I was invited to a music conference called Sunset Sessions Rock! which is an event where radio people, record labels, music producers, artists, and basically anybody who has anything to do with music in some form is invited to come take part in discussion panels and watch performances by up and coming new bands.
This was the first year of the event and it was held in San Diego. I've never been further west than Minneapolis so it was a whole adventure for me. Travel was surprisingly easy and even the traffic in San Diego was not nearly as bad as I expected. There were almost 30 bands there but some of the ones that really jumped out at me were Redlight King (who you can hear on The X), Dead Sara (Flyleaf-esque but not a carbon copy), Drive A (pre-Dookie Green Day style punk), Sons of the Lawless (solid rock featuring Jake Busey on drums), Kopek (Irish rock trio), AWOLNATION (trippy prog-alternative), and One Less Reason (Saliva style adrenaline rock). There wasn't a single band who was "bad" but some that I wasn't a fan of the style for varying reasons. Another band that really caught my eye was GIVERS from Louisiana. They had a very energetic live show and a female ukulele/xylophone/drums/tamborine player who also sings (and yes, she played all of those in EACH song!).
It was also my first chance to meet up with our very own Full Metal Jackie and Mic Czech and Malcolm from Skratch 'n Sniff (who are all 3 from southern Cali). They all mentioned the emails and social network love from the Xaholics so keep that coming!
All in all, it was one of the most fun weekends I've ever had. I learned things, met lots of great people, made some great business contacts, some awesome friends, and finally got to see the Pacific Ocean with my own eyes. Can't wait for Sunset Sessions Rock 2012!
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