Show Review: alt-j, Portugal. The Man, Cherry Glazerr at Bill Graham Civic Auditorium, 4.1.22

As an alt-j fan celebrating The Dream release and larger venue openings in the bay area the joke was on me when it came to the night of the show and what happened vs what I expected from this sold-out venue and bill.

The Bill Grahm Civic Auditorium might as well be the venue that “Band Aid” Penny Lane spins around to Cat Steven’s (Yusuf Islam’s) “The Wind” in Almost Famous. An iconic movie scene where a super fan relishes the empty room after an incendiary performance of their fav band. If this venue could talk. Continue reading “Show Review: alt-j, Portugal. The Man, Cherry Glazerr at Bill Graham Civic Auditorium, 4.1.22”

BottleRock Napa Valley 2021 Preview

It’s been nearly a year since the original lineup announcement for BottleRock Napa Valley 2020. It was only January, and we hardly knew anything yet about what would become of the world as we know it, especially for us live music lovers.

Fast forward to mid-May 2021, and most of us are starved for live events we might have once taken for granted. Fortunately, there’s finally a light appearing at the end of a very long and difficult tunnel.

I haven’t seen a show since January 2020. If you know me at all, you know that festivals are my favorite – especially one I can walk to from home. And finally, finally, finally, it seems like it’s about that time again. Ladies and gentlemen, I give you…

Bottle Rock Napa Valley 2021’s lineup! I’m happy to see that quite a few of those originally slated for last year’s BRNV will be playing this Labor Day when vaccinated music-lovers can convene to enjoy! This includes original headliner Stevie Nicks, plus Guns N’ Roses (!!) and returning headliners Foo Fighters. In addition to those three, I’m also looking forward to several smaller acts! Personally, I can’t wait to catch Finneas, the freaking Village People (!!), Absofacto, Atlas Genius, Miley Cyrus, Megan Thee Stallion, Brandi Carlile, Cage the Elephant, Portugal. The Man, Young the Giant, Maren Morris, Black Pumas, Jon Batiste, Digable Planets, Matt Nathanson, Mondo Cozmo, Meg Myers, among many others. Who are you most excited to see this year?

Here’s my preview playlist featuring some of my faves. Enjoy, get vaccinated, and I’ll see you in my hometown this Labor Day weekend at BottleRock Napa Valley!

BottleRock ticket info: On sale 5/20 at 10 am PST. Get yours here!

Outside Lands 2018: 27 Instant Gig Reviews

Ate a lot of food. Got a lot of steps. But it was mostly Janet Jackson.

All photos by Dakin Hardwick unless otherwise noted

Outside Lands reached its 11th birthday this year. I’ve been to ten of those eleven installments. This year, the folks booking the festival decided it was time to take some risks… They added an extra stage for acoustic sets and magic, called “Cocktail Magic.” They added a whole pot awareness area (not that folks at a music festival need to be *more* aware of weed). Continue reading “Outside Lands 2018: 27 Instant Gig Reviews”

Spinning Platters Weekly Guide to Bay Area Concerts, 4/24/14-4/30/14

A band that puns on this show is opening for a band that has Ty Segall in it at Rickshaw Stop.
A band that puns on this show is opening for a band that has Ty Segall in it at Rickshaw Stop.

Thursday, April 24th Continue reading “Spinning Platters Weekly Guide to Bay Area Concerts, 4/24/14-4/30/14”

Spinning Platters Weekly Guide to Bay Area Concerts, 12/4/13-12/10/13

bangles
Coming to The Fillmore, this Thursday Night!

Wednesday, December 4th

Continue reading “Spinning Platters Weekly Guide to Bay Area Concerts, 12/4/13-12/10/13”

Spinning Platters Weekly Guide to Bay Area Concerts, 5/3/12-5/9/12

Opening for The Black Keys this Friday Night!

Another week of rock and roll… Because sleep is totally overrated.

Continue reading “Spinning Platters Weekly Guide to Bay Area Concerts, 5/3/12-5/9/12”

Show Review: Portugal. The Man at The Fillmore 6/18/10


If there is any one band that’s keeping the idea of psychedelic rock alive, it’s Portugal. The Man. That’s not to say that there are not other bands out there that partake in psychedelic rock, moreso that Portugal’s ability to blend other more popular styles of rock in to their psychedelic style has helped keep them relevant and accessible to more of a broader audience.

Continue reading “Show Review: Portugal. The Man at The Fillmore 6/18/10”

Spinning Platters Weekly Guide to Bay Area Concerts, 6/17/10-6/23/10

Playing with the Dum Dum Girls next Wednesday at The New Parish

This is a really full week. There are multiple nights where I am trying really hard to figure out how to be in two places at once… Has anyone invented an easy way to clone oneself?

Continue reading “Spinning Platters Weekly Guide to Bay Area Concerts, 6/17/10-6/23/10”

New Release Round Up 3/2/10 – 39 Instant Album Reviews

Connect these dots and you get my album pick of the week.

Pouria is taking a week off with the Noise Pop flu. I think he went out one too many nights, so I’m covering for him again. My personal favorites this week are things with exclamation points, so look for those within. Also, a southern rock concept album starring Stephen King. Really. Continue reading “New Release Round Up 3/2/10 — 39 Instant Album Reviews”