A Post-Loveline Adam Carolla Signs On to Host the West Beach Music Festival

As this year’s concert season at the Santa Barbara Bowl slowly comes to a close and music lovers across the country begin preparing for the cold winter months ahead, we Southern California dwellers can revel in the fact that picturesque, warm weather days are by no means behind us. In an effort to stretch out those good summer vibes just a wee bit longer, the sibling duo of Twin Productions bring us this weekend’s can’t-miss live music event: the West Beach Music Festival. Offering up an eclectic smattering of jam bands, reggae acts, and pop-punksters, the show promises all the beachside mayhem one could ask for.

After a rough bout with booking agents and performance schedules, Twin Productions have collectively managed to round up a solid lineup of Santa Barbara rock royalty and talented up-and-comers. S.B. natives and MTV staples Sugarcult make a much anticipated return to town, alongside ALO (Animal Liberation Orchestra) and The Penfifteen Club. Meanwhile, downtown staples like Ona and Iration have been brought on board to keep the party rolling. Throughout the day, the Kinsella Brothers, 880 South, and Shades of Day will offer up laid-back, jammy tunes, making for an afternoon of beachfront musical harmony that is sure to overshadow any late-October chill. Recently, the festival’s official ambassador, Adam Carolla, took some time to chat about hosting the show and life after Loveline.

How exactly did you end up signing on to play host? I’ve done a ton of junk with KROQ over the years, of course. It’s pretty easy. The deal is, don’t be too ambitious. Pretty much just bring the band on, because if you talk too long everyone gets pissed. : You’re really just kind of there, ya know? It’s the best kind of hosting [because] hosting hosting means writing some sort of speech, doing some sort of long-winded greeting, wrapping it up. That stuff sucks. I dunno. I’m kind of a weird performer because I don’t like to be onstage. I like to get up there, say hi to everyone, thank everyone.

So any particular band you’re personally interested in seeing play? This is in Santa Barbara, right? They should get Toad the Wet Sprocket out there. I must say, I have not exactly kept up with what’s hip and now in the world of music since I left KROQ, especially. : I’ll be drinking my beer, listening to whatever band is on, and enjoying it.

And how is the radio show going? I hear you are doing pretty well in Los Angeles. The reality is we’ve been doing well everywhere but L.A., but we just started to do well in L.A., which is good for us, because that’s all they say they care about. It’s weird-we’ve been all over the map. We’ve been number one in Vegas for a long time, for I dunno why, but then always did crappy in San Diego, but it’s the same show. : In L.A., there’s just so much competition and so many stations and so many people have been around for so long that it’s just going to take a while to get some market share. : It’s tough.

It’s like, every single morning I eat exactly the same thing for breakfast. I have two poached eggs and two pieces of rye toast with a little butter and jam on it, and my cup of coffee. I mean, it’s five in the morning, so I’m not sitting there going, “Hmmm, am I in the mood for French toast or Belgian waffles? Perhaps I’ll make myself some eggs Florentine.” It’s pretty much the same shit. I realized most people eat the same thing for breakfast every morning. They eat their bagel, or they eat their cereal, or whatever. Not on the weekend-on the weekend you make your French toast-but during the week, you’re on your schedule and you eat your shit. : At night, you get in a different mindset, but in the morning you get on a schedule, and you listen to the radio you listen to and it’s hard to break people of that.

Have you looked back at Loveline and thought, “What did I do?” Oh my God, yeah. I never knew how spoiled I was. The thing about Loveline was the show was just always number one : and I didn’t even know. We were on in like 90, 95 markets and I didn’t know what the ratings were anywhere. We always did great; that’s all I knew. That was it. Never had a discussion. I didn’t know I was headed for some fucking life where I was going to have 150 fucking conversations about ratings. : I can’t speed things up. I’d talk to people seven, eights months into my new job and they’d be like, “Oh hey, are you still doing Loveline?” And you’re like, “No. I’m doing the morning show. Thanks for listening.”

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Adam Carolla hosts and Sugarcult headlines the West Beach Music Festival on Saturday, October 27, from 11 a.m.-8 p.m. at Carrillo Boulevard and State Street. Must be 21 years old. Call (800) 594-8499 or visit westbeachmusicfestival.com for tickets.