shoreline – Spinning Platters

Show Review: Danny Elfman with Johnny Jewel + Desire at Shoreline Amphitheater, 11/3/24

I remember it like yesterday. October 26th, 1995. The eve of my 16th birthday. Oingo Boingo were scheduled to play their final SF show, and I couldn’t have been more excited. As a “ska” teen, despite Oingo Boingo not being a ska band, they were still part of my world, and I was eager to suit up and get sweaty. Well, the band was too eager to close up shop and canceled every show except the one that was recorded for their Farewell album, and I ended up having a beach bonfire and broke a femur running from the cops instead.

Dammit Danny. Continue reading “Show Review: Danny Elfman with Johnny Jewel + Desire at Shoreline Amphitheater, 11/3/24”

Show Review: Depeche Mode at Shoreline Amphitheatre, 9/26/2013

Best I could do without photo creds... — Best I could do without photo creds…

In 1993, I was introduced to the music of Depeche Mode by a girl who lived across the hall from me at boarding school. Of course I was already familiar with hits “People are People,” “Strangelove,” “Enjoy the Silence,” and the phenomenal “Personal Jesus.” It was this friend’s influence, however, that led me to fall for what’s still my favorite Depeche Mode song today: “Somebody.” Sure, it’s easy for a 14-year-old girl to love a wistful song, but twenty years later I still adore it (almost thirty years after it was released). And I know, it might be such an obscure favorite that I wouldn’t hear it live, but I didn’t really care: I knew better than to pass up a ticket to see such an iconic band when given the chance. And so I made the trek down to Shoreline Amphitheatre last night to catch their Delta Machine tour (named for the recent album of the same name) – a journey which turned out to take me four hours from home. (Twice what it should be, thanks to an insane parking situation at the venue that will likely keep me from going there any time I can avoid it!)

Continue reading “Show Review: Depeche Mode at Shoreline Amphitheatre, 9/26/2013”

Show Review: blink-182, My Chemical Romance, Matt & Kim (Honda Civic Tour) at Shoreline Amphitheater,

In 2001, a car company that went by the name of “Honda” decided to add another package tour to the schedule. They called up blink-182, who were at the height of their popularity, and, one thing led to another, and 10 years later, fans of pop punk music became far more aware of automobiles. I was at the San Francisco date on that tour, a show at The Warfield with No Motiv and Alkaline Trio. Over the next ten years, blink-182 went through an awful lot, evolving, and then breaking up, and then their drummer almost died in a plane accident, inspiring them to get back together.

Continue reading “Show Review: blink-182, My Chemical Romance, Matt & Kim (Honda Civic Tour) at Shoreline Amphitheater,”

Show Review: Lilith at Shoreline Amphitheater, 7/5/10

There has been a lot of controversy over the resurrected Lilith tour, including complaints of mis-marketing, poor ticket sales, and a general lack of consistency in the line ups. When it comes down to it, though, none of this matters when it comes to the actual event. I was there to account these events first hand, and I honestly felt that the show I went to was quite successful. It was actually refreshing to attend a festival that was so well organized, as well as such a well behaved audience.

Continue reading “Show Review: Lilith at Shoreline Amphitheater, 7/5/10”

Spinning Platters Picks Six: Reasons You Should Still be Going to Warped Tour

Summer’s finally officially here, which means it’s time for yet another Warped Tour to begin. Yes, the Warped Tour you went to in your youth, and now make fun of in your adulthood, is still going. If you ever catch yourself saying something like “I’m too old for that crap,” you should resign from the music nerd community immediately. There’s some great reasons to continue to go to Warped Tour, even if you’re no longer in the pit but sitting on the picnic benches in back. I’ll give you six good ones here (specifically for June 26 at Shoreline Amphitheater); feel free to leave more in the comments.

Continue reading “Spinning Platters Picks Six: Reasons You Should Still be Going to Warped Tour”

Show Review: blink-182, Weezer at Shoreline Amphitheater, 9/13/09

This is your blink 182 concert on drugs. Or this is what it looks like when you take an iPhone picture in the rain.

We are a hip music site. We cover all the latest and greatest sounds that are bubbling under. So, one might ask why we are covering the blink-182 concert? Isn’t this just a cash grab spawned by the band’s recent return to the spotlight because of drummer Travis Barker’s plane crash? Even the most avid fan has to admit that the band’s performance on the Tonight Show was underwhelming at best.

I have always enjoyed this band, from my senior year of high school, when the new kid that just moved up from San Diego gave me a dubbed tape of his favorite band from his home town. That cassette was Cheshire Cat, which I still own and cherish. I was very split about whether or not I even wanted to attend this show, since I didn’t want my memory to be forever altered by the current version of the band. As the days led up to this show, I kept hearing “Josie” in places. At the grocery store, coming out of passing cars, and, well pretty much everywhere. I decided that I needed to go.

Continue reading “Show Review: blink-182, Weezer at Shoreline Amphitheater, 9/13/09”

Rock the Bells: A Journey Through Time and Memory

CaptainKirk1

It starts at the gate on a wooden table, security searching bags, removing water bottle caps. It’s not a line, but a mass of people, compressed into a singlularity, squeezed through metal detectors like orange juice through a strainer–the pulp left behind: water bottle caps, drugs, Diet Dr. Pepper cans piled in neat towers around the parking lot (each layer an epoch) and something else…something less tangible. Metal detectors root out invisible men with sirens: a novel assimilation process to remove their weapons and expose their water. An invasive beep accompanies me through the plastic archway, where a woman– African American, in a yellow staff polo– asks me if I’m wearing a belt. I pull up my sweater and t-shirt, the small metal belt buckle is proof enough of my identity; a gentle pat down proves that I am indeed visible and physical. No, I am not an invisible man, merely an inappropriately dressed white male with a balding pattern and an open bottle of water, covering a culture I know only through books, Boondocks episodes and BET. Continue reading “Rock the Bells: A Journey Through Time and Memory”

Show Review: Phish at the Shoreline Amphitheater, 8/5/09

Staring down at their instruments, as they often do

People ask me all the time, “which band have you seen the most?” To this question, I answer Moxy Fruvous. If they ask me who’s in second place, I can answer that it’s Phish. Last night was the 22nd time I’ve seen Phish in concert, but for the first time in a dozen years. It’s hard to “review” a Phish show; it is what it is. Consider this a personal exploration into an evening of Phish. Continue reading “Show Review: Phish at the Shoreline Amphitheater, 8/5/09”

Spinning Platters Unofficial Guide to $7.11 Tickets

Oh thank heaven this is the most disturbing picture of a slurpee I can find on the internet... Got better? E-mail me: dakin.hardwick@gmail.com — Oh thank heaven this is the most disturbing picture of a slurpee I can find on the internet... Got better? E-mail me: dakin@spinningplatters.com

So, as some of you may know, 7-11 is giving away free slurpees on July 11th this year. What you may not know, is that those slurpees come with a coupon code that allows you to buy tickets to select LiveNation tickets for a deep discount. These are all GA tickets, and most of them are for $7.11. Some are for a bit more, but all are very cheap. Since neither Livenation nor Slurpee is telling people what tickets will be discounted, we did the research for you. Here is a list of the events that they will be selling in the bay area. Go to LiveNation.com on July 11th. Remember, these events are subject to change, and only a small quantity will be available at that price. Continue reading “Spinning Platters Unofficial Guide to $7.11 Tickets”