CAKE at The Rady Shell at Jacobs Park in San Diego, California – Photos by Alex Matthews
Alt-Rock legends CAKE served up some tasty treats at The Rady Shell.
Alternative rockers CAKE played a fantastic mid-week show on Tuesday June 20th at The Rady Shell at Jacobs Park. These 90’s rockers hailing from Sacramento California have a unique blend of influences that they themselves describe as “if Hank Williams Sr. and Sly Stone were having a party together, and they played AC/DC records backwards…” Anyone who has heard one of their many radio hits or has had the luck to see this band in concert knows they have a really fun and unique take on popular rock music. The band’s live shows are always a mix of danceable tunes and catchy singing, with a bit of political education and environmental activism thrown in for good measure.
CAKE at The Rady Shell at Jacobs Park in San Diego, California – Photos by Alex Matthews
CAKE features the current lineup of singer, guitarist, and founder John McCrea, multi-instrumentalist and trumpet extraordinaire Vince DiFiore, lead guitarist Xan McCurdy, original drummer Todd Roper who returned to the band in 2016, and bassist Daniel McCallum. The band seemed in solid form playing two hour long sets of music with no opening act and only a brief intermission. With the first act featuring a few more obscure tunes and covers and the second featuring all the band’s familiar hits this approach was a very friendly format for a Tuesday night San Diego audience.
CAKE at The Rady Shell at Jacobs Park in San Diego, California – Photos by Alex Matthews
The band’s closers “Love You Madly,” “Short Skirt/Long Jacket,” and “The Distance” were all huge sing-alongs and had the whole audience up and dancing. And of course no CAKE show would be complete without McCrea’s signature Vibra-Slap buzzing, DiFIore’s smooth trumpet, and the twangy licks of guitarist Xan McCurdy. The band also as always gave away a live tree to a fan in the front, this time the correct guess was a Coast Live Oak.
CAKE at The Rady Shell at Jacobs Park in San Diego, California – Photos by Alex Matthews
The Rady Shell was as always a beautiful venue to see a live show. The sound at the venue in every section is fantastic and the multiple food and beverage offerings from local chefs and community organizations is delicious. Checking out a rock concert like this or one of their many other musical offerings is highly recommended. What a treat to enjoy a lovely evening of CAKE on the San Diego waterfront.
