Posts
Honey Island Swamp Band, The Mint
February 10, 2012
You couldn’t miss it. She was vintage. All black and chrome. Gleaming under the streetlight. Probably mid-80s, but who knows. The guys had a bus. Rolling from gig to gig in comfort, if not style. Not flashy. The sight…
Galactic, Tipitina’s
December 31, 2011
Bill Graham spoiled me. The man knew how to throw a New Year's party. 4-5 hours of cosmic Dead jams, epic substance abuse and 6,000 or so of my newest friends. The calendar would turn, Uncle Bobo would descend, Sugar Mag…
Dragon Smoke, The Mint
December 7, 2011
“Supergroups” are described by Wikipedia as one “whose performers are already famous from having performed individually or in other groups”, citing a 1974 Time article that such configurations are an “amalgam formed…
Stephen Stills, City National Grove of Anaheim
November 22, 2011
Some songs, some artists, never go away. That’s not always a good thing. Times change, everyone ages, life gets tougher or better, and we go on. Since I was probably all of 8 the first time I heard “For What It’s Worth”,…
Return to Forever IV, Greek Theater
September 20, 2011
There are only so many seminal musical moments in one's life, and the first time I saw Return to Forever live was one of them. I felt as if my head cracked open and exploded from the inside. But I digress.
As…
Babette Ho Benefit with Jackson Browne and Ben Harper, The Mint
September 19, 2011
A friend asked me to describe Ben Harper’s sound and the best I could come up with was world-infused, surf-influenced, rhythm, roots and soul. Harper is a singer/songwriter/guitarist who defies description and has…
Donald Harrison, Jr. Electric Band and Jon Cleary’s Philthy Phew, Santa Monica Pier
September 8, 2011
As a native Angelino, attendance at any of the Santa Monica Pier Twilight Dance Series performances truly is a rite of summer. Gorgeous nights, ocean air, sand between your toes. Hard to beat. Despite a…
Moonalice, The Mint
August 6, 2011
“Moonalice is a band of seasoned musicians who feel that live music should be a communal experience where the listener and musicians feed and derive inspiration from each other. Their songs try to speak to everyone, mixing…
Stanton Moore Trio, The Mint
July 13, 2011
Stanton Moore is everywhere, deal with it. And no drummer jokes, please. Seriously, it seems like Stanton Moore is the Warren Haynes of the skins, playing wherever, whenever he can and not only like he's having a…
Honey Island Swamp Band, The Mint
June 26, 2011
Honey Island Swamp Band swung into the Westside on Saturday, another NOLA nugget appearing at the Mint. This is a New Orleans band that reflects its Katrina Diaspora-Bay Area birth with chunky and soulful jams, tight arrangements…