Tuesday, November 25, 2003
KCRW - Sounds Eclectic Evening
Caught this show at the Universal Ampitheatre on Saturday night. I almost sold my seats (dead center, 12th row) to head up to Seattle, but now I'm glad I stuck around.
Desey and I got there early enough to catch all the acts. Gary Jules was good, though he played his cover of "Mad World" on guitar instead of piano and it suffered a bit. Jem played a short 3-song set (introduced by what appeared to be a very constipated Jason Bentley) and was okay but needs to lose the American Idol moves. Her band was a guy on bass/guitar and a DJ.
Liz Phair did nothing for me, but there was a guy a few rows behind us that couldn't stop screaming for her. Surprise guest Shelby Lynne was great, especially the song she wrote "40 years too late for Patsy Cline."
As for Beck, he was worth the price of admission alone. I was so very happy to hear some songs from "Sea Change" played exactly the way they should've been: solo acoustic. An extended beatbox & keyboard jam (including a mash of "Hot in Here" with "Where It's At") balanced out the set with some funky fun. balance to the set And his 70s cop/porn star mustache is hot.
Jurassic 5 followed and kept the energy up, managing to get the very white and middle aged KCRW crowd on their feet. Damien Rice was definitely the surprise hit, kind of like an Irish upcountry Thom Yorke with a kick-ass band, among them a spookily beautiful backup singer who was like a cross between Bjork and the singer from Mazzy Star. At Damien's insistence, they turned all the stage lights off for one of his songs, eventually the plunging the entire ampitheatre into near-total darkness. Never, ever seen that happen before.
The afterparty was fun but brrrrrr - it was freezing that night. The ugly, boy-in-a-plastic-bubble tent served its purpose in function if not form. Didn't do a whole lot of dancing there, just mixing & mingling with random people who happened to be sitting by us, including a girl who somehow fell backwards onto a little round seat that was covered in cocktails, causing a huge explosion of ice and booze and plastic that would've sucked to suffer thorough if it hadn't been so funny.
Desey and I got there early enough to catch all the acts. Gary Jules was good, though he played his cover of "Mad World" on guitar instead of piano and it suffered a bit. Jem played a short 3-song set (introduced by what appeared to be a very constipated Jason Bentley) and was okay but needs to lose the American Idol moves. Her band was a guy on bass/guitar and a DJ.
Liz Phair did nothing for me, but there was a guy a few rows behind us that couldn't stop screaming for her. Surprise guest Shelby Lynne was great, especially the song she wrote "40 years too late for Patsy Cline."
As for Beck, he was worth the price of admission alone. I was so very happy to hear some songs from "Sea Change" played exactly the way they should've been: solo acoustic. An extended beatbox & keyboard jam (including a mash of "Hot in Here" with "Where It's At") balanced out the set with some funky fun. balance to the set And his 70s cop/porn star mustache is hot.
Jurassic 5 followed and kept the energy up, managing to get the very white and middle aged KCRW crowd on their feet. Damien Rice was definitely the surprise hit, kind of like an Irish upcountry Thom Yorke with a kick-ass band, among them a spookily beautiful backup singer who was like a cross between Bjork and the singer from Mazzy Star. At Damien's insistence, they turned all the stage lights off for one of his songs, eventually the plunging the entire ampitheatre into near-total darkness. Never, ever seen that happen before.
The afterparty was fun but brrrrrr - it was freezing that night. The ugly, boy-in-a-plastic-bubble tent served its purpose in function if not form. Didn't do a whole lot of dancing there, just mixing & mingling with random people who happened to be sitting by us, including a girl who somehow fell backwards onto a little round seat that was covered in cocktails, causing a huge explosion of ice and booze and plastic that would've sucked to suffer thorough if it hadn't been so funny.
Wednesday, November 19, 2003
Wacko Jacko Everywhere
Here in L.A. it's ALL MICHAEL, ALL THE TIME on every local news broadcast. Seriously! I watched a solid hour of non-stop coverage, with no mention of anything else. The funniest/saddest part was that there was really nothing to report. Most of the attention was focused on a live shot of a plane that MJ may or may not have been aboard. You could tell the networks were just itching for an OJ-style getaway attempt.
Beyond that, there were some interviews with Vegas-based MJ impersonators, Santa Barbara locals, a Tammy Faye lookalike who was identified as president of Michael's fan club (along with her 12 year-old son, standing in the street with a 'We Love You Michael' sign) and, of course, an outraged Gloria Allred.
It was even the top story on the ABC Nightly News, and you could tell that Peter Jennings was PISSED. When they went back to him after the story on King of Pop, his blatantly bitter comment was, "And now, on to the president, and the war." All that was missing was, "Ohhhhkayyyyyyyy."
There's been some mention from the press and Michael's camp about the odd timing of all this: his new cd came out today, the same day arrest warrants were issued.
That coincidental trend actually started for me yesterday, when this all began with a police raid of Neverland Ranch. That same night I hit the BPM Magazine party, where DJ Dan and Charles Feelgood were spinning an all 80's bootleg and remix set.
The first time I ever heard Charles spin was a couple years ago at this lame party where he dropped an awesome boot of MJ's "Rock with You." It got me wondering how many more might be out there, and after a few months of searching and selecting, I compiled a cd called "Wacko Jacko" of my favorite cuts. It was (and still is) quite the hit.
That "Rock With You" remix was played twice last night, along with plenty of other bootlegged, ripped-off remixes. But I guess Michael has bigger problems now than losing royalties.
Beyond that, there were some interviews with Vegas-based MJ impersonators, Santa Barbara locals, a Tammy Faye lookalike who was identified as president of Michael's fan club (along with her 12 year-old son, standing in the street with a 'We Love You Michael' sign) and, of course, an outraged Gloria Allred.
It was even the top story on the ABC Nightly News, and you could tell that Peter Jennings was PISSED. When they went back to him after the story on King of Pop, his blatantly bitter comment was, "And now, on to the president, and the war." All that was missing was, "Ohhhhkayyyyyyyy."
There's been some mention from the press and Michael's camp about the odd timing of all this: his new cd came out today, the same day arrest warrants were issued.
That coincidental trend actually started for me yesterday, when this all began with a police raid of Neverland Ranch. That same night I hit the BPM Magazine party, where DJ Dan and Charles Feelgood were spinning an all 80's bootleg and remix set.
The first time I ever heard Charles spin was a couple years ago at this lame party where he dropped an awesome boot of MJ's "Rock with You." It got me wondering how many more might be out there, and after a few months of searching and selecting, I compiled a cd called "Wacko Jacko" of my favorite cuts. It was (and still is) quite the hit.
That "Rock With You" remix was played twice last night, along with plenty of other bootlegged, ripped-off remixes. But I guess Michael has bigger problems now than losing royalties.
Monday, November 17, 2003
Could the Valley be cool?
To me, the Valley will always be cool for the uncool stuff, as summarized by
this statement from a recent LA Times article on the subject:
"so lame it's actually kind of neat"
But I've been known to be wrong. Like, once or twice, maybe.
link to LA Times article
or:
http://www.calendarlive.com/nightlife/cl-wk-cover13nov13,2,1211783.story?coll=cl-nightlife-features
this statement from a recent LA Times article on the subject:
"so lame it's actually kind of neat"
But I've been known to be wrong. Like, once or twice, maybe.
link to LA Times article
or:
http://www.calendarlive.com/nightlife/cl-wk-cover13nov13,2,1211783.story?coll=cl-nightlife-features
Sunday, November 02, 2003
Creepy Consumerism
I found myself at a Best Buy in San Diego early this morning, having remembered while on a visit down there that tomorrow is my brother's birthday. I got there a bit before it opened and there were 10-12 people waiting outside. When they finally opened the doors to let us in, the entire staff was standing just inside... and they applauded us for a full 20 seconds or so as we entered the store. It was so fucking weird and oddly embarrassing.
Also, this might be obvious to some, but if you're in the market for a fog machine, strobe light, glow stuff, wacky wigs or silly outfits/accessories (as I always seem to be) now is the time to get them at any of those Halloween superstores. I hit a huge one today by the Citadel outlets, just south of downtown on the 5, and got a lot of good stuff for dirt cheap. Who knew that Elvira had her own brand of press-on nails? Or that marshmallow "Peeps" also come in vampire bat variety?
Last but not least, pal Tally called me from a thrift store in Westwood today where he'd found an interesting book about wine. The inscription inside reads, "Nicole- Drunk on your love. O.J." I quickly reminded Tally that he still hasn't given me a present for my birthday two weeks ago.
-k
Also, this might be obvious to some, but if you're in the market for a fog machine, strobe light, glow stuff, wacky wigs or silly outfits/accessories (as I always seem to be) now is the time to get them at any of those Halloween superstores. I hit a huge one today by the Citadel outlets, just south of downtown on the 5, and got a lot of good stuff for dirt cheap. Who knew that Elvira had her own brand of press-on nails? Or that marshmallow "Peeps" also come in vampire bat variety?
Last but not least, pal Tally called me from a thrift store in Westwood today where he'd found an interesting book about wine. The inscription inside reads, "Nicole- Drunk on your love. O.J." I quickly reminded Tally that he still hasn't given me a present for my birthday two weeks ago.
-k
