April 2023

Aftershock previews its next line-up as early tickets and spots become available for fall extravaganza

Eddie April 18, 2023 No Comments

Pantera. Photograph by Carla Harvey

Produced by Danny Wimmer Presents, or DWP, Aftershock will be back to bring over 95 bands descending on Sacramento’s Discovery Park. The October event will showcase both big headliners and smaller, national acts who are warranting plenty of buzz. Last year’s installation drew a record-breaking 160,000 hard rock fans to the Capital, while also bringing some much-needed business to the Sacramento Valley.

Now in its 11^th year, this go-around’s biggest names include Guns N’ Roses, Pantera, Megadeth, Tool, Avenged Sevenfold, Korn, Turnstile, Queens of The Stone Age, 311, Limp Bizkit, Godsmack and Incubus. And the undercard is equally impressive with Polyphia, Dethklok, Coheed And Cambria, Deafheaven, Converge, Dance Gavin Dance, Pennywise, The Cult, AFI, Babymetal, White Reaper, The Bronx, L7 and more.

One of the greatest attributes of Discovery Park is the lines of sight at each stage, meaning fans will get an impressive look at these acts. The venue has a reputation for minimal noise bleed, which so often plagues other festivals of this ilk. Its many trees and covered VIP area have also been a welcome respite from skyrocketing temperatures on some years.

AFTERSHOCK 2023 line-up:

Thursday, October 5: Avenged Sevenfold, Incubus, Turnstile, The Cult, AFI, Pennywise, Nothing But Thieves, L7, White Reaper, Senses Fail, Don Broco, The Bronx, Nothing, Nowhere., DeathByRomy, Beauty School Dropout, Bob Vylan, Holding Absence, Pinkshift, Thousand Below, Starbenders, SeeYouSpaceCowboy, Static Dress and Letdown.

Friday, October 6: Tool, Godsmack, Limp Bizkit, Megadeth, Coheed and Cambria, Skillet, Bad Omens, The Hu, Deafheaven, Memphis May Fire, Converge, Fire From the Gods, Polaris, Rain City Drive, Gideon, Currents, Varials, Strange Kids, Dragged Under, Tallah, HANABIE., Widow7, and Death Valley Dreams.

Saturday, October 7: Korn, Pantera, 311, Corey Taylor, Parkway Drive, Babymetal, Polyphia, Dethklok, Avatar, Fever 333, The Amity Affliction, Sleep Token, Escape the Fate, Boston Manor, Fame on Fire, Catch Your Breath, Ten56., Reddstar, Holy Wars, ’68, Ithaca, Devil’s Cut, Traitors, Fox Lake, All Waves and As You Were.

Sunday, October 8: Guns N’ Roses, Queens of the Stone Age, Rancid, I Prevail, Dance Gavin Dance, Daughtry, Badflower, Billy Talent, Mayday Parade, Suicide Silence, Movements, Ayron Jones, You Me At Six, Dead Poet Society, Austin Meade, Alpha Wolf, Jehnny Beth, Redlight King, Tigercub, Call Me Karizma, Ryan Oakes, Gnome, Luna Aura and Asava.

Promotion and logistics

Avenged Sevenfold

Beyond its famed Sacramento throw-down, DWP also produces shows in other states, highlighting different genres and with equally successful turn-outs: Bourbon & Beyond (Louisville, KY), GoldenSky Country Music Festival (Sacramento), Inkcarceration Music & Tattoo Festival (Mansfield, OH), Louder Than Life (Louisville), Sonic Temple Art + Music Festival (Columbus, OH) and Welcome To Rockville (Daytona Beach, FL) are all events it’s responsible for hosting.  

Tickets prices for Aftershock can be found for single days and 4-day packages at  www.AftershockFestival.com. There are advance payment options for only $10 down followed by monthly installments. Door times and set times will be revealed closer to show date. The Aftershock festival is held at Discovery Park located at 1600 Garden Highway. There is no on-site parking so plan ahead and buy Park & Ride passes to avoid getting towed from local shopping centers and neighboring businesses.

Tool – photo by Travis Shinn

The Cult

The Bronx

Converge

(SN&R)

Hard rock heroes Y & T return to Rocklin’s Quarry Park Amphitheatre on April 21

Eddie April 12, 2023 No Comments

Courtesy photo

Easily one of the most influential hard rock band still playing live, Y & T – formerly Yesterday & Today – is still going strong thanks to the tireless energy of its leader, Dave Meneketti.

Sadly, the other three original and highly revered members – bassist Phil Kennemore, drummer Leonard Haze, and guitarist Joey Alves – all passed away within a couple of years of each other.

Meneketti has been carrying on with replacements, including guitarist John Nymann, bassist Aaron Leigh, and drummer Mike Vanderhule. Whatever iteration of Y & T shows up, the Sacramento area is like a second home to the band. It’s regularly played at Ace of Spades in addition to many other Northern California haunts.

Although Meneketti was most prolific during the 1980s with a string of potent records – ‘Mean Streak,’ ‘Earthshaker’ and ‘Black Tiger’ among them – his voice is still a thing of wonder and has aged like fine wine.That’s evidenced in how he sings some of the band’s more challenging, early material.

Local act Red Voodoo will get the evening started. Gates open at 6 p.m. and this curfewed show ends at 10 p.m. Tickets start at $35 and top out at $125 and can be purchased at www.Rocklin421.eventbrite.com. Quarry Park Amphitheatre is located at 4000 Rocklin Road in Rocklin.

(SN&R)

After a long wait, Sting fans can see him at Hard Rock Live in Wheatland on April 12 & 13

Eddie April 6, 2023 No Comments

Courtesy photo

At this stage in Sting’s – a.k.a. Gordon Sumner’s – career, after the massive sale of his catalog and countless successful tours as a solo artist and with The Police, it would seem he could retire 1000X over. Yet now that he’s 71, his voice and musicianship still rival when he started playing 46 years ago.

Thankfully, for those who enjoy Sting’s music, this highly prolific artist with seemingly boundless energy still loves to tour. And while his schedule in the U.S. is extremely limited – these two Wheatland shows are the only others aside from a preceding 6-day residency at Caesar’s Tahoe in Las Vegas – locals can take advantage of him including the region in his 2023 itinerary.

Dubbed the ‘My Songs’ tour, Sting will be playing a 22-song set that includes some of his biggest hits, along with his own favorites and a handful of tunes from The Police. As always, he’ll be showcasing new arrangements of his older catalog to keep himself and his band on their collective toes. He’ll also be playing a couple of songs from his latest record, ‘The Bridge,’ released in November 2021. The artist claims he wrote the album “in a year of global pandemic, personal loss, separation, disruption, lockdown and extraordinary social and political turmoil.”

The all-age show starts at 8 p.m. Tickets are very scarce but, as always, there’s an abundance of resale tickets at www.ticketmaster.com. The Hard Rock Live is located in Wheatland at 3317 Forty Mile Road.

(SN&R)

Cosplay will cause the full-effect at Roseville’s SacAnime from April 7 to 9

Eddie April 5, 2023 No Comments

Photograph by Aung Khant-Maung

SacAnime fans love to dress up, and when they come out in force, there’s no shortage of awe-inspiring costumes.

For those who love people-watching, any SacAnime gathering becomes a star-studded event. Recent instalments show that it’s smart to get in line early for tickets. Expect a bevy of vendors selling books, costumes, comics, media, and much more.

Special guests for Roseville’s upcoming gala include actor/voice-over personality Jessie James Grelle (‘My Hero Academia,’ ‘Attack on Titan,’ ‘Yuri on Ice’), voice actress Jamie Marchi (‘Fairy Tail,’ ‘Dragon Ball Super’), Felician Angelle (‘Dr. Stone,’ ‘Genshin Impact’), and Jad Saxton (‘Food Wars,’ ‘Fire Force’).

Attendees should keep in mind that food lines are often long, and vendors prefer cash over credit cards. Visit www.sacanime.com for full exhibitor list. Tickets to the event are available at door, with the Friday and Sunday prices being $20 and Saturday being $25. Full weekend passes are $35. Children under 11-years-old are free. Doors open at noon on Friday and 10 a.m. on Saturday and Sunday. The Roebellen Center is located in Roseville at 700 Event Center Drive.

(SN&R)

Upcoming Esther Black show at Sacramento’s Cafe Colonial April 7 keeps a streak going  

Eddie April 3, 2023 No Comments

Esther Black. Courtesy photo

When live music finally opened up for post-pandemic, full capacity glory at venues in and around Sacramento, perhaps one of the greatest success stories was happening just outside the Downtown grid: Under the guidance of musician/soundman/bartender/booking agent Chris Lemos, the Cafe Colonial came back strong with a steady stream of metal, punk, alternative and everything in between.

Local group Esther Black, a metal-tinged industrial trio who’ve been causing a nice buzz, will add to that comeback this Friday.

The band is led by vocalist Erie Loch, whose resume includes studio work and video production for such disparate national acts as Ministry, Faith No More, Melvins, Nine Inch Nails, Marilyn Manson, KMFDM, Prong, Lords of Acid, Front Line Assembly, and Rob Zombie.

The formidable group is rounded-out by bassist and vocalist Crash and guitarist and vocalist The Goht. They’re currently signed to Pittsburgh-based indie label, Distortion Productions, which released their “Dark Ways” full-length album back in April 2018. Sacramento music fans can check out those songs at Esther Black’s Bandcamp page at https://estherblack.bandcamp.com for a listen.

The group’s new platter, “Amongst the Monsters, Whores and Freaks,” is scheduled for a tentative July 17th release. Erie Loch boasts that “it’s a dark concept album comparing the entertainment industry to the circus.”

The band’s upcoming performance also includes Malcom Bliss and Ghosts Of Callisto on the bill. Tickets can be purchased at the door only for $15. Cafe Colonial is located at 3520 Stockton Blvd. All ages are welcome.

(SN&R)