I wish I were in Paris today to see Biffy Clyro’s last show in support of Only Revolutions. This is quite possibly the best record ever made (in my opinion) and it should be celebrated! In honor of the event, I will be listening to Biffy Clyro all day.
that is all.
~ Kristen
Needtobreathe just announced that they are playing an intimate gig at The Hotel Cafe THIS FRIDAY/tomorrow/8.26. I pounced on this amazing opportunity and wanted to get the word out there for all you Needtobreathe fans…you know this is going to sell out any moment now. Go here to see if there are still tickets available: https://www.hotelcafe.com/tickets/?s=events_view&id=1159
Another exciting show announcement on the other end of the spectrum (but equally exciting to me): Our Lady Peace at The Viper Room. September 11th! Support from some great local groups, The Shakers, Of Verona, Hello Vegas. This is another get your tickets now moment. Go here: http://www.ticketweb.com/t3/sale/SaleEventDetail?dispatch=loadSelectionData&eventId=3898445
Finally, with the unfortunate cancellation of Sunset Junction this weekend, you might be at a loss for what to do. No sign (yet) of a rescheduled The Belle Brigade/Rooney/Hanson show on Sunday night, but there are some last minute shows popping up that might help fill the void.
* Milo Greene will be at The Hotel Cafe Saturday night. This is a new band love of mine so this will be an amazing show! Don’t miss it
* Helmet Saturday night at The Viper Room
* Dangerbird Records (in Silverlake) is hosting some of my favorite artists that were bound for the Sunset Junction Stage on Saturday afternoon from 12-6pm. Artists include Milo Greene, Butch Walker, Chasing Kings, and Holly Conlan. For more info go here: http://www.987fm.com/pages/closetohome.html?article=9023691
* you can venture to Long Beach for another festival. BuskerFest features some great bands like Everest, Jay Buchanan, and new LMN discovery Korey Dane. For more info: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=186777321372614
That’s all I got for now! Go buy your tickets and I’ll see you at the shows!!
UPDATES on more Sunset Junction artists booking new shows can be found here:
http://blogs.laweekly.com/westcoastsound/2011/08/sunset_junction_rescheduled_ba.php
~ Kristen
Here are the albums I’m going to check out this week. If you’re looking for some new tunes, read onward!
Gabe Dixon – One Spark
Last week I downloaded Ten Out of Tenn’s Volume 4. One of my favorite tracks of the album is the contribution from Gabe Dixon. I immediately did some research into this Nashville based artist and discovered that he had his own CD, One Spark, coming out today! If the rest of the album is anything like “On a Day Just Like Today,” it will be well worth adding to your collection. You can listen to the entire album on Gabe’s website and buy the album there, on ITunes, or Amazon. Gabe has a couple Nashville dates (8/24 FREE at Grimeys, 9/4 at 3rd and Lindsley) before hitting the road with Ten Out of Tenn.
http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/one-spark/id455907522
http://www.amazon.com/One-Spark-Gabe-Dixon/dp/B004YAS9NW/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1314125034&sr=8-2
This video makes me even more excited about this album…so many fantastic artist collaborations (James Walsh/Starsailor, Iain Archer, Alison Krauss, and my very favorite songwriter Dan Wilson)
Various Artists – Muppets: The Green Album
I love the Muppets. I also love OK Go, Weezer, The Fray, Alkaline Trio, My Morning Jacket, Amy Lee, Sondre Lerche, The Airborne Toxic Event, Brandon Saller, Andrew Bird, Matt Nathanson, and Rachel Yamagata…ALL the artists covering classic Muppet songs like “Rainbow Connection,” “Bein’ Green,” and “The Muppet Theme Song.” What is not to love about this whole concept?!? Also, any project that can bring about video collaborations between OK Go and The Muppets deserves recognition and flattery.
or here: http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/id452905746
stream it here: http://www.npr.org/2011/08/14/138984517/first-listen-muppets-the-green-album
And watch this…over and over again:
We Are Augustines– Rise Ye Sunken Ships
I saw a poster for We Are Augustines last night promoting their upcoming performance at The Bootleg in Silverlake. Some kid was quite enthusiastic about stealing said poster. Since there were a couple bands I enjoy at Bootleg last night, I figured this kid could be on to something so I went home and googled We Are Augustines. Seems like this was perfect timing as they have a CD coming out today! I listened to the tracks they have streaming on the page and my ears were pleased. You can download one of my favorite tracks (thus far), “Book of James” for free on their website and judge for yourselves. This Brooklyn-based band starts touring at the end of August and will be in LA at The Bootleg September 13th.
Happy New Music Day!!
~ Kristen
SSMF 2011 might be officially over, but pictures, recaps, new band love announcements, videos, etc. are all being processed so the experience will be extended for a good week or so. Today has been difficult because as much as I need to recover from the totally insanity of the last few days, there is still so much to be done! Tomorrow is a big day at work and a big night out on the town. And let’s not forget that Sunset Junction is next weekend! I’m still not quite sure how it’s all going to go down, but here is my general blueprint for the week:
Monday: Ben Rector at The Hotel Cafe (8pm)
ALSO: Scarlet Grey with The Dead & Departed and Dead Country at The Troubadour (8pm, SG at 9:45)…this will be the last local Scarlet Grey show for awhile, so if you’re a fan, you’d best make it out
ALSO: Some Hear Explosions at The Viper Room (11:15)
ALSO: Chappo FREE at The Satellite (10pm)
ALSO: Jenny O, Robert Francis, and The Constellations FREE at Bootleg (10,11,12)
ALSO: The Lexingtons FREE at Silverlake Lounge (12am)
ALSO: Songwriters in the Round at Room 5 featuring Kyler England, Joel Eckels, Stephen Wrabel, and John Schmidt (9pm)
Tuesday: Brett Hite FREE at the W Hotel (7:15pm)
ALSO: The Trews at The Viper Room (8pm)
ALSO: Chris Thile at The Largo (9pm)
ALSO: David and Devine at The Dragonfly in Santa Monica (8pm)
ALSO: Beachwood Rockers Night at Piano Bar: and evening of FREE great local music starting at 8pm
Weds: Anna Nalick and Meiko at The Hotel Cafe (10,11)
ALSO: Fiona Apple at The Largo (8pm)
ALSO: The Lookout Kids at The Viper Room (8:50)
Thursday: The Veronicas at The Viper Room (9pm)
ASO: Abbot Kinney FREE at The Hard Rock Cafe (10pm)
ALSO: Madi Diaz at The Hotel Cafe (9pm)
ALSO: Red Circle Underground at O’Briens in Santa Monica (9pm)
ALSO: 100 Monkeys at The El Rey (8pm)
Friday: Patrick Park at The Echo (8pm)
ALSO: Will Hutchinson at Room 5 (10pm)
Saturday: Sunset Junction featuring KD Lang, Chasing Kings, Milo Greene, Brian Wright, Cary Brothers, Butch Walker, Lovers Drugs and SO MUCH MORE (noon)…for the complete schedule go here: http://www.sunsetjunction.org/index.php/street-fair/performance-schedule
ALSO: Golden State, Brendan Hines, and Sunset Junction after party at the Hotel Cafe (10, 11pm)
ALSO: The Goo Goo Dolls at The Greek Theater (7pm)
Sunday: Sunset Junction featuring Hanson, Rooney, The Belle Brigade, Lady Danville, The Rescues, Honeyhoney, Jim Bianco, David and Devine, and SO MANY MORE (noon)…see above link for schedule
ALSO: Holly Miranda and Uh Huh Her at Bootleg Bar (9,10)
To Keep in Mind:
August 29th: Carbon Leaf at Saint Rocke
August 30th: Fiction Family at Bootleg Bar
September 1st: Fierce Creatures at The Hotel Cafe
September 3rd: FYF
September 8th Dead Sara at The Viper Room
September 9-10: San Diego Music Thing
September 16th: Lobster Fest with Andy Clockwise and more
September 17th: We Barbarians at The Satllite
September 20th: Howie Day at The Hotel Cafe
September 22-24: Hotel Carolina (South Carolina)
September 22nd: Jonathan Tyler and the Northern Lights at The Viper Room
September 23rd: Inara George at Bootleg Bar
September 23rd/24th: Lee Dewyze at The Hotel Cafe
September 24th: The Script at Hollywood Palladium
September 24th and 25th: William Elliot Whitmore at Bootleg Theater
September 25th: The Lonely Forest at The Wiltern
September 28th: Puddle of Mudd at The Viper Room
October 11th: Rival Sons and Evanescence at Hollywood Palladium
October 14th: Butterfly Boucher at Bootleg Theater
October 22nd: The War on Drugs at The Satellite
November 12th: Feist at The WIltern
November 19th: Milo Greene, The Belle Brigade, and The Civil Wars at The Wiltern
March 13th-18th: SXSW (Austin, TX)
~ Kristen
Another Tuesday, another barrage of new music. There are a few I’m looking forward to getting my hands on this week so I thought I’d share.
The Milk Carton Kids– Prolouge
This is one of the BEST CDs currently in my player. I’ve said it before, but Joey Ryan and Kenneth Pattengale (AKA The Milk Carton Kids) are the second coming of Simon & Garfunkel…if Simon & Garfunkel could make you both laugh to the point of crying. There is no excuse for anyone not to get this CD as it is being offered for free on The Milk Carton Kids website. Pay close attention to the tour dates because this show is one you don’t want to miss.
“Michigan” is the first song off the album. It was days before I could move on to track to because I just had this one on repeat.
Bird by Bird– While You Sleep
Bay area rockers, Bird by Bird, were in town on Saturday playing On the Rox. I’ve been looking forward to seeing this duo of Jonathan Devoto and Ross Traver, but of course Saturday was the day of a million shows and I couldn’t make it. Guess I’ll have to go the download route (http://birdbybird.bandcamp.com/) on this one as the only shows the band have scheduled are up in Nor Cal. Even though I’ll have to wait a bit longer to see them live, at least now I have something new for the ears.
You can listen to a stream of the album on AOL’s Music Page: http://music.aol.com/new-releases-full-cds/#/13
The War on Drugs– Slave Ambient
My Philadelphia brethren, The War on Drugs, have a new album. I’ve only heard bits of it, but some of my favorite musicians are associated with this band, so you’d better bet I’m going to go out and get it! Their 2008 album, Wagonwheel Blues, boasted tunes like “Taking The Farm” and “Arms Like Boulders” which still find their way onto my playlists. The War on Drugs is coming to The Satellite October 22nd.
Listen here to The War on Drugs live on NPR!
And an interview with Filter Magazine
Buy Slave Ambient here
Ten Out of Tenn– Volume 4
Ten Out of Tenn is a collective of artists based in Nashville, TN. Individually they are all amazing singer-songwriters, Butterfly Boucher, Andrew Belle, Trent Dabbs, Katie Herzig, etc. Together, the ten (or so) artists travel around the country together playing their music and combining their skills to form a sort of super group. Their albums, including today’s release, Volume 4, come across as compilation CDs, giving the listener a taste of each individual voice. I love this concept! Ten Out of Tenn is currently out on tour. I wouldn’t miss it…
Tour: http://www.10outoftenn.com/home#/tour
Because I just saw him last Friday, here is Ten Out of Tenn featuring Andrew Belle’s “The Ladder”
Other CDs coming out today:
Happy New Music Day!
~ Kristen
Last week I kind of took it a bit easy. Let’s call it a conservation of energy tactic. Saturday, I went from 0 to 100. I stopped at The Hudson block party where I discovered a great new band (Nightmare & The Cat), did some dancing, ate some food, and witnessed a Wu Tang performance. I left early, missing out on a couple of my favorites (Dead Sara and Andy Clockwise). I had to get to Santa Monica for the Milk Carton Kids CD release event where I spent two hours on the brink of tears, either from laughing too hard or from the sheer beauty and brilliance of the music. Then I jetted from McCabe’s down to Saint Rocke just in time to be blown away by the powerful and empowering Nico Vega. So many great friends gathered at this final performance, I ended up talking/laughing/smiling through the wee hours. A day to remember for sure!
And really, yesterday was just the beginning of a week-long celebration of music and friends surrounding The Sunset Strip Music Festival. If you want to know what I’m up to next week, just go here: http://www.sunsetstripmusicfestival.com/.
And that’s not all? In fact, there are so many shows I wish I could go to this week but can’t that I’m beginning to think that I’ve done something to upset the universe. The cruelty of having TFDI’s So-Cal dates conflict directly with SSMF. The inhumanity of me NOT getting a ticket to see Muth Math at The Troubadour. The audacity of scheduling TWO Death Cab for Cutie/Frightened Rabbit dates when I cannot attend either one.
What a week! Here goes my list:
Monday: Automatique at The Viper Room (10:15)
ALSO: Robert Francis FREE at Bootleg Bar (11pm)
ALSO: The Wilderness of Manitoba at Origami Vinyl (7pm)
ALSO: Adele at The Greek Theater (7:30)
ALSO: Songwriters in the Round at Room 5 (9pm)
ALSO: it’s a school night at Bardot featuring Damndogs (featuring members of Jet) and Nikki Lane (10:30)…FREE with RSVP http://www.itsaschoolnight.com/
Tuesday: Mute Math at The Troubadour (8pm)…if someone has an extra ticket to this thing, I’ll be your friend forever…
ALSO: Wilderness of Manitoba at The Hotel Cafe (7pm)
ALSO: SSMF Showcase at The Roxy featuring The Green Children, Kyle Nicolaides, Los Einsten, and more (7pm)
Weds: SSMF Showcase at The Roxy featuring Benvenue, Lido Beach, and more (7pm)
ALSO: Old 97’s and Josh Ritter at The Wiltern (7pm)
ALSO: Alex Lambert at Room 5 (10pm)
ALSO: Parker Ainsworth at The Hotel Cafe (9pm)
ALSO: The Weepies at The Troubadour (8pm)
ALSO: Adele at Hollywood Palladium (7pm)
Thursday: Nico Vega and Eastern State Champions at The Roxy (9pm)
ALSO: The Canyons (8), The Veronicas (9) and Run Run Run(10:30), The Tender Box (11:20), Nude (12:20) at The Viper Room
ALSO: TFDI at The Hotel Cafe (9pm)
ALSO: Johnny Polonsky at Silverlake Lounge (9pm)
ALSO: Frightened Rabbit and Death Cab for Cutie at The Greek (7:30)
Friday: Dead Sara and Buckcherry at The Roxy (8pm)
ALSO: Kevin Martin at On the Rox (8pm)
ALSO: Taylor Locke & The Roughs (8:30), Lady Sinatra (9:30), Purple Melon (10:30), Hillbilly Herald (12), and Eli James (1am) at The Viper Room
ALSO: TFDI at Saint Rocke (9pm)
ALSO: Keaton Simons at The Hotel Cafe (11pm)
ALSO: Red Light Sky at Amplyfi (9:45)
ALSO: Frightened Rabbit and Death Cab for Cutie at The Greek (7:30)
Saturday: SSMF at The Sunset Strip (between The Key Club and The Whiskey) featuring Motley Crue, Bush, Youngblood Hawke, Indians, Love and A .38, Deluka, Queen Caveat, Jordan Cook, Imagine Dragons, Sabrosa Purr, Semi Precious Weapons, and SO MANY MORE (1pm)
ALSO: Walk the Moon at Bootleg Bar (11pm)
ALSO: Taryn Manning at The Hotel Cafe (11pm)
ALSO: Maxim Ludwig & The Santa Fe Seven at The Troubadour (8:15)
ALSO: TFDI at Zoey’s in Ventura (5pm)
Sunday: Koffehouse presents 5th Annual Evening of Independence at Ford Amphitheatre featuring Tyrone Wells, Satellite, Allen Stone, Jamestown Revival, Of Verona, Jes Hudak, and MORE (6pm)
Monday: Big presentation at work…I’m just pointing this out to emphasize how much the universe hates me right now.
To Keep in Mind:
August 22nd: Ben Rector at The Hotel Cafe
August 22nd: Scarlet Grey at The Troubadour
August 27-28th: Sunset Junction
September 3rd: FYF
September 22-24: Hotel Carolina (South Carolina)
September 22nd: Jonathan Tyler and the Northern Lights at The Viper Room
September 24th: William Elliot Whitmore at Bootleg Theater
September 25th: The Lonely Forest at The Wiltern
October 14th: Butterfly Boucher at Bootleg Theater
March 13th-18th: SXSW (Austin, TX)
~ Kristen
All the way from Northern Ireland, Peter McCauley (AKA Ram’s Pocket Radio) caught my attention this year at SXSW with his catchy tune “1+2”. He just released a new video for the song “Deiter Rams has got the pocket radios” and I love it! Must share:
For more info on Ram’s Pocket Radio:
http://ramspocketradio.wordpress.com/
http://www.facebook.com/ramspocketradio?sk=info
http://twitter.com/#!/ramspocketradio
http://www.myspace.com/ramspocketradio
Listen and Love!
~ Kristen