Sacramento dance-punk band !!! (Chk Chk Chk) will be doing three shows this month, the first in their home town at The Assembly and then back-to-back shows at The Chapel in San Francisco. Their latest EP, R!M!X!S, came out a few months ago, following their fifth studio album, THR!!!ER, which came out earlier last year. [Read more…]
“I wanted to be a writer. I didn’t just want to shake my hair around and scream…” Johnette Napolitano, in one of many self-reflective moments in her honest and raw solo show at The Griffin in San Diego on Friday night. The singer and bass player for Concrete Blonde has always projected raw emotion and artistry in all she does, but this was certainly a step even further into having a glimpse into her world, which was bathed in gentle red and blue lights on the small stage in the intimate venue. For me, she has always been one of my favorite vocalists in rock and roll (and based on this show, it is only getting better with age), but there is so much more to her as an artist beyond that one remarkable gift. She talks about ghosts a bit, and it makes me wonder if she can see and feel things that the rest of us mere mortals cannot, and that is one of those things that gives her work more depth and dimension, and of course more emotion. Regardless, the show was an amazing experience for fans of her and her work, whether it is on vinyl or paper, she is that writer she always dreamed of becoming, in multiple disciplines. Brilliant artist and amazing showcase of her work in San Diego for those lucky enough to attend.
Berlin Featuring Terri Nunn has announced new concert dates all across the U.S. through May, which kicks off at Saint Rocke in Hermosa Beach later this month. They will play favorites from the 80s as well as songs from the fantastic new album, Animal (which I rated one of the Top Ten Albums of 2013). [Read more…]
Johnette Napolitano, singer-songwriter well known as the vocalist/bassist for Concrete Blonde, is scheduled to play a handful of special, one-off solo shows in the first quarter of 2014. It is anticipated that Johnette will perform acoustic versions of Concrete Blonde songs, works from her own Sketchbook albums, as well as read extracts from her book, Rough Mix, the first of her series of memoirs, stories, poetry, lyrics and essays. A prolific artist in many disciplines and with a number of different collaborations with other artists, it should prove interesting to see what she brings to the stage with these special shows. [Read more…]
X, the pioneering punk band formed in 1977 in Los Angeles, will be starting 2014 out with two special shows this week – one of the 50th Anniversary gigs at the world famous Whiskey A Go Go in their hometown on January 15th and another show at The Casbah in San Diego on January 16th. [Read more…]
This is part of a continuing series of my impressions and experiences staying at various hotels and resorts while traveling to attend concerts worldwide. This stay was during my recent trip to San Diego in October 2013. This review is for Palomar, San Diego, A Kimpton Hotel, in San Diego, California. [Read more…]
This is part of a continuing series of my impressions and experiences staying at various hotels and resorts while traveling to attend concerts worldwide. This stay was during my recent trip to Las Vegas in October 2013. This review is for The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas in Nevada. [Read more…]
This is part of a continuing series of my impressions and experiences staying at various hotels and resorts while traveling to attend concerts worldwide. This stay was during my recent trip to Las Vegas in October 2013. This review is for The Palms Casino Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada. [Read more…]
This is part of a continuing series of my impressions and experiences staying at various hotels and resorts while traveling to attend concerts and other events worldwide. This stay was during my recent trip to Houston in October 2013 for the Grand Prix of Houston. This review is for Hyatt Regency Houston in Texas. [Read more…]
It isn’t often that real, genuine rock and roll legends come into my hometown of Sacramento to perform in concert, but after last night’s Fleetwood Mac show at Sleep Train Arena, they’ve set the bar quite high for any act to follow. Have loved this band since I was a kid, but have never seen them live, so this was an eagerly anticipated show for me. I did see Lindsay Buckingham on his own last year, and Stevie Nicks with Dave Grohl’s Sound City Players earlier this year, so have had bursts of greatness, which really fed my desire to see them together as Fleetwood Mac even more. As amazing as those other performances had been, they did not prepare me for the magic of having their best line-up (unfortunately sans Christine McVie) on stage together. I think it cements Lindsay Buckingham as the true rock God of the 70s/80s generation and Stevie Nicks, fittingly, as the rock Goddess. Mick Fleetwood is like Zeus (or maybe a mad pirate), with twin balls hanging (in a dangling/dancing sort of way) from his belt. John McVie is content to leave center stage to the others, throwing down his bassline and keeping everything on the tracks as much as possible. This is a band who know who they are, and haven’t strayed from their identity in sound or fashion. What really hit home is how much they appreciate their fans, which was expressed not just in the performance but in eloquent statements from Nicks and Fleetwood to close out the show, calling us their “Dreamcatchers”, and really articulating the music fan/musician dynamic better than I’ve ever heard before. This date closed out the U.S. leg of their tour, and certainly inspires one to start following them around Europe later this year…