Nicole Atkins Kicks Off Free Madison Square Music Concerts Tonight

Jersey Shore native Nicole Atkins plays the first show of Madison Square Music's annual series of free oval lawn shows tonight at 7 p.m. in Madison Square Park. She's coming off this year's great new album, "Slow Phaser," which was funded partly through Pledge Music crowdfunding and features the infectious tune (and video), "Girl You Look Amazing" (below).

Her vocals can be smoky and sultry, with rock and pop songs that can show blues, country, and torch-song influences, among others. Atkins first made a mark with her song "Neptune City," written about her shore neighborhood, and has since been praised critics ranging from Paste, Rolling, Stone, and American Songwriter. This should be a great show. Oh, and there's a Shake Shack in the park, too, so you can cool off with one of their zillion-calorie milkshakes.



See the rest of Madison Square Park's 2014 oval lawn shows here.

We've written about some of the summer's other free concert series, including SummerStage and Celebrate Brooklyn, in a previous post, so check that out for more free music.