Star Slinger

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Above & Beyond

Tony McGuinness is living the dream as one-third of the UK group Above & Beyond. He has made a career for himself in music starting off as a guitarist in English indie band Sad Lovers & Giants, with whom he produced five albums. Later he moved on to work at Warner Music Group where he was a highly successful marketing director winning awards for artists like Madonna and Seal. Soon McGuinness found his place in the EDM spotlight.

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Matthew Welch

After a successful summer tour in 2011, Nikka Costa is back at it again. The soulful powerhouse will be making a stop in Los Angeles and, from what we hear, is preparing to put on one hell of a show. Collaborating with some of the industry's most talented musicians (Mark Ronson, Eric Clapton and Adam Lambert to name a few), the Motown-inspired artist has an impressive musical repertoire, to say the least.

With a career spanning 30 years, Costa not only knows what it takes to put on a great performance, but she also knows what it takes to make incredible music. Over the weekend we were lucky enough to catch up with Costa to chat about her latest EP, PRO★WHOA, and her show at the Luckman Fine Arts Complex this Saturday.

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Autumn De Wilde

See also: Our review of KROQ Weenie Roast y Fiesta

Since forming in 2002, the Silversun Pickups have spread their catchy indie/alt rock from Silver Lake across the globe. Today, their third full-length, Neck of the Woods, will be released via Dangerbird Records. Recorded in Topanga Canyon under the watchful eye of producer Jacknife Lee, the group mixed things up a bit, adding more electronica to their trademark distorted guitar sound.

We caught up with bassist Nikki Monninger ahead of their performance at the KROQ Weenie Roast and tonight's performance on Jimmy Kimmel Live to find out more about the new album, their plans for 2012 and whether or not they actually serve hot dogs at the Weenie Roast.

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Daniel Zetterstrom

When the Seattle sound exploded in the early '90s and went on to define a generation, Stone Gossard was one of the people most responsible for the sound. As the rhythm guitarist of Pearl Jam, Gossard wrote some of the band's biggest hits.

His other, lesser-known band, Brad, has done pretty well for themselves as well. In the 20 years since the release of their debut, Shame, the band has released five albums. Consisting of vocalist/pianist Shawn Smith, drummer Regan Hagar and bassist Keith Lowe, Brad has carved out a different niche than Pearl Jam and hasn't had to deal with the pressures of a gigantic band. Ahead of their stop tomorrow at the Troubadour in support of their latest release, United We Stand, Gossard gives us his thoughts on why Brad and his other band are similar, an update on Pearl Jam's latest album and whether or not he's supporting the Oklahoma City Thunder in their quest to capture an NBA championship.

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Matt Oliver/OC Weekly

See also: 

*Stagecoach Festival 2012: Top Five Performances

*Stagecoach Festival 2012 in Photos: The Good, The Bad and The Ugly 

Known for being the frontman of the chart-topping hard rock band Staind, Aaron Lewis is now showing his true colors as a country musician. Being named by Hit Parader as one of Heavy Metals Top 100 Vocalists, Lewis says, "country music is my childhood." 2011 proved to be a big year for the Massachusetts bad boy. He entered the Billboard Country Albums chart at #1 for his debut solo EP Town Line. His rebel song "Country Boy," on which he collaborated with country legends George Jones and Charlie Daniels, is nominated for an ACM Award this year for "Vocal Event Of The Year." The song was also nominated last year for two CMT Music Awards.

We sat down with the famed vocalist at Stagecoach this weekend.  

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Meranda Carter

See also:
*Our complete Coachella coverage
*Coachella: Let's Talk About Weed
*Coachella: The Best of Friday, April 20, 2012

Over the past 30 years, alternative Britpop rockers James have been one of the most underrated bands to come from Manchester. Having toured across the globe and played some of the biggest festivals in the world, frontman Tim Booth knows a thing or two about what makes a show great, which is why he loves Coachella. "Some places you play, you just aren't in the zone," Booth explained. "But not here. It's a great place to get going and play a terrific show."
Unlike Friday afternoon's show in the over 100-degree heat, James had a horrible experience playing at the final touring version of Lollapalooza. We caught up with Booth who gave us his reasons why Coachella kicks serious ass and why Lollapalooza sucked.More >>

Matt Oliver/OC Weekly

Asher Roth pouring a bottle of Hennessy at the Details @ Midnight after party

Creator of the infamous college party song, "I Love College", Asher Roth made an appearance at the Details Magazine Coachella after party presented by Hennessy last Friday night. He took the stage with his new single with Meek Mill "Party Girl" and "I Love College." Though there were no beer pong tables, keg stands or passed out girls lying around, Roth still brought his rage face. During his performance, he jumped into the crowd while pouring bottles of Hennessy in the mouths and cups of the exclusive, invite-only crowd.

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See also:
*Dr Dre, Snoop Dogg and Tupac's Hologram
*Top Five Dance Acts At the Sahara Tent
*Coachella: Five Signs You're An Aging Hipster
*Radiohead at Coachella: No Alarms and No Surprises

At 22, Swedish producer and DJ Tim Bergling, better known as Avicii, has done more in the electronic dance music world than most hope to accomplish in a lifetime. Bergling, who started tinkering with music at 18, says, "I always wanted to make music or find an outlet for creativity somewhere. I had dabbled with guitars and piano but was never particularly good at it." After a friend showed him a computer program "which allowed me to draw melodies like a piano I was hooked," he adds.

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