September begins a busy slate of music in the north state | All Along the Watchtower – Chico Enterprise-Record

The relative dearth of summer slows in the region usually gives way to a flood of music when the new school year begins. This year is no exception. Not only does Chico Performances begin its line-up but a new and improved Lost On Main returns after closing during the pandemic.

But September gets kicked off on Sept. 2 in Oroville as Feather Falls Casino continues its Rock Party Concert Series with Seattle metal heads Queensryche, of “Silent Lucidity” fame. Original vocalist Geoff Tate was fired in 2012 and the band has soldiered on with Todd La Torre at the mic. Founding guitarist, Michael Wilton, and bassist, Eddie Jackson, are still with the band, along with drummer Casey Grillo and guitarist Mike Stone. Female Guns and Roses tribute band Paradise Kitty opens the show.

On Sept. 7 the Tackle Box hosts “Hey Bartender, Last Call! The Farewell Tour from Johhny Lee.” The country singer had a string of 17 Top 40 hits in the 1980s, including “Lookin’ for Love,” from the “Urban Cowboy” movie soundtrack. Recently diagnosed with Parkingson’s disease, Lee is having a final run of shows preaching the traditional country music of George Jones and Conway Twitty.

Also on the Sept. 7, Chico-born The Mother Hips start a two-night run at the Sierra Nevada Brewing Company’s Big Room. Founding guitarists Tim Bluhm and Greg Loiacono along with long-time drummer Jon Hofer and bassist Brian Rashap return to the band’s roots while supporting its latest release “When We Disappear.” The Sept. 8 show is sold-out.

The Paradise Performing Arts Center Brings Jerry’s Middle Finger to its stage on Sept. 15. JMF hails itself as the premier Jerry Garcia Band tribute act.

The next night, PPAC welcomes MaMuse back home to the region. Actually, it’s a triple-bill with the duo The Feelings Parade opening the show. Then MaMuse (Sarah Nutting and Karisha Longaker) and their new band will lay down a groove, before bringing out the Bay Area’s 11-person collective Wildchoir for an evening of creative collaborations.

Also on Sept. 16, KZFR brings Brazilian guitarist Roge to the Chico Women’s Club. He’s part of a revival of Brazilian popular music and is known for his ability to blend samba with other styles like reggae and bossa nova.

Lost On Main reopens with a new layout and a new look from front to back. And on Sept. 16 it features SPOT: Scott Pemberton O Theory. The Portland-based trio plays “timber rock” a mix of jazz, blues, rock and grunge with funky psychedelia. Pemberton has mad guitar skills and should not be missed.

Chico Performances hosts the final and 50th anniversary tour of The Manhattan Transfer to Laxson Auditorium on Sept. 19. Alan Paul, Janis Siegel and Cheryl Bentyne are still around from the vocal group’s heyday in the late ’70s and ‘80s (think “The Boy from New York City”). Founder Tim Houser died in 2014 and Trist Curless now provides the bass/baritone vocals.

JMax Productions brings Dexter and the Moonrocks to the Tackle Box on Sept. 21. Hailing from Abeline, Texas, the band offers a Southern alternative fusion called “western space grunge.” It combines “the raw energy of grunge with the storytelling traditions of red dirt music, with a dash of alien influence,” according to the band’s website.

Painted Mandolin stops by the Chico Women’s Club on Sept. 22, thanks to Chico Concerts. The band, Joe Craven (Jerry Garcia/David Grisman), Larry Graff (Banana Slug String Band) Matt Hartle and Dan Robbins, describes itself as “a plugged in acoustic quartet of original compositions, reupholstered covers and reimagined melodies” that they think Jerry would have liked.

Country star Matt Houser plays Gold Country Casino on Sept. 23. Beginning his career as a Nashville songwriter, he co-wrote the Trace Adkins hit “Honky Tonk Badonkadonk” before taking to the stage himself. Houser scored a number of hits in the last decade, including “How Country Feels,” “Runnin’ Outta Moonlight,” and “Like a Cowboy.”

The busy month rounds out the husband and wife country duo Thompson Square at The Tackle Box on Sept. 29. Shawna and Keifer Thompson met at a singing competition in 2007 and brought together their love for singer-songwriters, country, and classic rock producing hits like “Are You Gonna Kiss Me Or Not?,” “If I Don’t Have You,” and “Everything I Should Be Thinking About.” All the while they were gaining Vocal Duo of the Year Awards from the Academy of Country Music Awards in 2012 and 2013.