Liam Gowing

Liam Gowing
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Member since: 09/07

In: Sawtelle


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Lists

The mega-concerts of spring

Rock, pop, country, hip-hop and R&B, these are the big shows coming up this Spring—from the unmissable to the just plain unavoidable.

1. Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival   Indio/Coachella/LaQuinta

A roundup of the best artists in rock, electronica and more from up-and-comers to icons, Coachella may well be the new Woodstock. Expect fewer hippie freakouts though.

Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival
2. Stagecoach Festival   Indio/Coachella/LaQuinta

The Eagles, John Fogerty, Rascal Flatts, the Judds, Tim McGraw and Carrie Underwood headline Southern California's premier country music festival.

Stagecoach Festival
3. Alicia Keys, Ne-Yo and Jordin Sparks   Orange County

Still filling seats with her sexy brand of R&B, Alicia Keys comes to town with a big-name opening act or two: Singer-rapper Ne-Yo and maybe, just maybe, "American Idol" winner Jordin Sparks.

Alicia Keys, Ne-Yo and Jordin Sparks
4. Duran Duran   Downtown L.A.

Too pretty to be taken seriously when they were cranking out new wave standards like "Rio" and "Girls on Film," these dance-rock pioneers are starting to look like geniuses among a recent crop of imitators.

Duran Duran
5. Alicia Keys, Ne-Yo and Jordin Sparks   Downtown L.A.

Still filling seats with her sexy brand of R&B, Alicia Keys comes to town with a big-name opening act or two: Singer-rapper Ne-Yo and maybe, just maybe, "American Idol" winner Jordin Sparks.

Alicia Keys, Ne-Yo and Jordin Sparks
6. Rush   Downtown L.A.

As long as this trio of Canadian prog rockers can remember how to play "Tom Sawyer" (and how to count in 4/5 and 7/8) they'll be able to fill arenas.

Rush
7. Wango Tango 2008   Irvine

If one concert sums up the zeitgeist of the television-addled Top-40-addicted masses, this KIIS FM-sponsored pop music fest hosted by Ryan Seacrest and Lindsay Lohan is it.

Wango Tango 2008
8. Kenny Chesney and LeAnn Rimes   Downtown L.A.

These million-selling new country superstars team up for the Poets and Pirates Tour, leaving it to the audience to decipher which is which.

Kenny Chesney and LeAnn Rimes
9. R.E.M., Modest Mouse and the National   Hollywood

A new album, "Accelerate," which debuted at number two on the Billboard charts, confirms R.E.M. as one of the few '80s icons to remain relevant in contemporary rock music.

R.E.M., Modest Mouse and the National
10. The Cure   Hollywood

He may have put on a few pounds but the Cure's frontman Robert Smith still has the crazy spiderweb hair, which coupled with alterna-rock gems like "A Forest" and "Just Like Heaven," drives the fans wild.

The Cure
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