Newsy Bits: @T_R0Y, @LilHurry, @WavvesWavves, @gopband, @JoshDamigo & more

Today is an email cleanout day, so I'm gonna post some random stuff. Some of it is old news, some of it really old news, but in case you hadn't heard....

Troy Johnson has a new TV show! His Food Network series, Crave, makes its debut tonight at 8:30 pm. David Moye wrote about it for HuffPo here and you can see Troy's first blog for the network here. Check out the video that landed Troy the gig.

After playing SXSW and Lollapalooza and winning Album of The Year and Best Alternative Album at the San Diego Music Awards, Little Hurricane will be playing at this year's Austin City Limits, return to San Diego for the San Diego Music Thing, and then hit the road as tour support for Manchester Orchestra. The duo is playing a not-so-secret free show on Tuesday night (21+) in San Diego. I'm not supposed to tell you until tomorrow, so check back in the morning.

Last week (and as already reported in CityBeat), San Diego's Grand Ole Party announced they would be releasing their sophomore album, Under Our Skin. According to the press release, "In early 2009, the band went in the studio with producer Ben H. Allen (Animal Collective, Deerhunter, Gnarls Barkley) and recorded a new record - finished in July 2009." By August of that year they broke up, JP was off working on stuff with The Hot Moon and later with releasing solo work as Vegetarian Werewolf and Kristin, as Dee Dee, blew up all over the blogosphere with the Dum Dum Girls. The band is still broken up, but the full record comes out tomorrow. Grab a free download of the single, 'All Night' below.

And, not to be outdone, Wavves was chosen by MTV to serve as guest composer for their new scripted series, "I Just Want My Pants Back" under the music supervision of Nic Harcourt. The show premiered last night after the Video Music Awards and featured Wavves' "I Want To Meet Dave Grohl". Music from the episode, which also featured Pepper Rabbit, Saint Motel and more, can be downloaded here.

Last week, my friend Sal Filipelli's home was burglarized and all of his gear was stolen, including 3 guitars, a bass, two computers, two recording microphones, a car stereo, piano tuning tools, and an ipod. You can see photos of all of the equipment here if you have any information or see anything shady while you're perusing craig's list, hit him up on Facebook.

And while I'm speaking of burglary, Josh Damigo was hit for the 4th time. His San Diego apartment was broken into twice before he relocated to LA, and now his car has been hit for the second time (while parked in secured parking). People suck. But forget the burglaries, why don't you just prove that most people don't suck, and help with his next record and donate generously to his Kickstarter campaign?

Back to the inbox. It seriously feels like it never ends...

Sub-Pop Signs Dum Dum Girls

I'm a little hurt that I didn't get any direct word about Grand Ole Party's are-they-breaking-up-or-staying-together-or-changing-lineup news but I suppose when you have a full record to be released in the fall, there are certain contractual obligations to quell rumors even if they're true. Or not true. Or whatever. I get it.

I also get why there might be a conflict of interest were a new project (or two) to pop up, so I understand why, if such a project existed, the hypothetical project would exist online as a mystery and claim to be from a generic city. And even if the hypothetical project got signed to SubPop, you probably wouldn't want bloggers and media to know about it. And definitely no photos. It's cool. I won't spill the beans.

Rosey's Diary: March 18-25, 2009

My last diary post left off at St. Patrick's Day and all I can say is that waking up the next day wasn't nearly as awful as I expected. So let me catch you up with the week after St. Patty's Day. Click 'keep on reading' for all the Pho King goods.



3.18.09: Gavin Newsom Townhall; Jamuel Saxon, The One AM Radio, Tapedeck Mountain @ Soda Bar

After St. Patrick's day, I had another experience that made me glad to be a Twitter user. The Burger Lounge (@Burger_Lounge), which happens to be across the street, had another special for their Twitter followers, this time free frings. Nothing better than a grass-fed burger with fries and onion rings to soak up the rest of the booze from the night before. Later that afternoon, I made my way to a school in City Heights were Gavin Newsom, the mayor of San Francisco wooed a crowd of mostly progressive supporters. I was going to do a full write up about the talk, but I realize I was so receptive to everything that he said that I didn't consider that perhaps he's just talking like a politician. I was definitely in my "hope and change" ra-ra-ra mode. Instead, here's a link of Dave Rolland's response to the evening. I will mention that there were representatives from The Nation of Islam who have some big issues with Newsom in San Francisco and made for a few tense moments. Mostly though, I liked what Gavin had to say and I'll be watching as he likely will run for Governor in 2010.





After the townhall, I made my way to Soda Bar excited to see Dangerbird Records artist The One AM Radio along with locals Tape Deck Mountain and Jamuel Saxon. I thought it was a strange lineup because the album I have from The One AM Radio is slow and quiet and always reminded me a bit of Elliott Smith, which was confirmed last time I saw him perform at Che Cafe. So Tape Deck Mountain played and sounded great as usual then The One AM Radio came on and were so different than I expected. They were upbeat, happy, and more than anything, no longer a one piece, now a full band. I liked the change and thought the band was great, it just took me a little by surprise. I only snapped a couple photos of the night because of prohibitive lighting, but here's The One AM Radio in their latest incarnation.

Jamuel Saxon finished off the night including a pretty sweet Michael Jackson cover. I also have to say I'm really a fan of the vibe at Soda Bar. I love getting a booth and being able to hang out and watch good bands, drink any of the great beers on draft, and just chill out. It helps it's so close to home for me.

3.19.09: 91X @ The Field, I Love You, Man @ Reading Gaslamp 15, Dinner at The Field, Tiltwheel @ Beauty Bar

I had planned on going to a couple events that were media type schmoozefests but fortunately I was saved when I saw Mat Diablo from 91X tweet that they were at The Field in Downtown giving away movie passes to "I Love You, Man". I don't see movies often, but I heart Paul Rudd in a big way and the movie came highly recommended by Daye, who had been to an early screening of the film a month before it's release. It lived up to my comedic expectations. Before the movie I got the chance to talk to Josh and Mat from 91X who hooked us up with scrip for The Field, so after the movie we returned to get some bar food before moving on to the next destination.

We got to Tiltwheel at the Beauty Bar as they'd just started but everyone there was well, um, lubricated?, and it made for a fun show, including Josh Mosh taking the stage for a song so Davey could smoke and drink his beer. It made me realize it had been a long time since I'd been to show with the fast crowd and it was a really good time. And I certainly never thought it would be at the Beauty Bar. I was especially happy that night because a friend of mine gave me a Blind Lady Alehouse hoodie. Score!

After Tiltwheel, the bulk of the crowd moved on to the Ken Club and it turned out that Miggs was DJ-ing and my old upstairs neighbor was in town. Needless to say they came over for an after party that got pretty ridiculous because Miggs' volume is always at 11. My current upstairs neighbor didn't get much sleep that night and I feel shitty for it, but there's no turning Miggs volume down.

3.20.09: Grand Ole Party, Ale Mania, Dirty Legs @ Soda Bar

Come Friday I was pretty excited to finally see Grand Ole Party as it had been some time since I last saw them play. Peter had asked me to help get the word out about ticketing because it was the biggest show Soda Bar had planned and they didn't want to overwhelm the space. The show sold out within about an hour of going on sale at 6 pm. In retrospect, they probably could've allowed another 50 people in the bar for the show, but we got there early, got a booth, enjoyed the Mission IPA on draft and just enjoyed the show and the fact that people weren't shoved into the bar like sardines. The Dirty Legs was an all chick band that played bratty punk, wearing their influences on their sleeves. Ale Mania appeared to be a new project of some of the guys from The Sess, but to be honest, I stayed in our booth and couldn't really see over the crowd. And even with earplugs, I couldn't really make out the band all that well. Grand Ole Party played late in the night and played entirely new material for the whole set. At this point in the night we sat up on the back of the booth to be able to see Kristin but I knew photos would be a disaster, so I just kicked back. The band left a couple days later to go record in Atlanta, so expect their new album later this year.

3.21.09: Album Release Party for The Long and Short of It, Kill Me Tomorrow, Fing @ Casbah

Saturday was one of those San Diego days with absolutely perfect weather. I had lunch with a my sister, b-i-l and niece at Lefty's and then met up with Todd and some friends for some beers at Blind Lady. Inevitably, a couple beers and a walk home and I took a brief nap before heading down to the Casbah to see Fing, Kill Me Tomorrow, and The Long And Short of It. You can see photos from Natalie or Michael. My camera just couldn't take that lighting. Also, I was kicking it over near the bar because Joe from The Roman Spring came out for the first time since his accident and it was just really good to see my friend getting better. All three bands delivered aggressive and powerful sets. The Long And The Short of It played their entire album from front to back- "if you wanna know the setlist, you can go buy the record." The band is always loud, but it was mixed so well, Ben's vocals were clear and his lyrics particularly powerful. It was a great night to be certain. I love nights when nearly the entire Casbah staff comes out to support one of their own.

3.22-25.09: The next couple days for me were catch-up days. I caught up on e-mail, posting, listings, watching shows I'd missed, seeing movies I'd not seen. I planned on seeing These Arms Are Snakes at Casbah on Tuesday, but I had a birthday dinner at Ponce's with my friends, some cake and ice cream at my house afterward, then made my way to the Ken Club where I got sucked in to karaoke night and never left. No complaints though, my neighborhood friends were there and even though I don't participate in karaoke, I still like being a witness. Abraham and I tried to connect but since it didn't happen Tuesday night, he showed up at my place on Wednesday afternoon with a 6 pack and we caught up before he, Todd and I decided to grab lunch. We tried to hit Minh Ky in City Heights (Menlo & El Cajon, just east of Hoover High), but were surprised to see it was closed on Wednesdays. So we crossed the street and went to Pho King. Let's just say we couldn't stop laughing. "Give me a Pho King menu." "Where is the Pho King waitress." Can I have some Pho King water?" Sometimes it's okay to act like an adolescent. I would love Pho King to sponsor this website. The food kicked ass, too. And that leaves me with Wednesday night, the first night of the Luce Loft. That will be another diary post.

Overdue Recap: Angus & Julia Stone, Hey Ocean @ The Loft, UCSD, Grand Ole Party & Casbah 11.17.08

Monday night I checked out another relatively new venue, The Loft at UCSD. I really haven't had any reason, other than Che Cafe and RIMAC, to go to UCSD in several years, so I felt completely lost on the campus. I bought a parking permit and circled lots until I finally parked at the Gilman structure which turned out to just be a short walk to Price Center. There's a huge student center and lounge adjacent the original Price Center and after wandering, I finally got directions and found The Loft. There was a film screening, so I played on the free computers until the movie and Q&A ended. Jeff was there and we hung out until the bands started.

The Loft is a great space for bands and I'm kicking myself for missing Yeasayer who played there last night, but that is neither here nor there. There is ample seating, an open floor in front of the stage which is average sized, but perfect lighting and an even better sound system. They certainly didn't cut corners to get top of the line sound equipment. For more, click 'keep on reading'.





Hey Ocean is a band from Canada. This was their first US tour, and I believe only their third in the states. They were cute and it was clear that they really love playing music. They had multiple instrumental garnishes, like the use of flute, a xylophone, and a triangle, along with shakers and such. My thought was they follow in the vein of Jason Mraz, happy lyrics and music, not quite jaded by life, and it was refreshing, though don't get me wrong, I still love the angsty and introspective stuff, it was nice to see them enjoy themselves onstage. I felt very old at the show, and it was a sea of digital cameras flashing the whole show, but the bands didn't seem to mind.





Hey Ocean "Beat Boxer"


Hey Ocean "Alright"


Hey Ocean "Jolene"


I was really excited to see Angus & Julia Stone, thanks to some press releases I'd received and the recent burst of Aussie musicians that have been brought to my attention (Paul Turner, An Horse are a couple others). They're a brother and sister duo, and were backed by a bassist from Australia and a drummer that they knew from Australia but who currently lives in San Francisco.

The two of them trade off vocals. Julia has a beautiful raspy voice with a touch of Julie Garland from the Wizard of Oz, emphasized even more by her flower adorned braids and her dress and knee high stockings, she had the look of someone who loves to dance in a field of daisies on a rainy day.

And while she was the sweet one, Angus is more weathered, with his bushy beard and denim shirt, he looks like someone who had been told to finally get out of the tree he was trying to save against loggers in the Northwest. The contrast of the two created a perfect balance and the room was nearly dead silent from the first note to the very last of the set.







Angus & Julia Stone "Just A Boy"


Angus & Julia Stone "Mango Tree"


A couple other people who were at the show also posted their videos on YouTube. You can see those here and here.

It was great to see an intimate show a respectful venue such as The Loft and I hope to see more shows there in the future. For the record, most shows are $5 or "pay what you can" for students with a valid student I.D.

After the show I didn't waste much time, and headed to the Casbah to catch Grand Ole Party. Obviously a very different crowd and type of music. It was packed and frankly I've taken enough pictures of them that I didn't fight too hard to get a spot up front but they put on their typical great set, though it seemed a little short at 40 minutes. The crowd was happy and I was too, after having seen two great shows in one night.

Things To Do In San Diego: Angus & Julia Stone @ The Loft

Brother and Sister duo Angus & Julia Stone are in town from Australia and playing The Loft (in the Price Center) at UCSD on Monday. I promise I will post listings on Monday for all the great shows happening this week, but in the meantime, consider checking out Angus & Julia at the Loft because they're great and by the time it is over, you can still race to the Casbah to catch Grand Ole Party.

"Hollywood"

Official: SDSC is now The Ruby Room

R.I.P.
San Diego Sports Club
1996 - 2008

The Ruby Room official Grand Opening Party will be Friday Oct. 17th with Grand Ole Party, Rafter and 1 or 2 more special guests.

SCMX 2008: Common, The Black Keys, Kinky, Saul Williams, Grand Ole Party & More

I went to some shows last week that I still need to recap, but I had such a blast at the Southern Comfort Music Experience so I wanted to get those pics up first. I thought there was no way this year could compete with last year's festival. I mean, it was headlined by The Flaming Lips, after all, but I truly enjoyed myself, perhaps a little too much. Full post if you 'keep on reading'.



We headed downtown early, arriving just before 4. We decided to park in a garage since Jake had gear in his car and decided that $8 for the whole day wasn't too bad. Right off the bat we ran into Matt and Andrew before going in and making our way to the other entrance so I could retrieve my media passes. By the time we had those secured, we had missed Burning of Rome's set, but their music filled the venue. I noticed right away that there were a lot more people at the show early than there were last year at the same time, so I guess that's a testament to better promotion.

American Cornhole

We wandered around for a bit, got some SoCo and Lemonade, then went to check out Grand Ole Party. Kristin and the kids sounded great as ever and clearly all the performing and touring has made an experience band for large stages and festivals like this one.

After a couple songs, I met up with Jake who was hanging with Halloran in the broadcast area and watched the set from there. I guess it was time to test the waters with the pass and access, so I wandered over to the dressing rooms and made myself a drink. It wasn't until after that I realized they were band specific, so sorry to GOP for scabbing your shit. Of course once I had a drink I was not shy about pilfering and sorry to Chuck and Brandon who kindly put up with me. On the way back to the broadcast platform, a security guard told Jake and I that our passes didn't allow us to be in the broadcast area, but he talked to his boss and would let only Jake and I back there. He was nice about and once we got the warning, I would switch up to a staff pass to get around. At this point we were able to get a pass for Dagart, too, thanks to Sarah for that.



We stayed up in the broadcast area for a while, until Saul Williams took the stage. I had no idea what I was in for, thinking Saul was more about spoken word, but his band started off the set with their crazy outfits and he joined them with an aural blitz. They killed it, big time.










By that time, the VIP area had opened, so I met up with my friends and we hung out there for a while. I don't really understand the drinks policy for the party. You could bring drinks into the VIP but not take them out. This makes sense when there's unlimited booze- you don't want people on the inside taking shit out to their friends, but the VIP wristband only provided 3 free drinks. Making people down their alcohol is not exactly encouraging people to drink responsibly. Oh well, it really ended up not being a big deal.



After a while there, and once Saul was finished, I headed over to the local stage for The Silent Comedy. I really dig the two stage events like this or Independence Jam, because there's really little to do except to watch the bands, and it's great exposure for local music. I had talked with Josh earlier and he was pretty bummed out because the bands rented trailer was stolen. It was empty, but apparently it was not insured. Still, even with such downer news, the band gave no indication that they were anything but happy to be there.



My only other complaint of the day was this stupid obstacle course. These barriers had no purpose whatsoever and made taking pictures at the local stage challenging.
After The Silent Comedy finished, I wandered back to the mainstage and noticed The Ice Cream guy was backstage. Kristin had told me there was a bathroom trailer behind the stage, and man, did it sure beat having to use port-a-potties. Anyway, I shoulda grabbed a popsicle when I had the chance.


Kinky was next up on the mainstage and I should've planned better, because while I was waiting for them to start, I took way too many crowd photos which resulted in me running out of memory for Common.

I loved Kinky's performance, and loved loved loved the bassist. The crowd was going nuts for the band, too. I was about to bail the photo pit but then they busted out an accordion so I stayed up there a little longer. It was nice that the security wasn't enforcing a 3 song photo rule because you could float in and out of the pit at your own leisure.









I ran into my ex and we went to the VIP area to watch the show from the roof of the SoCo bus. I eventually met back up with Dagart and Jake, too, so we kicked it in the VIP area until The Black Keys started. I was kinda glad Shark Attack was doing their thing because it meant there was time to wander around and chill for a bit before photographing the Keys.



The Black Keys sounded amazing and as the sun had set, allowed for some great lighting. It's amazing that a two piece like the Keys or a three piece like Grand Ole Party can still sound so full and not drown in the space of such a huge stage.




I guess the alcohol had well lubricated my senses because I decided to watch the band from onstage for a couple songs. Nobody said anything to me, either, but I didn't wanna push my luck, so I left the area on my own accord.


I watched the remainder of their set from the So Co bus where there was quite the party going on.



Then it was back up front for Common where as I mentioned, I only took a couple pics because I'd run out of memory card space. I guess I'll need to get a backup card before Street Scene rolls around.


Common was awesome and the crowd was huge, but it wasn't quite as momentous as The Flaming Lips, because how can you really compare the acts? The Lips are just made for this kind of thing. Still, Common held his own and was a good way to end the long day.




After the show, we went to SDSC for the first night under new ownership, got some tacos, and then Jake dropped my wasted ass off at home where I was asleep before my head even hit the pillow. I really wish I had some time off from work soon, because the end of summer has been kicking my ass, but alas, looks like I'll have to wait until our major project wraps before I can take a few days off. Sigh. But I guess if you're gonna be tired all the time, it might as well because you're having way too much fun.