Last weekend, the legendary jam band Zero concluded a prolific 35th anniversary run aptly named “Back to Zero.” Core members Steve Kimock, Greg Anton, Pete Sears, Melvin Seals, and Hadi Al-Saddoon were joined by friends and family for an invigorating reunion that pleased newer fans and decade-spanning devotees alike.

This incarnation of the band, which was established in the early 1980s, included Melvin Seals (keyboards), Pete Sears (bass, backing vocals), Hadi Al-Saadoon (trumpet, backing vocals), and Sebastian Saint James (lead vocals, rhythm guitar), with Miles Kimock contributing additional guitar passages in the second set. Steve Kimock had worked with Seals and Sears in the recent past, and with Al-Saadoon in Zero’s early days. Saint James, who was new to the Zero fold, gelled well with the group.

On Sept. 23, to the delight of Bay Area live music lovers, Sweetwater Music Hall hosted the inaugural Sweetwater in the Sun festival in Marin County, California. Concertgoers nationwide are familiar with the legendary Sweetwater, an intimate venue that has hosted great acts over the decades ranging from Elvis Costello to New Riders of the Purple Sage. While the storied venue has a legacy for its high-profile acts in cozy confines, nothing could have prepared fans for the announcement of Sweetwater in the Sun.