Snowboarding has become winter’s equivalent to extreme warm weather sports like in-line skating and skate boarding. Since 1989, snowboarding has experienced an unprecedented boom in the United States and across the world. During its early stages, there were less then 75,000 snowboarders across the U.S. As an initial estimate this number may seem significant, but it hardly compares to the predicted 12 million at the end of 1996. This group is not entirely made of men either, as females help make up a major part of this growth in participants. In 1989, the ratio was close to 9:1, males to females where as today it is closer to 3:2. There was also a period of time where the ski resorts were worried about the decline in guests and ski-related activities. Things have changed! Snowboarding has been credited with bringing the young and old alike back to the mountains in overwhelming numbers.

In spite of all their success as a touring band and at Adult Rock Radio, Widespread Panic has been able to maintain a very down-to-earth philosophy: emphasizing heavy rhythms with often inspiring musicianship. Listening to their music, one can’t help but be swept into a musical sanctuary. “Our songs are like musical getaways. They provide a path for the music to take off by itself,” is how guitarist and vocalist John “J.B.” Bell describes it. Renowned for their intense live shows before S.R.O. crowds across the country, as well as a back catalog of albums that continue to sell well, Widespread Panic has earned the respect of fans and fellow musicians alike. Their newest offering, Bombs & Butterflies, captures the raw energy that has helped propel them into being one of America’s most compelling live bands. “The studio is very different from a live show. We’re still trying to capture a sense of power” adds J.B., “but it’s more like a polished poem instead of seeing somebody ranting and raving on the street.”

With all the diverse musical influences and genres that are streaming out of the left coast, down South and back East, growing up in the Midwest can sometimes be a little overwhelming. When it comes right down to it, except for the dynamic music scene prevalent in Chicago, there really hasn’t been an identifiable Midwest rock sound – until now.

For over 25 years, ZZ Top has been playing rock & roll with various shades of blues for fans around the world – sometimes, with raw street-corner passion and sometimes with the polished licks that modern technology can provide. Over the years, the only rule has been that there are no rules. Whichever direction the trio heads has been governed by its collective gut, rather than some sort of organized master plan. Drawing from mean rhythms, Rhythmeen is full of tough, funky grooves and gritty electric guitar stylings – music derived from the earthy blues of Elmore James and the forward-thinking adventurous grindings of Jimi Hendrix. Call it modern barroom music; ZZ Top mixes traditional sensibilities with the raw power and energy of a band that is still (or just now?) hitting its stride. It was from these humble beginnings that ZZ Top are able to do what they do best – play their own interpretation of this art form that some cal funk or Texas blues and yet others simply refer to as good ol’ rock & roll. No matter how you classify it, the rough and tumble nature of Rhythmeen is evident from the first guitar blast serving as a useful reminder that this little ol’ band from Texas can still produce a mighty large sound.

‘…band members wanted: Must be into the Beatles, Buffalo Springfield and the Byrds…‘ This ad, placed in Los Angeles The Recycler, a classified newspaper used to sell cars, pets, stereo equipment, etc., was the instrumental ingredient that helped launch the career of the then soon-to-be singer/guitarist for the Bengals – Susanna Hoffs. Combining an avant-garde mélange of pop and rock, the band was to become one of the most popular precursors of the “riot grrl” movement. Despite their success, the constant threat of being taken more seriously for their appearance than their music and over-exposure by FM radio and the video channels caused the Bengals to disband in 1989. Subsequently, Susanna Hoffs moved on to pursue a successful solo career as a singer as well as an actress.

311 is one of the most explosive and experimental up-and-coming bands in the rock world today. Fusing hard rock with funk, rap and reggae, the band has created quite a potent musical cocktail. Growing up in the Midwest – Nebraska to be exact, where the East meets the West – has proven to some extent to be the perfect breeding ground for the sound of 311, as well as their many dimensions.

One of the most explosive and experimental bands in the rock world today, 311 fuse hard rock with funk, rap and reggae to create their own personal and very potent musical cocktail. Blending razor-sharp musicianship with such a diverse mixture of musical styles, 311 exhibit quite an aggressive attitude, both musically and politically. Drawing on a grassroots fan base that incorporates many different lifestyles and view points has helped catapult the band to Platinum record status and a #1 song at Alternative radio.

One of the most explosive and experimental bands in the rock world today, 311 fuse hard rock with funk, rap and reggae to create their own personal and very potent musical cocktail. Blending razor-sharp musicianship with such a diverse mixture of musical styles, 311 exhibit quite an aggressive attitude, both musically and politically. Drawing on a grassroots fan base that incorporates many different lifestyles and view points has helped catapult the band to Platinum record status and a #1 song at Alternative radio.

KCRW is unique in several ways. The most obvious being that we have a good balance of music, news and public affairs. We’re not a music station throughout the day. Between daylight hours, we have three hours of music of music, that’s Morning Becomes Eclectic with me. The rest of the daytime hours are news and public affairs. We don’t return to music again until 8pm, with Jason Bentley and Metropolis followed by Tricia Halloran and Brave New World. Essentially, the weeknight and weekend hours are devoted mostly to Alternative Music at KCRW. But that’s what makes us very unique. For a lot of people, KCRW is a music station. But when you look at it, we really don’t have a lot of airtime devoted expressly to music, very little of which is spent during daytime hours. That’s sort of a hurdle or handicap for us within the music business. But, I think it’s this balance and combination of all those different elements that make KCRW unique and special. You might be hearing news about events in Bosnia at one minute and then a garage band from Boston the next.

As a Los Angeles-based quartet, 311 have covered a lot of territory since their inception. With music influences that range from Sly and the Family Stone to Bob Marley, this Omaha-born band mixes hard-rock, funk, rap and reggae into a very potent music cocktail. Since the release of their debut, Music, in 1993, the band has released an album per year while supporting a nonstop touring schedule – selling out clubs and theaters nationwide, thanks mostly to their massive grassroots fan base. As the band prepared to embark on a national tour with Cypress Hill and The Pharcyde, Nick Hexum, Chad Sexton and Tim Mahoney invited me to their Laurel Canyon home to discuss life, music and the world of 311. Blending their razor-sharp wit and diverse musical knowledge with an aggressive attitude, the band has taken a rare musical ideology – the music path of positive outlook.