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Live Five: Cave Bastard, Crocodiles, Agent 51, B-Side Players, Ass Pocket Whiskey Fellas
Sludge metal, noise pop, melodic punk, global funk, and Celtic rock in City Heights, South Park, Little Italy, University Heights, Shelter Island
Scene from Big Mutha Truckers 2
Cave Bastard at the Banshee Bar
April 30
Sludge/death metal band Cave Bastard was founded in 2014 by bassist Troy Oftedal, a former member of Cattle Decapitation who left that group in 2009, and guitarist Nick Padron, formerly of Bridge Jumper. Their initial performances and recordings also featured Chase Ferguson (ex-Bridge Jumper), Steve Pearce (Gutrot, Ritual Torture), and Steven Reed (Age Of Collapse). In summer 2017, the band released a split 12-inch with Austin group Blk Ops, on Accident Prone Records, with four songs by each band. Early the next year, they welcomed new drummer Marlon Matthew (Temblad) into the fold. Their second full-length, 2018’s The Bleak Shall Devour the Earth, was followed by 2021’s Wrath of the Bastard, released via Antrum Records. Cave Bastard will be opening for psychedelic metal headliner Gigan, on a City Heights bill that includes Barren Path, Genestealer, and Cataract Stare.
Crocodiles at the Whistle Stop Bar
May 1
Noise pop rockers Crocodiles began as an indie/fuzz-rock duo featuring Brandon Welchez (the Prayers) and Charles Rowland (Some Girls). They’ve been playing together since they were teenagers in San Diego bands such as the Plot to Blow Up the Eiffel Tower and Prayers. Welchez is the vocalist and programmer, while Rowland plays guitar, keys, and electronic drums. After signing a two album deal with Fat Possum Records in early 2009, their debut LP Summer of Hateestablished their angry musical template with songs such as “I Wanna Kill.” Welchez is also known for collaborating with LA-based rocker Kate Clover, whose debut album Bleed Your Heart Out was mostly produced and co-written by Welchez and features his Crocodiles bandmate Charles Rowell guesting on guitar. Crocodiles just dropped a new album at the end of April, Greetings From Hell, along with a music video for the album track “Time Is Wasting Me.” Also appearing on the South Park stage will be The Siege.
May 2
Originally known as Area 51 when formed in 1995, melodic punk band Agent 51 released three albums on various record labels before going on indefinite hiatus. 2003’s Red and the Black featured songs like "She's My Heroine," which received airplay on local rock radio station 91X, and "American Rock 'n' Roll," which was used in the opening episode of MTV's Real World: San Diego, and "Air Raid," later heard in the video game Big Mutha Truckers 2. The album was nominated in several categories at the 2003 San Diego Music Awards and won for Best Punk Album. Now reformed, the Poway High School vets are on the road again in support of a new album, The Age of Validation, with a single now available for their cover of Green Day’s “Emenius Sleepus.” The San Diego Music Awards fundraiser bill includes Beta 7, Slacker, and Thee Allyrgic Reaction.
B-Side Players at Lou Lou’s Jungle Room
May 5
“We now represent the Brown Majority,” says Karlos Paez, the dreadlocked frontman of global funk act B-Side Players who helped launch the group in 1994. “The surfer, suburban stereotype of California is changing fast. It’s not all bleach blondes anymore.” Specializing in socially conscious dance music sung in both Spanish and English, the ensemble fuses sounds from Latin America (Cuba, Mexico, Brazil) with funk, rock, jazz, and hip-hop. The group won a San Diego Music Award for Best World Album for their 2009 record Radio Afro Mexica, and they won Best World Music at the 2011 SDMAs, an award they took home again in 2012. Their live shows celebrate diverse cultures, especially Chicano identity, drawing frequent comparisons to iconic worldwide Latin groups such as Ozomatli. They dropped a new single in February for their track “Flowers,” which continues to showcase the band’s ability to seamlessly work elements of Cumbia, street Samba, Son Montuno, and Jarocho into their arrangements.
Ass Pocket Whiskey Fellas at Humphreys Backstage Music Club
May 6
Founded in 2011 by members of the Fairfield Fats Band, Superkeltic, Enuf, and the Clairemonsters, Ass Pocket Whiskey Fellas specialize in a brand of Celtic rock that fuses traditional folk and roots music and instrumentation with rock and roll arrangements honed over countless live performances. The band's live sets mix originals with classic country, bluegrass, traditional Irish, and Led Zeppelin, all the while expressing their love for traditional Irish music and its connection to American bluegrass and country, as well as its rock and roll roots. With a stage lineup featuring up to eight or more members, their all-acoustic setup includes parts for upright bass, fiddle, accordion, mandolin, banjo, and tin whistle. Their third album Third Flagon won a 2023 San Diego Music Award for Best Local Recording, and they followed up with Live At the Belly Up in 2024 and last year’s Speedway Racer album.
Here's something you might be interested in.
Live Five: Cave Bastard, Crocodiles, Agent 51, B-Side Players, Ass Pocket Whiskey Fellas
Sludge metal, noise pop, melodic punk, global funk, and Celtic rock in City Heights, South Park, Little Italy, University Heights, Shelter Island
Live Five: Cave Bastard, Crocodiles, Agent 51, B-Side Players, Ass Pocket Whiskey Fellas
Sludge metal, noise pop, melodic punk, global funk, and Celtic rock in City Heights, South Park, Little Italy, University Heights, Shelter Island
Scene from Big Mutha Truckers 2
Cave Bastard at the Banshee Bar
April 30
Sludge/death metal band Cave Bastard was founded in 2014 by bassist Troy Oftedal, a former member of Cattle Decapitation who left that group in 2009, and guitarist Nick Padron, formerly of Bridge Jumper. Their initial performances and recordings also featured Chase Ferguson (ex-Bridge Jumper), Steve Pearce (Gutrot, Ritual Torture), and Steven Reed (Age Of Collapse). In summer 2017, the band released a split 12-inch with Austin group Blk Ops, on Accident Prone Records, with four songs by each band. Early the next year, they welcomed new drummer Marlon Matthew (Temblad) into the fold. Their second full-length, 2018’s The Bleak Shall Devour the Earth, was followed by 2021’s Wrath of the Bastard, released via Antrum Records. Cave Bastard will be opening for psychedelic metal headliner Gigan, on a City Heights bill that includes Barren Path, Genestealer, and Cataract Stare.
Crocodiles at the Whistle Stop Bar
May 1
Noise pop rockers Crocodiles began as an indie/fuzz-rock duo featuring Brandon Welchez (the Prayers) and Charles Rowland (Some Girls). They’ve been playing together since they were teenagers in San Diego bands such as the Plot to Blow Up the Eiffel Tower and Prayers. Welchez is the vocalist and programmer, while Rowland plays guitar, keys, and electronic drums. After signing a two album deal with Fat Possum Records in early 2009, their debut LP Summer of Hateestablished their angry musical template with songs such as “I Wanna Kill.” Welchez is also known for collaborating with LA-based rocker Kate Clover, whose debut album Bleed Your Heart Out was mostly produced and co-written by Welchez and features his Crocodiles bandmate Charles Rowell guesting on guitar. Crocodiles just dropped a new album at the end of April, Greetings From Hell, along with a music video for the album track “Time Is Wasting Me.” Also appearing on the South Park stage will be The Siege.
May 2
Originally known as Area 51 when formed in 1995, melodic punk band Agent 51 released three albums on various record labels before going on indefinite hiatus. 2003’s Red and the Black featured songs like "She's My Heroine," which received airplay on local rock radio station 91X, and "American Rock 'n' Roll," which was used in the opening episode of MTV's Real World: San Diego, and "Air Raid," later heard in the video game Big Mutha Truckers 2. The album was nominated in several categories at the 2003 San Diego Music Awards and won for Best Punk Album. Now reformed, the Poway High School vets are on the road again in support of a new album, The Age of Validation, with a single now available for their cover of Green Day’s “Emenius Sleepus.” The San Diego Music Awards fundraiser bill includes Beta 7, Slacker, and Thee Allyrgic Reaction.
B-Side Players at Lou Lou’s Jungle Room
May 5
“We now represent the Brown Majority,” says Karlos Paez, the dreadlocked frontman of global funk act B-Side Players who helped launch the group in 1994. “The surfer, suburban stereotype of California is changing fast. It’s not all bleach blondes anymore.” Specializing in socially conscious dance music sung in both Spanish and English, the ensemble fuses sounds from Latin America (Cuba, Mexico, Brazil) with funk, rock, jazz, and hip-hop. The group won a San Diego Music Award for Best World Album for their 2009 record Radio Afro Mexica, and they won Best World Music at the 2011 SDMAs, an award they took home again in 2012. Their live shows celebrate diverse cultures, especially Chicano identity, drawing frequent comparisons to iconic worldwide Latin groups such as Ozomatli. They dropped a new single in February for their track “Flowers,” which continues to showcase the band’s ability to seamlessly work elements of Cumbia, street Samba, Son Montuno, and Jarocho into their arrangements.
Ass Pocket Whiskey Fellas at Humphreys Backstage Music Club
May 6
Founded in 2011 by members of the Fairfield Fats Band, Superkeltic, Enuf, and the Clairemonsters, Ass Pocket Whiskey Fellas specialize in a brand of Celtic rock that fuses traditional folk and roots music and instrumentation with rock and roll arrangements honed over countless live performances. The band's live sets mix originals with classic country, bluegrass, traditional Irish, and Led Zeppelin, all the while expressing their love for traditional Irish music and its connection to American bluegrass and country, as well as its rock and roll roots. With a stage lineup featuring up to eight or more members, their all-acoustic setup includes parts for upright bass, fiddle, accordion, mandolin, banjo, and tin whistle. Their third album Third Flagon won a 2023 San Diego Music Award for Best Local Recording, and they followed up with Live At the Belly Up in 2024 and last year’s Speedway Racer album.