Alice Cooper’s Too Close for Comfort tour arrived at Harrah’s Rincon Casino on a sublime Thursday night in August. In the span of one and one-half hours, we witnessed Alice caress a live yellow snake, saw him put into a strait jacket, teased by a black widow spider, terrorized by Frankenstein’s Monster, was beheaded, resurrected, […]
Country music is changing. New artists are mixing it up, blending genres of rap, hip hop and rock, and attracting younger audiences. This was indeed the case when Austin Williams took the stage at the Old Town Music Festival in Murrieta, California, in June. Williams, who has taken the country music world by storm, is […]
ZZ Top strolled into town, bringing with them their special southern Texas sound of boogie, blues and rock ‘n roll to Harrah’s Rincon. It was a sold-out crowd and many in the audience were dressed accordingly, with cowboy boots and hats. ZZ Top, “That Lil’ Ol’ Band from Texas,” has had a long and lucrative […]
dBu Ranch Recorders held an open house and BackStage360 was fortunate enough to be there. The owner and builder, Dusk Bennett, was also celebrating his 50th birthday. He and his lovely wife, Amy, welcomed us to dBu, which is nestled in the backcountry of North County’s Valley Center. There were many guests, all happily mingling, […]
Foghat kicked off their Road Fever Tour this month at the Belly Up in Solana Beach. Formed in 1971 in England, 2023 marks Foghat’s fifty-second year together. Even though they endured many personnel changes during that time, Foghat remains devoted to the blues. Long known for their distinctive slide guitar and hard-driving boogie sound, the […]
This group of talented musicians from the 1960s and ’70s, Legends, provided an energetic blast-from-the-past performance. Singing and playing hits from their respective bands were: Mike Pinera (Blues Image, Iron Butterfly, and Alice Cooper) Marco Reyes (War) Larry Antonino (Pablo Cruise) Jerry Salas (El Chicano) Bob Luna (Played with Paul McCartney) Greg Alban (Patrick Moraz […]
In 1969, the Beatles completed songwriting, rehearsals and recordings for what would become their 12th studio album. It was to become their very last public appearance together. They decided on a concert to play these new songs and arrangements. The unannounced performance was held on the roof of Apple Studios in London’s Savile Row. The […]
The Zombies played the Belly Up Tavern on Sunday, on their “Life is a Merry Go Round” tour, bringing their vibrant brand of mod rock to Solana Beach. Not knowing much about the band, I didn’t know what to expect. Looking at the happy crowd assembling in front of the stage offered no more insight, […]
The 2022 NAMM Technical Excellence and Creativity Awards (TEC) were held on Saturday, June 4, at the Hilton Hotel in Anaheim, California. Because of the pandemic, this year was a reunion as we returned to the live, in-person NAMM show. It was brought back to life with an emphasis on safety and security. Actor, comedian, […]
The 2022 NAMM Show’s drum and the percussion section were filled with, naturally, SOUND! A cacophony of drumming and the crash of cymbals greeted us as we entered one of the more lively areas in the event space. Here are two of the highlights: WTS Drums Welch Tuning System drums are a unique invention from […]