NEW YORK TIMES REVIEWS

• Some ticket prices are being sharply reduced as summer concerts often fail to sell out.
  
  Summer Concert Ticket Sales Decline
• The Salzburg Festival is honoring a major living composer, Wolfgang Rihm, with a premiere of his work 'Dionysus' and a program called Kontinent Rihm, which opened on Tuesday.
  
  Music Review: Salzburg Festival Features Wolfgang Rihm
• Emanuel Ax played Chopin on Wednesday in the series A Little Night Music, part of the Mostly Mozart festival at Lincoln Center.
  
  Music Review: Emanuel Ax Plays Chopin at Mostly Mozart
• "I honestly believe that the Beatles were really gifted and blessed by God to start a spiritual revolution in America, but I think they scored points for the wrong team," Mr. Skaggs says in the interview.
  
  Popcast: Ricky Skaggs on God and Music and More
• Marco Brambilla discusses a video work he was commissioned to create for Mr. West's single, a decadent commentary on the rapper's ideas of celebrity and notoriety.
  
  A Preview of Kanye West's 'Power': 'Apocalyptic in a Very Personal Way'
• The composer said similarities between his score and an Edith Piaf song were not only intentional but the one element of an enigmatic movie "that wasn't supposed to be a secret."
  
  Hans Zimmer Extracts the Secrets of the 'Inception' Score
• Adolf Sauerland, the mayor of Duisburg, has received death threats since 21 people where trampled to death at a music festival.
  
  Deadly German Stampede Gets Its Villain
• Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers played his hits and also songs from his new album 'Mojo' at Madison Square Garden on Wednesday.
  
  Music Review: Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers at Madison Square Garden
• The founder of the Manhattan Chamber Orchestra led a group of players, including a saw artist, in a scaled-down concert on Thursday evening at Symphony Space.
  
  Music Review: The M.C.O. Chamber Artists Play Symphony Space
• The pianists HaeSun Paik and Michail Lifits performed Wednesday during the International Keyboard Institute and Festival at Mannes College.
  
  Music Review: HaeSun Paik and Michail Lifits at Mannes Concert Hall

UPCOMING SHOWS

• MORE MUSIC EVENTS

• Extend the weekend, come and enjoy a picnic dinner on a summer Sunday evening filled with music, fun & food. July 11 Petty Theft -Classic Rock & Roll July 18th- The Sorentinos - Rock & Roll-(pop/rock) July 25th - The Poyntlyss Sistars- 50's/60's/70's August 1st - Baby Seal Club- (Indie rock/quirk pop) August 8th - Lansdale Station -(Country & Blues) August 15th- The Soul Shine Blues Band (Soulful/Blues) Sponsored by Santa Rosa Recreation & Parks and Wine Country Radio! Event: Santa Rosa Recreation & Park FREE Live Summer Concert Series! at Juilliard Park, Sun, Aug 1 5:00p
• On Sunday mornings it's a jazz brunch with the local jazz radio station broadcasting live from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. as Terrace Grille patrons enjoy one of Sonoma County's most popular brunch locales. Served every Sunday morning in the sunlit dining room overlooking the pool and gardens are roasted meats, Eggs Benedict, breakfast meats, fresh fruit and gourmet cheeses, pancakes and French Toast, baked good and champagne. Event: Sunday Jazzy Champagne Brunch with KJZY at Flamingo Conference Resort & Spa, Sun, Aug 1 10:30a
• One of America's greatest bands, Blondie is back and better than ever! Thirty years after their acclaimed Parallel Lines LP, Deborah Harry and the boys hit the road and land in Santa Rosa for a concert featuring their new wave mega hits (think."the man from Mars stopped eatin' cars and eatin' bars, And now he only eats guitars"), as well as new music from their recent CDs, No Exit and The Curse of Blondie. Event: Blondie at Wells Fargo Center for the Arts, Thu, Aug 5 8:00p
• For four decades, he's been known as 'The King of Romance' to millions of fans around the world. Now, you too can experience Humperdinck at his romantic best as his Legacy of Love Tour comes to Santa Rosa. A sensitive lyric interpreter with a three-and-a-half-octave vocal range, Humperdinck has given us such classics as 'Release Me,' 'There Goes My Everything,' 'The Last Waltz' and 'After the Lovin'.' Event: Engelbert Humperdinck at Wells Fargo Center for the Arts, Thu, Sep 16 7:00p
• Dog Days of Summer! "Paws for Reading" Help build your child's reading competency by visiting select Copperfield's Books locations Saturday mornings throughout July and August. The Sonoma Humane Society will also be on hand with dogs for adoption and literature. Event time is 11am-2pm on all dates: July 10, Montgomery Village July 17, Sebastopol July 24, Petaluma July 31, Healdsburg August 7, Montgomery Village August 14, Petaluma Event: Copperfield's Books in Santa Rosa Hosts "The Dog Days of Summer!" at Copperfield's Books Santa Rosa, Sat, Jul 31 11:00a

NIGHTLIFE

• MORE NIGHTLIFE

• The Last Day Saloon Nightclub and Restaurant is located at 120 Fifth Street at Davis Street in Historic Railroad Square in Santa Rosa, CA. The restaurant serves a wide variety of delicious foods, from appetizers to full dinners. Our menu offers fresh seafood, aged choice beef, pastas and more. Our restaurant is open from 5pm to 1am. Come early and have dinner before the show! Preferred seating for the show with advanced dinner reservations made for at least one hour before show doors open. The Last Day Saloon has 3 full bars, large hardwood dance floor and exceptional sound system. Venue: Last Day Saloon
• Welcome to Stout Brothers Irish Pub! We specialize in delicious and reasonablypriced cuisine, including our house specialties and other customerfavorites. Our cuisine entrees are served in a relaxed and welcoming settingthat you and your friends and family are sure to enjoy. Whether you are inthe mood to indulge in something new or just want to enjoy some oldfavorites, we promise that our inventive menu and attentive service willleave you truly satisfied. No matter what your occasion calls for or yourappetite demands, the friendly staff at Stout Brothers Irish Pub promise to makeyour next dining experience a pleasant one. Venue: Stout Brothers Irish Pub
• The Toad in the Hole, Santa Rosa's newest pub opened for business Friday, July 27, 2007 . The Toad in the Hole serves the finest beer, the most delicious wine, local cider and cask beer. Come have the finest fish and chips, English Bangers and Cornish Pasties, all hand crafted with love and 40 years of experience by Chris Stokeld, known to those in Northern California as Ma Stokeld. In addition, come for our delicious daily specials prepared by our chef, Pam Wilson. Enjoy LIVE music booked by Doug Jayne and friends. Publican Paul Stokeld and our friendly wait staff promise sporting events, all around good times, and frosty beers. Venue: Toad In The Hole Pub
• Venue: Cellars of Sonoma
• Venue: The Casbar

LATEST MUSIC NEWS

• Reuters - Wedding proposals at concerts are nothing new, but country act Little Big Town took things a step further on its recent tour, setting up a space for lucky fans to tie the knot at one of its shows. Country group builds its own "Little White Church" (Reuters)
• Reuters - Making an album about such seemingly simple concepts as food or ice cream trucks might seem like a fool's errand, but for Brooklyn indie duo One Ring Zero, those concepts have led to opportunities to perform at events including book award ceremonies and children's festivals. Indie band One Ring Zero explores the universe (Reuters)
• Reuters - Kings of Leon's Nathan Followill is confident that organizers of the upcoming Outside Lands Festival in San Francisco will keep stray pigeons as far away from the stage as possible. But, the drummer notes, "we're bringing a couple of muzzle loaders, just in case." Kings of Leon moves past "Pigeon-gate" (Reuters)
• Reuters - Freddie Gibbs has nothing against rap artists who embrace catchy hooks to land on pop radio, but that's not his style. He didn't need a hit single to draw attention to both of his 2009 mixtapes, and he's about to delve deeper into hardcore street rap on his new EP, "Str8 Killa." Freddie Gibbs prefers his rap "Str8," no chaser (Reuters)
• Reuters - Rappers have a propensity for christening themselves with royal titles to promote their standing in hip-hop (e.g., King of the South, Prince of Rap). But for Bun B, the less-regal handle Trill OG was the most fitting. Rapper Bun B remembers deceased friends "Right Now" (Reuters)

BLOG: FOUR COLORS

• This past year has been an important one for DC. Not only have they been publishing some great books, but the company has has several important anniversaries to celebrate. The first of which is their 75th anniversary of existence. DC has been publishing books for the past 75 years, a feat that is currently unequaled [...] Hundreds and Hundreds
• Harvey Pekar died yesterday. He was 70. For the comic book world, this is a big blow. Pekar was one of the three people tied to the rise of underground comix in the 60s/70s. The other two are Art Spiegelman and R. Crumb. Though there were others, these three men were instrumental, in my opinion, [...] American Splendor
• Readers of the blog may know that I am a huge fan of Gene Luen Yang. I've reviewed his previous two books released through :01 Second Publishing (American Born Chinese and The Eternal Smile) and now I have the chance to review his most recent book, 'Prime Baby.'Thaddeus K. Fong is your typical first born [...] Thaddeus K. Fong: Martyr for Truth
• “Justice League of Shakespeare.”That is how writer Anthony Del Col pitched IDW's new series “Kill Shakespeare,” which just had issue 2 hit the stands last week. The premise is a simple one: Hamlet, prince of Denmark is tossed out of his kingdom after he kills the king's (his uncle) top advisor, Polonius, while attempting to [...] Kill Will
• There is a lovely time ahead of us. Summer time is almost here and that means infinite free time (except for work). But there is no homework, no extra commitments. Nothing. And, as we enter summer, we enter a strong time for Four Colors. There will be quite a bit happening [...] Coming Soon