Show 8:30pm
GA tickets are standing room only, with very limited seating available first come, first served.
Ventura Music Hall Presents:
GIMME GIMME DISCO
If you can’t get enough of ABBA, boy do we have THE dance party for you! We are a DJ based dance party playing all your favorite ABBA tracks, plus plenty of other disco hits from the 70s & 80's like The Bee Gees, Donna Summer, Cher, & so much more. So honey honey, take-a-chance and you’ll be dancing all night long. Grab tickets, put on your best disco attire, bring your friends, and have the best night of your life! 🪩🎤✨🕺💃❤️🫶
Show 9pm
GA tickets are standing room only, with very limited seating available first come, first served.
Ventura Music Hall Presents:
L.A. GUNS
Long running hard rockers L.A. Guns released their new studio album, "Checkered Past" on November 12, 2021.
Order "Checkered Past" on CD/Color Vinyl/Digital HERE: https://orcd.co/checkeredpast
“Cannonball” (music video) https://youtu.be/17yeOHG4TZ4
“Get Along” (music video) https://youtu.be/FYjU0tgIDRs
Written and recorded during late 2020 and early 2021, "Checkered Past" sees Tracii Guns, Phil Lewis, and company continuing with the darker lyrical tone of the preceding studio albums, "The Devil You Know" and "The Missing Peace", while incorporating their classic rock influences into the mix. Heavier songs are mixed with bluesier, boogie inducing tracks and dark, introspective ballads, often harkening back to the first three albums the band made, but also pushing the band forward. When fans absorb the album as a whole, they'll see that the tracklisting is divided up into 'sets' or 'suites', where a sonic style is explored across multiple songs before moving on to the next, making for a remarkable listening experience.
Feeling inspired and excited like they did when they first started out, but with many years of wisdom and experience under their belts, and most importantly, a renewed and stronger creative and personal relationship, Guns and Lewis are maintaining a creative peak that started with "The Missing Peace". "Checkered Past" shows a band invigorated and ready to bash you over the head, as well as “wow” you with some epic, slower songs, and even make you dance a bit to some rock 'n roll.
Since their self-titled debut in 1988 to the widely praised comeback albums "The Missing Peace" and "The Devil You Know", L.A. GUNS, led by Tracii Guns and Phil Lewis have always delivered solid rock ‘n roll to their fans. This current incarnation of the band has been touring non-stop, with a notable break coinciding with all other touring bands, and the cohesiveness of the unit, not to mention Phil’s stunning and unique vocals and Guns’ mind-bending guitar playing, are on full display here. A must hear and listen for all fans of the band, both new and old.
L.A. Guns never looked like the pretty poster boys that so many of their peers did, but more the band that you would be terrified to bump into in an alley as they would likely be carrying switchblades and ready for a fight. But despite having many songs to back up that image, the band could also write powerful ballads (see the smash hit, “The Ballad Of Jayne” for Exhibit A of this argument) that showed there were some serious songwriting chops in the band. Those chops are on full display on the band's two most recent studio albums and the upcoming new album, "Checkered Past," arguably one of the most vital and exciting releases in the band’s catalog.
Show 7pm // 18+
FULLY SEATED
Ventura Music Hall Presents:
THUNDER FROM DOWN UNDER
Thunder from Down Under is a world-renowned Australian male revue known for its high-energy performances and charismatic entertainers. With a massive global fan base, the group has been thrilling audiences for years with their electrifying shows and captivating dance routines. Their dynamic performances have made them a highly sought-after live entertainment experience.
Show 10pm
GA tickets are standing room only, with very limited seating available first come, first served.
The venue will open early at 7:00pm and dinner will be available for purchase for all ticket holders.
Ventura Music Hall Presents:
THE PHARCYDE
Show 9pm
GA tickets are standing room only, with very limited seating available first come, first served.
Ventura Music Hall Presents:
JERRY'S MIDDLE FINGER
Show 2:30pm
GA tickets are standing room only, with very limited seating available first come, first served.
Ventura Music Hall Presents:
FOR ROGER: ONE LOVE, ONE LIFE: A CELEBRATION TO HONOR ROGER
Show 9pm // 18+
GA tickets are standing room only, with very limited seating available first come, first served.
EMO NIGHT BROOKLYN
Welcome to Emo Night Brooklyn, a late night DJ based dance party blasting the best emo and pop punk jams. We may even invite some of your favorite artists and bands to surprise you and join the party. Get ready to scream your lungs out, mosh, and dance to all your favorite songs with all of your favorite people and experience the awesomeness that is Emo Night Brooklyn.
Show 8pm
GA tickets are standing room only, with very limited seating available first come, first served.
Ventura Music Hall Presents:
BLACK FLAG - Performing "The First Four Years"
with THE DICKIES
Show 7:30pm
GA tickets are standing room only, with very limited seating available first come, first served.
Ventura Music Hall Presents:
ATMOSPHERE
feat. Special Guests SAGE FRANCIS and MR. DIBBS
For over two decades, Atmosphere has maintained a course of rigorous output, releasing over two dozen studio albums, EP's and collaborative side projects in as many years. In that time, the venerated duo have built a legacy out of bringing honesty, humility and vulnerability to the forefront of their music, continually challenging themselves to evolve without straying too far from their roots. Slug has proven masterful at storytelling and writing compelling narratives, leaving a trail of his own influence while paying homage to the rappers and songwriters that helped shape him. Ant has skillfully molded the soundtracks with inspiration from soul, funk, rock, reggae, and the wizardry of hip-hop's pioneering DJ's and producers, creating his own trademark sounds while providing the pulse for songs about life, love, stress and setbacks. At its essence, Atmosphere has been a musical shepherd, and with each new album comes a new journey as they guide generations of listeners through this thing called life
Show 8pm
GA tickets are standing room only, with very limited seating available first come, first served.
Ventura Music Hall Presents:
HALEY HEYNDERICKX & THE WESTERLIES
Haley Heynderickx -
To Oregon songwriter Haley Heynderickx, a seed represents incubation and the process of navigating the darkest, deepest parts of ourselves before becoming realized. It is a process of turning inward, listening and noticing, and trusting one can create something honest and true despite all the constant noise around us—whether that’s the news, social media, or our own self-doubt.
Where Heynderickx’s debut album I Need to Start a Garden was about self-actualization and the excavation of the soul, her new album Seed of a Seed is now about protecting it. Heynderickx’s answer is by going inwards, requiring a brave solitude, while also acknowledging that it’s not done alone. This album nods to the necessary helpers along the way—from flowers (“Gemini”) and daydreams (“Foxglove”) to forests (“Redwoods (Anxious God)”) and friends (“Jerry's Song”). Seed of a Seed is an album that honors these helpers – and the self – and the process of fighting upward toward the light.
The album’s opening track “Gemini” thrums like a warning that every excuse you might make—to not stay with a feeling, to not make room for it—will not hold. It tears through vignettes of the often exhausting dual-life of a heavily touring artist, while her former self chases her, and shames her, for ignoring her. The past confronts the present, two cowboys ready to duel. Finally, the woman takes control, and forces Heynderickx to stop and pull over “just to stare at purple clover off the highway / And see the clover as a gift / A gift I almost missed / You know I finally begin to feel better.” And with that, the drums kick in, the album gives way—or rather—gives into itself, and everything rushes in.
On Seed of a Seed, Heynderickx’s signature intricate finger-picking is hemmed into a lush, living tapestry created with producer Andrew Stonestreet and what she calls her “core jazz boy band”: Daniel Rossi on drums, Denzel Mendoza on trombone, and Matthew Holmes on electric and upright bass. It’s a group she first worked in hopes of exploring her songs with a wider freedom of expression. Later, they added electric guitarist William Seiji Marsh and cellist Caleigh Drane to lift the melodies even higher. The result is a complex forest of sound, and if you imagine all the instruments as the layered leaves, Heynderickx’s voice is the light filtering through them—gentle, tender, and clear.
Seed of a Seed also explores how distant we can feel from nature and ourselves in a world of technology, overconsumption, and consumerism. In “Mouth of a Flower”, Heynderickx sings about the fish-eat-fish world we live in and the human tendency to “take, take, take.” In “Redwoods (Anxious God)”, she longs to hear the Redwoods and to sing with the birds, but “now the only man here’s cellphone ring ring rings.” We are not just drowning out our own voices, but the important voices of those around us. And even if we were to sing for ourselves, how do we find room and space for it? In “Jerry’s Song”, Heynderickx wonders, “Were we troubadours / Stuck in traffic?”, while the album asks, “How do we create in a congested, noisy world?”.
This album doesn’t give you easy answers. Heynderickx’s journey is not a linear one. A theme that persists across both albums is that Heynderickx is still building herself. She is still growing
and changing, and her songs invite us to notice that in ourselves, as well. She admits, "The irony is I'll still be asking these questions; I'm not on the other side of it." Seed of a Seed is almost like a note-to-self to move on her timeline, at her own pace, and to surface only when she’s ready and rested. That is, it’s both a reminder and a permission slip to go away in order to return.
In album closer “Swoop”, Heynderickx repeats twice, “There’s an artistry to going away.” Where the record began with a pulsing urgency, “Swoop” finds Heynderickx in a more steady landscape—having finally found her voice again—where her former and present selves are more at peace. It is the peace of sunlight warming her hands, the vibrating air of a hummingbird flitting just out of sight. It is a seed—a purple clover—sprouting out of the loamy soil, not in a garden, but from within a whole forest.
The Westerlies -
The Westerlies, “an arty quartet…mixing ideas from jazz, new classical, and Appalachian folk” (New York Times) are a New York-based brass quartet comprised of Riley Mulherkar and Chloe Rowlands on trumpet, and Andy Clausen and Addison Maye-Saxon on trombone. From Carnegie Hall to Coachella, The Westerlies navigate a wide array of venues and projects with the precision of a string quartet, the audacity of a rock band, and the charm of a family sing-along.
Formed in 2011, the self-described “accidental brass quartet” takes its name from the prevailing winds that travel from the West to the East. “Skilled interpreters who are also adept improvisers” (NPR’s Fresh Air), The Westerlies explore jazz, roots, and chamber music influences to create the rarest of hybrids: music that is both "folk-like and composerly, lovely and intellectually rigorous” (NPR Music).
The Westerlies’ 2023-24 engagements include performances at Bravo! Vail, the Skaneateles Festival, Rockport Music, the Lied Center of Kansas, FreshGrass Festival, Tippet Rise, and a cross-country tour with singer-songwriter Haley Heynderickx. In 24-25, among others, The Westerlies will perform for San Francisco Performances, Celebrity Series of Boston, and will offer a week-long residency at Monctlair (NJ) State University culminating in a performance at Merkin Hall in New York.
Since their inception, the ensemble has produced ten critically acclaimed albums of genre-defying music. 2023 saw the release of their fifth studio album, entitled Move, featuring music of new music icons Caroline Shaw and Nico Muhly, on the ensemble’s in-house record label. Sought-after collaborators, The Westerlies are featured on recordings by Fleet Foxes, Big Red Machine, Common, Theo Bleckmann, Aoife O’Donovan, and Conrad Tao. Their work with Tao recently led to the commission of Concerto for Westerlies, an expansive and ebullient concerto for brass quartet that premiered in 2023 with the Orlando Philharmonic under the direction of Eric Jacobsen.
Education and community engagement are core elements of The Westerlies' mission. The ensemble has taught masterclasses at The Juilliard School, Manhattan School of Music, Yale School of Music, The Colburn School, and in 2021 The Westerlies were named the inaugural small ensemble-in-residence at the School of Jazz and Contemporary Music at The New School. The Westerlies also produce an annual music festival in Seattle called Westerlies Fest, which combines evening performances with workshops in local public schools. The Westerlies have engaged students of all ages and abilities around the country with their innovative assemblies and masterclasses, promoting the values of cooperation and inclusion through music.
Show 8pm
FULLY SEATED
Ventura Music Hall & Ventura Music Festival Present:
STEPHANE WREMBEL
Stephane Wrembel stands as one of the world's most celebrated guitarists. Originally from Fontainebleau, France, Wrembel is renowned for his masterful blend of jazz, gypsy swing and world music enchanting audiences across the globe with his unique sound.
Wrembel is also a highly respected composer. His original compositions have graced the acclaimed films Midnight in Paris ("Bistro Fada"), Vicky Cristina Barcelona ("Big Brother") and Rifkin’s Festival (original score). Midnight in Paris won the Grammy Award® for "Best Compilation Soundtrack." At the 2012 Academy Awards®, Wrembel was handpicked by renowned composer Hans Zimmer to join his "All Star Band" performing alongside luminaries like Esperanza Spalding, Pharrell, and Shelia E.
With an already impressive discography of 19 albums released under his name and the pseudonym, The Django Experiment, Wrembel recently released a triptych-- 3 CDs entitled Phase 1, 2 and 3--recorded with his band and Canadian improvisational pianist Jean-Michel Pilc. Released in April of 2024, the triptych has received glowing press in Downbeat, Guitar Player Magazine, Acoustic Guitar Magazine, New York Jazz Record and more. Wrembel’s collaborations with other top musicians such as mandolinist David Grisman and Grammy Award®-winning guitarist Raul Midon highlight his remarkable versatility.
Additionally, Wrembel is a dedicated musical director and educator. Since 2003, he has curated the Django a Gogo Music Festival, a celebrated week-long event honoring the Sinti guitar style, held in Maplewood, New Jersey, and in prestigious venues such as Carnegie Hall and The Town Hall and featuring series of master guitar classes.
Wrembel has shared the stage with legends including Elvis Costello, Patti Smith, The Roots, Medeski Martin & Wood, Me’shell Ndegeocello, John Scofield, Larry Keel, Stochelo Rosenberg, and Sam Bush. His performances on NPR’s prestigious Mountain Stage and the syndicated radio show Woodsongs Old Time Radio Hour further showcase his diverse talent. His performances transcend genre boundaries, offering something different to every music enthusiast. As he himself puts it, “I just play my own music. It’s not only for the rock music lover, the Django Reinhardt lover or jazz lover. It’s for the music lover.”
Don’t miss your chance to see Stephane Wrembel live with his world-class band, featuring Josh Kaye on guitar and oud, Ari Folman-Cohen on bass and Nick Anderson on drums.
Quotes:
“…a revelation.” –Rolling Stone
“Stephane Wrembel just might be the greatest acoustic guitarist alive.”—The Aquarian
“Stephane Wrembel repeatedly soars whether performing his own music or classics by Django Reinhardt and Duke Ellington.”—San Diego Union Tribune
MORE INFO:
https://www.facebook.com/StephaneWrembel/
Show 8pm
FULLY SEATED
Ventura Music Hall & Ventura Music Festival Present:
ELIJAH FOX
Elijah Fox is a multi-instrumentalist, singer, and producer based in Los Angeles, CA. He grew up in Durham, NC and began playing piano at age 11 and was mentored early on by Yusuf Salim, a pianist who had played with Charlie Parker and began performing in local jazz clubs. Fox studied piano at Oberlin Conservatory with Sullivan Fortner, Billy Hart, Dan Wall, and Gary Bartz and graduated in 2017 before moving to New York City. His piano composition “East Village” was sampled by Drake and 21 Savage on “Major Distribution” reaching number 3 on the Billboard Charts. Fox has also recorded/produced for SZA, Masego, YG, ScHoolboy Q, Denzel Curry, Tate McCrae, Musiq Soulchild, Childish Gambino, Kali Uchis, J Cole, and many others as well as releasing his own original compositions and sample packs. His impressionistic original piano composition “Wyoming” went viral on TikTok and has received over 20 million streams on Spotify. He is signed to UMPG for publishing as a writer/composer. He is also the touring keyboardist for UK drummer Yussef Dayes and has performed throughout the world. Fox has also performed his original music at sold out shows across the US and Europe. His sound blends elements of jazz, Impressionism, and psychedelic soul. Fox also releases instrumental music under the alias @Soren Sostrom
Show 8pm
GA tickets are standing room only, with very limited seating available first come, first served.
Ventura Music Hall Presents:
DENM
with SURFER GIRL and CHAD TEPPER
DENM first made an impactful splash while dropping his Slum Beach Denny LP- DENM’s sparkling debut album which hit the scene in 2021. Garnering out of the box recognition from coveted playlists including the cover of Spotify’s “Beach Vibes.” Today, Slum Beach Denny has tallied over 25 million streams, and counting! The genre-bending, SoCal musician, songwriter, and producer blends a unique recipe of hazy daze optimism and suburban beach influence into a modern-day melting pot of hip-hop beats, dubby rhythms, and catchy vocal hooks with a bonafide street mentality. DENM possesses the edge and wit of an artist aware of the realities of society, while addressing his own personal values and tongue in cheek commentary on the quest for the American Dream.
Quickly and deservedly, he’s become a coveted, go-to producer amongst his core constituents, helming the Grammy-winning Best Reggae Album of 2022, SOJA’s Beauty in the Silence, as well as a co-write and production on HIRIE’s top-scoring single, “Respect,” plus his high flight collaboration on “Rage,” with Dirty Heads, Travis Barker, and The Interrupters. DENM also flexes his production skill set on out of the box Bounce phenom Big Freedia on the song “Strut.”
DENM’s 2nd release Slum Beach Posse Vol. 1, a seven-song collaborative EP with special guests Slightly Stoopid, Landon McNamara, Jesse James, and Benny Ranks, dropped in 2023 spawning the unmistakable single “Wild Trip” recorded during a surf and studio bender on Oahu’s North Shore with creative conspirator and big wave surfing legend Landon McNamara.”
DENM’s music has commanded notable synchs on several hit series, including Netflix’s Outer Banks, and All-American, and FOX’s Rescue: HI-Surf, and Prime’s Surf Girls Hawai’i. All of this comes ahead of a series of new singles preceding his forthcoming sophomore LP and a U.S. tour that has DENM hitting over 30 outdoor amphitheaters with likeminded cohorts, Pepper and Iration on the ‘Daytrippin in Paradise Summer Tour.’
“It’s all becoming more of what I had originally envisioned,” DENM says. “Everything is manifesting into part of this really cool trajectory to take the listener to places that I like to go.”
Denm has been known to create music in unique places, from Hawaii’s North Shore paradise of Oahu, hanging with Landon McNamara and friends, making music with the Slum Beach Posse between surf sets, or in the urban low-rider landscape of B-REAL from CYPRESS HILL’s Smoke-box studios in the alleys of Downtown Los Angeles. You may also find him behind the board and microphone at Rock Mafia Studios, with producers, Tim James and Antonina Armato, down the coast in Santa Monica, CA or in the Pacific, on a fishing boat drinking brews and writing tunes with Pepper’s Kaleo Wassman, such as the new album’s first single “Where I’m Going,” released on July 26, 2024. Places where days-long, beats-making all-nighters in the studio are routine. And where autobiographical references in his songwriting, reflecting, if not celebrating the seedier side of life, are the standard.
“My songs are about healing from past traumas. Coming of age. Honest songs about struggles with addiction. Songs about tweakers walking down the street really fast. The highs and lows of life, and love, and fatherhood,” DENM says. “Also, just being a mouthpiece for art and my surroundings, with songs about mental health, and the struggle to keep your vision clear and your head straight. It’s a little bit of everything.”
DENM spent his youth as an admittedly troubled teen bouncing from beach town to beach town in Southern California, teaching himself guitar at 14. His itinerant residencies in San Diego, Santa Barbara, and Isla Vista marked a challenging personal narrative full of life’s harshest lessons. They also fostered deeply genuine and eclectic sources of inspiration for his multifaceted talents.
Whether it’s crafting his own scintillating repertoire, or collaborating with a host of admiring peers like Slightly Stoopid, Dirty Heads and SOJA, DENM brings a relentless, undeniable vibe of authenticity to his work. Just three short years since his debut, he has risen to the upper tier of the SoCal scene, volleying his time between sought-after producer and songwriter, cutting edge recording artist, and magnetic live performer. Now, he just wants to keep rolling.
“I want to make music that makes the world move and groove,” says DENM. “If I just stay in that flow state, it’s only going to get better and more fun from here.”
For more info, visit www.denmdemndenm.com
Show 7pm
GA tickets are standing room only, with very limited seating available first come, first served.
Ventura Music Hall Presents:
DARK STAR ORCHESTRA
Performing to critical acclaim for over 20 years and over 3000 shows, Dark Star Orchestra continues the Grateful Dead live concert experience. Their shows are built off the Dead's extensive catalog and the talent of these seven fine musicians. On any given night, the band will perform a show based on a set list from the Grateful Dead's 30 years of extensive touring or use their catalog to program a unique set list for the show. This allows fans both young and old to share in the experience. By recreating set lists from the past, and by developing their own sets of Dead songs, Dark Star Orchestra offers a continually evolving artistic outlet within this musical canon. Honoring both the band and the fans, Dark Star Orchestra's members seek out the unique style and sound of each era while simultaneously offering their own informed improvisations.
Dark Star Orchestra offers much more than the sound of the Grateful Dead, they truly encapsulate the energy and the experience. It's about a sense of familiarity. It's about a feeling that grabs listeners and takes over. It's about that contagious energy...in short, it's about the complete experience and consistent quality show that the fan receives when attending a Dark Star Orchestra show.
Dark Star Orchestra has performed throughout the entire United States, including a sold out debut at Colorado’s Red Rocks Park & Amphitheater, plus shows in Europe and the Caribbean with the band touching down in seven different countries. DSO continues to grow its fan base by playing at larger venues for two and even three-night stands, as well as performing at major music festivals including Bonnaroo, Milwaukee's SummerFest, The Peach Music Festival, Jam Cruise, Wanee Festival, SweetWater 420 Festival, Mountain Jam, and many more.
In addition to appearing at some of the nation's top festival, Dark Star Orchestra hosts its own annual music festival and campaign gathering, titled the "Dark Star Jubilee", currently in its eighth year where DSO headline all three nights and are joined by a mix of established and up and coming national touring acts. Beyond the shores of the United States, DSO has taken its internationally-acclaimed Grateful Dead tribute to the beaches of Jamaica in the dead of winter for the past six years, with their event appropriately titled 'Jam in the Sand'. Featuring an ocean-side stage, DSO sets up camp to perform shows for four nights along the tropical sands of an all-inclusive resort, selling out the event each year for hundreds of lucky attendees.
Fans and critics haven't been the only people caught up in the spirit of a Dark Star show. The band has featured guest performances from six original Grateful Dead members Phil Lesh, Bob Weir, Bill Kreutzmann, Donna Jean Godchaux-MacKay, Vince Welnick, Tom Constanten and even toured with longtime Dead soundman, Dan Healy. Other notable guests have included Mike Gordon and Jon Fishman of Phish, Keller Williams, Warren Haynes, Steve Kimock, Peter Rowan, Ramblin' Jack Elliot and many more.
"For us it's a chance to recreate some of the magic that was created for us over the years," keyboardist and vocalist Rob Barraco explains. "We offer a sort of a historical perspective at what it might have been like to go to a show in 1985, 1978 or whenever. Even for Deadheads
who can say they've been to a hundred shows in the 90s, we offer something they never got to see live."
Show 7pm
GA tickets are standing room only, with very limited seating available first come, first served.
Ventura Music Hall Presents:
RITTZ
with DOC BACKER
A crown is earned, not given, and with two Gold Certified singles, twelve albums, and countless tours around the nation, Rittz has claimed his right to “put a crown on it”.
Traversing the ever-changing landscape of independent hip hop, Rittz’s career boasts a legacy that includes a spot amongst Tech N9ne’s Strange Music alumni. The endeavor produced four Billboard-charting albums and a touring regiment that he carries to this day. In that period of time, Rittz broke through to the worldwide spotlight with an appearance in the highly-coveted BET Hip Hop Awards Cypher.
Following his departure from the label, the Gwinnett County native embraced the undertaking of a fully independent career with the creation of his own imprint, CNT Records. The long-awaited solo venture gave way to seven releases under the CNT banner, and saw Rittz return to the Billboard charts in 2019 with the full-length album, Put A Crown On It.
Influenced by his admiration for down-south production and laid-back melodies, 2023’s MellowLOvationMusic found Rittz adding to the essence that has enveloped his music for years. The album was supported by its lead single, “Who” featuring Project Pat, and a 46-city national tour.
In a testament to Rittz’s ability to elevate himself among the best in hip hop, he soon found himself with two RIAA Gold Certified singles: “Switch Lanes” featuring Mike Posner, and “In My Zone” featuring Mike Posner and B.o.B.
“Since I was a kid, having a gold plaque on the wall has been a goal of mine. Now I have one. The fans, who have supported me and my music, made my dreams come true!”, exclaims Rittz.
The accomplishment that eludes so many artists validates a career built on perseverance and a dedication to the craft of lyricism. Without a breath to waste, Rittz’s aptly named Back For More Tour looks to keep the emcee in the conversation of an ever-evolving industry.
For most, it’s enough to put an exclamation point on things - for Rittz, it’s only right to put a crown on it.
Show 8pm
GA tickets are standing room only, with very limited seating available first come, first served.
Ventura Music Hall Presents:
SHWAYZE
with BIKINI TRILL and TWIN FIN
Raised on the beaches of Southern California, Aaron Smith is a rapper, actor, musician, and father who became known to the world simply as Shwayze following a massive music breakout in 2008.
The Malibu native released his debut album Buzzin’ that summer with singer-producer Cisco Adler. The duo hit the road immediately on the Vans Warped Tour wearing skinny jeans, and singing about lost weekends in Hollywood, all while bringing the most legendary parties with them wherever they went.
Shwayze has since gone on to work with an array of producers and release several independent albums such as Shwayze Summer on his self-funded Feel Good Entertainment Music label. He continues reinventing his sound while staying true to the influences that brought him where he is today.
The past decade has boasted an impressive resume including a top 10 album, Billboard chart topping singles including ‘Buzzin’ and ‘Corona & Lime,’ a rock-doc reality show on MTV, and a number of roles in feature films and major network television- all while living on the road much of the year touring the world.
Shwayze continues to perform around the world and each year he finds new territories and fanbases to connect with.
Show 8pm
GA tickets are standing room only, with very limited seating available first come, first served.
Ventura Music Hall Presents:
JACKIE GREENE
Americana and roots singer-songwriter Jackie Greene is a jack-of-all-trades, and an artist who can croon over soulful piano ballads as much as he can shred a bluesy guitar solo (like he did as the lead guitarist for The Black Crowes in 2013). A road warrior and musician's musician, Greene's new EP 'The Modern Lives – Vol 2' (out October 2018 on Blue Rose Music) finds him at a new chapter in his life: his first months of fatherhood, time off his relentless touring circuit, and a cross-country move from Brooklyn to his birthplace of Northern California.
This new collection of six original songs is a thematic extension of 'The Modern Lives – Vol 1' EP (released in 2017 on Blue Rose Music), imbued with a Brooklyn basement DIY feel and ethos. He is a student of American music, transfixed upon its progression through time, as well as how regional sounds fit in a contemporary context. Whereas 'Vol 1' saw Greene experiment with the Delta blues as a canvas for his examinations of modern society, 'Vol 2' sees Greene embrace the sounds of the bluegrass and folk tapes of his youth.
Lead single "Crazy Comes Easy" showcases Greene's dynamic, multi-instrumental range as he plays slide guitar, organ, bass, and percussion, the guitar licks an appreciative nod to his time in The Black Crowes. Meanwhile, "Good Old Bad Times" highlights Greene as the songwriter as he rattles off lines like "How can somebody find a future? / If they ain't got a foothold in the past?" while taking a critical eye to the idea of nostalgia. Piano ballad "Victim Of The Crime" was one of Jackie's oldest demos up until the feel of these sessions gave him the tools to finish a song that, in his words, was written for his wife before she was his wife. While the title possesses a kind of melodrama, the song itself is tender and heartfelt as he details love's trials and tribulations.
Greene partnered with Academy Award-nominated "king of indie animation" Bill Plympton for a series of music videos for 'The Modern Lives – Vol 1' that would eventually become an animated short film titled 'The Modern Lives'. The film is currently making the rounds at film festivals where it has already won the Jury Award at the USA Film Festival in Dallas, TX, and the Grand Remi Award / Best in Show at WorldFest in Houstin, TX. The short is also being exhibited at the 71st Festival de Cannes/Court Metrage, Melbourne International Animation Festival, and ASIFA-East Festival, amongst others.
Show 8pm
GA tickets are standing room only, with very limited seating available first come, first served.
Ventura Music Hall Presents:
CURSIVE
with PILE
Very few bands manage to last decades, and for the ones that do, it’s often easy to settle down and get a little too comfortable. But there’s nothing comfortable about Devourer, the explosive new album from Cursive. The iconic Omaha group is known for their intensity, ambition, and execution, and has spent 30 years creating a bold discography that’s defined as much by its cathartic sound as its weighty, challenging lyrical themes. And Devourer is as daring as ever. Full of intense and incisive songs, the album proves exactly why Cursive have been so influential and enduring–and why they remain so vital today.
In the years since their 1995 formation, Cursive developed into one of the most important groups to emerge from the late-’90s/early ‘00s moment when the lines between indie rock and post-hardcore began blurring into something altogether new. Albums like Domestica (2000) and The Ugly Organ (2003) became essential touchstones whose echoes can still be heard in new bands today. The pull of nostalgia can be strong over time, but Cursive’s work has often felt like a rejection of those comfort zones; the band has continually pushed themselves, with frontman Tim Kasher’s artistic restlessness steering them ahead. In fact, for Kasher, whose pointed observations always begin with looking inward first, it was an interrogation of this voracious creativity that planted the seeds of Devourer.
“I am obsessive about consuming the arts,” he explains. “Music, film, literature. I’ve come to recognize that I devour all of these art forms then, in turn, create my own versions of these things and spew them out onto the world. It’s positive; you’re part of an ecosystem. But I quickly recognized that the term, ‘Devourer,’ may also embody something gnarly, sinister.” Devourer delves into that darker space. The characters populating the album have bottomless capacities for consumption, whether its resources, material goods, art, or even each other. Then they are consumed by larger forces, whether it’s humanity, Earth, dreams, time, or life itself. “Maybe a better word for it is imperialism,” Kasher says. “But it’s in many different forms. It’s not just the political. It’s personal imperialism and the imperialism of relationships, the way we imperialize one another, even ourselves.”
Fans have come to expect such heady topics from Cursive, but Devourer sets a new standard. The glibness of the First World toward the problems of others. The eternal struggle to stay on the straight and narrow. The eager acolytes exploited by their leaders. How anxiety can compound with age. How self-expression can warp into self-indulgence. Beginning with “Botch Job,” a propulsive banger shaking with anxiety and regret, the album seldom relents. Songs like “The Avalanche of Our Demise,” “What The Fuck,” “Bloodbather,” “Consumers,” and “The Age of Impotence” hit hard, hooking listeners with the unique blend of deep melody and discordant sounds Cursive does so well. Even as songs like “Up and Away,” “Imposturing,” and “Dead End Days” lean more into a poppier sound–or “Dark Star” and “The Loss” tone down the intensity–the album’s underlying disquiet remains. But as always, Cursive is here to wail, not wallow. As Kasher sings in “Bloodbather,” “Life’s an abscess or apple pie / So shut those demons up / And devour your slice.”
Devourer being filled to the brim thematically and musically is unsurprising considering Kasher wrote an astounding 69 compositions after songwriting began in the fall of 2020. About 20 made it to the practice space, with a curated 13 ending up on the final album. Wrangling it all at Omaha’s ARC Studios was Marc Jacob Hudson, who co-produced the album with the band after running live sound on Cursive’s recent tours. Hudson’s lengthy discography includes working with Against Me!, Thursday, and Fireworks, among others, but the musical touchstones he shares with Cursive sealed the deal. “We just got along well and had this kind of shared music history that I found so comforting,” Kasher says. “We were introduced to music in similar ways and, being the same age, share a musical knowledge. It was just so fun and refreshing.”
Now seven members strong (“We seem to be collecting band members over the years,” Kasher jokes), Cursive had a large musical toolbox to use on Devourer. Beyond the core trio of singer/guitarist Kasher, bassist Matt Maginn, and guitarist/vocalist Ted Stevens, there’s keyboardist and multi-instrumentalist Patrick Newbery, cellist Megan Siebe, recording/touring drummer Pat Oakes, and founding drummer Clint Schnase (the two trade drumming duties across Devourer, but join forces for a two-pronged percussive force in “Rookie”).
Cursive had self-released their two previous albums on their label, 15 Passenger, and initially planned to release Devourer the same way–but ultimately decided to put out some feelers as well. “We got interest and it made it all feel like, ‘Yeah, we should do this,’” Kasher recalls. The group arrived on Run for Cover Records, who were excited to work with a band who has such a deep discography and storied history; it’s a fitting home for Cursive, with new labelmates like Fiddlehead, Citizen, Teen Suicide, and Self Defense Family that share a same DNA of emotionally and sonically biting music. “It really is the first time that we’ve gone off to another label since we started in 1995, when we signed to Crank! Records,” Kasher says. “So there’s a certain excitement to that. It’s no longer the excitement of, ‘We just got signed! I wonder what’s going to happen with this record?!’ It’s more like we’re doing something different–nothing feels rote.” Maginn adds, “More than most bands, our labels have been part of our history. We did it ourselves for years with 15 Passenger, so it’s a big deal to us to take on and trust new partners.”
While Cursive’s music hasn’t gotten any more comfortable, perhaps its being released into a world that’s at least a little more shaped in their image. Devourer sounds urgent and fresh, the work of a band still experimenting, still hungering to find new creative heights. On album highlight “Consumers,” the protagonist bemoans, “I saw our future and I want to go back.” But Cursive are only moving forward.
Show 8pm
GA tickets are standing room only, with very limited seating available first come, first served.
Ventura Music Hall Presents:
REVEREND HOTON HEAT
with BLACK JOE LEWIS
Loaded .38s, space heaters, and big skies. Welcome to the lethal, littered landscape of Jim Heath’s imagination. True to his high evangelical calling, Jim is a Revelator, both revealing and reinterpreting the country-blues-rock roots of American music. He’s a time-travelling space-cowboy on an endless interstellar musical tour, and we are all the richer and “psychobillier” for getting to tag along.
REVEREND HORTON HEAT have been the outlet of this creative mind for 29 years, leading to 10 full-length albums, 3 “best-of” collections, 2 DVD releases and thousands of memorable live performances. Never reaching platinum status or having a #1 radio single hasn?t been a problem for the Rev either, the band has continually been a mainstay of late night television and has toured with legendary acts such as Johnny Cash, Motorhead, Marilyn Manson, The Ramones, and many more, all of whom hold the Rev in the highest regard, as a true music industry legend.
Now, entered into a fresh new partnership with Victory Records, REVEREND HORTON HEAT show no signs of slowing down in 2014. January 21st marks the release of their 11th studio album, appropriately titled REV. The album marks a much lauded return to riff-laden, out-of-control rock ‘n roll that fans fell in love with when they first heard “Psychobilly Freakout”. The album’s first single has already turned heads; “Let Me Teach You How to Eat” is REVEREND HORTON HEAT at its finest: tongue-in-cheek and so catchy, it won’t leave your head for weeks.
The band has an incredible tour history and, with major shows and tours already booked throughout the year, will make sure you get the chance to dance one more time! Jim Heath and Jimbo Wallace have chewed up more road than the Google Maps drivers. For twenty-five psycho(billy) years, they have blazed an indelible, unforgettable, and meteoric trail across the globe with their unique blend of musical virtuosity, legendary showmanship, and mythic imagery.
“REVEREND HORTON HEAT, he’s great and plays the music he believes in and nothing else. Go see him or I’ll kill you!!” Lemmy Kilmister (MOTORHEAD)
Rev your engines and catch the sermon on the road as it’s preached by everybody’s favorite Reverend. REV is out January 21st.
Show 8pm
GA tickets are standing room only, with very limited seating available first come, first served.
Ventura Music Hall Presents:
THE ALTONS & THEE SINSEERS
The Altons-
Emerging from Southeast Los Angeles, The Altons have become a key fixture in the vibrant West Coast souldies scene. As pioneering members of Daptone Records' Penrose imprint, they quickly progressed from captivating local nightclubs to lighting up stages at major festivals such as Austin City Limits, Montreal Jazz Festival and Corona Capital, selling thousands of records along the way.
Central to The Altons' sound is the deeply harmonious interplay between the vocals of Adriana Flores and Bryan Ponce, which imbues their music with an intimate and sincere quality. Supported by the solid rhythm foundation laid by Caitlin Moss on drums and Chris “Bolillo” Manjarrez on bass, the band has crafted a sound that resonates with both nostalgia and freshness. Their musical journey is highlighted by the song “When You Go (That’s When You’ll Know),” which was sampled by Mary J. Blige on her Grammy-nominated album Good Morning Gorgeous, underscoring the broad appeal and versatility of their music.
Their upcoming debut album, Heartache in Room 14, produced by Daptone Records’ renowned Bosco Mann, signifies a pivotal evolution in their artistry. Describing the new creative process, Ponce notes, "This whole album was a new experience for us, from the way we approach songwriting to how we recorded the music." Flores adds, "Working at Penrose with Gabe was a turning point for us. Our songwriting process was meticulously broken down and rebuilt, focusing intensely on lyrics, melody, and arrangement."
The album’s opener, “Waiting,” showcases this lyrical vulnerability, telling a poignant story of longing and love against a backdrop of haunting organ and creeping rhythm. With tracks like “Del cielo te cuido” and “Perdóname,” the band explores their cultural roots, blending the heartfelt homage to traditional boleros with modern, moody instrumentals. "Your Light" furthers this trend, presenting a dreamy, earnest declaration of love marked by heavenly unison verses and a compelling call and response chorus.
Scheduled for release in the first quarter of 2025, with an extensive worldwide tour planned, Heartache in Room 14 is set to propel The Altons and their distinctive brand of soul music to new heights, captivating audiences across the globe with their unique sound and profound musical storytelling.
Thee Sinseers -
Straight out of East L.A. and led by multi-instrumentalist, producer and singer-songwriter Joseph Quiñones, Thee Sinseers feature a full brass section led by Eric Johnson (Tenor sax), Steve Surman (Bari sax) and Joseluis Jimenez (trombone). The line up also includes sweet harmonies and a tight rhythm section consisting of Christopher Manjarrez (Bass), Francisco Flores (Guitar), Bryan Ponce (Guitar/vox), Luis Carpio (Drums/vox) and Adriana Flores (Vox). Together they are a part of a community of musicians who are tying together the nostalgic and the classic with the innovative and the new to bring a unique sound to soul music.
Thee Sinseers are part of the Colemine Records family led by Terry Cole, who released their first singles, “It Was Only A Dream” and “I Don’t Mind” in 2019, with a full length LP, “Sinseerly Yours” releasing in March 2024. The band’s song “Seems Like” was also included in the inaugural compilation, “Presenting Penrose Records” from the Penrose imprint of the renowned, Brooklyn-based label, Daptone Records. The song “It Was Only A Dream” was featured in the feature film “Self Reliance” starring Jake Johnson, and in the TV show, “Riverdale”
To date, Thee Sinseers have dazzled audiences across the country in soul strongholds such as California, Texas, New York, Chicago, Oregon, and more. The road is paved in love and soul and Thee Sinseers are on their way to a venue near you soon.
Show 8pm
GA tickets are standing room only, with very limited seating available first come, first served.
Ventura Music Hall Presents:
BALLYHOO!
with SERANATION and THE HARBOR BOYS
Through 25 years and eight independent albums, the last four on their own Right Coast Records, Ballyhoo! have earned the exclamation point which marks their name. Starting in the basement of their mom’s Aberdeen, MD, home, rocking out on guitar and drums respectively, practicing every day, brothers Howi and Donald Spangler formed the proto-punk band in the mold of Green Day and Nirvana, with an eye towards the emerging ska genre led by Goldfinger, Sublime, 311 and No Doubt.
The group’s eighth and most recent studio album, the breezy, ska-fueled, hook filled Message to the World, on their own Right Coast Records, finds the self declared “beach-rockers,” having grown up in public, accepting the responsibilities of adulthood while still hanging on to their dreams of world domination. Stylistically, their music ranges from the hard-edged punk of 2018’s Detonate, which captured the feelings of anger and depression from dealing with personal loss and the exhaustion generated by over a decade on the road to the island reggae beats of the follow-up, Message to the World. “Whatever you want to achieve, just focus on that and work towards it,” explains Howi about the Ballyhoo! ethos. “Don’t worry about followers, views, or even money. Just keep making good stuff. One day it may be possible to finally quit that day job and live your dream full time.”Ballyhoo! is still doing just that, purveying good vibes, positivity and fun live shows meant to take you away from real life...
Show 8pm
GA tickets are standing room only, with very limited seating available first come, first served.
Ventura Music Hall Presents:
THE DIP
The Dip is a Seattle-based Rhythm and Blues band that is known for its poignant songwriting, detailed arrangements, and vintage sound. Featuring a three-piece horn section, the group’s music harkens back to earlier soul and funk influences while hinting at the jazz foundations that brought the band’s members together. Along with singer and guitarist Tom Eddy, bassist Mark Hunter and drummer Jarred Katz are equally at home in a tight-pocketed groove as they are spacious free-improvisation. Trumpet player Brennan Carter joined by saxophonists Evan Smith and Levi Gillis serve as the band’s melodic counterpoint, playing off Eddy’s vocals to create a distinct sonic character that has drawn in millions of listeners to date.
'Love Direction', the follow-up to 2022’s 'Sticking With It' (which landed at #1 on the Billboard Current R&B Albums Chart) is the band’s fourth full-length studio album and second for Dualtone Records, is out now. This new record is the sound of the band taking their next step forward. The interplay of old and new is on full display throughout the album; and, the group augments their classic sound with an expanded instrumentation throughout. Eddy says of the album’s inspiration: “As you get further along in a relationship, sometimes you lose your way. The things that came easily in the beginning get hard. The love is still there, it’s just that people and life are complicated. Sometimes you don’t have the tools in the toolbox to figure out what you need to do to support the other person, so you have to get help and ask for directions.”
Still, despite the title, this latest record isn’t a collection of straightforward love songs, but an investigation into the different angles and challenges that relationships can bring. Expanding on the album’s theme, Eddy further notes “These aren’t ‘Love Songs’ in the most obvious sense. They deal with the middle stages, the hinterlands of love and life together - figuring someone out and what they need, learning how to communicate, and examining your own faults. We set out to write music that felt more grown, a little wiser. The songs that emerged all pointed in the Love Direction.”
Their last album cycle saw the band headline and sell-out shows at iconic venues across the country. They have also had the opportunity to support new friends like Lake Street Dive and The Black Pumas, while also appearing at major festivals including Bonnaroo and Outside Lands. No strangers to the road, this new album represents a reflection on the band’s touring gravitas as well as the promise of a new destination appearing on the horizon. Directions now in hand, The Dip is looking forward to furthering this exploration into all matters of the heart by bringing this expansive and detailed new recording to life in their next travels together.
Show 8:30pm
GA tickets are standing room only, with very limited seating available first come, first served.
Ventura Music Hall Presents:
MAGIC CITY HIPPIES - ENEMIES TOUR
with MUSTARD SERVICE
Show 9pm
GA tickets are standing room only, with very limited seating available first come, first served.
Ventura Music Hall Presents:
RICH KIDS ON LSD
with SEIZED UP
Show 8pm
GA tickets are standing room only, with very limited seating available first come, first served.
Ventura Music Hall Presents:
BADFISH - A TRIBUTE TO SUBLIME
with KYLE SMITH and FAYUCA
Badfish is a vibe. Badfish is a sonic house party complete with plenty of gyrating fans sipping libations and enjoying various extracurricular activities. Badfish is feel-good music.
For almost 25 years, the Rhode Island-based band – Joel Hanks on bass, Scott Begin on drums, Pat Downes on vocals and guitar, Danny Torgersen on horns, keyboards, and guitars – have successfully paid tribute to Sublime, the influential California group that brought ska-punk and reggae-rock to the mainstream. Badfish’s heartfelt celebration of Sublime’s musical spirit and legacy is so sought-after that they’ve headlined theaters, sold out shows, and played 15-20 gigs a month.
But now, Badfish is more. After two decades of Sublime reverence, Badfish originality is stomping into high gear. Badfish recently released its second new song, the anthemic, groove-fortified “F You Pay Me,” with special guest Grieves, as the follow-up to the band’s first single, “High With You.” Now the Sublime repertoire is nicely augmented by fresh original tracks that blend seamlessly together.
Show 8pm
FULLY SEATED
V.M.H. & Rum & Humble Present:
LADYSMITH BLACK MAMBAZO
Let us tell you a story. An impossible to believe, yet, true story. Once upon a time there was a teenage boy working on his family farm in apartheid South Africa. The year was 1960. This boy loved to sing, in fact he loved to sing so much that he allowed himself an impossible dream. In his dream he would create a group of singers, from his family members, to sing traditional South African songs. His group would perform all over South Africa and they would become the greatest music group his country would ever know. How could such a dream come to a young farm boy in a country rife with hardship, violence and trouble? Well, Joseph Shabalala was this young farm boy and his dream would become Ladysmith Black Mambazo.
The year 2023 marks the 63rd anniversary of Joseph Shabalala forming Ladysmith Black Mambazo. His group would not only conquer all of South Africa, but would become a worldwide phenomenon, winning more GRAMMY Awards (Five), and receiving more GRAMMY Award nominations (Nineteen), than any World Music group in the history of recorded music.
During the dark years of South African Apartheid, Ladysmith Black Mambazo followed a path of peaceful protest through songs of hope and love. When Nelson Mandela was released from prison, in 1990, he said that Ladysmith Black Mambazo’s music was a powerful message of peace that he listened to while in jail. When Mandela was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, in 1993, he asked the group to join him at the ceremony. It was Mandela who called Ladysmith Black Mambazo “South Africa’s Cultural Ambassadors to the World.”
The group sings a traditional music style called isicathamiya (Is-Cot-A-Mee-Ya), which developed in the mines of South Africa. It was there that black workers were taken to work far away from their homes and families. Poorly housed and paid, the mine workers would entertain themselves, after a six-day work week, by singing songs into the wee hours on Saturday night and Sunday. When the miners returned to their homes, this musical tradition returned with them.
In the mid-1980s, American singer/songwriter Paul Simon famously visited South Africa and incorporated the group's rich harmonies into his renowned Graceland album – a landmark recording considered seminal in introducing World Music to mainstream audiences. This brought the group to the attention of music lovers all over the world, the beginning of a global musical career that shows no sign of ending.
After leading his group for over fifty years and approaching his seventy-fifth birthday, Joseph Shabalala retired in 2014, handing the leadership to his three sons, Thulani, Sibongiseni and Thamsanqa Shabalala. Having joined their father’s group in 1993, their many years of training had prepared them in ways no others could be trained. Now, carrying their father’s dream into the future, the Shabalala Family continues the group’s success for the world to hear.
Ladysmith Black Mambazo is Thulani Shabalala, Sibongiseni Shabalala, Thamsanqa Shabalala, Msizi Shabalala, Albert Mazibuko, Abednego Mazibuko, Mfanafuthi Dlamini, Pius Shezi and Sabelo Mthembu.
Show 9pm
GA tickets are standing room only, with very limited seating available first come, first served.
Ventura Music Hall Presents:
LITTLE STRANGER
with WAX
Hailing from Philadelphia and now based in the vibrant city of Charleston, SC, alt indie hip-hop duo Little Stranger (Kevin and John Shields, no relation but best friends) have spent years honing their signature sound and perfecting their version of the “organized chaos” that a Little Stranger live show entails. In an era where genre is increasingly irrelevant, Little Stranger delivers a fresh take on melodic hip-hop garnering comparisons to newer artists like Remi Wolf, Still Woozy, and Marc Rebillet but also the golden age of hip hop running into pop epitomized by early 2000s Timberland, Gorillaz and NERD. Between John’s melodic singer-songwriter magnetism, Kevin’s in-your-face delivery, and an overall undeniable groove the duo has become known for their unique sound, - garnering millions of streams, playing countless sold-out shows and major festivals like Lollapalooza, Governor’s Ball, Hangout Fest, BottleRock, Levitate Music & Arts Festival, and more.
Their new album Sat Around Trippin (out June 28 on Ineffable Records) was written and recorded from the duo’s home studio in Charleston for the most part, but started at a remote cabin in Bat Cave, NC with the boys’ shared goal of disappearing a bit and recalibrating their creative minds after months on the road. Several of the tracks on the album were spawned there in those small magical windows of time when late nights became early mornings and creativity didn’t have to vie for their attention. Lead single “Kama Sumatra” was written in response to the political drama surrounding transgender rights and features a tropical melody complete with the marimba. The single sends a message of acceptance and reminder that yourself is the best thing you can be.
Slinky hip-hop/reggae single “Fly Guy” is a cheeky track that pokes fun at old habits, “I used to be a fly guy, used to smoke but now I get too high.” The song was written while looking back on a past version of themselves while also looking ahead to the ideal version of themselves they can become in time.
Feel good gospel inspired focus track “God at a Festival” featuring Andy Frasco was written in collaboration with Andy as well as Ross Bogan (keyboard player of Doom Flamingo,) and Damn Skippy out of the duo’s home studio in Charleston. A unique mix of rap and soul, the track encompasses the feeling of freedom and self-expression one gets from live music and the atmosphere of a festival.
“Nobody Like Me” sees Little Stranger lean into their rock side with punk guitars, screams, and a killer bass line for this high-energy anthem. The track explores feeling lonely in a society where status is king. Sat Around Trippin is largely self-produced and is an album that you can lay back and kick it to, whether you are 18 or 81 showing the band’s ability to connect with anyone regardless of age. Sat Around Trippin serves as the follow up to cult favorite Trip Around Saturn, which featured Del the Funky Homosapien and The Elovaters among others.
This summer, Little Stranger is staying busy joining Stick Figure on the road, releasing new music, playing festivals like Governor’s Ball, Hangout Fest, Electric Forest, and more. Following their summer tour and festival run, Little Stranger is bringing their electric live show to various cities across the U.S. on their Fall headline tour kicking off September 26. Mental health is something the duo have been actively speaking about for years from firsthand experience. For their upcoming tour with Stick Figure, Little Stranger has partnered with Backline, a mental health fund for musicians, to donate $1 of every ticket sold on the tour. In Little Stranger’s live shows, these lifelong road dogs offer a chance to lose yourself, be yourself, and be accepted as part of a community (the “Strangerverse”), all while leading with love, getting loose and putting the fan experience first.
Between their out-of-the-box creative endeavors and an ever-increasing arsenal of new tunes, Little Stranger is poised to make 2024 another slam dunk. For more information, please visit www.littletrangermusic.com
Show 8pm
GA tickets are standing room only, with very limited seating available first come, first served.
Ventura Music Hall Presents:
THE GARCIA PROJECT
The Garcia Project is the only nationally touring tribute that performs full, classic Jerry Garcia Band set lists from 1976-1995!
The Garcia Project stands as a premier tribute band dedicated to faithfully recreating the legendary performances of the Jerry Garcia Band. With a meticulous attention to detail, they reconstruct not only the beloved setlists but also the distinctive tempos, arrangements, and even utilize replica guitars and gear to authentically capture the essence of Jerry Garcia's sound.
Comprised of dedicated musicians and passionate fans of Jerry Garcia's solo work, The Garcia Project goes beyond mere homage, striving to transport audiences back to the intimate and transformative concert experiences that defined the Jerry Garcia Band. From soulful ballads like “Mission In The Rain to electrifying jams such as "Deal," every performance is a journey through Garcia's musical universe, faithfully recreated with precision and reverence.
Through their commitment to authenticity and musical craftsmanship, The Garcia Project ensures that each show is not just a nostalgic trip down memory lane, but a vibrant celebration of Jerry Garcia's enduring musical legacy. By meticulously recreating the nuances of Jerry Garcia Band concerts, from the gear to the groove, The Garcia Project honors Garcia's spirit of improvisation and musical exploration, ensuring that his music continues to inspire and resonate with audiences everywhere.
Not a Grateful Dead tribute, but a tribute to Jerry Garcia’s beloved other band, The Jerry Garcia Band, which toured in between Grateful Dead tours, and played original songs as well as great covers from many genres, including rock, Motown, gospel, bluegrass and more.
“The Garcia Project is a must-see for anyone who had the good fortune of seeing Jerry’s band live. I was lucky enough to share the JGB experience with Jerry, John Kahn, Maria Muldaur, Keith and Donna. Being on stage with Mik, Kat, Dan and the crew is the closest thing to the original. They are Jerry’s kindred spirits when it comes to making music. Even if you never saw JGB live, you can see and hear their spirit at a Garcia Project performance.”
– Buzz Buchanan, Drummer for The Jerry Garcia Band 1977-1978
Often called the “DSO of JGB” by fans, The Garcia Project’s performances are based on actual set lists performed by The Jerry Garcia Band. All of their performances are recreations of full classic Jerry Garcia Band shows from 1976 to 1995. For anyone that never had a chance to experience the Jerry Garcia Band or for fans that want to relive a classic show, The Garcia Project delivers.
The founding members of The Garcia Project got to see the Jerry Garcia Band live on tour for many years, and the sound and feelings are deeply embedded in them. With precise arrangements and the proper instrumentation and feel for the various eras, The Garcia Project faithfully channels and projects the feelings, emotions and music that propelled the Jerry Garcia Band and the fans through many years of musical bliss. It’s about family, soul searching, rejoicing, contemplating, celebrating, seeking truth and loving one another.
Praised by Dennis McNally, the press, and fans, The Garcia Project has been recreating classic Jerry Garcia Band set lists with stunning accuracy and detail across the country since 2010.
Show 8pm
GA tickets are standing room only, with very limited seating available first come, first served.
Ventura Music Hall Presents:
SUN ROOM
Born and raised in SoCal's surf-rock scene, Sun Room, quickly went from getting the cops called on them for playing too loudly at house shows to performing their music in sold out room across dozens of countries.
After a series of unexpected viral moments, two of their songs were included on the hit Netflix series, Outer Banks, which continued the wave of excitement online. So within just six months of the band forming, Sun Room went on to sell out a run of shows across the US, support Louis Tomlinson's North and South American tour, and support Inhaler in Europe.
Making their way back to the US in Fall 2022, Sun Room embarked on their first headline tour across North America, selling over 13,000 tickets. Getting back on the road in Spring 2023, the band toured the US with Inhaler, then went straight into their own headline run.
After returning home to San Diego for the summer, Sun Room finished their latest EP "At Least I Tried" - A 4 track EP produced by Zac Carper from FIDLAR, one of the band's biggest influences growing up in the California DIY scene. The project was met with great responses from the public, scoring playlist covers across DSPs, a highlight from Iggy Pop on BBC 6 and DIY Mag describing them as "a band so unashamedly indebted to the garage rock'n'roll of decades past..." The project dropped as the band kicked off their second headline tour across all of North America, playing in over 30 cities, before finally jetting off to Australia for a headline tour and series of festivals for December 2023 - January 2024.
Coming off a headline run and festival circuit in Spring 2024, Sun Room is gearing up to release their latest EP on August 9th with the first singles "Hate It When You Call" and "Get Me Outta New York City" out now. Watch the music video for "Hate It When You Call" HERE. This EP drops, just before the band joins Dayglow on his fall headline tour for 20+ dates across the US before jumping into their own biggest West Coast tour yet.
In 2023, Sun Room gained over 500k followers across social media with a steady flow of global listeners that continue to grow as they experiment with their sound, play in new cities, and pull influences from the unique experiences they have encountered in just three years of being a band.
Show 9pm
GA tickets are standing room only, with very limited seating available first come, first served.
Ventura Music Hall Presents:
MICRO MANIA WRESTLING
MicroMania Tour is a high powered, explosive, athletic Pro Wrestling show with just the right touch of comedy thrown in to make for a unforgettable BIG event not necessarily BIG people!!
These micro athletes may be short in stature but are giants in the world of entertainment where they will keep you on your feet screaming from the opening bell through the Main Event!
Show 8pm
FULLY SEATED
Ventura Music Hall Presents:
SONJA MORGAN: Sit Down with Sonja in Your City
Sonja is coming to your town for an unfiltered cabaret comedy show that will have you seeing
double and feeling single!!! Sit Down with Sonja in your City for a show unlike any other where
YOU are the star! Well, Sonja is the star, but she wants to meet you too. Come ready to ask all
your burning questions and you know Sonja will answer in her unabashedly unlike anyone
fashion. Bawdy and real.
Show 8pm
GA tickets are standing room only, with very limited seating available first come, first served.
Ventura Music Hall Presents:
THE BROTHERS COMATOSE
The Brothers Comatose's singer-songwriter Ben Morrison share some insight into their latest polarizing single "The IPA Song," "We generally use our music to unify people, but there comes a time for every band when you have to make a statement. This is our most controversial song and we realize that some of our audience will hate us for it, but it's time we finally say something: we can't drink IPAs anymore!"
"Phew, that felt good to get off my chest."
"In all seriousness though, we overdid it quite a bit, back when we were sponsored by a great beer company and they delivered multiple cases of IPA to every tour stop of ours. It was great for a while, but it got to the point where we had cases and cases of warm IPA in our van and that's all we drank. Too much warm IPA will change a person, and now we can only drink light beer. We're more of a quantity over quality band these days, at least when it comes to beer."
"This song came about because there are lots of craft beer lovers in our musical world and we would find ourselves drinking lots of high alcohol percentage beers when we’re playing shows, and we just can’t do it anymore. We want to enjoy a few beers while we’re playing without getting too drunk, and light beer saves us from that. Pabst Blue Ribbon, if you’re reading this, we’re still looking for sponsorships!”
The Brothers Comatose's new single "The IPA Song" is available now
Whether traveling to gigs on horseback or by tour bus, Americana mavens The Brothers Comatose forge their own path with raucous West Coast renderings of traditional bluegrass, country and rock-n-roll music. The five-piece string band is anything but a traditional acoustic outfit with their fierce musicianship and rowdy, rock concert-like shows.
The Brothers Comatose is comprised of brothers Ben Morrison (guitar, vocals) and Alex Morrison (banjo, vocals), Steve Height (bass), Philip Brezina (violin), and Greg Fleischut (mandolin, vocals). When they’re not headlining The Fillmore for a sold-out show or appearing at Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival, the band is out on the road performing across America, Canada, Australia, and hosting their very own music festival, Comatopia, in the Sierra foothills.
The San Francisco quintet are heading out for a massive U.S. tour in further support of their most recent album Ear Snacks - a heartwarming collection of collaborations from their Ear Snacks YouTube series.
Show 7pm
GA tickets are standing room only, with very limited seating available first come, first served.
Ventura Music Hall Presents:
VUNDABAR & YOT CLUB
with FAERYBABYY
Artist Presale: Wednesday, December 4 @ 10am PT
Spotify Presale: Thursday, December 5 @ 10am PT
*All presale end Thu. December 5 @ 10pm PT
Public onsale: Friday, December 6 @ 10am PT
Vundabar -
Vundabar is a Boston-based trio that delivers jangly, fuzzed-out math-and surf-tinged indie rock shot through with plenty of post-punk spirit. Formed in 2013 by vocalist/guitarist Brandon Hagen and drummer Drew McDonald while still in high school, the duo eventually recruited bassist Zack Abramo and began playing locally. Sporting a melody-rich blend of knotty folk and loud-soft-loud indie rock à la Beantown luminaries Pixies, Vundabar issued their debut album, Antics, in late 2013. They adopted a grittier tone on 2015's Gawk, which added grungy post-punk to the mix. The cathartic and dense Smell Smoke arrived in 2018, delivering an earworm-heavy set that was both bracing and sincere, and in 2020 the trio released the tight and succinct Either Light, which saw them working with a producer, Patrick Hyland (Mitski), for the first time. In 2021, online snippets of fans singing along to the group's 2015 single "Alien Blues" flooded social media, which garnered millions of streams for the seven-year-old cut. Devil for the Fire, Vundabar's wide-ranging fifth studio effort, appeared the following year.
Yot Club -
For decades the bright lights of New York have drawn artists to its storied city streets — those seeking their tribe, those looking to solidify their identity, and those hungry for inspiration and fresh encounters, all there for the taking on this new, broadened horizon. And now 26-year-old Ryan Kaiser has joined those ranks, moving from Nashville to Brooklyn, at the tail-end of 2022. Except, unlike so many who have come before him, Kaiser’s already made a name for himself creating daydreamy, sun-blasted, Polaroid-pop as Yot Club.
With Yot Club’s second full-length, Rufus, Kaiser is expanding his sonic palette and challenging his own established modes of music making by letting collaborators in. The record includes co-writes with the likes of Tommy English (Carly Rae Jepsen, Kacey Musgraves), and singers Charli Adams and Harrison Lipton, with Patrick Wimberly (Lil Yachty, Joji, Blood Orange, MGMT ) on mixing duties, and the result is a collection of songs that sounds bolder and brighter. From the shimmering surf-pop of opener “Stuntman,” to the minor chord angst and quiet-loud-quiet pulse of “New Day,” to The Strokesian swoon of album closer “Lazy Eyes,” Kaiser lo-fi hooks have a new cinematic scope.
But let’s rewind to 2019 when his music first captured the ears and imagination of listeners thanks to the song “YKWIM?” off his Bipolar ep, one of three EPs he released that year alone. Newly graduated and still living in his college town of Hattiesburg, Mississippi, it was a pivotal year for Kaiser. Seemingly out of nowhere the streams on “YKWIM?” started climbing: 500k streams a day soon ballooning to a million. Unbeknownst to Kaiser, his song — which is now 2x RIAA Platinum — had become a go-to sad song for nostalgia-centric TikToks. The virality didn’t stem from a dance craze. It was about a vibe.
The knock-on effect was every major label came calling, but for Kaiser, signing his music away for 25 years in exchange for an non-recoupable advance was a hard no. Ultimately, Kaiser signed with Amuse, a distro company-turned-label, where he retained ownership of his masters and gained their full support for his vision. Kaiser followed 2020’s Nature Machine EP with 2022’s Santolina EP, and then, in 2023, he released his debut album off the grid and the EP amateur observer. Not to mention a ton of loosies including “LAUREN” with spill tab, and “Safe House” with Jordana, releases which underscore his newfound explorations in collaboration.
Nostalgia is an oft-used descriptor too, but it’s one that Kaiser’s unafraid to lean into — “I don’t like anything that sounds like it was made now,” he notes — with his own song titled, “Nostalgia,” ringing out like the perfect soundtrack to a movie montage directed by John Hughes (with just a pinch of The Postal Service). And then there’s “Drowning,” written with Charli Adams, where Kincaid’s razored guitars recall Bloc Party. With production credits including MGMT, Solange, and Lil Yachty’s latest LP, Patrick Wimberly mixing brings a different dimension to Yot Club’s sound.
There’s an economy to Kaiser’s songwriting, a feel-it, sing-it straightforwardness that cuts to the meat of the matter, with his titles often providing the jumping off point, like lead single “Pixel.” With its ticking urgency and cascading guitar line, it was written and recorded in two days with producer Tommy English, and features Kaiser on live, looped drums, with additional slide guitar. “That song’s about getting caught up in your own life and technology in relation to self-importance and how you see yourself,” offers Kaiser. “It’s never been harder to appreciate your own circumstances than it is today because you can play the comparison game. It’s a complicated dynamic: the people whose lives look the best can often suck, ’cos why else would they go to such efforts to make it look like their lives are great!”
Then there’s “Human Nature,” written with artist Harrison Lipton, who also plays in the band MICHELLE and happens to live down the street. Written and recorded at Lipton’s parents’ 100+ year old Connecticut house, Kaiser describes it as a driving-down-the-Pacific-Coast-Highway kind of tune. But those sunny sonics belie the melancholic inevitability of so many splits: the lover you spent every day with can eventually turn into someone you don’t recognize at all. “This album is not meant to serve as an eloquent story where there’s characters and side characters and betrayal and heartbreak,” he says. “It’s just 13 separate episodes that restart and don’t necessarily match each other, but I wanted to give it a character to wrap it all together.”
Rufus is not exactly Ryan Kaiser, but these snapshots capture the essence of his experiences: a bad relationship and fresh realizations; leaving it all behind to try and find footing in a shiny new city that maybe isn’t exactly the imagined, mythologized creative utopia. It continues Kaiser’s coming of age — looking back, picking it all apart, trying to work it all out, and constantly pushing forward.
VUNDABAR – Fast Track Includes:
YOT CLUB – Fast Track Includes:
Show 8pm
GA tickets are standing room only, with very limited seating available first come, first served.
Ventura Music Hall Presents:
COLLIE BUDDZ
Colin Patrick Harper hails from the tiny island of Bermuda. In the music industry, he is known as the reggae artist Collie Buddz. Buddz was born on August 21, 1984 in New Orleans, Louisiana. After graduating from high school, he attended Full Sail University in Winter Park, FL, where he decided to study studio engineering. Upon graduating from the top in his class at Full Sail in 2006, Buddz began looking for work in the recording industry as a performer or producer. One of his first major gigs was working with recording star Shaggy on the single "Mad Mad World" from Shaggy's new album at the time entitled Intoxication, which was released in 2007. That was the same year Collie released his self-titled debut album with Sony Music with tracks such as ‘Come Around’ and ‘Blind To You’. The album was a success and well-received by critics. WWE (World Wrestling Enterprises) fans would immediately recognize Buddz's voice from the entrance theme ("SOS") for WWE superstar wrestler Kofi Kingston, which was included on the 2008 compilation WWE The Music, Vol. 8. Over the next year, he would continue making guest appearances on the works of many other artists.
It is no small coincidence that his stage name "Buddz" is slang for marijuana. There have been photographs taken of the artist holding bongs and other pot-smoking paraphernalia over the years. Of course, other reggae artists such as Bob Marley have made weed seem an essential part of the reggae lifestyle. When not working in the studio, Collie found himself selling out venue after venue on one of his many exhaustive tours. Now with new music being released and a good reputation under his belt, Buddz finds himself playing at some of the biggest reggae music festivals all across the world such as, Reggae Rise Up, One Love New Zealand, and California Roots Music Festival
At the end of the decade, Buddz started his own record label called Harper Digital. In 2011, he would finally release his second album entitled Playback followed shortly with the Blue Dreamz EP. Buddz would then go on to release his next album, Good Life, fully independently through Harper Digital with features from the likes of Snoop Dogg, Jody Highroller, and the Bay Area’s very own, P-Lo.
More recently, he has finished up his fully self produced album Hybrid which came out in the spring of 2019. Hybrid is Collie Buddz's third full-length album. The album is fully produced by Buddz and features two tracks with Russ, as well as tracks with Tech N9ne, B Young, Stonebwoy, Dizzy Wright, and Johnny Cosmic. The first five songs on the album have been released and highly praised as singles. The FADER called "Love & Reggae" a "quintessential reggae jam," and Billboard praised "Bank" feat. Russ & B Young, claiming "Buddz effortlessly [flowed] on the self-produced melody." Meanwhile, "Bounce It" featuring Ghanian Grammy nominee Stonebwoy has gotten radio play around the world including on Sirius XM Pitbull's Globalization channel, and Buddz's latest single "Show Love" has quickly earned radio play on Sirius XM The Joint and was added to Spotify's elite New Music Friday playlist.
Show 8pm
GA tickets are standing room only, with very limited seating available first come, first served.
The Hard Times & Ventura Music Hall Present:
LAURA JANE GRACE & THE MISSISSIPPI MEDICALS
with ALEX LAHEY and NOUN
Laura Jane Grace is a major figure in today’s rock scene as both a solo artist and the front person of Against Me!, which she founded in Naples, FL in the late 1990s. As a working artist, she has released six solo offerings and seven albums with Against Me!, and in 2012 went public with her gender transition in the pages of Rolling Stone. In her music, she continues to detail her journey all while staying true to her earlier themes of outspoken political critique – environmentalism along with personal and social liberation – with a base in American music including country and folk-rock, with a penchant for noise and anarchy. Laura Jane will be joined by her band "The Mississippi Medicals" featuring Matt Patton of Drive-By Truckers (bass), Mikey Erg of The Ergs (drums) and Paris Campbell Grace (vocals, percussion).
Show 9pm
FULLY SEATED
Ventura Music Hall Presents:
VIEUX FARKA TOURÉ
Often referred to as “The Hendrix of the Sahara”, Vieux Farka Touré was born in Niafunké, Mali in 1981. He is the son of legendary Malian guitar player Ali Farka Touré, who died in 2006. Ali Farka Touré came from a historical tribe of soldiers, and defied his parents in becoming a musician. When Vieux was in his teens, he declared that he also wanted to be a musician. His father disapproved due to the pressures he had experienced being a musician. Rather, he wanted Vieux to become a soldier. But with help from family friend the kora maestro Toumani Diabaté, Vieux eventually convinced his father to give him his blessing to become a musician shortly before Ali passed.
Vieux was initially a drummer / calabash player at Mali’s Institut National des Arts, but secretly began playing guitar in 2001. Ali Farka Touré was weakened with cancer when Vieux announced that he was going to record an album. Ali recorded a couple of tracks with him, and these recordings, which can be heard on Vieux’s debut CD, were amongst his final ones. It has been said that the senior Touré played rough mixes of these songs when people visited him in his final days, at peace with, and proud of, his son’s talent as a musician.
In 2005, Eric Herman (still Vieux’s manager today) of Modiba Productions expressed an interest in producing an album for Vieux; this led to Vieux’s self-titled debut album, released by World Village in 2007. Ali Farka Touré’s work to tackle the problem of malaria is continued as 10% of proceeds are donated to Modiba’s “Fight Malaria” campaign in Niafunké through which over 3000 mosquito nets have been delivered to children and pregnant women in the Timbuktu region of Mali. On this first album, Vieux pays homage to his father and follows Ali’s musical tradition, giving new versions of the West African music that is echoed in the American blues. The album features Toumani Diabaté, as well as his late father.
On his second record, Fondo on Six Degrees (2009), Vieux branched out and presented his own sound: while remaining true to the roots of his father’s music he uses elements of rock, Latin music, and other African influences. The album received a great deal of critical acclaim from across the globe, and Vieux was clearly moving out of his father’s shadow.
By June 2010, Vieux was performing at the opening concert for the FIFA World Cup in South Africa. That month Vieux also released his first live album, LIVE. His live performances are highly energized and Vieux is known for dazzling crowds with his speed and dexterity on the guitar, as well as his palpable charisma and luminous smile, both of which captivate audiences from all audiences in spite of any language barriers (though Vieux does speak 8 languages).
In 2011 Vieux released his 3rd studio album, The Secret, so named because the listener will hear the secret of the blues with a blend of generations from father to son. It was produced by guitarist Eric Krasno (of the Soulive trio) and features South African-born vocalist Dave Matthews, Derek Trucks on electric slide guitar and jazz guitarist John Scofield. The title track is the last collaboration between Vieux and his late father. With the heralded release of The Secret, Vieux Farka Touré has clearly established himself as one of the world’s rare musical talents and guitar virtuosos with a distinct style that always pays homage to the past while looking towards the future.
Vieux released The Tel Aviv Session (Cumbancha) in April 2012, a collaborative project with Israeli superstar Idan Raichel dubbed ‘The Touré-Raichel Collective’ that has been hailed by fans and critics alike as a masterpiece and one of the best collaborative albums in the history of international music, drawing comparisons to Ali Farka Touré and Ry Cooder’s legendary Talking Timbuktu album.
In 2013, Vieux Farka Touré’s beautiful and critically acclaimed album Mon Pays was released as an homage to his homeland. Being that his native Mali had recently been splintered by territorial fighting between Tuareg and Islamic rebels since January 2012, Mon Pays was devoted to reminding the world about the beauty and culture of his native Mali. Translated as ‘My Country,’ this predominantly acoustic undertaking transformed into an artifact of cultural preservation. Two songs on the project - ‘Future’ and ‘Peace’ feature Sidiki Diabate’s kora leading an emotional charge complemented by Touré’s spectacular guitar work. Both tracks represent an important generational “passing of the torch” as Sidiki’s father, Toumani is considered one of the greatest living kora masters and was a close friend of Vieux’s father Ali. Mon Pays has been widely hailed as the most mature and lovely record yet from one of this generation’s most exciting artists to come out of Mali and one of world music’s true rising stars.
Vieux reunited with Idan Raichel in Paris to record, release and subsequently tour their 2nd collaborative album as The Touré-Raichel Collective in 2014. The result was yet another musical and critical triumph, titled 'The Paris Session' (Cumbancha) revered by many as not just a musical gem for the ages, but a powerful testimonial to the power of art and fraternity to transcend vast cultural and political divides. In 2015, Vieux released another unexpected, genre-bending collaborative album, this time with New York-based singer Julia Easterlin, aptly titled 'Touristes'. The album shot to the top of the iTunes World chart and earned critical acclaim, including that of John Schaefer (NPR) who called it "brilliant." On April 7, 2017, Vieux released his next album 'Samba', recorded live in front of a small audience at Applehead Studio in Woodstock, NY.
When the COVID pandemic hit in 2020 and all touring ground to a halt, Vieux stayed focussed on his craft at home. He worked tirelessly in the studio he built at his family's compound (which he named 'Studio Ali Farka Toure' in honor of his late father) to record his debut album for World Circuit Records/BMG, the prestigious UK-based record label with whom his father recorded and released most of his own work. The resulting album, 'Les Racines' (released June 2022), sees Vieux masterfully return to the deep roots of the Desert Blues music that his father introduced to the world and Vieux spent most of his career to date exploring, experimenting with, and expanding. 2022 also saw the release of a long-awaited collaborative album between Vieux and Houston-based psych-rock superstars Khruangbin called ‘Ali’ - an album on which the artists join forces to pay homage to Ali Farka Toure by reimagining eight of his songs together. The album was an instant hit around the globe, immediately getting millions of streams, enormous critical acclaim and even earning the praise of Sir Elton John who called it "one of the albums of the year - absolutely wonderful music." With each new project Vieux broadens his horizons, embraces new challenges and further entrenches his reputation as one of the world’s most talented and innovative musicians.
As a passionate champion for the people of Mali and The Sahel, Vieux founded the charity Amahrec Sahel in 2012. As part of Amahrec Sahel’s mission to support humanitarian reconstruction and culture, the charity has provided school supplies for children, supported an orphanage in Bamako and provided musical instruments for young musicians in Mali. Vieux is also the director of The Ali Farka Touré Foundation, an international organization dedicated to the preservation of Ali’s legacy and the cultural growth of Mali.
Show 9pm
GA tickets are standing room only, with very limited seating available first come, first served.
Ventura Music Hall Presents:
THE MOSS
In a musical landscape with fewer boundaries than ever before, THE MOSS’s exuberant brand of alternative rock spans genres, eras, and even oceans.
The Utah-via-Hawaii group was born on the shores of Oahu in 2015, as teenage buddies Tyke James (vocals/guitar) and Addison Sharp (guitar) picked up a gig serenading diners at local taco trucks in between surf sessions. Naturally, their songs took shape in the spirit of the island, imbued with the joyfulness and breeziness of reggae culture yet cut with the introspection and communal spirit of mainland indie acts like Pinegrove and Cage the Elephant.
By 2018, the duo had grown, enlisting Willie Fowler on drums and Addison’s brother Brierton on bass, and traded in beaches for the Great Salt Lake. They hit the stage at spots like local cornerstone Kilby Court, live-testing their modern-indie-meets-’60s-blues with a wide-eyed exuberance that translated effortlessly into their 2019 self-released debut, Bryology.
Colored by the sound of Stratocasters jamming through reverb-cranked Fender amps, all backed by bouncy rhythms, Bryology marked a big step for the still-young quartet – but, true to The Moss’s nature, was still hard-coded with a DIY ethos. “We basically had no budget,” James remembers fondly. “We bought some nice mics and an interface and I ended up learning how to mix while we were recording.”
The follow-up, 2021’s Kentucky Derby, brought a more aspirational, blue-sky tilt to the foundation they’d laid on Bryology, expanding the group’s sonic arsenal while keeping the relatable lyrical style and sun-soaked sentiment at the forefront. “I’m really proud of how we’ve evolved as a band over time,” Addison Sharp says. “It feels like we’ve taken every different influence and mashed them all together to create something that feels really special.”
“Bryology seemed like a collection of separate songs we put together to make an album, whereas Kentucky Derby is a similar thought and story coming together to collectively make a more cohesive album,” adds Brierton Sharp says, noting the album’s tracks are sneakily arranged in pairs of two that seamlessly flow into one another. “Each song could be listened to on its own, or you could listen to them all and get a broader sense of our intention.”
No matter how listeners choose to interact with The Moss’s music, the band just hopes they feel something. It’s that kinetic relationship between band and audience that makes their live performances – including a pitch-perfect recent set for Audiotree – so compelling. “No matter what we do, we want to make sure the songs are fun to play live,” says Fowler. “We pride ourselves on being a band people want to see live.”
“There’s something special that happens when you get an immediate reaction to a song,” says James. “Whether it’s during a live show or even just a songwriting session, if there’s a reaction from people in the room, you know you’re on the right track.” XX
Show 8pm
GA tickets are standing room only, with very limited seating available first come, first served.
Ventura Music Hall Presents:
GODSPEED YOU! BLACK EMPEROR
Godspeed You! Black Emperor released a string of albums from 1997-2002 widely recognized as redefining what protest music can be, where longform instrumental chamber rock compositions of immense feeling and power serve as soundtracks to late capitalist alienation and resistance. The band’s first four releases—especially F#A#∞ (1997) and Lift Your Skinny Fists Like Antennas To Heaven (2000)—are variously regarded as classics of the era and genre. Godspeed’s legendary live performances, featuring multiple 16mm projectors beaming a collage of overlapping analog film loops and reels—along with the distinctive iconography, imagery and tactility of the band’s album artwork and physical LP packages— further defines the sui generis aesthetic substance, ethos and mythos of this group. GY!BE has issued two official band photos in its 25-year existence (the second, left, a 2010 recreation of the first from 1997) and has done a half-dozen collectively-answered written interviews over that same span. The band has never had a website or social media accounts. It has never made a video. Few rock bands in our 21st century have been as steadfast in trying to let the work speak for itself and maintaining simple rules about minimising participation in cultures of personality, exposure, access, commodification or co-optation.
Following a seven-year hiatus that began in 2003, Godspeed returned to the stage in December 2010 (curating the UK festival All Tomorrow’s Parties) and the band’s post-reunion period has now lasted over a decade, marked by hundreds of sold-out live shows and three additional albums, all of which have been met with high acclaim.
G_d’s Pee AT STATE’S END! – the band’s fourth post-reunion album (and eighth overall) – was released on April 2nd, 2021.
Show 8pm
GA tickets are standing room only, with very limited seating available first come, first served.
Ventura Music Hall Presents:
MICKEY DARLING
with JUST FRIENDS and REBOUNDER
world’s sexiest boyband