Allison Montroy
amontroy@mustangdaily.net
On one hand, the twangy, confessional rock songs of an indie-rock mainstay. On the other, four confessed bowl-packers’ beach-ready odes to all things chill.
For those interested in any of the above shenanigans, two upcoming San Luis Obispo performances should be of note.
The Expendables to perform back-to-back shows at SLO Brew
Members of The Expendables, a laid-back, reggae-rock group from Santa Cruz, Calif., are bringing chill vibes and self-termed “California reggae” to SLO Brewing Co. Thursday and Friday.
The Expendables vocalist and guitarist Geoff Weers said the band will be playing a lot of its popular songs, such as “Bowl for Two,” “Down Down Down” and “Sacrifice,” but will also be trying out a number of new tunes.
“The crowd always likes ‘Bowl for Two,’ especially in SLO town, when it’s extra smokey in the room,” Weers said. “But what always makes me excited is playing the new material.”
The group, which hopes to release a new album “as early as possible” in 2014, has been playing in San Luis Obispo at least twice a year for the past decade, Weers said.
“It feels like a hundred times,” Weer said. “SLO was one of the first towns we played in outside of Santa Cruz.”
Boo Boo Records manager Frank Hayes said because The Expendables shows in San Luis Obispo tend to sell out, the band likes to play two shows when it performs here.
“Every time they come to town they usually sell out, so they’ve done this thing where they do two back-to-back shows,” Hayes said. “Plus, you know, who wouldn’t want to stay in San Luis Obispo two extra nights?”
Weer echoed Hayes’ sentiment.
“SLO Brew is super fun and we always have a good time, so why not do two shows,” he said.
Hayes said this week’s shows are not currently sold out, but will both be “a pretty full house.”
Tickets are on sale for $23 at Boo Boo Records. The shows start at 7 p.m. on Thursday and 7:30 p.m. on Friday.
Modest Mouse takes a Coachella break for sold-out concert in SLO
Missed Modest Mouse at Coachella this past weekend?
The band will be taking a break from the desert to perform a sold-out show tonight at the Alex Madonna Expo Center in San Luis Obispo before heading back down to Indio for Coachella Weekend Two.
Modest Mouse has been on graduate student Collin MacGregor’s playlist since he was in high school, but tonight will be his first time seeing the band perform live.
“I’m super stoked,” he said. “And just excited to see them live and up close.”
MacGregor said he hopes to hear Modest Mouse play its 2005 Grammy-nominated single, “Float On.”
“I really like their style of music, there’s not many groups out there like them,” MacGregor said.
Tickets for the show sold out within five days, Hayes said.
After the Postal Service concert sold out in less than a day, Hayes said the store wanted to “take more caution, just so if it sold out really fast we had some tickets in stock.”
Boo Boo Records stocked up on more Modest Mouse tickets than the store usually acquires for similar shows.
“It was just kind of a way to take care of the local kids,” Hayes said. “For people who live in the area to not be denied a good show.”
Doors open at 7 p.m.