy funk and rock ‘n’ roll with traditional African music made using instruments like the kora, the ngoni, the dundun and the kinkini. The result is a sound that’s a swaggering, globally flavored get-down. Opening this evening will be the rising prog-jam-band Squeaky Feet.

Saturday, June 21

Even if you’ve never been there, you probably know that New Orleans is America’s most distinctive musical melting pot. The Rumble embodies this idea, bringing together past, present and future elements of the city’s sonic heritage into one intensely kinetic sound. We’re talking chest-thumping funk, hip-hop, jazz and brass band music, all fronted by Big Chief Joseph Boudreaux Jr. and his irresistible call-and-response chants. Opening this evening will be the deeply soulful country-rock band The Lucky Strokes.

Sunday, June 22

Let’s be honest: You can see a jammy ‘grass band or a ‘grassy jam band just about every week in Bend. But rarely can you see one as great and influential and longstanding as Leftover Salmon. The Colorado sextet are pioneers of the genre, spending the past three decades pushing and pulling on the boundaries of bluegrass and stretching it into a form that resonates with fans of the jam. Led by founding members Drew Emmitt and Vince Herman, this band remains one of the best in the scene, and as mentioned earlier, a chance to see them at the Tower is a can’t miss. Opening this evening will be Holly Bowling, an inventive keyboardist known for her instrumental arrangements of songs by bands like the Grateful Dead and Phish.

If that all sounds like not quite enough fun, 4 Peaks is throwing a kick-off party on Thursday, June 19 at Volcanic

Theatre Pub in Bend, featuring music by local heroes TEB and the groovy jamtronica band Dizgo.

“As much as I still dream of being out in a field and dancing under the stars — and we will do that again! — this is just going to be a more intimate and streamlined event that I think will open 4 Peaks and the Tower up to a whole new demographic of people,” Koff said. “To be able to pick a night or come to all three — either way, it’s going to be an incredible, high-quality musical experience.”

If You Go

Details:

• Toubab Krewe, with Squeaky Feet: 8 p.m. Friday, June 20, doors open 7 p.m.

• The Rumble, with The Lucky Strokes: 8 p.m. Saturday, June 21, doors open 7 p.m.

Leftover Salmon, with Holly Bowling: 8 p.m. Sunday, June 22, doors open 7 p.m.

Cost: Three-day pass: $180; individual concerts are $65, $30 for students

Where: Tower Theatre, 835 NW Wall Street, Bend

Contact: 4peaksmusic.com

See also: TEB and Dizgo will play a 4 Peaks kick-off party at 9 p.m. Thursday, June 19, at Volcanic Theatre Pub, 70 SW Century Drive, Bend. Tickets are $20.59, available at volcanictheatre.com.