Instead of hustling in an hour early for a center-row seat, I booked my ticket online and strolled in just a few minutes before the show. Soda and popcorn in place, the lights went down and all was silent until the thunderous chorus and scroll kicked in to everyone’s childlike delight. But…
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Tad Malone on December 28, 2017
In an age where country music mostly consists of overproduced love ballads and nauseatingly poppy songs about a man’s truck and dog, it’s refreshing to hear something a little more raw. Outlaw Country band the Barnyard Stompers takes that idea, straps it onto the back of the General Lee and launches it…
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André Jaquez on December 28, 2017
Taking their name from the absurdist, avant-garde movement that swept Europe and America in the early 20th century, Swedish DJ duo Olle Cornéer and Stefan Engblom aren’t afraid to be a little wacky. In true dada style, the pair’s particular fascination with champagne and bananas is intentionally nonsensical. Dada Life fit into…
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Welp. Another year has flown by. This one seemed particularly hectic—what with the Trump-dominated news cycle, all the natural disasters and the #MeToo movement. But this is the music section. So, let’s set aside all of the insanity of 2017 and focus on the insanely great local music that we saw over…
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Tad Malone on December 27, 2017
At most family reunions, booze is imperative to survival. One thing’s for sure: there will be plenty of liquor Johnny V’s Family Reunion. Although legendary downtown dive Johnny V’s closed its doors last December because of an improper alcohol license, its spirit of hard-partying fun and loud, live music lives on. The Ritz is…
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I don’t know what kind of person offers to pick up a 6-foot-3 dude walking down the street in the middle of the night. I was initially suspicious, but the fact that my phone wasn’t working and I was quite far from home—and probably due to the feeling of invincibility imparted upon…
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André Jaquez on December 22, 2017
Amy Dabalos’ voice sparkles. The bold, classically trained singer from San Jose takes inspiration from jazz greats of old, like Sarah Vaughan, to modern marvels like Lianne La Havas. Dabalos’ latest single, “Change,” is a gentle piano-led piece with politically charged lyrics. Dabalos has been making the rounds on the Bay Area…
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Although Identical Tentacles, Joan and the Rivers’ 2016 EP, has just three songs, it makes a strong case for the band as one of San Jose’s most inspired group of weirdo rockers. These guys got lost somewhere between the garage and the bar, sending dirty howls through the dead-end streets of the…
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In the run-up to this year’s XXXMas Fckfest, Eric Victorino, frontman for South Bay alt-rock heroes Strata and The Limousines, started to hear murmurs through the social media grapevine. “People would get on Twitter and ask, ‘Are you going to do the show this year?’” he recounts.
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Spiller might have started in Eugene, Oregon, but the band is made up of members from San Jose, Maui, Lake Tahoe and Hong Kong. A band made up of transplants and nomads, their sound is equally nomadic and exploratory, including elements of ’90s indie rock like Karate and Tortoise, swelling choruses of…
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