It’s a big week for Vina Robles Amphitheatre and Nederlander Concerts, which are diving headlong into their summer concert season. I’m most excited to see Sacramento alternative rock act Cake this Thursday, July 11 (8 p.m.; all ages; $54.50 to $94.50 at vinaroblesamphitheatre.com) with Ukrainian folk music quartet DakhaBrakha opening. I just checked the Vina website and there are a few tickets available, so get on it if you want to go.
Fans of ’60s and ’70s rock and pop hits will get an earful when The Happy Together Tour featuring The Turtles, Jay and Americans, Badfinger, The Association, The Cowsills, and The Vogues take the stage on Friday, July 12 (8 p.m.; all ages; $45 to $75 at vinaroblesamphitheatre.com). These nostalgia groups have been joining forces on summer tours for about 15 years now, crisscrossing the nation and delighting audiences with their hits.
The Turtles—known for their harmony-heavy hits such as “Elenore,” “She’d Rather Be With Me,” “It Ain’t Me Babe,” “You Showed Me,” and “Happy Together”—act as the musical hosts for the evening. Ron Dante will join the lineup to play his hits “Sugar Sugar” and “Tracy.”
Jay and the Americans are known for “She Cried,” “Only In America,” “Come A Little Bit Closer,” “Cara Mia,” and “This Magic Moment.” The Association delivered No. 1 hits like “Cherish,” “Windy,” “Never My Love,” and “Along Comes Mary.”
The Vogues, known for their soaring harmony-driven songs, had hit singles with the tracks “Five O’clock World,” “You’re The One,” “My Special Angel,” and “Turn Around Look At Me.” Badfinger, one of the original bands signed to the Beatles’ Apple Records label, had their first hit single with the Paul McCartney-penned song “Come and Get It,” as well as their own songs “No Matter What,” “Day After Day” (produced by George Harrison), and “Baby Blue.”
The Cowsills round out this bill. They were the inspiration for the hit ’60s TV show The Partridge Family and are known for hits like “Hair,” “Indian Lake,” “The Rain The Park & Other Things (I Love The Flower Girl),” and more.
What an amazing lineup!
Remarkable violinist and dancer Lindsey Stirling performs on Saturday, July 13 (8 p.m.; all ages; $46 to $86 at vinaroblesamphitheatre.com), with Audriix opening. Stirling is touring in support of her brand-new album Duality, with stops at iconic venues such as New York City’s Radio City Music Hall, Boston’s MGM Music Hall at Fenway Park, Colorado’s Red Rocks Amphitheatre, Philadelphia’s The Met, and The Anthem in Washington, D.C. This is a pretty big “get” for Vina, and only a smattering of seats remains. Expect intricate choreography, aerial lyra acts, and stunning costumes from this genre-bending powerhouse.
Finally, eight-piece rock collective The Revivalists plays on Wednesday, July 17 (8 p.m.; all ages; $56 to $96 at vinaroblesamphitheatre.com), with Dawes opening. The Revivalists have gone from hole-in-the-wall gigs to sold-out shows, multiplatinum sales, and more than 800 million streams. This is a terrific live act delivering soulful alt-rock anthems, and they’re also renowned for their philanthropy through their Rev Causes initiative, which supports “organizations dedicated to reviving and investing in our communities, our health, and our environment.”
According to press materials, “Their fifth album, Pour It Out Into The Night (Concord Records), is a life-affirming album about living in the moment, fueled by lessons in gratitude and life realizations.” This is music for optimists.
Numbskull
and Good Medicine
Looking for some synth-pop, punk, or folk? Because Numbskull and Good Medicine have you covered this week.
San Diego duo Glass Spells mixes modern synth-pop with retro-inspired sounds to create their dreamy, hook-laden songs, and they’ll play Club Car Bar on Saturday, July 13 (8 p.m.; all ages; $21.32 at goodmedicinepresents.com). Instrumentalist Anthony Ramirez and vocalist Tania Costello together create, as their bio explains, “a sound that’s both innovative and nostalgic.”
Oxnard-based hard-core and skate punk juggernauts Agression play The Siren on Sunday, July 14 (7 p.m.; 21-and-older; $13.08 at goodmedicinepresents.com), with openers Mad Dog and the Smokin’ Js and No Class. Original singer Mark Hickey still fronts Agression, with Rob Thacker on guitar, Fuse Henry on bass, and Mike “Fluffy Machete” Minnick on drums. Prepare to enter the mosh pit.
Folk and blues artist Jake Xerxes Fussell plays Bristols Cider House on Thursday, July 18 (7 p.m.; all ages; $24.41 at goodmedicinepresents.com). The 42-year-old was raised in Georgia and as a teenager began playing with elder Chattahoochee Valley musicians, later apprenticing with Piedmont blues legend Precious Bryant. Since his 2015 debut eponymous album, he’s appeared on A Prairie Home Companion and opened for Wilco, Bill Callahan, and The Decemberists. He’s currently touring in support of his fifth album, When I’m Called.
The Siren
Get a big dose of platinum blonde ’80s pop hits when The Siren hosts a Madonna and Blondie double tribute with Heart of Blonde and Like a Material Girl on Friday, July 12 (7:30 p.m.; 21-and-older; $25 at tixr.com). Paying homage to these two femmes fatales is Mindy Milburn as Madonna, delivering a high-energy show of her hits and adding in a few covers from other ’80s divas. Milburn will then shift gears and embody Blondie lead singer Debbie Harry and run through her hits.
Brass Mash plays a big brass band dance party on Saturday, July 13 (7:30 p.m.; 21-and-older; $15 at tixr.com), mashing up two or more hits from the 1960s to today. “Britney Spears and Black Sabbath? Check. Lorde and Dr. Dre? Got that too. Daft Punk and ZZ Top? Wildest dreams are manifested through a unique vocal and saxophone talk box duet!” their bio explains.
Before the Numbskull and Good Medicine punk show with Agression, start your afternoon on Sunday, July 14, with Dos Bros (2 to 4:30 p.m.; 21-and-older; free), two friends—Devin Avey and Pat McMillan—who “strive to bring feel-good music to the people,” their bio explains. “Dos Bros has created their original music using ukuleles, guitar, bass, keyboards, vocals, drums, and horns. With a heavy influence from reggae and surf music, Dos Bros aims to capture the sounds of summer and take you on a relaxing musical journey.”
Do you feel the need for speed, because on Thursday, July 18, one of the original speed metal bands, Exciter, which formed in 1978 in Ottawa, is headlining a four-band show (6:30 p.m.; 21-and-older; $25 at tixr.com), with Cleveland’s metal/punk act Midnight, Indiana’s blackened speed metal band Wraith, and Florida’s technical death/thrash metal group Hellwitch opening.
Mosaic music
Festival Mozaic started out decades ago as the Mozart Festival, but over its many years it’s evolved into so much more that classical music. The organization’s Summer Music Festival begins next Thursday, July 18, and runs through Saturday, July 27, and in between there are a number of events—too many to list here—that will satisfy all stripes of music aficionados. Concerts, films, lectures, dinners, and more await, some of which are now sold out, so visit festivalmozaic.org/summer and make your plans.
More music …
Warm summer nights have made Concerts in the Plaza very popular this summer, and Downtown SLO has another great show lined up for this Friday, July 12, when Jamaican-born reggae legend and local hero Ras Danny opens the event at 5 p.m., followed from 6 to 8 p.m. by blistering hot local R&B group Hot 45. Come hang with your neighbors.
Slip on your Dr. Martens and sleeveless jean jacket and head to Punk Rock Matinee this Sunday July 14, at Paso’s The PourHouse (doors at 2 p.m. with the show at 3; 21-and-older; free). Paso’s Wasted Elder Orchestra, Lompoc’s PLOT, and Santa Barbara’s Up Your Guys will open for Los Angeles-based headliner For Closure, fronted by vocalist Gizz Lazlo (Dr. Know, U.K. Subs, The Freeze, Dead Lazlo’s Place). Δ
Contact Senior Staff Writer Glen Starkey at gstarkey@newtimesslo.com.
This article appears in Jul 11-21, 2024.