oh hell yeah...but no beer tents please. I hate hearing that nasty little rumor!
Diane Birch
In Concert
WXPN - Singer, songwriter and pianist Diane Birch sounds like a seasoned veteran, due in no small part to her extensive world travels as a child. But she's only just released her first album, Bible Belt, which skillfully blends soul, rock, jazz and pop. Hear Birch perform live in concert from WXPN and World Cafe Live in Philadelphia. LISTEN AFTER THE JUMP
GO WEST YOUNG MAN 10p
JARED MEES & THE GROWN CHILDREN 11p
MARVELOUS TOY 9p
FRENCH SEMESTER 12a
GO WEST YOUNG MAN
“Melody merchant Damin Suarez (ex-the Fictions) has crafted an homage to classic pop that pushes the same buttons as the likes of Elvis Costello, Ben Folds and a host of 60s and 70s hitmakers who used horns and harmonies to sweeten their piano arrangements. Whether guitar- or keyboard-based, Suarezs tunes are as memorable as anything contemporaries such as the 88 or the Little Ones have made, and GWYMs frisky rhythms punctuate the bite in his lyrics. In an era so many artists feel compelled to deconstruct pop to make it interesting, Suarez has built himself a castle.” - BuzzbandsLA
JARED MEES & THE GROWN CHILDREN
"Stories are told with the cleverness and refined skill of an old-fashioned songwriter and filled with words that need to be heard – and shouted along to." -Performer Magazine
Fitz and The Tantrums || Watch
You can practically hear the record needle drop on the scratchy 45 when listening to Fitz and The Tantrums, a stylish retro-styled 60’s pop/soul combo from L.A. The influences and references, a mash up of early Motown, Stax and even a touch of British Invasion and Hall and Oates blue-eyed soul, knock against each other with cool abandon but there’s no doubt that Fitz and his revue also have a keen eye on the recent success of other neo-soul singers such as Amy Winehouse, Duffy and Adele.
Noted Winehouse producer Mark Ronson is a fan and it’s easy to see why in the “imitation and flattery” play book. The material may not be in the majors yet — there’s just a bit too much studied retro structure and marketing concept at play here — but fortunately the band’s August 11 debut five-track EP Songs For A Breakup, Vol. 1 has just enough small pleasures and downtown grit to keep things interesting. We’re not in the Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings territory yet but just getting this close makes it worth a listen. Lead track “Breakin’ The Chains of Love” is one of the best of the batch, a song that manages to bring a fresh, “where have I heard that” melody to the super-stylized sound - Direct Current Music
With:
Jenny O.
Resident DJs Dia and Solid Todd spinning
8:30pm / $8 / 21+
Can a band that names its debut album Eulogies be taken at face value? The group must be playing their self-reflexive card out of the gate, starting at the end and working their way backwards, or otherwise signaling the poetic finish of something large, with a fresh start to boot, right? Not necessarily, especially if the band itself is named Eulogies. Bandleader Peter Walker’s songs draw inspiration from the literal meaning of the term, dealing variously with despair and regret, and were crafted during a 2006 tour on which he opened for Starsailor; to his credit, Walker plays his songs much closer to the vest than his former tourmates. Eulogies simmers with emotion and brims with understated hooks, registering nearest the sensible introspection of Wheat’s Hope and Adams, Nada Surf’s The Weight is a Gift, or Death Cab for Cutie’s Transatlanticism.
Not so much clenched teeth as effectively restrained power-pop passion, Eulogies’ most expressive moments– the chugging chorus of “Running in the Rain”, the opening guitar fanfare from “Useless Amends”, the temporarily wanky solo from “Life Boat”– are quickly subsumed to calmer tones, most often in the form of shadowy electric guitar and Walker’s whispery pleas. Matters are occasionally expanded, but at the lyrical level: “Under the Knife” elevates denial to universal proportions, questioning the impact of “Those who died for us to live/ On false foundations,” before reaching a fulfilling, yet discreet, refrain. “Can’t Relate” overcomes the occasional overwrought lyric (”We’re all swimming in the bottles of our own accord”) with one of the record’s most effective productions, an organ-laced acoustic brood. Opener “One Man” has a muted, Ric Ocasek-style guitar line weaving throughout, and expands into a satisfying, but self-possessed chorus. - Pitchfork
With:
Bad Veins || Listen
Avi Buffalo
A Decent Animal || Listen
www.myspace.com/verybecareful
www.myspace.com/lasantacecilia
www.myspace.com/waitthinkfast
www.myspace.com/remezcla
www.lamadreiswatching.com
www.myspace.com/traveltips
www.myspace.com/muchoparty
Proposal Seeks to have Sunset Junction Festival Free for 3 Zip Codes
From LAist:
Unless Sunset Junction Festival organizers address local resident concerns and businesses, the festival is unlikely to be permitted by the city. So far, the Silver Lake Neighborhood Council, who represents the area at a grassroots neighborhood level, has voted against the festival in its entirety. For their meeting tomorrow, the agenda (.pdf) lists has a motion for consideration that seeks to alleviate some of those concerns:
The SLNC has voted against the Sunset Junction Street Festival in its present form. This was done on behalf of the Silver Lake residents and businesses that endure hardships & extreme distress regarding parking, traffic, poor safety control and financial demands. I, Patricia McGrath therefore move that the SLNC ask that the following conditions be applied for 2009, if this festival is to be held this year: (1) All Silver Lake residents and their families in zip codes 90039, 90029 and 90026 be allowed entry for free; and (2) Separate beer gardens be designated for alcohol, so attending individuals and families can find and walk in alcohol-free environs.
Safe to say, that's a lot of people. Even if passed, it doesn't mean it becomes law, nor does it mean festival organizers have to make it so. Neighborhood Councils are only advisory to the City Council. But Councilmember Eric Garcetti has made it clear that the neighborhood council is playing an important and strong role in this case. - MORE AFTER THE JUMP
I've really liked both of these artists for a while...the "I can dig up a couple of their old records, no problem" type thing. And, I've got to say, I'm looking forward to hearing this album. About this promo itself though, doesn't Nas sorta seem like that faded guy at the party that's cool and everything, but just keeps following you around telling you how great and prolific something is or is about to be?
Just kidding Nas, I'll give it to you; this is an exciting project...
NAS & DAMIAN "JR GONG" MARLEY DISTANT RELATIVES preview from nabil elderkin on Vimeo.
Get some jobs you yippieyipsters!
New Jason Schwartzman
Music Video for Coconut Records
So Adele was the music selector for a brief moment on KCRW, and I'll be goddamned if she didn't play a little Wanda!
Exclusive Listen:
Bjork
'Voltaic'
Voltaic is a new recording from Bjork, but it's not new material.
You can find it in five different flavors — I'll run through those in a moment — but first, let me talk about the music on Voltaic, the music you can hear on our site. In 2007, there was Volta, a CD of new songs from Bjork. Well, just before Bjork's performance at the Glastonbury Festival in 2007, and before beginning what would be a two-year Volta tour, she and her band went into Olympic Studios in London. There, the group recorded live to tape selections from Medulla, Homogenic, Post, Vespertine and her latest. These performances are what make up Voltaic. - Bob Boilen, NPR - HEAR THE ENTIRE ALBUM AFTER THE JUMP
Dirty Projectors: Balancing Head And Heart
By Will Hermes
It's been around 30 years — since the CBGB's era — since New York City has had a really vital rock scene. But they've sure got one now. Albums by Animal Collective and Grizzly Bear have already been flagged as two of this year's best. And I think another adventurous young band with Brooklyn roots, Dirty Projectors, has made a third.
An experimental rock group with a shifting lineup, led by recent Yale graduate David Longstreth, Dirty Projectors can be playfully high-concept; the band has made a song cycle whose storyline somehow involves Eagles singer Don Henley and a highly abstracted remake of the LP Rise Above by the '80s punk rockers in Black Flag. But Bitte Orca — the band's latest release, so named because Dirty Projectors liked the sound of it — is more straightforward. It focuses on the mixed male and female voices of the band members. While parts are influenced by modern R&B, the arrangements are far different. The single "Stillness Is the Move," for example, strikes me as a bit like Destiny's Child teaming up with Talking Heads.
Exclusive Listen: Regina Spektor, 'Far'
By Bob Boilen
Regina Spektor writes music just for me. Well, okay, maybe for you, too. But when I listen to her music, it sure seems as if she's singing in my ear and telling me stories filled with poetic twists and turns that are provocative, and that hang in my thoughts like a good melody.
No one laughs at God / When their airplane starts to uncontrollably shake / No one's laughing at God / When they see the one they love, hand in hand with someone else / And they hope that they're mistaken — "Laughing With"
Those are lines from Spektor's new record, Far, which uses four different producers in multiple locations. That sort of thing can make a record a mess, but that didn't happen with Far. Her work with Jeff Lynne (ELO, The Traveling Wilburys), David Kahne (Paul McCartney, The Strokes), Garret "Jacknife" Lee (R.E.M., Weezer) and Mike Elizondo (Dr. Dre, Eminem) is cohesive and sharp. And, though there are different production styles on the record, they never overwhelm the melodies or the delightful lilt and phrasing that makes a Regina Spektor song what it is. These are songs that can feel as much akin to Ella Fitzgerald as they do to Bjork, and as much akin to Paul McCartney as they do to Edith Piaf.
This is a record worth putting on repeat. Far feels simple on its surface, but the secrets and the fun lie just underneath. I'd love to hear your thoughts in our comments section below. - LISTEN TO THE ALBUM AFTER THE JUMP
Rarely can a film penetrate the glamorous surface of rock legends. It Might Get Loud tells the personal stories, in their own words, of three generations of electric guitar virtuosos – The Edge (U2), Jimmy Page (Led Zeppelin), and Jack White (The White Stripes). It reveals how each developed his unique sound and style of playing favorite instruments, guitars both found and invented. Concentrating on the artist’s musical rebellion, traveling with him to influential locations, provoking rare discussion as to how and why he writes and plays, this film lets you witness intimate moments and hear new music from each artist. The movie revolves around a day when Jimmy Page, Jack White, and The Edge first met and sat down together to share their stories, teach and play.
Elvis Costello Gets A Little Bluegrass
By Scott Simon
For the past three decades, English singer-songwriter Elvis Costello has been traveling the world, performing music of every kind. For his latest album, Secret, Profane & Sugarcane, he headed to Nashville and got a little bluegrass. Costello recently sat down with NPR's Scott Simon to discuss the album's themes. - MORE AFTER THE JUMP
so awesomely weird! gotta watch it all the way 'til the end!
Worth A Look:
UK Street Artist Banksy’s New Exhibition
by Paul Larn
Whether you love or hate his creations, it can’t be denied that UK-born artist Banksy is etching his name into a modern pop culture anti-hero.
His street art and graffiti creations have been seen all over the world, he has a highly successful alternative portfolio book, and he has made a considerable amount of money from his more consumable pieces - Brad Pitt reportedly has spent more than $2 million on his work in 2006, 2007 and 2008, and some of the early original pieces he bought are now thought to have doubled or even trebled in estimated value.
Banksy hit national headlines again today when a super-secret exhibition with brand new creations was unveiled at the City Museum and Art Gallery in Bristol. Check out some of the photos below for a look at the kind of work he has on display, and then head on over to the BBC for much more information and a video of some of the most elaborate work featured. - MORE AFTER THE JUMP
Theresa Andersson
One-Woman Wall Of Sound
By Rita Houston
Theresa Andersson is a one-woman band, and this was never more apparent than when she strolled into the WFUV studios with no band members, but two engineers — most solo artists don't travel with any. When I booked the interview back in the early part of this year, it was because I had seen her on YouTube where she had recorded a live version of her song "Na, Na, Na" in her kitchen. The video went viral and her kitchen became famous.
Andersson's new album, Hummingbird, Go! seemed to go back to the "wall of sound" era with a full band and all the trimmings, and yet here she was by herself, surrounded by drums, tons of floor pedals, slide steel guitar and a guitar on her back, and playing them all while singing. I thought I was good at multi-tasking, but this was a whole other level. - MORE AFTER THE JUMP
Taco Trucks: 2, Government: 0
The County tried to regulate the time a taco trucks could operate in one place and lost. On Friday, a similar, but lesser known Los Angeles city ordinance from 2006 was struck down by a judge. - MORE AFTER THE JUMP
Directors dig into Beat era
New films tackle Ginsberg, Kerouac, Burroughs
By STEVE CHAGOLLAN
If a handful of filmmakers get their way, they'll soon convince audiences the real Birth of the Cool predated punk music, the Summer of Love or even Elvis. Yes, the Beats are making a comeback in a spate of movies that summon the spirits of Jack Kerouac, Allen Ginsberg and William Burroughs.
These writers and other key figures of the Beat Generation play prominent roles in three upcoming movies: "Howl," a narrative film from documentarians Rob Epstein and Jeffrey Friedman ("The Times of Harvey Milk"); "Kill Your Darlings" from Christine Vachon's Killer Films; and what could turn out to be the ultimate road movie: the long-awaited adaptation of Kerouac's "On the Road," by Walter Salles and Jose Rivera, the director and screenwriter behind "The Motorcycle Diaries." - MORE AFTER THE JUMP
from Jason Bentley to Kevin Bronson to Ashley Jex...this band is getting the 'thumbs up', so it's no surprise that I share the sentiment. I first heard them on KCRW and immediately insisted on seeing them play a late show...well, pitchers of margaritas, a Lakers victory, a mexican village dance party, and a lost phone dressed the twarted attempt to catch them properly... so I'm left with only a sigh when I think about what we might have missed...
BAND OF SKULLS
Music Video for:
I Know What I Am
because Alex can only get weirder...
From Kevin at BUZZBANDS.LA:
Leave it to Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros to have big ambitions for the visual accompaniment to their forthcoming album, “Up From Below” (due July 14). This video for the L.A. ensemble’s “Desert Song,” directed by Benjamin Kutsko and Cory Marrero, is billed the first of 12 parts of a “feature-length movie musical.” That is frontman Alex Ebert’s father chanting is Monument Valley in the opening sequence. Heady stuff, and heady times for the band, which just signed a deal with Chrysalis and seems to have been everywhere lately. I liked their in-studio session last week at KCRW-FM. Upcoming: a show at the Hammer Museum’s “Also I Like to Rock” on July 23, and a date at the Manimal Vinyl Festival in Joshua Tree on Oct. 3.
Grizzly Bear:
Painstaking Pop Craft
All Things Considered - Singer-songwriter Brian Wilson called his compositions for the Beach Boys' album Smile "a teenage symphony to God."
Rolling Stone reviewer Christian Hoard had a similar feeling about Grizzly Bear's new song "Two Weeks": "The gorgeous choral harmonies sound like a teenage symphony to God, as conceived by Radiohead-loving postgrads."
The song is on Grizzly Bear's new album Veckatimest, named for an island off the coast of Massachusetts. Band members Edward Droste and Daniel Rossen discussed the album with host Jacki Lyden. - LISTEN TO THE STORY AFTER THE JUMP
Grizzly Bear
An In-Studio Performance
Recorded Live At WNYC
The Brooklyn band Grizzly Bear releases one of the year's most hotly anticipated albums next week, but fans can hear some of its songs sooner than that: On Thursday, May 21, the group performed a special acoustic set, including material from Veckatimest, when it opened WNYC's American Music Festival with a live in-studio broadcast and webcast. Grizzly Bear performed new songs in the studio, with host David Garland welcoming the band and asking its members about their new music. LISTEN TO THE SET AFTER THE JUMP.
Exclusive Listen: Danger Mouse And Sparklehorse Team Up With David Lynch
Hear The Year's Most Mysterious Album In Its Entirety, Weeks Before Its Release
When the first cryptic bits of news about Dark Night of the Soul began trickling in earlier this year, it all sounded too good to be true. Though the whole project was shrouded in mystery, it appeared that Danger Mouse and Sparklehorse's Mark Linkous, two of the most inspired artists making music today, were collaborating on a new album. That alone was enough to get our geek gears spinning with excitement. But there was an unusual twist that few of us at NPR Music could make sense of: Director David Lynch was somehow involved. MORE AFTER THE JUMP
A Song That Gives You Chills, Dinosaur Jr., Black Moth Super Rainbow, More
All Songs Considered, May 12, 2009 - Has there ever been a song that gives you chills down your spine every time you hear it? For Bob Boilen, it's "Who Knows Where the Time Goes?" written by Sandy Denny and performed by Fairport Convention. You can hear it on this edition of All Songs Considered and tell us the song that gives you chills — no matter what — on the blog. Also on the program: the sharp guitar playing of Sarah Siskind, adventures in sound with Black Moth Super Rainbow, the 12-string guitar explorations of James Blackshaw, the heavy emotions of Dinosaur Jr. and the electronic pop music of Passion Pit.
Hey! It's our friend Ashley!
Meet Ashley Jex: Founder of JAXART Records
If Wonder Woman had hung up her cape and chosen to give up her life of fighting crime and instead wanted to get into the local music scene, she may have asked some pointers from Ashley Jex. At the tender age of twenty five, Jex has created a local music empire. Not only has she launched a very influential record label, JAXART out of her living room, she still makes time for her music blog,Rock Insider, and her band The Monolators, and somehow her day job. She can do it all. LAist caught up with Jex in her industrial epicenter (aka living room) to ask her how the heck she manages to stay awake. Here is some of what was said...MORE AFTER THE JUMP
The video of the first single from NYLON Records' Plastiscines
It's just so, so, NYLON Records-y...
Ida Maria:
Neurosis Meets Sass In 'Naked'
By Christian Hoard
NPR.org, May 6, 2009 - Long before the U.S. release of Fortress Round My Heart, Ida Maria Sivertsen was an indie-rock It Girl overseas and on music blogs here. By the end of 2009, "I Like You So Much Better When You're Naked" may well be overexposed. But until then, it's best to enjoy it as a likable slab of garage-pop that's both confessional and bloody-good fun — a song where the singer wears her heart on her sleeve, but prefers to wear nothing at all. MORE AFTER THE JUMP
Exclusive Listen:
Grandaddy's Jason Lytle
Hear His Entire Solo Debut Two Weeks Before Its Official Release
Few songwriters possess Jason Lytle's gift for telling stories. In a 15-year run as the frontman and creative force behind the Modesto, Calif., rock band Grandaddy, Lytle penned an inspired catalog of neo-psychedelic pop songs, with gut-punch tales of destitute drunks, failed suburban dreams and at least one robot that died from a broken heart. They're songs that unfold with the plainspoken elegance of a Raymond Carver short story, striking a curious and utterly affecting balance between the cosmic and the comic...more after you click on the image above.
Sonic Youth Sneak Preview,
The Year's Best Jazz Record (So Far), More
The New York-based group Sonic Youth has been making some of the most inspired and influential rock music of the past quarter century. The band is about to release its 16th studio album and its first for the Matador record label. The Eternal won't be out until June 9, but you can hear an early cut on this edition of All Songs Considered. Also on the program: Pakistan-born singer Natasha Khan and her Bat For Lashes project; music from the grasslands of China and Mamer; French singer Marianne Dissard; Ethiopian jazz legend Mulatu Astatke and the Londo-based jazz group Heliocentrics; and the Atlanta-based rock group Manchester Orchestra. Listen to the entire story! Just click on the image above!
Download this show in the All Songs Considered podcast.
Cool Kid's Gone Fishing mixtape is finally finished. Free download after the jump. The artist themselves are the ones who are giving out the mixtape download for free!
download here
DENGUE FEVER
Sleepwalking Through the Mekong follows Los Angeles based band Dengue Fever on their recent journey to Cambodia to perform 60s and 70s Cambodian rock n' roll in the country where it was created and very nearly destroyed. The odyssey is a homecoming for singer Chhom Nimol and a transformation for the rest of the band as they perform with master musicians and record new songs along the way.
yeah, as many of you know from seeing them live, they're really THAT good! check out this footage from their current tour.
Here's some video of Soko's last and only known L.A. performance:
Echo Park Named One of Top 10 Great Neighborhoods
And when you hear that, you might find yourself asking which Realtor came up with that ranking. Luckily, this time there is some creditability behind the designation: the American Planning Association. They "singled out Echo Park because of its breathtaking topography set in the hills above downtown, historic architecture, pedestrian-oriented streets and stairways, and engaged residents who, over the years, have gone to great lengths to protect and preserve their community," according to an APA release (add: their website has more info and history on why EP was chosen) .... more after you click on the image!
SUBMIT YOUR PICTURES!!!
THE MAE-SHI @ Spaceland
THE MOVIES @ Spaceland
DENGUE FEVER @ Viper Room
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