Blurt: San Diego Music News
Last time I saw Aaron Bowen, in 2007, he didn’t seem particularly happy. Now, seated at my dining-room table with his wife Kate, the Sweetwater High alum is beaming. “I was very depressed. My outlook …
There will be no Beastie Boys music played at Geezer’s weekend poolside gigs at the Handlery this summer. “We’re trying,” says singer-guitarist Adam Gimbel, “to turn it down a little for the family-ness of it.” …
On April 2, 2001, VH1 debuted a competitive reality TV show called Bands on the Run. The concept was to have four unsigned bands compete for a prize package that included $150,000 in cash, equipment, …
After decades of choral experience that included singing with the Tucson Boys Chorus and at Interlochen Center for the Arts in Missouri, Gary Holt became artistic director for the San Diego Gay Men’s Chorus in …
Pharmacy’s release party for No Drugs Included happens Friday, August 5, at the Go Lounge in La Mesa. “One of the covers we plan on doing is an old Zeros song,” says frontwoman Kitten Johnson. …
This year there were two milestones in Richard Livoni’s life. He turned 60 in July and, following a hiatus of nearly 30 years, he decided to resurrect rock trio the Blitz Brothers. “We’re gonna do …
Punk Love. “It actually started as a joke,” says Kyle Pagel. He is a promoter of punk shows and part owner of an indie punk label in Riverside called Muy Autentico. “There’s a guy we …
On July 30, Lestat’s Coffeehouse will rock and jangle in homage to the Los Angeles music scene centered around the Sunset Strip during the mid 1960s, featuring music by Love, Buffalo Springfield, the Byrds, and …
“I’m an East Coaster,” says Pennsylvania native Michael McGraw at the Alibi in Hillcrest. “I have a little moodiness and I’ve come to embrace it. The music we’re making now is true to that.” McGraw …
Blackout Party singer/songwriter Brian Holwerda chats with me between waiting tables at Café Japengo and finishing BP’s second album, Closed Mouth Don’t Get Fed. “In my late teens I played in a band called Fine …
Plenty of musical events are happening at and around Comic-Con next week. On Thursday, July 21, Japanese rocker Yoshiki (X Japan) will debut his Blood Red Dragon #0 comic, cocreated with former Marvel mainman Stan …
“We knew it from the get-go,” says Electric Healing Sound rhythm guitarist Ricky Soltero when I refer to the Velvet Underground. “We even cover ‘Waiting for My Man’ live. We don’t hide our influences.” Soltero …
“We’re not just a weed station that talks about weed all day.” Michael “Ras Mike” Callahan is co-owner of Nug Radio (NugRadio.com), an offshoot of marijuana advocacy publication NUG Magazine. Callahan’s broadcast partners include NUG …
“I don’t know of any other mimes that have written songs, unless you consider Charlie Chaplin, who did write and record music for his movies,” says singer/songwriter Larry Keough. Having spent over a decade as …
In June, two guitarists from San Diego advanced to the district finals in the nationwide King of the Blues competition sponsored by Guitar Center. Of them, 17-year-old Joshua Vasquez of Chula Vista eliminated Scripps Ranch …
Valhalla High grad and college dropout Matt Bahamas (née Barajas) cites “babes” as a major inspiration: “Here in San Diego, they’re wearing low-cut shirts and short skirts...turning heads. The chase is the most fun, and …