New Music Tuesday 2/12/13 Featuring The Stone Foxes

Posted on by Kristen

The Stone Foxes – Small Fires 

All hail The Stone Foxes, a fearsome foursome from SF whose album, Small Fires, comes out today. If you’re a fan of bluesy rock with a hint of face-melting guitar, this album is for you.  If you favor songs that simmer for a bit before coming to boil, this album is for you.  If you don’t like movin’ and groovin’ (or at least foot tappin’), then maybe you shouldn’t bother with this album as its tunes are the type that infect. The infection can be slow, but before you know it you WILL be bobbing you head and you will get odd looks from your co-workers (okay, maybe that last one is just me).

For a taste, here’s the video for the first single off Small Fires, “Everybody Knows”

More Top Picks from Recent Releases:

I’m behind on my music acquiring/listening, but that doesn’t mean you need to be…

Frightened Rabbit – Pedestrian Verse

I haven’t heard this album in its entirety, but I love this band so I’m sure it will be a must-have for my collection.

The Shadowboxers– Red Room

I recently discovered this Atlanta-based band, but I liked them so much their track “Sidewalk” made it on my 2012 Mix B-Sides. A couple weeks ago, they released an album, Red Room. I still need to dig into the album, but it’s near the top of my queue.

Other recent releases to look into:

~ Kristen

Amanda’s SD Concert Calendar 3/4-3/10

Posted on by Amanda

This somewhat delayed calendar post is due to the fact that I’ve been out late the past two nights in a row. In fact, I just got home. What was I doing? Ok, I’ll tell you… I’ve been at Disneyland and California Adventure. Yesterday was spent hanging with a friend from AZ I hadn’t seen in awhile and wouldn’t see for awhile. Tonight, was all about Mad T Party for me. Either way, I’m a little sore from all the walking and dancing. This week doesn’t promise to slow down starting with Free Energy Monday at Soda Bar and ending with The Silent Comedy on Sunday. After that, we will be off to SXSW!
 

Monday: Free Energy, Barbarian @ Soda Bar at 830
AND: Marcus Foster, Ruston Kelly, Josh Damigo @ Casbah at 9pm

Tuesday: Gold Fields, A Silent Film, Royal Teeth @ Casbah at 9pm
AND: North Beach, Trouble in The Wind, Mrs. Henry @ Belly Up at 8pm

Wednesday: The Stone Foxes, Family Wagon, The Paragraphs @ Casbah at 9pm
AND: twenty one pilots, New Politics @ Irenic at 7pm

Thursday: Toad and the Wet Sprocket @ Belly Up at 8pm
AND: Hey Marseilles! @ Casbah
AND: Flogging Molly @ House of Blues at 8pm

Friday: Megan Combs @ Lestats at 830pm

Saturday: Blackout Party, Hit Dog Hollar @ Soda Bar at 830pm
AND: Deadly Birds @ Griffin at 845pm
AND: Bad Religion, Against Me! @ Soma

Sunday: The Silent Comedy, The Heavy Guilt @ Casbah at 9pm
AND: Joshua James, Noah Gundersen @ Soda Bar at 6pm

 

Keep in Mind:
March 12th- Frightened Rabbit @ Belly Up
March 12th-17th- SXSW
March 18th- Imagine Dragons, Nico Vega, and Atlas Genius @ House of Blues
March 18th- Josh Ritter @ Belly Up
March 19th- Matt Costa @ Casbah
March 19th- The Joy Formidable @ Belly Up
March 22nd- Pennywise @ House of Blues
March 26th- Mika @ Belly Up
March 28th- Sister Sparrow and The Dirty Birds @ Griffin
March 30th- The Airborne Toxic Event @ House of Blues
April 4th- Soul Asylum @ Belly Up
April 5th- Kopeckey Family Band @ Soda Bar
April 6th- William Beckett @ House of Blues Side Stage
April 11th- Ben Howard @ Belly Up
April 12th-14th- Coachella
April 16th- Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds @ Balboa Theater
April 17th- Alex Clare @ House of Blues
April 19th-21st- Coachella
April 22nd- The Gaslight Anthem @ Belly Up
April 23rd- Black Rebel Motorcycle Club @ House of Blues
April 24th- Chappo @ Soda Bar
April 26th- Transfer, Dead Feather Moon, Grand Tarantula @ Belly Up
April 26th- Alkaline Trio @ House of Blues
May 4th- Crash Kings, Chris Wilson and Planet Earth @ Griffin
May 10th/11th- Mayday Parade, You Me At Six @ Soma
May 12th- The Milk Carton Kids @ Belly Up
May 25th- Cold War Kids @ Belly Up
May 27th- Cold War Kids @ Belly Up
May 29th- !!! @ Casbah
June 1st- Imagine Dragons @ SDSU Open Air Theater
June 16th- They Might Be Giants @ Belly Up
June 21st- She and Him @ SDSU Open Air Theater
September 6th- Dave Matthews Band @ Cricket Wireless

New Music Tuesday 3/5/13 Featuring Michael Bernard Fitzgerald, Semi Precious Weapons, and k.s. Rhoads

Posted on by Kristen

There aren’t too many new releases I’m excited about today, that doesn’t mean I don’t have some new music to share!

Michael Bernard Fitzgerald – Firecracker EP

Firstly, I do love the Firecracker EP released today by Canadian Michael Bernard Fitzgerald. I saw Michael play the Hotel Cafe a month or so ago and was compelled not just by his performance, but by the songwriting showcased so well on this teaser of an EP.

you can stream the EP on Spotify here: http://open.spotify.com/album/2LByR1fHgu1GFIEfTX0nye

Here’s an acoustic take on the EP title track, “Firecracker”:

I also have a couple videos that came out most recently and hint and some excellent music to come:

Semi Precious Weapons – “Aviation High”

Semi Precious Weapons have been a bit MIA lately, but it looks like they’ve been busy gearing up for a massive re-launch, hinted at by this video for their new single, “Aviation High”. If you’re in Los Angeles tonight, the boys take the stage at the exclusive Sayers Club for their first public performance in quite a while. Don’t miss it!

k.s. Rhoads– “Orphaned”

Multi-talented Nashville-based artist, k.s. Rhoads has a new album coming out later this month aptly titled The Wilderness. Here is a cool video for his new song “Orphaned” where he explore the wilderness of Nashville in a space suit.

Listen! Learn! Love!

 

~ Kristen

SXSW ’13- Day 1

Posted on by Amanda

Today marks the unofficial beginning of the SXSW music madness. It was just a mere taster and sampling of the craziness that is to come. We arrived at 6:30pm in Austin, Texas after leaving San Diego at 10:15 this morning. The screaming child on the first flight notwithstanding, they were uneventful. We started the night at Burbon Girl to catch a band and after realizing they weren’t going on anytime soon, we bailed and headed to the Paste + Sennheiser Party. After a decent walk (I’ve done 11,113 steps today!), we arrived at an unassuming looking house to catch Moon Taxi and Free Energy. Both bands were high energy and fun. While I’ve never seen Moon Taxi before, I am definitely a fan of these Nashville natives!
Moon Taxi

 

After that awesome dance party was another dance party with Free Energy! What a way to kick off SXSW!

P1400471

 

Check out more photos from tonight in our gallery!

SXSW ’13- Day 3

Posted on by Amanda

I guess today was my day of running all over downtown Austin. Even with starting the festivities at noon at CTC Garden for the Butch Walker documentary screening of Out of Focus, it’s been a long day. Kristen is still out and about. I’m not sure how she does it but after 8.99 miles, this lady is done.
Today turned out to be more of a sampling day which I guess is why I wandered from CTC Garden at 1102 East Cesar Chavez all the way to Waterloo at 600 North Lamar and back again. Well, it didn’t happen in that exact order. The first musical act I caught was Wild Feathers at Lusture Pearl but I didn’t manage to stay too long. From there, I wandered about with Kristen until we got over to Rusty’s for the Swinghouse event. I caught some of A Silent Film and hung out for a bit. After that, I caught some of Ambassadors at Brew Exchange on my way to catch a second round of Twenty One Pilots at Waterloo Records. It was only after watching Andy Clockwise and The Chevin play that I caught some Butch Walker at the Rachel Ray Feedback House. That place was one of the highlights of my night. Nice space, good food, and great music. My night ended with a few songs of Atlas Genius at a horrible and late venue and Civil Twilight at the lovely Hanger venue.

The thing I came back with today was how much I really enjoy acts that seem to bleed music. They eat, sleep, pray, live, breathe, and bleed music. Those are the artists that I truly enjoy and I’m realizing that with the more shows I see. Call me a cynic but I want to see how passionate you are about what you do. Otherwise, why do it?

Here are some random photos from my day. Enjoy!

SXSW ’13-Day 4

Posted on by Amanda

I apologize if my last post seemed a little lackluster. I think tiredness and soreness had set in. Today was a different story however. I’m still really jazzed from the events of the day despite how much my feet are screaming at me.
We started off with lunch at the ASOS lounge where we munched on free tacos and indulged in some free music thanks to RedTouch Media. From there we went to see Third Eye Blind at Hangar Lounge however, they were half an hour late and the sound was so loud that even with ear plugs, my ears hurt. We decided to leave right then and there but not before scoring some free Sony headphones. A quick dash to Filter on Cedar Street for our wristbands and some stuff, including a slap band with a usb drive! We got back to the ASOS lounge in time to catch some K. Flay and another taco but our bags of swag were weighing us down and we needed to drop our stuff at the hotel.

I was determined to catch some Airborne Toxic Event since I had never seen them and with Fitz and The Tantrums playing after, I knew I found a place to hang. After catching a bit of Airborne Toxic Event, I went to meet with my other half at Empire Automotive but they were running so far behind that I went back to make sure I made it in for Fitz and the Tantrums. This was an epic show at Old School Bar and Grill presented by StubHub and I was so glad to be there. I even got a set list!

IMG_2711

From there was a quick dash across the street to catch the tail end of Free Energy at Peckerheads. We hiked over to Rachel Ray’s Feedback House for dinner but dinner never seemed to come. The gang split up and I took the chance to get a quick rest at the hotel before coming out to dance with Semi Precious Weapons at The Main. All of the SXSW High Voltage crew was there dancing and singing along with the band at the top of our lungs. We all had smiles by the time Semi Precious Weapons ended, which was far too soon.

IMG_2703

I decided to make a go for The Roxy Showcase at Empire Automotive to see Dead Sara. However, Capital Cities went way late and despite the line outside, I managed to make it in and up front. Dead Sara blew the house down, as is their usual style. However, by the time my feet were screaming at me and I had to call it a night. But it ended on such a great note, I, couldn’t be happier!

Check out more photos below.

 

~ Amanda

addendum: I just wanted to mention the amazing time I had at The Blackberry House. It was the best sound I’ve heard all week plus I got to see two of my favorites, Keaton Simons and Leogun back to back. Add in the comfy chairs, accessible outlets, and ice pops and we have the makings of a highly enjoyable afternoon.

P1410267P1410255

~ Kristen

Amanda’s SD Concert Calendar 4/8-4/14

Posted on by Amanda

What a gloomy Monday it is in San Diego today. At least it waited until after my weekend of fun. “April showers bring May flowers” as they say, although it’s not really raining here. It’s just gloomy and drizzly which makes me want to nap. Thankfully I have a ticket for the acoustic Silent Comedy show tonight which will kick the gloom and get me out of the house. As for the rest of the week…
 

Monday: The Silent Comedy Acoustic Show @ El Dorado at 9pm
AND: Secondhand Serenade, Juliet Simms, Veronica Ballestrini, Belmont Lights @ Soda Bar at 8pm
AND: Neighbors to the North @ Casbah at 9pm

Tuesday: Lillian LeFranc @ Ruby Room at 9pm
AND: The New Kinetics @ Griffin at 8:30pm

Wednesday: Kip Moore, The Wild Feathers, Courtney Cole @ House of Blues at 8pm
AND: Barbarian, The Lonely Wild, Warships @ Griffin at 8:30pm

Thursday: One I Red, The Tilt @ Casbah at 9pm
AND: Ben Howard @ Belly Up at 9pm

Friday: The Material @ Soda Bar
AND: Mister Loveless, The Dead Ships, The Steelwells, The Stupid Daikini @ Griffin at 8:30pm
AND: The Expendables @ House of Blues at 7pm
AND: Lexington Field @ Tin Can Alehouse at 9:30pm
AND: The Darrows @ The Whistlestop at 8:30pm
AND: Jason Manns @ Lestats at 8:30pm
AND: Coachella

Saturday: The Beautiful View @ Soda Bar at 8:30pm
AND: Coachella

Sunday: Lucero and Langhorne Slim @ Belly Up at 9pm
AND: Gayle Skidmore @ Lestats at 8:30pm
AND: Coachella

 

Keep in Mind:
April 15th- The Neighbourhood @ Porter’s Pub
April 15th- Franz Ferdinand @ Humphrey’s By The Bay
April 16th- Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds @ Balboa Theater
April 16th- Alt- J @ Belly Up
April 17th- Alex Clare @ House of Blues
April 19th-21st- Coachella
April 22nd- The Gaslight Anthem @ Belly Up
April 23rd- Black Rebel Motorcycle Club @ House of Blues
April 24th- Chappo @ Soda Bar
April 26th- Transfer, Dead Feather Moon, Grand Tarantula @ Belly Up
April 26th- Alkaline Trio @ House of Blues
May 1st- The Killers @ Honda Center
May 4th- Crash Kings, Chris Wilson and Planet Earth @ Griffin
May 10th/11th- Mayday Parade, You Me At Six @ Soma
May 12th- The Milk Carton Kids @ Belly Up
May 17th- X-Fest feat: 30 Seconds to Mars, Jimmy Eat World, Silversun Pickups, Fitz and the Tantrums, Atlas Genius, Capital Cities, New Politics
May 22nd- Bloc Party @ House of Blues
May 25th- Cold War Kids @ Belly Up
May 27th- Cold War Kids @ Belly Up
May 29th- !!! @ Casbah
June 1st- Imagine Dragons @ SDSU Open Air Theater
June 3rd- Mumford and Sons @ Sleep Train Amphitheater
June 16th- They Might Be Giants @ Belly Up
June 21st- She and Him @ SDSU Open Air Theater
September 6th- Dave Matthews Band @ Cricket Wireless
September 22nd- Depeche Mode @ Sleep Train Amiptheatre
September 22nd- Fall Out Boy @ Valley View Casino Center