Any moderately warm, sunny day spent in San Francisco's Golden Gate Park is bound to be a good day.  This past weekend proved to be no exception to this general rule as people young and old packed the park for the 18th annual four day long Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival.17356

Six stages ...view article

As the sun dropped behind the thick timberland's of the northwestern mitten, Umphrey’s McGee came out as cool as the air.  Kris Myers and Joel Cummins were facing a double-header of music that evening, as they had just wrapped up another amazing set with their other project, Digital Tape Machine, ...view article

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

A good friend of mine tells me that he has always experienced any troubles getting to a show as a good omen that said show is going to be a barn burner.  This could all be in his mind, but the adage has rung true for me over this past week while following around Umphrey’s McGee.  I’m a bit ...view article

This year, Merlefest celebrated its 22nd year of music and art in the unbelievable heat of Wilkesboro, NC.  The festival boasted accommodations for young and old alike, mixing a variety of bluegrass knowns and unknowns with local art, food, and family activities. Smoking was not permitted during ...view article

An acoustic moe. show at the Belly Up Tavern possesses a certain double dose of rarities.  On the one hand,  just to have moe. play there is downright unique in its own right.  Their first visit here wasn’t until about seven years into their career in 1997, but they haven’t returned since ...view article

My first exposure to the avant-garde jazz trio Medeski Martin and Wood (conveniently known as MMW) was at the State Palace Theater during a Jazz Fest weekend in 1999 New Orleans.  MMW was still relatively new, but had the distinction of opening for Phish in 1995, which stamped them with the Phish ...view article

For no other reason than seeming regional proximity, San Diego is sometimes overshadowed by the Los Angeles/Orange County megalopolis; that seemingly unending, 150 mile slab of asphalt and concrete that stretches from the dusty San Fernando Valley in the north to quaint San Clemente to the south.  ...view article