Photos: John Vanderslice @ Soda Bar, April 13, 2019

Some more pics from the past. John Vanderslice played Soda Bar on April 13th and he's such a lovely human. He'd more or less quit music for a while but was able to see his way out of a rough time and get back on the road. I don't know how often he'll tour or when he'll be back again, but I certainly hope I can always carve out a night to see him when he does. Pics after the jump.

Tonight! John Vanderslice at Soda Bar

Jeff already previewed tonight's show at Soda Bar, but we got set times. Bent Shapes will go on at 9, and John Vanderslice will play at 10pm. I love this guy and you should definitely check him out. I thought I'd share some old videos from 2007 when he performed at M-Theory and also unplugged on the Casbah smoking patio.

Show Preview: John Vanderslice @ Soda Bar Wednesday November 20, 2013

photo courtesy Ross William Hamilton

John Vanderslice is one of the more interesting musicians in the indie rock world. He recently became independent in his life, ending a long term relationship, and in his music, breaking free from record labels. The latter makes perfect sense, since John is also the owner of Tiny Telephone, a recording studio in San Francisco. Long term relationships with Barsuk Records and more recently Dead Oceans were positive and have paved the way for the current musical chapter in his career. In fact, he self-released two albums this year, Dagger Beach (original) and Diamond Dogs (Bowie covers) via Kickstarter. At last count this makes a total of eleven albums, or about one per year. By today's standards, that is a prolific amount of recorded material. As far as his music is concerned, John certainly wears his emotions on his sleeve. Lyrics are very personal and political, revealing a musician who is willing to take risks which tend to be calculated. His performances are always satisfying, with the ability to connect with the audience never being in doubt.

If you have not seen John Vanderslice perform live, this Wednesday is your next opportunity. This is a Casbah Presents show at Soda Bar, tickets can be purchased in advance here. Boston's Bent Shapes set the stage.

Listen to a few tracks from Dagger Beach below (courtesy of SoundCloud).

Recommended Shows in San Diego November 18-24, 2013

There are some great shows happening in San Diego this week, so be sure to see live music before thoughts turn to turkey, stuffing and all the trimmings next week. Here are some shows worth attending.

Head to Soda Bar on Monday for L.A.'s Nightmare Air and their San Diego friends Bulletins...

If you didn't get a ticket to the sold out Chvrches show on Tuesday at the House of Blues, then consult the listings for a viable alternative...

Prolific indie performer/producer John Vanderslice descends into Soda Bar on Wednesday...Kate Nash plays at the all ages Porter's Pub...

On Thursday San Francisco synth pop band Geographer play an intimate show at the Casbah...

Seattle's singer/songwriter Noah Gundersen plays to the students at The Loft on Friday...highly recommended...Rick Froberg's Obits headline the Casbah...

The Limousines and Mona team up for a great bill on Saturday at the Casbah...Screaming Females and Upset will be at Soda Bar...

Night Beats (Seattle) close the weekend with their garage rock at the Casbah...

Those on the fence (or the couch) should find something of interest musically speaking in San Diego this week. Consult the listings for all the shows.

Watch a video of Love is a Dog From Hell by The Limousines below.



Watch a video of How The West Was Won by John Vanderslice below.

John Vanderslice at the Casbah, May 28, 2011

I always get upset with myself when I upload video to my YouTube channel but never get around to posting it on my site. So, since I've failed so many times before, and since I had such an amazing time at Lorelei and James' party on Saturday that I nearly missed the entire John Vanderslice show, here are the patio videos from that night. Additionally, John is the BEST musician to take photos with because he loves everyone one and the same (or at least makes us feel like he does.)

With Leslie (of Leslie and the Badgers):


With photographer and my dear friend Natalie "It's Too Sunny Out Here" Kardos:


And the video. Click the right and left buttons for "Nikki Oh Nikki", "Time To Go", "White Dove" and just some playing around by the merch table.

What Made Milwaukee Famous: Video for "Sultan"

Did you know that Swim Party Alex is homies with WMMF? Well, they were hanging at his house last weekend in between nights of their residency in LA and showed off their new video. When I heard this, I immediately messaged the manager to ask when the vid would be released, but there was some exclusivity issue with MySpace so it couldn't be leaked...but now it's on MySpace and Stereogum and other sites, so now, I share with you:

sultan

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Man, I have been loving Barsuk, by the way...with Rocky, and John VanDerslice, and the new What Made Milwaukee Famous...and then Nada Surf's "Lucky"...the label just can't do wrong with me.

Saturday Recap Pt. 1: John Vanderslice, Bleu Boheme

Saturday I opted to not head with my parents to PB for a day with Johanna because there was no telling how long we'd be there and I didn't really wanna sit at my sister's watching baseball all day. Or fighting over who gets to hold the baby. Instead, I chilled around the house and went to John Vanderslice's in-store performance at m-Theory. I find the weekend in-stores to be 2-3 times more crowded than weeknights, and since this was his only performance in SD (though he'll be at the Casbah in September), there were a lot of people there. I wasn't even sure if I was a fan, but after reading Northwest Blog I am glad I went. He is not only a great vocalist, kinda reminding me of the Decemberists, but he was funny and cordial throughout the set. He saw how packed the place was and kept inviting people forward, asking that people come sit up front and whatnot. In between songs, he had some DVDs that Erik had given him to give away to the crowd. It was funny hearing him sell "Border Cop", starring Telly Savalas, all the while reading the copy on the back of the DVD with false enthusiasm that had the room cracking up.





He played a full set. He forgot the words of a song and at one point asked for a teleprompter. "No really, can someone head to Best Buy and get me one? I don't know how many YouTube videos are out there of me forgetting my own lyrics, but I know its...a lot" Nobody in the crowd seemed to mind.





After the show he invited people to come talk to him and to have him sign stuff. I was outside hanging with Daye and Larry then decided I would find whoever got the setlist and see if I could take a picture, and surprisingly, it was still sitting there on the floor, and he was happy to sign it for me.


John Vanderslice Setlist, M-Theory, 8/4/07

After, I was gonna head home, but was waiting for Scott and Sophie to get out of their movie, so instead I hung out with Larry and Daye for a beer and some chips and salsa at Jimmy Carter's. Their salsa is excellent, if you haven't been, I highly recommend it. They finally called, so I headed back to Kensington. They had stalled at a bookstore and bought a lot of used books so they got to my house through the front gate at the same time I got there through the back.

They wanted to treat me to a celebratory unemployment dinner and since Sophie is French and spent many summers there growing up, and since we're always down to try new restaurants, it worked out well.

We got there at 4:45 and were told the restaurant opens at 5, so we sat at a table on the patio until it hit 5 and finally they came and offered us beverages. It was a little weird to me...yeah, they had to get stuff ready, but seems like 15 minutes wouldn't have killed them to get us drinks. Oh well. It was nice to sit on the patio for dinner, as Sophie mentioned, it seems San Diego should have a lot more patio seating than we do. Plus, it faces east, so there was no harsh light from the sun setting in the west.

When we did get to ordering, I was more than happy with all courses of my food. We had a charcouterie plate with some prociutto, pate, salami, etc., they both had salads while I opted for the french onion soup (so good!), and I took some dinner pictures...


Sophie had chicken roasted in a clay bowl, Scott had the Salmon over potatoes and ratatouille cooked in parchment, and I had the black mussels in a saffron broth. My mussels were delicious and they gave me so many of them. Yum. For dessert, Scott and I each ordered the Mousse au chocolat (which was simultaneously light and rich) and Sophie had the apple tart with creme fraiche. All in all, I would recommend Bleu Boheme as any kinks in service
will likely be worked out in time.

I'm more of a late night dinner person, but it was nice to have it all early and still have time to pre-nap before going out on Saturday night. Big thanks again to Scott and Sophie for the great dinner. It had been too long since we'd hung out outside of a bar.

More John Vanderslice @ M-Theory

The Tower by John Vanderslice @ M-Theory, August 4, 2007.

Eternal Weekend In San Diego: Featuring John Vanderslice

I am officially umemployed, and while that may cause most people to panic, I'm at ease with the whole thing. I would love to write about it all now, but being that it's 3 am and I'm feeling like sleep is the best thing for me now, I'm gonna wait to post all my shots of Silverbird, Silent Comedy, John Vanderslice, Sparrow Love Crew, Delta Spirit, and Underground Railroad to Candyland. For now, I did actually record John Vandeslice at M-Theory and I'm a converted fan. He was nice and cordial and kept the crowd engaged throughout his entire set.

I'll write tomorrow while my niece is napping and while I've got the time. In the meantime, enjoy John Vanderslice performing "White Dove" at M-theory. Seriously one of the best in-stores I've ever been to.