Tonight's The Night: SD:Dialed In 6 Year Anniversary at the Casbah

I am so excited for tonight! In fact, it was one of those nights where I was up all night working just so I wouldn't have the cloud of email hovering over my head. Instead of sleeping this morning, Darren and I went on a nice bike ride to test out the Biria I'm likely going to purchase. Now I'm completely wiped out and ready to catch some sleep, but in a few hours I'll be all revved up. I hope to see some friendly faces tonight at the Casbah. I also want to let you know that the SoulCal Gourmet Food Truck will be outside if you need to get some tasty grub, and if you don't feel like driving, my friends at Uber set up a promo code. If you create a new account and use the promo code "ubersddialedin", you'll get a $10 credit for your first ride in the car service and since your fare and gratuity are linked to your account, you don't have to worry about having enough cash to get home. Darren and I tested it out a couple weeks ago and it is a pretty sweet service. Hope to see you all tonight!

Thursday, November 15, 2012 at The Casbah

featuring

The Howls

Trouble In The Wind

Michael McGraw and the Butchers

Burning Jet Black (formerly The Whiskey Saints)

$10
Doors 8:30pm/Show 9pm

From the San Diego Reader:

“'Opinions expressed are subject to being personal, unfunny, and full of typos.' Rosemary Bystrak, blogger and all-around all-arounder, will celebrate six years of her very excellent reportage on the San Diego scene @SD:Dialed In. I like how the colon and the big D in “Dialed” make a smiley face, just like every picture I see of her on her site. She’s a fun-lover and just about the best booster of local bands San Diego ever had. Go celebrate with Rosie tonight at Casbah, buy her a beer, and enjoy rootsy barroom rock by The Howls, Trouble in the Wind, Michael McGraw & the Butchers, and Burning Jet Black."

San Diego: Dialed In Six Year Anniversary!!

It was on this day in 2006 that I was sitting in my cubicle at an architecture firm and a lightbulb went off...maybe I should stop writing my diary online and I should focus on life in San Diego minus the details of who I was dating and how hungover I was from the night before. I launched San Diego: Dialed In on a fluke, no real goal in mind, just that I wanted to be personal without divulging every private detail. Of course, nowadays I live out loud anyway, so you still get my diary posts, my constant barrage of tweets and foursquare check-ins and facebook details, but hopefully this site has evolved enough to be informative and helpful for locals and tourists alike to get a feel for the amazing city we live in. I certainly never thought this would become a job or launch my other duties, among them publicity for the Casbah, writing for SoundDiego, booking, managing, band PR, being a member of the nominating committee for the San Diego Music Academy, and many other moving parts that keep me plenty busy. There are now over a dozen volunteer contributors to this site and to all of them, I am eternally grateful for all of their tireless efforts.

Naturally, the best way to celebrate is with a show at the Casbah, my home away from home.

Here's the info:

Thursday, November 15, 2012 at The Casbah

featuring

The Howls

Trouble In The Wind

Michael McGraw and the Butchers

Burning Jet Black (formerly The Whiskey Saints)

$6 advance/$10 day of show

Doors 8:30pm/Show 9pm

I hope to see all of your beautiful faces. Note that advance tickets have a small service charge, but are still cheaper than waiting until the night of the show. 

Tuesday Night at The Casbah- SD:Dialed In Presents...

It has been a really long time since I've booked a show at the Casbah and after last night, I'm sure a lot of you are opting to stay home and chill because you can't handle a double dose of goodness even if I smack you in the face with it. (Yes, I'm jokingly calling out my friends who say they never see me anymore even though I'm out all the time...) Anyway, I've booked some awesome bands at the Casbah for Tuesday night and it's only six bucks and I didn't quite get my fill last night. So do me a favor and show up tonight. We're gonna make it an early-ish night, meaning you'll get home before the end of the Late Late Show and you can come hang with me and some of my favorites on a Tuesday night at the Casbah. Get there early enough, and perhaps use the Twitter Tuesday password (which will be announced later) and get in free with a guest. Even so, SIX BUCKS. That is really cheap to see Old Tiger, Lowly Spects (from Orange County), Western Scene (featuring Tom of Dynamite Walls), and Michael McGraw and his awesome backing band performing some of my favorite tunes. Show up. It's gonna be a good one. Promise.

Tuesday Night: Ivan and Alyosha at Soda Bar

Tonight (Tuesday), Ivan and Alyosha will be performing at the Soda Bar with Josh Ottum and Michael McGraw. If you haven't had the chance to see the band yet, you might want to check them out tonight. Below are a couple videos I shot last year when they opened for The Low Anthem at a museum in LA. Please excuse the chopped off head in the beginning of the video- it started to rain and I was trying to adjust the camera and stay dry.

TONIGHT!!! Michael McGraw, The Whiskey Saints, The Get Down Automatic

I've got another show this week TONIGHT!! and I'm thrilled to have such great bands assembling at the Casbah this Wednesday night TONIGHT!!. It will be the official EP release party for Michael McGraw and he's gonna have some of these amazing posters at the show. The Whiskey Saints are from LA and I'd been hearing about them for so long that I thought it was time to bring them down to San Diego. Last but not least, if you came to SoundDiego Live, you saw The Get Down Automatic tear it up onstage and I'm happy to have them back. Save the date!!

New Video: Michael McGraw "Poorboy"

Tomorrow is the big show at the Casbah with Michael McGraw, The Whiskey Saints and The Get Down Automatic and I'm gonna remind you about 32 more times between now and then, but before I head out the door, check out Michael McGraw's new video for "Poorboy".


Poorboy (Official Music Video) from Michael McGraw on Vimeo.

Jeremy Messersmith at the Soda Bar, July 18, 2011

(I tried to post this earlier before the KPRI Hornblower Cruise with Portugal.The Man, but my internet failed. Better late than never. Michael McGraw is about 10 minutes away from starting.)

Minnesota-based songwriter Jeremy Messersmith & his band are hitting the Soda Bar tonight and I'm not the only one who thinks it's the place to be tonight. (Citybeat, Sounddiego, The Examiner, The Reader). I've seen Jeremy twice at Lestat's, where he performed solo, but I also got to catch the full band at the beginning of this tour while I was in NYC and they were as amazing as I expected. Don't miss this show tonight. With Paper Bird and Michael McGraw opening, you're certainly in for a solid night of music.

Messersmith's newest album and final installment of a trilogy, The Reluctant Graveyard, was featured as one of NPR's Best Albums of 2010. Known for his innovative approach to art and his cross platform creativity, his papercraft animation Tatooine video (where he sums up the Star Wars Trilogy in two minutes), received outstanding praise and was one of PBS' top picks for "The Music Video Makes a Comeback" feature. Messersmith offers fans the ability to pay what they wish on his Bandcamp site and regularly updates his own website with new content every Wednesday. Stay updated on Messersmith's interesting musings, news, and videos here and be sure to check him out with a full band on the road.

FRIDAY!! sddialedin.com presents Fierce Creatures, Michael McGraw, Golden Days @ Eleven

I was really hoping to send out an email blast, but I'm gonna have to have hope and faith that you're reading this right now and are saving your Friday night for me because I'm so happy to kick off my First Friday showcase this week at Eleven with three fantastic bands: Fierce Creatures (Fresno), Michael McGraw (San Diego), Golden Days (Orange County)

The show is only $6 and I know there's a lot of stuff always going on in San Diego, but I'd like to open your eyeballs and earholes to new bands that might not be on your radar just yet. If you haven't yet been to Eleven (formerly Radio Room/Zombie Lounge), I don't know what you're waiting for! They have great beers, bar peanuts, and an amazing food truck that serves food from the old Liar's Club menu. It's a short walk over to Soda Bar and parking is generally plentiful along El Cajon Boulevard.

Eleven is located at 3519 El Cajon Boulevard.
Fierce Creatures (Fresno)
Michael McGraw (San Diego)
Golden Days (Orange County)
$6. Doors at 9pm.

Save The Date: First Friday at Eleven- June 3, 2011

I'm excited to announce my new First Friday showcases at Eleven. I was approached a while ago, but the North Park Festival of Arts required a lot of my time. With that behind me, I can tell you to save the date for the launch of San Diego: Dialed In First Friday showcases at Eleven.

I'm really excited about the lineup. We've got Fierce Creatures from Fresno (you've probably seen them play with The Silent Comedy around town), Michael McGraw who just released a new record, and Golden Days, a young group from Orange County who will be playing San Diego for their first time ever but they're already making a name for themselves in their hometown.

The show is only $6 and will kick off around 9:30.

You can RSVP on the Facebook event page. Huge shoutout to Chris from Michael McGraw's band for making these AMAZING flyers. I think we're gonna have a limited amount of printed posters the night of the show. I'm already looking for a proper frame. See you next Friday!!

Michael McGraw/ El Monte Slim/ The Black Swans @ Soda Bar- 01.13.11

After a prolonged trip back East for the holidays, it was good to return to SD for what is shaping up to be a great start to the live music scene in 2011. This year's show calendar started with a trip over to Soda Bar for a mellow evening with local acts Michael McGraw and El Monte Slim and a shorthanded The Black Swans, who were working their way west from their home base in Columbus, Ohio.

Singer/ songwriter Michael McGraw kicked off the evening joined by Chris Decatur on drums/ vox and Mark Lane on bass. Their set of what was apparently a mix of older and soon-to-be released tunes set the tone for the evening music-wise, though most of the sparse crowd made their way out the door after the openers finished up.

El Monte Slim followed up with their special brand of self-described 'wannabe country'. I had seen this duo open up for The White Buffalo a while back but unfortunately walked in about a song and a half before their night was over. This time around I was able to witness a full set and was not disappointed. Ian Trumbull's soothing vocals worked in perfect harmony with his guitar and Joe Camacho's pedal steel as they made their way through a proper set. The pedal steel did lend a certain 'good ol' boy' feel, but without the overbearing twang all too prominent in the majority of country music.

The Black Swans took the stage as a pared-down duo of Jerry DiCicca on vocals/ acoustic guitar/ harmonica and Tyler Evans on guitar/ banjo/electric lap steel. Touring as a follow up to last autumn's split 45" album they released with Bonnie 'Prince' Billy, the duo eased into their set with DiCacca's distinct delivery, Evans' impressive skill set, tales of crossing the AZ/CA border checkpoint and a pseudo-reunion with a fellow midwesterner who turned out to be a friend of a friend of a friend of the band. Small world. Though the floor was all but empty at this point and I had free reign to wander as I pleased, The Black Swans' music lends itself much more to sitting at a table by yourself as you ruminate on a bad break up, think of your sick grandmother or cycle through life's intricacies while staring blankly into another empty beer bottle. It takes a special talent to generate that type of emotional reaction and they do it with impressive ease.

Michael McGraw:

El Monte Slim:

The Black Swans:

For more from the evening click here, and for the rest of my concert photography click here.

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