Your Music Magazine

ALL GIBSONS ON SALE !

NOW THROUGH OCTOBER!!

Always 18 and over!

November 28th

11/14Stellar Corpses Your Music Magazine Presents Check: yourmusicmagazine.com For Complete Line-Up

also Misery & Company

10/03Acoustic Shadows 10/05- Robbie Allen & The Sun Dogs 10/10The Bronos Band 10/11Pre Halloween Good Egg Production 10/17Room For a Ghost 10/18- Bright Black Morning Light 10/24- Table 4 3, Mark Harvey Band 10/25- 20 Grit Indie Outeredge 10/31Billy Martini Show 11/01- Living Legends + DJ’s 11/07- Emmanuel Selassie Pure Roots 11/08- Echo Bridge 11/14- Your Music Magazine 11/15- Folkyeah 11/21- Dark Town Cullan's Hounds 11/22- Mark Harvey 11/28- Misery & Co. Stellar Corpses 11/29- Five A.M.

we deliver to the beach, campus & pretty much anywhere in santa cruz! or dine-in

no order too big

free wi-fi sports on HD tv’s patio dining

Save $ 00

3

On a Large or XL Pizza with 1 or more toppings

not good with other offers. please mention coupon number YM-1 when ordering

Please drink

lunch & late night deals, menu & more: woodstockscruz.com 710 front st (next to trader joe’s) • (831) 427-4444

responsibly.

Voted Santa Cruz's Best Pizza! - 2008 Metro Goldies

endless deliveries

YMM STAFF CONTACT:

Thurs Oct 2 @ Zen Lounge Inner Orbit Machine, Usurper Vong, The Mechanical Snails Fri Oct 3 @ Grant & Green Burlacticus Undertow, Sarah Jane, Bella Bella Wed Oct 8 @ VooDoo Lounge The Flood, Song of the Siren, Audiochild, Brightwood

Mike Lyon ☛Editor In Chief - (831) 477-0503 mikelyon@yourmusicmagazine.com Mike Garing ☛Director of Sales and Marketing Event Coordinator - (831) 247-8981 mikegaring@yourmusicmagazine.com Jake Student ☛ Online Sales and Marketing (831) 477-0503 jakestudent@yourmusicmagazine.com Jessica Ashley Skelton ☛ Managing Editor Jessica@yourmusicmagazine.com Itay K ☛Layout/Design/Staff Writer itay@yourmusicmagazine.com Vincente ☛ Editor vincente@yourmusicmagazine.com Ashley Lyon ☛ Assistant Editor

Thurs Oct 16 @ Zen Lounge Primary, The Record Winter, one more TBA

Contributing Writers ☛Mattie Bamman, Mike Romans, Barb Rocks, Darien Lomeli, Tracy Forsyth-Lundy, Lidia Galvan, Kevin Madness, Jake Student, J.C. Haydon, Sarai Thomas, Dave Pirtle, John Lewis, Jessica Skelton, Hanz Groper, Holly English, Kimberly Johnson, Josh Cardona, Aaron Froke, Bubba, Josh Pierson, and Elfin.

Fri Oct 17 @ Catalyst - Atrium Stage Sarah Jane, Here Kitty Kitty, Matt Masih and The Messengers

Contributing Photographers ☛ Alan Ralph, Ron Arcarolli, Chris Pollard, Mattie Bamman, Charr Crail

Sat Oct 18 @ Britannia Arms - Cupertino North Swell, more TBA

Computer & Tech Support ☛ Frank Jimenez Northstar - (831) 724-2083

Thurs Oct 9 @ Zen Lounge Good Hustle, Whiskey State, Letters Make Words Sat Oct 11@ Britannia Arms - Cupertino Desecrater, more TBA

Wed Oct 22, 2008: at the VooDoo Lounge in downtown San Jose!

Whiskey State, Letters Make Words, Sarah Jane, The Arcadists

Distribution ☛ Phil Murphy, Hanz Groper, Sexciety, Barb Rocks, Blood Print, Big Foot Bamman Perverse Recreation, First Amendment Distributions

Sat Oct 25 @ Britannia Arms - Cupertino Dimidium, NothingLeft, Keeping Score, A Single Second

Your Music Magazine ☛ 1515 Capitola Rd. Unit: M

Thurs Oct 30 @ Zen Lounge Perverse Recreation, more TBA Wed Nov 5 @ VooDoo Lounge Save And Continue, Inverse, Silent Treatment Sat Nov 8 @ Britannia Arms - Cupertino Whiskey State, Inverse, more TBA

For Booking please send email to:

barbrocks@gmail.com

More info online: www.barbrocks.com www.myspace.com/barbrocks

Santa Cruz, CA 95062 (831) 477-0503

www.yourmusicmagazine.com myspace.com/yourmusicmagazine myspace.com/yourmusicmagbooking

Copyright 2008 Lyon Entertainment Publishing. Your Music Magazine is a registered trademark owned by Mike Lyon. All rights reserved. No part of this publication can be reproduced in any manner or form without prior written consent of the publisher. The Your Music Magazine staff is not responsible for claims made by advertisers. Your Music Magazine is published monthly by Lyon Entertainment.

Issue #63 October/November

Table Of Contents

HOT DOG EATING CONTEST AT WARPED TOUR BY: www.photographn.com

pg.9 Everlast pg.12 Judas Priest pg.14 Warped Tour pg.18 Sunspot Jonz pg.20 CD Reviews pg.26 Mastodon pg.28 Mischief Brew pg.29 Mike Ness pg.30 Pepper pg.32 Warped Tour Centerfold pg.35 SJ YMO Winners pg.36 SJ YMO Finals Review pg.40 Sick Blue pg.42 YMO SC Best Vocalist pg.43 Outside Lands Festival pg.44 My Stupid Brother pg.47 Luca Spanio pg.49 Fringe: ASR article pg.50 Hadag Nahash pg.55 Jason “J-Dog” Hdez pg.56 Metal Masters Tour

NEW ALBUM OUT NOW!!

the record is huge or not, you know, that’s really up to the people, man. You can’t determine what the people are gonna dig, so all’s I can do is make the kind of record I want to hear. I’m really proud of the record, man. I feel like I really hit my stride making it. Everybody puts out a new record, you know and ‘oh, it’s the best record I ever made!’

I’m the happiest with this record. I’ve been really enjoying playing a lot of these songs live, and I’m looking forward to get out there.

How is this release different than your previous solo releases?

The new album’s been done for a while. Why did the release date get held back so long?

Initially, I had finally settled on a June date, but because I started my own label situation - I partnered with my publishing company, actually and I was looking for distribution in Europe. Then when I found a distribution company in Europe, they were really concerned about releasing the record at the same time in Europe as they did here, so they needed more time. Obviously with technology, once you release a record here, it’s released around the world, basically, so we had to push it from June to September. Not being a part of a huge conglomerate has its benefits and advantages and it has its drawbacks - and one of the drawbacks is that I’ve got to depend on a few other people in certain circumstances and I have to accommodate for them in certain circumstances. I think it’ll work out for the best.

Is there a difference in putting out an album on your own without the support of a major label?

Aw, dude, it’s hard work! You take for granted a lot. I don’t regret what I’m doing or miss the major label that much, but you do realize, ‘wow, there’s a lot more work going into this than meets the eye.’

But, you know, it’s all good. I’d rather be doin’ it the way I’m doin’ it. First of all, the music business is in shambles, you know, as long as I can get my distribution on, we’ll see what happens. Whether

Well, mostly it was different just because while I was making it, I wasn’t making it for anybody. I didn’t have a record deal or label deal in place for this. I was just making music for the sake of music.

Everything I like starts at home just on an acoustic guitar and I tried to move away from it and build that up more. You know, I feel like I developed a sound of like break-beats and acoustic, kind of a folky kind of thing and I just felt like now it’s time to expand the sound and maybe get a little more aggressive. I’ve always had comments on society, but never really political and I think I got a little more political on this record. I just think that the times kind of call for it. If you have any kind of opinion and you’re an artist, if you don’t express it, you’re shorting yourself and the music.

Do you feel that politics in music can have an effect on public opinion?

It’s a double-edged sword. Even though I am a musician who has a political opinion, I’ve also always been one of those guys that hates seeing musicians get up in front of a crowd and talk as if they know - as if they know better. For me, it’s an opinion. I’m always welcome to any idea that contradicts mine - that can prove me or my opinion wrong - or expand my opinion or even improve my opinion. I think that’s the problem with a lot of the world today… especially in politics. Even if you put all of the topics that I talk about aside, it seems like nowadays two people can’t just disagree without bashing each other’s credibility or personality. Especially watching this election go down. One of the things I like about Barack Obama is that he’s like ‘look, I don’t have to bash

John McCain. I don’t have to really fuck him over...

I can tell the truth about what his record is and we can discuss that openly.’ The thing about Barack Obama’s candidacy for me is that, as much as it’s proving that for the youth of America, race really isn’t playing that much of a factor anymore, it’s also proving that there’s definitely a large amount of people out there that are working the racist angle and do not want to see a black man get this job. So, it’s a very interesting thing to watch. We’re at a crossroads right now, and I’m not just talking about Barack Obama with this - and it’s either gonna get better, or it’s gonna get a lot worse.

never see the light of day, but I wanted to play it for you because I plan to put it on my record’ type of thing. He’s just been super supportive and gone above and beyond the call of duty to help get the song cleared for the video and all kinds of stuff. He even went as far as to tell me he thought his dad would have liked it a lot.

What are your plans once the album’s released?

Well, I’m supposed to be hittin’ the road here in another couple of weeks for a month or two doing a small club tour. To get out there and get

Who are some of your influences in the music world?

Aw, man, if you listen to my record, it’s obvious there’s tons. It would start with Run DMC and all that early hip hop, working on into BDP and Public Enemy, Neil Young, Tom Waits... Johnny Cash, of course. I’m a fan of Leonard Cohen.

I’m a big fan of old school R&B - you know, Sam Cooke, Otis Redding, Aretha Franklin... it comes from everywhere. I try to incorporate that into the music too - have a little bit of everything and still have it make sense and work. I think that’s what I’m probably best at is blending all these styles.

I’ve always thought of myself, in a weird way, as a DJ, you know. I’ll be like ‘I like that style of music and this style of music and how do I blend them properly’... I’d approach them almost as a DJ might with two records and try to figure out what spots work together and what spots don’t. That helps me - that B-boy kind of mentality has helped me, I think, become better at blending music.

What inspired the Folsom Prison Blues cover?

Well, Folsom Prison Blues... Muggs and myself were actually doing mash-ups live. Not quite what A.M. and Travis do, but we were doing our own version, like Muggs would be cuttin’ up beats, and we’d have our boy playing keyboards, and I’d be playing guitar and singing. We’d cover songs and I would do some of my own and we would do it all live and blend it up with hip hop beats. Folsom Prison Blues was one of those songs that we’d do live. After doing it a certain amount of times, I was like, ‘this sounds kind of good to me. I think we should record it.’ and everybody else thought we should record it too. It was just one of those things that came about naturally. We tried to stay true to it, but at the same time throw our own spin on it. I even took it to Johnny Cash’s son. You know, I’m a fan of Johnny Cash and I wouldn’t want to do anything that his family thought was disrespectful.

I flew down to Nashville and met with him and said exactly that to him, like, ‘if you don’t like this, it will

“The MUSIC business isn’t dead. The RECORD business is dead.”

- Everlast

the name back out and get people recognizing that I’m comin’ around, you know, and grind to try and get this record out there. Everybody knows, the record business is a tough business. You know, it ain’t the ‘90s anymore... people used to buy records on the regular. Even myself, my favorite day of the week used to be Tuesday ‘cause I could go down to Tower and check out all the new music that came out and pick ‘em up - ones I knew were comin’ out and even one’s I’d never heard of before.

Now there’s no Tower Records. There’s no Virgin Records. You know, Ameoba is the last bastion of a record store here in LA. It’s a tough game, man, and everybody’s adapting. The younger people comin’ up are gonna have it a little bit better. I tell people all the time ‘the music business isn’t dead, but the record business is dead.’ What that means is that the new technology is taking over. The kids growing up with that technology have an advantage right now and guys like me are having or had to adapt or switch gears. Because I’m from a generation that’s before this computer age of the music business, I’m still playing catch-up a little bit and trying to figure it all out.

Judas Priest – The Gods of Metal Return!

-By Tracy Forsyth-Lundy -Photos photographn.com Judas Priest has not only released a magnificent new album, Nostradamus, they have also embarked on yet another world tour, bringing their classic Heavy Metal performances to their hundreds of thousands of loyal fans to revel in. I am proudly one of those fans and have been since the late 1970’s (I started rocking at a very early age compared to most).

Priest has a sound like no other and a show that no band can even come close to cloning; they are pioneers of Heavy Metal and certainly deserve great respect for all of their accomplishments. I generally don’t get over excited about much anymore, but knowing I had an interview with the one and only Ian Hill from Judas Priest made me a giddy little school girl all week long! I’m quite certain I drove my husband batty for days talking about them, listening to all of my albums and CD’s – YES I can get a wee bit carried away but let’s be real – Judas Priest really does RULE! I remember the last tour I saw, it was ‘Turbo’ and I was in heaven with their performance. When they played Calgary this July – it was the 4th time I’ve seen Judas Priest perform live.

With a new album in tow, Judas Priest worked their way across Europe and toured North America during the summer.

Check pg. 56 for a Metal Masters Tour review!

TFL: Let’s talk about Nostradamus; LOVE IT! Chip sent me a copy of the CD IH: Yeah Good!

TFL: I’ve been listening to it and I have to say, to me being a Priest fan for as many years/decades as I have been one, I would have to say that this is your masterpiece! Where did you get the idea for the format? I love how you have “Dawn” which goes into “Prophecy” and you have “Awakening” which is the start of “Revelations”; who came up with that brilliant idea of having those instrumental segues.

IH: Yeah it was Ken and Glen that came up with that. They do all the musical writing you know not all of the lyrics, so it was Ken and Glen who came up with that. It wasn’t just that though, I mean the songs themselves have to be able to fit together if you know what I mean. The musical piecing between the songs has to be relevant to both if you understand, so there was a lot of thought that went into the actual songs themselves so they would in fact flow into one another properly.

TFL: I like the operatic tones that they are using and the classical piano that is in some of the songs and the strings and the violins that are also in a lot of the songs.

IH: Yeah!

TFL: Then it will go right into “Death” which is a nice hard Heavy Metal song or “Conquest” which to me is like a classic Judas Priest kind of groove, right? It is the most mature Judas Priest album I have heard.

IH: I think that is probably hitting the nail on the head; maturity yeah. We were considering where to go with the next project and we came up with the idea of Nostradamus. This is something new and something we can get our teeth into. It’s a brilliant idea.

TFL: Why a double CD? Was it just because of the material that ended up coming out from the creation process?

IH: That’s right! There were different aspects to his life and his experiences, and that’s how long it took. Like I say, the musical pieces in between as well in many cases are songs in themselves. We weren’t time watching at all. We just sort of did what we did and then times it was

‘Jesus it’s an hour and 45 minutes [laughing]! So, yeah that’s as long as it took.

TFL: After 30 years of touring, performing, recording, what keeps you guys going as strong as you are?

IH: It’s funny. you know. It’s something that you just always do. You can’t imagine yourself not doing it! It’s one of those things that you know, you do; finish a tour and you put your guitar away and you leave it there for a couple of months [laughing]. You don’t even want to see it at the end of a tour. But after a couple of months you really do start to miss it again and out it comes you know what I mean and it all starts all over again. That’s what keeps us going, I think it’s the love of the music and the pure unadulterated love of what we do for a living. It keeps us all going and keeps us all young.

TFL: Do you see a difference in the crowds now? Do you see a difference in the crowds or the reactions of the fans over the years?

IH: The thing is I look down the stage and you expect to see people my age there and there are – there are quite a few people! But there are so many more young faces down there and that is great news; not just for us but with Heavy Metal.

Traditional Heavy Metal in general, I think, is having a tremendous resurgence at the moment and it’s so heartening to see the younger faces in the audience.

It just means it’s going to continue for another generation or two and probably beyond. There is no reason why it shouldn’t. So no there is not a great deal of change, in the mid 90’s there you had the mosh pits and things like that. People running into each other – it was a bit different [laughing] but even that seems to have died out. Now I think people are just there to see the band and listen to the music the way they were all those years ago.

TFL: Are you surprised at the longevity of Judas Priest?

IH: With hindsight, no I’m not. If you had asked me that sort of question 10 years ago, well yes I would have been surprised. It’s only because there is nothing to replace it. It is something that is very popular and there is nothing else on the menu – it’s as simple as that. It’s why it’s kept going as long as it has!

40 years it has been going. 1969 really with Sabbath and ourselves, we were running a ’69 tour. Other types of music have come and gone. Punk and New Wave sort of stuff has been replaced with another ‘fad’ type music but Heavy Metal and Heavy Rock has always been there. It’s always been there; never too popular, never out of sight. It’s just always been there. I think it will always continue. Bands, not just ourselves but the other established bands as well, if we can carry on as long as we can until one of us drops [laughing].

TFL: I’m sure you get a lot of fans that are musicians or are working on bands who talk to you – when they ask you for advice Ian, what do you tell them?

IH: I think its patience; you’ve got to be patient. Even if you are brilliantly gifted, you ain’t going to make it overnight. There is no such thing as an overnight success.

All the overnight successes I know have been working at it for 10 years. That’s the main thing, if you’ve got what you feel is a good band then try to stay together. I know it’s difficult when success is not coming straight away but if you can keep a good talented band together sooner or later someone is going to notice them.

Patience even more today than days gone by, the root of all trouble these days is illegal downloading. It goes like this – because the record companies are not making any money, they are not signing any new bands. It’s killing new music, it’s not effecting established bands like ourselves or Maiden or anyone else who has been around for 20, 30, 40 years. We’ve got a huge back catalogue that will keep selling in droves but the new bands are not getting the breaks because everyone is giving their music away for nothing. It’s got to be patience.

Great advice from a legendary musician! If you have not had the opportunity to hear their new CD ‘Nostradamus’ then get online and check it out or head down to your music store and buy the CD – BUY IT!! RAWK ON!

At the Shoreline Amphitheatre in Mountain View this year, Warped Tour was a lot less punk. Don’t get me wrong, plenty of awesome punk bands spit, picked, and kicked at rapid speeds, like Against Me!, The Bronx, The Vandals, The Briggs, Street Dogs, The Germs, Rise Against, GBH, the Horrorpops, Agent Orange, and many, many more, but other styles of music were also featured.

Norma Jean, Every Time I Die, and All That Remains got the metal on, and TAT, Cobra Starship, Story of the Year, Motion City Soundtrack, and The Devil Wears Prada added a pop flavor. Warped Tour is a truly huge event, with 10 stages and, like, thousands of bands. It is a training ground for up and coming bands to prove they have what it takes. It is also full of momma’s boys.

As inexperienced crowd-surfers hugged security guards like giant Paddington Bears, I noticed the crowd was mostly under-agers. The older punkers, with torn clothes and stinking of missed shower opportunities, stood out against the crisp, bleached-tipped haircuts and mommy-fresh concert tees. But everyone shared the mosh pits and sang along with the choruses, and most of the bands performed impressive sets and a few of them sucked. While the concert is basically designed to be too vast for particulars, The Germs (now reformed with new lead singer Shane West in place of Darby Crash) were totally punk as fuck. They didn’t care whether anyone in the audience clapped between their songs or even listened for that matter. Ex-Nirvana guitarist, Pat Smear, wore a self-contented perma-smile on his face for the entire set.

Because the Warped Tour jungle is sometimes hard to navigate, full of leopard-fuzz and spikedbracelets, we over at Your Music Magazine thought we’d offer you a helpful approach to next year’s show. Here’s a guide to get the best out of Warped Tour:

1.

The line-up changes every show and the bands usually start playing before the scheduled time, so arrive early to make sure you don’t miss your favorite band.

2.

Unfortunately, the line to get in usually wraps around the entire venue several times. But if you’re over 21, no worries! With beers starting at $9 inside, make sure you get really wasted by drinking ice-cold alcohol long before noon rolls around. Getting frisked won’t be such an invasive process and afterward they just let you loose inside. Oh, but if you’re not over 21, you should make sure not to do this.

3.

sunscreen. Sunscreen. SUNSCREEN!

4.

“My mom gave me enough money to buy 3 t-shirts.”

“Dude, are you gonna buy your merch now, or like, later?”

BUY IT NOW.

5.

“I feel like I’m at 6 Flags.” You are. Only instead of going on rides you get to watch punk and smoke pot. How’s it feel to be growin’ up?

6.

Realize, before entering the show that you will miss at least one of the bands you really wanted to see. This will allow you to just relax and enjoy the melodies. I mean, there are 10 stages for keeerist-sakes. While the set times were pretty accurate sometimes, you simply cannot be in 2 places at once.

7.

Don’t mosh/Do mosh. A few times during the day, bands completely stopped their sets and stared into the audience due to intense moshing. For example, All That Remains stopped playing and wouldn’t play again until the moshing/fighting stopped. Lead singer Phil Labonte exclaimed, “We only have 30 minutes to play and you guys want to waste it moshing.” So, don’t mosh. Or better yet, go watch a band that thinks it’s cool to watch you get knocked the fuck out by some biker dude.

8.

You can’t bring full beverages into the venue, but you can bring an empty bottle. Savings: $5, every time you’re thirsty.

9.

If they’re giving out free energy drinks, you’d better to get your’s sooner than later. They ran out around 4:00pm in Mountain View.

10.

Though the Warped Tour has mostly gone to the kids, there’s no reason old-farts and young squirts can’t get along. So buy some little kid a beer or give the grampylookin’-dude sittin’ in the shade a big hug: That old punker may have seen The Germs when they were still The Germs.

“I don’t know what it is about this song that makes me shake my hips uncontrollably,” screamed scream med lead singer Gabe Saporta from the stage. And he did itt too. The whole band wiggled through their set somewhat uncontrollably, and when I looked around, most of thee audience was doing it too. I knew something was going on, but I wasn’t sure what. So I asked drummer Nate Novarro Novvarro to explain. an interview with

Cobra Starship

YMM: Cobra Starship seems like they have a lot of fun. Did your parents give you good drugs?

Nate: Dimetapp. The purple.

YMM: Today, someone gave a replica of Gabe to you guys when you were on stage. What other things have you gotten from fans?

Nate: Well, a year ago or so someone gave us Samurai swords. I mean, legit samurai swords, and we were in Canada and had to cross the border and shit. I mean, why would you do that? They were cool, but I don’t want them. Also, we get a lot of artwork. People come on our bus and they see all these portraits of us, and they think they’re photographs, but someone actually drew them with charcoal.

YMM: What show dates have stood out during Warped Tour?

Nate: Chicago was sweet. Miami really stands out cause the whole crowd was moving. I mean, usually it’s a select few in the front moving, but it was moving all the way past the soundboard. Insane.

YMM: Do you shoot off confetti at every show?

Nate: Every set. And the stage guys get bummed if it’s windy, cause then all the confetti comes in rather than out, and then they have to clean it all up. And Dan Lipski, our tour manager, he has to sweep it all off of the stage.

YMM: That’s good. You don’t have to do it. So, what are you guys doing when you’re always late?

Nate: Showering. We’ll be like, we have 5 minutes before a signing or an interview and someone will say, “Alright, I just gotta take a shower.” Then they’ll like try on all these different clothes. It’s a whole process. I’m not tooting my own horn, but I am almost never late. Except today when I was 5 minutes late.

YMM: 5 minutes isn’t really late in this business. So your lead singer Gabe was kinda of suggesting on stage today that there’s some incestuous behavior going on within the band between himself, keyboardist Victoria, and bassist Alex. Is it true?

Nate: Well… ah… well… Oh my god, last night was so much fun. So, I come on the bus and I’m going to the back and Victoria is sittin’ on our tour manager, Dan Lipski’s lap. That’s normal, and I didn’t think anything about it, but as I pass by, Victoria’s like, “Nate, it’s not weird if Dan and I make out is it?” And I’m like,

“No, not at all,” and they start making out after I leave. How weird is that? I love it. I love awkwardness. And it wasn’t just once. They did it like 8 times.

YMM: Is it a love connection or an experiment in absurdism?

Nate: I think it was just a couple teenagers having a good time. It’s just love. That was that. And it’s still funny.

YMM: What’s up for Cobra Starship after Warped Tour?

Nate: The same day as the last day of Warped Tour, we fly to Australia. We’re gone. So, we lose a day flying there, then we play a show the next day. We’re going with Panic! At The Disco and Academy Is…, so it’ll be good. From there we’re doing New Zealand and Japan. Then we’re working on a new album a little bit, and then heading out on a headlining tour on October 6th, across the States. With Forever The Sickest Kids, Sing It Loud, and Hit The Lights. So we’re booked up until like Christmas.

YMM: You said your signing would be a party, was it?

Nate: Yeah, actually we’re shooting a video, like a DIY video for Kiss My Sass and we did the signing at the Truth Bus. Like, Gabe DJ’d and all these kids jammed out to a remix of one of our songs. It totally was a party.

YMM: It just keeps goin’. Well, anything else you’d like to add?

Nate: Stay classy.

Interview by Mattie John Bamman

TAT are new on the scene, but they’re creating quite a buzz. The trio from England is fronted by Tatiana DeMaria, whose vocals and explosive personality have many fans comparing her to Joan Jett. After their set, drummer Jake Reed, bassist Nick Kent, and singer/ guitarist Tatiana DeMaria sat down to talk about what it takes to make it in the rock’n’roll business and, of course, tattoos.

YMM: How’s the tour? You don’t seem to be bleeding out of the ears or anything?

Tatiana: It’s going really great. We actually just got a 2 weeks break, touring the US with Alice Cooper. We only got back to Warped Tour this morning, so I think it would be really unfair to say we’re tired. Now we’re back and we’re ready to do it! The whole three days there are left. (laughs) YMM: What was it like touring with Alice Cooper?

Nick: It was amazing. He’s a rock legend and opening up for him every night - we were the only band opening up - we got to just set up our stuff, play the show, then enjoy his show.

Tatiana: He’s wonderful and his crew, they were super supportive and the crowds were amazing. I don’t think it could have been any better.

YMM: I heard you guys had crowds coming particularly to see you. Not bad for a relatively new group.

Tatiana: We got lucky in that the Warped Tour schedule took us through a bunch of cities before we did the Alice Cooper shows. So when we went back to places like St. Louis and Milwakee, we’d been there before and luckily picked up a bunch of fans. It was wicked. We had circle pits and mosh pits. But Alice’s crowd was amazing. They were out of their seats screaming and dancing and we were like, Holy shittles.

YMM: Shittles? So, do you have a CD coming out?

Nick: Our E.P. came out in June, it’s a little taste of what the album will be like, which is coming out on October 28th.

It’s called Soho Lights.

Tatiana: Which will be available everywhere, like, your mom’s house. Hey, why did the rabbit with no tail cross the road?

YMM: Why? Tatiana: To go to the retailer!

YMM: (groan). So you guys are into tattoos…

Nick: Yeah, we’ve been collecting them over the summer.

Tatiana: But one of our drivers has gotten the most, he’s had 4 in the last 3 weeks. Our tour manager had 2 in the 3 weeks.

Nick: I got this [tattoo] 2 years ago during Warped Tour actually. I just got this one by Oliver Peck. He follows the tour around…

YMM: What’s up after Warped Tour?

Nick: We have a week off and then we’re on tour with Lag Wagon and MXPX through Canada and America for the next 2 months.

Tatiana: We’re not going home until Christmas. Then we’re on the road for the better part of 2009. It’s still being concretized.

YMM: I heard Europe has a different style of respecting rock musicians.

Tatiana: Yeah, Europe does but the UK doesn’t. The UK has waves that come in bursts and they die very quickly.

Then America picks them up, like they’ll pick up an aspect of indie trend and make a whole market out of it, whereas the UK will have one or two days that explode and then that’s it. And everything goes in waves. Here you have a metal market, an indie market, an alternative market, a punk market, and they all happen simultaneously. In UK only one thing is big at a time.

YMM: You can’t really tour the UK to build up your name either.

Nick: No, cause it only takes 2 weeks.

Tatiana: You can tour North America for 4 months. But when you tour Europe, you strictly tour one country at a time. When you’re in France, you get French radio play, then when you move on to another country, it begins again. The US is like, built for bands.

YMM: Are there pretty good parties during Warped Tour?

Nick: Oh yeah, we spend all our time getting fucked up and drinking and doing drugs. Just kidding. There are some great barbecues at night and we like to chill out like anyone else, but there are some people, and I’m not naming a band, who think it’s all about getting fucked up. It’s not. It’s about putting in your time, doing hard work so that people will get to know your music.

Tatiana: Yeah, you end up being a dick really. I mean, who’s really

that big in this day and age? Media has killed the superstar and the fans have killed the superstar. So that doesn’t exist.

It’s a struggle every day for people to do this. If you see someone sayin’ they’re getting fucked up every day and then ask about them a couple weeks later, more often than not you’ll hear that they broke up.

Jake: It’s a really bad vibe to give off to people. They think you’re a lazy prick.

Tatiana: And there really aren’t any lazy bands here. You’ll see a band member standing in the middle of the crowd with a sign strapped around their chest, cause it’s all about the promotion. That’s what Warped Tour is, a chance for a lot of bands.

Nick: One band I’ve seen doing that a lot is The Briggs.

They’re always passing out flyers and working their merchandise booth…

YMM: Yeah, I just interviewed Jason and he said they’ve been helping to serve lunch. Can you verify this?

Nick: Oh yeah, lots of bands do. They’ll say, Today’s food will be served by Motion City Soundtrack. (laughs) YMM: How can people learn more about you?

Tatiana: Check us out at www.myspace.com/tat or get our songs off iTunes.

The The BRIGGS BRIGGS Interview by Mattie John Bamman

The Briggs closed the Hurley.com stage for the day, ripping through their dirty yet catchy set. At times they reminded me of the skainfused hardcore from Boston skinheads (the S.H.A.R.P.’s, not the racist kind). One high point was a pirate tale told over their quick chords and skank beats. Joey LaRocca did a pretty awesome pirate accent too. Before their set, I met up Jason LaRocca, co-founder of the group and guitarist and singer.

YMM: You’ve played Warped Tour for a few years now.

What keeps you coming back?

Jason: Yeah, 2002 was our first one. Looking back at it, doing the whole thing was pretty cool, but when we were half way through the tour we were some pretty salty dogs, sayin, “I don’t remember it being this hard.” You look at it, and 2 weeks is a very different thing than 2 months. But once it’s over, you want it to come back.

YMM: Has this year stood out for any particular reason?

Jason: It has. Definitely on the West Coast, because this year’s Warped Tour is not a totally punk rock tour; there’s a lot of different music going on. But on the West Coast there’s the Old School Stage and in Canada there was the Union Stage, so there’s definitely been a lot of changing up on the tour. Last year was one of the best line-ups so far to me, when we shared the stage with Bad Religion and Tiger Army. It was hard to beat. But this year it’s come in waves because nobody’s played the whole tour except Against Me!, Street Dogs, and us.

YMM: So the line-up changes every day right?

Jason: Yeah, we’ll play first, we’ll play last, the same with every band. It’s pretty democratic.

YMM: Do you find over-crowding, like sound-interference from other stages?

Jason: Well, on this stage that we’re playing today, you have it divided into two sides, the Smartpunk and Hurley.com stage, so you hear the other band when they’re setting up and testing their gear on the other side of the stage while you’re playing. I mean, there is 10 stages, so it’s unavoidable.

YMM: What do you look forward to when the tour comes through home-state-California?

Jason: There’s gonna be a pinnacle point at the end of the tour when we’ll try to get everyone up on stage and sing along with our song “L.A.” off the new record and try to do a hometown homage. That’ll be our way of saying goodbye to Warped Tour this year.

YMM: What do you do during the days?

Jason: We’re pretty hands on. We like to hang out at the tent and be around people. Some bands hang out in their bus all day and I’ve tried that, I just can’t do it. We also try to be helpful, like we’ll help serve food on the lunch line and be catering/serving guys.

YMM: Do you have anything planned for after Warped Tour?

Jason: Yeah, we’re playing the Lead of Redding Festival in the UK next week and then we’re doing a European tour with Millencollin in November. I’ve never toured with them before, but I hear they’re a really amazing band.

YMM: Anything you’d like to add?

Jason: I. Love. Vegetables.

Sunspot Jonz is one of two founding members of the now widely popular Hip Hop ensemble Living Legends.

He is also known as a member of the early 90’s group Mystik Journeymen who grew a massive following in East Oakland by the mid 90’s.

I got a chance to catch up with Sunspot right after he finished his set for Ineffable Records packed-house show at The Catalyst in Santa Cruz. As short as it may be, we got right to the point about what drives this well respected veteran in the Hip Hop world.

Numerous: Let’s talk about what all this is about for you. Goin up on stage, makin music, how does all this make you feel at the end of the day?

Sunspot Jonz: It makes me feel like this is what I’m tryin to do. Display my message, let people know different options and choices in life through my own life and showing different runways and paths.

That’s what I’m rapping about just different paths, different paths that I’ve seen personally or have gone through.

Sunspot Jonz: …and it’s hard in life. Hip Hop is like if you’re privileged enough to have the special time for yourself to just sit there and think about things, some people just have to live and move through life.

I’m just gonna say it like this, I’m here just watching.

Numerous: Watching what? Like us as people in general?

Sunspot Jonz: I’m just watching, I’m a visitor. Like, every time I come here to Santa Cruz I learn, I learn alotta shit.

Sunspot Jonz: My path’s seen a lot of There’s a lot more than just beaches and different things but I’ve had to make sand, there’s college kids, there’s mother fuckers living with jobs, some with kids, something positive outta negative. there’s alotta shit.

Numerous: That’s hard in Hip Hop, there’s Numerous: What keeps you moving a lot of negativity nowadays… everyday?

Numerous: What’s your path been like?

People don’t get listened to anymore.

There’s a lot of things that people are thinking that they are keeping inside themselves and that’s why there’s a lot of problem nowadays. People are going into malls and shooting people, people are shootin up schools. There’s a lot of things that people want to say but they Numerous: To get to the core, the root, got it all vented up and they don’t know how to say it. what does Hip Hop represent to you?

Sunspot Jonz: Just believing maybe that somehow, someone is gonna understand.

Because this whole world is warped, and your take on it is important if you really believe in something. I really believe in something so I’m gonna drive it ya know what I mean? I’m gonna let people know.

Sunspot Jonz: Empowerment, love, a vent to all the bullshit, to really be able to say something and be like “You know what, fuck this shit.” If you do that, mother fuckers might not necessarily agree, but they’ll hear it all the way through and listen. That’s the hardest thing to do, is to get people to really listen to you.

A word from Numerous: On the shameless self-promotion tip, don’t miss the biggest giveaway of FREE LOCAL music that Santa Cruz has seen in a very long time. Last month I threw the first CDS for Free Show and it was a huge success, so I figure it’s about time to rock it again.

In case you don’t know the deal, here it is; I personally collect hundreds of free CDs and demos from as many artists from the Central Coast (and other parts of California) as I possibly can. Then…I give them all away, quite simple actually.

On top of that you get to hear some great Hip Hop from Santa Cruz and see me rock the set with my newly formed live band Soul Science.

I will also be releasing my album “Exponential” that night and I might also be releasing a remixed version of my first album as well.

So…next step is for you to buy a ticket which can be done online at: www.SoulScienceMusic.com You can also pick up a packaged deal which consists of my first album “Chronological” and a ticket for just $5 at The Krate in downtown Santa Cruz.

- Numerous

I’m tryin to put out a vent. Maybe they can see someone’s goin through it too and they can be like; “That’s my vent. Thank you.”

LISTEN TO THE FULL INTERVIEW AT: WWW.YOURMUSICMAGAZINE.COM

Cancer Bats Hail Destroyer

Metallica Death Magnetic

Metal Blade

Metal Blade

Conjoining two nasty nouns in a way that is vaguely irrelevant is a winning formula for creating a memorable band name; just ask Cannibal Corpse and the Murder Junkies. To me, that was the first indication that this Canadian foursome has some good fucking taste.

This is comfort metal. Not too inventive or experimental, not deeply personal or emotional. The Cancer Bats instead stick to the old standards of the form, with vocals as the focus and ripping lead guitar coming in for a solo exactly where you want it too. They’re damn good too. The guitar work of Scott Middleton is exceptional— perhaps the hardest a Canadian has raged since Chris Benoit flipped out and murdered his family.

Despite their conventionality, don’t expect the Cancer Bats to make a break for the big time. They’re just too damn angry for mainstream approval. That’s their saving grace in my mind: their anger.

Hail Destroyer presents a pissed off, adversarial attitude towards a workaday world. The band is at their best on tracks like “Harem of Scorpions” and “Pray For Darkness,” where their anger is at the forefront.

As the title suggests, this record is a salute to destruction. Deconstructed, the work offers us a simple message: “Life is too short not to fuck shit up.”

- Kevin Madness

Forbidden.

Exodus. DeathAngel.

Testament. Bay Area thrash metal bands have been staging a comeback for the past several years with brutal new releases and reunion tours. Well, add Metallica to that list because with the release of Death Magnetic, they are back!

Although it would be near-impossible to recreate 1986 and craft another Master of Puppets, just the same as Testament’s new The Formation of Damnation is not The Legacy, what Death Magnetic is for Metallica is a throwback to the “Puppets” era, with 20 more years of touring, recording, experience, and life under their belts.

Death Magnetic is closer to being a natural progression to the four classic Metallica thrash albums (you know which ones!) than anything that they released since those records. Eight-minute-long songs: check. Guitar solos: check. Tempo changes: check. Fast: check. Thrash: indeed!

The album starts with “That Was Just Your Life,” in the same fashion as several of the other great Metallica albums (think “Battery,” “Fight Fire With Fire”), with a slow acoustic guitar riff leading into an assault of fast distortion guitar riffs, pounding drums, and vocals that are actually dark and deep.

“The End of the Line,” “Broken, Beat & Scarred” and “The Judas Kiss” continue with the brutality throughout the record.

Along the way on this 75-minute journey, though, there are bumps in the road.

“Cyanide,” “All Nightmare Long” and “The Day That Never Comes,” the most radiofriendly track, are not bad songs, but the vocals are not as deep, dark and “thrashy.”

“The Unforgiven III” is a reminder that, yes, at some point in the 1990’s when you stopped listening to new Metallica, there

was “The Unforgiven” and “The Unforgiven of The Skids song “Into the Valley.” Out of II.” “Suicide Redemption” is no “Orion” but 5 stars, I would give it a 4. it’s nice to see the old Metallica tradition - Joshua Cardona that the 2nd-to-last song is instrumental.

“My Apocalypse,” the final song on the Hatebreed album, and also the shortest song at five Live Dominance minutes, which brings to mind “Fight Fire Koch DVD With Fire” with its onslaught of fury and speed. This is by far the one song on Hatebreed has “Death Magnetic” which links Metallica of been around 12 2008 to Metallica of 1986. years but this marks One final way to tell that Metallica has their first ever live returned: Look at the Death Magnetic album DVD. Shot in one packaging to find the classic Metallica logo, night at Harpo’s in which has not graced any of their album Detroit with a soldcovers since 1991. Coincidence? Fear out audience of not, old-school thrash fan, it is safe to listen to Metallica again.

- Alan Ralph madmen, Hatebreed play the set of their lives. The cameras come from all angles, including the first ever guy-holding-ontoStreet Dogs a-camera-for-his-life-in-a-moshpit shot State of that I’ve seen. The sound is incredible and Grace Review their performance is flawless. Lead singer Jamie Jasta talks to the crowd throughout Epitaph the show, raising important issues within So I’ve listened the hardcore scene that fortunately do to this album more more to solidify the scene than distract than ten times since from the music. The DVD is a pleasant its release. After a few listens and getting reminder that the hardcore community is familiar with the songs, the more and more tightly knit and that staying true to yourself I was amazed with this album. Simply is now more important than ever. If you’re amazing. Once you listen to the whole a fan of Hatebreed, you should seriously album you can tell the second half of the consider checking out Live Dominance.

- Mattie John Bamman album is stronger then the first half. I was rather dismayed by the short length of it; however every track on here is great! The The Sweet songs are catchy and angry, which I love, Revenge definitely darker than their past albums.

Sleeping Cities “San Patricios” has one of the most Self-Released memorable parts I’ve heard in a while some verses done in Spanish. It works Bay Area’s own really, really well here, and provides a nice The Sweet Revenge connection between the Irish and Hispanic have been doing working & lower middle classes on the East Coast. “The General’s Boombox,” quite well playing many shows at every “Elizabeth,” “K.J. O’toole,” and “Meanfist” possible venue and growing their loyal fanare solid sing-a-long songs. “A State of base exponentially. Their shows are full Grace” and “Free” are both slower tracks, of vibrant energy and the audience loves and they both come across very well and them! They are a great group of guys sincere. My favorite has to be their cover

that are very professional and fun to hang out with; they even played in bloodied-up shirts when they first came onto the scene two years ago. The band is composed of Clint, Chris, James, Erick and Ryan, a solid group of punk rock musicians, and the songs on their recently released EP are well-composed and fun to listen to.

I especially like the song “Intervention,” which I think is their catchiest hit of the four. My only criticism of this entertaining band is that I wish the vocals were a bit stronger and less monotonous. Clint is an excellent frontman for the band live; he knows exactly how to work the audience with his energy, passion, and eye-contact.

Their fans go crazy for him and I give him credit for that. Sometimes that’s more important than the strength of your voice.

If you’re looking for a straight-up punk record, then I recommend the album.

- Barb Rocks Inverse Leave It All Self-Released Inverse is one of those bands I don’t know how to categorize because they’re such a unique band with that something special that just makes them stick out. This past spring I had the opportunity to book this LA band on one of my shows and I was hooked instantly! They hit the stage with a solid set, full of energy and passion that dazzled each person in the audience with songs like “Do What You Want” and “Father.” Recently Inverse released Leave It All, a brand new EP full of radio-friendly tunes that will have you humming and singing along in no time! The album starts off strong with their quintessential hit “Days,” then flows nicely into the sex-drenched, hard-hitting single “Sweat My Love.” Since I’m a sucker for ballads, “The Last Night” has

become one of my personal favorites on the album. Inverse is definitely a band that will rise to the top with their dynamic melodies, beautiful compositions, and well-written lyrics that everyone can relate to. Each of the six band members adds their distinct touch to the music, yet it flows together so perfectly and the combination is magical. It’s this harmonious union of musical creativity that leaves such a profound impact on the listener. Plus their live performance will knock your socks off! Check them out at http://www.myspace.com/inverse - Barb Rocks Anarbor The Natural Way Hopeless Records I feel like I’ve just been introduced to the five-headed rape baby of The AllAmerican Rejects and Fallout Boy. The Natural Way, the second mini offering from these Arizona teens, seems impeccably crafted for top 40 radio, fully embracing the pop sensibilities emo music has copiously hinted at for years. In truth, they sound better than their famous contemporaries.

The music here is crafted with interesting dynamics, expertly performed and projects the freshness that an adolescent band should have. Clearly the best track in this collection is “The Brightest Green,” a bouncy, R&B infused rocker that showcases the band’s musical flexibility and their capacity to write contagious pop songs.

Like Communism and ketchup flavored potato chips, lead singer Slade Echeverria’s voice sounds good in theory. That is, until you try to make sense of his lyrics, which are steeped in painfully awkward notions of sex and romance. Teenage mating music, if you will. “Right There With You” is a particularly creepy song about getting it on that’s lyrics could have been stolen from a sweaty lounge singer in Reno: “Cause late

at night, wrong sounds more appealing that right, but sweet talk sweetie won’t get the job done.”

When you listen to Anarbor, you get the notion that the singer is trying to seduce you, which is fine if you like that kind of thing. To me, it just sounds insincere and horny.

- Kevin Madness Blood Stands Still Salvation Through Struggle Mediaskare Records With Salvation Through Struggle, an album who’s brutality and hardcore legitimacy are equivalent, Blood Stands Still has become The Hardcore Band to pay attention to. Guitarist Dan Banura keeps it old-school with riffs that focus on rhythm and minimalism: Think Madball or 25 ta Life (seriously, you’ll think Vinnie Stigma wrote some of these riffs).

Most importantly, the band manages to advance in an already well-worn genre. Salvation Through Struggle has the production of a metal album, and the vocals of Mark Williams often take on metal styles, but overall the album maintains a hardcore feel, distancing it from metalcore. The breakdowns don’t come out of nowhere. The drop in tempo often comes as the climax of a song or else smoothly connects verse and chorus. For example, Williams lines up the breakdown on track 12 with the brutal “This is the sound of your world/ falling down.” The gang-choruses are plentiful and at times seem heavyhanded, but their messages are real, for example, “Where’s Your Heart?” on Track 10. By singing about the hardships of poverty, alienation and the necessity of finding the strength to push on, Blood Stands Still hurls a nailbomb into the plethora of suburbia-rock that’s filling America.

- Mattie John Bamman

Bison b.c.

Quiet Earth Metal Blade Bison b.c. sounds like you just smoked two joints and are on your way out the door to knock the fuck out of some dude across the street. That is to say, even though their debut Quiet Earth could be termed “stoner-metal,” it has the energy of a Kiss recording. The riffs of James Farwell and Dan And, which often extend over several bars, show the inventiveness of Matt Pike from High On Fire, as well as the heightened ability to drone on like Kyuss. But Bison b.c. keeps it dirty, and this isn’t another Isis-rip-off album. Farwell and And also take vocal responsibilities, which may explain why the vocals are minimalist; putting the focus hard on the music. At times the vocals have an old Unsane distortion on them. Drummer Brad Mackinnon smoothly transitions from light and catchy beats to ferocious destruction, his variation in styles continuously driving the riffs onward. Quiet Earth also have a sense of humor that comes through during the chorus of track five, “These Are My Dress Clothes.” Bison b.c. are masters of the riff and one of the few bands pushing riff-oriented music forward with authority.

- Mattie John Bamman

Unwritten Law Live & Lawless CD/DVD Suburban Noize After 14 years, one of my all time favorites, Unwritten Law, has finally released a live CD and DVD combo. Both were recorded at the Key Club in Hollywood last March. The CD is a “best of album” which features 16 live tracks that span their music career. It includes old classics such as “C.P.K.” and “Mean Girl” as well as newer hits such as “Seein’ Red” and “Save Me (Wake Up Call)”. The DVD features 22 of their greatest songs and even includes a five song acoustic set from their unplugged release “Music in High Places.” The band put together an excellent play list that

includes many songs that you wouldn’t hear all together in one live show.

Front man, Scott Russo does a great job keeping the crowd excited and on their feet throughout the hour and a half performance. The superior recording and high quality filming, which is brought to you by Suburban Noize Records, makes this live CD/DVD a must have for any - Miley Elayne Unwritten Law fan.

10/10/08 THE UNDERGROUND RENO, NV W/ GUTTERMOUTH 10/11/08 WHISKEY DICKS SOUTH LAKE TAHOE W/ GUTTERMOUTH 10/31/08 HENFLINGS BEN LOMOND 11/22/08 www.3upfront.com front com BRITANIA ARMS www.myspace.com/3upfrontmusic You can buy the new 3upfront album on Itunes CUPERTINO 12/06/08 and CD baby!!!! www.cdbaby.com/cd/3upfront UPFRONTBOOKING@YAHOO.COM HENFLINGS

Mastodon at the Rockstar Mayhem Festival Inteview by Josh Pierson -Photos by: Alan Ralph photographn.com Doom metal is one of those brands of Heavy Metal that are only liked by certain types of fans, which makes it special when a band like Mastodon is able to rise from the ashes of what seemed to be a dying genre. Luckily enough, Mastodon was able to make it seem easier than most bands, grabbing a supporting spot on their first major tour with Slayer. They’ve also been able to keep their albums coming at a steady pace over a few year span, keeping fans on their toes.

While I don’t fully agree that Mastodon should’ve been opening up the main stage while the second stage was still rockin’, I never give up a chance to see them tear up any stage they’re on. Needless to say, I was not going to give up a chance to do an interview with vocals/bass player Troy Sanders on a very balmy summer day in Sacramento: YMM: How do you think bands like Machine Head feel about playing 30 minute sets when their songs are 6-9 minutes long?

Troy: Well, I guess it could go both ways. On one hand, for example, we’re playing 40 minutes.

Bands like Machine Head are playing 35, and others 30. But if you’re going to squeeze in 12 bands in one day, everyone’s going to have an allotted amount of time. But on the flip side, this is the easiest tour we’ve been on; it’s just 40 minutes a day. There’s so much road crew, there’s little work to do outside of the show.

YMM: How do you think the newest album, Blood Mountain, stands out from the rest?

Troy: Well, it felt like a natural progression in our bands evolution, song-writing, story-telling and trying to always write songs - always challenging ourselves as a band to create bigger and better songs. I guess we just achieved that. I guess the weirder stuff was weirder, the heavier stuff was heavier. We just finished recording a new record. It’s a real departure from our previous four records. I’m sure that record will be set apart, different from anything else in that we really focused in on our early 1970’s influences, we really honed in on those sounds. Kind of collectively honed in on our favorite classic rock influences, and I think that that really shines through all over the record.

YMM: Josh Homme from Queens of the Stone Age is on “Colony of Birchmen.” How did that come about?

Troy: He was on an airplane with our A&R rep from Warner Brothers and they’re friends. They were talking, said he was working with Mastodon and handed over his headphones and the song was “Colony of Birchmen,” at the moment. He said he loved to be a part of that song.

We said we’d love that, sent him the track from the real

recordings and he came back with his parts...awesome. It was just a bizarre coincidence on an airplane ride.

YMM: All of your albums have really stood out from most metal bands out there-musically, but mostly lyrically, where do you derive your ideas from for some of the songs?

Troy: It’s like the constellations, the stars for example, well how did that derive? It’s like creating patterns and from that pattern you’re telling stories. I’ve always felt like our band is kind of equivalent to what a constellation is.

Just take a lyric level to more of a thematic level, where it might mean one thing to us, but be open to interpretation to the listener. But we just like to step outside of the norm and write something that goes with the music, like the soundtrack for a song, the cinematography so to speak. We mostly like to close our eyes and drift off to fantasyland.

YMM: You guys are on Warner Bros./Reprise. Have they given you creative freedom when recording, considering they are a major label?

Troy: It feels normal. Right when they started talking to us we were flattered that a major label had interest in our band because we had never seen that coming. We had already put out three full-length albums before them [Warner Bro./Reprise] and we already knew what we wanted to do and what we wanted to continue to do. So first and foremost, we were like, ‘we need to have 100% creative control.” They said, “absolutely, we already like what you’ve done so far, we just want to be your record label. You keep doing your thing and we’ll take over on the business side of it.” It made sense. We weren’t going to work with someone who wanted to alter our sound because we were already happy with it.

YMM: When people see you live or listen to one of your albums for the first time, what do you want them to leave with?

Troy: Hopefully a sense of something old and something new. We want to be challenging to their ears. It had a unique characteristic, something that was neat and new and a little interesting and challenging.

Mischief Brew

Fermented Folk Punk: The Ale of Anarchists

By Kevin Madness

It takes a mysterious distiller to brew folk music that when performed sends bodies into violent mayhem—thrashing, colliding and singing out. In another life Erik Petersen is a wise barman spinning wild stories to his crusty patronage and tonight he is doing much the same with a guitar slung around his back and his faithful friends by his side.

They are Mischief Brew and we are foul smelling travelers, black-clad youths and roaches crawling the floor of the legendary 924 Gilman in North Berkeley. The dance floor is drunkenly unstable and the song requests sound like death-threats, but who can blame us; we came to hear the great songs, songs as dirty and wild as the crowds they draw, and we’ll be damned if we leave without hearing every one we want.

After their set, I cornered Erik and his bandmates Shawn St. Clair and Chris Kulp and they submitted to the following interview: YMM: Tell our readers what Mischief Brew means.

Erik: It’s the two words put together: mischief night and Halloween being the best holidays of the year, juxtaposed with “brew” which in any form is great whether it be coffee or beer.

Shawn: Or making trouble.

Erik: It’s even funnier explaining it to Europeans because it’s a hard thing for them to comprehend.

I guess Mischief Brew doesn’t translate well into German or something so then you have to explain “Prankish” which is an even weirder word.

YMM: How does where you are from affect the music you make?

Erik: We’re from Philadelphia and I wouldn’t say there are many bands of this style from Philadelphia. Maybe you could say the traditional fife and drum revolutionary sound is going on in some of the songs. We’re influenced by our surroundings anywhere we go. It all seeps in subconsciously.

Shawn: Coming from Philly, where there is a strong police presence, the people there are destitute—there is a lot of poverty and people who are upset, it’s pretty negative city to be in sometimes. It’s a tough city and it’s a hater city.

The point of it is to rebel against that, to be like “Everything is shit,” but let’s try to do something that goes above that.

YMM: What are your primary non-musical influences?

Erik: People who are awesome and do more than just music, but set up amazing events and establishments. Like here at Gilman.

Shawn: There are positives and negatives in everything. Some of our songs are positive and everything is great and some are the negative sides of things… it’s like life.

YMM: Are there any customs or rituals Mischief Brew uses to prepare for a show?

Shawn: Prayer…no, just kidding.

Erik: I don’t want to advocate any alcoholic beverages in particular…

Chris: This is the first schlober, I mean sober show of tour.

Erik: That’s true.

Chris: It’s only the third one, though.

Shawn: Usually there is a pre-battle ale… or coffee.

Chris: Or Jagermeister.

Erik: Something with a lot of caffeine and a shot.

We don’t do any chanting or anything.

YMM: What is something you would never write about?

Erik: What are there a million songs about?

Shawn: Girls.

Erik: Yes. I probably wouldn’t write a song about a girl… anymore.

YMM: If you found your music and ideas slipping into mainstream culture and your records became a household item, is there anything you would do differently?

Erik: It’s hard to imagine, to put myself completely in that situation. I think I would behave the exact same way I do now.

Shawn: The record industry is crashing because of people like us doing everything ourselves, but if we ever had to make that step onto a major label we’d keep it real and not come off like a bunch of douchebags. It’s weird to even think about.

Erik: Especially because we’ve only ever released things on our own label and maybe some friend’s labels here and there. We’ve done every aspect of it ourselves. We know a lot of bands that are on bigger labels and we have no problem with them at all, but it’s nice to be on our own. I don’t want to say we’d never do something, but it doesn’t make sense right now.

Shawn: I would never eat shit from a major label or corporation. If I’m gonna do it, I’m gonna do it on my own terms and still play with all my friends bands.

YMM: You mentioned dying tonight during your set tonight. How do you want to die?

Erik: Holed up in some bunker during the zombie apocalypse.

Shawn: Definitely fighting zombies.

Erik: Yes, killing zombie hordes kamikaze style.

Shawn: Strapped with a bomb!

d?

trifie

Coun

By Mike Romans I have to admit, being a fan of Social Distortion, I was definitely interested in seeing what this show had to offer. While I’m not a fan of popular country, I do appreciate a lot of its roots. I had an idea of what to expect, but I hadn’t heard any of Ness’ solo work, so I was curious to see this other side of Mike Ness.

Opening the show for Mike Ness was the Rockabilly/Americana band The Horton Brothers. The band consists of Billy Horton (Upright Bass, Vocals), Bobby Horton (Guitar, Vocals), and Buck Johnson on drums. Vocalist Miss Lauren Marie also joined for a couple of tunes. Staying true to the origins of Rockabilly, the band plays like they were straight from the 50’s. While most the crowd was bobbing their heads and enjoying the music, there were a few that even busted out some country swing dance, which was entertaining to watch.

Mike Ness of Social Distortion hit the road for the first time in nearly 10 years, solo, bringing his style of Country and Blues. While he was joined by two out of the three other members of Social Distortion, Jonny Wickersham and Brent Harding, he was also joined by Chris Lawrence on Pedal Steel and Dave Raven on drums. I would have to say the first noticeable change from Social D was in Ness’ attire. While normally fans are used to seeing Ness in a Mechanics shirt and wool cap, he came out in a black, country style, shirt and cowboy hat.

If you are a fan of Social Distortion, this change isn’t that hard to imagine, nor is it that big of a shock to hear. Ness strummed at his guitar and sang with his typical raspy vocals, and it was a great show. They played songs such as “Misery Loves Company,” “You Win Again,” “Dope Fiend Blues,” and covered songs like “I Fought the Law,” “Gambling Man,” and even Social D’s own “Ball and Chain.” The only thing that disappointed me in the evening was when Ness announced that they were going to play a song that Social D hardly ever plays in concert. Some background before I proceed on that is that one of my favorite Social D songs is “I Was Wrong.” I have seen them 3 times in concert and have never seen them play it once. So when Ness announced they were playing a song they hardly ever play live, I got a little excited. Then he said that it was off of the White Light, White Heat, White Trash album and I got very excited. Then they started playing “Don’t Drag Me Down”…whammy. Other than that it was a great show and I highly recommend checking it out if they come around again. Hopefully it won’t be nearly 10 years again.

Pepper at the Catalyst

By Mike Romans With lines of people, the majority wearing flip-flops, waiting to get in the Catalyst, it’s a safe bet that Pepper is back in town. The reggae influenced dub-rock band returned to Santa Cruz June 22nd to help promote their new album Pink Crustaceans and Good Vibrations that was releasing July 22nd. Pink Crustaceans is the bands 5th studio album, and was produced by Paul Leary who produced their last album No Shame.

Pepper again successfully got the crowd moving and dancing as they always do. They played a lot of the old favorites like “No Control,” “Give It Up,” and “Your Face” as well as breaking into some new material off of Pink Crustaceans including one their favorites off the new album, “Blackout.” Pepper also played a version of “Bro Hymn”

by Pennywise, which, of course, involved crowd participation. I had a chance to talk to drummer Yesod Williams before the show.

Mike: You guys just wrapped a European Tour with Flogging Molly. I was wondering how that went?

Yesod: It was epic; it was good for the band and hard on the liver. Those guys, I can honestly say are some of the nicest people I ever met in the music industry, and they’re huge internationally. They are so big, their venues kept selling out. They’d start out with a smaller one then that sold out so fast that they’d have to go to a bigger one. And it was cool too because their crowds are pretty die-hard, they love Flogging Molly, but they’re pretty open minded as well.

Mike: And how do you feel your music is accepted over there? You have a surf, dub rock, West Coast kind of style. Do you feel it’s catching on over there?

Yesod: Yeah, over all it’s good. Germany was really good for us, Austria was really good, England was really good. You go to a music festival over there and they have like Sinead O’Connor and Metallica, so it’s real eclectic. It’s not like over here where a lot of the festivals are genre oriented. So overall people are really open minded and just love music. They appreciate it, and they’re not quick to judge, but it went across real well, that’s for sure.

Mike: You have your Pink Crustaceans and Good Vibrations album coming out July 22nd, I was wondering how you feel it compares and differs to your previous albums?

Yesod: I love it. It’s got a pretty cool punk rock tune.

I haven’t done a punk rock tune on an album in a long time. It’s got Randy from Pennywise singing on it.

They were recording their new album in the studio right next door to us in Redondo Beach. It was sick, we’re pretty good friends from Warped Tour, then to have him on the album was real cool. Maybe a little bit of what differs is there’s a little bit of a Motown vibe on a couple of songs. Still with the reggae and rock, but a little different flavor added in there too. And it was cool to be working with Paul Leary again. He produced half of the last album, No Shame. We had such a good time, we went back and produced the whole thing with him. So it was cool, we didn’t have to move studios, which is a good

thing and a bad thing. It breaks up the monotony, but then also it takes longer cause you’re moving around between 4 different producers. So this time it was cool, you just bang it out, and it was probably one of the quickest albums we’ve ever recorded. It took us like a month; we tried not to over-think things too much.

Mike: Do you foresee maintaining a working relationship with Paul Leary?

Yesod: Oh yeah. He is not just a colleague, he is a friend. He always comes to our shows whenever we’re in town and we always hang out. So yeah, absolutely.

It was the first time that we’ve ever worked with a producer twice. Nothing against our old producers, I just don’t think everything really gelled the way we wanted it to, but it was the first guy that we were like, we want to work with him again. That really put it in perspective for us, you know.

Mike: And you are about to go on your National “Tailgate” tour with Slightly Stoopid and Sly and Robbie. I heard that you were pretty excited to play with Sly and Robbie.

Yesod: Oh yeah, in our eyes, they are the next biggest reggae legends, like Bob Marley, as far as reggae goes. I mean they’ve played drums and bass on the majority of reggae albums since like 1970’s through the 80’s, pretty much the backbone of reggae right there.

Mike: And how’d you get hooked up with them?

Yesod: Our manager pretty much lined it up. Us and Slightly Stoopid have the same management and we knew we wanted to tour with them. And we were looking for someone to fill the extra spot and were pretty much told one day that Sly and Robbie was going to be on the tour, and we were like, are you kidding, they would have been our first choice anyway.

Mike: Is there a song on the new album that you really like or want people to take notice of?

Yesod: Well that punk rock song is called “Blackout,” and I think the three of us would agree that it’s the most fun one to play. The first one, we haven’t even played live yet, but it’s one of my favorites, it’s called “Freeze.”

It always changes for me, but it keeps it interesting.

MONSTERS OF ROCK - BATTLE OF SPANDEX Rock n’ Roll meets Paintball

By Aaron “the Stuntman” Froke So by now just about everybody knows that rock music and extreme sports go together like chocolate and peanut butter, right?

Well, this was never truer than at Combat Zone Paintball in Oroville last August, when TAW Scenario Paintball hosted another of its famous theme games “Monsters of Rock-Battle of Spandex.” Over 250 players from across California came to battle it out for two solid days of almost non-stop action, including such well known teams as Fatal Paint, Team Lockdown, the Stonecutterz, and the Angry Llamas.

For this event, the players were divided into two mega-teams, each representing rival “record labels”...the Glam-rockers of Twisted Fister and their Hard Rock rivals, Runs & Posers. Throughout the weekend, the teams would compete in tactical combat missions like any other scenario paintball game, as well as some unusual events unique to Monsters of Rock - like a music trivia quiz, a costume contest, and a Guitar Hero challenge - all for points to be added to each teams total. Copies of Your Music Magazine were also seen in player’s hands both on and off the field...(gee, I wonder how those got there?)

By Sunday afternoon the exhausted players were more than ready for the traditional post-game raffle, where the truly massive prize packages donated by the event sponsors had everyone exited. Paintball guns and gear, cases of paint and passes to future events were handed out...some lucky winners walked away with hundreds of dollars worth of free stuff!

For more info on upcoming paintball events got to: www.tawpaintball.com

2008 Your Music Olympicks San Jose “Live Performance” Event Gold Award Winner: Cylinder -$1000 cash, $1230 Epiphone Prophecy Futura Custom EX guitar Silver Award Winner: Dimidium -$1200 Epiphone Prophecy SG Custom EX guitar Bronze Award Winner: Relapse -$630 Epiphone Prophecy EM-2-Custom EX guitar San Jose “Best Guitarist” Winner: Jarret Reis- Diamond Lane -$1540 Epiphone Prophecy Les Paul Custom EX guitar

YOUR MUSIC OLYMPICKS-SAN JOSE

2008 EVENT WINNERS The 2008 Your Music Olympicks SAN JOSE “Live Performance” event winners: GOLD: Cylinder SILVER: Dimidium BRONZE: Relapse *THIS EVENT WAS DECIDED BY FAN VOTE AT THE 9/19 VOODOO LOUNGE FINALS. The 2008 Your Music Olympicks SAN JOSE “Best Vocalist” event winners: GOLD: Dana Kelly– Jade Of Days SILVER: Naomi Zep– Letters Make Words BRONZE: Nadia Zep – LMW *THIS WAS A JUDGED EVENT @ The Downtown Brit 9/5.

The 2008 Your Music Olympicks SAN JOSE “Best Guitarist” event winners: GOLD: Jarret Reis – Diamond Lane SILVER: Brett – Perverse Recreation BRONZE: Michael Shockey – My Monster *THIS WAS A JUDGED EVENT @ The Downtown Brit 9/5.

The 2008 Your Music Olympicks SAN JOSE “Best Bassist” event winners: GOLD: Naomi Zep – Letters Make Words SILVER: Needles – Relapse BRONZE: Mark Euchner – Dimidium *THIS EVENT WAS DECIDED BY INTERNET POLLS -www.yourmusicmagazine.com.

The 2008 Your Music Olympicks SAN JOSE “Best Drummer” event winners: GOLD: Junior Medeiros – Jade Of Days SILVER: Tim Duffy – Dimidium BRONZE: George McKenzie – Funk The Band *THIS EVENT WAS DECIDED BY INTERNET POLLS

www.yourmusicmagazine.com.

S A N J O S E

YOUR MUSIC OLYMPICKS-SAN JOSE Santa Cruz YMO winner Cylinder does it again in our 1st ever San Jose Your Music Olympicks!

By Mike Garing

S A N J O S E

2008 San Jose Your Music Olympicks Finals Sponsors: O’Neill Surf Shop, Epiphone Guitars, Barbrocks, and Fringe Clothing The 2008 San Jose Your Music Olympicks Finals at The Voodoo Lounge was a great opportunity for the 7 bands who earned the right to participate. With over 450 people in attendance during the course of the evening, all of the competing bands had an excellent opportunity to reach out to new listeners beyond their established fans, and 3 of those bands also walked away with over $4000 in cash and prizes.

Congratulations to Cylinder, who became the 1st band in YMO history to win events in 2 different markets in the same year. I continue to be impressed with how hard these guys are willing to work; in a time when independent band promotion is on the decline Cylinder has proven that they take meaningful opportunities seriously. Don’t forget, they also took 2nd in our Monterey Your Music Olympicks. I also want to thank the other 6 Finalists; this being our 1st ever San Jose YMO there were a few bumps in the road along the way, but I appreciate that in the end everyone pulled together and did their part to make the 1st SJYMO a huge success. Special thanks to all of the live music fans in San Jose also, because without their support Your Music Magazine and the Your Music Olympicks would not be possible.

The show kicked off with local funk/rock/ ska aficionados Funk the Band (myspace. com/ftb). With an 8:20 start time, I was pleasantly surprised to see the club filling up, and quickly. Many of the fans shared loyalty to more than 1 band, and it was great to see everyone showing up early. In turn this encouraged FTB to play an inspired set, and the audience voiced their appreciation throughout.

YOUR MUSIC OLYMPICKS-SAN JOSE Their songs are positive and fun, and with over 4 hours of material they could keep the house grindin’ and groovin’ all night. But almost too soon their 30 minutes were up, and it was on to our next Finalist, Letters Make Words.

For those of you who don’t yet know, sisters’ Nadia and Naomi Zep, the lead vocalists for LMW, were are Silver and Bronze award winners in this years SJYMO “Best Vocalist” competition. LMW brings a buoyant energy to any show with their Alt/Pop style, and they did not disappoint in this Finals competition. By the time their set started a little after 9PM, the club was almost full, and these 2 talented women shone brightest when it matter most.

For more info go to myspace. com/lettersmakewords and catch one of the rising stars in the San Jose music scene.

My Monster, playing 3rd on the night’s bill, is one of the most established and hardest working bands in San Jose. Singer/guitarist Michael (MC Shockey), our 2008 SJYMO “Best Guitarist” bronze award winner, held nothing back and left everything on stage, including a pool of sweat the size of Lake Erie. But how can you not be impressed by that level of commitment and passion?

And dammit, they’re good! But don’t take my word for it, go to myspace.com/mymonster and decide for yourself. You can also check out the review of their CD “In Tune with the Voices in your Head” in the March issue (#57) of YMM. And this brings us to this year’s SC and SJ YMO winner, Cylinder. Note to all other independent bands; you can sit back and wait for success to come to you (which it won’t) or you can strive to succeed, and rise above the average. Cylinder is not only talented and loaded with mass appeal, they also were the hardest working band in all 3 of our events this year. CONGRATULATIONS TO CYLINDER, OUR 2008 SANTA CRUZ AND SAN JOSE YOUR MUSIC OLYMPICKS WINNER. NO MATTER WHAT THE HATERS SAY, THE BEST ROSE TO THE CHALLENGE AND OVERCAME ALL ADVERSITY. For those of you still not aware of Cylinder’s rise to the top, you can check them out at myspace.com/cylinderband.

S A N J O S E

YOUR MUSIC OLYMPICKS-SAN JOSE

S A N J O S E

Just when you thought this night had hit it’s peak, Dimidium took the stage and brought the intensity up a notch. Think Metal so hard you’re bleeding out your ears and eyes in no time, and lovin’ it. And then the mosh pit started, and like a black hole it sucked you in if you were orbiting too close. And then it got harder, more intense. As the top San Jose area band in this year’s event, you have to check out their myspace (.com/dimidium) or Scott and the boys will hunt you down and kill you. I’m not kidding.

Relapse, one of the more interesting and yet hard to describe bands on the bill, followed the Metal meltdown with their brand of rock; sometimes hard, sometimes melodic, sometimes funky, but always entertaining. Lead singer Pheezy had a clear plastic tube attached next to his mic, creating a “Frampton Comes Alive” vocal quality similar to a Kazoo. Pretty cool addition to the music. The amazing thing was, even with a 12:15PM start time, there were still 200+ people packed up close to the stage, emanating the energy any band loves to feel from their audience.

Even with technical difficulties they were able to keep the crowd involved. All right people, you know the drill; myspace.com/relapseinc.

Our last remaining band, The Moderna Complex

YOUR MUSIC OLYMPICKS-SAN JOSE

(myspace.com/themodernacomplex), is one of my personal favorite independent bands in Cali.

With only a week to prepare for the show (they were a last minute replacement for this year’s top SJ preliminary band, Jade of Days) TMC brought their progressive hardcore style to the stage and immediately engaged the remaining audience. It was after 1:30PM when their set ended, but the 100+ people still pressed close to the stage demanding one more song. These guys are good! And what a great way to end our 1st Annual San Jose Your Music Olympicks Finals.

This event was a huge success, and I look forward to working with the San Jose scene again next year.

One additional note; Your Music Magazine and Lyon Entertainment want to send our warmest wishes to Junior Medeiros, drummer for this year’s top preliminary band, Jade of Days. Because of medical reasons, Junior had to make a last minute decision not to participate in this year’s Finals.

We hope that his surgery at the end of September went well, and we look forward to seeing him behind his kit doing what he does best as soon as possible. Please keep him in your thoughts and prayers, because there but for the grace of god go any of us, and unfortunately bad things happen to good people.

For more info about the San Jose YMO and our Olympick events in other cities, please check out our website (www.yourmusicmagazine. com) and our myspace accounts (www. myspace.com/yourmusicmagazine, / yourmusicmagbooking). You’ll find additional info and photos not seen in the magazine, as well as have the opportunity to participate in online polls and competitions relating to the 2008 Your Music Olympicks. You have a voice through our online resources when it comes to helping your favorite local bands succeed, so use it!

2008 San Jose Your Music Olympicks Finals Sponsors: O’Neill Surf Shop, Epiphone Guitars, Barbrocks, and Fringe Clothing

S A N J O S E

GOLD COAST TATTOO

www.GoldCoastTattoo.com

639 Lighthouse Ave Monterey, CA 93940 (831) 642-9404

Your Music OlympicksE Band Statistics

Thurs Oct 2 @ Zen Lounge Inner Orbit Machine, Usurper Vong, The Mechanical Snails Fri Oct 3 @ Grant & Green Burlacticus Undertow, Sarah Jane, Bella Bella Wed Oct 8 @ VooDoo Lounge The Flood, Song of the Siren, Audiochild, Brightwood

Name: Sick Blue CD’s: n/a Online: www.sickblue.com, www.

Thurs Oct 9 @ Zen Lounge Good Hustle, Whiskey State, Letters Make Words myspace.com/sickblue Gigs: Sept 11th - Cupertino Brit, Sept Sat Oct 11@ Britannia Arms - Cupertino 26th - Quarter Note Desecrater, more TBA Videos: visit www.myspace.com/ Thurs Oct 16 @ Zen Lounge sickblue Primary, The Record Winter, one more TBA Motto: I’m gonna wave my freak flag Fri Oct 17 @ Catalyst - Atrium Stage high!

Sarah Jane, Here Kitty Kitty, Contact: Aadith Srinivasan aadith.

Matt Masih and The Messengers srinivasan@gmail.com 650-814-0191 Sat Oct 18 @ Britannia Arms - Cupertino North Swell, more TBA Wed Oct 22, 2008: at the VooDoo Lounge in downtown San Jose!

Whiskey State, Letters Make Words, Sarah Jane, The Arcadists Sat Oct 25 @ Britannia Arms - Cupertino Dimidium, NothingLeft, Keeping Score, A Single Second Thurs Oct 30 @ Zen Lounge Perverse Recreation, more TBA Wed Nov 5 @ VooDoo Lounge Save And Continue, Inverse, Silent Treatment Sat Nov 8 @ Britannia Arms - Cupertino Whiskey State, Inverse, more TBA

For Booking please send email to:

barbrocks@gmail.com

More info online: www.barbrocks.com www.myspace.com/barbrocks

Member Statistics 1) Name/Position: Bryan Years of Experience: 10+ Past Bands: Gray Bar Hotel, Victims of Circumstance Gear: Shure Mics 2) Name/Position: Billy Years of Experience: 5 Past Bands: n/a Gear: Pacific drums, Paiste and Zildjian cymbals, DW hardware, Evans heads 3) Name/Position: Marcus Years of Experience: 3 Past Bands: Gray Bar Hotel Gear: Ibanez basses, Ampeg amplification 4) Name/Position: Aadith Years of Experience: 1 Past Bands: n/a Gear: Carvin guitars and amplifiers

S A N J O S E

YOUR MUSIC OLYMPICKS-SANTA CRUZ

S A N T A C R U Z

Boardwalk Bowl Coasters Lounge

Congratulations to Morgan Pax of Pariah Faction, the 2008 SCYMO “Best Vocalist” Gold award winner. August 23rd was a fun night at the Brookdale Inn that included 3 great bands to complement our competing vocalists- Sarah Jane, The Dead Ringers, and The Devil Himself. The Dead Ringers were the live performance band that provided the musical accompaniment for the vocalist competition. Special thanks to our Judges for the evening- Janet Leonard, entertainment writer from The Connection Magazine; lead engineer Johnny from Indigital Recording Studio; Charon Turner, talent evaluator and staff writer for Your Music Magazine; and Hans Groper, producer and host of The Idle Hands Show.

Congratulations also to Shane Geslin of Cylinder (Silver award winner) and Sean Krohn (Bronze award winner).

Special thanks also to the fans who helped make our first ever Santa Cruz “Best Vocalist” competition a success. We (and the bands) appreciate your support.

There are multiple festivals in San Francisco that brings the freaky freakies out of the woodworks, but none so diverse (that I’ve encountered anyway) as the Outside Lands Music and Arts Festival. From music geeks to hip hop fans to the hippies, people showed up in droves, all accumulating in the heart of Golden Gate Park. The festival began on Friday, August 22nd and went until Sunday, August 24th, and was the first of it’s kind in Golden Gate Park.

With more than 60 acts laying over 3 days, one had to choose who you wanted to see and who you were willing to miss. I was only able to attend for two of those days, so I had even fewer options. On Friday night, I went to check out Radiohead, who were Golden Gate Park’s first night time performance by a band, ever. I’ve never been a huge fan of Radiohead, only actually hearing songs that were played on the radio and nothing more. I knew that most hardcore music geeks worship at the altar of Radiohead, so I was interested in getting a deeper understanding of Radiohead. Despite some technical difficulties during their set, i.e. the sounding going out more then a few times during their set, Radiohead played for two hours to quite a large crowd of fans, and possibly a few people like myself.

The stage set up was somewhat simplistic, yet made for some interesting effects. The band was surrounded by large beams that were hanging from the top of the stage, which sounds very simplistic, but when the lights hit the beams it made for some pretty cool light effects. I had to comment that since I’m usually attending punk or hard rock/alternative concerts, this had to have been the most mellow concert I’ve been to in awhile or dare I say, ever. Not a bad thing by any means, it actually had a really cool vibe. Radiohead put on a good show, I’m not quite sure why music geeks worship Radiohead, but maybe I’m just ignorant about music, which I’m completely willing to admit.

Day two of Outside Lands, the crowd seemed a bit more chill, and less congested.

All the while, the weather was still overcast and a cold wind occasionally blew through the crowd, gotta love San Francisco in the summer. One band that I was excited to see that was playing was Primus. Primus definitely did not disappoint, with their funky bass and thundering drums, the band really added a new aspect to the festival, a little more rock.

The stage set up was as wacky as the band, with lights and two giant spacemen behind them. The band even played a couple extra songs to appease the crowd, however most left a little early to try and get a decent spot for Tom Petty, who was playing on the main stage.

Tom Petty hit the stage as night began to fall on the park, and the vibe of the crowd was even more mellow than during Radiohead, which could somewhat be expected, but still it was a great experience. All around it seemed as if people were just there to hang with friends while some great music played in the background. Some were dancing, others shared blankets and watched the band play their hits. For lack of a better word, but the one that seems to fit Petty’s music perfectly, it was groovy. Unfortunately, Petty had the same issues with the PA, as Radiohead did the night before. After taking about a 10 minute break, the problem seemed fixed and the band continued. At one point, Steve Winwood, who played earlier, joined the band for a couple of songs. Petty played most of his hits that everyone was hoping to hear, while also playing some b-sides, as well as covering Van Morrison’s “Gloria.” Despite the technical difficulties, it was everything I could have hoped for.

Outside Lands Music and Arts festival drew in over 180,000 people over the 3 days and was deemed a success by the concerts promoters. Even though they said that a decent profit was made, there has been no word if it is going to be back again next year. If you missed it, and it does come back, I highly recommend checking it out, just plan to dress somewhat warm, and plan that traffic is going to be an issue.

My Stupid Brother: Naked Energy

By Janie Burko Made up of brothers George and Henry Chadwick [guitar/vocals and bass/vocals, respectively] and drummer Jessie Wilkenson, local teen trio My Stupid Brother never fails to entertain with its catchy rock songs, wise-ass humor and tight, upbeat performances. I had the opportunity to talk to the young rockers in between a Friday night show at Henfling’s and a Saturday September 20th show for YMM at the Brookdale Inn and Spa. They had a lot to say about the previous night’s gig, the future of the group and—most of all—the joys of public nudity.

YMM: I saw you guys last night at Henfling’s and was really impressed. The audience seemed really excited—lots of dancing and drinking.

Jessie: Yeah, it was really energetic. I was stoked on the crowd.

YMM: Can we expect the same tonight?

George: Yeah, definitely. We’re ready for another high-energy show. I’d say audiences can expect a real rock show. From the second we come on stage to the last note, we’ll be rocking.

It’s not just about the music or the performance, but a combination of both.

Henry: We try to put on a real rock and roll show where we keep the audience entertained and the energy sky high.

Also, if it’s a really good night, George might get naked.

YMM: How was the Henfling’s show?

Did George get naked?

George: Obviously.

Henry: I think it’s the best we’ve sounded so far. It was fun because since we were headlining and we had a lot of time onstage, we got to try out some of our new songs, stuff we never played live before. The audience really

liked them, so that’s a good thing.

YMM: If you had to describe your sound to someone who hadn’t heard you before, what would you say?

Henry: Well, I think we have a classic sound. People say we sound like Green Day and The Ramones. We’ve also been told some of our songs sound like Nirvana.

Jessie: We are straight-up badass rock and roll. We’re completely original, like nothing you’ve ever heard before.

YMM: Yeah, you played a new song last night at Henfling’s that really had that Cobain energy.

George: That was probably “Heart Attack.” I love that one.

YMM: Tell me about your writing. Do you write all of your own songs?

Henry: Yeah, we write all of our own material.

YMM: Do you collaborate, and if so, how does it work?

Henry: George and I write the songs.

Usually I’ll bring him a song that I am working on or visa versa, and we finish it together, then Jessie adds his drum magic. and we all get naked and celebrate.

YMM: You guys seem to like getting naked a lot.

George: It helps us think.

YMM: Tell me about your new album.

Henry: Once you hear the new album, you’ll want to get naked, too. No, seriously, our new album is gonna be great. We play mostly stuff from our upcoming album live. If you come see us, you’ll hear most of them.

YMM: So you guys are in the studio?

Henry: We are nearing the end of the recording part of the process. We’re working with a couple of great producers: Besides Daren, who produced our last record, Tony Sales from Iggy Pop and David Bowie is producing a few songs, and we’ll be working with Greg Camp from Smash Mouth, who wrote most of Smash Mouth’s hits. So we’re hoping to learn a few things from these guys.

YMM: That sounds cool! Any other projects? Tours coming up?

George: We are contributing to a compilation album.

Henry: Actually two tribute albums: Jonathan Richman and a Velvet Underground album. They’re gonna be on Rocktalk records.

George: We’re trying to put a Japanese tour together for next July.

Henry: We get a lot of requests from “friends” in Japan on Myspace.

And we love sushi.

YMM: Anything else?

Henry: Vote for Obama! Oh yeah, and check out our website www. mystupidbrother.com and our

myspace/mystupidbrother.

Luca Spanio - Queen Acoustic Los Angeles based Guitarist/Vocalist Luca Spanio has been making some waves in the SoCal music scene lately, and is ready take on the Bay Area with his inspired set of Queen Acoustic covers. Luca Spanio, born and raised in Italy, started to play guitar at the age of 15. His first guitar was a gift from his father and he never looked back. His great love for the band Queen has driven him to perform their songs soulfully, night after night, with just an acoustic guitar and a microphone. Luca will be performing soon in clubs all over the Bay Area, so be sure to check him out if you are in the area. See pg. 63 for a complete calendar of tour dates!

YMM: So Luca, tell me about how this whole Queen Acoustic project got started.

LUCA: It’s quite simple really, I came here from Italy to Los Angeles, California, because I wanted to play music on stage, performing in front of people. When I got here, it wasn’t as easy as I’d thought it would be to put a band together.

I changed drummers several times and finding a bass player was almost impossible. After a while I thought, I don’t care if I don’t have a band. I can still play Guitar, I can sing, so I put this Queen show together. There are a lot of Queen cover bands out there, but nobody can sing like Freddie Mercury.

That’s why it’s so hard to emulate the whole band.

YMM: Why did you specifically pick Queen?

Because everyone loves Queen! They’ve had a lot of hits. Everyone knows the words, and loves to sing along. Great songwriting, and there’s something different about them. Also, here in LA you don’t have so many Queen cover bands.

YMM: Is that why you moved to LA? I wanted to go to England because it’s closer to Italy and it is where Queen is from, but I also wanted to study music at a good music School. So, I decided to come to LA to go to Musicians Institute in Hollywood.

YMM: Did you have the same show in Italy?

Not exactly, I had a band for a while but it was not Queen songs. It’s a lot harder to get an acoustic show in Italy.

You have to have a full band.

YMM: Do you have a favorite Queen Song that you perform?

Not really, because each song is something different to me. The first time I heard Queen I was like thirteen.

They were very big in Europe, but I was not a big fan until I heard, “I Want It all”. What a powerful, amazing, Rock song. From that point on, I was hooked.

YMM: Alright, tell me a little about your upcoming tour of the Bay Area.

I recently went there for four days to check out the music scene, and I thought that somehow it looked better than here in LA. I love how all the clubs are so close together. I remember one night that a friend and I went to four clubs in one night, all with live music, so I decided to set up a tour there.

YMM: What’s your favorite part about performing?

I really like to have a good time with the crowd. I really enjoy the people, and love it when the audience participates.

YMM: What’s special about your performance of these Queen songs?

Well, I think that an Italian guy, in California, playing songs from an English band is kind of a cool idea. It’s funny because when I sing, I try to hide my accent, but when I talk, I don’t care. I try to be funny, sing well, and interpret the songs the way I feel in that moment.

YMM: How long have you been performing Queen songs live?

Just over one year, my first show was on August 18th of last year.

YMM: Do you have a CD available?

Yes, it has three Queen songs, and six original songs.

You can pick one up at one of my shows and soon my songs will be available online at iTunes.

YMM: What can people expect to see at your shows?

I just want everyone to come out and have a good time, because most of my shows are going to be FREE, so there is no reason to miss it.

As Israel’s #1 Hip Hop band, Hadag Nahash has been topping the Israeli music charts since 2000. Their recent release, “BeEzrat HaJam” (With the Help of the Jam), recorded in Sonoma County blends Hip Hop, Funk, Electronic and Rock with a touch of Middle Eastern flavor. This musical fusion has brought the band a large fan-base in Israel and abroad and with their music featured in Adam Sandler’s latest movie, ‘Don’t Mess With The Zohan’, there’s no telling how big these guys can get. I had a chance to speak wit the band about their success...

How is hip hop being accepted in Israel?

Sha’anan: Hip hop in Israel no longer has to prove that it exists. Everyone knows that it exists, now it just has to maintain a decent level. It’s just like rock & roll, you know. In the beginning of Israeli hip hop, hip hop had to make its way into Israelis’ ears. It sounded weird in the beginning, but now everybody knows it’s here and it just needs to stay good.

How has touring in the States and outside Israel been for you guys?

Sha’anan: We have sold out shows in the States here and there and we always have several hundred people turning up wherever we go; even cities we’ve never heard of, states we’d never been to... I mean, most of our crowd isn’t Israeli, but most of it is American Jews. They pack the venues. 2025% of our work is oversees, but our main income is in Israel and most of the area. I’m sure it’s going to expand. It has been since 2004 when we had our first show in England and now we have more shows every year oversees. I don’t know how far it’s gonna go, I mean, we are rapping in Hebrew, but you know, I listen to French rap, I don’t speak French. I listen to Spanish and Arab

Interview by Itay K

Clockwise from the left: Guy Margalit, David Klemes, Yaya Cohen-Harounoff, Moshe Ashraf, Sha’anan Streett, Shlomi Alon

WWW.HADAGNAHASH.COM market, in comparison to the American one or even the European, you know, it’s a small country. It’s a tiny market here so...

Guy: It’s hard to go from a hobbie to a regular thing here....

Shlomi: People here know about burning music. It started a long time ago. People don’t buy as many CDs here as they do elsewhere, so bands count on their shows out rap and I don’t speak either of those languages, so...it can go further.

Yaya: And we’re trying now to write some songs in English for our new album.

How do you guys write your music?

Guy: Sha’anan writes most of the lyrics. The last couple of years I write some too and Shlomi writes some too and usually when we bring a song to the band, we open it for everybody and everybody gives his input.

So it’s pretty democratic then...

Guy: We try to be...

Shlomi: Workin’ on it!

How difficult is it to start a band in Israel and become successful?

Guy: It’s hard because it’s a small place. There’s not really tons of places to go and do shows.

It’s very involved nowadays.

There’s a lot of new bands and new music now.

David: But still, the Israeli

here.

Have you gotten any response from the Zohan movie?

David: You know... we don’t know. In November we’re going to go to the States for the first time since the movie was released, so we don’t know what the response from the audience will be. We got a lot of response here, but as I told you, it’s a very small market and everyone knows everyone, so there’s not as much prestige here. It’s just more spicy details for our resume.

Living in Israel, do you feel the effects of the current state of affairs?

Sha’anan: Yeah, for sure. I believe that anybody living in this country is very affected by what’s going on - whether it’s consciously or subconsciously. Everyday I think about this shit. Yesterday I was walking around with my kid and I passed by a corner store, when I know that the owner was killed in a suicide attack. He’s not my friend, I don’t know him, I’ve bought from him ten times in my life, that’s all. But I have his picture in my mind. And everybody in Israel has this sort of intimacy with premature death. We know death a lot closer than people in the United States and Europe know death; violent death.

And I think it’s very much in our culture. You see it in all of the arts. Go to an Israeli movie, it’s there. Go to an Israeli play, it’s there. And there’s a reason for that. We’re a product of our surroundings.

Elfin: Do you like music?

Jason: Yes, music is cool.

Elfin: How important is music to your surfing?

Jason: It’s really important to get excited before going surfing. Music sets the tone of your session.

Music is what gets me pumped and amped.

Elfin: Have you ever or do you now play a instrument?

Jason: When I was little I played the guitar, but I don’t play anything now.

Elfin: Any desire to play music?

Jason: Not really, I like music but I really don’t want to play it.

Elfin: How long have you been surfing?

Jason: I started surfing when I was 9, so almost 9 years.

Elfin: Who is your favorite surfer?

Jason: Taylor Knox.

Elfin: Who is your favorite band?

Jason: I like this band called Chromeo. I went and saw them this summer at the Fillmore in SF. They had five encores. It was sick.

Elfin: Was that the best concert you’ve ever been to?

Jason: For sure, crazy lights, super good band and they sounded even better live then on their album.

Elfin: What song would you want playing behind surfing footage of you?

Jason: Agent Orange, the song “Everything Turns Grey.”

Elfin: What music best showcases your surfing style?

Jason: Probably something unpredictable and crazy. There are so many different styles can’t say for sure.

Elfin: Do you have a dream?

Jason: Get a degree in Business Marketing and stay connected to surfing throughout my career.

Elfin: As a fairly young surfer do you have any advice to the super little groms out there?

Jason: Never give up!

Elfin: Want to thank anyone for helping you along the way so far?

Jason: My Mom and Dad for sure, my sponsors for giving me stuff and to all the guys at the point who I look up to, like Chris Stanger.

Elfin: What’s your next surf trip?

Jason: I’ve always wanted to go to Puerto Escondido, or a boat trip to Indo.

Elfin: Is there a band you would really like to see?

Jason: I want to see Shwayze. They are pretty cool.

Elfin: Anything you want to let the ladies know?

Jason: My name is “JASON.”

Metal Masters Tour Judas Priest-Heaven and Hell-Motorhead-Testament Metal Masters Tour - Judas Priest Heaven and Hell - Motorhead - Testament August 31st, 2008 Shoreline Amphitheater

By Dave Pirtle-Photos by photographn.com

Heaven and Hell

The summer concert season ended with a bang on August 31st, and a thunderous one at that.

The Metal Masters Tour brought together four of the inarguably greatest metal bands of all time.

It was one of those rare cases that even if the show sucked, it would still be pretty awesome.

It of course did not suck and will likely go down as one of the year’s top shows, drawing a variety of metal fans to create one of the more diverse, freakish – and yes, just a bit white trash - crowds you could ever hope to see.

Testament kicked things off loud and proud for the sun-soaked 5:30 PM crowd. I was worried that they wouldn’t come off well in the open-air setting, but thankfully that wasn’t the case. They thrashed their way through a set that drew equally from their back catalog and their latest offering, The Formation of Damnation, which should find its way onto many peoples’ top 10 lists for the year. The band was stoked to be back in their hometown on the closing night of the tour, and gave their all to the crowd, who gave their all right back. As the set closed with the monstrous title track from the new album, we all knew that Testament would be a tough act to follow.

If any band could do it, though, it would be Motorhead. “We are Motorhead – and we play rock n’ roll!” There are few truer words to be spoken than Lemmy’s traditional stage introduction. Except that they don’t just play rock n’ roll – they play it louder, faster, and harder than any other band on the planet. It was the usual mix of classics and newer material, although not necessarily the songs you would expect. Their set list over the past few years had been rather predictable, but aside from the 1-2 closing punch of “Ace of Spades” and the encore “Overkill,” it was anything but, as newer tracks like “Rock Out” and “In the Name of Tragedy” smashed head-on into slightly lesser known classics like “Killed By Death” and “Over the Top.” For sheer rock power, they delivered what would turn out to be the set of the night –

just another perfect day for Motorhead.

The tempo settled down a bit as Heaven & Hell took the stage, but that is not to say there was only loss of quality. The Ronnie James Dio-era Black Sabbath material, for the most part, is more mid-tempo and epic than that of the rest of the bands on this bill, but every bit as heavy and just a bit more glorious thanks to Dio’s pipes, which sounded as good on this night as they did when the songs were first recorded.

It may have been a bit predictable, but with only three albums under their belt (Heaven and Hell, Mob Rules, and Dehumanizer,) that should be expected. I did encounter one fan after the show that was livid that they didn’t do any Ozzyera material – “fucking stupid,” she called it – but that’s the whole point. Heaven & Hell is the Dio-era. You won’t see Ozzy doing “Children of the Sea” on any Black Sabbath reunion tours, and you won’t hear Dio doing “Sweet Leaf” on a Heaven & Hell tour. In the end, although the band didn’t have the same high-energy songs the rest of the lineup had, they played them flawlessly, and that was enough to elicit the appreciation and amazement of the still-frenzied crowd.

You could say that Judas Priest was the ideal headliner, as they bring together parts of the three other bands into the ultimate metal show. Starting off with “Prophecy” from their new double-disc Nostradamus, it would be the only thing from that album we’d hear until the crowd exited to the title track over the PA. In between, all the classics were played, and surprises like “Between the Hammer and the Anvil,” “Devil’s Child,” and “Rock Hard, Ride Free” found their way in there as well. The band exited the stage briefly after “Painkiller,” only for Rob Halford to reemerge on a motorcycle to kick off the encore with “Hell Bent for Leather” – hey, some traditions never get old. Finally, “You’ve Got Another Thing Coming” ended the show on a high note for the metal faithful So there you have it. If you were there, you know exactly what I’m talking about. If you weren’t there – shame on you, and I hope you’re kicking yourself even harder after reading this.

Four masters of the metal genre showcasing exactly why they are considered such. It never ceases to amaze me that the old guys do it so much better than the young guys less than half their age. Goddamn, I love this music.

Make sure to check out Tracy Forsyth-Lundy’s interview with Judas Priest’s Ian Hill.

Motorhead

Testament

San Francisco Santa Cruz Coasters Lounge

10/03 Pariah Faction 10/10 The Wiseguys 10/14 Dayglow Abs/Accused Good Neighbor Policy 10/17 The Devil Himself My Monster/3 Up Front 10/23 Dynamite 8/Neutral Boy Get Dead/Dun Bin Had 10/24 The Beaver Fever Midnight Mojo 10/25 The Chop Tops Tater Famine 10/31 Cylinder/Archer

The Catalyst

10/17 Tech N9ne 10/18 Norma Jean/Haste the Day 10/20 Voodoo Glow Skulls 10/22 STS9 10/24 Zion I 10/28 Devin the Dude 10/29 Chris Cornell 10/30 Senses Fail 11/08 Method Man 11/20 Buckethead 11/20 Numerous & Soul Science Live Band 11/21 & 11/22 Slightly Stoopid 11/24 Matisyahu 11/28 Andre Nickatin

Henflings

10/03 Tater Famine 10/04 WredHorse 10/09 Richie Begin 10/10 The Bonedrivers 10/11 Schwa 10/12 Le Strange 10/15 Bar Nickels 10/16 Robert Zaremba 10/17 Wise Guys 10/18 Symptoms of a Wet Guitar 10/19 Junior Boogie 10/23 WredHorse 10/24 Mike Martin & Radio Flyers 10/25 Vito & Friends 10/26 Back to Nowhere 10/30 Drifting Compass 10/31 Honest Mistake Devil Himself 11/01 Brad Wilson 11/06 Patrick Cooper 11/07 Superior Olive 11/08 rough House 11/09 Lil Pea & 3rd Degree 11/13 Mick Overman 11/14 Smoking Kingsnakes 11/15 Groovy Judy 11/20 Robert Zaremba 11/21 Hay Ride to Hell Stellar Corpses 11/22 The Bonedrivers 11/29 Mark Harvey

Brookdale Inn & Spa

10/03 Acoustic Shadows

10/05 Robbie Allen & Sun Dogs 10/10 The Bronos Band 10/11 Pre Halloween Good Egg Production 10/17 Room For a Ghost 10/18 Bright Black Morning Light 10/24 Table 4 3 Mark Harvey Band 10/25 20 Grit/Indie Outeredge 10/31 Billy Martini Show 11/01 Living Legends + DJ’s 11/07 Emmanuel Selassie Pure Roots 11/08 Echo Bridge 11/14 Your Music Magazine 11/15 Folkyeah 11/21 Dark Town Cullan’s Hounds 11/22 Mark Harvey 11/28 Misery & Co/Stellar Corpses 11/29 Five A.M.

San Jose Shorline Amphitheatre

10/11 Santana 10/21 Jimmy Buffett 10/25 Bridge School Benefit Neil Young/Jack Johnson 10/26 Bridge School Benefit Norah Jones Smashing Pumpkins

Barb Rocks

10/02 @ Zen Lounge Inner Orbit Machine/Usurper Vong The Mechanical Snails 10/03 @ Grant & Green Burlacticus Undertow/Sarah Jane Bella Bella 10/08 @ VooDoo Lounge The Flood/Song of the Siren Audiochild, Brightwood 10/09 @ Zen Lounge Good Hustle/Whiskey State Letters Make Words 10/11 @ Britannia Arms-Cupertino Desecrater/TBA 10/16 @ Zen Lounge Primary/The Record Winter/TBA 10/17 @ Catalyst-Atrium Stage Sarah Jane/Here Kitty Kitty Matt Masih and The Messengers 10/18 @ Britannia Arms-Cupertino North Swell/TBA 10/22 @ VooDoo Lounge Whiskey State/Letters Make Words Sarah Jane/The Arcadists 10/25 @ Britannia Arms-Cupertino Dimidium/NothingLeft/Keeping Score A Single Second 10/30 @ Zen Lounge Perverse Recreation/TBA 11/05 @ VooDoo Lounge Save And Continue/Inverse/Silent Treatment 11/08 @ Britannia Arms-Cupertino Whiskey State/Inverse/TBA

The Warfield

10/11 Julieta Venegas ‘El Presente Tour’ 10/15 Joe Jackson 10/17 Kings of Leon w/ The Stills & We Are Scientists 10/20 Patti Smith & Her Band 10/25 The Kooks 10/24 Conor Oberst & The Mystic Valley Band 10/26 Aliuson Moyet (of Yaz) 10/31 Umphrey’s McGee 11/01 Matt Nathanson 11/05 DragonForce 11/07 Jim Gaffigan ‘The Sexy Tour’ 11/10 Danzig/ Dimmu Borgir 11/15 Joe Satriani 11/20 Lucha VaVoom 11/30 Dir en Grey

The Grand Ballroom

10/06 Opeth w/ High on Fire & Baroness 10/07 Average White Band 10/14 Anberlin 10/19 The Academy Is 10/21 Chiodos w/ Silverstein 10/23 Iced Earth 10/27 Against Me! w/ Ted Leo & the Pharmacists 10/28 Devil Driver/ Death Angel 10/31 Morris Day & The Time 11/04 All Time Low 11/07 Method Man/ Redman 11/09 Hawthorne Heights 11/13 Underoath w/ Saosin 11/20 Gwar 11/21 Of Montreal

Goldenvoice Presents

10/11 - San Jose Events Center - Rock Band Live 2008 w/ Panic At The Disco & Dashboard Confessional 10/12 - Arco Arena (Sacramento) - Rock Band Live 2008 w/ Panic At The Disco & Dashboard Confessional 12/03 - HP Pavillion @ San Jose Celtic Thuder 12/17 - Oracle Arena - Cheeta Girls 2008 Tour

The Fillmore

10/15 Wire 10/16 Gaelic Storm 10/17 Ghostland Observatory 10/18 Tower of Power 10/19 Flogging Molly 10/20 Flogging Molly 10/21 Stereolab 10/22 Stereolab 10/23 Martin Sexton 10/24 The Mountain Goats 10/25 Taj Mahal 10/27 Girl Talk/Grand Buffett 10/28 Girl Talk/Grand Buffett 10/29 Cobra Starship

10/30 The Black Keys 10/31 Chris Cornell 11/01 Tom Morello 11/02 Shudder to Think 11/05 Enanitos Verdes 11/09 Keller Williams 11/11 Uh Huh Her 11/12 Robyn Hitchcock 11/13 Mason Jennings 11/14 Galactic 11/15 Galactic 11/16 Lucinda Williams 11/17 Lucinda Williams 11/18 Blues Traveler 11/19 Los Lonely Boys 11/20 Medeski Martin 11/21 Govt Mule 11/22 Govt Mule

Sacramento The Boardwalk

10/14 Every Time I Die 10/15 Mest 10/16 Flawless Design 10/17 The Pack 10/18 Creature Feature 10/21 3OH!3 10/24 Dead City Sunday 10/25 Everlast 10/26 Against Me! 10/27 Maylene and the Sons of Disaster 10/28 Cobra Starship 10/31 Without Tomorrow 11/01 Gray Atlas 11/05 All Time Low 11/06 Turisas 11/07 Shadowbox Theory 11/08 Copeland 11/09 The Medic Droid 11/11 Ludo 11/13 10 Years 11/15 Job For a Cowboy 11/18 Mickey Avalon 11/20 Kottonmouth Kings 11/21 The Faceless 11/22 Pierce the Veil 11/25 Portugal The Man 11/29 Sedona

West Hollywood The Key Club

10/21 Tech N9ne 10/23 Slaughter 10/30 Secret Machines 10/31 Twisted Halloween 11/06 Death By Stereo 11/15 Kottonmouth Kings 11/20 Warren G 11/22 Atomic Punks 11/28 Soulfly

Whisky A GoGo

10/13 Cockpit 10/14 Blues Interstate 10/17 Guilt By Association 10/18 AllBrite 10/19 Shield of Faith 10/22 Decadent Youth 10/26 Carnivel 10/28 Creature Feature 11/01 Godhead 11/08 Walk in Medical

(831) 649-1882

Touring the Bay Area..

October, 18 2008 07:00 PM - Pirate Cat Radio 87.9 fm S.F.Bay area and Los Angeles,104.8 fm in Berlin, San Francisco-Los Angeles-Berlin, California 94114 - FREE

Luca

October, 20 2008 08:30 PM - Pirate Cat Radio Live performance and interview on the air..

87.9 fm S.F.Bay area and Los Angeles,104.8 fm in Berlin, San Francisco-Los Angeles-Berlin, 94114 FREE

Spanio

October, 23 2008 10:00 PM - Cafe Mare Live performance and interview on the air..

740 Front Street 100, Santa Cruz, California 95060 FREE October, 24 2008 07:00 PM - Essanay Cafe 37533 Niles Boulevard, Fremont, California 94536 FREE October, 25 2008 08:00 PM - Monsieur Beans of Willow Glen 1383 Lincoln Ave, San Jose, California 95125 - FREE October, 26 2008 08:00 PM - Jack’s Club 2545 24th St, San Francisco, California 94110 - FREE October, 27 2008 08:00 PM - Rock It Room 406 Clement St, San Francisco, California 94118 - FREE

Queen Acustic -Touring The Bay!