Featured – Showbams

BeachLife Festival calls on Duran Duran, The Offspring, James Taylor, The Chainsmokers, Slightly Stoopid & more in 2026 for seventh act

January 16, 2026 by Josh Herwitt Leave a Comment

BeachLife Festival //
Seaside Lagoon – Redondo Beach, CA
May 1st-3rd, 2026 //

Over the past six years, BeachLife Festival has become an annual tradition for the South Bay region in Los Angeles County that pioneered the surf/skate punk scene more than four decades ago.

The three-day music festival just steps from the Pacific Ocean has focused its attention primarily on rock ‘n’ roll but also showcases other genre-bending acts that cross over into the realm of punk, funk, reggae, soul, country and folk. A year ago, it was Lenny Kravitz, Sublime and Alanis Morissette who received top billing for 2025 after a chaotic finish put a damper on the previous edition (read our festival review here).

For its seventh installment however, BeachLife has upped the number of headliners in 2026 to five with Duran Duran, The Offspring, James Taylor & His All-Star Band, The Chainsmokers and Slightly Stoopid headed to Redondo Beach in less than four months. While that’s partly due to there being co-headliners on Friday and Saturday, there will be only one with such status on Sunday and that would be Taylor.

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Seaside Lagoon will serve as home to many more can’t-miss performances this May with an undercard that has lined up Grouplove, flipturn, Ben Harper & the Innocent Criminals, Joan Jett & the Blackhearts, My Morning Jacket, Sheryl Crow, Fitz and the Tantrums, BØRNS, Jeremy Buck, Sugar Ray, Switchfoot, Bad Suns, Fortunate Youth, Peach Pit, Poolside and Buena Vista Orchestra to name a few. Make sure to check out the poster above for the full list of scheduled performers.

Along with the music, BeachLife continues to curate a multifaceted event that sees art installations, onsite activations, giveaways, boutique shopping and games as all part of the fun. The full-service California Surf Club, meanwhile, can certainly elevate your entire experience with gourmet cuisine, handcrafted cocktails and a fine-dining atmosphere if that’s what you’re after, too.

Tickets are already on sale here, but maybe more noteworthy is the fact that most of the prices didn’t jump from last year. Three-day passes have been listed again at $409 (GA) or $524 (GA+), and VIP is available for $999. Single-day tickets are set at $169 (GA), $204 (GA+) and $399-425 (VIP). If you got the cash and are looking to splurge, the Captain’s Plus pass of course provides exclusive non-member access to a more intimate setting and the opportunity to dine at the VIP restaurant onsite. So … who’s ready to hit the beach for Beachlife 2026?!?!

Filed Under: Featured, Festivals Tagged With: Bad Suns, BØRNS, BeachLife Festival, BeachLife Festival 2026, Ben Harper & the Innocent Criminals, Buena Vista Orchestra, Chris Pierce, Daniel Bonte, Dogpark, Duran Duran, Easy Honey, Fitz and the Tantrums, Flipturn, Fortunate Youth, GROUPLOVE, Hendrix Frankenreiter, James Taylor, James Taylor & His All-Star Band, James Taylor and His All-Star Band, Jason DeVore, Jen Pop, Jeremy Buck, Jim Lindberg, Joan Jett & The Blackhearts, Landon McNamara, Makua, Mike Watt, My Morning Jacket, PawnShop Kings, Peach Pit, Pennywise, Poolside, Righteous Waves, Sheryl Crow, Slightly Stoopid, Sugar Ray, Surfer Girl, Switchfoot, Taft Buckley, The Bombpops, The Chainsmokers, The Chainsmokers Grouplove, The Offspring, The Only Bay Allstars, The Schizophonics, The Spinouts, Triple Bueno, Water Tower, Willowake, Winyah

BottleRock uncorks 2026 lineup with Foo Fighters, Backstreet Boys, Lorde, Teddy Swims, LCD Soundsystem & SOMBR atop for 13th year

January 13, 2026 by Josh Herwitt Leave a Comment

BottleRock Napa Valley //
Napa Valley Expo – Napa, CA
May 22nd-24th, 2026 //

Another new year is here, and while the temperatures outside might not feel like it’s already time to begin making plans for the forthcoming festival season, this has traditionally been when lineups are revealed ahead of the calendar’s warmer months.

Two of California’s longest-standing music festivals in Coachella and Lightning in a Bottle both moved up their announcements well before January, leaving BottleRock to be the first in 2026 to tell us which acts will be performing when the three-day event returns to Napa Valley over Memorial Day weekend.

Foo Fighters, Backstreet Boys, Lorde, Teddy Swims, LCD Soundsystem, SOMBR, Lil Wayne and Zedd are among this year’s main attractions for the fest’s 13th edition after Green Day, Justin Timberlake and Noah Kahan were enlisted as headliners in 2025.

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Of course, there’s a lot more to point out below the top line and some of the biggest names leading the undercard include Ludacris, Papa Roach, Mt. Joy, Slightly Stoopid, Rilo Kiley, AJR and Busta Rhymes.

If that’s not enough star power to convince you to get out there, BigXthaPlug, Jon Bellion, Chaka Khan, Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, Bush, Tash Sultana, Kool & The Gang, flipturn, Del Water Gap, BØRNS, Maoli, Men at Work, Matt Maeson, Natasha Bedingfield, Tom Morello, Rev Run (of Run DMC) and Cut Copy have also been booked with even more artists and bands listed on the poster above.

Tickets can be purchased here starting this Wednesday, January 14th at 10 a.m. PT with three-day GA passes selling for $475 while VIP, Skydeck and Platinum options have already sold out. There will also be single-day GA available, but they won’t be around for long so grab ’em as soon as you can!

UPDATE (January 16th): If you’re still catching up on this week’s news, it only took a couple more days for BottleRock to share its daily lineups. Lorde, Teddy Swims and Lil Wayne will kick things off on Friday, while Saturday boasts a trio of heavy hitters in Foo Fighters, LCD Soundsystem and Zedd. But plenty of folks are likely to stick around to catch Backstreet Boys, SOMBR and Ludacris on Sunday, too.

Single-day tickets are currently on sale here with GA priced at $252 and VIP already sold out. Three-day GA passes are still available, though we wouldn’t wait too much longer to grab yours!

Filed Under: Featured, Festivals Tagged With: Absolutely, AJR, Alec Shaw, Almost Monday, Arrested Development, Backstreet Boys, BØRNS, Better Than Ezra, Bettina Maureenji, Betty Taylor, BigXthaPlug, BottleRock, BottleRock 2026, BottleRock Napa, BottleRock Napa 2026, BottleRock Napa Valley, BottleRock Napa Valley 2026, Buffalo Traffic Jam, Bush, Busta Rhymes, Chaka Khan, Charlotte Lawrence, Chevy Metal, Cut Copy, Del Water Gap, DJ Pauly D (Silent Disco), DJ Umami, Flipturn, Folk Bitch Trio, Foo Fighters, Girl Tones, Good Neighbours, Hannah Cohen, Indy, Izzy Escobar, Jake Zimma, Jess King (Silent Disco), Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, Jon Bellion, Khatumu, Kool & The Gang, Larkin Poe, LCD Soundsystem, Lil Wayne, Lorde, Ludacris, Malick Koly, Maoli, Matt Maeson, Melt, Men at Work, Meredith Marks (Silent Disco), Midnight Generation, Moonalice, Mt. Joy, Napa Valley Youth Symphony, Nat Myers, Natasha Bedingfield, Naughty By Nature, New Constellations, Nilüfer Yanya, Paco Versailles, Papa Roach, Paris Jackson, Penelope Road, Rev Run (of Run DMC), Rilo Kiley, Run DMC, Saxsquatch, Slightly Stoopid, SOMBR, Sons of the East, Tash Sultana, Teddy Swims, The Alive, The Beths, The California Honeydrops, The Chin Chins, The Heavy Heavy, The Paper Kites, The Paradox, The Return of Jackie and Judy, The Rookie5, The Silverado Pickups, The Warning, Tom Morello, Treach, Zedd, Zinadelphia

The Bam Team’s 5 Favorite Shows, Albums & Songs of 2025

December 30, 2025 by The Bam Team Leave a Comment

Well, here we are again with another year in the books. Music, for one, certainly had its ups and downs throughout 2025. There was Kendrick Lamar’s iconic Super Bowl halftime show, the long-awaited return of Britpop legends Oasis and of course the death of Ozzy Osbourne two weeks after performing for the final time that sent shockwaves across the world. Along with those moments, we witnessed quite a few of our own. Whether it was taking in the closest thing to a Rage Against the Machine show you can see these days, The Prodigy tearing down the house for their first North American headline date since 2017, an evening with Primus that was chock full of surprises, My Morning Jacket’s epic return to Red Rocks, one of the summer’s best co-headline tours with The Flaming Lips and Modest Mouse both sharing the stage and Lord Huron’s ascent to newly minted arena act, there was plenty to celebrate and remember over the last 12 months.

But with another year down and 2026 right around the corner, it’s time for us to reveal our annual “Best of” lists as we have done since this blog started more than a decade ago (see our 2024 picks here). As we always say, we will be the first to confess we didn’t attend every show or spin every album that was issued in 2025, but reflecting on the year that was remains just as fun and challenging as when we first started doing this yearly exercise.

So, without further ado, Showbams presents The Bam Team’s five favorite shows, albums and songs from 2025.

Listen to The Bam Team’s favorite songs of 2025:

Josh Herwitt // Los Angeles

Top 5 Shows of 2025
1. Nine Inch Nails at Kia Forum – Los Angeles, CA – September 18th-19th
When these Hall of Famers announced their “Peel It Back Tour” almost a year ago, we had a pretty good feeling that new music would be on the way. What we didn’t know is that it would for the new “Tron” movie that arrived in the fall. And while permanent members Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross showcased only the soundtrack’s lone single on this run, it was the production featuring a two-stage setup and reimagining of older songs — particularly on the “B Stage” with Boys Noize as Nine Inch Noize — in addition to the unexpected return of former touring drummer Josh Freese that had me thinking about these final two shows of the tour for weeks. That’s what live music can do when an unforgettable performance sticks with you, which was even more remarkable considering Reznor entered his seventh decade just earlier this year.

2. My Morning Jacket at Red Rocks Amphitheatre – Morrison, CO – August 15th-16th
3. Queens of the Stone Age at Arlington Theatre – Santa Barbara, CA – November 8th
4. Jack White at Hollywood Palladium – Los Angeles, CA – May 12th-13th
5. Primus at Greek Theatre – Los Angeles, CA – August 6th

Honorable Mention: The Prodigy at The Warfield – San Francisco, CA – April 13th

Top 5 Albums of 2025
1. Geese – Getting Killed
Let me just say first and foremost that this was not my favorite year for albums. That said, there were several that stuck out and the fourth full length from these NYC indie rockers stood squarely at the top. From the sonic chaos that greets us during “Trinidad” and the groovy, Sly Stoned-flavored “100 Horses” (which is apropos given his death in June) to lead single “Taxes” that’s one of its best and the frenetic finale “Long Island City Here I Come”, the variety of sounds being explored on Getting Killed is almost unparalleled. Geese shouldn’t be considered new kids on the block at this point, but there’s a legitimate reason why they were one of the year’s hottest bands and I am still kicking myself for missing their sold-out show at The Fonda Theatre in late October (resale tickets were going for as much as $800 and that was while the Dodgers were in the World Series no less). Well, fingers crossed for my first one in 2026.

2. Clipse – Let God Sort Em Out
3. The Mars Volta – Lucro Sucio; Los Ojos del Vacio
4. Lord Huron – The Cosmic Selector Vol. 1
5. Ty Segall – Possession

Honorable Mention: Lady Gaga – Mayhem

Top 5 Songs of 2025
1. Nine Inch Nails – “As Alive as You Need Me to Be”
I have no problem admitting that I am a sucker for any new NIN music. As one of my favorite bands all time, the industrial rockers had not released a proper album in more than a decade and we’re not sure if the “Tron: Ares” soundtrack technically counts in our book either. But we love it when Reznor leans into the electronic side of the project, and “As Alive as You Need Me to Be” with additional production from Boys Noize scratches that itch for us. While numbers don’t always tell the full story, the fact that it was our top played song on Spotify does mean something when you look back on all of the music we got to consume in 2025. Better yet, Trent and Atticus still making music of this caliber speaks volumes to their craft and talent as true professionals.

2. Clipse – “Chains & Whips” feat. Kendrick Lamar
3. My Morning Jacket – “Beginning from the Ending”
4. DARKSIDE – “One Last Nothing”
5. Lord Huron – “Bag of Bones”

Favorite Soundtrack of 2025: Nine Inch Nails – Tron: Ares

Andrew Pohl // San Francisco

Top 5 Shows of 2025
1. Home Front at Thee Parkside – San Francisco, CA – November 21st
Having caught Home Front last year in SF at Bottom of the Hill I know going into this concert that Home Front was going to absolutely crush it, but man oh man did they completely outdo themselves. Opening act False Flowers warmed up the crowd in spectacular fashion, and The Government did an excellent job as main support. The overly packed room was VERY ready to receive what Home Front was about to give them, and the band destroyed the place inside and out. Sonically crisp and very tight, the band has built a reputation of being a superb live act and it fully lived up to that at this show, playing much of the material from their new album Watch It Die along with material from their previous efforts and a Cock Sparrer cover to end the set.

2. Pile at Rickshaw Stop – San Francisco, CA – September 10th
3. Pixies with Blonde Redhead, Spoon at Greek Theatre Berkeley – Berkeley, CA – August 28th
4. Deep Sea Diver with Byland at The Independent – San Francisco, CA – April 8th
5. Dance Hall Crashers at Great American Music Hall – San Francisco, CA – June 7th

Top 5 Albums of 2025
1. Deftones – private music
For a band that has produced as much quality output as Deftones has over the years, it’s nice to see them outdo themselves like they did on this album. I wouldn’t qualify it as a “return to form” since it has much of the sonic familiarity throughout the rest of their catalog, but the songs themselves are just really strong and stick to your bones more than most of their other recent material. They sound like a unit that came into recording this with confidence and intention. The material also feels like it would translate well live, and based on how footage of their concerts this year looked, I stand correct. This is the album that I kept coming back to over and over again in 2025, which didn’t surprise me given my love for these guys.

2. Momma – Welcome to My Blue Sky
3. Home Front – Watch It Die
4. Deep Sea Diver – Billboard Heart
5. Viagra Boys – Viagr Aboys

Top 5 Songs of 2025
1. Viagra Boys – “Man Made of Meat”
This is such a perfect way to open Viagra Boys’ new album. Right off the bat you get that level of sass and weirdness that we have come accustomed to from the Swedish post-punk band. From the perfectly timed belch in the opening verse to the breakdown where frontman Sebastian Murphy brings up the idea of subscribing “to your mom’s Only Fans,” the song is a buffet of ridiculousness. The chorus is catchy as all get out, and the song as a whole is that perfect mix of accessible and clever. What a fun way for them to get things started.

2. Deftones – “Locked Club”
3. Preoccupations – “Ill at Ease”
4. Home Front – “Light Sleeper”
5. Momma – “New Friend”

Rochelle Shipman // Los Angeles

Top 5 Shows of 2025
1. Kendrick Lamar and SZA at SoFi Stadium – Inglewood, CA – May 24th
It’s hard to imagine anything other than a killer Kendrick show after the run he’s had this past year, but the Grand National Tour went above and beyond and around again. It was one set with songs from both artists’ catalogs being seamlessly interwoven before they came back onstage to perform a few of their hits together. Kendrick was riding his deserved high, while SZA was angelic (literally suspended above the crowd wearing wings) and somehow made it feel like we were watching two Beyoncés. The power and craft on that stage was something so special to witness.

2. Little Simz at Fox Theatre Oakland – Oakland, CA – November 17th
3. Clipse at The Novo – Los Angeles, CA – August 23rd
4. Bright Eyes at The Wiltern – Los Angeles, CA – February 7th
5. Doechii at Gallagher Square (Petco Park) – San Diego, CA – November 5th

Honorable Mention: NxWorries at Hollywood Palladium – Los Angeles, CA – October 19th

Top 5 Albums of 2025
1. Clipse – Let God Sort Em Out
After a false start with Def Jam that resulted in a seven-figure buyout, Clipse finally found a home at Roc Nation for their newest album in 15 years over the summer — and now it’s hard to imagine it happening any other way. The brothers Thornton reunited to educate the kids on what a proper album rollout used to entail, the whole time sharing their experiences and emotions surrounding their parents’ deaths to a degree most men would never dream of doing. The beats and bars hit so hard all the way through they even make some of Pharrell’s cringeworthy moments sound catchy. There’s no question Mom and Dad are proud of them after laying down this masterpiece.

2. Little Simz – Lotus
3. Backxwash – Only Dust Remains
4. Landlady – Make Up / Lost Time
5. Panda Bear – Sinister Grift

Top 5 Songs of 2025
1. Little Simz – “Thief”
Opening her sixth studio album with an intro track that’s as intense as it is eloquent, the London rapper continues to prove she’s not the one to fuck with. Marking the first of a few songs on Lotus that artfully skewers her former musical counterpart Inflo of Sault, “Thief” leaves Simz’s broken heart totally bare against a compelling musical backdrop. It’s never fun to watch close friends have a falling out, but we would be damned if Little Simz didn’t make it sound so good.

2. Clipse – “The Birds Don’t Sing”
3. AJ Tracey feat. Jorja Smith – “Crush”
4. Casey Dienel (fka White Hinterland) – “Your Girl’s Upstairs”
5. Doechii – “Nosebleeds”

Michael Silver // Orange County

Top 5 Shows of 2025
1. Jack White at The Grove of Anaheim – Anaheim, CA – January 25th
The millennial guitar GOAT went on a generational run in 2025. A master of gorilla marketing and last-minute ticket announcements, White commenced his “No Name” tour with an intimate OC performance. The Internet gods were kind to me as I scored front-row access to see the Detroit native blitzed through a 21-song set spanning White Stripes cult favorites (“The Hardest Button to Button”) to The Raconteurs’ gems (“Broken Boy Soldier”) all while mixing in new joints (“Old Scratch Blues” followed by “That’s How I’m Feeling”). Between playing music halls and theaters as well as NFL stadiums with Eminem in front of a national TV audience on Thanksgiving, the virtuoso and ambassador for all things vinyl was officially inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame as a member of The White Stripes this year and has carved out his own lane in rock history.

2. Freddie Gibbs & The Alchemist at The Observatory – Santa Ana, CA – October 27th
3. The Eagles at Sphere – Las Vegas, NV – October 10th
4. Wu-Tang Clan at Crypto.com Arena – Los Angeles, CA – June 22nd
5. The Used at House of Blues Anaheim – Anaheim, CA – October 11th

Top 5 Albums of 2025
1. Freddie Gibbs & The Alchemist – Alfredo 2
Following up on 2020’s Grammy-nominated collaboration, the Indiana rapper and California producer created a soulful, translucent vibe of hip-hop bravado. The opening guitar licks on “1995” showcase a new era of creativity by The Alchemist, while Gibbs provides a hypnotic and downright maniacal flow. “Mar-a-Lago” and “Lemon Pepper Steppers” define these sophisticated raps, with the emcee in total control painting a visual storyboard.

2. Deftones – private music
3. Turnstile – Never Enough
4. Clipse – Let God Sort Em Out
5. Joey Bada$$ – Lonely at the Top

Top 5 Songs of 2025
1. Turnstile – “Birds”
Has there ever been a more fitting rock anthem to take over the airwaves? Soaring in at 2:27 long, the Baltimore collective blasted into our collective conscience. With high-profile fans like Billie Eilish, Elton John and Hayley Williams singing their praise, it wasn’t long before mainstream radio added them into their rotations. To wrap up a wild press campaign, lead singer Brendan Yates performed the first-ever stage dive at NPR’s Tiny Desk series with “Birds” as his soundtrack.

2. Deftones – “Milk of the Madonna”
3. Diplo – “Flashlight” feat. Project Pat & Juicy J
4. GELO – “Tweaker”
5. Sublime – “Ensenada”

Favorite Soundtrack of 2025: Nine Inch Nails – Tron: Ares

Filed Under: Best of, Best of 2025, Editor's Picks, Featured Tagged With: AJ Tracey, Arlington Theatre, Backxwash, Blonde Redhead, Boys Noize, Bright Eyes, Byland, Casey Dienel, Clipse, Cock Sparrer, Crypto.com Arena, Dance Hall Crashers, Darkside, Deep Sea Diver, Deftones, Diplo, Doechii, Eminem, False Flowers, Fox Theater Oakland, Freddie Gibbs, Freddie Gibbs & The Alchemist, Gallagher Square, Gallagher Square at Petco Park, GEESE, GELO, Great American Music Hall, Greek Theatre, Greek Theatre Berkeley, Grove of Anaheim, Hollywood Palladium, Home Front, House of Blues Anaheim, Inflo, Jack White, Joey Bada$$, Jorja Smith, Juicy J, Kendrick Lamar, Kia Forum, Lady Gaga, Landlady, Little Simz, Lord Huron, Modest Mouse, Momma, My Morning Jacket, Nine Inch Nails, Nine Inch Noize, NxWorries, Oasis, Ozzy Osbourne, Panda Bear, Petco Park, Pile, Pixies, Preoccupations, Primus, Project Pat, Queens of the Stone Age, Rage Against the Machine, Red Rocks, Red Rocks Amphitheatre, Red Rocks Park & Amphitheatre, Red Rocks Park and Amphitheatre, Rickshaw Stop, Sault, Sly Stone, SoFi Stadium, Sphere, Spoon, Sublime, SZA, The Alchemist, The Arlington, The Arlington Theatre, The Eagles, The Flaming Lips, The Fonda Theatre, The Government, The Independent, The Mars Volta, The Novo, The Novo DTLA, The Observatory, The Prodigy, The Used, The Warfield, The White Stripes, The Wiltern, The Wiltern Theatre, Thee Parkside, Tom Morello, Turnstile, Ty Segall, Viagra Boys, Wu Tang Clan

The Mars Volta reaffirm at Pasadena Civic Auditorium that they aren’t resting on their laurels these days & we love them just as much for it

December 3, 2025 by Josh Herwitt Leave a Comment

By Josh Herwitt //

The Mars Volta with Kianí Medina, FELIZ Y DADA //
Pasadena Civic Auditorium – Pasadena, CA
November 26th, 2025 //

I will never forget where I was the first time I heard The Mars Volta.

The calendar read June 2003 and I had just completed my freshman year of college thousands of miles away from home. And as my hobbies transitioned from skateboarding to drumming in high school, I had become obsessed with everything that sounded like progressive rock during my formative years. Rush, Pink Floyd and Tool were prog-rock bands I studied closely with great admiration and still do now, with each inspiring me to fall deeper in love with my instrument thanks largely to their authenticity, creativity and virtuosity as musicians.

It was there in the parking lot of our local outdoor mall that my childhood friend from elementary school put on De-Loused in the Comatorium in his car, and within minutes I found myself transfixed. The music was angsty and raw, and even though I have never been a big fan of punk rock, the tone of lead singer Cedric Bixler-Zavala’s voice and vivid, yet surreal imagery that his English and Spanish lyrics painted in a Salvador Dalí sort of way — channeling the agony of losing a bandmate and friend as we would later learn — amid a chaotic frenzy of guitars, keyboards, drums and Latin percussion enticed us right away.

At this point I was not familiar with At the Drive-In or Sparta, so when people find out that TMV are one of my favorite bands all time and quickly suggest that I should listen to the latter, it’s hard to not chuckle inside my head at the suggestion. From our perspective, the difference between them has always been rather stark considering Volta were unlike anything else I had come across in my life. That was, after all, what ultimately compelled me to go out and purchase my own copy of De-Loused the next day.

To state that Bixler-Zavala has a knack for telling stories would be underselling his unique talent to paint pictures and entire scenes through his words, but what made Volta so intriguing throughout those early years and to this day is the unpredictability of it all. Beyond merely Omar Rodríguez-López’s genius and prolificity as a songwriter and guitarist, much of that started to manifest at their concerts with extended renditions of “Drunkship of Lanterns” as well as “Cicatriz ESP” most notably that stretched past the 20-minute mark and fostered a kind of experimentation I had not been exposed to before.

That is, until I drove nearly six hours on a weeknight to catch my first TMV show, which felt like one long jam. And in some ways it really was as I lost myself in the music, with a “Drunkship” opener lasting more than a half hour and marking my official introduction to their live experience. Standing in that hot, sweaty and crowded room, I could see how powerful live music can be. Not just from Bixler-Zavala’s prolonged screams, Rodríguez-López’s ethereal riffs and former drummer Jon Theodore’s thunderous chops that gave off serious vibes of Led Zeppelin, but the chemistry, musicianship and spontaneity of a legendary band all coming together onstage in front of me.

The concept album has long been a format prog-rock bands have taken a liking to, and TMV have not been shy about using it to their benefit beginning with their first two full lengths. While they didn’t totally stick to that script by the time Amputechture arrived in 2006, Rodríguez-López (guitar, direction, backing vocals synthesizers, keyboards) and Bixler-Zavala (lead vocals) have maintained following that strategy since secretly reuniting in 2019 and straying away from the usual prog-rock conventions we had become accustomed to. In fact, the result on 2022’s self-titled was like nothing we had previously heard from the group, with the intention of making a pop-influenced album — to the duo’s standards at least — defying any prior tendencies it had employed when writing and recording. Plus, it shouldn’t be surprising to hear Bixler-Zavala define pop music in an emotional interview with Zane Lowe as “anything that takes the air out of a room and makes you feel like you’re in the trailer of your own movie.” Because for as cinematic as Volta sound, it’s not uncommon for images to form in my own head upon listening to their music. “It always goes back to cinema with this band,” he adds. “I want my music to sound the way movies look.”

For that reason alone, no one should be shocked to learn that TMV’s ninth and latest studio effort Lucro Sucio; Los Ojos del Vacio, which translates to Filthy Lucre; The Eyes of the Void in English, checks the box as another concept album. Its rollout, however, was unlike anything the outfit had done in the past. Officially dropping in April after being leaked online two months earlier, it wasn’t until Volta debuted the unannounced album in its entirety while opening for Deftones on their 2025 North American headlining tour that we knew for certain there would be new music from them. After a tumultuous breakup that left Bixler-Zavala and Rodríguez-López no longer on speaking terms and an ensuing five-year hiatus, our expectations have been tempered and our hearts filled with the utmost gratitude for anything they are willing to offer us — and the transitions on Lucro Sucio make it easy to get immersed in the magic all happening at once as if an auditory spell has been cast on you.

Yet, what makes TMV so special and had me shedding tears during Lowe’s interview a few years ago with Rodríguez-López and Bixler-Zavala is the brotherhood that they share dating back to their days in El Paso, Texas, before ATDI broke ground as pioneers of the post-hardcore movement. The friendship and partnership they have built was well-documented in the 2023 film titled “Omar and Cedric: If This Ever Gets Weird” featuring Rodríguez-López’s home-video footage and addressing how Bixler-Zavala almost broke that bond after two decades with his self-help venture into Scientology, eventually leading to allegations actor and now-convicted rapist Danny Masterson had sexually assaulted his wife. It was then and there that Rodríguez-López and Bixler-Zavala went their separate ways to work on their own projects, as Rodríguez-López teamed up with Le Butcherettes lead singer/guitarist Teri Gender Bender to form Bosnian Rainbows and Bixler-Zavala focused on launching his solo career. But after 12 months the two were talking to each other again and subsequently working together in a new supergroup they called Antemasque, leaving open the prospect for a Volta reunion down the road.

With a lot of pain in their lives has come not only an immense amount of healing for TMV, but also a renewed sense of autonomy to explore creatively and honestly without any pressure from the outside. The material on Lucro Sucio and 25-date tour surrounding it has demonstrated such quite clearly given that the septet consisting of Rodríguez-López, Bixler-Zavala, Eva Gardner (bass, double bass), Marcel Rodríguez-López (percussion, synthesizers, keyboards), Leo Genovese (keyboards, piano, saxophone), Linda-Philomène Tsoungui (drums) and Gender Bender (backing vocals) as a touring member did not showcase anything except the 18-track LP. Of course, that’s not to say these performances lacked the improvisation that we crave whenever this band takes the stage.

At the historic Pasadena Civic Auditorium on Thanksgiving Eve, that aforementioned feeling of being totally consumed by the music — this time with more jazz and electronic flourishes — returned as Volta veered off the beaten path on several occasions. I was well aware that we wouldn’t be hearing the older tunes, but knowing the run time on Lucro Sucio is less than one hour, it seemed very likely these songs would not be strictly played note for note (that was what we were hoping for at least). And despite letting the album grow on me over a number of listens this year, it couldn’t prepare those of us in the building for the myriad of twists and turns the Grammy winners would uncork over the course of 90 minutes.

When we truly give artists the space to create, it can open the doors to new ideas and allow humans the opportunity to unlock another dimension of curiosity. There’s no question Bixler-Zavala recognizes how instrumental Rodriguez-Lopez has been for his artistic and personal growth as a lifelong friend: “I can’t stress how valuable my friendship is with Omar because he can write something that I can go, ‘That’s exactly the vehicle I need right now to express what it is I see happening around me,'” he explains near the end of Nicolas Jack Davies’ two-hour documentary. The soft-spoken Rodríguez-López, meanwhile, had a simple, yet poignant explanation for their sonic connection: “The music has always healed us.”

It has always been the glue that has kept them together through so many ups and downs filled with both love and loss, making them an inseparable force and one of the finest singer-songwriter combinations in rock ‘n’ roll history. No, we didn’t get to witness an epic “Cassandra Gemini” off 2005’s Frances the Mute that remains at the top of TMV’s catalog, but the journey they took us on this evening nevertheless was spiritual and transcendent.

We understand that Volta aren’t and won’t be for everyone. For us, they will be remembered as one of the most inspiring acts to ever do it and the fact that they are releasing any music in 2025 is a blessing after everything they have endured over their careers. Whether it’s a small miracle or simply kismet, we think Bixler-Zavala might have put it best in “Omar and Cedric” when he said, “I’m glad that God put us in the same place at the same time.” When you hear that and reflect on how easily none of it could have happened, you realize how lucky we are to have had them at all.

Setlist:
Lucro Sucio; Los Ojos del Vacio
Fin
Reina tormenta
Enlazan las tinieblas
Mictlán
The Iron Rose
Cue the Sun
Alba del orate
Voice in My Knives
Poseedora de mi sombra
Celaje
Vociferó
Mito de los trece cielos
Un disparo al vacío
Detrás de la puerta dorada
Maullidos
Morgana
Cue the Sun (Reprise)
Lucro sucio

Filed Under: Editor's Picks, Featured, Live Music Reviews Tagged With: Antemasque, At the Drive-In, Bosnian Rainbows, Deftones, FELIZ Y DADA, Kianí Medina, Le Butcherettes, Led Zeppelin, Pasadena Civic Auditorium, Rush, Sparta, The Mars Volta, Tool

STS9 take over The Bellwether in LA for two nights to celebrate 20 years of ‘Artifact’ & the release of their new album ‘Human Dream’

November 28, 2025 by Josh Herwitt Leave a Comment

By Josh Herwitt //

STS9 with Thought Process (Night 1), Random Rab (Night 2) //
The Bellwether – Los Angeles
November 21st-22nd, 2025 //

What do you get when you combine the sounds of rock ‘n’ roll, electronic music, funk, jazz, drum and bass, psychedelia and hip-hop all into one band?

Well, that’s the kind of music Sound Tribe Sector 9 (STS9) have been creating for almost 30 years now.

The Georgia-bred, Northern California-based quintet made up of Hunter Brown (guitars, keyboards), David Phipps (keyboards, synthesizers, programming), Zach Velmer (drums, electronic percussion, programming), Jeffree Lerner (percussion, keyboards, programming) and Alana Rocklin (bass) has garnered a loyal following in the jam scene over that span thanks to its live performances, regularly evoking more than just one adjective to accurately describe them.

Words such as “electrifying”, “dynamic,” “groovy” and “immersive” immediately come to my mind when I reflect on my previous experiences seeing STS9 that included a couple of two-night runs at Red Rocks Amphitheatre in the early 2010’s with some impressive support — from hip-hop legend Snoop Dogg to more electronic-focused acts like Thievery Corporation, Ghostland Observatory and Big Gigantic. There were a number of subsequent visits to The Wiltern too, which had become a favorite venue in LA for the outfit to book when it came through my hometown.

But considering it had been a while since the last time I saw STS9 onstage and plenty has changed for the five-piece, I couldn’t have asked for a better opportunity to reacquaint myself after a long layoff with two shows at The Bellwether and the first falling on the same day that its new LP Human Dream would be released.

There was actually even more of a reason to celebrate STS9’s return to the City of Angels in more than six years — before the COVID-19 pandemic rocked the world, completely upending the entertainment and music industries — with 2025 marking the 20th anniversary of their seminal album Artifact, which reached as high as No. 12 on the Billboard chart for Top Electronic Albums.

Opening only more than two years ago as one of LA’s newest music venues, The Bellwether has quickly become a welcome addition in one of the world’s biggest entertainment capitals that has no shortage of options when it comes to hosting and presenting live music. We have witnessed several concerts across a variety of genres — from heavy metal and alternative rock to New Orleans funk and now livetronica — inside the multi-level, 1,600-capacity room (read our venue review here) that Prince purchased back in the 90’s to serve as his purple-shaded Grand Slam palace and can say assertively Michael Swier and Gregg Perloff have already turned the 45,000-square-foot property into one of the city’s best for its size.

Along those lines, what made this latest LA stand a little extra special in addition to the aforementioned was the grand opening of The Bellwether’s brand-new space Camille’s on Saturday for those who were looking to keep the party going past midnight with more dancing after STS9 had played their final notes for the weekend and left us awestruck by their perpetual laser light show.

Tribe fans in attendance, which included some who traveled from out of town, certainly seemed pleased with what unfolded as the group mixed and matched offerings primarily from Artifact and Human Dream, with the former bookending Friday’s gig that also boasted the live debut of the latter LP’s “Reminisce” by the first set’s midway point. Saturday’s setlist, meanwhile, followed a similar pattern as STS9 alternated between tracks from both albums prior to unleashing live standout “Muir Soul” and an apropos cover of the “Beverly Hills Cop” theme song that had the crowd hooting and hollering as soon as its iconic synth melody kicked in.

STS9’s touring schedule over the past 12 months hasn’t been nearly as rigorous as it used to be, yet with three more dates lined up at Chicago’s Ramova Theatre to ring in the new year and many more slated for 2026, the future remains bright for one of the hardest-working instrumental bands out there.

NOVEMBER 21ST

Setlist:
Set 1
Musical Story, Yes (>)
Strange Games (>)
Somesing
Portal to the Starry Path (>)
Reminisce (live debut) (>)
Real & Imagined
Like I Do (>)
Vibyl
Presence of Light

Set 2
Forest Hu (>)
Never, Never
ReEmergence
Lift You Up (>)
Balancing (>)
It’s Alright (>)
Life’s a Symphony in Unity
It’s Alright
Year Infinity

Encore:
Music, Us

NOVEMBER 22ND

Setlist:
Set 1
Menacer (>)
Peoples (>)
GLASS-Z13 (>)
Peoples
Peachtree
Muir Soul
Dusk
Better Day (second half housey remix)

Set 2
By the Morning Sun
Walk the Sky
Native End (>)
Tokyo
Beverly Hills Cop (Axel F cover)
Big Basin
Shaky Ground
GLOgli

Encore:
Today

Filed Under: Editor's Picks, Featured, Photos Tagged With: Axel F, Big Gigantic, Ghostland Observatory, Ramova Theatre, Random Rab, Red Rocks, Red Rocks Amphitheatre, Red Rocks Park & Amphitheatre, Red Rocks Park and Amphitheatre, Snoop Dogg, Sound Tribe Sector 9 (STS9), STS9, The Bellwether, Thievery Corporation, Thought Process

Grammy winners Portugal. The Man deliver their love letter to Alaska at The Wiltern with Electric Guest, Hanni El Khatib as special guests

November 24, 2025 by The Bam Team Leave a Comment

By Melissa Herwitt //

Portugal. The Man with Ya Tseen //
The Wiltern – Los Angeles
November 16th, 2025 //

Launching a 20-date North American tour to coincide with the release of their 10th studio album Shish this fall, Grammy-winning indie rockers Portugal. The Man made sure their message of embracing your local community and the artists who shape it was heard loud and clear when they came through LA to headline The Wiltern for the first time in 12 years.

Divided into acts, the group’s performance featured most of Shish during Act I prior to beginning Act II with fan favorites from 2011’s In the Mountain in the Cloud, 2013’s Evil Friends and 2017’s Woodstock. The show’s final stretch saw PTM return after a brief break to play the closing tracks off Shish for Act III and end the evening on a high with the LP’s gritty finale “Father Gun” that had Swiss Army knife Hanni El Khatib on guitar and vocalist David Marion joining them.

The “Denali” tour, which PTM have used to perform Shish in full, is frontman John Gourley’s love letter to his home state of Alaska. Inside the historic Art Deco theater, Gourley’s vocals harmonized beautifully with his wife Zoe Manville’s while visuals inspired by Alaska’s wilderness and rebellious spirit as well as Gourley’s own illustrations flashed on the large screen behind the band. The production also spotlighted other Indigenous musicians as part of the “Pass The Mic” initiative from opener Ya Tseen to hip-hop act Xiuhtezcatl, who dropped bars at the end of “Live in the Moment / Once Was One” to close Act II.

Asa Taccone of Electric Guest

Other highlights included a surprise guest (no pun intended) appearance by Asa Taccone of Electric Guest, first for PTM’s hit single “Feel It Still” that he co-produced with Gourley and then to deliver his own in the form of Electric Guest’s “This Head I Hold”. A new tune titled “Dive into the Ocean” got its moment too, providing singer-songwriter Zeeba with a chance past the midway point to show off his Brazilian-American pipes alongside Gourley and Manville.

There were subtle video tributes honoring those who are no longer with us, including the late PTM hype man Chris Black during “So Young” (despite no material from 2023’s Chris Black Changed My Life being explored) and actor/comedian Norm Macdonald, whose face served as the artwork for timekeeper Kane Ritchotte’s bass drum. But a poignant rendition of “Tanana”, which offers a sobering take on the “murder in the news” from 2014 that left two Alaska State Troopers killed, we heard in Act III underscored the real reason for the song’s chart-rising success.

Although the “Denali” tour marked PTM’s first without the original Lords of Portland crew we had come to love as longtime fans, a mostly female cast of sidekicks and Marion’s often humorous, yet animated presence brought a dose of fresh energy to the stage. It’s clear their collective activism has led them to create and sustain important causes like the Frances Changed My Life fund for not only their daughter who has been diagnosed with an extremely rare genetic disease, but also others across the community, proving that even as the husband-and-wife project with only two permanent members now continues to grow and evolve, its heart and core intentions remain firmly intact more than two decades after forming.

Setlist:
Act 1
Denali
Pittman Ralliers (with David Marion)
Angoon
Knik
Shish
Mush
Tyonek
Kokhanockers

Act 2
Got It All (This Can’t Be Living Now)
Senseless
Number One
Noise Pollution
So Young
Purple Yellow Red and Blue
Glide (NEIKED cover)
Dive into the Ocean (with Zeeba) (new song)
Creep in a T-Shirt
Modern Jesus
Feel It Still (with Asa Taccone)
This Head I Hold (Electric Guest cover) (with Asa Taccone)
Live in the Moment / Once Was One (with Xiuhtezcatl Tonatiuh)

Act 3
Created
Tanana
Father Gun (with David Marion & Hanni El Khatib)

Portugal. The Man with Xiuhtezcatl Tonatiuh

Filed Under: Editor's Picks, Featured, Photos Tagged With: Asa Taccone, Chris Black, David Marion, Electric Guest, Frances Changed My Life, Hanni El Khatib, Norm Macdonald, Pass The Mic, Portugal. The Man, The Wiltern, The Wiltern Theatre, Xiuhtezcatl Tonatiuh, Ya Tseen, Zeeba

Lightning in a Bottle devises an even earlier lineup release for 2026 as Empire of the Sun, Mau P, Sara Landry & Zeds Dead top the bill

November 11, 2025 by Josh Herwitt 1 Comment

Lightning in a Bottle //
Buena Vista Aquatic Recreation Area – Bakersfield, CA
May 20th-24th, 2026 //

Truth be told, even after almost two months we must admit the shock from seeing the iconic Coachella poster come out in September hasn’t quite worn off yet.

Just a year removed from the famed three-day, two-weekend festival pushing up its big announcement before the holidays, Goldenvoice was suddenly getting even further ahead of schedule for Coachella’s 25th anniversary this April with its earliest lineup drop yet.

Lightning in a Bottle, much in the same way, has employed an analogous rollout strategy since last year when it followed suit in early December with a 2025 roster that had John Summit, Khruangbin, Jamie xx and Four Tet sitting atop the bill.

And although LIB might not have moved up its 2026 lineup reveal more than two months like Coachella did, the “transformational” event organized by the Do LaB has shared its plans three weeks earlier than a year ago and that’s something to applaud given the country’s current economic conditions. If anything, providing fans more notice should only help drive revenue and allow them some additional time to meet the inflated ticket prices that have tainted the entire live music industry in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent supply chain issues.

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Getting the nod to lead the 23rd edition of North America’s original boutique festival will be Empire of the Sun, Mau P, Sara Landry, Zeds Dead, Chase & Status, Mochakk, Barry Can’t Swim and Tinashe. Below the top line, the undercard carries its own weight with names like Of The Trees, Dimension, Overmono, Daily Bread, ALLEYCVT, INZO, Lee Burridge, Maceo Plex, Hot Since 82, AYYB, Nia Archives, DJ Trixie Mattel and jigitz coming to Buena Vista Aquatic Recreation Area during Memorial Day weekend. There’s also Grammy-nominated DJ/producer Jayda G as well as the crews from Desert Hearts, A Club Called Rhonda, Respect DnB, Baile World and FMLY BZNS that can’t be ignored either, so peek at the poster above for the rest of the artists scheduled to perform.

Those familiar with LIB’s mission to promote the ideals of sustainability, social cohesion, personal health and creative expression through art, yoga, workshops and speakers will understand that the fest “thrives on the beautiful chaos of participation and childlike wonder” that’s described in its press release. It’s fair to point out, along those lines, that no algorithm can single-handedly build what the Do LaB creates year in and year out. Their stages and structures, which have served as a vehicle for big crowds and sounds, have always pushed the envelope when it comes to bringing like-minded people together into the same space, and the level of creativity the event design and production company has exhibited over the past two decades has only continued to grow from its innovative and popular Do LaB Stage at Coachella to the latest iteration of LIB merely six weeks later.

As we always say though, those who are suffering from a bad case of the post-Coachella blues might find comfort in packing their bags and heading out to Kern County. Make sure, of course, that you are not adverse to nature’s elements because camping is part of the fun when you attend LIB.

If you are ready to commit now, GA passes to LIB 2026 can be purchased here for $399 (three-day) and $449 (five-day) with VIP tickets going for $599 (three-day) and $699 (five-day) — VIP+ jumps up to $749 (three-day) and $849 (five-day) — beginning this Friday, November 14th at 11 a.m. PT. Car camping and RV passes, group campsites, bed tents, family camp passes and hotel packages are available too once again, but you will need to register here first to guarantee Tier 2 pricing all day and an opportunity to win a VIP upgrade. Fingers crossed!

Filed Under: Featured, Festivals Tagged With: 1-800 GIRLS, ALLEYCVT, Amira, Avalon Emerson, AYYBO, Barry Can't Swim, Bass Temple, Bianca Maieli, Bigger Than Us, borne, Brunello, Cartridge, Casey Club, Chase & Status, Clearcast, Cocoa Crescendo, Conducta, Daily Bread, Desert Hearts (Mikey Lion, Dimension, DJ Heartstring, DJ Trixie Mattel, Donna Dada, Effy, Elephant Heart, Empire of the Sun, EREZ, Flava D, Four Tet, GiZ, Haute & Freddy, Hot Since 82, Introspekt, INZO, Ivy Lab, J. Worra, Jamie xx, JAMIIE, Jayda G, Jesse Brede, jigitz, John Summit, Justin Hawkes, KAMAUU, Khruangbin, Ladies of Leisure, Lee Burridge, Lee Reynolds, LIB, LIB 2026, Lightning in a Bottle, Lightning in a Bottle 2026, Linska, Maceo Plex, Madam X, Main Phase, Marbs, Marsh, Mau P, Midnight Generation, Mikey Lion, Mindex, Mochakk, MPH, NIA ARCHIVES, Noga Erez, Of The Trees, Oppidan, Overmono, Pickles, Riche, RM47, Rodriguez Jr., Sara Landry, Sarz, Sweet Like Chocolate, The Silk Road, Tinashe, Tripolism, Zeds Dead

Lord Huron make their hometown fans at Kia Forum see how they’ve gone from burgeoning indie-rock band to newly minted arena act

November 7, 2025 by Josh Herwitt 1 Comment

By Josh Herwitt //

Lord Huron with Feist //
Kia Forum – Inglewood, CA
November 2nd, 2025 //

One of the most redeeming qualities about following music and having the opportunity to address it in this space is watching the trajectory of any act that comes into our purview and strikes a chord with us. We see that kind of progression often manifest when an artist or band books larger rooms and bigger spaces for their latest tour, starting out in clubs of 500 or less and eventually graduating to ballrooms, theaters and amphitheaters that can hold as many as 10,000 fans.

But playing arenas requires a different level of “reach” aka popularity in layman’s terms, and if there’s an indie-rock outfit that I didn’t anticipate headlining arenas in an era when pop stars, rappers and DJs can fill seats at a much higher clip, Lord Huron would have to be on that list.

After all, the group’s continued growth is quite remarkable when you consider it was only 15 years ago that Ben Schneider (guitar, vocals, harmonica) founded Lord Huron as a solo project after relocating to Los Angeles from New York. A native of Michigan who drew inspiration from his visits to Lake Huron, he had been writing music even before studying visual arts while attending college in Ann Arbor as well as in France and then pursuing a career as an artist.

It was in LA, however, where Schneider’s dream as a musician would be realized after recording some material on his own that resulted in a couple of EPs and subsequent calls for him to perform live. That’s when he asked his childhood friends back home to join him on a wild ride that has only picked up more momentum since those early beginnings in 2010.

Schneider has surrounded himself with some different sidekicks since then, but Lord Huron’s cinematic sound and evocative imagery have always exuded modern country-western vibes. While their debut LP Lonesome Dreams laid the groundwork, it was the group’s 2015 follow-up Strange Trails that ushered in mainstream appeal and commercial success after the Netflix series “13 Reasons Why” shined a light on “The Night We Met” during its first and second seasons.

Any artist or band that has an album go certified platinum early on in its career — especially in this day and age — could easily rest on its laurels, and in spite of Strange Trails eclipsing that prestigious mark here stateside, there has been no letdown for Lord Huron. Their ensuing full length Vide Noir that they dropped three years later would reach as high as No. 9 on the Billboard 200 chart with such standouts as “Ancient Names (Part I)”, “Wait by the River”, “When the Night Is Over” and the title track bolstering the 12-song effort, ultimately cementing their status as one of the most exciting folk-based outfits in the past decade.

The indie-folk genre has felt increasingly crowded ever since the Garden State soundtrack came out in 2004 with Sub Pop and Saddle Creek, among other record labels, investing resources into upstarts like Iron & Wine and Fleet Foxes before Bon Iver, Mumford & Sons and The Lumineers would take things to another level. Those aren’t the only sonic-adjacent acts that come to mind when we consider how many others — including Father John Misty, Band of Horses, Local Natives, Grizzly Bear, The Paper Kites, Of Monsters and Men, Volcano Choir, and Blitzen Trapper to name quite a few — could also be lumped in with Lord Huron on the same bill now if push came to shove.

That’s actually something to celebrate given the uncertainty around the future of music and technology, but it is why we were surprised and at the same time equally impressed to see Schneider and company headlining the Kia Forum with a capacity of 17,500 to culminate a 44-date tour over the last five months that stretched from the U.S. to Europe and the UK before wrapping up along the West Coast.

I can’t and won’t claim to be a die-hard Lord Huron fan, but it was only a little more than four years ago when I caught them at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery in what proved to be one of the first concerts I witnessed coming out of an 18-month lockdown from the COVID-19 pandemic days after covering My Morning Jacket at the Santa Barbara Bowl (read our show review here). And it’s one that I can foresee myself always remembering — mainly because of the skeleton cowboy Schneider portrays as a visual metaphor for a psychonaut who’s exploring the space between life and death — as it was honestly too memorable to forget given the spooky environs that paired with the onstage production. The album that they were touring in support of was the first they had issued any singles for believe it or not, and 2021’s Long Lost proved again with “Mine Forever”, “Not Dead Yet” and “I Lied” (with Allison Ponthier) leading the way that they are not a one-trick pony.

As thoughts from the Hollywood Forever replayed in my head as I arrived in Inglewood on the first Sunday after turning the clocks back, walking into an arena-sized venue for a Lord Huron show felt slightly strange. Having spent two nights at The Forum in September for the final dates of Nine Inch Nails’ “Peel It Back Tour” with Boys Noize when every seat in the house was spoken for, this wasn’t quite the same turnout. Nevertheless, it was rather evident Lord Huron have upgraded their western-style stage production — complete with a pay phone Schneider pretended to operate at the outset — since the release of The Cosmic Selector Vol. 1 in July to mark the four-piece’s fifth studio album and arguably its most complete one yet.

In fact, watching more than half of the songs on The Cosmic Selector Vol. 1 come to life in front of a hometown crowd only gave us a deeper appreciation for Schneider’s songwriting capabilities and the evolution of Lord Huron’s sound with each album cycle. There was the upbeat, almost frenetic “Who Laughs Last?”, which features spoken word verses throughout by actress and director Kristen Stewart on the record, to kick things off plus two other Cosmic Selector highlights in the form of “Looking Back” and “Bag of Bones” that followed. The setlist assembled for this year’s tour incorporated every one of Lord Huron’s albums, and Strange Trails certainly got its due with four consecutive songs before parting ways — “La Belle Fleur Sauvage”, “Frozen Pines”, “Meet Me in the Woods” and their biggest hit “The Night We Met” that was accompanied by a female and male actor who role played as a couple in love before going their separate — leading into the encore break.

Schneider and his cohorts Mark Barry (drums, percussion, vocals), Miguel Briseño (bass, keyboards, percussion, theremin) and Tom Renaud (guitar, vocals) seemingly didn’t stop there, though. With three touring members Brandon Walters (guitar, vocals), Misty Boyce (keyboards, vocals) and Waylon Rector (guitar, vocals) mixing into the equation, “The World Ender” opened the encore like there was a stallion galloping through the desert at full speed to make it five straight from their sophomore smash. Whether it’s country and folk or rock and pop, there’s a little bit of something for everyone coming through Lord Huron’s music. Regardless of where you come down on it, you can’t argue — at least seriously — that it’s not an eclectic. Of course, that’s what makes them a major draw at this point and one we can tell is progressively hitting its stride.

LORD HURON

Setlist:
Who Laughs Last
Looking Back
Bag of Bones
Ends of the Earth
The Ghost on the Shore
Wait by the River
Secret of Life
Used to Know
Ancient Names, Pt. I
Long Lost
Twenty Long Years
Watch Me Go
I Lied
La Belle Fleur Sauvage
Frozen Pines
Meet Me in the Woods
The Night We Met

Encore:
The World Ender
Nothing I Need
Not Dead Yet
Life Is Strange

FEIST

Setlist:
I Feel It All
My Moon My Man
A Commotion
How Come You Never Go There
Hiding Out in the Open
Borrow Trouble
Let It Die
1234

Filed Under: Editor's Picks, Featured, Live Music Reviews Tagged With: Allison Ponthier, Band of Horses, Blitzen Trapper, Boys Noize, Feist, Grizzly Bear, Hollywood Forever Cemetery, Kia Forum, Kristen Stewart, Local Natives, Lord Huron, My Morning Jacket, Nine Inch Nails, Of Monsters and Men, Santa Barbara Bowl, The Paper Kites, Volcano Choir

Band of Horses, Iron & Wine come together in LA to create a unique evening of indie rock & folk at The Wiltern on their co-headline tour

October 1, 2025 by Josh Herwitt Leave a Comment

Band of Horses

By Josh Herwitt //

Band of Horses & Iron & Wine //
The Wiltern – Los Angeles
September 24th, 2025 //

Ben Bridwell and Sam Beam have been friends for more than three decades.

Growing up not far from each other in South Carolina, music is what brought them together before they went their separate ways. But even 3,000 miles couldn’t keep them apart for too long.

It was Bridwell, in fact, who introduced Beam to Sub Pop Records after moving cross-country to the Seattle area in the late 90’s and subsequently forming Band of Horses. A few years later, Beam was dropping his debut LP The Creek Drank the Cradle under the moniker Iron & Wine on the same label that became instrumental to the grunge movement by signing Nirvana, Soundgarden and Mudhoney.

Bridwell remains the only constant member in Band of Horses, which now operates as a four-piece due to the absence of multi-instrumentalist Ryan Monroe (keyboards, guitar, backing vocals) since the group went on tour earlier this year to play a handful of gigs in Texas and Arkansas that included a stop during South by Southwest at Stubb’s Bar-B-Q.

In spite of BoH’s numerous lineup changes, Bridwell (lead vocals, guitar, pedal steel, keyboards) has carried on with Creighton Barrett (drums, percussion), Matt Gentling (bass, backing vocals) and Brett Nash (guitar, backing vocals) at his side while continuing to collaborate with Beam following the 2015 release of their initial covers album Sing into My Mouth.

Iron & Wine

Now the two singer-songwriters are back with some more recordings of their favorite tunes, this time in the form of an EP titled Making Good Time that arrived less than a couple of weeks prior to the LA date on their co-headline tour spanning 12 U.S. cities mostly on the West Coast over a matter of two weeks.

We have witnessed quite a few concerts at The Wiltern (see our more of our coverage here), but none with chairs set up on the floor. Only the VIP pit area in front of the stage would serve as standing room for this show, with Iron & Wine opening the evening and showcasing offerings from 2024’s Light Verse amid other material across his catalog while being accompanied by a full band. Joining Beam onstage for the final six songs of the set was Bridwell, as they ran through their own renditions of Spiritualized’s “The Straight and the Narrow”, Talking Heads’ “This Must Be the Place (Naive Melody)”, Ronnie Lane’s “Done This One Before” and Kendrick Lamar’s chart-topping “luther” featuring SZA that gave us a good chuckle toward the end.

Although the sixth and latest BoH full length Things Are Great came out in 2022, Bridwell took us back to “The First Song” that kicks off their first studio effort Everything All the Time . Cease to Begin singles “No One’s Gonna Love You” and “Is There a Ghost” came early amidst a barrage of other hits such as “The Great Salt Lake”, “Casual Party”, “Laredo” and “Crutch”, yet it was the latter that was preceded by a 50’s rockabilly version of “St. Augustine” we didn’t hear when we caught them at LA’s Greek Theatre with The Revivalists two years ago (see more photos from the show here).

Other highlights coming out of BoH’s performance saw Bridwell and company also dedicating a section of their setlist to several collaborations and covers — from Blaze Foley’s “Clay Pigeons” and J.J. Cale’s epic “Thirteen Days” to Iron & Wine’s and Calexico’s “Dead Man’s Will” off their joint EP In the Reins — with Beam and uncorking the first “How to Live” in 10-plus years shortly thereafter. And of course, we’d be remiss to not mention the final one-two punch of “Ode to LRC” and “The Funeral” that brought many in the crowd to their feet down the homestretch.

Considering the smiles both flashed at certain points, it was apparent Bridwell and Beam were enjoying themselves and cherishing the moment. After all, it’s not often you get to see two established indie acts of this caliber occupying the same space on the same night. Either way, watching them share the stage presented a special opportunity for any live music fan and reminder of how fortunate we are to still be in this position.

BAND OF HORSES

Setlist:
The First Song
NW Apt.
No One’s Gonna Love You
The Great Salt Lake
Is There a Ghost
Cigarettes, Wedding Bands
Casual Party
For Annabelle
Laredo
St. Augustine (1950s rockabilly version)
Crutch
Our Swords
Clay Pigeons (Blaze Foley cover) (with Iron & Wine)
Slow Cruel Hands of Time (with Iron & Wine)
Dead Man’s Will (Iron & Wine and Calexico cover) (with Iron & Wine)
Thirteen Days (J.J. Cale cover) (with Iron & Wine)
The General Specific (with Iron & Wine)
How to Live (first time since 2015)
Ode to LRC
The Funeral

IRON & WINE

Setlist:
On Your Wings
Yellow Jacket
Valentine
House by the Sea
All in Good Time
Communion Cups and Someone’s Coat
Tears That Don’t Matter
Call It Dreaming
Passing Afternoon
Singers and the Endless Song
Sweet Talk
The Straight and the Narrow (Spiritualized cover) (with Ben Bridwell)
This Must Be the Place (Naive Melody) (Talking Heads cover) (with Ben Bridwell)
Detlef Schrempf (Band of Horses cover) (with Ben Bridwell)
Done This One Before (Ronnie Lane cover) (with Ben Bridwell)
Upward Over the Mountain (with Ben Bridwell)
luther (Kendrick Lamar cover) (with Ben Bridwell)

Filed Under: Editor's Picks, Featured, Photos Tagged With: Band of Horses, Ben Bridwell, Blaze Foley, Calexico, Iron & Wine, J.J. Cale, Kendrick Lamar, Mudhoney., Nirvana, Ronnie Lane, Soundgarden, South by Southwest, Spiritualized, Stubb's, Stubb's Bar-B-Q, Sub Pop, Sub Pop Records, SZA, Talking Heads, The Revivalists, The Wiltern, The Wiltern Theatre

Portola Music Festival 2025: Our awards & highlights for Year 4

September 29, 2025 by Molly Kish Leave a Comment

LCD Soundsystem

Photos by Christine Kemp // Written by Molly Kish //

Portola Music Festival //
Pier 80 – San Francisco
September 20th-21st, 2025 //

The Bay Area celebrated Portola’s fourth edition this September by packing SF’s Pier 80 with its most diverse lineup so far. Attendees got the opportunity to catch legendary electronic artists, festival debuts, the iconic return of several dance-punk outfits and a show-stopping performance by one of the biggest pop stars on the planet.

The weather was impeccable, but that wasn’t enough to keep crowds from forming lines all weekend long to gain entry to the Bay Area debut of Despacio. James Murphy shared unofficial joint headliner duty with his high-fidelity audio immersion system that served as an honorary fifth stage. Folks waited sometimes hours to enter the dimly lit sound enclosure, lined with seven stacks of McIntosh-powered speakers, synchronized yet very sparse lighting, 50,000 watts of amplifiers and a giant disco ball. Lead audio engineer John Klett calls it an “emotional transmission machine,” and over the course of the two-day fest, many made a point to go find themselves in there.

Portola 2025 marked some monumental comebacks, including the first Bay Area show for The Rapture in more than 10 years, The Prodigy’s highly anticipated appearance after having to reschedule one of their two Coachella sideshows at The Warfield in April (read our show review here) and Moby’s return for the first time since the Ghostship Fire Benefit in 2020 to perform his seminal album Play with a live band and vocalist. Last but certainly not least was pop icon Christina Aguilera, who turned the festival into a girly-pop fever dream for 45 minutes and blazed through one of the weekend’s most epic sets.

Despacio

There were clear improvements to the layout for both the Warehouse and Pier Stage with larger and more accurately located VIP sections, and though the grounds felt less activated, they seemed to be more manageable. The selection of food vendors was also greatly improved, with less waiting time at the bars and larger selections of cocktails as well as specialty drinks than ever before.

For this latest installment, Portola went all in on tried-and-true favorites that included bringing back Dom Dolla, Caribou, Chemical Brothers and 2manydjs after their previous appearances. Goldenvoice paired down the over-the-top production from prior years and brought the focus back onto the music, too.

With noticeably smaller crowds and lighter fairground fluff, attending Portola this year felt different. But for a festival that draws fans who are more concerned about seeing quality performances than posting influencer-friendly content, it remained true to form in 2025 and was a much-needed party for the Bay Area’s club core.

Christina Aguilera

PORTOLA MUSIC FESTIVAL 2025 AWARDS:

Headliner of the Weekend: The Prodigy

Favorite Stage: Warehouse

Breakthrough Performance: Anti Up (Chris Lake & Chris Lorenzo)

Best Dance Party: Moby

Largest Crowd: Dom Dolla

Festival Daddy: Mau P

Portola Queen: Christina Aguilera

Best Legacy Act: Underworld

Hardest Set: Brutalismus 3000

Best Live Performance: LCD Soundsystem

Biggest Comeback: The Rapture

Most Cunty: Rico Nasty

Best Stage Production: Chemical Brothers (DJ set)

Favorite Festival Addition: Despacio

Best Afterparty: Peggy Gou B2B Mau P at 888 Garage

Biggest Improvement: Relocation of VIP section

Most Swoonworthy: Maribou State

Favorite Merch: Raccoon backpack

Silliest Trend: Food label stickers

Largest Obstacle: Lack of cellular service

Portola Music Festival 2025 - Marie Davidson

Portola Music Festival 2025 - Arc De Soleil

Portola Music Festival 2025 - Jazzy B2B KILIMANJARO

Portola Music Festival 2025 - Confidence Man

Portola Music Festival 2025 - Magdalena Bay

Portola Music Festival 2025 - Dabeull Live Band

Portola Music Festival 2025 - San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie

Portola Music Festival 2025 - The Chemical Brothers (DJ set)

Portola Music Festival 2025 - Kreayshawn

Portola Music Festival 2025 - Swimming Paul

Portola Music Festival 2025 - The Blessed Madonna B2B Tiga

Portola Music Festival 2025 - Maribou State

Portola Music Festival 2025 - 2manydjs B2B Erol Alkan

Portola Music Festival 2025 - The Rapture

Portola Music Festival 2025 - Blood Orange

Portola Music Festival 2025 - Boy Harsher

Portola Music Festival 2025 - Underworld

Portola Music Festival 2025 - Brutalismus 3000

Portola Music Festival 2025 - The Prodigy

Filed Under: Editor's Picks, Featured, Festival Reviews, Festivals Tagged With: 1tbsp 2manydjs, 2ManyDJs, 2ManyDJs B2B Erol Alkan, 888 Garage, Anti Up (Chris Lake & Chris Lorenzo), Anti-Up, Arc De Soleil, Arca, ¥ØU$UK€ ¥UK1MAT$U, Bad Juuju, Blawan, Blood Orange, Bob Moses, Bolis Pupul, Boy Harsher, Brutalismus 3000, Caribou, Chris Lake, Chris Lake & Chris Lorenzo, Chris Lorenzo, Chris Stussy, Christina Aguilera, Coachella, Coachella 2025, Coachella 2025 sideshows, Coachella Music and Arts Festival, Coachella Music and Arts Festival 2025, Coachella sideshows, Confidence Man, Dabeull, Despacio, Disclosure, DJ Gigola, Dom Dolla, Duke Dumont, Dylan Brady, Erol Alkan, Fisher, Four Tet, Gesaffelstein, Goldenvoice, HAAi, Hamdi, Haute & Freddy, Horse Meat Disco, James Murphy, Jamie xx, Jazzy, Jazzy B2B KILIMANJARO, Justice, Kelly Lee Owens, KETTAMA, KI/KI, KILIMANJARO, Kreayshawn, Kumo 99, LCD Soundsystem, Loukeman, M.I.A., Magdalena Bay, Malugi, Maribou State, Marie Davidson, Mau P, Moby, nate sib, NEIL FRANCES, NEIL FRANCES (Presents Club NF), Nick León, Noga Erez, Oppidan, Peggy Gou, Pier 80, Portola, Portola 2025, Portola Music Festival, Portola Music Festival 2025, Prospa, Prospa B2B Kettama, Ravyn Lenae, RÜFÜS DU SOL, Rico Nasty, Salute, SHEE, Ski Aggu, SKIIS, Swimming Paul, The Blessed Madonna, The Blessed Madonna B2B Tiga, The Chemical Brothers, The Dare, The Hellp, The Prodigy, The Rapture, Tiga, Underworld, Villager, X CLUB., Yousuke Yukimatsu, Zack Fox

Grieving the loss of their former bandmate, Baroness remember the past at a sold-out Lodge Room on the ‘Red & Blue Tour’

September 26, 2025 by Josh Herwitt Leave a Comment

By Josh Herwitt //

Baroness with Weedeater //
Lodge Room – Los Angeles
September 20th, 2025 //

There’s no doubt the past few months have been a tough time for heavy metal after Black Sabbath’s farewell show and Ozzy Osbourne’s subsequent passing over the summer shined a spotlight on the community and brought it closer together.

The impact that both had on music at large will never be forgotten and thus why Osbourne’s death sent shockwaves around the world when it occurred just more than two weeks after he entertained a capacity crowd in his hometown of Birmingham, England.

But unfortunately Ozzy hasn’t been the only loss to hit metalheads and rock fans hard in 2025. Weeks later, Iron Maiden’s original lead singer Paul Mario Day succumbed to his battle with cancer while ex-Mastodon guitarist Brent Hinds was subsequently killed in a motorcycle accident months after parting ways with the Atlanta outfit (and days earlier making some disparaging comments online).

Among these recent tragedies has also been Allen Blickle, who played drums for alt-prog-sludge act Baroness when it formed back in 2003. Another cancer victim, he drummed on the group’s first three LPs and even contributed keyboards to 2012’s Yellow & Green before suffering a fractured vertebrae when the band’s tour bus crashed later that year and calling it quits shortly thereafter.

So despite the tragic news coinciding with the second leg of the “Red & Blue Tour” that Baroness had announced at the start of this year to celebrate their first two studio albums, it felt quite fitting to watch founding member John Baizley (lead vocals, rhythm guitar, keyboards, percussion) and his comrades Sebastian Thomson (drums), Nick Jost (bass, keyboards, backing vocals) and shredding partner Gina Gleason (lead guitar, backing vocals) perform music Blickle had a role in creating when the Grammy-nominated quartet rolled through his adopted home of LA for a sold-out gig at Lodge Room.

An opening set by doom-metal trio Weedeater would see frontman Dave “Dixie” Collins getting pretty loose as he held down lead vocals and bass duties in his own unique way, making us wonder at one point how many libations he had consumed prior to taking the stage. Considering it has been 10-plus years since their last full length Goliathan came out, the thought of when we might hear new material from Collins, Dave “Shep” Shepherd (guitar, backing vocals) and Ramzi Ateyeh (drums) undoubtedly crossed my mind too as they touched on all five chapters of their current catalog in 45 minutes.

This evening on summer’s penultimate day, however, would belong to Baroness of course. Inside the Highland Park venue, the anticipation had been building and finally reached a breaking point by 9:15 p.m. when Baizley and company walked onstage to a loud barrage of cheers. From there, Baroness proceeded to do what exactly what they said they would and that meant pounding 2007’s Red Album along with 2009’s Blue Record straight into our earholes.

As a live music fan, I have witnessed my fair share of album tribute shows and though I can’t say I am completely against them, there is something about not knowing which songs we will hear that makes a concert feel special. The element of surprise can never be understated when it comes to experiencing live music and something I don’t take for granted when I see artists switch up their setlists every night.

We have seen Baroness do some of that during their previous visits to the City of Angels — including stops at The Echo (see more photos from the show here) in 2022 and The Bellwether in 2023 not long after it opened (read our venue review here) — yet understand the purpose of this tour wasn’t designed for that. The shock and grief was still too fresh after all, and given the circumstances, you couldn’t help but view the tour as a bigger opportunity for us to remember Baroness’ past in more ways than one (or two). And after hearing Baizley speak candidly about his late friend in between songs, it was impressive to see him rock out as feverishly as he did under the red and blue lighting that continuously flooded the room’s diminutive stage.

Baroness are now two years removed from dropping their sixth album Stone and have developed a loyal following in a matter of two decades. Nevertheless, the chemistry they exhibit onstage is ultimately what makes their performances exhilarating and why their music is best experienced live. Heavy metal might not be as popular as it once was in the 80’s and 90’s, but it has certainly evolved in that span. Because with innovative bands like Baroness still going strong, we can be rest assured there’s no end in sight for one of the most important subgenres in rock ‘n’ roll history.

BARONESS

Setlist:
Set 1 (Red Album)
Rays on Pinion
The Birthing
Isak
Wailing Wintry Wind
Cockroach En Fleur
Wanderlust
Aleph
Teeth of a Cogwheel
O’Appalachia
Grad

Set 2 (Blue Record)
Bullhead’s Psalm
The Sweetest Curse
Jake Leg
Steel That Sleeps the Eye
Swollen and Halo
Ogeechee Hymnal
A Horse Called Golgotha
O’er Hell and Hide
War, Wisdom and Rhyme
Blackpowder Orchard
The Gnashing
Bullhead’s Lament

WEEDEATER

Setlist:
Bull
Hammerhandle
Mancoon
Turkey Warlock
God Luck and Good Speed
Wizard Fight
For Evan’s Sake
$20 Peanut
Dirt Merchant
Jason… The Dragon
Monkey Junction
Time Served
Gimme Back My Bullets (Lynyrd Skynyrd cover)
Weed Monkey

Filed Under: Editor's Picks, Featured, Photos Tagged With: Baroness, Black Sabbath, Brent Hinds, Iron Maiden, Lodge Room, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Mastodon, Ozzy Osbourne, Paul Mario Day, Weedeater

Coachella jumps way ahead of schedule to unveil 2026 lineup led by Sabrina Carpenter, Justin Bieber & Karol G for festival’s 25th edition

September 15, 2025 by Josh Herwitt 3 Comments

Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival //
Empire Polo Club – Indio, CA
April 10th-12th & April 17th-19th, 2026 //

Well, if you thought Coachella released its 2025 lineup early … I can’t believe I am typing this halfway through September, but next year’s is already here!

After moving up its annual announcement more than six weeks prior from the January time frame that we had long become accustomed to, the three-day festival has jumped way ahead of schedule for 2026 with the bill being revealed earlier than ever since co-founders Paul Tollett and Rick Van Santen put on the inaugural edition in 1999 and lost nearly $750,000 doing so.

Goldenvoice’s signature event has transformed quite a bit following its late 90’s debut, adding a second weekend back in 2012 as well as more unique stages, performances and activations subsequently over the years at the Empire Polo Club, but the 25th anniversary of Coachella will follow a more recent trend with each day being headlined by a different pop star.

Sabrina Carpenter, Justin Bieber and Karol G have all previously performed at the fest in some capacity as either a scheduled performer or surprise guest — the latter of which Bieber has been multiple times — yet none have seen their name rise to the top of the poster until now. Coachella’s fourth and newest headlining spot will go to another electronic act in Anyma, the Italian DJ who played the Sahara Tent in 2024 and is coming off last spring’s “The End of Genesys” residency at the Sphere in Las Vegas. For those wondering which stage Matteo Milleri will be hitting and what his allotted time will be, we should know that when set times officially drop in April so stay tuned for more updates here. Nevertheless, a slot on the Coachella Stage is almost a certainty, and if we were to guess, Saturday or Sunday would seemingly be the most likely of the three days for the world premiere of his new “Æden” live show.

View this post on Instagram

The undercard, meanwhile, is what really stands out to us upon first look thanks to a stacked roster boasting so many top-notch artists and bands, including The xx, The Strokes, Young Thug, Nine Inch Noize, GIVĒON, Kaskade, Disclosure, Turnstile, Addison Rae, BigBang, Ethel Cain, Labrinth, Laufey, Dijon, sombr, Major Lazer, Teddy Swims, David Byrne, Iggy Pop, Katseye, Interpol, FKA twigs, Devo, Alex G, Clipse, Sexyy Red, Swae Lee, Subtronics, Central Cee, Solomun, Little Simz, Central Cee, Taemin, Mochakk, Foster the People, PinkPantheress, Duke Dumont, Levity, Royel Otis, WORSHIP, Blood Orange, REZZ, Armin Van Burren, Moby, Fujii Kaze, Adriatique, Adam Beyer, Marlon Hoffstadt, Davido, Holly Humberstone, Lykke Li, Boys Noize, Gigi Perez, fakemink, Geese, The Rapture, GORDO, rusowsky, Suicidal Tendencies, Creepy Nuts, Yousuke Yukimatsu, BUNT., Joyce Manor, Green Velvet, French Police, BINI, AYYBO, Black Flag, Kettama, Luisa Sonza, Oklou, Groove Armada, ZULAN and Röyksopp. Check out the poster above to see who else will be making the trek out to Indio.

More specifically, there are a couple of collaborative projects — electronic supergroup Nine Inch Noize (consisting of Nine Inch Nails and Boys Noize) and hip-hop duo Clipse (featuring Malice and Pusha T) — that are particularly noteworthy and what separates Coachella from the other major festivals when it comes to the curation process. And of course as fans we can’t forget to mention the Radiohead “bunker” installation inspired by their 2000 album Kid A, which reached No. 1 on the U.S. Billboard 200, because that’s something you will not want to miss while roaming the polo fields — whether it leads to temporary “A mnesia” or not.

If the desert is suddenly calling your name, make sure to register here before passes go on sale this Friday, September 19th at 11 a.m. PT. While it only takes throwing down $49 to secure your spot with Coachella’s payment plan, Goldenvoice recommends looking for Weekend 2 tickets with Weekend 1 already close to sold out. And if car camping for $40 per night isn’t exactly your thing (we understand), plenty of hotel and shuttle packages can be found here. However you decide to experience one of the biggest music festivals in the world, it’s sure to be one you will never forget.

Good luck, Coachellans!

Filed Under: Featured, Festivals Tagged With: &friends, 54 Ultra, Addison Rae, Adriatique, Alex G, Anyma, Anyma presents Æden world premiere, Armin van Buuren × Adam Beyer, Arodes, Azzecca, Bedouin, Ben Sterling, BIGBANG, BINI, Black Flag, Blondshell, Blood Orange, Bob Baker Marionettes, Boys Noize, BUNT., Cachirula & Loojan, Carlita × Josh Baker, Carolina Durante, Central Cee, Ceremony, Chloé Caillet x Rossi., Clipse, CMAT, Coachella, Coachella 2026, Coachella Music and Arts Festival, Coachella Music and Arts Festival 2026, Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival, Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival 2026, COBRAH, Creepy Nuts, Dabeull, David Byrne, Davido, Devo, Die Spitz, Dijon, Disclosure, DRAIN, Duke Dumont, Ecca Vandal, Ethel Cain, fakemink, Febuary, FKA twigs, Fleshwater, flowerovlove, Foster the People, Freak Slug, French Police, Fujii Kaze, GEESE, GENESI, Gigi Perez GIVEON, Glitterer, Gordo, Green Velvet × AVYBO, Groove Armada, Hamdi, Holly Humberstone, Hot Mulligan, HUGEL, Iggy Pop, Interpol, Jane Remover, Jessica Brankka, Joost, Joyce Manor, Justin Bieber, Karol G, Kaskade, KATSEYE, KETTAMA, Labrinth, Lambrini Girls, Laufey, LE YORA, Levity, Little Simz, Los Hermanos Flores, Los Retros, Luísa Sonza, Lykke LI, Mahmut Orhan, Major Lazer, Malice, Man Styler, Marlon Hoffstadt, Max Dean x Luke Dean, MËSTIZA, Mind Enterprises, Moby, Mochakk, Model/Actriz, NewDad, Ninajirachi, Nine Inch Nails, Nine Inch Noize, Noga Erez, Oklou, PinkPantheress, Prospa, Pusha T, Rae Sremmurd, RØZ, REZZ, Riordan, Royel Otis, Royksopp, rusowsky, Sabrina Carpenter, Sahar Z, Samia, Sexyy Red, Slayyyter, Solomun, SOMBR, SOSA, Sphere, Subtronics, Suicidal Tendencies, Swae Lee, Taemin, Teddy Swims, The Chats, The Rapture, The Strokes, The Two Lips, The xx, Tomora, Travis Scott, Turnstile, Wednesday, WetLeg, WHATMORE, WhoMadeWho, Worship, Yamagucci, Youna, Young Thug, Yousuke Yukimatsu, Zulan

The Flaming Lips & Modest Mouse team up for one of the summer’s best co-headline tours as we witnessed at the Santa Barbara Bowl

September 12, 2025 by Josh Herwitt 1 Comment

The Flaming Lips

By Josh Herwitt //

The Flaming Lips & Modest Mouse with Dehd //
Santa Barbara Bowl – Santa Barbara, CA
September 5th, 2025 //

A couple of weeks ago, we made the case that summer continues to be live music’s biggest and most important season after Louisville five-piece My Morning Jacket closed out their summer tour with three dates in California (see more photos from the shows here).

While the industry has always thrived when the days are long and weather is warm, one of the draws about seeing live music in the summer is the co-headline tour. Back in 2023 there was not only MMJ and Fleet Foxes sharing the iconic Hollywood Bowl’s stage (read our show review here), but also The Revivalists and Band of Horses that subsequently proved to be a fun mix to catch on a night out under the stars (see more photos from the show here).

Last summer didn’t offer much as far as co-headline tours go, and while having Phantogram open for Kings of Leon (see our photos from the show here) marked one of the best double bills from 2024, this year has brought together some new pairings and one standing out right away was psych-rock veterans The Flaming Lips joining forces with indie-rock pioneers Modest Mouse for “The Good Times Are Killing Me” tour across 18 U.S. cities.

Considering the longevity of both bands, each has spent countless hours on the road. Modest Mouse, after all, are no strangers to the co-headline tour, and while no pun was intended there, we do say that after watching them share the stage with Brand New back in 2016 on the heels of releasing their sixth studio album Strangers to Ourselves (read our show review here). Isaac Brock, who has served as the project’s lead vocalist, principal songwriter, guitarist and only constant member since forming out of the Pacific Northwest in the early 90’s, has kept things afloat even with founding members Eric Judy (bass, acoustic and rhythm guitar, keyboards, backing vocals) and of course the late Jeremiah Green (drums, percussion) no longer in the picture.

It has already been more than four years since Modest Mouse put out new music, but they also remain one of a select few indie acts to craft a unique setlist for each show — something you can expect from a jam band — and it’s what has compelled us to be “in the room” whenever they come to town. There are plenty of bigger fans of jam bands than yours truly, yet there’s something about not following the same script every night that makes a Modest Mouse concert feel special.

Modest Mouse

Surprisingly, no material on 2021’s The Golden Casket was touched when Brock and his sidekicks came to the Santa Barbara Bowl for their first visit in almost two decades. Instead, they leaned into older tunes from 2007’s We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank, 2004’s Good News for People Who Love Bad News, 2000’s The Moon & Antarctica, 1997’s The Lonesome Crowded West and even 1999’s Night on the Sun EP that was only made available in Japan. Highlights throughout their 75-minute set included several deep cuts starting with “Fly Trapped in a Jar” and “Paper Thin Walls” before “Perfect Disguise” and “Styrofoam Boots” came later as well as the new, unreleased “Dogbed/Sheetrock” that provided a change of pace sonically without Brock’s usual shout-bark vocals. What we found a bit ironic was not hearing the song the tour was named after, though we realized with a little bit of online research that it wasn’t played at any point during the tour and only twice so far in 2025.

The Flaming Lips, meanwhile, are still one of a kind and going strong for 40-plus years. This wasn’t our introduction, having seen them as early as 2003 when they were touring in support of what has become their landmark 2002 LP Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots, and the feeling of being totally overstimulated by Teletubbies and other costumed dancers onstage at the age of 18 has been burned into my memory forever. Since then, we have caught the Lips in a variety of other settings — from festivals to their own headline gigs — but maybe none better than when they took a sold-out audience in Los Angeles for a ride at The Theatre at Ace Hotel (now known as the United Theater on Broadway), the historic movie palace that was built in 1927 and only seats 1,600 (read our show review here).

As much as its music sounds different from Modest Mouse’s, there is enough crossover appeal with the Oklahoma City outfit led by founding member and frontman Wayne Coyne for a co-headline tour like this to work. In fact, this wasn’t the first time the two groups have played the same night at the Bowl after the “Unlimited Sunshine Tour” that also featured Kinky, Cake and De La Soul stopped through in 2002. And when we saw Modest Mouse celebrate the quarter-century mark for The Lonesome Crowded West just a few years ago at The Wiltern, they covered “Five Stop Mother Superior Rain” on the Lips’ 1990 studio effort In a Priest Driven Ambulance during the encore, so to assume that there is no familiarity between them would be foolhearted. That said, any enthusiast of 90’s rock could get behind what occurred over the next several hours and despite the venue’s tight curfew making for an early start time of 6 p.m., you could not ask for a more picturesque scene on a warm and beautiful Friday evening as Chicago three-piece Dehd kicked things off well over a year after their fifth full length Poetry dropped on Fat Possum Records to favorable reviews.

With all of the antics and shenanigans that transpire during a Flaming Lips performance, there’s no way someone could be bored by the constant barrage of confetti cannons, inflatable stage props, oversized costumes and trippy visuals projected on the large screen behind them. If so, we probably don’t want to hang out with them. There’s so much happening up there it’s easy to get lost in the chaos, but it’s really the music and not the production that has convinced us to come back for more. A cover of “The Golden Path” by The Chemical Brothers that the Lips contributed vocals on, for instance, got its own permanent spot midway through, and Coyne’s homage to Ozzy in the form of Black Sabbath’s “War Pigs” was the most recent tribute to the legendary Prince of Darkness we have witnessed after Primus at LA’s Greek Theatre (read our show review here) and MMJ at Red Rocks Amphitheatre (read our show review here) delivered their own to loud applauses.

Coyne and his cohorts have been honoring the 20th anniversary of Yoshimi for the past three years and their setlist for this tour, unlike Modest Mouse’s, did not deviate at all from one city to the next. Usual live staples “The Yeah Yeah Yeah Song (With All Your Power)”, “She Don’t Use Jelly” and crowd favorite “Do You Realize??” brought things to a fever pitch prior to the final homestretch that saw them end with The Soft Bulletin single “Race for the Prize”, which we remember was the opener for that initial encounter at the Hollywood Palladium. A lot has changed for the Lips in that span, whether it has been welcoming in new cast members or collaborating with household names such as Miley Cyrus, Thievery Corporation, Erykah Badu, Kesha, Nick Cave, Neon Indian and more. Coyne, for one, doesn’t appear to be slowing down at 64 years old, with his charisma channeling a love and zest for life he hasn’t lost, and we sure hope somehow he never does.

THE FLAMING LIPS

Setlist:
Sleeping on the Roof
Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots, Pt. 1
Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots, Pt. 2
Turn It On
Pompeii Am Götterdämmerung
Five Stop Mother Superior Rain
The Golden Path (The Chemical Brothers cover)
Feeling Yourself Disintegrate
The Yeah Yeah Yeah Song (With All Your Power)
She Don’t Use Jelly
Do You Realize??

Encore:
War Pigs (Black Sabbath cover)
Race for the Prize

MODEST MOUSE

Setlist:
King Rat
Float On
Fly Trapped in a Jar
Teeth Like God’s Shoeshine
Dogbed/Sheetrock
Paper Thin Walls
Ocean Breathes Salty
Perfect Disguise
Night on the Sun
Dance Hall
Dashboard
Little Motel
Third Side of the Moon
Styrofoam Boots
Spitting Venom

Filed Under: Editor's Picks, Featured, Live Music Reviews Tagged With: Band of Horses, Black Sabbath, Brand New, CAKE, De La Soul, Dehd, Erykah Badu, Fat Possum, Fat Possum Records, Fleet Foxes, Greek Theatre, Hollywood Palladium, Kesha, Kia Forum, Kings of Leon, Kinky, Miley Cyrus, Modest Mouse, My Morning Jacket, Neon Indian, Nick Cave, Ozzy Osbourne, Phantogram, Primus, Red Rocks, Red Rocks Amphitheatre, Red Rocks Park & Amphitheatre, Red Rocks Park and Amphitheatre, Santa Barbara Bowl, The Flaming Lips, The Revivalists, The Theatre at Ace Hotel, The Wiltern, Thievery Corporation, United Theater on Broadway

My Morning Jacket close out their 2025 summer tour in a big way at Hollywood Palladium, Santa Barbara Bowl & Greek Theatre Berkeley

August 29, 2025 by Josh Herwitt 1 Comment

My Morning Jacket - Greek Theatre Berkeley 2025 - Jim James

My Morning Jacket at Greek Theatre Berkeley

By Josh Herwitt //

My Morning Jacket with Melt //
Hollywood Palladium, Santa Barbara Bowl & Greek Theatre – Los Angeles, Santa Barbara & Berkeley
August 19th-20th & 22nd, 2025 //

Is there a better season for live music than summer?

Even if it’s not your favorite season personally, it’s certainly live music’s. With the days long and weather warm, that’s when the industry truly thrives as summer tours and festivals take center stage all across of the world.

And while it doesn’t matter for us what time of the year it is when My Morning Jacket goes on tour, it’s hard to beat seeing the Grammy-nominated quintet perform during the summertime. That often means outdoor venues, and regardless of who’s onstage, there’s always somethings special about taking in a concert under the stars with an unlimited supply of fresh air.

Coming off two stellar performances at the iconic Red Rocks Amphitheatre (read our show review here) the previous weekend in support of their 10th full length is, MMJ headed west to California for the final three dates of their summer tour with NYC indie-soul outfit Melt.

My Morning Jacket - Santa Barbara Bowl 2025 - band

My Morning Jacket at Santa Barbara Bowl

It had been almost exactly two years since Jacket had played in LA during what was a magical evening at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery (read our show review here) after their headlining set at BeachLife Festival in 2024 was abruptly canceled due to high winds (read our festival review here), and with the band designating its already scheduled date at the Hollywood Palladium as one of five shows to honor the 20th anniversary of their fourth LP Z and playing its only indoor one of the summer, it felt like Jim James (lead vocals, guitar), Tom Blankenship (bass), Patrick Hallahan (drums, percussion), Bo Koster (keyboards, percussion, backing vocals) and swiss-army knife Carl Broemel (guitar, pedal steel guitar, saxophone, backing vocals) were intent on making up for lost time without a strict curfew to follow. We were treated to two sets and an encore as a result, with MMJ extending past the 2.5-hour mark thanks to stirring renditions of “Beginning from the Ending”, “Touch Me I’m Going to Scream Pt. 2”, “Where to Begin” and “Spring (Among the Living)”, the latter of which featuring a beautiful hat tip to the late Ozzy Osbourne in the form of a “Mama I’m Coming Home” tag.

Though we wouldn’t hear Z from start to finish the following night, the album still got some play at the picturesque Santa Barbara Bowl as Jacket opened with “Anytime” and brought back the intro jam on “Off the Record” that we fell in love with when we first heard their MMJ Live Vol. 1: Live 2015 release drop in 2022. “Phone Went West” would lead straight into “Only Memories Remain” and serve as an instant highlight, along with is standout “River Road” stretching past eight minutes to jumpstart a four-song encore that also boasted “The Way That He Sings” from 2001’s At Dawn.

Summer tour came to a close more than 300 miles north for my first visit to the Greek Theatre Berkeley, and the Friday night finale proved to be well worth the trek up to the 8,500-person amphitheater. Older tunes such as “X-Mas Curtain”, “Honest Man” and “I Think I’m Going to Hell” that we didn’t happen to hear in either LA or Santa Barbara made it into the setlist, as well as the trippy “Still Thinkin” off 2020’s The Waterfall II and the live debut of John Lennon’s “Love” around the midway point. But easily one of the biggest surprises came on the other side of the encore break as the group uncorked Evil Urges cut “Librarian” for just the second time this year and eventually treated us to some “Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin” before it was all said and done — because a MMJ show in the Bay Area wouldn’t be complete without a little Sly & the Family Stone of course.

James and his sidekicks will return to the road for the third leg of “My Morning Jacket ‘is’ On Tour” this fall, and although we don’t have plans (or the funds quite honestly) to follow one of our favorite live acts around the country for a few weeks, it wouldn’t take much to convince us otherwise. That’s how good it feels to bathe in MMJ’s music whenever they turn on the lights, plug in and melt minds, compelling us to travel considerable lengths to witness each of their three California shows in a span of four days. In the meantime, here’s hoping we don’t have to wait as long before we get to experience it again.

AUGUST 19TH – HOLLYWOOD PALLADIUM

Setlist:
Set 1 (Z)
Wordless Chorus
It Beats 4 U
Gideon
What a Wonderful Man
Off the Record
Into the Woods
Anytime
Lay Low
Knot Comes Loose
Dondante

Set 2
Beginning From the Ending
Touch Me I’m Going to Scream Pt. 1
Die for It
Holdin on to Black Metal (with Veronica Stewart-Frommer)
Mahgeetah
Time Waited
Everyday Magic
Circuital
Touch Me I’m Going to Scream Pt. 2

Encore:
Where to Begin
Spring (Among the Living) (with “Mama I’m Coming Home” and “Dear Prudence” tags)
Dancefloors

Editors’ Note: “Z” 20th anniversary show.

AUGUST 20TH – SANTA BARBARA BOWL

Setlist:
Anytime
I Can Hear Your Love
Circuital
Lemme Know
Mahgeetah
Golden (with Veronica Stewart-Frommer)
Run It
Half a Lifetime
Evil Urges
Here in Spirit (Jim James song) (with Veronica Stewart-Frommer)
Phone Went West (>)
Only Memories Remain
Wordless Chorus
Off the Record (included intro jam)
Squid Ink
Smokin’ From Shootin’
Touch Me I’m Going to Scream Pt. 2

Encore:
River Road
I’m Amazed
The Way That He Sings
One Big Holiday

AUGUST 22ND – GREEK THEATRE BERKELEY

Setlist:
Out in the Open
X-Mas Curtain
Lay Low
Honest Man
Time Waited
Still Thinkin
Everyday Magic
Least Expected
Gideon
Love (John Lennon cover) (live debut by MMJ)
Steam Engine
Cobra
Here in Spirit (Jim James song) (with Veronica Stewart-Frommer)
Holdin on to Black Metal (with Veronica Stewart-Frommer)
I Think I’m Going to Hell
Victory Dance
Die for It
Wordless Chorus

Encore:
Librarian
Spring (Among the Living) (with “Dear Prudence” tag)
Phone Went West (>”Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin)” by Sly & the Family Stone)

Filed Under: Editor's Picks, Featured, Photos Tagged With: BeachLife Festival, Greek Theatre Berkeley, Hollywood Palladium, Jim James, John Lennon, Melt, My Morning Jacket, Ozzy Osbourne, Red Rocks, Red Rocks Amphitheatre, Red Rocks Park & Amphitheatre, Red Rocks Park and Amphitheatre, Santa Barbara Bowl, Sly & The Family Stone, The Beatles

My Morning Jacket continue to reinvent themselves while celebrating 20 years of ‘Z’ during two more dazzling performances at Red Rocks

August 22, 2025 by Josh Herwitt 3 Comments

By Josh Herwitt //

My Morning Jacket with Melt //
Red Rocks Park and Amphitheatre – Morrison, CO
August 15th-16th, 2025 //

When it comes to experiencing My Morning Jacket in the flesh, there is no place I would rather see the Kentucky-bred band take the stage than at Red Rocks.

Colorado’s world-famous, open-air amphitheater has become one of the quintessential music venues — along with The Fillmore in San Francisco and Palace Theatre in Louisville — to catch a MMJ show and a rite of passage for many fans thanks, in part, to frontman Jim James dubbing it “the birth canal of the universe” in 2019.

That’s why I have made the trip out from Los Angeles each of the last three times that James (lead vocals, guitar), Tom Blankenship (bass), Patrick Hallahan (drums, percussion), Bo Koster (keyboards, percussion, backing vocals) and Carl Broemel (guitar, pedal steel guitar, saxophone, backing vocals) have come through Denver to headline two nights “on the rocks.”

What still amazes me after attending quite a few concerts at Red Rocks for almost two decades is that the experience doesn’t seem to grow old or tired, and that rings even more true every time I have seen Jacket perform there (read our First Times coverage from 2023 here). A lot of bands have become too popular to book the 9,525-person venue, opting for larger, more lucrative arenas and stadiums instead, but the psychedelic, jam-adjacent five-piece — for whatever reason we have yet to understand — has not garnered audiences nearly as large despite working with an outside producer for the first time ever on its 10th LP is that came out in March.

That honor, no less, would go to three-time Grammy winner Brendan O’Brien, whose decorated career includes studio time with AC/DC, Pearl Jam, The Offspring, Stone Temple Pilots, Soundgarden, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Bob Dylan, Rage Against the Machine, the Killers and Bruce Springsteen. The result is a tight, 10-track effort that doesn’t rank among MMJ’s best but fits in quite seamlessly with the rest of their catalog. While some of the album finds them exploring new sonic avenues on lead single “Time Waited” and “I Can Hear Your Love” that sounds as if it could have been written by Buddy Holly or Roy Orbison, the back half is — or we should say is — what stands out with “Beginning from the Ending”, “Squid Ink”, “Die for It” and “River Road” all having the potential to be long-standing earworms.

But this year also marks the 20th anniversary of the group’s seminal full length Z, which saw it move away from the heavy reverb that dominated their earlier material to incorporate other genres such as reggae and dub, with Friday’s performance at Red Rocks marking the first of five dates that Jacket is allocating to celebrate the 2005 release on Rolling Stone’s “The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time” list.

MMJ has a penchant for extending and stretching certain songs live, and though James and company didn’t veer off the beaten path for most of Z, they did unleash the longest “Dondante” since their 2019 version between “Creation Rock” and “Ship Rock,” with this one clocking in at a whopping 23 minutes. The unconventional second set that followed delivered its fair share of highlights — from Melt vocalist Veronica Stewart-Frommer assisting on “Here in Spirit” from James’ solo work to a shortened rendition of “Cobra” that was subsequently reprised during “Squid Ink” and flowed right into “Touch Me I’m Going to Scream Pt. 2” — but maybe none bigger than their live debut of Steely Dan’s hit single “Do It Again” considering no one could have seen it coming or had such on their Red Rocks bingo card.

The recent passing of Ozzy Osbourne, conversely, had been on my mind for the last several weeks with tributes pouring in all over the world, and I knew from social media that some of the members in Jacket were Black Sabbath fans. I had sent a direct message to Blankenship on Instagram after Night 1 with a request for some Sabbath to remember the late Prince of Darkness, and as I put on my Vol. 4 T-shirt on Saturday when I arrived for Night 2, something was telling me that my wish might actually come true. A woman in the parking lot made a comment in a sort of “rock on” tone as she passed by my car not long after I arrived, making me feel for a second like I had chosen the wrong gig to broadcast my affinity for heavy metal’s pioneers.

I wasn’t going to be fazed that easily, though. My Vol. 4 T-shirt had become an omen of good luck after watching Primus the week before cover “N.I.B.” with Ty Segall on the mic during their star-studded stop at LA’s Greek Theatre (read our show review here), and my love for Ozzy ran too deep for me to change shirts (yes, I had an extra). His death, albeit less surprising given his age, moved me much in the same way that Chris Cornell’s did when it happened in 2017. The farewell concert in Birmingham just weeks prior had serendipitously proved to not only be a fitting send-off for Sabbath, but also a larger-than-life figure. And what better place to show some appreciation for an absolute rock god than at Red Rocks?

Sure enough, MMJ would have plenty of more surprises up their collective sleeves for Saturday as they touched on all 10 of their albums to create a career-spanning setlist in a matter of two and a half hours. Crowd favorites “Phone Went West” and “Steam Engine” came early, with the former getting a quick tag of Bruce Hornsby’s “Mandolin Rain” down the homestretch. Yet, the biggest moment came in the encore after dedicating “State of the Art (A.E.I.O.U.)” to Diana Ross. That’s when Jacket officially put a bow on the weekend with the haunting, eponymous opener to 1970’s Black Sabbath for the first time in close to 15 years, leaving room for Broemel to briefly offer his own Tony Iommi impression. By that point, I was completely satiated and satisfied. The ensuing “One Big Holiday” was an extra cherry on top, and as I took one last look at the natural beauty that has built one of music’s most sacred spaces, I thought to myself how sweet this life can be with both MMJ and Red Rocks in it.

MY MORNING JACKET – AUGUST 15TH

Setlist:
Set 1 (Z)
Wordless Chorus
It Beats 4 U
Gideon
What a Wonderful Man
Off the Record
Into the Woods
Anytime
Lay Low
Knot Comes Loose
Dondante (longest version since 8-2-2019)

Set 2
How Could I Know
Here in Spirit (Jim James song) (with Veronica Stewart-Frommer)
Half a Lifetime
Everyday Magic
Cobra
Squid Ink (> “Cobra” reprise >)
Touch Me I’m Going to Scream Pt. 2
Where to Begin
Do It Again (Steely Dan cover) (live debut by MMJ)
Dancefloors

Editors’ Note: “Z” 20th anniversary show.

MELT – AUGUST 15TH

Setlist:
Veronica’s Apology / The Idiot
Shy
The Door
Waves
Stay for the High
Sour Candy
Plant the Garden

MY MORNING JACKET – AUGUST 16TH

Setlist:
The Dark
It’s About Twilight Now
The Way That He Sings
X-Mas Curtain
Phone Went West (with “Mandolin Rain” tag) (>)
Steam Engine
I’m Amazed
Aluminum Park
Smokin’ From Shootin’ (>)
Victory Dance (>)
Circuital
Holdin on to Black Metal (with Veronica Stewart-Frommer)
Spring (Among the Living) (with “Dear Prudence” tag)
Still Thinkin
Feel You
Least Expected
Love Love Love
Out in the Open
Lemme Know
Die for It

Encore:
State of the Art (A.E.I.O.U.) (Jim James song) (dedicated to Diana Ross) (>)
Black Sabbath (Black Sabbath cover) (first time since 2010)
One Big Holiday

MELT – AUGUST 16TH

Setlist:
Fake Romantic
More than Ever
Inside
Waves
Walk to Midnight
Stay for the High
Plant the Garden
Surrender
Harvest Moon (Neil Young cover)

Filed Under: Editor's Picks, Featured, Live Music Reviews Tagged With: AC/DC, Black Sabbath, Bob Dylan, Brendan O'Brien, Bruce Hornsby, Bruce Springsteen, Buddy Holly, Diana Ross, Greek Theatre, Jim James, Melt, My Morning Jacket, Ozzy Osbourne, Palace Theatre, Pearl Jam, Primus, Rage Against the Machine, Red Rocks, Red Rocks Amphitheatre, Red Rocks Park & Amphitheatre, Red Rocks Park and Amphitheatre, Roy Orbison, Soundgarden, Stone Temple Pilots, The Beatles, The Fillmore, The Fillmore Auditorium, The Fillmore SF, The Killers, The Louisville Palace, The Offspring, the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Tony Iommi, Ty Segall

From covers of Black Sabbath & King Crimson to surprise guests Bill Burr, Matt Stone & half of Tool, Primus wow at LA’s Greek Theatre

August 11, 2025 by Josh Herwitt 3 Comments

By Josh Herwitt //

Primus with Ty Segall //
Greek Theatre – Los Angeles
August 6th, 2025 //

If you are a fan of live music and have been following the current rock landscape lately, you probably already know the last few months have been a rough time for drummers.

Legendary bands like The Who, Guns N’ Roses, Iron Maiden, Pearl Jam and Foo Fighters have all experienced changes behind the drum kit recently while well-established mainstays in the jam scene such as Umphrey’s McGee and Goose have also had to find new blood on the skins.

But another rock-leaning act that saw its timekeeper step off the stage — and rather abruptly — was Primus, the 90’s alt-metal group led by bassist, vocalist and founding member Les Claypool that has cycled through its share of drummers since first forming under the name Primate more than 40 years ago in the Bay Area.

Whether it has been Vince Parker, Mark Edgar, Peter Libby, Robbie Bean, Tim “Curveball” Wright, Jay “Jayski” Lane, Bryan “Brain” Mantia or Tim “Herb” Alexander laying it down, Claypool and guitarist Larry “Ler” LaLonde have seen the drum throne become a revolving door for the majority of their careers. So with Alexander leaving the band unexpectedly for a third time in October and revealing that he “lost his passion for playing,” Claypool and LaLonde were once again faced with the unfortunate reality the two close friends would become accustomed to after leaving their former band Blind Illusion and reforming Primus at the end of 1988.

Rather than going back to the well or only accepting referrals for the role, they decided to open up the process to anyone and everyone in their search for “the greatest drummer on Earth.” What came as a result was at least 6,200 submissions followed by a multi-week audition process at Claypool’s studio in Northern California that the band would coin the “Primus Interstellar Drum Derby.” The competition was stiff, with an All-Star cast that included Thomas Pridgen, Nikki Glaspie and Thomas Lang in the mix, but the honor ultimately went to John Hoffman, a relatively unknown from Shreveport, La., whose style and impeccable chops blended perfectly with what Claypool and LaLonde like to cook up when they plug in.

Primus are one of those rare bands that can bring jam fans and metalheads together into the same space. As we have said before after witnessing his Fearless Frog Brigade mark their first tour in two decades with a sold-out gig at The Wiltern a couple years ago (see more photos from the show here), Claypool remains among rare company as a one-of-a-kind musician who has made his living at the intersection of the alt-metal and jam scenes. When you hear a song by Primus, you can tell almost immediately it’s them. Much of that has to do with Claypool’s unmistakable spoken-word vocals of course, though the way he continues to captivate listeners with his innovative bass playing still has Primus sounding like nothing else out there to this day.

It has been nearly eight years since Primus have dropped an album, and there’s a sense with Hoffman officially in the fold now that new material can be expected at some point. But the first order of business for Claypool and LaLonde had to be getting back on the road with their new comrade since performing Rush’s A Tribute to Kings in 46 North American cities on their last headlining tour.

Ty Segall

That’s not to say Primus haven’t been active. We have actually caught them each of the last two years, first at the Hollywood Bowl with Puscifer and A Perfect Circle for Sessanta (read our show review here) and then at Acrisure Arena out in the desert for Sessanta V2.0 (read our show review here).

With the “Onward & Upward” tour this summer providing 25 more opportunities for Claypool, LaLonde and Hoffman to continue building their chemistry onstage, we can tell that Primus are beginning to hit their stride as they introduce fans to “Hoffer.” On a weeknight at LA’s charming Greek Theatre, things began with an onslaught of noise from prolific garage rocker Ty Segall, whose 45-minute opening set was highlighted by a cover of Pink Floyd’s “Interstellar Overdrive”. The singer-songwriter from Laguna Beach put out his 17th studio album Possession in May and his penchant for honoring the greats, from Bob Dylan to T. Rex, is no secret to those who are familiar with his music. While his overall energy this time didn’t quite match what we remember being impressed by back in 2016 at the Teragram Ballroom (read our show review here), Segall’s ability to shred at a moment’s notice is always evident when he takes the stage. Coincidentally enough, his hometown friends were actually sitting beside me and they were definitely feeling it as enough chunky riffs filled our earholes to make us wish that “Sloppo” would tour with San Jose stoner/doom metal duo Sleep in the future.

The sonic similarities between Segall and Primus remain few and far between, but that didn’t take away from what proved to be a magical evening under the stars … and there were plenty of them at the Greek in addition to Claypool, LaLonde and Hoffman. The three-piece opened with two tracks off 1997’s Brown Album, and although this wouldn’t be the same sort of exhibition Primus staged last month at Red Rocks Amphitheatre when seven songs from it were performed, the surprises that ensued could give any fan of 90’s music instant FOMO.

It had come to my attention last spring when I attended Queens of the Stone Age leader Josh Homme’s benefit show that comedian Bill Burr can hold his own on the drums, and even after noticing him outside the venue before entering, it somehow didn’t dawn on me that he was anything other than a spectator. A colleague had mentioned to some of us between sets that he spotted Tool drummer Danny Carey, who had previously filled in for Alexander, and as soon as I saw two kits set up on the stage, I knew we were in for something special. So when Burr walked out with Tool bassist Justin Chancellor after “Bob’s Party Time Lounge” and broke into “Too Many Puppies” on Frizzle Fry, the crowd essentially lost its collective mind and we would have as well if we weren’t busy trying to capture it from behind the camera. What’s more is that Burr totally nailed his part, locking in from the start while Chancellor came equipped with a gift that just so happened to be one of Claypool’s beautiful Pachyderm bass guitars.

Surprises as such are often reserved for the encore, yet considering this was only the third song and we were in one of the biggest entertainment capitals in the world, more were likely in store. The details were certainly unknown, but my Black Sabbath Vol. 4 T-shirt did draw a comment from one of the band’s crew members, which made me believe that a cover might be forthcoming after seeing on social media that Primus uncorked “N.I.B.” in New Orleans with Puddles Pity Party offering his best Ozzy impersonation. My inclination would eventually be proven true after Primus dove into some Oysterhead before crushing King Crimson staple “Thela Hun Ginjeet” with South Park co-creator Matt Stone on the drums, except this time it was Segall manning the mic and sending the place into an absolute frenzy as the Prince of Darkness’ maniacal face was projected on the video screen.

And if that wasn’t enough, Primus gifted us a “DMV” tease prior to launching into “The Ol’ Diamondback Sturgeon (Fisherman’s Chronicles, Part 3)” and followed it up with “Jerry Was a Race Car Driver” that received a roar of applause. Not every Primus setlist will feature the lead singles on 1991’s Sailing the Seas of Cheese and 1993’s Pork Soda, but this rendition of “My Name Is Mud” was extra dirty — in a good way — with Carey finally taking his place stage right to Hoffman and unleashing a dual drum solo that had Claypool slapping his strings in unison, creating a double-bass effect that you could feel in your chest and down to your bones.

How could a Primus show be complete without a bass solo or better yet, a bass off? From solely our perspective, it really couldn’t be. So after a brief encore break, Claypool did what only a bass master would do and brought out MonoNeon, who’s well-known for his work with Prince, for Tales from the Punchbowl single “Southbound Pachyderm” and one of our personal favorites. As the two low-end wizards traded licks down the finish line, it wasn’t very hard to consider this one of the best Primus shows I have ever caught and there have been many. Their recipe of swamp funk mixed with metal might not be everyone’s cup of tea. For us as well as anyone in attendance who found themselves chanting the band’s paradoxical inside joke “Primus Sucks!” — because if you know, you know — however, it never seems to get old no matter what age any of us are.

PRIMUS

Setlist:
Restin’ Bones
Bob’s Party Time Lounge
Too Many Puppies (with Bill Burr) (and Justin Chancellor)
Dirty Drowning Man
Groundhog’s Day (>)
Polka Dot Rose (Oysterhead cover) (partial) (> “Groundhog’s Day” reprise)
Thela Hun Ginjeet (King Crimson cover) (with Matt Stone) (with “Dueling Banjos” tease)
Over the Falls
John the Fisherman
N.I.B. (Black Sabbath cover) (with Ty Segall) (with “Bassically” intro)
The Ol’ Diamondback Sturgeon (Fisherman’s Chronicles, Part 3) (preceded by “DMV” tease)
Jerry Was a Race Car Driver
Welcome to This World (>)
My Name Is Mud (with Danny Carey)

Encore:
Southbound Pachyderm (with MonoNeon)

Editors’ Note: “Amos Moses” and “Mrs. Blaileen” were on the written setlist, but “John the Fisherman” and “Jerry Was a Race Car Driver” were played instead.

TY SEGALL

Setlist:
Void
Interstellar Overdrive (Pink Floyd cover)
Candy Sam
Buildings
Possession
Feel
Wave Goodbye (Ty Segall Band song)
Love Fuzz (slowed down)

Filed Under: Editor's Picks, Featured, Live Music Reviews Tagged With: A Perfect Circle, Acrisure Arena, Bill Burr, Black Sabbath, Blind Illusion, Bob Dylan, Foo Fighters, Goose, Greek Theatre, Guns N' Roses, Hollywood Bowl, Iron Maiden, Josh Homme, King Crimson, Matt Stone, MonoNeon, Oysterhead, Ozzy Osbourne, Pearl Jam, Pink Floyd, Primus, Primus Interstellar Drum Derby, Prince, Puddles Pity Party, Puscifer, Queens of the Stone Age, Red Rocks, Red Rocks Amphitheatre, Red Rocks Park & Amphitheatre, Red Rocks Park and Amphitheatre, Rush, SESSANTA, SESSANTA 2024, SESSANTA 2025, SESSANTA V2.0, South Park, T. Rex, The Belasco, The Who, The Wiltern, The Wiltern Theatre, Tool, Ty Segall, Ty Segall Band, Umphrey's McGee

Pixies dive into their classic LPs ‘Bossanova’ & ‘Trompe Le Monde’ for a sold-out Hollywood Palladium with Kurt Vile & the Violators aboard

June 27, 2025 by Josh Herwitt Leave a Comment

Pixies

By Josh Herwitt //

Pixies with Kurt Vile and The Violators //
Hollywood Palladium – Los Angeles
June 20th, 2025 //

Is it just us or does live music sound better in the summer?

So far we have already witnessed a number of exciting moments in live music as 2025 presses on — from The Prodigy’s first headlining date on U.S. soil since 2017 (read our show review here) to Jack White’s electrifying run through SoCal (read our show review here) — but with the temperate season officially underway now, this is the time of year when it really gets the chance to shine in the hot sun.

It’s during these months when we seemingly expand our horizons a little more, and while we did cover their co-headline tour with Weezer when it rolled through LA almost eight years ago and brought out a sold-out crowd to The Forum (read our show review here), it’s not often that we find ourselves going to — let alone photographing — a Pixies show.

But with the alt-rock legends headlining the Hollywood Palladium at capacity on a Friday and Saturday night to mark the first two days of summer, even a more casual fan like myself was intrigued to attend at least one of them. This year’s North American tour sees the four-piece performing two-night stands in 14 cities over the course of six weeks with support from Kurt Vile & the Violators, which felt like a surprising choice to pair alongside the Pixies from our perspective but one I was all for.

Kurt Vile & the Violators

When you listen to Vile’s music, it’s hard to find a lot of common ground with what the Pixies do. This wasn’t our first time covering the Philadelphia singer-songwriter whose music floats between garage rock, indie folk and lo-fi psychedelia, although it had been nearly a decade since we saw him and his sidekicks also serve as an opener less than two miles away at the iconic Hollywood Bowl for the one and only Sufjan Stevens (read our First Times coverage here).

The former lead guitarist of The War on Drugs who gave us FOMO the following evening by having Adam Granduciel sit in on “Hunchback” hasn’t unleashed a full-length album since 2022’s (watch my moves) marked his ninth, but Vile did resurface more than a year later with his 2023 release Back to Moon Beach, which runs 52 minutes long but was still designated as an EP. His record label Verve, in fact, clarified that it was an “EP by no one’s definition but Kurt Vile’s.” Yet, a brand-new — albeit briefer — EP that features collaborations with Nashville musician Luke Roberts awaits on July 25th and while we didn’t hear any material from the five-song effort, the title track “classic love” has recently made its way into the universe.

Vile, as quirky and eccentric as he is considering two of his biggest hits are named “Pretty Pimpin” and “Loading Zones” for instance, has always played by his own set of rules and in many ways so have the Pixies after forming close to 40 years ago. That’s about as much overlap as we can diagnose between the two acts, but that only made for a more diverse and unique night of so-called “indie rock.”

Black Francis (lead vocals, rhythm and acoustic guitar), David Lovering (drums, percussion, backing vocals, occasional lead vocals and bass), Joey Santiago (lead guitar, occasional backing vocals and Emma Richardson (bass, backing and occasional lead vocals) have been revisiting a couple of their classic LPs — 1990’s Bossanova and 1991’s Trompe le Monde that were recorded in LA shortly after the band’s cross-country move from Boston “because the recording studio was there” — on the first night at each stop and with that in mind, there were few surprises to expect once they took the stage.

Pixies

When a band plays an album live from start to finish, it can be a double-edged sword depending on the context — and by that we mean if it was previously disclosed or not. While the aforementioned element of surprise disappears in the case of the former, there are certain deep tracks that have the opportunity to be revived and even stand out. Along those lines, we have heard how bands have to go back into the lab and relearn some of those songs, making it a fun exercise for the musicians to take part in.

And from our vantage point, it clearly looked like the Pixies were having a blast up there as Francis (born Charles Michael Kittridge Thompson IV) and company ran through one tune after another. The only question mark when they returned from a short encore break was what would be in store for the final 20 minutes … because they had to uncork “Where Is My Mind?” before it was all over, right?

That they most certainly did, as a cover of “In Heaven (Lady in the Radiator Song)” by Peter Ivers and David Lynch opened the four-song encore that sent us home. One of the highlights for us, though, had to be the ensuing “UK Surf” version of “Wave of Mutilation” on 1989’s Doolittle, which has been saved on this tour primarily for the second night in each city.

For one last taste we were treated to “Into the White” off the 1997 compilation Death to the Pixies that repeats the lyric “And there ain’t no day / And there ain’t no night” at the outset. They were fitting words to hear given that we had entered the Palladium in daylight and exited to nightfall as if we had spent the last four hours in a time capsule traveling back to the early 90’s. Too bad it was only temporary.

PIXIES

Setlist:
Bossanova
Cecilia Ann (The Surftones cover)
Rock Music
Velouria
Allison
Is She Weird
Ana
All Over the World
Dig for Fire
Down to the Well
The Happening
Blown Away
Hang Wire
Stormy Weather
Havalina

Trompe Le Monde
Trompe le Monde
Planet of Sound
Alec Eiffel
The Sad Punk
Head On (The Jesus and Mary Chain cover)
U-Mass
Palace of the Brine
Letter to Memphis
Bird Dream of the Olympus Mons
Space (I Believe In)
Subbacultcha
Distance Equals Rate Times Time
Lovely Day
Motorway to Roswell
The Navajo Know

Encore:
In Heaven (Lady in the Radiator Song) (Peter Ivers & David Lynch cover)
Wave of Mutilation (UK Surf)
Where Is My Mind?
Into the White

KURT VILE & THE VIOLATORS

Setlist:
Hey Like a Child (Kurt Vile song)
Bassackwards (Kurt Vile song)
Mount Airy Hill (Way Gone) (Kurt Vile song)
Loading Zones (Kurt Vile song)
KV Crimes (Kurt Vile song)
Like Exploding Stones (Kurt Vile song)
Pretty Pimpin (Kurt Vile song)
Wakin on a Pretty Day (Kurt Vile song)

Filed Under: Editor's Picks, Featured, Photos Tagged With: David Lynch, Hollywood Bowl, Hollywood Palladium, Jack White, Kurt Vile, Kurt Vile & The Violators, Luke Roberts, Peter Ivers, Peter Ivers & David Lynch, Pixies, Sufjan Stevens, The Jesus and Mary Chain, The Prodigy, The Surftones, The War on Drugs, Weezer

Outside Lands recruits Still Woozy, Thundercat, Floating Points (Live), Fujii Kaze, BLOND:ISH, Black Coffee & more for 2025 night shows

June 24, 2025 by Josh Herwitt Leave a Comment

Outside Lands Music and Arts Festival //
Golden Gate Park – San Francisco
August 8th-10th, 2025 //

Are you feelin’ the heat?!?!

Summer is officially here and festival season has been going strong for a few months now, but with the 17th year of Outside Lands six weeks away, the three-day affair will be here again before you know it.

In the meantime, this year’s OSL’s night shows have been revealed and for the first time will begin the prior weekend. Five days before the fest begins, British electronic musician Floating Points kicks things off with a live performance at the Fox Theater in Oakland on Sunday, August 3rd that includes support from Julianna Barwick and Mary Lattimore.

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A post shared by Outside Lands (@outsidelands)

The action then resumes a day before OSL 2025 on Thursday, August 7th as Still Woozy headlines The Independent, Fujii Kaze takes the stage at Bimbo’s 365 Club and Fcukers tear up Rickshaw Stop. Other highlights on the 2025 late-night schedule include Thundercat, BLOND:ISH and Black Coffee if you are looking for more live music and didn’t get your fill at Golden Gate Park. Check out the poster above and our schedule below for more details.

It’s also worth noting that after the number of night shows in 2024 jumped to a total of 16, there are a few less this time around. At 13 though, it’s still more than the 12 that were booked in 2023. Six of the seven venues used for these OSL night shows will be in SF, with this iteration including the first to be held across the bay and as aforementioned, days in advance of the main event.

If this news has you itching to go, tickets for Floating Points (Live) at the Fox are already on sale so don’t wait until it’s too late! There will be a presale for the remaining OSL night shows this Thursday, June 26th before tickets go on sale to the public Friday, June 27th at 10 a.m. PT. Those of you who have purchased festival passes before will receive priority access so keep an eye out for that email when it arrives in your inbox!

Here is the schedule for the upcoming night shows with links to purchase tickets:

August 3rd (SUN): Floating Points (Live) with Julianna Barwick and Mary Lattimore at Fox Theater Oakland, 7:30 p.m., All Ages // BUY TICKETS

August 7th (THU): Still Woozy with Bay Ledges at The Independent, 8 p.m., 21+ // BUY TICKETS

August 7th (THU): Fujii Kaze at Bimbo’s 365 Club, 8 p.m., All Ages // BUY TICKETS

August 7th (THU): Fcukers with DJ Aaron Axelsen at Rickshaw Stop, 8 p.m., All Ages // BUY TICKETS

August 8th (FRI): Thundercat at The Independent, 10 p.m., 21+ // BUY TICKETS

August 8th (FRI): ARMNHMR presents PASSPORT at The Great Northern, 10 p.m., 21+ // BUY TICKETS

August 8th (FRI): Walker & Royce with Techno Tupac, Mar 66 at Public Works, 9:30 p.m., 21+ // BUY TICKETS

August 8th (FRI): NOTION at 1015 Folsom, 10 p.m., 21+ // BUY TICKETS

August 9th (SAT): BLOND:ISH at The Independent, 10 p.m., 21+ // BUY TICKETS

August 9th (SAT): Dombresky at The Great Northern, 10 p.m., 21+ // BUY TICKETS

August 9th (SAT): Midnight Generation at Rickshaw Stop, 10 p.m., All Ages // BUY TICKETS

August 10th (SUN): Hope Tala & Luna Li at The Independent, 10 p.m., All Ages // BUY TICKETS

August 10th (SUN): Black Coffee at 1015 Folsom, 9 p.m., 21+ // BUY TICKETS

Filed Under: Featured, Festivals Tagged With: 1015 Folsom, Aaron Axelsen, ARMNHMR, ARMNHMR presents PASSPORT, Bimbo's 365 Club, Black Coffee, Blond:ish, DJ Aaron Axelsen, Dombresky, Fcukers, Floating Points, Floating Points (Live), Fox Theater Oakland, Fujii Kaze, Hope Tala, Hope Tala & Luna Li, Julianna Barwick, Julianna Barwick and Mary Lattimore, Luna Li, Mar 66, Mary Lattimore, Midnight Generation, NOTION, Outside Lands, Outside Lands 2025, Outside Lands night shows, Outside Lands night shows 2025, Public Works, Public Works SF, Rickshaw Stop, Still Woozy, Techno Tupac, The Great Northern, The Independent, Thundercat, Walker & Royce

After canceling last year’s arena tour, The Black Keys try to forge a new path forward while making their debut at LA’s Greek Theatre

June 9, 2025 by Josh Herwitt Leave a Comment

By Josh Herwitt //

The Black Keys with The Heavy Heavy //
Greek Theatre – Los Angeles
June 3rd, 2025 //

There are certain bands over the past two decades that didn’t attain mainstream success until years after their formation.

One that always stood out is Modest Mouse with the 90’s alt-rock group not reaching radio listeners and late-night TV viewers until their fourth LP Good News for People Who Love Bad News came out in 2004 and boasted Grammy-nominated hit “Float On” despite previously releasing three excellent albums over a four-year stretch at the start.

The Black Keys are another that immediately comes to mind, considering the bluesy garage-rock duo comprised of Dan Auerbach (guitar, vocals) and Patrick Carney (drums) issued five albums in a matter of six years before cracking the Top 10 of the U.S. Billboard 200 with its 2010 breakthrough Brothers.

While the Danger Mouse-produced effort climbed as high as No. 3 on the charts here in the states, it was the Keys’ subsequent studio material — 2011’s El Camino and 2014’s Turn Blue — that saw the two-piece level up to the No. 2 and No. 1 spots, respectively. We remember being struck by the latter upon first listen (read our album review here) that ended up as one of our favorites in a crowded field that year (see our picks here).

Auberbach and Carney have put out four more albums since then, with 2019’s Let’s Rock, 2021’s Delta Kream and 2022’s Dropout Boogie landing inside the Top 10 — an impressive feat considering that one was just covers of hill country blues songs they recorded “in about 10 hours.”

Things took a turn last spring when the two childhood friends from Akron unveiled Ohio Players and had to stomach not only the mixed reviews from critics, but also the fact that it marked their first album to not make the Top 20 in 18 years. Ironically enough, lead single “Beautiful People (Stay High)” still managed to receive Grammy nominations for Best Rock Performance and Best Rock Song even if only two other songs were dropped in advance of the 14-track LP.

The charts weren’t the only indication that Ohio Players lacked the same fanfare as the Keys’ previous albums, though. That became even more apparent when the five-time Grammy winners had to cancel their North American arena tour due to poor ticket sales, yet still hard to believe for a band that in 2013 was nominated for Album of the Year. Because as Carney told Rolling Stone earlier this year after the pair fired its management: “Shit happens.”

Just how bad did it get? We will let you be the judge, but they had to forfeit almost $10 million in ticket sales and agreed to play an “America Loves Crypto” concert in their hometown for “a lot of money” as the 2024 elections loomed. If that doesn’t sound at least a tad desperate, then we might be working in the wrong business and aren’t afraid to admit it.

Auerbach and Carney, nonetheless, weren’t waiting to put last year’s turmoil behind them. A month into this year, they had already announced the first leg of their “No Rain, No Flowers” tour beginning in May and revealed the same name for the Keys’ next album a week before a string of U.S. shows scheduled at smaller, yet iconic venues such as Red Rocks Amphitheatre and Berkeley’s historic Greek Theatre.

What’s also hard to believe is that the Keys have never stepped foot onstage at LA’s own Greek Theatre in all their visits to the entertainment capital. It probably wasn’t the way they wanted to make their debut after more than two decades on the scene, but that’s how fast the band’s ascent was in the early 2010’s as it bypassed midsize rooms and went straight from headlining clubs to arenas in a couple of years.

For as much commercial success as The Black Keys have attained however, their live show lacks the same element of surprise that has made Jack White one of today’s best rock acts to catch in the flesh after witnessing him command the stage during his sold-out shows at Hollywood Palladium and Santa Barbara Bowl (read our show review here) last month in electrifying fashion. Auerbach and Carney, on the other hand, aren’t ones to switch up their setlist every night when they definitely could, although it was a pleasure to hear them dust off “Too Afraid to Love You” for the first time since 2015 in LA.

The rest of the evening went pretty much according to plan, with a cover of Canned Heat’s 1968 hit “On the Road Again” that was followed by the title track on their 13th full length coming in August. So far only two songs off No Rain, No Flowers have been revealed, including “The Night Before” that came midway through the Keys’ 90-minute affair at the Greek. What might have been more noticeable toward the end of their two-song encore was no Ohio Players material had been performed, and while that has certainly been the trend on this tour, we would venture to guess it’s not merely by coincidence. Even their recent single “Babygirl” didn’t make the cut, and we would have loved to catch personal favorites like “Just Got to Be” on 2006’s Magic Potion, “Strange Times” from 2008’s Attack & Release and “Shine a Little Light” that opens 2019’s Let’s Rock. If anything, it’s a reminder of just how expansive The Black Keys’ catalog is at this point, and as much as we enjoy hearing “Weight of Love” get its moment in the spotlight, there is something about dialing up the same setlist that feels beneath where a band of this caliber should be. That might be asking a lot of Auerbach, Carney and their cast of touring sidekicks, but as fans from their early days, we know it’s what would keep us coming back for more.

THE BLACK KEYS

Setlist:
Thickfreakness / The Breaks / I’ll Be Your Man
Your Touch
Gold on the Ceiling
Fever
Wild Child
I Got Mine
Everlasting Light
Next Girl
The Night Before
Lo/Hi
Weight of Love
Too Afraid to Love You (first time live since 2015)
Tighten Up
On the Road Again (Canned Heat cover)
No Rain, No Flowers
Heavy Soul
Howlin’ for You
She’s Long Gone

Encore:
Little Black Submarines
Lonely Boy

Editors’ Note: The entire show can be viewed here.

THE HEAVY HEAVY

Setlist:
Parakeets
Miles and Miles
Lemonade
Man of the Hills
All My Dreams
Cherry
Go Down River
Happiness
One of a Kind

Filed Under: Editor's Picks, Featured, Live Music Reviews Tagged With: Billboard Hot 100 Festival, Canned Heat, Danger Mouse, Greek Theatre, Hollywood Palladium, Jack White, Modest Mouse, Red Rocks, Red Rocks Amphitheatre, Red Rocks Park & Amphitheatre, Red Rocks Park and Amphitheatre, Santa Barbara Bowl, The Black Keys, The Heavy Heavy

Jack White shows his SoCal fans why he’s Hall of Fame material with sold-out performances at Hollywood Palladium & Santa Barbara Bowl

May 19, 2025 by Josh Herwitt 4 Comments

Jack White at Hollywood Palladium

Photos courtesy of Jack White // Written by Josh Herwitt //

Jack White //
Hollywood Palladium & Santa Barbara Bowl – Los Angeles & Santa Barbara
May 12th-13th & 15th, 2025 //

If you talk to most people across the music industry and those who follow music, you won’t hear a lot of reverence for the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.

Even after being established more than 40 years ago, it has about as much clout as the Grammys do these days and let’s be honest … that’s not saying much.

But every once and a while the RRHOF nominating committee gets it right, and this year’s induction of The White Stripes felt appropriate along with Soundgarden and OutKast (we know what you’re thinking, but the latter actually is far from being the first hop-hop act to earn the honor).

The gritty, bluesy garage rock that poured out of Detroit natives Jack White (guitar, keyboards, piano, vocals) and Meg White (drums, percussion, vocals) in the late 90’s and early 2000’s until their parting was unlike anything anyone had heard and seen at that time from only two rock musicians — let alone two who were married to each other for the band’s first few years but publicly presented themselves as siblings before eventually divorcing — playing their respective instruments.

And although he won’t publicly admit this, much of that had to do ultimately with Jack’s creativity and virtuosity as a guitarist. His distinct and unmistakable style that’s often highlighted by his high-pitched, screeching solos has propelled him into elite company with other legendary six-stringers like the late Jimi Hendrix and Eddie Van Halen or the great Jimmy Page and Eric Clapton.

Since the Stripes called it quits back in 2011 and Meg decided to put down the sticks for good, Jack has continued writing music at a prolific rate as a solo artist first and foremost but also for his other projects that include The Raconteurs and supergroup The Dead Weather with Alison Mosshart of The Kills.

Jack White at Santa Barbara Bowl

His sixth solo album No Name, which was surprise released last summer and initially distributed in the form of a free 12-inch vinyl with all purchases made at any Third Man Records location, ranked as one of our favorites in 2024 (see our picks here) and was named in several other “Best of 2024” lists.

Nevertheless, we would have to wait more than six months after first hearing the new material to catch Jack and his new cast of sidekicks in Southern California. Missing out on tickets for his album release shows in more intimate settings such as Lodge Room and the Mayan in October, our next opportunity to see him in the flesh came early this year thanks to the annual NAMM Show in Anaheim. It was on a rainy Saturday night in late January that we saw White perform about half of the songs from No Name during a sold-out gig he announced at the Grove of Anaheim and sold tickets for just a few days prior.

With shows on his “No Name Tour” already booked in LA and Santa Barbara this spring, it was a little surprising to see Jack book another one in SoCal ahead of those dates, but that’s what one of the last remaining guitar heroes continues to do more than three decades into his career whether he’s making new music or playing live: surprise.

The support for this tour has followed very much in the same vein, with Jack selecting a local band from each city he visits and revealing who it will be with only hours to go before showtime. That’s not why we spent two straight nights at the Hollywood Palladium as we did three years ago at LA’s YouTube Theater (read our show review here) — or at the Shrine Auditorium in 2012 — and embarked on another trek up the coast to the Santa Barbara Bowl after witnessing Jack’s debut there in 2018 for his third studio effort Boarding House Reach (read our show review here), however.

A lot has changed for Mr. White since those tours. Outside of bassist Dominic Davis, his backing band has been turned over with Patrick Keeler (The Greenhornes, The Raconteurs and The Afghan Whigs) replacing Daru Jones on drums and Bobby Emmett subbed in for Quincy McCrary on keyboards. He’s also married again for a third time — and we all know how much he loves the number three with Jack White III serving as one of his two pseudonyms — with his wife Olivia Jean growing her own career in the music industry and contributing at times to his, including recently providing bass or drums for some tracks on No Name. And not that it’s any of our business, but it does seem like they are a “good match” for each other in true Motor City fashion (no pun intended). Plus, we would be remiss to not bring up the fact he has moved away from his strict “no phones” policy, which saw him partner with Yondr up until his return to the stage last year. Watching him shred one axe after the next through a sea of phones in LA might have felt a bit different than what we have come to expect after seeing more than a dozen of his shows, but we can’t say it completely ruined the experience for us with Jack on top of his game and the crowd’s energy level never wavering throughout his 90-minute sets.

All things aside not related to his music, the 12-time Grammy winner still remains a must-see every time he comes town and for us that’s anywhere within a reasonable driving distance. Because as his sound expands further into new territory — this time leaning even harder into his garage-rock roots with some punk elements — and his artistry evolves deeper with each album, Jack’s shows never get old no matter how many evenings you have previously spent with him. Sure, there was a decent amount of overlap in the setlists across these latest three concerts we witnessed, yet Jack’s penchant for improvisation in the live space continues to seep into the overall DNA of his performances and offers a level of ambiguity (in a great way) for fans. Of course a place in the Rock Hall is certainly well-deserved for a multi-hyphenate musician whose biggest hit has been heard blasting out of PA systems in arenas and stadiums at major sporting events for almost 20 years now. In fact, when’s the last time the home team didn’t play “Seven Nation Army” at one point during a game? If you really want to understand what makes Jack so special though, you have to experience the magic of his live shows for yourself.

MAY 12TH – HOLLYWOOD PALLADIUM

Setlist:
Intro Jam
Old Scratch Blues
That’s How I’m Feeling
Dead Leaves and the Dirty Ground (The White Stripes song)
Instrumental Jam
Me and the Devil Blues (Robert Johnson cover) (Soap&Skin version)
It’s Rough on Rats (If You’re Asking)
Little Bird (The White Stripes song) (with “Me and the Devi Blues” outro)
Hotel Yorba (The White Stripes song)
What’s Done Is Done
Broken Boy Soldier (The Raconteurs song)
Why Walk a Dog?
Sixteen Saltines
Cannon (The White Stripes song)
The Union Forever (The White Stripes song) (with “Cannon” outro)
Fell in Love With a Girl (The White Stripes song)

Encore:
Encore Jam
Archbishop Harold Holmes
I’m Slowly Turning Into You (The White Stripes song)
What’s the Rumpus?
Lazaretto
Underground (with “Me and the Devil Blues” outro)
Seven Nation Army (The White Stripes song)

MAY 13TH – HOLLYWOOD PALLADIUM

Setlist:
Intro Jam
Old Scratch Blues
I Wanna Be Your Dog (The Stooges cover)
That’s How I’m Feeling
Black Math (The White Stripes song)
Bombing Out
It’s Rough on Rats (If You’re Asking)
Let’s Build a Home (The White Stripes song)
What’s the Rumpus?
High Ball Stepper
Hello Operator (The White Stripes song)
I Cut Like a Buffalo (The Dead Weather song)

Encore:
Encore Jam
Steady, as She Goes (The Raconteurs song)
Archbishop Harold Holmes
Ball and Biscuit (The White Stripes song) (with “You Can’t Get That Stuff No More” by Tampa Red snippet)
Icky Thump (The White Stripes song)
Seven Nation Army (The White Stripes song)

MAY 15TH – SANTA BARBARA BOWL

Setlist:
Intro Jam
Old Scratch Blues
That’s How I’m Feeling
Dead Leaves and the Dirty Ground (The White Stripes song)
It’s Rough on Rats (If You’re Asking)
Little Bird (The White Stripes song)
Love Interruption
Cannon (The White Stripes song)
The Union Forever (The White Stripes song)
Tonight (Was a Long Time Ago)
Broken Boy Soldier (The Raconteurs song)
Lazaretto
The Hardest Button to Button (The White Stripes song) (shortened version; >)
Archbishop Harold Holmes

Encore:
Encore Jam
Icky Thump (The White Stripes song)
That Black Bat Licorice
Ball and Biscuit (The White Stripes song)
Underground
Seven Nation Army (The White Stripes song)