!!! (Chk Chk Chk) is back in California for a few days, and they put on a banger of a show last night at Harlow's. I was hoping frontman Nic Offer would be wearing tiny little shorts and I was not disappointed. His pair on Thursday featured The Rolling Stones' “Some Girls” album artwork. Guitarist Mario Andreoni and the rest of the band sounded great. The skinny and lithe Offer thrust his pelvis all over the stage, and came down into the crowd a couple of times to get sweaty with the audience. He smelled awful, and freely admitted as much himself when he got back on stage. If you're wondering about the next !!! album, Offer said they were working on it and it'll be released next y

I can't remember the last time there was an all-day music festival in the city limits with some big-name acts, so I was excited to check out the Monster Energy Aftershock 2012 festival at Discovery Park on Sunday. The bill was a mix of "hard rock" bands on two stages. Performers included FallRise, Stepchild, Oleander, Beware of Darkness, Gemini Syndrome, Hell or Highwater, Escape the Fate, Hollywood Undead, Theory of a Deadman, Chevelle, Bush, Deftones, and Stone Temple Pilots. I was especially excited to see Deftones, Bush and STP, since they remind me of being in high school, and they play songs I recognize. Sacramento bands were well-represented (FallRise, Stepchild, Oleander, and De

  Read Casey Kirk's take on Wanderlust 2012 here.  Photos by Steven Chea.

The 3rd Annual Piñata Festival was celebrated at Southside Park on a hot Saturday. The heat however was not much of a deterrent as families came to enjoy a day full of art, kids events, music, and of course piñatas. Nothing says celebration or party more than a piñata. Over 30 large piñatas hung from trees and were displayed throughout the area in front of the amphitheater. Several ornate piñatas also lay on the ground. Visitors also had the opportunity to make their own as piñata building workshops were offered. A sugar skull making station was also part of the event along with various art activities. A couple of food trucks sold specialties for visitors to enjoy. The event also incl

Last Tuesday was Harvey Milk Day in California. Equality Action NOW (EAN), a local civil rights organization hosted their third annual Harvey Milk Day celebration at Mulvaney’s in Midtown Sacramento. The event was well attended. Tina Reynolds, co-founder of EAN opened the event by giving a brief history of the organization. Ken Pierce, EAN’s long-time Public Relations Director, Angela Luna, 5th grade teacher and author of “In Celebration of Harvey Milk”, and Diana Lutz, all former recipients of the Harvey Milk Award, introduced and presented this year’s recipients of the “Spirit of Harvey Milk” Awards. The “Spirit of Harvey Milk” award is given out to community members and activist who b

Images by Kelly Christofferson   New exclusive SacPress images by Barry Wisdom The Sacramento Theatre Company is ending its 2011-2012 season of “Mystery, Music, and Mayhem" with the return of a huge hit for STC 20-some odd years ago, the highly successful Howard Ashman-Alan Menken collaboration, “Little Shop of Horrors." It won’t be a mystery if this new STC production turns out to be its own smash hit. As for the music, Ashman’s lyrics and Menken’s music are equally infectious and the cast and band gave a wonderful performance. The two went on to do several successful and award-winning collaborations with Disney. There is lots of mayhem, mostly of the human-eating plant variety. Ashman

Ace of Spades hosted the tour finale of the Glow Sticks for Breakfast Tour Sunday night, featuring performances by Hyper Crush, Benzi, Silver Medallion and Sacramento band Playboy School. Fall Out Boy bassist Pete Wentz's DJ project with Spencer Peterson, Black Cards, was also scheduled to perform, but the duo had to pull out a few days before the show due to an ankle injury. Playboy School kicked things off in the early slot with a lukewarm set as people trickled in. Benzi livened the mood up with an electronic/Top 40 set that had a few guys raging, and a while later Silver Medallion came out and grabbed the mic, adding some organic energy to the stage as he ran around, whipping his lo

Critically acclaimed Nashville-based singer/songwriter Mat Kearney has added West Coast dates to his current tour and will make a stop in Sacramento on April 10 at the Colonial Theatre in Oak Park. Sounding at first like a solo effort from Coldplay's Chris Martin, Kearney's latest album "Young Love" is a punchy collection of playful, summer-ready tales of love, pain and redemption. Kearney's current tour has included several sold-out shows at places including the Mayan Theatre in Los Angeles, House of Blues in Boston and Ogden Theatre in Denver. The second single from the album, "Ships in the Night," was recently performed on "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" and is the featured music in

  Couture Press assembled a team of local and Bay area designers for an afternoon of music, fun and fashion on Sunday, March 18. The show, “Where Dreams Begin 2012,” also included several hair and makeup artists who displayed their magnificent talent in front of a packed house at The Station Bistro and Lounge in Roseville. The Couture Press event, showcasing spring 2012 collections, did a great job putting the show together. Dericka Porter, Couture Press CEO and President, welcomed guests to the event. Porter also introduced the musical duo of Rich and Crystal, who entertained at various intervals during the show. Crystal Marie walked the runway besides showcasing her vocal talents durin

Springtime is right around the corner and everyone is invited to take a break from Sacramento city-life to experience the awakening of nature. The Center for Land-Based Learning (CLBL) is hosting, "Spring Open House on the Farm", Sunday, April 1, 2012, from noon to 4:00pm. Springtime is a wonderful time to experience everything the Farm on Putah Creek - Center for Land-Based Learning's educational farm - has to offer you and your family. There are miles of walking trails along Putah Creek, a bountiful organic market garden, hedgerows in full bloom, and many diverse species of birds and wildlife. A sampling of the many hands-on activities includes hayrides, guided educational walks alon