Summerland 2015

Featuring Fuel, Everclear, The Toadies and American Hi-Fi

Fuel formed in 1993 while playing the club circuit in and around Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. The band signed to Sony Records and in 1998 released their critically lauded, debut album Sunburn with the massive hit single “Shimmer”. Their second album Something Like Human took the band to a new level of stardom, hitting multi-platinum status driven by the singles “Innocent” and “Hemorrhage”, which remained at #1 for ten weeks. In 2003 Fuel released their third record Natural Selection, and found success at radio again with the hit song “Falls On Me”.

At that point the band had sold over 3.5 million records in the U.S alone, and had scored a trio of releases with top five singles, but unhappy with the direction and lack of unity inside the band, Brett Scallions amicably parted ways with Fuel in 2004.

The new decade, some life lessons, and 8 years away from the band he helped create and always loved, gave Brett a new desire to re-launch Fuel. Armed with guitarist Andy Andersson, drummer Shannon Boone, and Shinedown bassist Brad Stewart, the new lineup took to the road to reignite “Fuelies”, as their loyal fans are known.

In 2014 Fuel released Puppet Strings. Catapulted by the first single, the driving, hypnotic “Soul To Preach To”, the album entered the Billboard rock charts at #1.

As familiar as the sound of a jet engine and as visceral as a ride on a speeding motorcycle, Everclear is heavier, darker and more all-to-the-wall than ever before… And frontman Art Alexakis has never been happier.

Bombastic, hard-driving, generation-spanning rock n’ roll with instantly memorable, sharp-as-hell hooks propel Everclear’s new studio album, Black Is The New Black. Muscular but melodic, this is the sound of a band driven and united by singular, intense purpose. At an average of three-minutes each, the songs rip forward with palpable swagger, supercharged by a mix of autobiographical exorcism and narrative storytelling, from the gut and throat of Everclear’s singer, guitarist, cofounder and songwriter.

Everclear’s ninth studio album pummels from the get-go, with “Sugar Noise.” It’s an album opener with the same immediacy, and the same immersive feeling, of Rolling Stones “Rocks Off” or Pixies’ “Debaser.”

“This is not an upbeat Everclear record. It’s pretty dark, lyrically and musically,” the band’s singer/guitarist explains. “When I would sit down with the guitar and start coming up with ideas, it was pushing toward a darker place. Which is kind of bizarre because right now things are really good! I feel safe enough to go to the dark places. And trust me, there’s plenty of dark places in me. I’ve never had a shortage of that.”

It’s there in the “Heroin Girl,” from the band’s platinum commercial breakthrough, Sparkle and Fade. The double platinum So Much for the Afterglow produced enduring radio staples like “I Will Buy You A New Life” and “Father of Mine,” as ubiquitous on the radio now as then.

It’s hard to imagine a singer digging deeper or offering up more vulnerability than on “You,” another Black Is The New Black song that’s quintessential Everclear: a juxtaposition of extremely personal sensitivities with massive riffs and a rhythm that hammers away. Two decades into a storied career with zero signs of slowing down, Alexakis reckons he will always draw upon the same mojo that first inspired him to play.

Looking over his shoulder at Rubberneck, the Toadies’ platinum-selling 1994 debut, drummer Mark Reznicek is reflective. “Hard to believe it’s been 20 years,” he says. “It seems like yesterday. But, at the same time, it was a lifetime ago.”

Not your average, accessible radio fodder. “Possum Kingdom” remains a radio staple even today – and “Backslider” and “Tyler” still pop up. It’s because raw expression makes for the most powerful art

The Toadies remain raw. Vaden Todd Lewis still sings as though he’s on the precipice of insanity, clinging tenaciously but perhaps already plummeting. Lewis’s and Clark Vogeler’s guitars rip and tear like thick fingernails at supple flesh. Reznicek and bass player Doni Blair fuel the fury with relentless, seething rhythm.

With 20 years, numerous albums, and thousands of shows behind them, the Toadies sound even better. On the road in 2014, the Toadies paid tribute to their fans’ support by playing Rubberneck start-to-finish.

Blood & Lemonade is American Hi-Fi’s fourth full length and their first since 2010’s Fight the Frequency. Featuring the “Golden State” and other notables “Allison” and “Armageddon Days,” the record wholly embraces the sound and spirit of classic, balls-to-the-wall, guitar rock mixed with the power pop sensibilities that lead to their worldwide smash “Flavor of The Weak.”

In support of the record, the band performed a special one-off at London’s famed 100 Club, which sold out quickly after being announced. The band also performed select shows in Los Angeles, New York City, and Boston in support of the album’s release.