Summer Trivia
All Ages | Free Event Bell’s Back Room School’s out, trivia’s in! 😎 Cool off with a night of fun, facts, and friendly competition. Who will be crowned the Summer Trivia Champion? 🏅☀️
Finals Watch Party
All Ages | Free Event Bell’s Back Room ⚽ The World Cup action is heating up, and we’re showing it on the big screen! 🍻 Join us this Sunday in the Back Room for our World Cup Finals Watch Party.Bring your crew, wear your team’s colors, and catch the game with us! 🌎🏆
VIDA ETERNA EP RELEASE WSG COLD MOUNTAIN CHILD
This is a 18+ | 17 under with a parent or guardian Advance tickets may also be purchased in person at the General Store by card only (no cash) Vida Eterna is a Kalamazoo-based dreampop band with shoegaze and post-punk influences, drawing from the college rock heyday of the late 80s and early 90s. Their energetic live show flows between loud, blissed-out distorted guitar noise and slow, ambient, introspective lyrics with ethereal vocals. Vida Eterna’s debut self-titled EP will be released on July 30th at Bell’s Back Room, following the release of their first single, “Had To Let You Know,” on July 11th, 2026. The single will be accompanied by a music video directed by Zac Clark, featuring dark, David Lynchian imagery reminiscent of MTV’s 120 Minutes.
Sounds of the Zoo Presents: Celebrating Women in Music featuring Grace Theisen Band & Kylee Phillips
This is a 18+ | 17 under with a parent or guardian Suggested Donations at Door Sounds of the Zoo returns for its fifth year in 2026, continuing its mission of Creating Change Through Music in the heart of downtown Kalamazoo. What began as a grassroots idea has grown into a week-long, citywide celebration of live music, community, and connection. The 2026 festival runs for seven days across eight locations, featuring 40+ bands and artists. Every event is free and open to the public, inviting the community to experience music in an accessible and welcoming way throughout downtown Kalamazoo’s live music venues and public spaces. This year’s lineup spans beloved local venues including Bell’s Backroom, along with additional performances throughout the downtown corridor. The festival culminates with three full days of programming in Bronson Park, transforming the heart of the city into a vibrant, open-air stage. At its core, Sounds of the Zoo is about more than music. The festival is rooted in values of diversity, equity, and inclusion—amplifying a wide range of voices and genres while also bringing awareness to mental health, sustainability, and community well-being. Free live music. Local venues. A shared city experience. Sounds of the Zoo 2026 is an invitation to show up, listen, and be part of something bigger—where music brings people together across every background and every corner of the community.
Issues & Ale: It’s Just Politics – Michigan’s Primary Election Preview
Join Michigan Public’s Zoe Clark and Rick Pluta for a preview of the upcoming Michigan Primary, a week before the election! Reserve your spot here
Payton & Annabelle: The Songs of Simon & Garfunkel
This is an 18+ seated event | 17 and under admitted with a parent or guardian Advance tickets may also be purchased in person at the General Store by card only (no cash) Award winning Kalamazoo based duo Payton&Annabelle are thrilled to return to Bell’s Backroom with their previously sold-out show, Payton&Annabelle: The Songs of Simon & Garfunkel. After having spent years enjoying and casually performing the music of the well-known singer-songwriters, the pair have dedicated a full set to their fantastic song craft. Featuring popular favorites, deep cut gems, an outstanding backing band, and special guests, this experience promises to be one that can be enjoyed by all. The duo honors both their full band songs and intimate duets, providing both in their memorable live set. The duo have sold out multiple duo nights at Kalamazoo’s Clover Room and have sold out a previous night at Bell’s Back Room with their full band and guests. The pair are quickly making a name for themselves in Michigan and around the Midwest. Their original song “projection” won the first ever state-wide New Moon Songwriting Competition, and their music also garnered them first place in the 2023 Battle of the Bands at the Kalamazoo State Theatre. The duo currently have their debut album For the Willows streaming everywhere, and are working on recording their second full length album. https://www.paytonandannabelle.com https://www.instagram.com/paytonandannabelle/ https://open.spotify.com/artist/20Pz0ky33gWdsPScb8goBi https://www.facebook.com/people/Payton-Annabelle/61579818767274/
Payton & Annabelle: The Songs of Simon & Garfunkel
This is an 18+ seated event | 17 and under admitted with a parent or guardian Advance tickets may also be purchased in person at the General Store by card only (no cash) Award winning Kalamazoo based duo Payton&Annabelle are thrilled to return to Bell’s Backroom with their previously sold-out show, Payton&Annabelle: The Songs of Simon & Garfunkel. After having spent years enjoying and casually performing the music of the well-known singer-songwriters, the pair have dedicated a full set to their fantastic song craft. Featuring popular favorites, deep cut gems, an outstanding backing band, and special guests, this experience promises to be one that can be enjoyed by all. The duo honors both their full band songs and intimate duets, providing both in their memorable live set. The duo have sold out multiple duo nights at Kalamazoo’s Clover Room and have sold out a previous night at Bell’s Back Room with their full band and guests. The pair are quickly making a name for themselves in Michigan and around the Midwest. Their original song “projection” won the first ever state-wide New Moon Songwriting Competition, and their music also garnered them first place in the 2023 Battle of the Bands at the Kalamazoo State Theatre. The duo currently have their debut album For the Willows streaming everywhere, and are working on recording their second full length album. https://www.paytonandannabelle.com https://www.instagram.com/paytonandannabelle/ https://open.spotify.com/artist/20Pz0ky33gWdsPScb8goBi https://www.facebook.com/people/Payton-Annabelle/61579818767274/
Small Brown Bike with CRITERIA and Bronson Arm
This is a 18+ event with standing room only| 17 under with a parent or guardian Advance tickets may also be purchased in person at the General Store by card only (no cash) SMALL BROWN BIKE formed in 1996 in Michigan and released four full-length albums plus EPs and singles over their career. Their 2000 sophomore album Dead Reckoning earned international acclaim and a 5-star review from Kerrang, who praised its “unrivaled depth of emotion.” The band toured relentlessly, sharing stages with Hot Water Music, Cursive, Sparta, Cave In, and many others. In 2003, they released The River Bed on Lookout! Records before breaking up later that year. They reunited in 2006 and officially returned in 2009, recording their fourth album Fell & Found in 2011 with producer J Robbins. AV Club praised them as “one of the best purveyors of this sound.” The band continued to play shows and festivals through 2016, eventually going on an indefinite hiatus. In 2023, tragedy struck with the passing of one of their founding members, Travis Dopp, after a three-year battle with cancer. In 2026, the remaining founding members—Mike Reed, Ben Reed, and Dan Jaquint—announced shows to celebrate the 25th anniversary of their breakout record, Dead Reckoning, and honor the 30-year anniversary of the band’s founding. Homebase: Marshall, Michigan
Joe Hertler & The Rainbow Seekers wsg Hot like Mars & Headband Henny
2026 Bell’s Beer Garden Summer Concert Series This is an 18 and over event – 17 and under admitted with a parent or guardian Joe Hertler & The Rainbow Seekers will make a sprightly young groove doctor out of anyone. With spectacular energy pulsating from every member of the band, the Rainbow Seekers could illuminate the very chambers of Heaven. Lead singer Joe Hertler splashes through lyrical puddles of golden rain, leaving his audience wearing flowery crowns and bubbling smiles. A ride on the Rainbow will take you across the mountains of Motown, through the fjords of folk, over the archipelagos of Americana, and-at last-into a funky firth, where only the fiercest of friendships can be found. The Rainbow Seekers began their historic quest 8 years ago, revolving around the pure, unadulterated songwriting of their fearless leader, Joe Hertler. Ryan Hoger was the first among the Seekers to find this lonely songsmith and recognize the twinkling magic in his beard. The young boy gave up all his earthly possessions (besides his guitar, of course) and became the first disciple of the Rainbow. With this, the core of the Rainbow was thereby established, and it didn’t take long for the Rainbow Seekers to continue their expansion. Multi-instrumentalist and notable auxiliary percussion maestro Micah Bracken journeyed from the bowels of Atlantis when he heard tell of the Rainbow, and the earth trembled as saxophonist and all-around badass Aaron Stinson descended from Olympus on a golden rainbow of his own. Then came thunder from the depths of space, and as it picked up the bass, a soft exhale escaped the lips of every princess within a hundred moons, “Bambis,” they cooed. All the while, on the other ends of the earth, a young boy was hard at work, honing and sharpening his sticks for the day that the Rainbow would come his way, and when it landed at his door, Ryan McMahon climbed aboard. VIP MERCH tickets include: – entry – signed poster
Basic
18+ Standing Room Only Show | 17 and under admitted with a parent or guardian Advance tickets may also be purchased in person at the General Store by card only (no cash) Working with guitars, drum machine, sampler, self-built electronics, and all manner of percussion, BASIC, the trio of Chris Forsyth, Mikel Patrick Avery, and Douglas McCombs, synthesize the vast influences and distinct histories of each member, producing a boundary-less, rhythm-forward amalgam of art rock, trance jazz, collective improvisation, and humming electronics on their new eponymous full-length, out June 12, 2026 on No Quarter. Philadelphia’s Chris Forsyth, known for his lyrical guitar compositions and mercurial improvisations as leader of the Solar Motel Band, founded BASIC in 2022 naming the project in homage to the 1984 Robert Quine/Fred Maher album “Basic,” yes, but also to indicate a desire to get down to fundamentals rhythmically and musically. Shortly thereafter, fellow Philly denizen Mikel Patrick Avery, whose subtle and propulsive drumming has provided the pulse for Natural Information Society, Marshall Allen’s Ghost Horizons, and Rob Mazurek’s Exploding Star Orchestra (amongst other projects), joined, bringing his unique combination of programed beats and acoustic percussion – a single drum with a metallic bell affixed and a variety of hand percussion run through a self-devised barrage of electronic processors and tonal filters (many controlled in real-time with touch pads) – to BASIC. Chicago stalwart Douglas McCombs came on board in late 2024 to tour their debut record “This Is BASIC,” thereby solidifying the lineup and expanding the group’s sound. As often heard in his work with Tortoise and Brokeback, McCombs’ playing in BASIC combines a mastery of musical negative space with memorable lines on Fender Bass VI, a six-string instrument with a distinctive twang tuned an octave below a standard guitar, allowing McCombs to function as both bassist and guitarist. After 35+ live gigs touring the first record and the March 2025 release of their merch table- and Bandcamp-only three-song EP “Dream City,” “Basic” was tracked by Nick Broste in a mere two days in September 2025 at Electrical Audio, the legendary Chicago studio built and operated for many years by the late Steve Albini, with minimal overdubs and a final mix conducted over three days in January at Uniform Recording in Philly with engineer/mixer Jeff Zeigler. As a result of their newfound tour chemistry, it all came together quickly and with minimal pre-production. As Forsyth puts it: “I’d say we invented 60% of this record on the spot at Electrical… This record is exciting for me because I really didn’t know what it was until we were finished with it.”
