not so newsy news bits...

I haven't posted newsy bits in a while...I figure you're all up to date via Twitter and Facebook, right? Well, just in case you're not, have your head in the sand, or your work has blocked every social media site, Google, and blog except for sd:dialedin, here are some things you might've missed in the past few weeks. Too bad the really good juicy stuff I have to keep to myself. I hate secrets.

1. Del Mar Racetrack released their concert schedule for the summer. You can always refer to the Del Mar Scene website

7/23: Pinback
7/30: Common Sense
8/6: The B-52s
8/13: The Soft Pack
8/14: Jimmy Cliff & Matisyahu *
8/20: Ozomatli
8/21: Weezer *
8/27: Super Diamond
8/28: Craft Microbrew Festival & Local Music Showcase **
9/3: The English Beat
9/4: ZZ Top *

-This year the Four O'Clock Friday Concerts will be held at the Seaside Stage next to the Seaside Terrace Cabana.
* Saturday Concerts are held at the Infield Stage.
** Local Music Showcase is held in the Infield Pavilion Stage.

The concert is free with track admission. Following the last race, concert prices are $20. Make sure you get there before the last post to save yourself some cash. Concert starts after the races.

2. It's already old news, but the 91X Morning Show got the axe. You can read Mat's blog about it here. Best of luck to him in any future endeavors. At least now I'll probably get to see him at more shows since he doesn't have to wake up at 4 am.

3. There will be no Street Scene this year. Really?? Didn't we all know this last year? Regardless, several news outlets felt obligated to resurrect the issue that kinda feels like kicking a dead horse. So just to reiterate, no Street Scene in 2010.

4. If you missed it, the U-T/SignOnSanDiego put together a great list of free summer concerts. Save it to your bookmarks. Sara also has a list that includes summer festivals.

5. A few weeks ago I wrote about Seth Combs leaving CityBeat. I didn't follow up, but Peter Holslin was named the new music editor and I believe this week's issue is his first at the helm. The online version was being a little wonky, but they reported on the juicy tidbit that Radio Room is being sold to Scot Blair, owner of Small Bar and Hamilton's. All the info is here, but that should certainly make for a helluva beer crawl between Hamilton's, Bluefoot, Toronado, Ritual, Small Bar, Soda Bar, Blind Lady, and now whatever the Radio Room is to become.

6. Finally, 944 Magazine's music issue is coming out and guess what site was named the number one music blog in San Diego? Kinda cool. Check it out here.

Things have certainly been chaotic lately, so if you're missing any features, or there's specific content you'd like to see, please feel free to comment. I have a backlog of photos and videos that I haven't and probably won't post, but if there's something you know I caught that you want to see, just ask. I'll try and get Hockey and Alpha Rev videos up soon, as well as photos from OK Go, Shout Out Louds, et. al.

Remember you can always follow me on twitter @sddialedin, fan or friend me at Facebook, or check out my contributions at SoundDiego. If you're interested in advertising on this site or hiring me for work (open to just about anything these days), shoot me an email at sddialedin at gmail.

Switchfoot Bro-Am at Moonlight Beach, Encinitas 06/27/2009

Last Saturday, Switchfoot put on their 5th annual Bro-Am surf-contest and music festival benefiting the San Diego charity Stand Up for Kids (http://www.standupforkids.org/) which is a non-profit organization for homeless at risk youth. The weather was perfect for a day at the beach and plenty of people showed up. Jon Foreman (lead singer of switchfoot) even participated in a surf-joust-competition with Mat Diablo and Carlos from the 91X Morning Show. All proceeds from the event including auctions, raffle tickets, and merch, all went 100% to stand up for kids. The coolest non-music item was local balance masters San Diego Slacklining and their slack-lines that they set up to allow people try their balance and skill on the lines.

The musical stage was powered fully by solar power and had locals Tristan Prettyman and Timmy Curran as well as The New Archaic, The Howls, Jane Carrey Band, and Indivision. As in years past, Switchfoot headlined the afternoon with a fun set. It is fun beach music days like this that remind us that we live in a pretty awesome city. Summer is definitely here. Get out there and enjoy it!

A rundown of my last few days

I guess I haven't really posted since the Beto Cuevas show so here's a quick rundown on how the last few nights have been for me.

Thursday, my friend Kristian and I went to the Pearl Hotel in Point Loma for a "Yelp Elite" party. Thanks to Ruggy for the invite. I love the hotel though it's been a while since I stopped by(you can read about the last time I was there here. Booze was provided by Effen Vodka (yay!) and there were some delicious tray passed appetizers. When we got there, we went straight for a cabana- I think a lot of people didn't know they were out by the pool and confined themselves to the bar- and it was great to hang out with other friends...Daye, Aaron, etc.

From there, we went to TNT where Absolut Grapefruit was the sponsor. Excellent. I liked F.U.Z.Z. though I didn't expect to because any band described as "funk" usually makes me turn and run. Then Ex-Friends played and the patio was more crowded. I love TNT and really look forward to some of the summer shows, when it's warm out, the days longer, and more people show up.

I said my goodbyes to Kristian and his friends and made my way to Chaser's, though by the time I arrived, I missed Di Nigunim, and ended up just sitting at the bar with Gene. It was a full on Punkboard night there. Sandra showed up and we ended up at my house after while she waited for Taxi Rob to come get her.

Friday night was a one stop night for me. I met James at the bar so we were on the bar side while Witt played but we got a booth when the Henry Clay People and Swim Party played. There weren't a lot of people at the bar, maybe everyone was at "The Fest" at the Casbah, but those of us who were there got a great show. The Henry Clay people are from LA and their original stuff is great, but I was especially taken by their cover of The Replacements' "Can't Hardly Wait" and they did a fun version of Operation Ivy's "Don't Know Nothin'" and I was finally able to pick up their CDs. Then of course Swim Party rocked our socks off, and I was glad there was an intimate crowd of good friends there for what was their last show in a while since Eric is getting married soon, and Petro's got to take some time to get ready for his late summer wedding.

Saturday was a lazy day punctuated by dinner at Lefty's. I decided to take a nap before heading to the Casbah, but when the time came, I never made it to the Casbah. I was tired and needed the rest, but ended up waking up in the middle of the night and rediscovered my new best friend, Hulu.

Hulu is a site that hosts tons of tv shows and movies. Watching is free if you don't mind a few commercials. I watched half of the third season of It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia, then shut down and went back to dreamland. Now I'm home and scratched my plans for that Vegan BBQ to hang at home. I think James and I are going to Habitat House in a little while but until then, I'm signing off. If I don't sign back on, don't forget to check out 91X in the morning. Mat Diablo makes his morning show debut. He's a great guy and has shared some of his plans for the show and I think people who enjoy some talk and music will be pleased. I hope.