Alice 97.3 hosted it’s yearly Now & Zen Fest out in Golden Gate Park earlier today. And when you combine the words “free” and “concert,” I’m there!
This year the concert was headlined by a band I’ve never actually seen perform live before, being the Goo Goo Dolls! Michelle Branch, who played at Summerthing this past June, Thriving Ivory, and Eoin Harrington were also on the afternoon’s line-up.
Let’s jump to some big news that was shared during Thriving Ivory’s set. Their performance today was actually the Bay Area band’s last show together as “Thriving Ivory.”
Since it was the band’s last time playing together, I decided to capture their final performance, “Angels on the Moon.” Enjoy!
Earlier this week, I went and checked out Jack and White at Hotel Utah in San Francisco.
I have been a huge fan of Brooke White, since she appeared on that lil’ show on FOX. And after listening and reviewing Jack and White’s EP, Gemini, I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to see them perform while they were in town.
In short; Jack and White are fantastic live! Take a listen to “Telephone Games” and “Double Trouble” below!
“Telephone Games”
“Double Trouble”
Thanks to Brooke & Jack for a great show last night!
Last Friday, I attended singer-songwriter Jackie Gage’s recording party for her upcoming live jazz album at SLG Art Boutiki & Gallery in Downtown San Jose.
I first learned about Jackie this past June at the Left Coast Live 365 event, where she performed with her jazz/rock band, Distant Dice. I was very much impressed with the band’s sound, as well as Jackie’s vocal ability. When I found out about her recording party, I figured it would be a great opportunity to check out Jackie’s solo jazz endeavor.
I had such a great time, and Jackie’s live album is going to be incredible! One of the highlights of her set was a very jazzed up rendition of Neon Trees’ hit song, “Animal.” Take a listen below!
Cool cover, right? I think it’s just fantastic!
I also have to give props to the Mark Arroyo Trio, who kicked off that night’s show. They were fantastic! If you’re in the Bay Area, you definitely should check them out at Left Coast Live on October 8!
Support local Bay Area music & check out the links below!
Hello lovely readers! Happy Summer to you all! Every year I always make an iTunes summer playlist with the songs that become my soundtrack, and I thought this year I would share what I’m listening with y’all. Over the past couple weeks I’ve been putting together my playlist of what I have been listening to since summer kicked off.
Since it’s summer, you’re not going to find any ballads on this list. But you are going to find upbeat and fun numbers that probably want to make you dance, or at the very least sing-a-long. You’ll find old songs, new songs, and definitely some of my favorites.
Enjoy Wait…WHAT?’s Summer 2011 Playlist!
“Summertime” – Will Smith: This the quintessential summer song. For me, it’s not summer without the classic Fresh Prince track.
“Right Here, With You” – David Cook: Let it be known that I love David Cook’s new album, This Loud Morning. For me this is one of those songs that you listen to loudly in the car with the windows down and the wind blowing through your hair. Definitely roadtrip mixtape potential with this one!
“Teenage Dream” – The Warblers/Darren Criss: Last summer I felt like Katy Perry’s “Teenage Dream” was summer rolled up into a fantastically catchy song. Cue Glee giving the song a slight makeover with the ever so dreamy Darren Criss and his kick awesome vocals, and you have a song that I never ever want to go away.
After two months filled with blind auditions, battles, and surprising eliminations, Javier Colon from Team Adam became the first ever winner of The Voice. Take a look at his winning moment below!
I am truly happy for Javier. Here’s a dude that is all about being there and supporting his family, taking one last shot at making his dream come true and succeeding. That’s pretty awesome.
Last night’s finale was a little underwhelming. I missed the first 10 minutes or so, and the first performance I saw was Vicci Martinez’s duet with Train’s lead singer, Pat Monahan on “Drops of Jupiter.” I didn’t think the duet was half bad. I really like Train’s pre-“Hey, Soul Sister” music, so I enjoyed watching them perform the song.
During Javier’s duet of “Landslide” with Stevie Nicks, you could definitely tell that he was nervous/excited to be singing with her. And Stevie seemed to guide him through their entire performance, which was probably a good thing, because at times Javier looks a bit overwhelmed at the situation, which was extremely endearing. I loved Adam Levine’s response afterwards. He seemed a bit overcome by emotion, which is something we fans don’t see everyday. It was a great moment.
I was a little bit disappointed that Beverly McClellan was singing with Ryan Tedder from OneRepublic, because she is a legitimate rocker, and I thought they could have hooked her up with an artist that is more her style. Plus, they weren’t even singing like a big OneRepublic song that should could belt out, they were singing their current single, “Good Life,” which is very much a pop song. To go from her damn near perfect duet with Christina Aguilera the night before to this was just lame.
Dia Frampton and Miranda Lambert, wife of coach Blake Shelton, sang “The House That Built Me.” The way Dia chose to utilize her voice was strange for me in the beginning. But I thought the performance overall was pretty good. Blake was nearly speechless at the end of it. Very nice moment.
It came down to less than a two percent difference in voting between Dia Frampton and Javier Colon. In the end, Javier brought the win home for Team Adam.
As someone that has been supporting Team Adam since the start of the season, this was a pretty big deal. I wish Javier nothing, but amazing, amazing success. I cannot wait to buy his post-show album.
In the meantime, we can all buy his music from the show on iTunes!
What did y’all think about The Voice results? Are you excited to hear that all four judges are returning next season, and are you attending the tour?
I finally got caught up on The Voice from last night, and I am truly going to miss this show! I can’t believe we find out the winner tonight! Not to get completely cheesy, but truly all four of these singers, Javier Colon, Dia Frampton, Beverly McClellan, and Vicci Martinez, are winners already. They have worked with some of the biggest and most relevant names in the business and on national TV, no less!
I really thought that the coaches, Christina Aguilera, Adam Levine, Blake Shelton, and Cee-Lo worked it out on “Under Pressure.” I think it’s such a treat to see them all come together and perform. I’m thankful they weren’t handed some original song to try and pull off. Haha. And we’ll get to those lovely originals in just a bit.
I loved getting to see the contestants perform duets with their coaches. Dia and Blake’s cover of Tom Petty’s “I Won’t Back Down” was pretty cute. Singing side-by-side in matching sunglasses, the duo basically sang a song that could be Dia’s theme song to her time on The Voice. With her, we’ve truly gotten to see a confident artist blossom.
Summer officially kicked off in San Francisco yesterday out at Golden Gate Park ith Alice 97.3’s biggest music party, Summerthing 2011. It was my third time attending, and my third time enjoying some fun in the sun and great music.
Once again, the line-up for Summerthing was insanely awesome. It included newcomer, Andrew Allen, Parachute, Michelle Branch, Matt Nathanson, and OneRepublic. By the way, did I mention that this was a free show?
The very personable Andrew Allen kicked off the afternoon with a short set that included his single, “Loving You Tonight” and a cover of Sumblime’s “What I Got.”
This dude has a bit of swagger to his stage presence. His overall vibe kind of reminds me of fresher Jason Mraz. I would love to hear how he sounds with a full band backing him. I am definitely planning on checking out his album.
Check out his performance of “Loving You Tonight” below!
Last night on The Voice, Javier Colon (Team Adam) and Vicci Martinez (Team Cee-Lo) were saved by America’s votes and moved on to the next round. Casey Weston (Team Adam) and Nakia (Team Cee-Lo) were saved by their respective coaches, Maroon 5’s Adam Levine and Cee-Lo.
Totally called Adam saving Casey. To each their own. I liked Casey’s performance last week, but Jeff Jenkins was pretty good, too. Actually all of Team Adam was fantastic last week. Moving on…
Frenchie Davis (Team Christina) kicked off the performances with Madonna’s “Like a Prayer.” I have to say that I’ve been unfortunately very underwhelmed by her performances on The Voice. I was hoping to get to see her really bust out some crazy notes on this show, but she seems to be holding back, which is probably why America didn’t vote her through to the semi-finals.
Nakia (Team Cee-Lo) was up next performing Adam Lambert’s “Whataya Want From Me.” I thought this was an interesting song pick for him. He really has to reel his voice in and keep it under control, or else it sounds like he’s shouting. I thought he did a good job at doing that. But, I don’t think he fully connected to the song, like Adam Lambert is when he performs it. That said, Nakia’s take on the song was alright.
I know Adam Levine said in his feedback that he had never heard the song before, which probably made for some fun @replies on Twitter, but cut the man some slack. He wasn’t rude about it, he just said he didn’t know that song existed.
Adam’s been bouncing around different countries since Maroon 5’s Hands All Over album debuted last September. He also revealed last night that he’s never heard of that song by The Script, which is what made me raise an eyebrow. I think someone needs to take Mr. Levine music shopping, and maybe turn on the radio for him in the car.
Wait...WHAT? 