Monterey Music Mania

This weekend is full of live music options beginning with the 15th annual Monterey Bay Reggaefest at the Monterey Fairgrounds on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. This year's lineup features Sly and Robbie, Barrington Levy and Third World. (Check back for live video and photos from the festival).
Here are some more choice selections on Saturday:

Jerry Garcia Birthday Bash  9pm at Woody’s Bayview Grill, 125 Oceanview Blvd., Pacific Grove. Free. 649-6800.

Fruit Bats and These United States play 7pm at Henry Miller Library, a quarter mile south of Nepenthe Restaurant on Highway 1, Big Sur. $22. 667-2574.

MC Lars at Monterey County Free Libraries 11am, Saturday, July 31, at the Marina Library, 190 Seaside Circle, Marina. Free. 883-7507. 3pm at the Seaside Library, 550 Harcourt Ave., Seaside. Free. 899-2055.

Spectre Folk's Big Sur Travels in NY Times

On Saturday, June 12, the Woodsist Festival at the Henry Miller Library featured nine indie bands that have recorded on the Woodsist label. One of those bands was the Brooklyn-based psych-blues outfit, Spectre Folk. Unsurprisingly, the trio was seduced by the majesty of Big Sur and its grub.
On June 29, band member Peter Meehan's account of the trip was published on the New York Times travel blog.
Peter, you're right, " Deetjen’s breakfast is pitch-perfect."

Tickling Pink

Arguably the best Pink Floyd tribute band in Northern Cali, House of Floyd played to a diverse audience of aging hippies and red-eyed youngsters on Saturday night in Big Sur.

The three-hour, two-set show was highlighted by a cacophony of smoke machines, red and green lasers, light spectacles and projections of Alice in Wonderland, Metropolis and George Bush Jr. with pigs superimposed over his face.

Set 1: Shine On You Crazy Diamond Part 1>Remember a Day>Astronomy Domine>Lucifer Sam>Welcome to the Machine>Learning to Fly>Stay>Have a Cigar>Shine On You Crazy Diamond Part 2>Pigs (Three Different Ones)>Run Like Hell
Set 2: Sheep>Echoes
After the first two songs of the second set, lead singer/guitarist said, "We have time for one more...album." Of course, the album was the timeless psychedelic masterpiece, Darkside of the Moon.

Forever Pink and Gaga

Recreating one of the best live rock acts is one hell of a hard task. It took the Bay Area Pink Floyd tribute House of Floyd a year to get their shit together before attempting to commit, what may have been, a sacrilegious act. Five years into it, they're regarded as the Nor Cal Pink cream of the crop and on Saturday, they'll be back in Big Sur with a bigger and more psychedelic repertoire.
Stay tuned for live video footage from the show and remember: "The lunatic is on the grass."



On Friday night, there will be a camera crew at Jose's filming a band for a possible upcoming reality show on E!. Parents—a Los Angeles-based outfit—has a definite edge: Frontman Aaron Jones happens to be cousins with Lady Gaga, the hottest pop entity since Madonna was "touched, for the very first time." Sure, the indie trio maybe using the freaky blonde sensation as a means to stardom, but who cares, they're actually a killer band.

Barrington Levy, Sly and Robbie and Third World Headline MB Reggaefest

The lineup for the 15th annual Monterey Bay Reggaefest—July 30-August 1—includes heavy hitters Barrington Levy,  Sly and Robbie and Third World. Roll some fatties and let the music take you away. Check out my Reggaefest preview next Thursday in the Weekly followed by live video footage and photos from the weekend event.

The Mayor, Cowgirls and Mr. Yoakam

The smell of manure, Coors Light and leather wafted through the Salinas air at the Centennial Rodeo Music Stampede on Saturday night. Mayor Dennie Donohue was even spotted getting his yeehaw on amongst the thousands of cowboy hats that peppered the complex.

"The girls are lookin' so hot/two at a time, on the bar, doin' body shots," sang the San Jose opener, The Bell Brothers. But of the three opening acts  Miss Willie Brown stood out like a banker in a biker bar. Fronted by the short skirted (really short) Kasey and Amanda, the Los Angeles-based outfit tore up the stage with soulful country jams that oozed sexiness.


Performing "Rodeo Queen" on Jimmy Kimmel Live in February 2010.

When Dwight Yoakam took the stage, he looked like he stood ten feet tall; and his bone-colored Stetson stretched at least another whole foot. What a voice!

The country music icon hypnotized his audience for more than two hours, playing everything from longtime faves like "Streets of Bakersfield" to a sweet cover of Johnny Cash's "Ring of Fire."

Sweaty Day

I spied the legendary Beach Boy Al Jardine among the perspired dancers grooving to the music of funk-hip-hop-rockers, Forrest Day. He said he dug the energy of the six-piece band.
Like they always do, Forrest Day took its show into the wee hours of the early morn. The sweat-boxed Plant Gemini steamed hotter than a desert sauna as sweat ran from bearded teddy bear frontman Forrest Day's face like a runaway faucet.
The Monterey favorite played many of its beloved old tunes as well as several from its debut album, officially being released sometime in the fall.
 


Set List: Idealize, If You Do, Baby Shoe, Everybody's Fuckin With My Mind, Meds, River Rat, Hyperactive, Assholes, Lastly, About Time, Sinatra, Troubled, Hoarders, The Grease, Gain, Without a Trace, Zecret, Years E: Dead Now

Opener Hanif WondiR (of the hip-hop outfit Animal Farm), spat rhymes like a lyrical king cobra before Ostrich Head took the stage. Check out adorable Stuart Thornton's story about Ostrich Head's 2009 I Love Head.

More From Dwight Yoakam

Here are some nuggets from my recent interview with the country legend.

When did you first realize you had made it as a musician?
I guess when I realized I didn't have to work a day job to pay the rent. In the fall of 85 with our new EP, we started having interest from the labels. 


What influenced your musical style when you came to California?
I was a straight rock and roll and new wave listener, in terms of that side of my musical taste. I was more drawn to The Clash melodically, in fact I covered The Clash several years later; we did "Train in Vain." That was a more accessible place for me. Billy Zoom (founding member of X) had a neo-rockabilly band at the time and would play the Whiskey a Go Go. When I got L.A., it was that kind of scene. Country music was a very edgy rock and roll energy, and that's probably what I had most in common by the time I put a band together and started in 1981 playing the rock club circuit.
In 79 and 80, I started playing out in the San Fernando Valley "hillbilly" circuit; it was biker land and crystal meth ruled honky tonks.
The Palomino Club was still happening and I remember seeing Jerry Lee Lewis at close range in 1979. It was a pretty phenomenal show at the Palomino; the front row had Neil Diamond and Tanya Tucker and we were right down front at a table near all these folks. It was a sight to behold. I also saw George Thorogood in 1978. His debut album had him covering Hank Williams' "Movin' On Over." He had his own east coast raucous, rockabilly take on Hank Williams.
I landed in a curious moment within all musical communities. I think the last time things built to that kind of fervor in L.A. was the three-year period from 1981-84. It was a glorious moment.

What do you have planned for your show in Salinas?
We're just going to have fun. I'm going to play music that I've made in the past 25 years and I look forward to seeing everyone out there at the Rodeo. I love playing fairs; it's where I saw a lot of my first shows as a kid. I remember seeing Johnny Cash at a state fair.
 

Forrest Day and Dwight Yoakam Top Weekend Music Choices

On Friday, Monterey favorite Forrest Day celebrates its long-awaited debut album at the destined-to-be-packed and probably sold out, Planet Gemini. Frontman Day says there are less than 1,000 CDs left and they're moving faster than OJ's white Bronco. Those unlucky folks that don't get one in time will have to wait until fall when the album is officially released.
L.A. hip-hop outfit Ostrich Head opens.
I spoke with Day and drummer Jasper Skydecker about the arduous recording process and the ultimately rewarding outcome in the Weekly.

Badass country legend and master method actor Dwight Yoakam performs Saturday in Salinas to help commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Salinas Rodeo.
I was told I only had a brief five to ten minutes to chat with the music icon but before I knew it, 30 minutes had gone by quicker than a runaway freight train. Yoakam spoke about his move to California from Kentucky in the late 70s, musical influences like Jerry Lee Lewis and coming up in the wonderfully eclectic, early Los Angeles punk scene.
Look for my interview with Yoakam in this week's edition of the Weekly. Later this week I will post segments of the interview that didn't make it to print.

Paris' Human Toys Return to Monterey

Coming all the way from Paris, France, the sexy female duo Human Toys, play Blue Fin on Friday, July 16 almost one year after they first played in Monterey. Check last year's story in the Monterey County Weekly.
Check out Human Toys' saucy, electro-punk cover of Tom Waits' "Goin Out West," below.


Human Toys "Goin'Out West" from Human Toys on Vimeo.


Damon and the Heathens and Psychos in Love also play.

Weekend honeymoon

 

Lauren Shera, Andrea Blunt and sister-in-laws Christina Bailey and Sara Bollwinkel shined all weekend, playing exquisitely polished folk music with their dynamic new band, honeymoon. 
The festivities began on Saturday at the Levine residence located on the effervescent Santa Lucia Preserve. The girls played—to about 50 close friends and family—an hour-long, acoustic set in the expansive hallway of the home.

Set: Stealth (Shera) - States (Big American Family) - Find Me (honeymoon) - Endless Sea (Shera) - After the Flood (honeymoon) Cardboard Mansions (Big American Family) - Sam (Blunt) - Processional (honeymoon) - Grateful (Blunt) - Stealth II (Shera) E. Wayfaring Stranger/I'll Fly Away (arr. honeymoon)
 


The following day, the quartet was joined by Matt Bailey on drums and Matt Bollwinkel on bass for a sublime performance under the ancient Big Sur redwoods at the Henry Miller Library.
During the two-set performance, love filled the air and the musical goodness warmed each of the 150 hearts in the audience. Bassist Phil Lesh of the Grateful Dead concurs: This band is something very, very special.

Set I: Stealth (Shera) - States (Big American Family) - Find Me (honeymoon) - Burn it Down (Blunt) - Endless Sea (Shera) - Spring (Blunt) - Work it Out (Bailey) - Panic Bell (Shera) - Wayfaring Stranger (arr. honeymoon)
Set II: After the Flood (honeymoon) - Sam (Blunt) - Cardboard Mansions (Big American Family) - I Don't Think You Know - Once I Was a Bird - Processional (honeymoon) - Carry You Down - Your Battle (Shera) - Grateful (Blunt) - Stealth II (Shera) E. Black-Eyed Dog (arr. honeymoon)

Los Lobos to Play Free Show in Sand City

On Thursday, July 8, it was announced that, in addition to Saturday's line-up of irresistible indie-rockers Persephones Bees, Brazilian samba troupe Sambada, Forrest Day and more, Mexi-Cali rock legends Los Lobos will play a free concert at Sand City's 8th West End Celebration, taking place Aug. 20-22.
More HERE.
Check out Los Lobos' performance of "El Canelo" on Sesame Street.

Tallest Man on Earth to Play HML

 On September 12, The Tallest Man on Earth (Sweden's Kristian Mattson) will play an intimate show at the Henry Miller Library in Big Sur. The troubadour—known for a rustic voice reminiscent of early Dylan—will be joined by special guest, S. Carey (of Bon Iver).
Tix on sale HERE.

honeymoon Forever

honeymoon (Lauren Shera, Andrea Blunt, Christina Bailey and Sara Bollwinkel) is quickly making a name for themselves around the Bay Area with their celestial harmonies and enchanting folk music.
They recently played the Further Festival with the Grateful Dead's Bob Weir and Phil Lesh, as well as Jackie Greene and the Mother Hips.
These gals are going places much nicer than a hotel room with a champagne-shaped bathtub. Check out the preview in the Monterey County Weekly for their show this Sunday at the Henry Miller Library in Big Sur.

Vinyl, Vinyl, and more Vinyl

It’s definitely sexier than the compact disc. Not only is it cooler looking, an LP in pristine condition played on a highbrow system kicks the tushy of the CD’s sound quality.

On Saturday, July 3 at the Henry Miller Library in Big Sur, a large amount of big-bearded folks showed up to express their love for the irresistible circular-treat-gone-über-hipster at Vinyl in the Woods.

It all began with the controversial Kids; then there was the gratuitous look into the white trash world in Gummo; and now, Trash Humpers. My score of the day was a 107/500, 7“ pressing of the soundtrack to bizarro filmmaker Harmone Korine’s latest plunge into the world of mega-disturbing and jaw-dropping cinematic high(or low)-art. The Chicago-based Drag City record label pressed 500 of these vinyl oddities—the pseudo-documentary is about a gang of derelict senior citizens that enjoy grinding trash receptacles in addition to achieving college-level intoxication—and the packaging is as raunchy as the film's premise. My $8 purchase of crudeness supposedly had urine and other bodily fluids rubbed all over its sleeve. Drag City rep Nicole Yalez (pictured below) said one of the albums purchased recently at Amoeba Records in San Francisco had a small worm crawling on it.

A couple of my other notable scores included Death’s [Drag City], an all-black, pre-Bad Brains punk trio from Detroit, …For the Whole World to See and Be Yourself: A Tribute to Graham Nash's Song For Beginners [Grass Roots Record Co.], co-produced by local promotion guru Britt Govea.

FutureRecordings, the brainchild of local alt-rockers Fuck I’m a Ghost, had a table displaying its uniquely packaged vinyl and other recordings on thought-to-be-dead formats like cassette tape and 8-track. 

More highlights from the event...

Echo Park-based Origami Records featured crates of vinyl from Los Angeles-based bands like The Brian Jonestown Massacre.

Rock Buddha Bob Gamber of Vinyl Revolution, basked in the glory of a celebration starring the audio format that he never gave up on. Other vendors on hand included Amoeba Records, Burger Records and B-Music/Finders Keepers.



The young and jumpy Salinas garage-rockers The Mystery Lights played a quick and active set under Big Sur's late afternoon sun.

Black Francis (of The Pixies) Returns to Big Sur

On Friday, August 14, the pudgy, cue-ball headed Black Francis a.k.a. Frank Black will play his second Henry Miller Library show at 3pm.
[Tickets available HERE] 

Check out Stuart Thronton's preview of his performance last summer in the Monterey County Weekly.