You’re reading Day 3. Have you checked out Day 1 and Day 2 as well? I don’t know why, but Day 3 always seems to be the day all my friends attend BottleRock. This year was no exception. Two friends came up from the South Bay, not wanting to miss a moment. While I waited [&hellip
You’re reading this year’s Day 2. Don’t forget to check out Day 1 too! Day 2 got a bit of a late start, but once inside, I wasted no time at all stopping by Lagunitas for a cold Aunt Sally, which is easily my favorite beer they make, since it’s the least hop-driven! I went [&hellip
Before I get into all the details of the gloriousness that was this year’s BottleRock Napa Valley, please allow me a moment, not just to digress but to explain why this festival is so important to me. I was born in Napa. As many Napa kids do, I moved away in my early 20s seeking [&hellip
First things first, I’ll come clean right off the top: I was laaaaate to the game when it came to Gavin DeGraw. It’s not that he flew under my radar or I didn’t hear much about him; it’s much worse than all that. He was one of those artists who all my friends were obsessed [&hellip
When an artist requests that no one in a tiny, intimate venue like the Uptown Theatre be allowed to use technology of any kind (cameras, smartphones, etc), it makes sense. It means that everyone will be paying attention to the music they’re sharing with you, and there are no rude distractions. True, it makes my [&hellip
When rumors about the first ever BottleRock Napa festival began to circulate, they were impressive: early flyers listed Dave Matthews Band and Pearl Jam as headliners (neither was ever confirmed). Still, the festival had the attention of the Napa Valley and surrounding music lovers long ago. Once the final lineup had been released and tickets [&hellip
Once upon a time, teenagers in Napa (myself included, back in the 90s) used to complain that there was “nothing to do here.” These days, while I’m sure kids get bored no matter where they live, we certainly have more to do and far less to complain about in this fair valley. And how better [&hellip
Forgive the obvious: I mean it when I say that for some of us, it really has been a while since we’ve heard much from Aaron Lewis. For me, for example: I didn’t know he’d been doing anything other than rocking with band Staind until I saw that he was coming to town. Having loved [&hellip
It didn’t take long for my friend Kerri (my date for this particular evening) to comment on M. Ward’s persona when his show got underway at the Uptown last month: “he’s a little cutie pie!” That he is, and so much more. For those who may not yet be familiar with Mr. Ward’s tunes, he’s [&hellip
