Mercury, the band, opens for The Backseat Lovers at The Observatory, a small venue in Santa Ana, Calif., March 9. First-year Joseph Bowman said he was especially impressed with this opener.
Attending a school in Southern California provides opportunities to join the concert scene. From Los Angeles to San Diego, there are many options for anyone and everyone.
Students share their experiences and suggestions about where to go and who to see for the best concert experience.
First-year Joseph Bowman said while he has only been to a few concerts in LA, he can already see the potential in the local concert scene.
“I think the LA concert scene is better than most other areas in the U.S.,” Bowman said. “Being from Ohio, I’ve been to concerts in a couple of other states in the Midwest, and it truly doesn’t compare to here.”
An honorable mention is the Troubadour. First-year Holley Hargraves saw Peach Pit in concert there March 18, and said it was an incredible venue. However, Hargraves said one of their favorite venues is The Fonda Theatre in LA because of it’s architecture and paintings.
“I think little details like it having cool architecture is awesome because there’s a lot of time to look around while waiting for the next performer, especially if there are several openers,” Hargraves said.
Junior Lauren Chivers said The Fonda and The Observatory are the best concert venues to visit. At The Fonda, Chivers said she had her best concert experience — the venue, the artist and the performance contributed to this memorable experience.
“Best concert experience overall was when I saw Beabadobee with my best friend a few months back at The Fonda,” Chivers said. “Her opener, BLACKSTARKIDS, was a great group I had never heard of, and Beabadobee was a great performer who brought a bunch of her friends on stage at the end.”
A love for smaller venues seems to be a standard quality Bowman looks for when scouting the scene. Bowman said he hasn’t been able to visit many concerts nearby yet but that’s something he likes in a venue.
“I’m a huge fan of smaller venues because I feel like it creates a more intimate experience between the artist and the fan,” Bowman said.
Hargraves said a venue to put on one’s list is The Irenic in San Diego, Calif. Her best concert experience took place seeing Summer Salt at this venue. While San Diego isn’t the closest venue for Pepperdine students, Holley emphasized this venue is worth visiting.
“[The Irenic]’s an old church turned concert venue, and I’ve been to so many [concerts] there,” Hargraves said. “It’s super cute, and everyone lines up outside, and I’ve made lots of buddies there.”
While Hargraves loves The Irenic, she said her favorite concert experience was when she saw Briston Maroney at The Troubadour.
“I loved Briston Maroney because he had great stage presence and everyone just had a great time dancing and singing along,” Hargraves said. “There were also sunflowers everywhere, and I made so many concert buddies. He also spoke with the crowd a lot and cracked jokes.”
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Email Meghan Young: meghan.young@pepperdine.edu
