Editor's Note: Having spent hours perusing the Heard Mentality archives for a Concert Year in Review feature running in the print issue that streets Friday, I compiled a Top 10 list of the coolest shows to come through Orange County in 2009. Here's No. 1. I caught No Doubt perform in Tampa, Fla., in June but totally would've rather witnessed these hot homecoming dates in Irvine.  

Andrew Youssef

No Doubt at Verizon Wireless Amphitheater, Irvine, August 1

There were huge expectations for the first of No Doubt's four sold-out homecoming shows but the beloved Orange County band rose to the occasion--and then some. Feeding off tremendous crowd energy, No Doubt rocked hits from their nearly two decade-long career, performing with the zeal of an act truly grateful for the global success that started right here. Despite plenty of on-stage fun and audience interaction, the focus remained on the music, which sounded as fresh and ebullient as it did when the band launched an OC ska-punk revolution with their 1995 disc Tragic Kingdom.

Click to read entire review.

Click to read earlier Top 10 Orange County Concerts of 2009 entries.

Click for Top 10 Orange County Concerts 2009 slideshow. 

Editor's Note: Having spent hours perusing the Heard Mentality archives for a Concert Year in Review feature running in the print issue that streets Friday, I compiled a Top 10 list of the coolest shows to come through Orange County in 2009. Here's No. 2, the first major concert I covered after landing here.

Andrew Youssef

Editor's Note: Having spent hours perusing the Heard Mentality archives for a Concert Year in Review feature running in the print issue that streets Jan. 1, I compiled a Top 10 list of the coolest shows to come through Orange County in 2009. I'm posting one per day for the rest of the year.

​

Jeff Tweedy replaced his typical frown and snark with smiles, cajoled fans to sing along and even fell to the floor while playing his guitar amongst flashing cameras, lit iPhones and the outstretched arms of overjoyed attendees. Although Wilco has always been known for their solid shows, the band meshed particularly well with a diverse setlist that spanned their acclaimed 15-year career.

Click to read entire review.

Editor's Note: Having spent hours perusing the Heard Mentality archives for a Concert Year in Review feature running in the print issue that streets Jan. 1, I compiled a Top 10 list of the coolest shows to come through Orange County in 2009. I'm posting one per day for the rest of the year.

Jay-Z worked the crowd masterfully, thrusting his mic into the darkness so attendees could finish his lyrics, capping flows a capella, and splitting each side of the arena into a roof-rattling shouting competition. After a solid hour of hits, Jay-Z crushed with a final run of classics that included "Hard Knock Life," "Money Ain't a Thang", "Can I Get a...." and a pulverizing "99 Problems."

Click to read entire review.

Click to read earlier Top 10 Orange County Concerts of 2009 entries. 

Editor's Note: Having spent hours perusing the Heard Mentality archives for a Concert Year in Review feature running in the print issue that streets Jan. 1, I compiled a Top 10 list of the coolest shows to come through Orange County in 2009. I'm posting one per day for the rest of the year. 

Andrew Youssef

Emo pioneers Sunny Day Real Estate immediately proved impressive with their renewed musical chemistry. Singer-guitarist Jeremy Enigk slashed out the power chords, and lead guitarist Dan Hoerner interweaved grabby riffs while bassist Nate Mendel and drummer William Goldsmith interlocked as a gnat's-ass-tight rhythm section.

Click to read entire review.

Click to read earlier Top 10 Orange County Concerts of 2009 entries.

Editor's Note: Having spent hours perusing the Heard Mentality archives for a Concert Year in Review feature running in the print issue that streets Jan. 1, I compiled a Top 10 list of the coolest shows to come through Orange County in 2009. I'm posting one per day for the rest of the year. 

Andrew Youssef

Thrice live at House of Blues Anaheim

Thrice hit the stage blazing with a firestorm of searing guitar chords on "Silhouete." "All The World is Mad" is a textbook example of the Orange County band's fierce fusion of metal, hardcore and smart sense of melody. The apocalyptic hymn "Come All You Weary" and sweltering "The Earth Will Shake" were fitting encores that left the sold-out crowd craving more.

Click to read entire review.

Click to read earlier Top 10 Orange County Concerts of 2009 entries.

Editor's Note: Having spent many hours perusing the Heard Mentality archives for a Concert Year in Review feature running in the print issue that streets Jan. 1, I compiled a Top 10 list of the coolest shows to come through Orange County in 2009. I'm posting one per day for the rest of the year.  

Andrew Youssef

Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails

Rather than close with the dark and depressing "Hurt," Nine Inch Nails issued a killer "Head Like a Hole," which became a massive sing along during the anthemic chorus. Savvy move by Trent Reznor, the reformed drug abuser who nowadays appears as disciplined as all those "pigs" and subservient "fuckers" he screams about. Jane's Addiction brought jammy, earnest hard-rock and the mega-watt star power of maniacal Perry Farrell.

Click to read entire review.

Click to read earlier Top 10 Orange County Concerts of 2009 entries.

Editor's Note: Having spent days perusing the Heard Mentality archives for a Concert Year in Review feature running in the print issue that streets Jan. 1, I compiled a Top 10 list of the coolest shows to come through Orange County in 2009. I'm posting one per day for the rest of the year.

​Rufus Wainwright treated the audience to a career-spanning set peppered with longtime fan faves like "April Fools," "California," and his soaring rendition of Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah." It was self-indulgent, wonderful and dramatic--after all, it was Rufus Wainwright. His voice rang out into the quiet venue, thrilling, rich, highly emotive.

Click to read entire review.

Click to read earlier Top 10 Orange County Concerts of 2009 entries.

Editor's Note: Having spent the better part of the past couple days perusing the Heard Mentality archives for a Concert Year in Review feature running in the print issue that streets Jan. 1, I've come up with a list of the coolest shows to come through Orange County in 2009. I'll post one per day for the rest of the year. 

​

Almost 10 years to the day, Rx Bandits frontman Matt Embree remembered Chain Reaction being the first venue they ever sold out. And at the close of a crazy weekend with two consecutive capacity-filled gigs, it seems that things have only improved for the local ska-punk band with the national following.

Click to read entire review.

Click to continue reading Top 10 Orange County Concerts of 2009.

Click for slideshow.