The California Honeydrops headline the New Year’s Eve concert in the Crystal Bay Casino’s Crown Room. Achilles Wheel opens and Jelly Bread plays the Red Room after-party. Tickets go on sale on Friday, Sept. 28.
It’s been a year since the California Honeydrops played in the CBC’s Crown Room and 11 since it began busking in a BART station. In recent years the band has been on a fast track to national prominence. It played at the High Sierra Music Festival in 2013, toured twice with Bonnie Raitt and last year performed on the Legendary Rhythm and Blues Cruise.
“That’s 10 years later from burning our own bootleg Garageband CD’s to hock in the subway stations to make our burrito and milkshake money for the day,” drummer Ben Malament said before the show in Tahoe in December 2017. “It’s awesome. It’s pretty incredible. We’re very thankful.”
The California Honeydrops have diverse sounds that range from Curtis Mayfield-like R&B to acoustic and amplified blues. Last spring, they released their seventh studio alum, “Call It Home: Vol. 1 and 2.”