Ventura Rocks in the Ventura Breeze 10/10 – 10/23

Posted on October 7, 2018 by venturarocks

Ventura Music Scene
by Pam Baumgardner
VenturaRocks.com
Pam@VenturaRocks.com

Every now and then an event is planned where a special milestone is celebrated; and so it goes with Army of Freshmen’s 20th anniversary hometown show at Discovery on Saturday, October 13. Earlier this year, they played dates in Europe to commemorate the occasion by touring with Bowling for Soup and Lit, but when they returned, they kept getting hit up with “What about your hometown?!!” This is a big deal, so get out and support. And if by chance you’ve never ventured out to see them live, do yourself a favor and don’t miss this one. Advance tickets are only $10, night of the show, $15 at the door.

You may have noticed on social media a new venue called Oak and Main, and while the location is a few doors down from Oak, it’s definitely on Main Street having taken over where Rookees used to be. The great news is that they plan on offering live music, case in point, they’ll have D.on Darox and the Melody Joy Bakers on Friday, October 12. I’m so looking forward to having more live music downtown, especially since losing Zoey’s, The Watermark, Amigos and The Good Bar the past few years.

Vintura at the Wine Rack will host a Breast Cancer Fund-raiser with breast cancer survivor, Karyn 805 on Friday, October 12 from 8-11 pm. They’ll donate 25% of net proceeds to the Ventura Cancer Resource Center as well as all of Karyn’s tips for local women who need assistance with treatment.

All ye men and women: get out the kilts and head over for fun, games and Celtic music at the Seaside Highland Games over the weekend of October 13 and 14 at Seaside Park. The music will abound throughout both days on multiple stages with such acts as The Angry Brians, Ploughboys, Hidden Fifth, The Brown Sisters, LA Fife and Drum, Three for Joy as well as many more acts. The event runs 9 to 5, but Saturday night, you’ll want to continue the fun and stop in at Grapes and Hops for a special performance from The Angry Brians.

Quick notes: Ben Katzman’s DeGreaser out of Florida has a date at the Hong Kong Inn on Wednesday, October 10; Plan B Winery celebrates their 6th anniversary with Native Vibe on Sunday, October 14; new punk bands on the scene will play The Garage including Soul Wring, Section 5, and Ran Aground on Wednesday, October 17; Necrodancer from France will be at Red Cove on Friday, October 19; The Spazmatics will be at Discovery, Friday, October 19; Edie Brickell & the New Bohemians at Ventura Theater on Friday, October 19; and 50 Sticks of Dynamite will play a benefit concert for Step Up Ventura at Ventura Center for Spiritual Living on Saturday, October 20.

Do you have any music-related news or upcoming shows you want help publicizing? Please send all information short or long to Pam@VenturaRocks.com, and for updated music listings daily, go to www.VenturaRocks.com.

Ventura Rocks in the Ventura Breeze 9/26-10/9

Posted on September 27, 2018 by venturarocks

Ventura Music Scene
by Pam Baumgardner
VenturaRocks.com
Pam@VenturaRocks.com

After closing their popular music venue Zoey’s in 2014, Steve and Polly Hoganson have found other ways of supporting indie artists mostly of the Americana genre with their Ones to Watch Productions. They sponsor shows throughout Ventura and Santa Barbara counties and the next one will feature Tim Curran with full band, The Brambles and Max Kasch on Thursday, September 27th, in the backroom at Bombay’s Bar and Grill. The backroom allows intimate listening room style concerts; tickets will be available at the door.

The Rubicon Theatre Company will be offering the following two concerts in the next few weeks. First David Burnham (Broadway’s Wicked) and Tami Tappan for two nights, Saturday and Sunday, September 29 and 30; this one is a part of The Goldenson Broadway Concert Series. Then it’s “The Folk Legends” with George Grove, Rick Dougherty and Jerry Siggins (The Kingston Trio, The Limeliters) on Monday and Tuesday, October 1 and 2. Ticket information can be found at RubiconTheatre.org.

Grapes and Hops starts a new monthly show on the first Thursday of the month called The Session Reboot with Tommy Marsh and his first guest on Thursday, October 4, will be Guy Martin. I for one am very happy Tommy has new venue supporting these Blues jams.

Frost and Fire 2018 will fall over three days at the Ventura Theater. Cirith Ungol returns after reuniting a couple of years ago and will headline Thursday night’s show along with Gygax and Sloughfeg; Friday has Midnight, Warbringer and Night Demon; and Saturday’s concert features Satan, Ashbury and Visigoth. To get a complete list of all bands (just a handful mentioned here) go to VenturaTheater.net. By the way, just announced at the Ventura Theater, an evening with Edie Brickell & the New Bohemians, Mazzy Star and Morrissey.

Quick notes: Tony Ybarra will be at Café Fiore Thursday, September 27; Hail the Sun has an in-store performance at Saltzer’s on Friday, September 28 at 6 pm; Rock on the Dock wraps up September shows with Decadent Decades on Saturday the 29th; Vitamin X out of Amsterdam plays a punk show at the Garage on Thursday, October 4; the Colette Lovejoy Band plays Pier Under the Stars on Saturday, October 6; and the Army of Freshmen 20th anniversary show at Discovery October 13, more on that next issue.

I continue to produce radio shows bi-monthly for CAPS Media’s KPPQ-LP at 104.1 FM in and around Ventura, and if you didn’t know, they also stream their radio station on the internet at CAPSMedia.org/Radio. The Pam Baumgardner Music Hour features mostly local artists out of the 805 and airs Tuesdays at 5 with rebroadcasts on Friday at 5 and Sundays at noon. Please help spread the word and support our local musicians!

Ventura Rocks in the Ventura Breeze 9/12 – 9/25

Posted on September 10, 2018 by venturarocks

Ventura Music Scene
by Pam Baumgardner
VenturaRocks.com
Pam@VenturaRocks.com

I’m beginning to see several venues pull back on music during the week as summer comes to an end and fall officially begins (September 23), but music continues to abound with special events. Let’s start with two epic celebrations at Plaza Park over the weekend of September 15 and 16. First it’s a “throwback” Boots & Brews on Saturday featuring Montgomery Gentry, Deana Carter, winner of the Voice, Sundance Head and more. And then Sunday it’s the grand finale of the California Beer Festival which is also celebrating its 10-year anniversary; musical performances will feature Hip Hop & R&B legends, Tone Loc and Sir Mix-a-Lot. For all the low down on the different ticket levels for each day, go to CalifornaBeerFestival.com.

The 25th anniversary of Bowlful of Blues falls on Saturday, September 22, and will be held at the beautiful Libbey Bowl in Ojai with performances from Selwyn Birchwood Band, Rod Piazza with special guest Carl Sonny Leyland, Teresa James & the Rhythm Tramps, Hot Roux and Kwan Telifaro Project. Tickets can be purchased online at BowlfulofBlues.org.

There’s going to be an End of Summer Block Party hosted by Ribbons of Life Breast Cancer Foundation at Buena High School on Saturday, September 15. This family friendly event will feature the Beatles tribute band, Paperback Writer. The event starts at 5 pm with the concert at 7 pm. Tickets start at $20.

In honor of her 10-year anniversary release, Rain Perry will perform Cinderblock Bookshelves at Kim Maxwell Studio over the weekend of September 14 and 15. Advance tickets are recommended at RainPerry.com.

Both Josh Damigo and Brother Earl will perform at Made West Brewing on Wednesday, September 19, for Toast for a Cure, Real Men Wear Pink fundraising event for the American Cancer Society.

You might want to get your tickets now for a couple of upcoming Ventura theater concerts, including Hoobastank, SuicideGirls (two nights), The Selector and the English Beat as well as a Bowie Celebration featuring several artists who played with Bowie over the years including Mike Garson, Mark Plati, Carmine Rojas, Earl Slick and others. For dates and ticket information, go to VenturaTheater.net.

Quick notes: Jodi Farrell’s Music Studio presents their singer’s showcase at Namba on Saturday, September 15; Dad Brains has an in store performance at Salzer’s Records 3 pm on Saturday, September 15; The Rubicon Theatre’s “I Dig Rock and Roll Music” continues through September 16; Cracker plays Discovery on Friday, September 14 with the Morgan Leigh Band opening; Rock on the Dock continues through September with performances on the 15th from Crosscut 805, and a Fleetwood Mac tribute band, Fleetwood’s Bac on the 22nd; and The Shaky Hand String Band out of Colorado will be at Made West Brewing Sunday, September 23.

Ventura Rocks in the Ventura Breeze 8/29 – 9/11

Posted on August 30, 2018 by venturarocks

Ventura Music Scene
by Pam Baumgardner
VenturaRocks.com
Pam@VenturaRocks.com

School is back in session, summer is drawing to an end, and yet, Ventura continues to rock! It doesn’t matter what time of year it is in our beachside community, you can always count on an abundance of live music to keep things lively!!

Much love to Discovery these days for the bands they’ve been pulling in. Yes, I love our local bands playing, but that being said, I also love seeing bands like The Original Wailers and Ozomatli (9/7), Blind Melon (9/8) and Gin Blossoms (9/11) play this smaller venue where you can not only get a great meal, but you can get up and close and see these amazing national artists play. I was personally thrilled to see Gin Blossoms on the bill. I caught up with the band’s lead singer, Robin Wilson, who told me about their new album, Mixed Reality, and not only did he tell me it’s been receiving fantastic and positive response both from critics and fans, he also said it’s certainly the band’s best work in the past twenty-five years. Now that’s saying a lot! You can hear more from Robin on The Pam Baumgardner Music Hour which airs on KPPQ-LP 104.1 FM, and online at www.CapsMedia.org/Radio Tuesdays and Fridays at 5 and Sunday at noon.

Rock on the Dock returns to the Ventura Harbor kicking off their unique way to stage concerts with the bands playing on a floating dock, Saturday, September 1 featuring The Bomb, and then it’s Sean Wiggins and Lone Goat on Saturday, September 8. Concerts run 3-6 pm.

The Aloha Festival is back this year and falls over the Labor Day weekend at Promenade Park. No cover, so get out and enjoy the music with performances from Bombafiya, The Question, Rising Son, After the Smoke and Kyle Smith.

The Ventura Nationals cruise into town at the Ventura Fairgrounds on Saturday, September 1 with musical performances from Gamblers Mark, Blazing Haley, Lance Lipinski and the Lovers, Abby Girl and the Real Deal, and Hard Six.

Quick notes: The Rubicon Theater is running the musical, “I Dig Rock and Roll Music for the next couple of weeks; Hat Hat Entertainment at the Hong Kong Inn has Lenny Goldsmith and The New Old Band on Friday, August 31, and Chris Duarte on Friday, September 7; Music Under the Stars wraps up their season Saturday, September 1, with Janeen Puente and her Latin Orchestra; Labor of Love, big band dance, will be held at Poinsettia Pavilion on Friday, September 7, with the Ventura Jazz Orchestra featuring Donna Greene; and Camerata Pacifica will perform Beethoven, Haydn & Brahms at the Museum of Ventura county on Sunday September 9.

And just one final note, Bombay has their annual Beach party over Labor Day; however, no advance listing of bands was submitted for publication. My apologies.

Ventura Rocks in the Ventura Breeze 8/15 – 8/28

Posted on August 18, 2018 by venturarocks

Ventura Music Scene
by Pam Baumgardner
VenturaRocks.com
Pam@VenturaRocks.com

And the summer music keeps warming up with several more events this month. First let’s take a look at Beachside Pride 2018 on Saturday, August 18, at Promenade Park. There will be special events from Friday to Saturday but the main event will be held Saturday with music from Lauren Ruth Ward and Echo V and entertainment from drag legends Jackie Beat and Sherry Vine. General admission is $5-$10. By the way, Paddy’s will be hosting a post Pride party that evening.

Spencer Mackenzie’s Throw Down tournament continues to grow with the pot increasing every year. One of the highlights over the weekend is their End of Summer Block Party with a free live concert 6-10 pm on Saturday, August 18. This year they’ll have Johnny and the Love Handles, A.D.D. and Mandex.

The 2018 Wild & Scenic Film Festival is being held outdoors at the Ventura County Credit Union at 2575 Vista Del Mar where you’re invited to bring low-back chairs for the outdoor screening along with performances from Bill Jones & J.Peter Boles, and Midlife Crisis. This one benefits Ventura Land Trust. Get information at www.VenturaLandTrust.org.

Don’t miss the Spazmatics when they perform at the 38th annual Wings Over Camarillo Air and Car Festival on Saturday, August 18th (5-7 pm). This ultimate 80’s cover band will be family friendly and is included in the price of admission. www.WingsOverCamarillo.com.

I have a couple of upcoming events to mark on the calendar, first it’s the California Beer Festival which will be celebrating their ten-year anniversary with two days of suds and music September 15 and 16 at Plaza Park. Just announced for Saturday’s Boots and Brews Country Music Festival are Montgomery Gentry, Deana Carter, Sundance Head (Winner of NBC’s The Voice), Arnie Newman Band and Alexandria Corn. Then on Sunday you won’t want to miss Tone Loc and Sir Mix-a-Lot. Get ticket information at www.CaliforniaBeerFestival.com/Ventura.

And then it’s the 25th Anniversary of Bowlful of Blues which returns to Ojai on Saturday, September 22, with The Selwyn Birchwood Band, Teresa James & the Rhythm Tramps, James Harman, Carl Sonny Leyland and Hot Roux. Tickets on sale at www.Bowlfulofblues.org. Post press announcement: Harman had to cancel, the Kwan Telifaro Project will play instead.

Quick notes: Grady Records Refuge has an in store performance on Wednesday, August 15 with The Sheen from Bellingham, WA, Uranium Orchard, Rob Magill and Daniel Masiel; Toy Shop Ghost will perform “art plunk” at Namba on Friday, August 17; Samonky sings Sinatra at the Rubicon on Sunday, August 19; in the house at the Ventura Theater will be Otep on Saturday, August 18, Gavin DeGraw and Phillip Phillips on Sunday, August 19, Ski Mask the Slump God on the 22nd, and Bone Thugs N Harmony on the 25th; Hickoids play Red Cove on Thursday, August 23; and Alan Thornhill and Martin Young play Topa Mountain Winery on Sunday August 19 (3 pm).

Ventura Rocks in the Ventura Breeze 8/1 – 8/14

Posted on August 4, 2018 by venturarocks

Ventura Music Scene
by Pam Baumgardner
VenturaRocks.com
Pam@VenturaRocks.com

The Ventura County Fair is finally here!! And unlike so many other fairs around the country, the grandstand stage concerts are included in the price of admission, which you have to admit is very cool. While opening day is Wednesday, August 1, the grandstand stage concerts don’t start until Thursday, August 2 with UB40 featuring Ali, Astro & Mickey; then it’s Plain White T’s on Friday, August 3; LeAnn Rimes on Saturday, August 4; the first Sunday is Dia de la Familia starting at 3 pm with Alfredo Olivas, Ulices Chaidez and Lorenzo de Monteclaro; Sublime with Rome play Monday, August 6; two shows on Tuesday, August 7, first it’s The 5th Dimension at 1 pm, then Frankie Valli & the Four Seasons at 7:30; Boyz II Men play Wednesday, August 8; it’s Hunter Hayes on Thursday, August 9; and wrapping up the concerts on Friday, August 10, it’s Creedence Clearwater Revisited. The final two days of the fair will be a professional cowboy rodeo in the arena.

Don’t forget along with the Grandstand stage touring artists, rock out to local bands playing the Sea Breeze stage including Aaron Pax Taylor, The Rockin’ Henrys, Hard Six, Doc Rodgers Band and more. There are specials prices on several days so be sure to check out the fair’s official website (www.VenturaCountyFair.org) to map out which days you want to attend and whether you need to arrive before a certain time or not.

Meanwhile, the 38th annual Wings Over Camarillo Air and Car Festival not only features hot rides (ground and airborne), but this year will include a performance by the ultimate 80’s cover band, The Spazmatics on Saturday, August 18th. This family friendly event runs over the course of the weekend with the airshow noon to 7, the concert is scheduled 5-7 pm, and the gates open at 9 am. Find ticket information at www.WingsOverCamarillo.com.

Quick notes: Beach House Fish and Beach House Tacos are back to offering live music on most Fridays and Saturdays; enjoy an evening of Beatles covers with Doc Ventura and Earth Immigrant on Thursday, August 2 at Vintura at the Wine Rack; The Vonettes and The Right Amount of Wrong play an early show at Bombay’s on Saturday, August 4; a couple worthy tribute bands play Discovery, Blink 180True on Saturday, August 4 and Erotic City (Prince) on Saturday August 11; Kelly’s Lot returns to Four Brix on Friday, August 3; Grant Langston & the Supermodels are rescheduled at the Hong Kong Inn on Friday, August 10; Rainbow Kitten Surprise rock the Ventura Theater on Friday, August 10; Crooked Eye Tommy joins forces with Charles Law for an afternoon gig at Winchester’s on Sunday, August 12; and finally, congratulations to Charleen Morla of Dirty Rice for tying the knot last month!

Ventura Rocks in the Ventura Breeze 7/18-7/31

Posted on July 18, 2018 by venturarocks

Ventura Music Scene
by Pam Baumgardner
VenturaRocks.com
Pam@VenturaRocks.com

So far this summer the weather’s been great and the music hot, once again reminding me, Ventura Rocks! Top of my “hits list” of course was this year’s Surf Rodeo. Our cowboy hats off to the one and only JD Drury for pulling off another successful event, especially when one of the headlining bands, The Untouchables had to pull out at the last moment, and JD saved the day with Bow Wow Wow!

Now we’re looking at Tequila and Tacos music festival where tequila is the starring attraction while enjoying music from DAX, Adelaide, Patron Latin Rhythms and Mariachi Reyes. This one will be held at Plaza Park (corner of Santa Clara and Chestnut) downtown Ventura over the weekend of July 21st and 22nd.

The Ventura Music Festival continues into its second and final week with Jarabe Mexicano performing a free concert at Mission Park on Wednesday, July 18, at 5 pm; you’ll want to bring blankets and chairs for this one. Then two performances will be hosted at the Ventura Performing Arts Center at Ventura College; first it’s Akropolis on Friday, July 20, and then Perla Batalla’s “Frida Kahlo Song Cycle” on Saturday, July 21. Oh! Just added, “All that Jazz” at Namba Performing Arts Space (Oak Street, Downtown) on Thursday, July 19th with seasoned pros, CODA opening with a set and to be joined by the 2018 Student Jazz Competition winners, Matthew Kuperberg, Henry Urschel and Finn Dunham. This one is free, but donations appreciated.

As a reminder, you’ll want to check in with the City of Ventura before venturing over for Music Under the Stars this year hoping to buy tickets at the door. This event gets more popular every year and as a result more and more shows are selling out such as Blue Breeze on Saturday, July 21st, but at press time, the 28th show with Bleeding Harp had not.

Beach House Tacos on the Ventura pier is offering live music on Saturdays outside with Kyle Smith on the 21st and Jason Ho on the 28th; they’ll also have live music indoors from time to time, so far they have a jazz trio, The Dynasties, on Friday, July 20th.

Discovery has a couple of interesting tribute bands lined up including Twisted Gypsy, a tribute to Fleetwood Mac, on Friday, July 20th; Hotel California, all about The Eagles, on Friday, July 27th and it’s Blink-180 True on Saturday, August 4th a tribute to, yeah you guessed it, Blink-182.

And finally, a big congratulations go out to the Ventura Theater as they celebrate their 90th anniversary on Saturday, July 28th, with a concert featuring Robot Nature, Plan Your Escape, The Inside Break, Herbal Rootz and The Velveteen Band.

Ventura Rocks in the Ventura Breeze 7/4-7/17

Posted on July 4, 2018 by venturarocks

Ventura Music Scene
by Pam Baumgardner
VenturaRocks.com
Pam@VenturaRocks.com

There’s no denying it’s Summer what with the Fourth of July at hand and Surf Rodeo just around the corner, and what better to celebrate than with live music? The City’s 4th of July Downtown Street Fair, which runs 10 am – 5 pm, will not only have tons of vendors, and food, but there will be plenty of live music from The Mighty Cash Cats, Raised on Vinyl and 805 Rhythm. To avoid looking for parking, why not ride your bike? The City is providing a free bike valet on California near Main Street.

Along with their Saturday and Sunday afternoon music lineup, Topa Mountain Winery will host a fundraiser for Safety Harbor Kids on Friday, July 6 featuring Paul Barrere, Fred Tackette and friends of Little Feat; Shaky Feelin’ will open.

The Ventura Music Festival runs July 12th through the 22 at a handful of venues throughout the City. Just a couple highlights include the John Jorgenson Quintet at Olivas Adobe on Thursday, July 12; double Latin Grammy winner, Diego Garcia at the Ventura College Performing Arts Center on Friday, July 13; there will be a free concert with Jarabe Mexicano on Wednesday, July 18 at Mission Park. For the complete line up and ticket information, go to www.VenturaMusicFestival.org.

Dust off the cowboy hat and get your sunscreen ready for this year’s Surf Rodeo over the weekend of July 14th and 15th at Pierpont Beach at Seaward. There’s plenty to do between the vendors along Seaward, the surf competition, bikini cowgirl contest and the Cornhole tournament, but of course my favorite reason for going would be all the great music. Along with a bunch of amazing local bands, JD Drury is bringing Fishbone, the Long Beach Dub Allstars, Shwayze, and the Untouchables to town. Confidence is high this one will be for the books!

Quick notes: The Garage is kicking it up a notch with Hard Six and Stock Shot on Friday, July 6, it’s a full line up starting at 5 pm on Saturday, July 7 with Char-Man, Slow Season, Sweet Reaper, Glam Skanks, The Pullmen and The Birth Defects, and then the following week on Friday the 13th it’s Negative Approach, Stalag 13, Take Offense and Skullcrack; Shawn Jones returns from his most recent European tour with a show at Grapes and Hops on Saturday, July 7, and again on Saturday, July 14, at The Star Lounge; on Saturday, July 7, Art City Gallery and Studios is hosting a Summer Jam with Herbal Rootz, Bomba Fiya, Crying 4 Kafka and more, they’re asking for a $10 donation at the door; the Second Sunday Supper at Plan B Winery will feature reggae with Soltree on Sunday, July 8; and finally, it’s “Latin meets Jazz” with Justo Almario, internationally renowned jazz saxman at the Hong Kong Inn on Tuesday, July 10.

Ventura Rocks in the Ventura Breeze 6/20 – 7/3

Posted on June 19, 2018 by venturarocks

Ventura Music Scene
by Pam Baumgardner
VenturaRocks.com
Pam@VenturaRocks.com

It’s hard to believe this will be the final full cross-country Vans WARPED Tour before they celebrate their 25th anniversary in 2019, this according to the founder of the festival, Kevin Lyman. There are no final details on what next year will bring, but scaled back dates is definitely part of the plan. All that being said, this year, the tour once again stops in Ventura with a full line up of bands on Sunday, June 24, at the Ventura Fairgrounds. With over six stages and bands playing continuously throughout the day, you’ll need a game plan once your inside, but you won’t want to miss Simple Plan, Reel Big Fish and the Used. This year the tour will also include a stage for local artists such as Ill Repute, Stalag 13, and The Velveteen Band. General admission is $45 and tickets should still be available the day of the show; doors open at 11 AM.

You won’t want to miss the Summer benefit concert Paws for the Cause, where we salute and honor Ventura K9 police officers. This special event will be held at Poinsettia Pavilion on June 30 from 11 am to 3 pm. The concert features Alex Nester, Mark Masson and Coso Live. Admission is $25 with kids under 10 free; and by the way, it’s family fun for all your dogs too!

Namba has launched a new series, “NambaYouth” that opens its doors to 18 years and under talent of all art forms. O.K. Service kicks off the series on Friday, June 22, featuring four Moorpark High School recent graduates playing modern Jazz. Namba is downtown at 47 S. Oak Street. Doors open at 7 with tickets $10-$20.

Quick notes: Ray Jaurique and the Uptown Brothers open for Los Lobos on Friday, June 22, at Libbey Bowl; Max Fite plays the Garage on June 22; the Out Run the Sun Festival featuring loads of Electronica music will be at the Golden China on June 23; The Rose Valley Thorns bring their style of Bluegrass to Made West Brewing on Sunday, June 24; The 10th annual Maximum Bob’s Memorial Open Mic is Tuesday, June 26 at Golden China; Lume out of Chicago will be at The Tavern on Tuesday, June 26; The White Buffalo returns to the Ventura Theater on Friday, June 29; Katchafire from New Zealand play two nights at Discovery, June 29 and June 30; Medicine Hat will be at Pizza Chief on the Eastside during the lunch time hour on Sunday July 1; Jane Doe & Co. with traditional Country will be at The Red Cove on Sunday afternoon, July 1 and finally the Star Lounge will have live music on Tuesday night, July 3 (Wednesday is Independence Day), with CRV and special guest Ruben Duarte.

Ventura Rocks in the Ventura Breeze 6/6 – 6/19

Posted on June 5, 2018 by venturarocks

Ventura Music Scene
by Pam Baumgardner
VenturaRocks.com
Pam@VenturaRocks.com

Ventura’s music scene is a giant eclectic mix of music, everything from punk to jazz and all points in between, so we really are lucky to have so many genres of music available to us. One of my favorite events every year comes from higher brow end of the musical spectrum, The Ventura Music Festival. This year’s schedule ranges from the big band sound of “little orchestra” Pink Martini from Portland, Oregon, to lively Latin music with Jarabe Mexicano. Perla Batalla returns with Frida Kahlo’s “Blue House”, John Jorgenson Quintet will offer Gypsy Jazz, there will be traditional chamber music from Trio Celeste directed by Ventura Music Festival Artistic Director Nuvi Mehta and so much more including the traditional Tea & Trumpets brass quintet. Showtimes, tickets and locations are listed on the event’s official website www.VenturaMusicFestival.org. Yeah, I know the Ventura Music Festival isn’t until July, but most events will sell out so don’t wait to purchase tickets.

Local artist, Rachel Flowers will give a performance before a screening of the documentary featuring Flowers, “Hearing is Believing” at the Museum of Ventura County on Friday, June 8th; there will be a post-screening discussion.

Before Shelby embarks on returning to school and focusing her energy on getting her Music Therapy degree, she’s holding what may be one of the last Songbird Serenades, at least for a while. The June 15th installment will feature Jamie Drake, Shelby Figueroa and Brendan Willing James at Ventura Vineyard Church.

Sorry to report that both Wicked’s Brew and Cork have closed their doors. If you’ve never heard of one or the other, that’s a shame. My biggest word of advice to venues that offer music is you have to promote, promote, promote! You have to budget for it, and you should use all free resources available to you including social media, and keeping The Breeze, other newspapers and VenturaRocks.com updated on your music.

Quick notes: Reggae has returned to the Tree House Lounge at Café Fiore on Sundays; Lovataraxx from France plays The Garage on Thursday, June 7; Former Scorpions guitarist, Uli Jon Roth returns to the Ventura Theater, Sunday, June 10; The Mighty Cash Cats celebrate their ten-year anniversary with a show at Bombay’s on Sunday, June 10; MJ Déjà vu, a tribute to Michael Jackson will be at Discovery on Saturday, June 16; D.on Darox & the Melody Joy Bakers play El Rey Cantina on Saturday, June 16.

Finally, Ticketfly suffered a cyber-attack and as a result, most of the websites they support were down including the Ventura Theater and for a time, Discovery. There currently hasn’t been any mention of credit card information being compromised, but stolen information included customers’ names, addresses, emails and phone numbers of nearly 26 million user accounts.