LOCALS ONLY

The Bowl is back

It used to be a happenin' joint. The Rolling Stones and Elvis Costello once played there. Yet, for the last decade or so, it's largely been quiet, save for local theater and the occasional concert.

That's about to change. Starlight Bowl is looking to make a comeback in 2007.

Susan Suffecool, director of the 4,300-capacity outdoor venue in Balboa Park, hopes to lure both local bands and mid-sized touring acts back to the site and has brought in promoter Christopher Leyva, who also fronts local band Blizzard.

“I realize local performers won't draw like touring acts, but there are different stage configurations we can use,” said Suffecool. “This end of the park isn't visited as much as the central area. Hopefully, this will draw attention to this corner.”

The venue's first go will be a heavy-metal show on Dec. 16., starting at noon, with sets by Rev, Daemos, Under The Stone, Damcyan and Caracell. Suffecool is also planning a free, bi-weekly, Sunday-afternoon music series and a two-day music festival next spring.

“There is so much talent in San Diego that is looking for a place to play, and here we have a wonderful, centrally located, open-air theater sitting empty. It's a shame to let it go to waste,” she said. www.starlighttheatre.org.

Notables...

Fans who saw The Coup and Mr. Lif at House of Blues on Dec. 2 saw them just hours before a near-death experience. After the show, the the two hip-hop crews were headed to their next gig in Scottsdale, Ariz., when their tour bus flipped and caught fire, eventually becoming fully engulfed. The accident happened about 40 miles outside of San Diego. The most serious injuries were sustained by the bus driver, Coup co-vocalist SILK-E, DJ Big Wiz and Zahra, who is a friend/merch guy for Mr. Lif. Zahra suffered a severe hand laceration, Silk-E broke several ribs and Wiz suffered a deep head laceration and a broken leg. All were flown to different hospitals in Palm Springs and San Diego. Despite losing all of their possessions in the fire-including laptops, clothes, equipment, cell phones and cash-the rest of the passengers escaped with minor cuts and bruises and are doing OK. The Coup will most likely cancel the rest of the tour.

U.K. music mag Kerrang recently published its list of “Punk's 50 Greatest Albums,” and Rocket From the Crypt came in at No. 29 with their 1995 album, Scream Dracula, Scream! Of course, this should be taken with a grain of salt, because they also listed blink-182's Enema of the State as the 14th greatest punk album of all time, ahead of Bad Brains' Rock for Light, two Stooges' albums and Black Flag's Damaged. All we can say is: Sum 41 was robbed.

The new Playstation 3 comes preloaded with an otherwise unavailable game called “Cash, Gun, Chaos.” Part contest, part shoot-'em-up blood bath, the game's soundtrack is exclusively punk bands from San Diego, including Fifty on Their Heels, The Sultans, The Atoms and The Power-Chords. www.cashgunschaos.station.sony.com.

91X program director Kevin Stapleford abruptly left his position at the station on Nov. 29. It was his second tenure at 91X, following a stint from 1989 to 1996. Ironically, he's been temporarily replaced by radio consultant Trip Reeb-the same man Stapleford replaced at the station in 1989.

On Nov. 12, folk-rockers Holiday & The Adventure Pop Collective were joined at a Santa Rosa gig by members of '80s hair-metal group Night Ranger. The assembled musicians performed the Night Ranger. www.adventurepop.com.

Dizzy's will host a party on Dec. 6 to honor tenor saxophonist Gary LeFebvre's 50th anniversary in music. LeFebvre first obtained a local musicians' union card in 1956 and went on to gig with the legendary jazz combo Shorty Rogers and The Giants. He also played back-up for hundreds of artists, including Diana Ross & The Supremes and Judy Garland. www.garylefebvre.com.