Dark Star Orchestra (DSO) returned to Southern California for their biannual two night stand in suburban San Diego’s Solana Beach.  This time it was part of their “City Near You” tour, which puts a slight twist on DSO’s distinctive Grateful Dead simulation act.  Their simple but rather ...view article

There is little comparison to the excitement of the thumping house beats, the funky rumble of a low bass line shaking the building and the infectious sonic articulation of synthesizers that can be found at a rave.  Imagine that being topped off with soaring guitar licks and the interplay of four ...view article

In the previous volume of the Umphrey's McGee Colorado Chronicles, I mentioned that Umphrey's made it possible for me to spend almost my entire day in Denver with them.  I didn't get to hang out backstage and shoot the breeze while drinking Colorado micro brews and smoking Denver nuggets, or take ...view article

San Diego was visited by an embarrassment of musical riches on this particular Tuesday night. In patchouli-soaked Ocean Beach, the city's own beachside Haight Ashbury, Leftover Salmon's Vince Herman led his Great American Taxi side project through an evening of bluegrass-tinged, southern-fried rock.

Further ...view article

Anticipation builds as we wind through the mountains along highway 70 from Denver to Aspen on the way to see arguably the best live band on the circuit today: Umphrey's McGee.  It is somewhat trademark of Umphrey's to not just play these remote venues, but to make everyone who came all the way out ...view article

With the epidemic-like spread of the Guitar Hero and Rock Band video games, Rock and Roll music has been packaged neatly into five little buttons as mind numbing, modified studio versions of classic hits are practically put on repeat in households throughout the world. Perhaps to counterbalance this ...view article

Autumn came late this year to San Diego, "America's Finest City." But the damp, chilly sea air belied the rising temperature inside the Gaslamp District's House of Blues, where Grace Potter and the Nocturnals (GPN) heated things up with their scorching stew of roots-inspired rock that included liberal ...view article

Coming off of one of their most prolific tours in recent memory, selling out nearly every show they played (including The Fillmore in Denver, Colorado), Umphrey’s McGee descended on the ever-familiar frozen tundra of Minneapolis for two consecutive nights at the First Avenue.

The raucous ...view article

“Happy birthday America!” exclaims Brendan Bayliss, lead singer and co-lead guitarist of all-American proggy tonk boys Umphrey’s McGee after a captivating, full band a cappella rendition of ‘The Star Spangled Banner’ at the Denver (area) Gothic Theatre on Independence Day 2010.  Yes, the ...view article