Reviews

December is for holidays, and this year was no exception. The rising jam rock band Dogs In A Pile put on an outstanding, sold-out show at the Stone Pony in Asbury Park, NJ on December 16, 2023, that included a visit by Mr. Grinch, as well as some stellar covers. This performance was part of a two-night stand at the legendary Jersey Shore venue in honor of the December holidays. Percussionist Adrian Tramontano (Twiddle) sat in for the second set.

Pigeons Playing Ping Pong returned to the Brooklyn Bowl Philadephia, PA with the flock on December 15, 2023. This bird band quartet played a pair of heaters in 2022 at this unique venue and raised the stakes.

Nat Keefe’s Concert Carnival came to town and performed “without a net” at The Independent on Sunday night, December 17, 2023. The venerable San Francisco club was full of talent, musical and otherwise, for the 18th annual fundraiser produced by Keefe (Hot Buttered Rum, BeatMower).

Guitar-master dexterity was on dazzling display at the sold-out Crest Theatre in Sacramento on December 13, headlined by one of the finest and most heralded guitarists in the land, Tommy Emmanuel. His set was preceded by a duet featuring dobro whiz and 32-time Grammy nominee Jerry Douglas along with Daniel Kimbro on double bass.

Please don’t murder me if you think this review of the acclaimed jam-fusion band Jazz Is Dead runs hard to the gushy side. But even after all these years – more than 50 years of concert-going – I’m still a pretty impressionable guy (It’s true. . .) and it was only my first time seeing them.  So there was a lot to take in.

Billy Strings performed in Wilkes Barre, PA, on Friday night in the penultimate show of his 2023 Fall Tour. The tour, which began in Buena Vista, CO, at the end of September, covered the West Coast and Midwest, barnstormed through Europe in November, and concluded with several East Coast dates in December.

Nestled in the heart of Santa Barbara, California, the historic Lobero Theatre stands as a testament to over 150 years of captivating audiences. Renowned for its rich history and commitment to showcasing exceptional talent, the Lobero Theatre has become a cultural landmark in the region.

Goose returned for another night of thematic covers during their tenth annual Goosemas event on December 9, 2023, at Hampton Coliseum in Hampton, Va. The prior night's show set the bar high, but the band was ready to double down and deliver an epic show. Tonight's space journey took the fans to a bubble planet named Puffaria, followed by a jungle planet named Vivadora in the second set.

Last Thursday night, the Paramount Theatre in Denver, Colorado became the setting for the world to bid farewell to the electric configuration of the legendary group Hot Tuna. Forming in 1969 and powered by the renowned chemistry of Jorma Kaukonen and Jack Casady, Hot Tuna originally came together as a side project to the duo’s full-time gig in Jefferson Airplane.

The rising and perhaps unstoppable indie jam rock artist Goose delivered a pair of incredible shows for their tenth annual Goosemas run at the famed Hampton Coliseum, aka the Mothership, in Hampton, Va. The festivities began on December 8, 2023, as the band descended into planets of fire and mirrors. This included pyrotechnics, mirrors, an elevated lighting experience, and plenty of well-placed, first-time-played covers.

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