With a long, arduous 2015 behind him, The Mother Hips’ cofounding guitarist Tim Bluhm slowly adjusts his seat center stage at Moe’s Alley in Santa Cruz, CA last Friday, February 26. It’s hard to tell if his facial expression bears sharp pain or intense anticipation.

The Mother Hips’ve been around long enough and released a helluva ‘nough material that this collection of rarities and demo tapes, Chronicle Man, is gonna be for the band’s ready-converted disciples first and foremost. That being said, I still have my bones to pick with the set, as well as a few highlights of note. Let’s get down to it...

One of the first lessons they teach you in film school is that you sometimes have to “kill your darlings”. It’s a term that means no matter how much you love a scene you shot; if it doesn’t fit in the film, it ends up on the cutting room floor. In 2009, The Mother Hips rescued a short stack of 2-inch analog tapes from a Los Angeles basement and started picking through hours of material, most of it recorded around the era that produced 1995’s Part Timer Goes Full and ‘96’s Shootout.

Bay Area legends The Mother Hips will be in the Denver area on Friday, September 13 for a show at the Gothic Theatre in Englewood, CO. Fronted by songwriters Tim Bluhm and Greg Loiacono, the Hips have just released their eighth studio album, Behind Beyond, which marks 20 years since their debut release for Rick Rubin's American Recordings.

The Mother Hips have been around for twenty years, and I’ve never heard of them—I think—actually, on second thought, they do ring a bell. But that might just be residual from my Acid Mothers Temple salad days...In any case, Behind Beyond is the band’s latest disc, released in celebration of their platinum (or china, if you’re old school) anniversary.

With the release of their eighth studio album, Behind Beyond, via their own imprint label on July 9, 2013; Northern California's the Mother Hips will celebrate their 20th anniversary as a band.

Z2 Entertainment is proud to present Nicki Bluhm & The Gramblers at the Fox Theatre on Friday, August 31st. Tickets will go on sale to the public on Friday, June 22nd for $10.00 in advance and $12.00 day of show.

The Mother Hips release their SXSW performance schedule and a slew of spring dates, including the (((folkYEAH!))) presentation of the second annual Mother Hips Family Hipnic at the Fernwood Resort in breathtaking Big Sur, California on April 30 & May 1, 2010.