Kristen’s LA Concert Calendar: 1/17-1/23

Writing this while listening to Pepper’s Ghost do a radio interview about their reunion show next weekend. If it’s possible, I’m even more excited about my favorite band getting back together for a one night only double header show at The Grape Room in Philadelphia. There are a ton of awesome shows in LA this week, but I’m mostly excited about venturing east at the end of the week to catch Pepper’s Ghost…and maybe some other fave Philly bands. And then going back to NYC to catch the guys of Carney once again rock out in Spiderman: Turn Off The Dark.

It’s gonna be a fantastic week!

Here’s what I’ve got on my LA calendar:

Monday: Jonathan Tyler and the Northern Lights at Saint Rocke (10pm)
ALSO: Songwriters in the Round at Room 5 (9pm)
ALSO: It’s A School Night at Bardot featuring Great Northern and The Pierces (10pm) 

Tuesday: Queen Caveat and Endless Hallway at The Viper Room (10,11) 
ALSO: The Shakers at Crazy Girls in Hollywood (9pm) 
ALSO: The Pierces at The Hotel Cafe (10pm) 
ALSO: Barcelona at Saint Rocke (9:30) 
ALSO: Lindsey Ray and Taylor Locke and the Roughs at The Satellite (8pm) 
ALSO: Wire in the Walls, Family of the Year, and Olin and The Moon at The Echo (8:30) 
ALSO: The Canyons at Molly Malone’s (9pm) 

Weds: Anna Nalick at The Hotel Cafe (9pm) 
ALSO: Lady Danville at The Troubadour (8:35) 

Thursday: Nikka Costa at The Roxy (8pm)
ALSO: Austin Hartley Leonard and Satellite at The Hotel Cafe (8,10pm)
ALSO: The Elizabeth Kill at The Cat Club (8pm) 
ALSO: Chasing Avalanche at The Viper Room (10:30) 
ALSO: Lady Danville at The Troubadour (8:35) 

Friday: Langhorne Slim and Old 97’s at The Music Box (9pm)
ALSO: Meiko at The Hotel Cafe (9:30)
ALSO: Alice Peacock at The Mint (8pm) 
ALSO: David and Devine at Room 5 (11pm) 
ALSO: Lady Danville at The Troubadour (8:35) 

Saturday: Jake Newton, Tyler Hilton, Ernie Halter, Shaimus, and Queen Caveat at The Hotel Cafe…this line-up blows my mind. Don’t miss it…seriously…(8,9,10,11,12) 
ALSO: Indians and The Mowgli’s at Area 33 in Culver City
ALSO: Guster at The Music Box (7pm) 
ALSO: Purple Melon at Saint Rocke (9pm) 

Sunday: Lemon Sun and Voxhaul Broadcast at The Echoplex (8pm)
ALSO: TD Lind, Jesse Cole, and Brandon Walters at The Hotel Cafe (8,9,10) 
ALSO: Chris Pierce at Saint Rocke (9pm) 

To Keep in Mind:
Jan. 24th: Cold War Kids at Bootleg 
Jan. 25th: Vertical Horizon at The Key Club 
Jan. 28th: Nico Vega at Saint Rocke
January 28th: Free Energy at The Roxy 
January 29th: Charlotte Martin at Bootleg 
Jan. 30th: Against Me! at The Music Box  
Feb 1st: Patrick Park at The Hotel Café 
Feb. 1st: Queen Caveat at The Viper Room  
Feb 5th: The Silent Comedy at El Rey 
Feb 9th: Sarah McLaughlin at Nokia Live
Feb 9th: Tina Dico at The Troubadour
Feb 16th: Nicole Atkins at The Troubadour 
Feb. 16th: Scars on 45 at The Hotel Cafe  
Feb. 20th: Beth Hart at The Echoplex
Feb 26th: Josh Ritter and Scott Hutchinson (Frightened Rabbit) at The Music Box
March 1st: Biffy Clyro at The Troubadour 
March 3rd: Civil Twilight at The Troubadour 
March 22nd: War on Drugs at The Toubadour 

~ Kristen

Carney does Spiderman

It was SO wonderful to see my fave LA band again…even if it was just on TV. I TiVoed Good Morning America to see the first performance of Carney performing a song from Spiderman: Turn Off the Dark (music written by Bono and The Edge)…unfortunately the telecast was pre-empted by Obama, whom up until this point, I had absolutely no complaints about.

After waiting just about all day, the video was finally posted on New York Magazine’s website.

Other pertinent interview bits:

And just in case the New York Magazine link doesn’t work:

I don’t know about you, but I cannot wait to get out to NYC and see this on stage!

~ Kristen

The Kin return to LA!

I recieved the following via facebook event invite. Needless to say, I am incredibly excited about the return of The Kin to Los Angeles. These Austrialian-born, NYC-based brothers are one of my favorite live acts. I am especially excited about Monday night’s soungwriters in the round at Room 5 which also features another fave duo, Joey Ryan and Kenneth Pattengale.  As I write this, I am giddy in anticipation of the greatness that will surely unfold that night.
If you get the chance, I’d highly recommend you come to at least one of the events deatiled in the message below:
LA Cohorts,

Were heading west for a week of music in LA. We will be driving in from San Francisco where we have a week of making videos for the new album of groovy cover songs we have made with the Rondo Brothers, called ‘The Kin: Rondo Sessions’.

We then get to spend a week in LA with you before we head to a summer music festival in France. Please come and be with us on Sunday August 1st for our main show of the week at the venu…e ZANZIBAR…details for all shows below.

Cheers!

Isaac and Thorald
The Kin

Friday July 30th – Sunset Marquis – Special showcase – RSVP only

Sunday August 1st – ZANZIBAR – w/Bri Anne Michelle and Amber Rubarth. 1301 5th St Santa Monica, CA 90401, Doors at 7pm, $10

Monday August 2nd – Room 5 – Songwriters Circle with Friends in the round. 143 N La Brea Ave West Hollywood, CA 90036, 8pm

Wednesday August 4th – The Standard Hotel – Poolside performance
8300 W Sunset Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90069, free

 
 
And what song should pop up on my ITunes as I read this message: The Kin- New Day (LIVE) Enjoy!
~ Kristen

Tour Alert! Civil Twilight + Paper Tongues + Neon Trees

So, when one of your new favorite bands goes on tour, you take notice, find the date in your city, and buy tickets.  When TWO of your new favorite bands decide to team up and go out on the road together…well, then you start thinking about how many of the shows you will be able to find people to road trip with you to go see! Both Civil Twilight and Paper Tongues are bands I’ve discovered and fallen in love with in the last year. I would never imagine them going on tour together as they don’t strike me as very similar…other than the fact that they both had free singles on ITunes, I can’t think of anything that would tie the bands together.

Also on the bill, Neon Trees, a band that’s been on my watch list since they did a tour with Nico Vega that never quite made it to LA. Their song “Animal”…hey…come to think of it this song was also a free ITunes download…hmm…anyway, I like it and have recently purchased their album Habits.

Point Being: They’re calling it the “Bang the Gong Tour” It starts next Saturday and It is going to be amazing. If you can, you should try to check it out.

The dates are (as listed on the Neon Trees myspace):

26 Jun 2010 7:00 P
BANG THE GONG TOUR w/ PAPER TONGUES + CIVIL TWILIGHT @ Heritage Landing – Main Stage – Muskegon Summer Celebration Muskegon, Michigan Find Tickets
27 Jun 2010 7:00 P
BANG THE GONG TOUR w/ PAPER TONGUES + CIVIL TWILIGHT @ Summerfest – US Cellular Connection Stage Milwaukee, WI Find Tickets
29 Jun 2010 7:00 P
BANG THE GONG TOUR w/ PAPER TONGUES + CIVIL TWILIGHT @ NEWPORT MUSIC HALL Columbus, OH Find Tickets
30 Jun 2010 7:00 A
BANG THE GONG TOUR w/ PAPER TONGUES + CIVIL TWILIGHT @ House of Blues Cleveland Cleveland, OH Find Tickets
1 Jul 2010 7:00 P
BANG THE GONG TOUR w/ PAPER TONGUES + CIVIL TWILIGHT @ Altar Bar Pittsburgh, PA Find Tickets
2 Jul 2010 7:00 P
BANG THE GONG TOUR w/ PAPER TONGUES + CIVIL TWILIGHT @ Crocodile Rock Cafe Allentown, PA  
 
8 Jul 2010 4:00 P
KXNA PRESENTS : X FEST 10TH ANNIVERSARY – Dickson Street – Entertainment District Fayetteville, ARKANSAS  
12 Jul 2010 7:00 P
BANG THE GONG TOUR w/ PAPER TONGUES + CIVIL TWILIGHT @ 9:30 Club Washington, DC  
13 Jul 2010 7:00 P
BANG THE GONG TOUR w/ PAPER TONGUES + CIVIL TWILIGHT @ Bowery Ballroom New York City, New York  
15 Jul 2010 7:00 P
BANG THE GONG TOUR w/ PAPER TONGUES + CIVIL TWILIGHT @ Common Grounds Music Festival Lansing, MI Find Tickets
16 Jul 2010 7:00 P
89X BIRTHDAY BASH / BANG THE GONG TOUR w/ PAPER TONGUES + CIVIL TWILIGHT @ The Fillmore Detroit Detroit, MI Find Tickets
19 Jul 2010 7:00 P
BANG THE GONG TOUR w/ PAPER TONGUES + CIVIL TWILIGHT @ Triple Rock Club Minneapolis, MN Find Tickets
20 Jul 2010 7:00 P
BANG THE GONG TOUR w/ PAPER TONGUES + CIVIL TWILIGHT @ The Beaumont Club Kansas City, MO  
21 Jul 2010 7:00 P
BANG THE GONG TOUR w/ PAPER TONGUES + CIVIL TWILIGHT @ Bluebird Theater Denver, CO Find Tickets
23 Jul 2010 7:00 P
BANG THE GONG TOUR w/ PAPER TONGUES + CIVIL TWILIGHT @ Velour Provo, Utah Find Tickets
24 Jul 2010 7:00 P
BANG THE GONG TOUR w/ PAPER TONGUES + CIVIL TWILIGHT @ The Knitting Factory reno, nv Find Tickets
25 Jul 2010 6:00 P
BANG THE GONG TOUR w/ PAPER TONGUES + CIVIL TWILIGHT @ Cricket Wireless Amphitheatre Chula Vista/San Diego, CA  
27 Jul 2010 7:00 P
BANG THE GONG TOUR w/ PAPER TONGUES + CIVIL TWILIGHT @ Slim’s San Francisco, CA Find Tickets
28 Jul 2010 7:00 P
BANG THE GONG TOUR w/ PAPER TONGUES + CIVIL TWILIGHT @ Glass House Pomona, CA Find Tickets
30 Jul 2010 7:00 P
BANG THE GONG TOUR w/ PAPER TONGUES + CIVIL TWILIGHT @ Hard Rock Cafe Las Vegas, NV

 

For some enticement:

~ Kristen

First Aid Kit at Bootleg Theater

All I can say is FINALLY! First Aid Kit was the only group on my best of ’09 mix that I had not seen live. And to make my list as a band I’ve never seen…well that right there is saying something. But this duo from Sweden has what it takes to melt my heart; crystal clear voices ringing out in delicate harmonies. Their live set certainly did not disappoint, adding charming personalities to the list of things I love about these ladies, sisters Klara and Johanna Soderberg. They did perform “Tiger Mountain Peasant Song,” their Fleet Foxes cover which lead to my discovery of them over a year ago. They also did a couple songs out in the audience sans microphones. Fortunately the acoustics of the room (an old bra factory) were more than adequate.

Their debut album, The Big Black and Blue, is certainly worth looking into. Also, they are not in the US that often, so if you can, check them out on their current tour (dates below) before they hop back over to the other side of the pond. Opening for them is the wonderful Samantha Crain, another artist who I’ve been meaning to see live since she made my best of SXSW ’09 mix.

Check out First Aid Kit:

Samantha Crain:

US (and some Canada) tour dates:

2 Jun 2010 8:00 P
Bottom of the Hill San Francisco, California, US  
4 Jun 2010 8:00 P
Mississippi Studios Portland, Oregon, US  
5 Jun 2010 8:00 P
The Vera Project Seattle, Washington, US  
6 Jun 2010 8:00 P
Media Club Vancouver, British Co, CA  
9 Jun 2010 8:00 P
Cedar Cultural Center Minneapolis, Minnesota , US  
10 Jun 2010 8:00 P
Schubas Tavern Chicago, Illinois , US  
11 Jun 2010 8:00 P
Grog Shop Cleveland, Ohio, US  
12 Jun 2010 8:00 P
Rivoli Cabaret Toronto, Ontario , CA  
13 Jun 2010 8:00 P
Le Belmont – NEW VENUE Montreal, Quebec, CANADA  
14 Jun 2010 8:00 P
Middle East Upstairs Cambridge, Massachuse, US  
15 Jun 2010 8:00 P
The Bell House Brooklyn, New York , US  
16 Jun 2010 8:00 P
Mercury Lounge New York, New York, US  

~ Kristen

I don’t know how I feel about this trend…

Being on mailing lists for my favorite bands is somewhat of a double edged sword for me. I love keeping up with what is going on in their lives, but I absolutely hate missing out on so many good shows. Every time they play and I can’t be there…it just kills me. This is why I like local bands…

This past week, I received an email from one of my favorite bands, The Kin. It was detailing this show they are going to be doing in New York City next Weds (March 10th) at Webster Hall. It’s a special charity show through FM Charities whose goal is “to increase awareness of common, treatable illness among all populations.” Great cause, great band…only problem is I live in LA and can’t be there…or can I?

In the email they announced that the show is going to be viewable via webcast. So, if I choose I can sit at home that night and watch one of my favorite bands put on an amazing show…via the internet. I guess this is a good thing. I mean, I LOVE The Kin. I’d love to see them every single time they play. I’ll know what songs they play, if they break out any new tunes, if Shakerleg makes an appearance. I’ll be able to hear any in between song banter, stories from the road or from their most recent annual trip to Australia (where they are from).

But, really, it won’t be the same. It won’t feel the same. I won’t be moved by the pulsating beats from the overblown speakers or sense the energy of the audience as they fall in love with every note. I won’t be able to join in the sea of voices as the songs hit that familiar chorus or turn to that stranger next to me and smile when Thorry and Isaac nail that whistle at the end of “Romeo” or begin to introduce “Abraham” as that song about two brothers…come to think of it, it might be MORE painful to watch the spectacle in this detached mode then to not see it at all.

But this seems to be the way things are going. I watched a couple songs from a Joe Firstman set the other day streaming live from some place or another. In a few minutes, I’ll turn on the live stream from a local Philly radio state (Radio104.5) to hear IKE play a couple of tunes live…I guess streaming entire shows is just the next logical step.

So, I think everyone should check out the stream from The Kin’s show next Weds. And let me know how it goes…’cause I’ll be out at The Troubadour that night having a Manchester Orchestra experience.

http://www.thekin.com/

http://www.fmworldcharities.org/events.html

~ Kristen