I probably don’t need to tell you about this one because if you dig these bands, you’re already going, but just in case you’ve recently come out of a coma, the Alta Music Festival comes to the Avila Beach Resort this Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 23 and 24 (doors at 2 p.m., show at 3; all ages; Saturday or Sunday general admission $138, general admission two-day pass $243, VIP Beach Balcony two-day pass $430 at tixr.com; kids 10 and under free with a paid adult).
On Saturday, see Sublime with Rome doing a special performance of the band’s groundbreaking and career-making 1992 album 40 Oz. to Freedom, as well as Tribal Seeds, Bone Thugs-N-Harmony, Tropidelic, and Shwayze.
On Sunday, see Dirty Heads, E-40, Pepper, Rome & Duddy, and Coyote Island.
That’s a whole lot of reggae, ska, and hip-hop coming at you thanks to Good Vibez.
Fremont Theater
Don’t forget groundbreaking blues great Keb’ Mo’ plays Thursday, Sept. 21 (8 p.m.; all ages; $54.50 at eventbrite.com). With five Grammys and 14 Blues Foundation Awards, he’s earned his title as a living legend. Scott Mulvahill opens.
Jawny plays on Friday, Sept. 22 (9 p.m.; all ages; $22 at seetickets.us), with Adan Diaz and Slimdan opening. Jawny, a smooth-like-butter indie singer-songwriter, is making a stop on his It’s Never Fair, Always True Tour. “Too much thinking can get in the way of good art,” his bio reads. “That’s the philosophy Jawny has embraced, [building] his career by intuition, letting his music evolve naturally as he grows personally.”
As he explained, “I’m just a giant child at heart, and I never wanna lose that. Otherwise, what’s the fucking point?”
The Party101 Legends Tour with DJ Matt Bennett happens this Saturday, Sept. 23 (9 p.m.; all ages; $7.50 to $15 at prekindle.com). The LA-based actor/musician made his acting debut on the hit Nickelodeon television show Victorious. He’s also been on shows such as The Big Bang Theory, Sam and Cat, Grey’s Anatomy, and in movies like Me and Earl and the Dying Girl, Bridesmaids, and Stanford Prison Experiment. His DJ show is a “throwback celebration of music from Nickelodeon and Disney Channel.”
The Wonder Years comes to the Fremont on Wednesday, Sept. 27 (6:45 p.m.; all ages; $27.50 at seetickets.us). In celebration of the 10th anniversary of their fourth studio album, 2013’s The Greatest Generation, and in celebration of their newest, 2022’s The Hum Goes on Forever, this Pennsylvania pop-punk, emo, and alt-rock act is touring the country.
“You’ve got to pull it together,” lead singer, depressive, and new father Dan Campbell said in press materials, “because your kids are counting on you. These things that feel hopeless—these massive cultural and societal, full-populace problems like climate change and school shootings, all the things that you’re afraid of for your children—well, they only get fixed if you fix them. ‘I don’t want to die—because I’ve got to protect you.’ It would be very easy to give in to the depression and just kind of lay there, but my kids are counting on me, so I have to try to pull myself together and do the work.”
Ah, emo rock.
More on him next week, but former Traffic band member Dave Mason makes a stop on his Endangered Species Tour on Thursday, Sept. 28 (8 p.m.; all ages; $37.50 to $72.50 at prekindle.com). As a solo artist, he’s penned over 100 songs and has three gold albums—Alone Together, Dave Mason, Mariposa De Oro—and the platinum album Let It Flow.
Vina Robles Amphitheatre
Paso’s amazing outdoor amphitheater has a slew of great shows this week starting with Los Lobos on Thursday, Sept. 21 (7:30 p.m.; all ages; $40 to $59.50 at vinaroblesamphitheatre.com), with opener Ozomatli. Both these Chicano acts are genre-jumping chameleons
Mexican singer and actress Lupita D’Alessio plays on Friday, Sept. 22 (8 p.m.; all ages; $69 to $125 at vinaroblesamphitheatre.com). She’s sold more than 40 million records over her five-decade career, and she’s billing this current U.S. tour her Gracias Tour to thank the public for following her for 50 years. D’Alessio will be accompanied by her son Ernesto D’Alessio as a guest artist to say goodbye to her audience in North America. Expect to hear classics such as “Que Ganas de No Verte Nunca Más,” “Mudanzas,” “Inocente Pobre Amiga,” “Ese Hombre,” “I’m Sorry My Love,” “My Heart Is a Gypsy,” “Sleeping Lion,” and others.
Three-time Grammy Award nominees The Avett Brothers play on Saturday, Sept. 23 (8 p.m.; all ages; $59.50 to $125 at vinaroblesamphitheatre.com). The North Carolina folk rockers achieved mainstream success with their 2009 major label debut, I And Love And You, that landed at No. 16 on the Billboard Top 200. In 2012, The Carpenter rose to No. 4 on the Billboard Top 200, followed by Magpie And The Dandelion in 2013, which debuted at No. 5 on Billboard’s Top 200.
Finally this week, see Jason Bonham’s Led Zeppelin on Sunday, Sept. 24 (7:30 p.m.; all ages; $50 to $65 at vinaroblesamphitheatre.com). The son of legendary original Zeppelin drummer John Bonham, Jason has his father’s power and ability to get deep in the groove. He and his band play the hits from the iconic band’s entire career, including albums Led Zeppelin, Led Zeppelin II, Led Zeppelin IV and Physical Graffiti.
Bonham said of this current show, “It’s part storyteller, with using the multimedia screens and things, we’re creating little pieces which I will narrate over, which give some little background over some songs we play—and the reason why I’m playing them. There’s stories of myself growing up with dad and how Zeppelin has been, y’know, part of my life from the beginning.”
SLO Brew Rock
SLO Brew Live and (((folkYEAH!))) present Dengue Fever on Saturday, Sept. 23 (doors at 7 p.m.; 18-and-older; $24 at ticketweb.com). The Max MacLaury Band opens.
If you’re not yet familiar with Dengue Fever, where ya been? Imagine a mix of Cambodian rock and pop music from the ’60s and ’70s mixed with elements of psychedelic and world music sounds. They released their self-titled debut 20 years ago, and since then they’ve delivered five more full-length studio albums (most recently, Ting Mong, out this month), four EPs, a live album, and a soundtrack.
After an eight-year break, the band members reconvened in 2019 in a small, rented cabin in the desert near Joshua Tree, and converted it into a recording studio. The album’s first single, “Touch Me Not,” has an accompanying video that captures the landscape it grew out of.
“In Cambodian culture, a Ting Mong is an effigy of protection, a scarecrow-like figure usually placed at the entrance of a village or a home,” the band explained. “It wards off diseases and evil spirits. We’re all in desperate need of a Ting Mong.”
The Clark Center
If you want to get your ha-has on, the Clark Center presents the San Francisco Stand-Up Comedy Competition Final Round hosted by Dan St. Paul on Friday, Sept. 22 (7:30 p.m.; $35 to $55 at clarkcenter.org). “The San Francisco Stand-Up Comedy Competition is a highly esteemed event that brings together the finest comedic talent from all corners of the country,” press materials explain. “Since its establishment in 1976, this competition has solidified its reputation as a premier platform for emerging comedians to showcase their skills and gain industry recognition.”
James Elliott Entertainment presents The Bee Gees Gold, a tribute to the Bee Gees, at the Clark Center on Thursday, Sept. 28 (7:30 p.m.; $30 to $40 at clarkcenter.org). Billed as “the ultimate salute and experience of seeing the Bee Gees in their prime,” the performance includes a live backing band and the unique falsetto harmonies that embodied their disco sound. Hear early hits such as “Massachusetts” and “I Started a Joke” to the later classics “Stayin’ Alive” and “How Deep Is Your Love.”
More music …
I wrote about both of these last week, but just a quick reminder that Numbskull and Good Medicine are bringing British R&B sensation James Hunter to The Siren on Thursday, Sept. 21 (7 p.m.; 21-and-older; $27 at goodmedicinepresents.com), with opener Los Tranquilos. They’re also bringing ripping guitarist and sassy blues vixen Samantha Fish to BarrelHouse Brewing that same night, on Thursday, Sept. 21 (6 p.m.; all ages; $27 at goodmedicinepresents.com). Eric Johanson opens.
Virtuoso ukulele player and singer-songwriter Taimane plays Cal Poly’s Spanos Theatre this Friday, Sept. 22 (7 p.m.; all ages; $39 at calpolyarts.org). Her instrument may be traditionally Hawaiian, and she may be a hapa Smoan artist—part indigenous Smoan and part Caucasian—born and raised in Hawai’i, but her music transcends traditional island sounds. Flamenco? Check! Mash-up of Led Zeppelin and Beethoven? Check! She can’t be pigeonholed.
If you look up “dive bar” on Wikipedia, you’ll see a photo of The Merrimaker in Los Osos, but the online encyclopedia may need to dig up another photo because The Merrimaker is now under new local ownership and has been renovated and rebranded as Niffy’s Merrimaker, and the joint has been considerably classed up. It’s about to get classier this Friday, Sept. 22, when New Orleans style boogie blues band The Cliffnotes will bring the party (7 to 9 p.m.; free). Get ready to get down to some great dance music.
The Basin Street Regulars Hot Jazz Club has another great show lined up for you this Sunday, Sept. 24, with Tom Rigney and Flambeau from the Bay Area and Tres Whiskeys with special guest David Johns from the Five Cities area, playing at the Pismo Beach Vets Hall (an open jazz jam stars at 11 a.m.; the concert begins at 12:20 p.m.; all ages; $10 for members, $25 presale for nonmembers at my805tix.com or $30 at the door; find membership info at pismojazz.com).
“Tres Whiskeys are a fun-loving Central Coast trio covering jazz, blues, and Latin favorites,” according to organizers. “Tom Rigney is one of the premier American roots music fiddle players on the planet. His band plays two-steps, low-down blues, funky New Orleans grooves, boogie-woogie piano, and heartbreakingly beautiful ballads and waltzes.”
The San Luis Obispo Wind Orchestra featuring Emily Lanzone presents Masterpieces in Motion this Sunday, Sept. 24 (3 p.m.; all ages; $20 general and $30 premium at tickettailor.com), in the Cuesta Performing Arts Center. Hear the theme to Schindler’s List by John Williams, Aaron Copeland’s “Lincoln Portrait,” and more.
The SLO County Jazz Federation will resume its jazz jam sessions at The Mark (673 Higuera) every second and fourth Tuesday of the month, beginning Tuesday, Sept. 26 (7 to 9 p.m.; all ages; free). The house rhythm section includes Craig Updegrove (piano), Ken Hustad (bass), and Darrell Voss (drums). “Hope you can join us and support the time-honored tradition of the jam session,” Updegrove said. “Food and drink available for purchase.” Δ
Contact Senior Staff Writer Glen Starkey at gstarkey@newtimesslo.com.
This article appears in Sep 21 – Oct 1, 2023.