In an effort to draw younger audiences, the Orange County Performing Artscenter launched its first indie-rock music series, “Off Center,” on Thursday night, with Peter Bjorn and John and Sea Wolf performing at the still somewhat-hidden gem of a new venue, Samueli Theater.

Hooking up with Indie 103 FM as a promotional partner for this series of monthly events, is, I think, a brilliant move by the Artscenter. Consider the stellar, must-see lineup of upcoming “Off Center” concerts: Delta Spirit (Feb. 28, $20-$40), Cold War Kids (March 27, $25-$40) and Matt Costa (April 24, $20-$40).

And the classy Samueli is a perfect venue for this series, providing an intimate, warm, almost-lounge feel balanced with plenty of space to walk around - a nice change from the cold, sometimes-grungy industrial spaces that typically host “indie” acts.

Orange County Register pop critic Ben Wener dug the venue and the show, too. Check out his complete review here.

Post from: SqueezeOC Staff Blog

The Raveonettes  stop by Detroit Bar on Sunday, March 2. The Danish duo of Sune Rose Wanger and Sharin Foo have a vintage, noir look and sound and play music that’s often foggy, dream-like, yet charming.

Tickets for both shows are available now, $12 for IMA Robot, $13 for The Ravonettes. Tickets can be purchased at the venue or by calling 1-800-594-TIXX (8499) or online at detroitbar.com.

In the meantime…check out Detroit Bar’s Monday Night Resident bands, going on every Monday night at 9 p.m. with no cover. January’s Resident band is Sparrow Love Crew, a hip-hop group outta Long Beach and February brings We Barbarians, an indie rock band from Long Beach.

- KELLI SKYE

Post from: SqueezeOC Staff Blog

Shakes will only be $1.60 (all flavors available); an original Ruby Burger will only be $2.15.

The celebration will also include live music by the Stompy Jones Band and a swing dancing demonstration from 4-7 p.m. The first 100 people to stop by the diner on Dec. 7 will receive a Ruby’s Diner 25th Anniversary commemorative pin.

The specially priced menu will be served from 7 a.m.-10 p.m. and take out will be available from 11 a.m.-10 p.m.

- KELLI SKYE

Post from: SqueezeOC Staff Blog

So the local economy is supposedly tanking, companies are downsizing … and yet, life is GOOD when you can spend an afternoon sipping wine and tasting great cheeses of all shapes, textures, flavors and colors.

On Sunday, I checked out the final day of the first annual American Cheesemaker Awards gathering, a literal nirvana for foodies at the Fairmont Hotel in Newport Beach.

Thursday through Sunday, Nov. 15-18, the epicurean event brought together top local and national chefs, taste experts and purveyors, and 25 cheesemakers from California, Idaho, Indiana, New York, Oregon, Utah, Vermont, Washington and Wisconsin showing off their excellent artisanal cheeses.

There was an official judging and awards dinner, and a series of “Cheese Academy” classes, open to the public, where the best of Orange County’s taste experts, like Napa Rose executive chef Andrew Sutton, Sapphire Pantry cheese monger Starr Cornwall and The Island Hotel’s executive chef Bill Bracken, offered tips and lessons on cooking with cheese and pairing it with other foods and wine.

But the ultimate reason to be there was to TASTE some 100 of these amazing cheeses. What an incredible feeling to pick up a wine glass, a small plate and napkin, and then walk into a huge tent to see table after table of cheddar, mozzarella, goat cheese, plus perfect pairing goodies from Bristol Farms’ bounty, from fig spread to olives to truffle butter (sinfully indulgent!).

My top discoveries:
1. Fiscalini Farmstead cheese from Modesto: specifically, the nutty, buttery, perfect San Joaquin Gold, which was “intended to be a fontina but developed into a unique cheese” as their literature put it; and the Vintage Bandaged Cheddar, a classic English style, aged 18 months for a lovely sharp taste that’s smooth on the finish.
I was especially enamored of cheesemaker Mariano Gonzalez, who took me over to a larger display of the bandage-wrapped cheddar and proudly explained that every day for two months, he turns the wrapped cheese upside down to stabilize the moisture and promote even growth of mold to create the rind underneath the cloth. “This is my baby,” Mariano said with a smile.
The “baby” actually loses weight as it ages and firms up, dropping from 60 pounds to about 55 pounds by the end of the 18 months.
Both cheeses won American Cheesemaker Awards, the San Joaquin Gold for “Best Hard Cow’s Milk Cheese,” the Vintage Bandaged for “Best Firm Cow’s Milk Cheese.”

2. Beecher’s cheese (pictured in the lead photo) is handmade at Pike Place Market in Seattle, one of my favorite places. Beecher’s signature Flagship (billed as “Wine’s best friend”) won the “Best Semi Hard Cow’s Milk Cheese” award. It’s hearty, nutty and would taste great in an omelette or simply with some crusty bread.

3. The Aged Cardona and Cocoa Cardona (aged and rubbed with that rich dark powder), goat cheeses from 105-year-old Carr Valley Cheese in Wisconsin. These are firmer cheeses, aged to taste closer to cheddar than the fresh Chevre usually associated with goat’s milk.

4. Grill cheese directly on a non-stick skillet for a mouth-watering treat — especially if it’s the creamy, mild but flavorful Jersey cow cheddar from the Ballard Family’s Idaho dairy. Steve Ballard showed us how simple it is, and Stacie served up the grilled pieces dipped in lemon, balsamic vinegar and other tasteful accompaniments.

The best news: you can find all of the above cheeses at Bristol Farms (in fact, apparently Carr Valley and Ballard inked deals with the gourmet grocery during the event).

And learning that there are domestic cheesemakers that can compete with the Europeans made me proud to be an American.

With Azmin Ghahreman, the enthusiastic, brilliant chef-owner of Sapphire Laguna & Pantry leading this cheese fest as event chairman, I knew the quality would be nothing but top-notch. But it was even better than expected, and many of the cheesemakers confirmed this, saying they didn’t know what to expect and ultimately were impressed with the attention to detail and quality of participants and crowd.

I’d say the only thing that verged on “cheesy” in its negative connotation were these cheese carvings:

… though, there definitely is some impressive craftsmanship, especially in the turkey!

For more on the American Cheesemaker Awards, including a full list of winners, go to the event web site.

For more on cheese and the best local cheese shops, check out this Party Gal column.

For the Orange County Register’s Monday news story on the event, click here.

Post from: SqueezeOC Staff Blog

Night one is more rockin’ with: Linkin Park, Angels & Airwaves, Avenged Sevefold, Bad Religion, Serj Tankian, Rise Against and Paramore.

The KROQ “Almost Acoustic Christmas” is on Saturday, Dec. 8 and Sunday, Dec. 9 at the Gibson Amphitheater in Los Angeles.

More ticket info to come…

Post from: SqueezeOC Staff Blog

The show will be held at the Gibson Amphitheater on Saturday, December 8.

Night two, along with ticket sale information, will be announced soon.

For more information, visit the KROQ website.

Post from: SqueezeOC Staff Blog

This year’s Music for a Cure benefit event brought together good music, a good cause, good hearts, plus beautiful people, places and things.

“The Heart of Rock ‘n’ Roll” party Friday night, Nov. 2, featured a concert by Sugar Ray and Smashmouth; artfully tasteful food and cocktails; a silent and a live auction, all at the gorgeous, intimate Samueli Theatre at the Orange County Performing Arts Center in Costa Mesa. All the event proceeds go to Music for a Cure, the heart-warming charity started by Sugar Ray bassist Murphy Karges and his wife, Julie, to bring music into the lives of sick and financially needy children.

The Kargeses have done everything from bringing performers to hospitalized kids to providing instruments and music lessons to underprivileged children. And on Friday night, the Kargeses presented a $1 million check to Children’s Hospital of Orange County to endow a music therapy program there.

Last year, this event was held at the gorgeous Laguna Beach hillside home of Charlie and Brandi Hawkins, where a very rare rainstorm literally whipped the canopy off the backyard “stage” where Sugar Ray had just started playing and sent cold, wet guests — most laughing, some yelping — into the house. That led to some great mingling with strong drinks around a fireplace and eventually drew Sugar Ray and Smashmouth out with a couple of guitars for a fantastic, one-of-a-kind singalong session.

This year’s event was a tad more formal and sophisticated, but not overly so. There was still a cozy, house party vibe, with the beautifully dressed guests (lots of perfectly coiffed women in clingy, cleavage-bearing gowns) mingling in a familar, friendly way.

There’s a long list of local businesses and individuals (that I don’t have space to detail here but include the Orange County Register, Patina Restaurant Group and Saks Fifth Avenue) who generously supported this event by providing money, auction items, food and other support services.

As a result, there were lots of cool things to bid on both in the silent auction (guitars signed by Sugar Ray and Social D; a gorgeous, fully stocked golf bag; some cool custom Nirve cruiser bikes) and in the live auction (The Lakers Luxury Suite went for about 4Gs; “The Ultimate Race Experience” - a day in a Roush Mustang with an autographed Dale Jarret race suit thrown in - went for a bit more than that).

Sugar Ray played a great, fun set (including “Every Morning,” “Someday”) that had most everyone on the dance floor. Even the VIPs stood and boogied at their special tables on an upper landing: I actually caught sight of some Orange County Register execs shakin’ it! Sugar Ray pals Smashmouth followed with an energetic set to close the evening.

For lots more party pics, click here.

For a video clip, click here.

I continue to be impressed by Sugar Ray not just as a good band, but as a group of good-hearted, sincerely nice people. Besides Murphy and Julie Karges, who are always warm and charming and obviously generous, drummer Stan Frazier and his wife, Jennifer, (at right in the picture below, with friend Jennifer Davis of the Orange County Register) are likewise always warmly welcoming and thoughtful. After Sugar Ray’s set, Stan happened to see me standing near one of the humungous speakers and came over to say “hi” and express concern about my ear drums.

Most of the band still lives in Orange County and are devoted to local communities. These grounded guys, and their lovely wives, prove you don’t have to be a sloppy, selfish, immature celebrity like so many we’ve been hearing about in the news lately.

Post from: SqueezeOC Staff Blog

The press release is really overly hyped, to the point where one can’t help but laugh out loud.

The highlight of the release are the supposed critic comments such as the one from the Los Angeles Times that comments that Tigarah sounds like “Gwen Stefani, Anglo-Sri Lankan rapper M.I.A., Hellos Kitty and crunk stalwart Lil’ Jon…”

Tigarah will be performing at the Avalon Hollywood (1735 N. Vine Street, Los Angeles) this Sunday, Nov. 4 at 10 p.m. with Peaches and Ton Loc as part of URB Magazine’s 150th Issue Celebration.

Here’s just a little taste of the rappin’ Japanese diva with her video “Japanese Queen.”

Click here to view the embedded video.

- KELLI SKYE

Post from: SqueezeOC Staff Blog

We’re letting YOU decide this year’s Best and Worst Halloween candy.

Vote within the categories below or add your own to the list.

The results will appear in the Life, Etc. section of the Orange County Register on Monday, Oct. 29 and online at www.squeezeoc.com.

Post from: SqueezeOC Staff Blog

Sharon is even auctioning off some designer dresses, jewelry and miscellaneous dinnerware. Following a nasty ATV accident - it’s no wonder that they are giving up a slew of motor sport items including dirt bikes, and four-wheelers. They’re even offering up a BATHTUB - if you can’t be a bat-head biting rockstar, you might as bathe like one!

A public exhibition will be held on Monday, Nov. 26-Thursday, Nov. 29 from 10 a.m.-6 p.m. The live and online auction will take place on Friday, Nov. 30 in two sessions, one at 10 a.m. and another at 2 p.m. at The Gibson Guitar Showroom, 9350 Civic Center Drive, Beverly Hills.

Interactive bidding will be available on juliensauctions.com.

Proceeds from the auction will benefit the Sharon Osbourne Colon Cancer Foundation which provides at-home help, childcare, transportation, access to support groups and patient care services offered within Cedars-Sinai Medical Center.

- KELLI SKYE

Post from: SqueezeOC Staff Blog