Concerts
Have the Rolling Stones Priced Themselves Out of the Market?
May 9th, 2013
Roll back those ticket prices. Back to zero. Please. I ain’t too proud to beg. Back to zero, like in the days when they were first starting out and playing bars and clubs in and around London, capitalizing on a blues-rock movement that bordered on a pandemic. Since then, the Stones have evolved from an innocent rock and roll band to a red-tongued conglomerate. And they charge a lot for tickets now. Read more »
Music
Concert Review: Def Leppard
The Joint at the Hard Rock, March 23
March 25th, 2013
During its 30-plus years in the rock ’n’ roll game, Def Leppard has parked a handful of misses alongside their dozens of hits. Read more »
Music
Concert Review: Clutch
Hard Rock Café on the Strip, March 23
March 25th, 2013
There’s absolutely nothing extravagant or pretentious about Clutch. For more than 20 years, the Germantown, Maryland-based band has grown a cult following by playing no-frills, blues-based hard rock. And while that meat-and-potatoes style has been largely ignored by the mainstream, it has earned them a loyal fan base. Read more »
Music
Concert Review: Pebaluna
Triple B: Backstage Bar & Billiards, March 21
March 25th, 2013
The subtle plucking of Lauren Coleman’s ukulele could be slightly heard over the standard chitchat of bar conversations. The crowd was a mix of indie music fans out to hear the Long Beach, California, outfit and wanderers in from some kinda monster truck rally taking place outside the Fremont Street venue. Read more »
Music
Concert Review: Radiation City and Brainstorm
Neon Reverb, Beauty Bar, March 22
March 25th, 2013
This spring’s Neon Reverb promised to be leaner, meaner. The decent-sized audience that gathered in Beauty Bar for some Portland, Oregon, synth-pop initially reflected this by looking malnourished, unfriendly. Read more »
Music
Concert Review: Lady Gaga
MGM Grand Garden Arena, Jan. 25
January 31st, 2013
Few artists can get away with making an entrance by popping out of an inflatable zippered vagina. But Lady Gaga can. When her Born This Way tour made a two-night stop in Las Vegas, she brought the spectacle that fans have come to expect from the pop star—one that perhaps only her true fans can appreciate. Read more »
Music
Concert Review: Ben Folds Five
The Pearl, Jan. 25
January 31st, 2013
I never saw Ben Folds Five in concert before the trio’s breakup in 2000, other than their outstanding 1997 performance captured on the DVD The Complete Sessions at West 54th. But in catching Folds three times as a solo artist since 2006 (always with a backing band), I came away each time feeling like his shows didn’t possess the collaborative spirit and intensity that the Sessions performance did. Read more »
