The Offspring – Spinning Platters

Album Review: The Offspring, “Supercharged”

Let’s take a moment to recall a few of the most memorable radio-edited lines of the mid-90s: “Drivers are rude / Such attitudes / But when I show my piece / Complaints cease / Something’s odd / I feel like I’m God / You stupid dumb s**t g*d d**n mother f****r!”

Ahh yeeaaah, so sit back, relax, and read about The Offspring and their latest album release…

Their debut self-titled album, The Offspring, was released in 1989. I’ll do the math for you – that’s 35 years ago – and the band is still going strong, releasing their 11th studio album, a 35-minute-long (coincidentally) energetic record aptly titled Supercharged. Perhaps it’s a sign that they’ve shed their rebellious youthfulness (frontman Dexter Holland is turning fifty-nine in December) or, like other bands, are searching for hope and serenity in their art to battle against real-world anxieties, but Supercharged is the band’s most joyfully rollicking and variety-filled pop punk record yet. It’s a blast to listen to, especially loud. Continue reading “Album Review: The Offspring, “Supercharged””

BottleRock Napa Valley 2024 Festival Journal, Day 3

(You’re reading Day 3. Be sure to check out Day 1 and Day 2!)

The last day of BottleRock Napa Valley 2024 started out warm and clear. Despite arriving at the Napa Valley Expo a bit later than the two days preceding, I had a full day planned. First up was The Beaches at the JaM Cellars stage. I almost missed this set because the band name didn’t ring a bell. Fortunately, another photographer mentioned that they were an all-girl band, which caused me to take a minute to look them up. As soon as I did, I realized that this was a band I’d been hearing recently (“Blame Brett”), so I tagged along to check them out. They’re a fairly high-energy pop-rock band serving plenty of attitude, and their set was a good time. The ladies of the band were cracking me up as they first took the stage, talking about wine hangovers and being “so ready to crush some grapes later!” They were trying to function after one hour of sleep, guitarist Leandra Earl explained, due to having played Red Rocks the previous night. “Who’s ready to be hungover again tomorrow?” lead vocalist Jordan Miller asked as they began “Grow Up Tomorrow.” BRNV is pretty good at putting the right bands at the right times, and this was no exception. You can find their entire setlist here. Continue reading “BottleRock Napa Valley 2024 Festival Journal, Day 3”

Festival Preview: BottleRock Napa Valley 2024

Happy New Year, live music lovers! BottleRock Napa Valley has announced the lineup for this year’s festival, and as usual, it’s got me looking forward to the summer!

It may seem like there’s a long time between the lineup announcement this morning and the festival itself, but I know from experience that the rest of the winter and the spring will both fly by, and before you know it, it’ll be time to gather at Napa Valley Expo once more.

After many years of speculation, Pearl Jam will indeed (finally!) headline the BRNV stage, as will Stevie Nicks, Ed Sheeran, and Maná. Headliners aside, I may be most excited to see Megan Thee Stallion, but also Cold War Kids, Queens of the Stone Age, Norah Jones, Dominic Fike, St. Vincent, The Offspring, Nelly, Bebe Rexha, Stephen Sanchez, Cannons, Holly Humberstone, The Record Company, Royal Otis, The Moss, and Mondo Cozmo.

As always, you can plan on finding amazing food, wine, beer, and cocktails to pair with your festival weekend. Trust me – you don’t want to miss this one!

You can find my 2024 BottleRock Napa Valley Preview playlist here, so you can listen along and get excited! Don’t have tickets? Don’t worry, you can get yours here. I’ll see you in Napa this summer!

Show Review + Photo Gallery: Aftershock Music Festival – September 13-14, 2014

Photos and review by: Alan Ralph @ARPhotoSF

Across the Midwest and Southeast United States, from the last weekend of April through May 31, were seven Monster Energy Drink sponsored rock music festivals dubbed “The World’s Loudest Month”. Rock on the Range, Carolina Rebellion, Welcome to Rockville, Fort Rock, RockFest, River City Rockfest, and Rocklahoma collectively entertained hundreds of thousands of hard rock and heavy metal fans in Columbus, Charlotte, Jacksonville, Ft. Myers, Kansas City, San Antonio, and Pryor (OK), respectively. Music fans most certainly traveled long distances to attend these festivals, with their amazing 1-3 day lineups featuring the likes of Rob Zombie, Korn, Five Finger Death Punch, Guns N Roses, Limp Bizkit, Avenged Sevenfold, Kid Rock, Slayer, Deftones, Twisted Sister, Staind, and Godsmack, just to name a few.

Continue reading “Show Review + Photo Gallery: Aftershock Music Festival — September 13-14, 2014”

Spinning Platters Weekly Guide to Bay Area Concerts, 8/28/14-9/4/14

The Offspring are coming to town on Sunday!

Summer is nearly over, but there is still plenty to do. Including two really inexpensive, all day music events in the Bay Area for you to celebrate this holiday weekend.

Continue reading “Spinning Platters Weekly Guide to Bay Area Concerts, 8/28/14-9/4/14”