Warped Tour 2013 Diary: Shoreline Amphitheater 6/22/2013

 

I was elated to hear that I would return to Warped Tour after 2 years of being unable to go. Warped Tour always has introduced me to amazing bands I have never heard of, eclectic bands that I was unsure of what to think of, and made me a diehard fan of those bands I have heard of but never have seen perform.

I left my house a solid hour and a half before the gates were set to open, even though I live a mere ten minute drive away. Note to any future newcomers to the Warped Tour experience: the traffic is mind numbingly bad. It took me around 45 minutes to get to the amphitheater. Once I got my press pass, grabbed a list of set times (which I had to buy for two bucks) , and went through the gates, I was ready to see as many bands as humanly possible in ten hours. Continue reading “Warped Tour 2013 Diary: Shoreline Amphitheater 6/22/2013”

Spinning Platters Weekly Guide to Bay Area Concerts, 7/19/12 – 7/25/12

This guy is really excited about the show at Rickshaw Stop on Friday Night!

Here’s another sampling of the fine music out your disposal in the Bay Area this weekend! I think that there’s something for everyone this week.

Continue reading “Spinning Platters Weekly Guide to Bay Area Concerts, 7/19/12 – 7/25/12”

Show Review: Reel Big Fish with Streetlight Manifesto, The Maxies and Rodeo Ruby Love at the Regency Ballroom, 7/15/2011

Aaron Barrett of Reel Big Fish
Aaron Barrett of Reel Big Fish

There’s a commonly-held mindset that says you cannot take ska music seriously. From a simple outside perspective, this makes sense; it’s generally very bouncy, positive-sounding music, and the horns just accentuate the level of joy, or perhaps the level of unseriousness. For what is entailed in a ska song, however, it’s remarkably rude to call it simple or childish; with 3 or 4 additional players that accompany a full band, one that’s usually churning out rapid-fire punk riffs, and with all of the members running around onstage, it’s definitely not a simple feat. The energy of the music, for those who do listen and follow it, is infectious and riotous in its intensity, and whether the lyrics are heartfelt and yearning, or slovenly and self-deprecating, wildly energetic audiences will still fill large auditoriums to see the spectacle, and chant and stamp to every word. Such was the case on Friday night, when the Regency Ballroom of San Francisco played host to two titans of the genre: the New Jersey septet Streetlight Manifesto, and the Huntington Beach veterans known as Reel Big Fish.

Continue reading “Show Review: Reel Big Fish with Streetlight Manifesto, The Maxies and Rodeo Ruby Love at the Regency Ballroom, 7/15/2011”

Spinning Platters Weekly Guide to Bay Area Concerts, 7/14/11-7/20/11

Opening for Alkaline Trio

This weekend we have a brand new festival opening up at Potrero del Sol Park. It’s going to be awesome, but there are many other wonderful things to do. Just like these:

Continue reading “Spinning Platters Weekly Guide to Bay Area Concerts, 7/14/11-7/20/11”

Spinning Platters Weekly Tip Sheet: July 28th-August 3rd

Follow these tracks to the Great American Music Hall on Sunday.
Follow these tracks to the Great American Music Hall on Sunday.

This is part 10 of a continuing series… Next week, we will discuss how race relations affected the reconstruction.

Continue reading “Spinning Platters Weekly Tip Sheet: July 28th-August 3rd”