Day 2, Saturday, June 14, of the Live Oak Music Festival is always a bit of a marathon. The music starts at 8 a.m. and rolls all the way through to 1 a.m. on Sunday. There’s an amazing lineup for the day, but the headliner is one of my favorite bands to see live: The California Honeydrops.
The band members—led by Polish trumpet player and frontman Lech Wierzynski—cut their teeth busking in Oakland’s subway systems, honing their retro soul and R&B sounds. These days, they’re a mainstay of major music festivals such as Byron Bay Bluesfest in Australia, Outside Lands, Monterey Jazz, and Lightning in a Bottle. Their music has been streamed more than 200 million times.
Percussionist and band co-founder Ben Malament answered some questions via email while the band took a break from touring. One thing that sets them apart is they’ve been invited back to play Live Oak, which doesn’t happen often. Live Oakies love them!
“Well, we like the crowds too!” Malament wrote. “Live Oak Fest leaves a good feeling on the body and mind. The pleasant breeze when you’re hanging in the shade, the nice scenery, the people. The ever chilled-out Central Coast vibes. It’s a good one!”
The band’s been together since 2007 and has seen some personnel changes, which have helped evolve their sound.
“Our sound has changed with all the musicians who have joined over the years,” Malament agreed. “We’ve gone from a three-piece busking unit to an eight-piece band with two drummers and a full horn section. However, we like to break it down and keep as much of the roots in there as possible. Our fans keep coming back, and no one has told us we suck yet. So, we just keep trying to bring you to the dance floor.”
The band’s newest record, their lucky 13th, is Keep On Diggin’.
“Lech wrote pretty much all the tunes, and they were recorded and finished up over a year in different studios in Oakland,” Malament explained. “Most of the tunes we never played until the studio, which isn’t totally normal for us. We usually have time with songs on the road for a while. But a lot of creativity and arrangement went into the studio and post studio hours. It’s all about getting something that sounds and feels good as possible with the live band and then not overcooking the stew.”
Like a lot of musicians, Malament has mixed feelings about how streaming has changed the music scene.
“Streaming has helped get some ears on our music, but musicians and artists just need to be paid properly. The system is not worked out to the artist’s benefit yet. I hate seeing the posts about how Spotify’s founder raked in so-and-so-billion dollars last year. Maybe these streaming services can stream some proper health care and housing to all the musicians helping out their services.”
One thing that’s undeniable is the massive amount of energy this band brings to the stage. How do they psych themselves up?
“High fives and hugs go a long way,” Malament joked. “And not eating too much right before going onstage. The Honeydrops can’t wait to see you at Live Oak. If you want to stand still and stare at us, please move a few rows back so the dancers can take over. Thank you! Love you!”
The California Honeydrops hit the main stage at 8:45 p.m.
As mentioned, Saturday is a marathon and certainly promises your biggest bang for your concertgoing buck. Two Paper Squares bring their bluegrassy beach folk to the Beer Garden at 8 a.m. Then Zen Mountain Poets will deliver some psychedelic neo-prog folk jazz to the Beer Garden at 9 a.m.
Reggae band True Zion plays the main stage at 10 a.m., followed by the harmony folk sounds of the T Sisters at 11:30 a.m.
You can strut your own musical stuff by joining the Karaoke Jam with Brynn and Jody on Stage Too at noon, featuring violinist Brynn Albanese and singer-songwriter and guitarist Jody Mulgrew.
Emcee Joe Craven leads his band Jerry & Dawg Revisited on the main stage at 1 p.m., playing the music of Jerry Garcia and David “Dawg” Grisman.
Hear some California country and honky-tonk when Victoria Bailey plays the Beer Garden at 2:15 p.m. Meanwhile, Wolf Jett brings their cosmic mountain music to Stage Too at 2:15.
EDM-infused big band jazz artists High Step Society play Stage Too at 3:45 p.m. They return to Stage Too for a 10:30 p.m. encore.
Alt-country and rock ‘n’ cumbia ensemble Chuck Prophet and His Cumbia Shoes play the mainstage at 5 p.m.
Hot 45 brings their R&B sounds to Stage Too at 6 p.m.
Funk, soul, jazz, and rock outfit The Motet plays the main stage at 6:45 p.m.
After The California Honeydrops on the main stage and High Step Society on Stage Too, if you’re still in the mood to dance, Kyra will spin disco, funk, and house music from midnight to 1 a.m. at Stage Too.
Punk icons
Social Distortion hasn’t recorded a new album since 2011’s Hard Times and Nursery Rhymes. In fact, since forming in Fullerton in 1978, they’ve only recorded seven albums total, yet they remain a headlining, touring phenomenon—that’s how iconic their music is.
Their self-titled third album remains one of the greatest punk records ever recorded, with hits like “Ball and Chain,” “Story of My Life,” and their cowpunk cover of Johnny Cash’s “Ring of Fire.”
“I write songs for myself, and I hope that other people will like them too,” frontman Mike Ness said in press materials. “I think every record you make is showing people what you’ve learned over the past few years. It’s showing people, ‘This is what I know.'”
We’re ready for a new lesson, Mike! Bring it! Vina Robles Amphitheatre hosts Social Distortion on Friday, June 13 (doors at 6 p.m., show at 8; all ages; $55.45 to $323.90 at ticketmaster.com) with Plague Vendor opening.
From sideman to frontman
After starting his career on the East Coast in the late-’60s, blues rock guitar slinger Walter Trout went West, young man, and quickly landed gigs as a sideman for folks like John Lee Hooker, Percy Mayfield, Big Mama Thornton, Joe Tex, and others. Later he joined Canned Heat, and then he became lead guitarist for John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers. He finally went from sideman to frontman in 1989 when he formed the Walter Trout Band.
Twenty solo albums later, Trout is touring in support of his 2024 record, Broken, about the travails of modern life and overcoming them.
“I’ve always tried to write positive songs, and this album is not quite that,” admitted the 74-year-old in press materials, “but I always hold on to hope. I think that’s why I wrote this album.”
Even after all this time and all these albums, Trout still looks to the future.
“I have to grow,” he continued. “I want to be a vital contributing artist. I don’t want to come out every night and play my first hit, ‘Life in the Jungle.’ I feel young. I know I’m not. But in my head, I’m still 25, still wanting to get better and do something I haven’t before. I have more to say.”
Walter Trout plays the Fremont Theater on Thursday, June 12 (doors at 7, show at 8 p.m.; all ages; $38.60 to $75.16 at prekindle.com).
Also this week at the Fremont, see two multi-act hip-hop shows starting with Lou Deezi on Saturday, June 7 (doors at 7, show at 8 p.m.; all ages; $37.56 at prekindle.com), with 1100 Himself and Mitchell and Dody6.
Wiz Khalifa plays on Tuesday, June 10 (doors at 7, show at 8 p.m.; all ages; general admission is sold out, but some VIP tickets remain at $297.38 to $664.58 at prekindle.com), with DJ Bonics, Fedd the God, and Chevy Woods.
Untraditional
Good Medicine presents The Sam Chase & The Untraditional in The Siren on Saturday, June 6 (doors at 8, show at 8:30 p.m.; 21-and-older; $22.35 at goodmedicinepresents.com), with Big Sierra opening.
The Untraditional hails from San Francisco and blend rock and folk “while maintaining the sensibilities and attitudes that come from growing up on a healthy diet of punk rock,” their bio explains. “The leader of the band is The Sam Chase himself, a natural storyteller with a voice that sounds as if it has weathered many an epic tale. With boot-stomping orchestration and lyrics that have been immortalized on the tattooed skin of their fans, The Sam Chase & The Untraditional doesn’t mess around. These are the warriors we need in these troubled times.”
Numbskull and Good Medicine present Matt Pless in Club Car Bar on Thursday, June 12 (8 p.m.; all ages; $10.30 at goodmedicinepresents.com). The favorite of the DIY and folk punk scenes was first noticed singing at Occupy Wall Street.
Free at The Siren
In addition to Good Medicine’s ticketed The Sam Chase show, The Siren has a couple of free ones for you. See LeadFoot on Friday, June 6 (7:30 p.m.; 21-and-older). The group says it “is a fresh take on the passion and raw power of playing rock ‘n’ roll and blues,” saying “it’s a punchy blend of both, we affectionately call rock ‘n’ blues.” Expect covers from the “’60s and beyond.”
Sixties to the present cover act Back Pages Band plays a matinee show on Saturday, June 7 (2 to 5 p.m.; 21-and-older). You’ll hear a diverse mix of classic rock, blues, and country.
Is that you, Cotton Jones?
SLO Brew Live presents Michael Nau at Rod & Hammer Rock on Saturday, June 7 (doors at 7 p.m.; 18-and-older; $32.36 at ticketweb.com). He’s touring in support of his new album, Mowing, which took a decidedly nonchalant approach to writing and recording.
“We did some full band stuff live in Burlington, Vermont, some of it was done in Connecticut, another song was tracked on a back porch in Nashville, others in Maryland,” Nau said in press materials. “I was just recording songs. I wasn’t sure about really doing a record.”
For the past eight years, Nau’s been cowriting music with his then-girlfriend and now-wife Whitney McGraw under the name Cotton Jones. The songs on Mowing were drawn from song ideas tracks but cast aside: “a stockpile of these recordings—little sonic experiments, layering exercises, the occasional fully formed song—nestled away in the Cotton Jones compound in the tiny Appalachian city of Cumberland, Maryland, waiting to be pulled from the shelf and ushered into the sunlight.”
Now they’re here. Anna St. Louis opens the show.
Feelin’ Randy?
Randy Musumeci and Feelin’ Randy Productions announces The Feelin’ Randy Show, a concert with his full 11-person band at the historic Barn in Orcutt on Sunday, June 8 (3 p.m.; $21.72 at feelinrandy.ticketspice.com/feelin-randy-at-the-barn or at the door). This rock and blues ensemble plays both originals and your favorite covers. American Legion Post 534 is sponsoring the concert, and a portion of proceeds will be donated to cancer research.
Musumeci, perhaps best known as the general manager of the Santa Maria Reds baseball team, has also been on a musical journey for over 40 years as a musician, singer, songwriter, arranger, and producer. He’s opened for artists such as Richard Marx, The Call, Todd Rundgren, Huey Lewis and the News, and Robin Trower, among others. He just released a new album Feelin’ Randy Too!
Piano and sax
Jazz Vespers Concerts returns to SLO’s First Presbyterian Church this Sunday, June 8, with the Jamaal Baptiste Quartet (4 p.m.; all ages; free though donations are gratefully accepted). Baptiste—a pianist, composer, and arranger—leads the jazz program at Cal Poly, and his quartet includes Ana Nelson on saxophone, Dylan Johnson on bass, and Darrell Voss on drums. The concert is free/donations appreciated and will be followed by a reception
Jazzy Madonna
Put it in your calendar and put it on repeat because every second Wednesday Johns Jazz will be playing Madonna Inn, including Wednesday, June 11 (7 to 9:15 p.m.).
Led by trumpet player David Johns, the band plays jazz standards from all eras and is filled with notable local players.
“Scott Martin (sax) plays in the group WAR and is a member of several jazz ensembles in the area,” Johns explained. “Jim Barnett (piano) was the musical director for Johnny Matthis for several years and is a virtuoso on the piano. Matthis had Jim play as his only accompanist on The Johnny Carson Show several times. Darrell Voss (drums) is the most accomplished drummer I’ve ever played with, and I’m from LA! It’s no wonder he is the busiest drummer in town. Michael Diaz (bass) heads up his own group, Three Martini Lunch, which performs at least 30 times a year on its own. I also asked Mitch Latting to sing some vocals last month. You must know Mitch as he is always playing somewhere or singing.”
After a one-off gig, Johns Jazz has now found itself in regular rotation. This week marks their third go-around. Keep ’em coming. Δ
Contact Arts Editor Glen Starkey at gstarkey@newtimesslo.com.
This article appears in Pride 2025.