We’re ready to Hangout in 2023!

With an eclectic collection featuring A-List acts in the rap, rock, and electronic genres, Hangout Fest dropped their stellar lineup at the end of 2022, making this their 11th year running. Hangout Fest, located on the sandy coast of Gulf Shores, Alabama, has been rapidly growing in popularity, thanks to well-known headlining acts and exuberant […]

Crab cakes and reggae, that’s what Maryland does!

Reggae Rise Up Maryland returns to the Baltimore Peninsula for the second year in a row following their wildly successful 2022 first-year installment. Boasting a lineup stacked with all your favorite reggae acts–plus some newcomers for funsies–the three day festival takes place June 23-25 and all but screams summer vacation. With estimated temperatures hovering in […]

Pitbull unleashes fire on Sac Town

What a fun night at the Hard Rock Casino, located 30 minutes north of Sacramento!  At the casino, there were so many excited fans to see Pitbull. Some wore ray-ban or aviator sunglasses and others wore a cap on their head that made it look like they’re were bald, like Pitbull. The makeup and outfits […]

Old-school punk rock band X brought moshpits to Santa Ana

Few bands have withstood the test of time for more than 45 years. Fewer bands have done it with the original members the entire time. Even fewer have done this in the punk and alternative world. And arguably, of those in that diminutive list, no one has done it better than John Doe, Billy Zoom, […]

Best mainstream live performance of 2022!

2022 ushered in what many considered the first full year of music without restriction since the pandemic began. This year, the photojournalists and writers of Top Shelf Music have had the privilege of covering some pretty amazing shows! In true end of year fashion we have compiled a list of some of our favorite live […]

Thank you, Everclear, for 30 years of glorious music

The line wrapped around the building despite the cold winter weather creeping onto Los Angeles’ Sunset Strip. Eager fans chatted while huddled together, reminiscing over the last time they saw Everclear perform and holding up the toy they brought with them as Everclear partnered with Border Kindness, a 501c3 nonprofit humanitarian-aid organization, for a toy […]

Monique Powell of Save Ferris gets candid and personal in exclusive interview

COVID-19 ended live shows, diminished studio sessions and new album releases, put countless crew members on hiatus and it ruthlessly harmed one of the things so many of us love. No band nor venue was spared. But through it all, and many other life challenges over the years, Monique Powell, the radiant, charismatic, strong, and […]

Wonderfront Fest 2022: Day 3

It was day three at Wonderfront Festival and the grounds were busier early in the day, full of festival goers shopping around at any of the incredible vendor booths that were filled with one-of-a-kind art, clothing, jewelry and all the other festival accessories of your dreams. Over on the grounds on Embarcardo North, a stationary […]

2003 is coming to 2023 thanks to DCFC’s tour announcement

The kings of indie rock Death Cab for Cutie are back again for another tour in 2023, but this one is different.. this is HUGE! Co-headlining the tour is Death Cab’s frontman Ben Gibbard’s long lost project The Postal Service. Thats’s right, for the first time in a decade, Jimmy Tamborello and Jenny Lewis will […]

Wonderfront Fest 2022: Day 2

As Wonderfronters gathered for day 2 of bliss in sunny San Diego, the festival vibe was in full affect. Cue the cute festival outfits, sun hats, selfie stations, and even a ball pit. That’s right, a ball pit! Wonderfront is a festival that you come to for the incredibly stacked lineup, but you could also […]

Whitney brings a little bit of Chicago to Milwaukee

Whitney fans have come to know the band’s unique sound and emotions that its songs evoke. Each idyllic melody is interwoven through nostalgic lyrics, inducing a deep happiness for the memories made, as well as a sadness that those moments can’t stay forever. Throughout their four albums, Chicago-based indie soul duo Whitney have mastered their […]

Nashville spent the weekend smiling

This past Saturday night, The Ryman Auditorium in Nashville hosted music legends Thom Yorke, Jonny Greenwood and drummer Tom Skinner as their latest band, The Smile rolled into town. The side project is the latest in a long list of projects for Yorke and Greenwood of Radiohead fame. After many years as a photojournalist, I could […]

Wonderfront Fest 2022: Day 1

November 18, 2022, on the shores of the city of San Diego, thousands gathered for the epic return of Wonderfront Festival.  Even though it is only this festival’s second ever installment (after a two-year hiatus) Wonderfront made its mark on America’s finest city leaving us with anticipation for this day. If you came to town […]