June 27, 28: Dead alive

Are your Birkenstocks and hemp necklaces longing to return to their natural environment? Do you wish you had been born 20 years earlier so you could have heard Jerry’s guitar licks in person? If so, you have two options: invent a time machine or go see the Dark Star Orchestra, a Grateful Dead cover band. If the $20 price and Navy Pier Skyline Stage location offend your hippie sensibilities, just think how trippy Friday’s fireworks will look on … the water, ahem.

June 27, 28: Ain’t it the struth

The Museum of Contemporary Art introduces its new exhibition with a two-day soiree. Photographer Thomas Struth will speak to MCA members at 6 p.m. on June 27, but the rest of you can pay $15 to at least pretend you support the arts while enjoying the live DJs, silent dance party and physical theater performance. Oh, yeah, and don’t forget about the pretty pictures.

June 27-29: Be a Two-Teamer

It’s the one time you can be sure the home team will be victorious, and the post-game parties should be accordingly raucous. Chicago’s White Sox and Cubs face off at U.S. Cellular Field. The games are sold out, but hey, go early and bring some extra cash for the scalpers and some extra beers in case you can’t find anything in your price range. Parking-lot party time!

June 28: In your eyes … and ears

Everyone’s favorite soft rocker Peter Gabriel is coming to the Tweeter Center. The tickets start at $30, but don’t give up, you know you’ll be sorry — big time — if you miss it.

June 28: Birds of a feather

People your parent’s age wearing parrot hats and getting sloppy drunk? Only at a Jimmy Buffett concert, where tickets start at $37. You can be wasting away at Alpine Valley while you imagine eating a cheeseburger in paradise.

June 29: Pride on parade

They’re here, they’re queer and they’re taking to the streets. The 34th annual Gay and Lesbian Pride Parade starts at Belmont and Halsted at noon on Sunday and ends in revelry whenever and wherever you want it to.