Mat Kearney, courtesy Michelle Baldwin. Singer-songwriter Mat Kearney was in San Francisco a couple weeks back, performing a private show at Great American Music Hall. The Oregon-born, Nashville-based artist used the opportunity to re-supply his stash of tea from Chinatown’s Red Blossom Tea Company, “the greatest tea I got…

ITZY performs at Oakland Arena in Oakland, Calif. on June 8, 2024. Photos: Chris Tuite. OAKLAND — More K-pop groups need to tour the U.S. with bands. The costs likely make that prohibitive to many, but a few acts with deep enough pockets have brought musicians with them over…

SHAED, courtesy Nicole Mago. A house can become too small for an expanding family. Twins Max and Spencer Ernst and Spencer’s wife, Chelsea Lee, had lived together in Washington, D.C. for several years as their band, SHAED, exploded with hit single “Trampoline” in 2018. Spinning Out SHAED BMG, June…

Zach Bryan performs at Oakland Coliseum in Oakland on May 31, 2024. Steve Carlson/STAFF. OAKLAND — Not even the I-880 chicken and beef special could stop Zach Bryan from playing to the biggest crowd of his life. While a semi crash on the freeway spilled raw meat all over…

Ed Sheeran performs with The Offspring during BottleRock Napa Valley at the Napa Valley Expo on May 26, 2024. Steve Carlson/STAFF. NAPA — Sunday BottleRock Napa Valley headliner Ed Sheeran made a surprise appearance earlier in the day during the performance by rock band The Offspring. The two played…

Actor Bradley Cooper, Stephen Curry and chef José Andrés appear at the Williams Sonoma Culinary Stage during BottleRock Napa Valley at the Napa Valley Expo on May 25, 2024. Matt Pang/STAFF. Golden State Warriors icon Stephen Curry met up with a couple other legends in their respective fields at…

Stevie Nicks performs during BottleRock Napa Valley at the Napa Valley Expo on May 24, 2024. Courtesy. All other photos: Sean Liming/STAFF. NAPA — After dropping from the BottleRock Napa Valley lineup in 2021 due to continued Covid concerns, Stevie Nicks was due to return. That finally came to…

Gina Miles, courtesy. Pinch-hitting for the Tuesday Tracks team, this week I spotlight a breezy folk rock tune by The National Parks, a surprising sun-drenched pop song by rapper Nashon, an orchestral dance explosion by Kishi Bashi, a psychedelic alt-rock gem by Man Man, an emotional piano-led ballad by…

Luke Combs performs at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif. on May 17, 2024. Sean Liming/STAFF. SANTA CLARA, Calif. — Most major artists—the ones who are successful enough to fill a stadium—choose to do so in order to share a stadium-sized artistic vision or concept. Country star Luke Combs…

Avett Brothers, “The Avett Brothers.” It’s not entirely a surprise for the Avett Brothers to look skyward to the heavens on their first long-player in five years. After all, Scott and Seth Avett are the grandsons of a preacher, and their 2020 EP, The Third Gleam, took on a…