Thursday, July 24 COUNTRY GOLD Before Marty Stuart formed Marty Stuart and His Fabulous Superlatives, he was a dreamer and a drifter—a misfit and a lonesome lover—wandering through country landscapes with a guitar and mandolin in hand. He started with gospel music as a kid in Philadelphia, Mississippi, later making his way into bluegrass and country. Stuart went on to become a respected figure in Americana and country music, with breakthrough albums Hillbilly Rock in 1989 and Tempted in 1991. Among his top songs are “The Whiskey Ain’t Workin’,” co-written and performed with Travis Tritt, which remains one of his most popular tracks today. He is a five-time Grammy winner and Country Music Hall of Famer who went on to form His Fabulous Superlatives in the early 2000s, featuring Carter Church on drums, Kenny Vaughan on guitar and Chris Scruggs on bass (Harry Stinson formerly on the drums and bass). Together, they are bringing their blend of classic honky-tonk and rockabilly blues—dubbed “a living link to classic country’s golden era.” [KR] 7pm Thursday, July 24. Golden State Theatre, 417 Alvarado St., Monterey. $56-$103. 649-1070, goldenstatetheatre.com. Friday, July 25 DANCE REVOLUTION In the early ’90s, there was something missing in the electronic music genre. Enter The Crystal Method, a duo that pioneered the big beat sound, still part of many night club lineups today. That includes at Compact Disco, where DJ Kenny Summit regularly includes The Crystal Method’s music in his sets. Thirty years after The Crystal Method made a splash in EDM, Compact Disco itself pioneered something that was missing from downtown Monterey: a nightclub. This evening celebrates the venue’s 2-year anniversary with half of The Crystal Method, Ken Jordan, who is coming out of retirement for the occasion, alongside proprietor Kenny Summit. Celebrate these leaders in genre and place-making, or show up just for a fun time on the dance floor. [SR] 8pm Friday, July 25 (open bar 8-9pm). Compact Disco, 420 Tyler St., Monterey. $45. 920-2518, compactdisco.org. 26 MONTEREY COUNTY WEEKLY JULY 24-30, 2025 www.montereycountynow.com MORDECAI LUTES Every year, Youth Arts Collective presents a summer art show. Once again, the audience—and art collectors—have a chance to see what the local high school and college-level artists produced this year. YAC exhibits are known for their color, rich imagination and freshness of ideas. The above piece comes from Mordecai Lutes, a YACster and a high school junior. “YAC has been a helpful resource for me as a young artist,” Lutes wrote in an artist statement. “I appreciate the cultivated community which has helped me grow as both an artist and as a person.” The opening reception takes place at 6pm on Friday, July 25, with a chance to meet the young artists and their mentors. As always, the exhibit will also be available online, starting the day of opening. Pieces are for sale in person and online at yacstudios.org. The YAC gallery is located at 472 Calle Principal in Monterey. Gallery hours are 3-7pm Monday to Friday and noon-4pm on Saturdays. [AP] 24-30 JULY HOT PICKS To see more local events, and add your own, visit calendar.montereycountynow.com MORDECAI LUTES VISUALS ANDY WILLIAMS For the last 40 years, Andy Williams (whose self-portrait is shown above) has been capturing landscapes of Monterey County, from its beaches to fields of Salinas and Fort Ord’s historic grounds. His newest exhibit, Monterey County: A Painter’s Chronicle—40 Years in Steinbeck Country, gathers all this work and is now on display at ArtWorks @ Salinas (located at 262 Main St.). Williams started with watercolors, moved to oil painting and later concentrated on plein-air painting. The exhibit is on display until Sept. 26. Gallery hours are 10am-2pm Tuesdays, and 10am-4pm Friday to Sunday. [AP] Obon is the festival of the dead in Japanese Buddhism, during which the spirits of ancestors are honored. It is now time for annual celebrations in Salinas. RONALD KYUTOKU Marty Stuart and His Fabulous Superlatives have been touring for most of the previous quarter-century. The band is in the midst of a full 2025 schedule. ANDY WILLIAMS
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