Tag Archives: Namba Arts

Ventura Music Scene 4/30/25 – 5/13/25

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Ventura Music Scene
by Pam Baumgardner
VenturaRocks.com
Pam@VenturaRocks.com
Music Scene artwork
The Ventura Music Festival’s free concert this year on Saturday, May 3, is coming up fast with such bands as Ticket to Ride (Beatles covers), the Blue Mountain Tribe, Barrelhouse Wailers, Rey Fresco and more. The family-friendly event starts at Mission Park next to the museum at noon, then after the last performance, the second stage takes over at Main and Chestnut aligning with Limon y Sal’s Cinco de May celebration at around 5 pm with not only Rey Fresco, but several salsa and mariachi bands. Along with the music, vendors will be set up as well as a vintage car show.

Another Ventura Music Festival event (this one ticketed) comes the following Friday, May 9th, at the Crowne Plaza Hotel with Donny Most and his Band (Most played Ralph Malph, Richie’s redheaded friend on Happy Days). The band will perform standards from legends such as Frank Sinatra, Bobby Darin and Dean Martin. Go to VenturaMusicFestival.org to see if tickets are still available.

May the 4th (be with you) will see the community gather to support The Local Love Project and their 3rd Annual Blues, BBQ & Portside Views benefit. This year features music from Kelly’s Lot and the Erik Lemaire Band and it is being held at Portside Ventura Harbor on Sunday, May 4th from 1-5 pm. Tickets are $20 and available via TotalLocalVC.com.

Namba Arts is helping to celebrate Mother’s Day with a concert featuring American Songbook Today performing, “Songs for Mothers and Those They Love.” This joyful tribute to moms everywhere will include songs from David Crosby, Stephen Sondheim, Janis Ian, Simon and Garfunkel and more. Find out more at NambaArts.com.

Ozomatli is celebrating 30 years with a show at the Ventura Music Hall on Friday, June 27. General admission tickets are on sale now. I also saw the venue added a show with Duane Betts & Palmetto Motel for Friday, July 18. This one will be a fully-seated concert featuring the son of the legendary Dickey Betts (Allman Brothers) who recently passed away in 2024.

Mackenzie Carpenter and Jackson Dean have been added along with headliner, Kane Brown, for this summer’s Boots & Brews Country Music Festival on Sunday, June 29, presented by Surfers Point Live at the fairgrounds.

Don’t forget tickets for Music Under the Stars go on sale Tuesday, May 6. You won’t want to wait too long as most concerts do sell out.

Quick Notes: Looking West plays Rincon Brewery on Friday May 2; Sick Boy plays Poseidon Brewing on Friday, May 3; Dirty Cello return to Ventura County for a show at the Ojai Underground on Saturday, May 3; Bloody Mary Morning bring new music to their show at Bombay’s on Friday, May 9; and Robyn Hitchcock plays the Deer Lodge on Tuesday, May 13 (tickets available through EventBrite).

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 Music Scene 4/16/25 – 4/29/25

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Ventura Music Scene
by Pam Baumgardner
VenturaRocks.com
Pam@VenturaRocks.com
Music Scene artwork
Stecklestock marks the beginning of what I think of as the outdoor live music special events season which runs through the middle of Fall. This all-day family-friendly free concert runs 8 am – 6 pm on Saturday, April 26 and features local bands in a setting under the trees at Steckle Park in Santa Paula. Keep in mind the bands do it for the love of our music community so to help defray costs, donations are encouraged and happily accepted. This year’s line up includes Chicano 7, Premonition, The Tommy Foytek Band, No Biggee, Only Obvious, Lowered Expectations, Buena Onda, and The Charles Law Band.

There will be a Grateful Dead inspired concert on Sunday, April 20 (if you know you know), with groovy jams and Dead covers from such bands as Cubensis, Shaky Feelin’, Ellie Rollins Band and Chris Murphy. This Eventbrite ticketed event runs 3-7 at Las Palmas on Meyers Road in Ojai and is sponsored by the Ojai Valley Land Conservancy.

The Music Under the Stars summer series lineup was announced, but tickets won’t go on sale until Tuesday, May 6. The Saturday night consecutive concerts feature mostly tribute bands, or genre specific such as Conjunto Oye on August 23, “bringing the heat” with pulsating salsa, and Cuban rhythms with Puerto Rican flair. You’ll want to check out the City’s website for the full line up. All shows typically sell out, so you won’t want to wait until it’s too late.

If fiery Scottish music gets your toes tapping, then you’ll want to check out Scottish Fish at Namba Arts on Friday, April 18. Scottish Fish features five dynamic young women steeped in Boston’s vibrant Celtic scene who travel the world performing.

And congratulations to Bombay Bar and Grill as they continue to celebrate their 40th anniversary this month. By the way, you might want to swing by Thursday, April 24 when Kat Merrick from Totally Local VC and the Local Love Project will be the guest bartender with music in the house from Steve and Sally Williams and Frank Barajas.

Quick Notes: Boatyard Pub is still undergoing renovations for much of April; If you care to travel out Fillmore way, then you won’t want to miss the smooth Latin sounds of Tierra, Malo and Los Amigos at the Fillmore Town Theater on Saturday, April 19; Tony’s Pizzeria hosts Dead inspired bands on Saturday, April 19 with Shaky Feelin’, Katie Skene Band, Ashton Slater’s Grateful Get-Down and Chris Murphy with the show starting at 4:20 pm; Latin Grammy-winning artist, Twanguero, plays the Ojai Underground on Friday, April 25; and Parliament Funkadelic featuring the one and only George Clinton plays the Ventura Music Hall on Monday, April 28.

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 Music Scene 1/8/2025 – 1/21/2025

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Ventura Music Scene
by Pam Baumgardner
VenturaRocks.com
Pam@VenturaRocks.com
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Happy New Year! Wishing you a prosperous year with lots of dancing and live music for 2025.

“For Roger, One Love, One Life” is all about community coming to honor Roger, a huge fan of Dirty Rice from day one. They say he was the first on the dance floor, he was their photographer and videographer, and from his love of the band, Dirty Rice became a fan of Roger. Because of this, the band is using their voice to honor their friend who continues his fight with a rare progressive disease with a special concert on Saturday, January 11, at the Ventura Music Hall. Charleen Morla-Garcia told me, “Dirty Rice has always been grateful for Rog. He’s our brother. When the idea of the show for Roger came up, all members, hands down were all in for the cause. We haven’t rocked a show in close to 5 years, but we’re getting back together for this great reason, to show our appreciation for all he’s done, and gift him by bringing his friends, family, and our community together to jam out to some good music he loves.”

This town knows when to rally; I am happy to report, this one is sold out.

Lost Leaders featuring Byron Isaacs, bass player and singer/songwriter with the Lumineers will play the Ojai Underground on Friday, January 17. Isaacs, along with guitarist Peter Cole, will bring their soulful sounds to the 805 featuring many songs off their latest, “Hungry Ghosts” which was release in September of 2024.

Hats off to Diego at Bombay’s for offering up more live music. The venue continues their Thursday’s Blues night alternating between artists such as Smokey and Friends, Ray Jaurique, Milo Sledge, Red-Headed Stepchild and more. On Sundays, you can get your dancing shoes on and tear up the dance floor between 4:30 and 7:30 with Heart and Soul on January 12 and Shawn Jones on January 19. They will also offer up Medicine Hat, Frank Barajas and Will Hawkins on Saturday, January 11, starting at 6 pm.

Namba Arts continues to offer live music with not only a platform for local artists, but they also bring in touring acts such as Water Tower on Saturday, January 11 and Haley Neal on Friday, January 17. Water Tower is described as pioneers of a new wave of bluegrass and old-time with a distinctly punk rock flair; and Halley Neal out of Nashville, TN, is described as a modern-day singer/songwriter with her shows centering on themes of positivity and peace.

Quick Notes: 1901 Speakeasy in Oxnard will be closed for several months for renovations; along with Bobby Apostol on Wednesdays and Thursdays, and Warren Takahashi on Fridays and Saturdays, the Cave now has Miles Lang on Tuesdays; Ventura Music Hall has Jerry’s Middle Finger on Friday, January 10 and Black Flag with the Dickies opening on Thursday, January 16; after Steve and Sally Williams perform on Friday, January 10, Winchesters will put live music on Fridays on a temporary hold; and finally, The Grape will be open on Sunday, January 12, for a Celebration of Life for Tom Etchart.

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 Music Scene 7/10/24 – 7/23/24

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Ventura Music Scene
by Pam Baumgardner
VenturaRocks.com
Pam@VenturaRocks.com
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Though Tequila & Taco Music Festival has been reduced to one day, it is a spectacular one day packed with everything you need: tequila, tacos and tunes! Plus, it’s quite the bang for your buck as they’re offering one of the best party bands around, Ozomatli, along with the outrageous Outlaw Mariachi, Yang Yang Twins and Upstream. This one will be held at Surfers Point Live, aka Ventura County Fairgrounds front parking lot, on Saturday, July 13.

If you go online and look up “Nardfest,” you will learn that it’s an annual punk rock festival which started in 2013 as a way to honor punk rock history, and all the great bands coming out of the 805. This year it falls on Friday, July 12, at the Oxnard Performing Arts Center with music inside and out featuring the Dickies, Final Conflict, Stalag 13, iDecline, Narthex Structure and more.

Heritage Days returns to Old Town Camarillo (July 10 – 14) which is free to the public (carnival rides require tickets), and will feature lots of live music Friday through Sunday from such bands as D.on Darox and the Melody Joy Bakers, Red Hot Cholo Peppers, SkaDaddyz, Caught Red Handed, No Class and Famdamly. See listings for line up.

Enegren Brewing, independently owned craft brewery in Moorpark, will be celebrating their 13th anniversary with live music on Saturday, July 13, featuring Singular Nature, Bombafiya, Branden Lee Waiters, Kris-David & Drue Trio, and Might Lion.

Namba Arts Studio welcomes indie rock artist, Russian-Persian soprano Roksana Zeinapur and British guitarist and film composer, David Labovitch to town. If opera is your thing, or you just appreciate creative collaborations, then don’t miss this one on Saturday, July 13.

Quick Notes: The Twist on Main now offers a full band open mic called the 805 Shakedown on Tuesdays; Fausto Cuevas y Moderna will be featured at Vaquero y Mar’s Salsa night on Thursday, July 11; Goldpine plays the Ojai Underground on Friday, July 12; Margarita Villa has added live music for what “Taco Tuesdays” throughout the summer with Bobby Campbell on July 16 and Two Tossers on July 23; Birdbrain takes over Seaward Brewing on Saturday, July 20; The Happy Together Tour lands at Libbey Bowl on Thursday, July 18 featuring acts such as The Turtles, Badfinger, The Cowsills, Jay & the Americans, The Classics IV, and The Association; Bombay will host the Monsters of Pop, Ronda Ray and Duncan & the Dragonslayers starting at 6 pm on Saturday, July 20; Music Under the Stars series kicks off on Saturday evenings with Identity Theft on July 13 and Smooth Sounds of Santana on July 20;
and don’t forget the Ventura County Fair opens on Wednesday, July 31 and will run through August 11.

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 Music Scene 2/8/23 – 2/21/23

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

On Saturday, February 18, several venues will be participating in this year’s Country Bar Crawl. The festivities start at 4 pm (3:30 check-in) at Blue Agave on Santa Clara with Lousy Little Gods out of Huntington Beach, then the crawl moves to the second stop up on Main Street at the Star Lounge at 5 pm with Mike Scully and the Weary Travelers; then head down to the next block to the Twist on Main at 6 pm for Mark Masson (Shaky Feelin’); the crawl then moves down Main Street to Winchesters Grill & Saloon at 7 for Lacie Mae, and the final stop will be Limon y Sal rooftop bar for DJ Dusty Saddle. As far as I can tell, the $25 price of admission gets you your choice of colored cup (red you’re in a committed relationship; blue you’re single) and guarantees entry to each venue where you’ll be offered food and drink specials. For more information, go to CountryBarCrawl.com and specifically choose Ventura.

Noel Paul Stookey returns to Ventura for two dates at the Rubicon Theater on Saturday February 18 and a matinee performance on Sunday, February 19. Entitled, “Home Again: Noel Paul Stookey,” this five-time Grammy Award winning artist (Paul of Peter Paul and Mary), will share stories and perform standards as well as songs from his latest release, “Fazz: Now and Then.” Find out more and get your tickets before they sell out at RubiconTheatre.org.

Namba Arts listening room will host Poi Rogers featuring Carolyn Sills and Gerard Egan on Thursday, February 9, Mary Scholz on Friday, February 17, followed up with Modes of Jazz featuring Chuck Manning on sax, Lyman Mederios on bass, Theo Saunders on piano and Dean Thomas on drums on Saturday, February 18. Tickets for all three shows can be found at NambaArts.com.

Camerata Pacifica performs at the Museum of Ventura County on Sunday, February 12 performing Brahms (Clarinet Quintet, Op. 115), Schnittke (Prelude in Memoriam Dmitri Shostakovich) and Prokofiev (Violin Sonata No. 1, Op. 80).

And just in case you’re in the dancing mood, there will be two nights dedicated to dance music with special themes at the Ventura Music Hall; first on Friday, February 10, it’s all Disco, then on Saturday, February 18, it’s New Wave music from the 80s. But if you’re all about live music, then the dance floor should also be hoppin’ with the English Beat on Friday, February 17.

Quick Notes: Set aside Saturday, June 3, for the Ojai Blues Fest at the Ojai Art Center, the first artist announcement has Shawn Jones performing; Perla Batalla has two dates at the Beatrice Wood Center for the Arts on Friday February 10 and Saturday, February 11; All Kinds Studios in Zander Alley on Main Street downtown Ventura has Drowse, Two Brothers, Ian Macphee, Lanayha, VTB on Saturday, February 18; It’s a great night of punk music at the Oceanview pavilion in Port Hueneme on Saturday, February 18 with Guttermouth, Voodoo Glow Skulls, Stalag 13, iDecline and Out of Trust; The House of Dance features the Phoenyx Big Band on Sunday afternoon, February 19; and finally it’s sure to be a hoot and a half celebrating Fat Tuesday with D.on Darox and the Melody Joy Bakers at Rabalais’ in Santa Paula on February 21.

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.