Party music

Don your party hat this Friday and celebrate all night to welcome in another new year. This year, fortunately, the new year celebrations fall on a weekend so you’ll have a few days to recover from your champagne-induced hangover. But if you think you have one more night of partying left in you, head to John Ascuaga’s Nugget on Jan. 1 for a performance by Smash Mouth. The group, which gets its name from the term “smashmouth football,” will get 2005 off to an upbeat start with their beach party-vibe and groovy dance tunes. The band formed in 1994 in San Jose, Calif., and got its first taste of success after area radio station KOME played its single, “Nervous in the Alley.” The quartet later signed with Interscope Records and released its first album, Fush Yu Mang, in 1997 (which includes the hit single, “Walkin’ on the Sun.”) The band has since released four albums and scored several hits including “All Star” and a cover of The Monkees’ “I’m A Believer.” The group is working on a fifth album scheduled for release next year. Smash Mouth performs 8 p.m. Jan. 1 at the Rose Ballroom inside John Ascuaga’s Nugget, 1100 Nugget Ave., Sparks. Tickets are $40. Call 356-3300.—Kelley Lang