One of the most infamous venues in Southern California and the reggae genre will close its doors this year.
Some of the final shows in the tenure of Orange County, California’s Irvine Meadows will include hosting reggae music in the dying moments of the iconic venue. This summer, Irvine Meadows will play host to some of the reggae genre’s biggest and most prominent acts, including Slightly Stoopid, SOJA, Dirty Heads, Pepper, Tribal Seeds, The Expendables, and Fortunate Youth.
First, on June 25th, Slightly Stoopid will arrive in Orange County for their Return of the Red Eye Tour with special guests SOJA, Fortunate Youth and Zion-I, The Grouch and Eligh. Slightly Stoopid’s tour will have five dates under their respective belts before returning to the Golden State. Upon returning to California on their summer tour, Slightly Stoopid will perform at Berkeley’s Greek Theatre, before performing at Irvine Meadows for the last time in their two-decades of touring.
Then, on July 29th, The Dirty Heads will host their Orange County homecoming event, featuring some of the brightest talent the California reggae community has to offer. On the bill with the Huntington Beach natives will be, Tribal Seeds from San Diego, The Expendables from Santa Cruz, and Pepper from the Big Island of Hawai’i, but have since relocated to Southern California.
Irvine Meadows has long been the stomping grounds of the biggest names in mainstream music. Bands like the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Foo Fighters, Stone Temple Pilots, 311, Sublime, No Doubt, Incubus, and countless others have headlined the outdoor amphitheatre in Orange County.
One of the most well known mainstream alternative-rock radio stations in the country, KROQ-FM in Los Angeles, has hosted its annual summer Weenie Roast at Irvine Meadows. This past May, KROQ presented their last Weenie Roast, their 23rd edition, on the hallowed grounds in Orange County, which featured Weezer, The Lumineers, Panic! At The Disco, Garbage, Cold War Kids and surprise special guests, Blink-182.
KROQ has long been a safe haven for modern reggae-rock-alternative bands such as Sublime, Slightly Stoopid, The Dirty Heads, Pepper, Iration, Seedless , Katastro, and other local standouts. In fact, Sublime received the necessary catalyst every start-up band needs to make it big within air play at KROQ. And, in 1995, Sublime performed at the 3rd annual KROQ Weenie Roast, which also featured Rage Against The Machine, Ramones, Bush, Hole, Rancid and many others.
For your chance to take in a bit of Southern California music history, do not hesitate to purchase tickets to the upcoming reggae showcases at Irvine Meadows. Unfortunately, this will be the last few times patrons will ever have the opportunity to see a show at the venue again.
For more information on the upcoming shows at Irvine Meadows, follow the links below.
Irvine Meadows Links
Website
Facebook
Tickets
Slightly Stoopid Links
Website
Facebook
Tour Dates
YouTube
The Dirty Heads Links
Website
Facebook
Tour Dates
YouTube
Video: Sublime – “Saw Red” (feat. Gwen Stefani Live at KROQ Weenie Roast ’95)
Video: Sublime – “Scarlet Bergonias” (Live at KROQ Weenie Roast ’95)