Country star Dierks Bentley is sure to play “What Was I Thinkin’,” “Free and Easy” and other hits when he opens for Brad Paisley Saturday night (Feb. 28) at the Tacoma Dome. He’ll also appear at the Varsity Grill downtown from 4 to 6 p.m. that day. So I thought I’d share a couple of quotes from my interview. Wrote a story about it for today’s GO section. Click the links to hear ol’ Dierks talk about touring with Brad and tonight’s high-tech show or

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Promoter/bartender Matt Eklund just informed me that the New Frontier Lounge is opening up Mondays, starting next week, with a new theme night called Rebel Monday. It’s an industry-themed night, with DJ Jason Diamond spinning roots reggae and possible live music down the road. Music will get started around 9 p.m. starting Monday (March 2).

The Rod Stewart concert I blogged about the other day has been moved to Aug. 7 at Auburn’s White River Amphitheatre, according to a statement just released by Live Nation. Find ticket info and other details here.

Almost forgot to mention that you can hear the ex-Tacoma girl’s new “Middle Cyclone” disc in its entirety before it hits stores next Tuesday (March 3), thanks to NPR’s exclusive online stream.

Pearl Jam’s Stone Gossard and Friends will headline Seattle’s Can Can on March 8 and 9, band publicist Vandenberg Communications announced. The Gossards friend will include Barb Ireland (the Fags), jazz multi-instrumentalist Hans Teuber (Ani DiFranco, Julian Priester, Jovino Santos-Neto), bassist Keith Lowe (David Sylvian, Fiona Apple, Bill Frisell), multi-instrumentalist Steve Moore, aka Stebmo (Sufjan Stevens, Bill Frisell), DJ Bean One and others.

The set list will include new, original songs along with covers of classics by Hank Williams, the Rolling Stones, Grace Jones, Johnny Thunders and Prince, according to the show announcement. Click here for

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The summer concert calendar is really shaping up with yet another big concert announcement. No Doubt will headline Auburn’s White River Amphitheatre on July 19, part of a summer tour that will kick off on May 3 at the Bamboozle Festival in East Rutherford, NJ, according to Live Nation’s announcement this morning.

No Doubt – best known for "Just a Girl," "Hella Good" and other hits and other hits – will be joined on the road by Paramore. And talk about eclectic openers: The Sounds, Janelle Monae and Bedouin Soundclash will add support on select dates.

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In the wee hours of this morning, Motley Crue announced the itinerary for it’s Crue Fest 2 tour, which will include a July 27 stop at Auburn’s White River Amphitheatre this year. This year’s theme: The White Trash Circus. It’s the follow up to one of last summer’s most successful tours, which brought Buck Cherry, Trapt, SIXX: A.M. and Papa Roach to White River last year.

Beginning next Monday (March 2) pre-sale tickets will be available to fan club members. Learn more and find a hot line number here.

Hey, check out the theme for EMP/SFM’s Pop Conference this year. It’ll take place from April 16 to 19 at the Seattle rock museum, and this year it’s being billed as “Dance Music Sex Romance: Pop and the Body Politic.” According to today’s announcement it “will bring to the forefront the erotic, taboo and sensual issues in many music styles and eras.”

Hey, how’s that sounds a lot steamier than a bunch of people sitting on panels and dissecting and intellectualizing pop music. And unlike previous years, I guess there will be a little dirty talk during

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Here’s the cover art for Mastodon’s new album “Crack the Skye,” which is due in stores March 24. If you just can’t wait, iTunes is taking pre-orders as we speak. Hear Troy Sanders talk about what it might sound like here. And my source at Warner tells me a Seattle date will be announced in the next few days.

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee Rod Stewart will headline the White River Amphitheatre on Aug. 1, Live Nation announced Monday. [Update: Show date was changed to Aug. 7 a few days after this post.] Expect a lot of unplugged material since the tour will follow the March 10 reissue of “Rod Stewart Unplugged … and Seated.”

Tickets go on sale at 10 a.m. Monday (March 2) and will be available exclusively through Live Nation, select Blockbuster locations or by calling 877-598-6659. .