It’s not too often one sees 55+ adult faces light up like a ... [more]
Music
Ahead of His New Album, Jon Batiste Enchants at Chapman’s Musco Center
It’s not too often one sees 55+ adult faces light up like a five-year-old’s face on Christmas morning but this is what you get when you bring Jon Batiste for a solo show at Chapman’s two-year-old Musco Center for the Performing Arts. In truth, there were people of varying ages in attendance Friday night, their […]
Tesla’s Hair Metal Sound Still Resonates
During the heyday of glam metal, when bands like Motley Crüe, Poison, Cinderella, and many others always performed decked out in makeup, there was one band whom mostly opted to keep things simple, choosing flannels and jeans, over spandex and puffed up hair. Aside from this, the band Tesla also strayed away from the overdramatic and […]
How Miranda Sings’ Comedy Show Changed Our Perspective on Internet Stardom
By Hannah Wagner and Anne Marie Larson Saturday night, a tag team of Weekly reporters went to Colleen Ballinger’s variety show held at the Musco Center for The Arts in Orange. While “Colleen Ballinger” might not mean much to those over the age of 13, she is better known as Miranda Sings – the […]
The Millennial Club Infuse Jazz and R&B Into Modern Indie Pop
For a band embracing the “millennial” culture so much that they named themselves The Millennial Club, the Whittier-based quartet certainly likes to keep a bit of a throwback sound in their tunes. Even from the first listen, The Millennial Club’s blend of modern indie-pop with some old school jazz and R&B elements brings to life […]
The Best Concerts in OC Sep.21-27
Friday, Sep. 21 The Bash Dogs, Cat Signs, Blanco Nino, 8 p.m., $8, 21+, The Wayfarer, 843 W. 19th St., Costa Mesa (949) 764-0039, www.wayfarercm.com The Game, 8 p.m., $25, all ages, The Observatory, 3503 S. Harbor Blvd., Santa Ana, (714) 957-0600, www.observatoryoc.com. Hell or Highwater, 9 p.m., $10, 21+, Marty’s on Newport 14401 Newport […]
Long Beach’s Legendary World Famous VIP Records Launches a Center for the Streets
For 40 years, the World Famous VIP Records and Tapes was central Long Beach’s cornerstone. Not only was it the mecca of G-funk, but it also provided a cool place to pass the time while shielded from the ills of street life on Pacific Coast Highway and Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue. For those who […]
Manuel the Band Brings Eclectic Jams to Music Tastes Good
In the visual age of Instagram, listeners can often tell loosely what a band sounds like based on how they look. With one look at a band, it’s generally easy to tell the heavy metal groups from the synth-pop duos and the punk rockers from the rap collectives. But if the artist in the photo […]
To Christopher Brand, Tattoos Are Symbols Of Resistance
Tattoos have always been associated with outsider culture. The INK: Stories on Skin, which unites local histories and creates a historical narrative of tattoo culture from Long Beach, the Pike Amusement Park district, the US Navy, LA Chicano culture and tattoo art, shows us that it’s a little more nuanced than that. INK is now […]
Dark Craft Desserts Delivers a Slice of Heavy Metal Sweetness
Among the countless varieties of bakeries located within the vastness of Orange County, only one has the power to brighten the day for the blackest of souls. Located in a semi-industrial shopping center in Los Alamitos, Dark Craft Desserts specializes in heavy metal themed cookies, brownies, cakes and more, all custom baked to order. Among […]
Sept. 21 is Rosie Flores Day in Surf City
San Antonio-born Rosie Flores is a Texas tornado of a rockabilly/alt.-country singer-guitarist, as evidenced during a blazing Friday night show recently that was part of her residency that began in May at Austin’s C-Boy’s Heart & Soul. Flores was 12 when her family moved from Texas to San Diego, where beginning in high school she […]
Knott’s Scary Farm Plumbs the Depths of Earth and Space with New Mazes
The scares are back in town! This year at Knott’s Berry Farm’s annual Halloween-themed incarnation, Knott’s Scary Farm, many popular mazes, scare zones, and attractions will return. Meanwhile the theme park’s newest productions show that Knott’s is still among the creme of the crop in terms of original cutting edge horror entertainment. Beginning this Thursday, […]
Long Beach Zine Fest Reminds Us Why Handmade Art Still Matters in the Digital Age
“I need to release this…” “I need someone to see this…” I watch organizers of Long Beach Zine Fest run around everywhere, answering questions, and frantically organizing people and things. I stand in front of a giant printed map like I’m a lost 90s tween looking for Hot Topic at the Westminster Mall. I’m looking […]
Nocturnal Wonderland Lights the Way For This First-Time Raver
UPDATE: According to Fontana Herald News, Timothy Hoang, a 23-year-old resident of Westminster, became unresponsive on Saturday, at approximately 1:45 a.m., in the medical tent of Nocturnal Wonderland. He was then transported to the Community Hospital of San Bernardino, where the San Bernardino County Sheriff Coroner’s Division pronounced him dead. Anyone wishing to contribute to Hoang’s […]
Long Beach Zine Fest Celebrates a Community Made From Scratch
Throngs of hipsters, families and hipster-families attended this year’s Long Beach Zine Fest at the Expo Arts Center, a community arts hub in the Bixby Knolls neighborhood, on September 15. Upon entering, attendees faced a delectable spread of colorfully decorated tables with artists selling their wares — T-shirts, funky prints, and of course, zines galore […]
Trumpers Find New Troubadour in Yellow Red Sparks Singer Josh Hanson
Unleashed with a fury in these Trump times, the far right likes to position itself as the new counterculture despite relying more on meme magic than music. Through folksy voices like Woody Guthrie, Malvina Reynolds and Buffy Sainte-Marie, protest songs have solidly sided with the left for decades. Josh Hanson of Yellow Red Sparks, one […]
Korn Keeps It Together Despite 20 Years of Coming Undone
The ‘90s was a nutty time for music. Following the ‘80s, the decade of decadence, it can be argued that 1994 turned into another year of decadence coupled with depravity. It just so happens that was the year Korn released their seminal self-titled album. Songs like “Blind” opened the eyes of a new generation of […]
The Best Concerts in OC Sep. 14-20
Friday, Sep. 14 Radio Moscow, Petyr, Monarch, 8 p.m., $10-$12, 21+, The Wayfarer, 843 W. 19th St., Costa Mesa (949) 764-0039, www.wayfarercm.com. Failing Up, Stay Wild, The Downsides, Sweatpants, Fockstail, 6 p.m., $15, all ages, Garden Amp (The Locker Room), 12762 Main St., Garden Grove, (949) 415-8544, gardenamp.com Beach Bums, The Side Eyes 3LH, Hexed, […]
John Kraus and the Goers’ Sea Shanties are Nautical by Nature
For all of the rockers, rappers, and artists in between who swear they “live” the lifestyle represented in their music, few can make that claim as accurately as John Kraus. A lot of the people who first hear Kraus and his backing band, the Goers, probably aren’t even too familiar with the stories behind the […]
Gilbert Castellanos Quintet Enlivens Jazz Standards at Casa Jazz Club
For day two of its 2nd Annual Casa Jazz Club this past Sunday, Casa Romantica Cultural Center and Gardens presented the Gilbert Castellanos Quintet. The San Diego-based five-piece brought sizzle to jazz standards and sparkle to an overcast afternoon. Including Tommy Aros on congas who toured with Luis Miguel, one of the world’s greatest Latin […]
Legendary DJ Big Bert Leads A Rolling Culture Forward at Fountain Valley Skating Center
A handful of nerdy high schoolers lurch off the floor at the Fountain Valley Skating Center. It’s a Thursday night and for the entire day, the planet has been dealing with the passing of their Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin. Silence falls over the dated building tucked away in a western Orange County parking lot […]
KAABOO Keeps Growing Up With Diverse Lineups and Creative Options
The music scene is assorted and plentiful in 2018. With festivals and national tours rolling through OC on a regular basis there’s no debate we offer music lovers a taste of everything. While SoCal is regarded for its eclectic tastes in music and the arts, the three-day experience known as KAABOO Del Mar is unique […]