The Blackout Festival, Chicago
Hozac Records once again presents the Blackout Festival, this time out at Chicago nightclub The Empty Bottle. Bands scheduled to appear on Friday, May 18 will be Davila 666, Spider Fever, Rayon Beach, Screaming Yellow Zonkers and Cozy while performers on May 19 include Fungi Girls, Teledrome, White Mystery and the legendary Redd Kross. Bare Mutants, Estrogen Highs and Roky Erickson wrap up the festival on Sunday, May 20. www.emptybottle.com

The Blind Willie McTell Blues Festival, Thomson, Georgia
Blind Willie McTell was born in Thomson, Georgia and the small city honors the late bluesman with the Blind Willie McTell Blues Festival every spring. This year's 19th anniversary edition of the festival features headliners Delbert McClinton, James Cotton, Guy Davis and Randall Bramblett along with support acts the Geoff Achison Band, Cory Chisel and the Wandering Sons and Mama Says. There'll be lots of Southern and Cajun food available for sale too; all the fun happens on Saturday, May 19. www.exploremcduffiecounty.com

The Soul Beach Music Festival, Aruba
The Caribbean island of Aruba uses the tourism slogan One Happy Island and you can bet residents and visitors alike will be extra happy during the Soul Beach Music Festival, taking place May 23 - 28. Beach parties, nightclub festivities and live concerts highlight all six nights of the festival but the biggest shows are on May 26 when LL Cool J and Ledisi perform and on May 27 when R. Kelly and Melanie Fiona are scheduled. For ticket info visit www.soulbeach.net and to plan your trip to Aruba click over to www.aruba.com