Wednesday Newsy Bits

This has nothing to do with San Diego or music, but I was a media buyer so I still pay attention to TV news, ratings, renewals and cancellations. I also especially love how divisive Rachael Ray is...you either love her or hate her and all her "sammys" and whatnot, so in some media news...

Rachael Ray Renewed Through 2009-10- CBS Television
Distribution's The Rachael Ray Show has been picked
up through the 2009-10 season, with renewals on the CBS owned-and-operated
stations in Los Angeles, Chicago, San Francisco, Boston, Dallas, Miami and
Denver.

Also, if you like your celeb gossip but hate the lame ass hosts on Extra, Entertainment Tonight and the Insider, then you can get excited about this:

Warner Bros. Announces Fox O&O Clearances for TMZ- Warner Bros. Domestic
Television Distribution has sold TMZ, a newsmagazine based on Web site TMZ.com,
to the Fox owned-and-operated stations for a fall 2007 launch.

Just in time for David Beckham and Posh Spice moving to LA and their inevitable conversion to Scientology. Yay! Because LA needs more space aliens.

And last one for media today:

Punk Songs? The Web? It's Not Your Father's AARP- Now approaching 50 itself,
AARP is heading off a midlife crisis with a new TV ad that celebrates the aging
process to the strains of the Buzzcocks' classic punk song "Everybody's Happy
Nowadays." The image overhaul, aimed in part at future AARPers now in their 30s
and 40s, is part of a long-running effort to reposition the organization
formerly known as the American Association of Retired Persons (it has gone by
just AARP since 1999) as one devoted to vigorous, working people who are
50-and-up.

Is this cool or really frightening? It can't be any worse than the Teddy Bears with Iggy Pop song "I'm a Punk Rocker" on the Cadillac commercial...or can it?

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Make sure to pick up this week's CityBeat, featuring Cold War Kids on the cover.
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Fans of Silversun Pickups should head over to Spin.Com. SSPU played a Spin party and the video footage is available for streaming.
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If you were über lame like I was last night and happened to catch any of American Idol, you know that our famous girl ('I lived in my van') Jewel was a guest judge in Minneapolis. I'm a grown up now, so I'll refrain from commenting, but was anyone else hoping she would bust out a yodel? And was Paula totally trashed? A friend of a relative was her stylist for sometime and often shared stories of prescription drug abuse and crazy manic mood swings. If you haven't seen the video of her drunk interview last week, check it out on CatDirt's site. And lest you think I only watched American Idol, I was really just jumping channels from The Real Housewives of Orange County since I missed the final two episodes of last season. Because that, my friends, is quality television.
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New Releases this week:

ARAB STRAP 'Ten Years of Tears' (Vital)
DAMIEN JURADO 'Gathered in Song' (Made in Mexico)
FENNESZ 'Endless Summer (reissue)' (Editions Mego)
HEATMISER 'Yellow No. 5' (Frontier)
MATISYAHU 'No Place to Be' (Epic)
SALLY SHAPIRO 'I'll Be By Your Side' (Diskokaine)
SILKWORM 'Chokes! EP' (12XU)
URBAN LEGENDS 'Of Old Lost Days' (Contraphonic Music)
VARIOUS ARTISTS 'Music For Robots Vol. 2' (Music For Robots)
VIETNAM 'Vietnam' (Kemado)

There are also pre-sales for Arcade Fire, CYHSY!, and Bloc Party...

All of these are available by clicking the InSound button at the right side of this page. Free shipping on orders of $50 or more.

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That's all the news I've got for now...

Kadan- Give it a chance

I did not make it out last night, unfortunately. Everyone I talked to about going to the Mr. Tube show had comments about the venue, Kadan. I just wanted to defend it a little.

When I first moved to Kensington, Kadan did not exist. Neither did Air Conditioned lounge. Kadan has been a ton of different places, but most recently Tuba Man's and Gorilla something-rather. When Kadan opened, it was the year my cousin was coming down from LA every weekend and staying with me. We took a liking to Kadan because of a bartender named Christie who was super cool, they had a clean bathroom (an important factor for chicks) and that they had PBR in cans. As far as I knew, it was the only bar in town doing that until there was a sorta PBR resurgence and it became kitschy city wide, but maybe I'm wrong about that. (PBR tall-boys now at the Belly Up! $6, a lot, but not bad when you consider a bottle of water is $3)

The bar is owned by a guy named Chris, who was one of the owners of Brick By Brick back when it was booking great shows, to me the most memorable of those shows being Fountains of Wayne. He is a hockey player and met his wife in the Czech Republic and she is from a place called Kadan, thus the name. Yes, the decor is a little medieval but it ain't no Renaissance Faire. Once the A/C lounge opened, I have to admit that I stopped going to Kadan because of the overflow crowd coming from A/C. Christie, the bartender, is gone now, her husband?/boyfriend? bought Brick By Brick and she is there now, but for me, if Kadan steers away from the DJ nights and has things more appealing to me, then I would definitely consider putting it back on my list of spots to check out.

In that vein, they've started "Bring Your Own" Mondays... you can bring music (limit one song per person, so make it good), bring your own board game, and bring your own food (potluck style), and bring your own friends to make it whatever you want. And all night $3 wells. Pretty awesome, if you ask me. And last year Kadan was the perfect final stop during "Taste Of Adams". They have happy hour seven days a week and good drink specials. Don't write it off is all I'm suggesting.

All that said, did anybody go last night? What were your impressions of Kadan as a venue for bands? (Remember not all bands have 10 people in them, too) Was there a cover? I wanna hear about it.

Love them Cold War Kids

This is old news, or maybe it's not, but you can head on over to the Cold War Kids site here for some free MP3s of an ep they did of covers songs for a benefit. Sorry to inform you that both the Belly Up show and the Casbah show have sold out. If I decide to go to Gomez on the same night, I might be selling my February ticket...I'll keep you posted...

Things To Do: January 16

Tuesday, January 16, 2007

• Addiquit, MC Flow, Mike Vale, Plain Jane @ Hot Monkey Love Café
• The Joanie-Men, Terry Matsuoka, Gregory Page @ Casbah
• The Blackout Party @ House of Blues sidestage
• Mr. Tube and the Followers @ Kadan (thanks, CatDirt)
• Ash Reiter, The Paddleboat, Hardy Harr!!, Denise Rowe @ Scolari's
• Competitive Eating @ Tower Bar- Tonight's contest: Tater Tots! (Just don't try to stick them in your pocket)

Man Shot and Killed: Police Need Your Help

This happened on Sunday after the game; I'm sorry I didn't post it before, especially because the shooting took place within a couple miles of my neighborhood.

CITY HEIGHTS – A San Diego man was beaten by one group
of men and then shot and killed by another assailant as he lay on a sidewalk
Sunday night.

Rudy Valdez, 25, had gotten into a fight with four other
men just before 7 p.m. in front of a home on 36th Street near Cherokee Street,
San Diego police said. He was on the ground when a man in a pickup pulled up,
got out of the truck, walked over and shot him.

Valdez died minutes later, police said.

The gunman is described as Hispanic, in his late
20s, bald and clean shaven, with a thin build. He was wearing a white T-shirt
and black pants.

The pickup was described as a raised, dark blue Toyota
Tundra, with big rims and wheels and a Chargers lightning bolt in the rear
window.

Police are asking anyone with information about the crime to
call homicide detectives at (619) 531-2293 or Crime Stoppers at (888) 580-TIPS,
where callers can remain anonymous.

Tuesday Newsy Tidbits

I'm adding a link on my page to mVideoJukebox. A project by Dwight Jegler, there are 124 bands on the site including many older and now defunct local San Diego bands as well as bands that are still around. And speaking of....

Did you know Tim Pyles was in a band? You can see footage of the Banana Seeds? in action back in 2001 if you click the popups. Rumor has it that there have been talks for some time of a new project with Tim Pyles, Mike Halloran, Garrett Michaels and John Reis. That is a band I wanna see!

Alex of Swim Party is currently practicing with Kite Flying Society and preparing to hit the road with them this weekend for a mini tour. He says he'll play with them as long as they need him, however his priority is and will be Swim Party and he does not plan on being a permanent fixture in KFS. He may or not play with them as they do a weekly residency at the House of Blues Sidestage starting on Wednesday, February 7 and continuing each Wednesday for 4 weeks. Don't miss the show on February 28th with Princeton, a great band out of Santa Monica right in the same vein as KFS.

Monday Recap: Anti Monday League

If you didn't make it to the Casbah last night, you are almost forgiven because it was butt ass cold, but you missed a decent show.

Evervess was on first. Eric of Swim Party is a member of this band. If you're into shoegaze, Evervess is for you. I had flashbacks of high school and loving bands like Ride and Swervedriver which is pretty fitting since they are the first two bands listed as their influences on their MySpace page here. Grinding guitars and one of the biggest drumkits I've seen any local band use with the dreamlike singing of both guitarists and the bassist coupled with the lighting effect of projected liquid and I was back in 1991, and for me that was a good thing. Troy Johnson commented to me that the 90's are coming back, and I say better than the fucking 80s. Just don't start pulling out your flannels...

Talkdemonic was the second act onstage. The crowd increased...I guess everyone is accustomed to shows starting later. Keep in mind the Mondays start a bit earlier. The smoking patio was particularly empty due to the cold and everyone huddled inside to watch the experimental pair from Portland do their thing. The band is Lisa Molinaro on violin and Kevin O'Connor on drums, accompanied by a laptop (gasp!) with prerecorded accompaniment, such as bass, guitar and mandolin. This is an all instrumental pair and they played a long set of electro-acoustic and electro-classical music. They played a relatively long set and seemed to hold most of the crowd well.

Last up for the night was Dreamtiger. I've never seen them before and I really am not into slamming bands, but I really felt the vocals were weak. It was unfortunate, too, because any band with a chick on accordion would naturally appeal to me, but the vocals just didn't match the music for me. And it had nothing to do with volume or sound mixing...some people just shouldn't sing. Being that it was 11:45, I left during the 3rd song.

I raced home and arrived just in time for the repeat of "The Hills" season premiere on MTV which prominently featured Greg Laswell's cover of "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun" during the closing montage of the show. Good work, Greg.

Radio Morning Show Contest Turns Fatal

Woman Dies After Water-Drinking Radio Contest

January 15, 2007

A 28-year-old mother of three died from water intoxication after taking part in
a water-drinking contest for KDND (The End)/Sacramento on Friday. The contest,
Hold Your Wee for a Wii, involved drinking as much water as you could without
going to the bathroom in order to win the much-coveted Nintendo Wii video game
console. Contestant Jennifer Lea Strange died after drinking well over a half
gallon of water during the Morning Rave program, said the Sacramento Bee.

The rest of the article is here.

Things To Do: January 15

Monday, January 15, 2007: HAPPY BIRTHDAY, JASON!

• Anti-Monday League @ Casbah- Tim Pyles presents Dreamtiger, Talkdemonic, & Evervess $5
• FREE: Martin Luther King, Jr. Day concert @ World Beat Center featuring Lt. Stitchie, Evangel(R&B), Wayne Stoddart(Reggae), Archie Robinson (gospel), Lynette White (Caribbean) 11am to 5pm
• Lady Dottie & The Diamonds @ The Tower Bar

Weekend Recap: Sunday

I woke up to my phone ringing at aroun 12:30. In my panic during the night and with the fear of having to evacuate, I had called Sara, my parents, a couple old neighbors all numerous times with nobody answering. My parents were freaked as was Sara but as everything was ok, they felt better after talking to me.

I decided to watch the Chargers game from home since I'd not had much sleep. I also didn't have a good feeling about the game and didn't want to be around a bunch of people who take a loss personal, or turn into big shit talkers if the game does go their way. It's just my feeling that athletic franchises have no loyalty to their hometowns, so people who worship any team kinda puzzle me. I like watching sports. I do not however, think of myself as being on a team and don't understand the "we're gonna kick your asses" shit talking. That's just me.

I don't need to mention what an ugly game the Chargers played. Disappointing, yes. Surprising, no.

The rest of my Sunday was chill until 8 when Dave picked me up to head to the Belly Up. We arrived during Matt Curreri's set. He and Joanie and Ray Suen of Exfriends were playing minus Kevin on bass and no drums. I love Matt Curreri. I like his quirky songwriting, I like that he is reminiscent of Tweedy but still stands alone on his own songwriting merit. Ray Suen is just amazing on both violin and mandolin. Joanie seems to have backed down on her vocals since the last time I saw them and I like it better that way. The crowd was really responsive to their music, especially the two hecklers up front that Matt had to ask "don't you need to get another beer or something?"

When Rhett came out, it was almost sad. His voice was strained and I'm sure today he has full on larenghitis. He kept apologizing for his voice, for having to spit, and thanking the crowd for "pretending like (he) could sing". Still, he powered through and played some Old 97s stuff and lots of songs from both his solo releases. I have to admit (sorry to eveyone who is so much cooler than me) that I was a Rhett Miller fan first and then went backward to the Old 97's. I have seen Rhett solo and fronting the band and I love both but very differently. For all the struggling through his set, he was a good sport and the crowd wouldn't give up on him. And really, how could you walk out on the man who has, hands down, the most piercing eyes, the best hair, and the best booty shake in all of rock n roll?

Some girls in the front who had videotaped the entire show and the others that had bought Rhett two shots of Patrón were not happy that I chatted with the sound guy who climbed onstage to get me the setlist. But I do it all for you dear Blog Readers...

Weekend Recap: Saturday

CatDirt and CatDirt Wife came over for some beers before we headed over to the Ken Club. The Muslims were already playing when we arrived. The room was packed and everyone that I talked to liked them a lot and kept saying they are very "Velvet-Underground-y". The Ken Club band side was packed. Unfortunately, I don't have much to add to what Catdirt said about the show. The Muslims are good and their shows this weekend should prove to be as good if not better. (Friday at the Ken Club, Saturday at the Beauty Bar)

I didn't realize I was missing Jeremy Jay until it was too late and only caught 2 songs. I definitely thought there was a Morissey-esque sound to the vocals which to me can't be bad. Still there was so much going on at the bar...lots of local bands were present and the alcohol was flowing.

The Prayers played last. I was chided for never having seen the Prayers before but I just hadn't. I don't really follow the whole Art Fag/Skull Kontrol/Plot/et al crew so I didn't know what to expect. I thought the band would be screaming and sloppy and in fact was surprised by how mellow and clean their sound is. In fact, they reminded my of my mom's 45s from the 60s with their poppy pep. The crowd had thinned significantly but there was still a good showing of people.

As the night drew to a close everyone went their own way so I ventured home at last call and decided to watch a movie. At 3:30ish, the movie was ending and I started to hear some crazy noises outside...tons of yelling and glass breaking. I didn't look outside because I had no idea what all the commotion was. I tried to find the non-emergency number for the police but couldn't locate it and called 911. The operator informed me that all the noise was from the house fire next door. I went outside and saw the house adjacent to me on fire. I went upstairs to wake up Sara who happened to not be at home. I went out front to see at least 4 full fire engines, at least 4 police cruisers, and 3 or 4 fire investigation team trucks. I talked with the police letting them know that the house is empty...it is leased by a landscape company so nobody actually lives there. They suggested I prepare to evacuate. Being that I pretty much have my own zoo (a dog, 3 cats, 5 frogs) I wasn't exactly sure where I would go at 4 in the morning, but I got out all the cat carriers just in case.

It was amazing to me how quickly the fire was contained and the mere fact that someone drove by and saw the smoke and called it in when I was right next door and didn't notice a thing. Eventually they told me I was safe to stay home and told me that the fire had started from the wall heater...they had left the pilot light on and turned down the thermostat, but the house temp dropped and triggered the heater and the stuff covering it up on the wall caught on fire. It was a scary thing, and the second house fire I've been witness to, the other one happened directly across the street and as far as I know was also attributed to a faulty heater.

It was a scary night though everything ended up being ok for me. The lights and trucks and all the commotion continued all night so I wasn't asleep until after 6 am deeming Sunday another completely unproductive day. In the morning I talked to the wife of the owner of the landscape company and they said the fire was amazingly contained to the living room. They were lucky. I guess so was I.

Weekend Recap: Friday

I really slacked on the blog this weekend but it was pretty crazy so I just didn't get around to it.

My Friday night began at Lestat's coffee. I got there during Micah Dahlberg's set. Micah sounded so much like James Taylor at times that I'd hoped he bust out some Sweet Baby James. He's from Texas but apparently lives in LA now. I liked the slow stuff more than the attempts at funking it up, but that's just me. He was backed by a cellist who was really good. Lestat's was packed, apparently Tyrone Wells is a huge draw and people were willing to dish out the $12 cover to see him.

Deccatree was next and my reason for being at the show. As I've mentioned, Chris Karn is the singer of Deccatree and was in a band called Sonichrome that I loved back in the days when Halloran was on The Flash. He was high on caffeine so had a hard time getting into serious mode for his songs but the crowd was exchanging banter and seemed to enjoy the short set. They started with a song I wasn't familiar with, then played Belong, Tears, Soul, Angel, What If I (first verse only and then they busted up and ended up skipping the song entirely), I'm Stalking You, Tonight.

Next up was Tyrone Wells. Chris produced his CD and apparently he's signed to Universal. I had other plans (you know, ones that involved adult beverages)...so I went to the HH bar and apparently the word is out because the bar was packed. Troy was there, KFS, Catdirt and Catdirt Wife, The Knitting Ninja, half of Vinyl Radio, and tons of others. It was a chill night but there were so many people there that eventually the fridge emptied of cold beers so everyone that hadn't already taken off to the Beauty Bar pretty much cleared out by 12:30.

I headed back to the hood and just missed The Fascination at the Ken Club. I had some drinks with Rob and bumped into an old friend who then came over and we watched tv until the wee hours until his friend was done hooking up with some chick in his truck. Saturday ended up not being a very productive day...

A picture preview

I will be racapping the weekend soon, but in the meantime, here's a pic of how I spent my Saturday night:

Staring At The Sun Volume 5 to be released

This info from Bart Mendoza:

I just wanted to let you know about two events we're putting together to celebrate the release of Staring At The Sun Vol. 5, a FREE compilation of local music. The music on the disc is all over the place with a little bit of everything:-)

Feb. 8 Lestats / All Ages Event
Podunk Nowhere
The Grams
Mark DeCerbo & Four Eyes
Marie Haddad
$5 admission. All attendees recieve a free CD - All Ages. 9 p.m.

Feb. 25 The Casbah / 21 and up
Presented by Tim Pyles and FM94.9
Vinyl Radio
Buzzkill Romantics
The Shambles
Anna Troy
Free Show - Free Food - Free CD
Live FM94.9 Broadcast from the back bar aka The Atari Lounge
7:30 p.m. 21 and up. Free.

The CD includes music from all the above artists plus Will Edwards, Barbara Nesbitt, The Coyote Problem, Citizen Band, Berkley Hart, Christopher Dale's Superdoo, The Spring Collection, Heathen Kings of Olde and Blizzard. Also there is a bonus video of Scott Wilson's song "Coffeehouse 101" featuring cameos from over 50 local performers and music media types, from Troy Johnson to bluesman Robin Henkel!

Thanks
Bart

Things To Do: January 12- January 14 2007

Friday, January 12, 2007

• Deccatree, Tyrone Wells, Micah Dahlberg @ Lestat's (Deccatree is one of my favorites)
• Incubus & Albert Hammond, Jr. (of the Strokes) @ Soma (sold out)
• The Fucking Champs, Earthless, Citay @ Casbah ($10)
• The Fascination, The Wills @ Ken Club
• Sara Petite & Gully @ Whistle Stop
• The Americans, Longway, The Experiments, Nuclear Tomorrow @ Zombie Lounge
• The Soft.Lightes @ Beauty Bar
• Electric Warriors ride: Meet up at 10 p.m. Friday, Jan. 12, at the fountain in Balboa Park.
• Mommy's Little Monster, Dukes of Haggard, Whiskey Dicks @ Brick By Brick

Saturday, January 13, 2007

• Mods vs. Rockers @ Tower Bar
• The North Atlantic, Aspects of Physics, Secret Fun Club, Japanese Sunday @ Casbah $8
• The Prayers, The Muslims, Jeremy Jay @ The Ken Club, DJ Sets by Skull Kontrol
• Oaks, The Front, Hostile Combover @ Scolari's
• FREE INSTORE: Chow Nasty @ M-Theory 3 pm
• Burning of Rome @ Beauty Bar
• Fashion Whore @ San Diego Sports Club (Theme: Cowboys & Indians)
• FREE STUFF: Multicultural Festival @ MLK, Jr. Promenade between 4th and Market across from Harbor Drive. 11a-5p.
• Embarassing: Cheetah Girls @ iPayOne. If anyone has a pair of free tickets to send my way, my little sister would be eternally grateful. She's 8 and allowed to love the Cheetah Girls.
• Get Your Death On, Gargantula, Bat Wings, Its Casual @ Alibi
• Jason Lee, Bamboula, The Strikers, Zombie Surf Camp, The Barroom Shakers @ Dreamstreet $5, 8pm
• Agua Dulce & Those Dang Robinsons@ 710 Beach Club
• Dead Man's Party & Zoo2 @ Belly Up
• FREE: Ray At Night (monthly night of open galleries at Ray St & North Park Way) 6-10p
• FREE: MySpace Secret Show: Hellogoodbye & Self Against City @ Soma Sidestage, Sat Jan 13, 7pm.
  

Sunday, January 14, 2007

• Rhett Miller & Matt Curreri @ Belly Up
• Buckfast Superbee, The Transit War, Spell Toronto, Strike the Design @ Casbah (Casbah's official18th Anniversary)

Thursday Night in San Diego: A recap and Newsy Bits

I joined my friends Andrea, Kara, Francine, Dan and Matt at Bacchus for a happy hour wine tasting. 6 tastings for $5 is a bargain, especially when there are 9 or 10 different wines from which to choose for your tastings. Here's a picture for your pleasure, taken by the camera on Francine's phone.



Apps were half price though the selection limited being that Bacchus is a wine store and not a restaurant. With the happy hour prices, olives and crackers are $2.50, a cheese plate is $5, a meat and cheese plate is $7.50. In a "twist my arm" evening, after our tasting and subsequently sharing 2 bottles of wine from the store, we headed down G Street to 57°. Dan has wine stored there so we shared a few more bottles of wine. I was going to write a fake review of the Belly Up show because I am mad at myself that I bought a ticket and didn't use it, but honestly, a good night shant be cut short for a 25 minute ride up the coast. So yeah, I missed Ryan Calhoun, Anya Marina and Greg Laswell. But I played poker and drank wine in the VIP room of 57°: life is all about trade-offs.

Last night was also the anniversary party at Kate Ross which had a reception at the store and a fashion show afterward at Bluefoot Lounge. My favorite photographer was present and took some pics for your enjoyment. All photos taken by David Fennema. Take a look at his photoblog for other amazing photos.









In other newsy bits:

Rookie Card is looking for a bassist: BASSIST WANTED Want to play and harmonize with Rookie Card? Fun established indiepowerpop/altcountry band. Good songs, good times. We dig Wilco, Guided By Voices, Teenage Fanclub, Whit Strips, Old 97's, Big Star, etc. Contact Adam through the band's MySpace page here. The band has several upcoming shows, so check their MySpace for those dates as well.

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If you missed the live S&M show at the Beauty Bar on Wednesday, check out the pictures here. The photographer also has a great collection of pictures of Republic of Letters here. Catch Republic of Letters at the Ken Club on January 26.

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If you happened to be at the awesome Danielson concert at the Casbah last summer, then go show your love by voting for their video on MTVU. Don't be too cool for MTV. MTV sells records, more record sales equals more touring, more touring means bands stop treating San Diego like we're some podunk town and can be bypassed on tours as bands head from LA to Tempe. Voting ends tonight at midnight.

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Rob Crow is featured on Stereogum's blog today. Check it out here.

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Time for my Friday nap. Peace out...

Things To Do: January 11

My weekend will involve happy hour tonight at Bacchus then Greg Laswell @ The Belly Up, Deccatree at Lestat's on Friday, The Ken Club on Saturday, and Chargers game/Rhett Miller on Sunday. Very nice.

Thursday, January 11, 2007:

• Political: Not One More Death! Not One More Dollar! Rally Against Bush's plan to send more troops to Iraq- 5pm First and Cedar @ Federal Building
• Greg Laswell, Anya Marina, and Ryan Calhoun @ Belly Up.
• 34 Below @ Dublin Square
• Mickey Avalon, Dyslexic Speedreaders @ Casbah ($16)
• 4 Way Free, Kyle Phelan, Brett Bixby @ Lestat's
• Long Live Logos, Black Patterns From Saturn, Enter Telescope @ Scolari's
• Noches Rockeras w/ Castillo @ House of Blues (local Rock En Español free tickets call 619-254-4685)
• FREE SHIT: Kate Ross One Year Anniversary, trunk show, bevvies and desserts. 6-9 pm. 3018 University Ave, North Park. (Followed by Kate Ross Fashion Show @ Bluefoot Bar, 9pm, DJ Morgan Young, Drink Specials.)
• Repeater @ Beauty Bar
• Firethorn & Secret Apollo @ SD Sports Club
• Happy Hour: Bacchus $5 Wine Tasting (of 6 wines), 1/2 price apps from 5-8pm. Andrea and I are going. Who is in? The address is 647 G Street. I'll be there around 6.

Accused: Junior Seau Lawsuit

Junior Seau is being sued for property damage and the distress felt after he got into a verbal confrontation with two women at Sidebar over 8 months ago. I know I wasn't there and I realize it's probably really sexist of me, but bitches like these really piss me off and are a disgrace to my gender.
If a guy called me a name and tossed a drink on me, I'd be pissed but it hardly makes me worthy $25k. I wasn't even gonna blog this but as it is local news and happened at a local bar, I'll go ahead and post.

You can read the actual complaint here. Read what he supposedly said! Awesome. He used the C word...because they are.

Rob Crow In-Store!

This news from M-Theory:

Rob Crow In-Store 1/27 @ 3pm at the Mission Hills Store!

Pinback's own (and a million other great indie bands for that
matter) Rob Crow has a new solo record out on Tues 1/23rd. As opposed to some of his other solo output where the songs were a bit more varied in genre styles,
this new record really does sound like a lost Pinback record. With Rob's
signature vocal styling and melodic guitar hooks, it's instantly recognizable to
Pinback fans and will attract those not so familiar with his involvment in the
band. In other words, it kicks ass!

We're proud to announce an in-store performance
to promote the new CD on Sat. Jan 27th @ 3pm at the Mission Hills store.
Additionally, we have a limited supply of autographed Ladies CDs, free with
pre-order/purchase of Rob's new solo record. Ladies is another project Rob was
in recently that involved a collaboration with Zach Hill (from Hella). Mark it
down. Pre-order the CD. See you on the 27th!

Also, Rob Crow & Friends will be performing at the Casbah on February 14.

Today's Newsy Tidbits- Thursday

I didn't make it out last night. My Christmas tree was still up and looking more and more sad the further into '07 we get, so it was time to let go. I wanna hear about the show at the Casbah, the S&M show at the Beauty Bar, and Pussy Galore. Good turnouts? Any craziness ensue?

This really has nothing to do with anything but it will stand, at least for now, as the funniest thing I've seen in person this year. Last night after work, on 2nd and C street in front of the community concourse, a large group of all male protesters had assembled. I don't think I'm exagerrating to say there were 30-40 guys, all young, and loud. What were they protesting you ask? The buildup of troops in Iraq? no. They were chanting in support of the former 9th planet of our solar system, Pluto. Chanting "1-2-3-4 We love Pluto, 5-6-7-8 We think Pluto's great." 5 shirtless guys each had a letter of "pluto" across their chests. The funny thing, to me, was that Pluto's planetary status was stripped months ago. Way to follow your current events, guys!

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My most listened to and favorite album of 2006 was Makers by Rocky Votolato. If you're a fan, keep an eye out for tickets as he'll be returning to the Casbah on April 15 (taxday and my sister's 29th birthday) He often does an in-store at M-Theory, so keep your eyes peeled for that, too.

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Indie103 played an old Silversuns Pickup track this morning. It is from their ep before Carnavas and the song is called Kissing Families. They have it posted on their MySpace page, so go check it out if you're a fan. While I'm at it, I bought a pair of tickets to Snow Patrol, Silversun Pickups, and OK, Go! coming in a couple months. I haven't thought about who is going to get the second ticket, so if you wanna come with me (and pay back for the ticket), let me know. I am not in the pit but my seats are decent.

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This is a message from Andrew of Vinyl Radio/Upset Schoolbus/and formerly Cape May. (Go toward the bottom of the section call Notables)

We're adding Ryan, former singer and guitar hero
from the Jury, to the group that me, Dusty from Cape May, and Andrew
McNally from the Jury and Rookie Card have initiated. So far that makes 2
drummers, sharing the same kick, that will also sing and play keys on different
songs, and some guitars. Ryan will also sing, do his thing that he does so well
on his Les Paul and sing, and myself on guitars and keys and some
singing. Bass player needed. We wanted to talk to the girl guitarist and former
Society back-up singer from Pussywhipped but I got kicked out of the SDSC
before I could speak with her. Damn that register girl!

Keep an eye out for Upset Schoolbus....
**************
The Black Keys will be on Conan tonight. If you're home (or arriving home after a night out) be sure to check them out. And Peter, Bjorn and John just confirmed they'll be on January 29.
**************
MySpace Secret Show in San Diego this weekend! Just announced! All Ages! Free!
Hellogoodbye & Self Against City @ Soma Sidestage, Sat Jan 13, 7pm. Maybe Tom will be there!!
**************



Download "Elephant Gun" (mp3)
from "Lon Gisland EP"
by Beirut
Ba Da Bing!

• Buy at RealNetworks / Rhapsody


• Buy at Napster


• Stream from RealNetworks / Rhapsody

That's all I've got so far...it's a slow news day...just be glad I'm not ranting about the Commander in Chief.

Glitch: Casbah

The Casbah has a few web urls that lead to their pages. The schedule is inaccessible at the moment at CasbahMusic.com, however the other site, CasbahTickets.com, bypasses the schedule and can still be used to buy tickets for now.

Things To Do: January 10

Wednesday, January 10:

• The Fourth Project Benefit show @ the Casbah Wednesday, January 10th.
  The Heartaches (new record just out on Swami Records), Beehive and the Barracudas (first show in almost a year), The Sultans (last show ever!* Featuring members of RFTC) and Mr. Tube and the Flying Objects (10 piece low rider rock featuring Pall of Blackheart Procession and 3 Mile Pilot).
  There will be a raffle with prizes being given all night from sponsors such as Fallen Footwear, Zero Skateboards, Swami Records, Flapping Jet Records, Merch Lackey, Innes Clothing, Dekline Shoes, Foundation Skateboards and others TBA.
• Dynamite Walls & Ovals Of Cassini @ SDSC for Pussy Galore
• "The New Black" @ Beauty Bar. Live S&M show. Meow.
• Metal Skool @ Typhoon Saloon
• FREE SHIT: Chargers Power Rally @ Qualcomm Stadium with appearances by members of the Chargers, The Charger Girls, and free concert by P.O.D. (who wrote a new Chargers theme song). Rally is from 3:00 to 6:30 p.m. Free raffle with prizes including playoff tickets.

Boo-Hoo: Landlord Jim's

I came across this little piece of info in today's print CityBeat:

Visual Graffiti Thursday Jan 11. This will be
the last Visual Graffiti because Landlord Jim's will
soon be closing its doors.

WHAT!?! Anyone know what's up? Building sold? Gonna miss the paper bag tallboys...

Today's Newsy Tidbits

I did not go out last night so I got a full night's sleep and I am feeling good today. On with the blog:

If you haven't read CatDirt's review of the Justin Timberlake show, check it out here.
**********
Good news from Peter, Bjorn and John: the long awaited US version of Writer's Block is out Feb 6th, 2007- for more info on the US release go here. (OK, maybe not local music news, but good non-local music counts on this blog, too.)
**********
I have modified this website a little. In the right column I have added four different "hype machine" top tens. You can click on the songs and it will link you to the place where that MP3 is available online. I have links to Stereogum, "Popular Blog Tracks", Gorilla vs. Bear, and An Aquarium Drunkard. It's coming together little by little, people...
**********
A shout out to Swim Party. Troy Johnson has made them the artist of the day on his blog here and this little site has been added as a link from the band's website. Go check out their site here. Thanks, Alex!
**********
As Troy blogged, bad news for Bayside concerts. I used to teach tennis is Coronado. I say to Coronado, "BITE ME." The concerts at the Embarcadero were fucking great and the islanders get no sympathy. How about checking the decibels of all the military aircraft. Honestly, 76 complaints is a lot? Just wondering. So the concerts will all end by 10 or 10:30. If big bands still book, this could mean more official after parties at Beauty Bar, The Casbah and the like, yeah? The fucked up thing is that Coors will probably get more of the artists that would've played the Embarcadero. $25 for Manu Chao, bye-bye. $34 for Death Cab, Spoon and Mates? Not gonna happen again. Get ready for the tripling of ticket prices...
***********
In addition to new stuff from Modest Mouse, The Shins, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, and Arcade Fire, Indie 103 is playing a new Morrissey track. Apparently the new ep is available on iTunes. And while I'm on the topic, is it just me or could the new Modest Mouse track "Dashboard" fit right onto The Cloud Room's '05 self-titled release?
*********
Today's CityBeat's got lots of good stuff (most of which you already know from reading this blog!!), but here's Troy's correction about Vinyl Radio:

Last week in “If I Were U,” we reported that Brad
Artley—former drummer of Brian Jonestown Massacre and co-star of the holiest of
unholy rock documentary films, Dig!—had joined local garage-rockers Vinyl Radio.
Seems we jumped the gun: While Artley has auditioned, no decision has been made yet to add him to the band.

They are still looking for a permanent drummer. If you think you've got what it takes, you can drop me an email and I'll put you in touch with them, or just go to their MySpace page.
***********
Here's CityBeat's take on Dick Murphy's Malkmus attendance that I blogged about here.
***************

This from HoneyBeeHive:

due to last minute band cancelations, the bee hive is
currently available for bookings on jan 19 and 20. if you are interested in
putting a show together on either of these dates, please call Richie @
619-517-2030

***************
Blonde Redhead has announced a tour and will be at the Belly Up on April 27. (This one's for you, Jason, because I know you love them so...)

CWK

Let's see if you can decode a message: A glitch on the website of a venue I frequent often (like 3 times in the last 4 days) has announced an onsale date for tix to CWK of this Friday but allows you to make the purchase now. Ticket + Service charge + Mail = $16.25 but I believe it's worth it. Show date is Feb 20.

Things To Do: January 9

Tuesday, January 9:

• Helmet & Totimoshi @ The Casbah
• The Challenger Deep, Hialeah, Hollywood Begs @ Scolari's
• Firethorn @ San Diego Sports Club
• Sin City Revue, Celebrating The Music of Gram Parsons featuring Tim Flannery, Eve Selis, Berkeley Hart, Slidewinders @ Belly Up
• Lady Sovereign @ House of Blues
• The Blackout Party @ House of Blues (Salvation Alley stage...FREE!)
• Competitive Eating Contest @ The Tower Bar (win a $30 bar tab!) Word on the street is this week's food is TAQUITOS.

Random Tidbits/Anti Monday Recap

1. Morrissey has scheduled three solo dates in Pasadena. The shows will be Feb 1-3 and tickets go on sale this Saturday at 10 a.m.

2. Contrary to the SignOnSanDiego teaser about Lady Sovereign, she is not "back at the House of Blues for the second time in three months". Her other show here was cancelled because she brokedown. Maybe she'll breakdown again when she finds out that even when the same tickets had 3 more months to sell, they were still offered for 2 for Tuesdays on the HoB site, whick means you could buy 2 Lady Sov tickets for the low price of $13 (plus $999 in rip-off HoB service charges). I've mentioned that I had a nightmare with "Love Me Or Hate Me" as the soundtrack, so there is no question that I will NOT be at the show tonight. That's what I get for repeatedly watching The Bad Girls Club on the Oh! Network. But how can I resist? It's only like the best reality show EVER!

3. Cool Merch watch: Vena Cava has the best shirts ever. (after you click the link, scroll down for t-shirt demonstration)

4. My lovely amigo Troy Johnson has been blogging lately. Check it out here.

Last night brought the long awaited arrival of Tim Pyles' Anti-Monday League. I feel like I've been helping to promote the hell out of this show, so if people didn't show up, I was gonna take it personal. To my surprise, not only did people show, but it was pretty crowded. Definitely more people than I ever remember at Poprocks. I hadn't really even paid attention at the hodgepodge lineup until I was at the show. The Strikers are metal-cum-psychobilly and were pretty damn good and got the few of us who showed up early lubed for a night of good music. The bassist played a standup bass ("painted like the Batmobile" according to Jason) and as they played their version of Wooly Bully, he proceeded to hump his bass in that jackhammer way that is a nightmare to all women and resurrects bad flashbacks of college. Or maybe that's just me. Nonetheless, I thought they put on a good show and if the fast hard rock stuff is your cup of tea, you should check them out on Saturday at Dream Street.

By the time Fifty took the stage, more people had arrived though it really was a testament more to the fact that everyone loves Tim and wanted to support his endeavors more than anything else. Everyone who matters was at the show. That was a joke. Really. But it was cool to see all the people who turned up...Bart Mendoza, Troy Johnson, Edgartronic, O from Reeve Oliver, Irwin of Irwin's Conspiracy, ChickRawker, CatDirt & CDWife (after Timberlake, of course), the SDSC crew of Neil, Rodney, and Jason, Laura Jane (host of the upcoming Indie Music Fest), Mel, Nick and Adrian of Republic of Letters, MC Flow, and whoever that awesome guy was that bought me a drink at the end of the night. I didn't catch his name but he gets the gold star. I know there were a bunch of other local musicians represented but I don't know all of 'em.

Anyway, Fifty did their thing and the sound was loud but the vox still audible which to me, makes or breaks their shows. The crowd seemed genuinely into the music and you would've been hard pressed to find anyone there who wasn't enjoying themselves. FOTH brand of Pistols inspired punk is fun and energizing and it's always funny to see Junior try to work out a new place for him to climb while onstage.

I escaped to a pool table for a few games with Nick until Vinyl Radio started. I have no journalistic integrity because I love these guys so there definitely might be a conflict of interest, but I was a fan first and friend second so I can still say that I love Matt's onstage presence and the blues driven classic rock feel of their material. I mentioned that I've heard the new recordings and the forthcoming album is gonna be strong. Morgan Young filled in on drums (not the dude from Brian Jonestown Massacre as reported here) and I know that the band wishes he were a permanent fixture. Their quest to find a permanent drummer continues.

Following along? That is psychobilly to punk to rock. This had me concerned because I really liked what I'd heard of Peter and The Wolf, but didn't think the crowd would stick around for folkie indie music. And more or less, I was right. Maybe it was because it was Monday night, maybe people didn't want the change of pace, or maybe that the band isn't local made them easier to dismiss, but I am glad I stuck around for their performance.

I had heard tracks from Peter and the Wolf from a radio broadcast and was expecting a guy and a chick with a guitar and maybe a single snare or something. In no way was I prepared for 8 guys taking the stage, all with various improvised instruments. The singer fronted with a duct taped guitar. I didn't notice any other traditional instruments. One guy played a bicycle rim and the spokes with a drumstick. One guy played a six pack of empty beer bottles in their little cardboard carrier with a drumstick. There were pots and pans and lids and spatulas and shakers and all kinds of random stuff. I felt like I was watching the indie rock version of Stomp without the lame interpretive dance. Unfortunately the crowd thinned out and it seemed there were more people onstage than in the crowd, but those of us paying attention were stoked by what we saw. The band would've benefitted from a more indie billing, I think, like with Kite Flying Society or similar, but for their first show in SD, I hope they felt the trip was worthwhile.

That's all I've got for now. New calendar to be posted later.

Devotchka

After the Devotchka show in December, I said that I didn't think that their music was anything I would listen to at home or at work or in my car, though I thoroughly enjoyed their concert. I would like to officially revoke that statement and tell you to go listen to them here. You will forget you're stuck in a cubicle jungle. Seriously. You will feel transported from wherever you are.

I never posted my really bad pics either. Here's just a couple...

Things To Do: January 8

I kinda like the daily updating of my things to do. First off, I think it should always stay at the top of the page. But also, just typing it all gives me perspective about how my week lays out, when I can fit in doing laundry, how much money I can blow on cover or drinks or merch, when I'll get to take naps or when I should just stay in. I hope it works for you.

It has also occurred to me that people coming from out of town, say for the ASR (Action Sports Retailers) Trade show might be looking for things to do while they're in San Diego, so I'm trying to extend the calendar out a little more, but still on a week to week basis. I'll still be constantly updating as I find other things to add.

Monday, January 8:

• Anti-Monday League @ The Casbah, Featuring Vinyl Radio, Peter and The Wolf, Fifty On Their Heels, The Strikers. $5. Presented by Tim Pyles. New Set Times: 9 :00 - The Strikers 9:45 - Fifty On Their Heels 10:30 - Vinyl Radio 11:15 - Peter And The Wolf

Look at his cute new logo:

• Cocktails in Kensington @ The Ken Club
• Justin Timberlake & Pink @ iPayOne Center
• Elvis' Birthday Celebration @ Dick's Last Resort. Impersonator competition and Jelly Donut Eating Contest. Free to enter. Joey Inzunza, if you were still in San Diego you could be all over this.
• Lady Dottie & The Diamonds @ Tower Bar

Random Buzz: Things That Make Me Happy

1. The Shins are going to be on Saturday Night Live this week. Not that I'll be home to watch, but at least it's exposure for music that doesn't suck. Indie bloggers give your collective groan of how this makes them lose their cred. Whatever.

2. The Casbah has a listing for the Cold War Kids on February 20. Tickets aren't on sale yet. This is the same night as Gomez/Ben Kweller so I'll have to make a choice, but good options to have to debate, don't you think? CWK are supposed to be touring with Delta Spirit and Tokyo Police Club, but TPC is gonna be in Europe for the SD date. Bummer.

3. 94/9 has added the new Modest Mouse song "Dashboard" to rotation.

4. Arcade Fire's 2nd song "Black Mirror" from the new album is playing on Indie 103.1 Rumored to be playing "in (the LA) area" in the end of April would suggest that they are playing Coachella. Not that I go to Coachella, but if I did, this news would excite me.

Recap: Stephen Malkmus & The Jicks and Entrance

Damn my Photobucket has been pissing me off today.

Last night's Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks show was pretty alright. Truth be told, there is nothing I can say about Pavement or Stephen Malkmus that hasn't been said by people who know music and this musician in particular, better than I do. I enjoyed the sold out show, but for me it wasn't life-changing, "epic" or particularly spectacular. I expected more quick starting and quick closing songs, but there were a lot of free jams happening onstage. The crowd was into it, and especially stoked that the drummer from Sleater Kinney is now a Jick. So no analysis, here's the set list for you.



The opening band was called Entrance. They're a three piece, with a chick bassist (who was wearing moccasins and looked like she hit the peace pipe before the show). The vocalist/guitarist plays Hendrix style, with his guitar upside down and really weird tunings. The first four songs to me were pretty cool, psychedelic rock with a hint of gypsy vibe, but they turned more into straight up psych rock as the set progressed and I lost my enthusiasm when the singer switched guitars mid set and had to tune for at least 5 minutes only to come back with only 2 songs. huh? Seemed like a waste. I also felt like the draw of the band was the hollering vocal stylings of the singer and the lyrics fell by the wayside. I guess that's just me. "Don't go walking on the wrong side of the road" just ain't deep.

All in all, I had a good time, but there have been and will continue to be much better shows at the Casbah and around town in '07. Sorry for the indie rock sacrilege.

Recap: Stephen Malkmus Part 2

I forgot to mention that former Mayor Dick Murphy was at the show at the Casbah. I think he was there with his kids. Weird. After the show, I saw him waiting around to talk to Stephen Malkmus. How bizarre is that?

Vote For My Piece o Shit Car!

I really don't know that I should completely expose myself like this, but I entered a contest to win the VW bus from Little Miss Sunshine. It had to be 60 seconds and you had to use the VMIX site to create a slideshow, and the uploaded video is really fucked up compared to how my final preview looked, so I'll blame vMix. My transitions and captions got all fucked up from how they looked when I edited, but it is what it is and I can't fix it now. I think my entry comes in over 60 seconds, but the vMix helpdesk has notified me that it was, in fact, a glitch in the system, so all entries will still be considered in spite of their length. There were less than 50 entries nationwide, so chances are relatively good.

I used a song by Get Back Loretta("You Gotta Believe") that was available on the site. Public votes count for 25% of the score, so won't you help me out and vote??

The link to all the entries is here. Mine is called "San Diego Hooptie" and is in the fourth column, eleventh row. I would embed it here, but the code is all screwed up. If you have a second, come and vote.

Hey bands, Looking to play in San Diego?

This is a bulletin from The Honey Bee Hive:

the bee hive is currently booking dates;
jan 19, 20,22,and 29th
febuary 4, 5,11,12,18,19,23,25,and 26
contact richie @ 619-517-2030
these dates will fill fast so contact asap

I have to admit, the one show I went to at the HBH was a little disappointing but I think that was a fluke(too much cover for a "troupe" is all I'm saying). Anyway, it's a good alternative venue to the usual suspects. From my experience, I would say if you book a show there, it's up to you to promote and get the bodies in the door, but you can just make it your own party with all your own friends. And that ain't too shabby if you ask me.

Things To Do: January 7-10

Sunday, January 7:

• Stephen Malkmus and The Jicks @ The Casbah $16
• Hot Like a Robot, The Secret Stolen, All Ages @ The Zombie Lounge
• Eve White Eve Black, The She He He's, Starcrossed @ SD Sports Club

Weekend Recap: The Roman Spring, A Week's Worth, etc...

What a great first weekend of a new year. I started my weekend after my halfday of work on Friday by scooting home and taking care of business, then heading downtown with Sara to see The Holiday. It’s standard romantic comedy fare, which translates to me crying over silly moments and trying to decide who I love more…Jack Black or Jude Law. I enjoyed the movie and recommend it if you’re already feeling a bit of nostalgia for Christmas.

After the movie I picked up Andrea and we headed to Happy Hour to meet Scott and Sophie (CatDirt and CatDirtWife). They were going to the show at Horton House/Stockton House. Troy Johnson was initiated and showed up at the bar, too, along with Seth Combs. In all honesty, if my night had ended there, I would’ve been fine with that because we were having such a good time, but alas, we all had other plans.

Andrea and I made it to the Casbah just as the Roman Spring had started their set. This is my second time seeing them and I really noticed a lot of growth and a more fluid sound. Tim took more risks with guitar solos and I think the sound mix was just a lot better than the last time I saw them.

As expected, it was a packed house, which is just a great commentary on San Diego local music at the moment. The Prayers were on next and I’ll definitely have to check them out another time when there isn’t so much to otherwise be distracted by. I ventured out to the patio during their set and pretty much remained there throughout the remainder of the show. I went in a couple times for Grand Ole Party and UV Tigers but I feel like I’ve seen both bands in the past 6 months more than I’ve seen my own mother, so there was nothing new going on and I didn’t feel compelled to pay close attention.

Saturday night I wasn’t much motivated to do anything. Knowing the I’m going to the Casbah tonight (Sunday) as well as tomorrow for the Anti Monday League show, I decided that I’ll have to catch Swim Party and Modern Rifles somewhere else. Transfer is another band I’ve seen quite a bit lately, too, so I wasn’t concerned about missing them. Matt called and told me there was some sidestage show happening at the House of Blues. He told me that Vinyl Radio and Grand Ole Party were originally supposed to play, but now the lineup was Lady Dottie and The Diamonds and Delta Spirit. I headed to his house and we ventured downtown. On the ride I got a preview of the rough tracks of the new Vinyl Radio and it is strong. Some mixing needs to be done, but the preproduced product sounds great already. You can still pick up their free CD at various locations. They had a bunch at the Casbah on Friday but I don’t know how many were left. There should be more there for the show tomorrow.

After grabbing some bar fare and a couple drinks, we came to find out that both bands had cancelled and now the show was just going to be Buddy Akai, though I suppose I would’ve known this had I checked the MySpace bulletins.

I’ve seen Buddy Akai before and I enjoy them for what they are, but when manager Erika Jessup (of the Beauty Bar) told us that the band might not play because their laptop was missing we both kinda cringed. Matt is of the belief that computers have no business on stage. I’m not that extreme, but my feeling is that a band should be able to pull off a decent set with or without a laptop. Later that night, Shiloh and Jason and I had a discussion about it and they shed some light on the value of a computer for the electro-rock that bands like Buddy Akai play, but I’m not sure I’m sold. I feel like their sound has already run its course and isn’t really a style with any longevity or staying power once the resurgence of the 80’s passes and we inevitably draw from another era. The boys from Augustana were at the show but left after the first song.

Matt and I were pretty tired from having to wait so long for their set to even start, so we took a cue from Augustana and left after the second song. I picked up my car and wasn’t ready to call it a night so I decided to head to Rosie O’Grady’s in hopes of catching A Weeks Worth and also as a bit of surveillance to check out the bar as a venue. I really believe that bands need to play different venues. The Beauty Bar, The Casbah, The Ken Club and the Sports Club all have their merits, but the crowds at these bars draw from the same pool. There are also places like Brick By Brick or Dream Street or Winston’s that have their own qualities that might help in expanded exposure, even if it seems like nobody is paying attention, as was the case for Rosie’s.

I’ve lived down the street from Rosie’s for seven years now and have to admit this was maybe my fourth time there. I’ve never seen a band play there. I found a stool along the bar and ordered up a Smithwick’s (Rosie’s has a good beer selection) and eventually A Week’s Worth started playing.

They are a local three piece and I have to say I really enjoyed their performance, although I caught them at the end of the night for their final abbreviated set. There’s something about that bar that is foreign to me. Like I love the look of the bar, but the crowd is built in, whether there’s a band or karaoke or whatever, so to me not being a local, you get the feeling like you wish you could transport 50 friends there. Everyone was talking through the music that I kept thinking of the scene in Beautiful Girls when the Afghan Whigs play live but as just background music in the bar. Aside from some random chick dancing up front, nobody seemed to be paying attention to the music except for me and the two guys next to me because we were right near the band’s setup, and the woman taking pictures.

Still, none of that takes away from the fact that A Weeks Worth are a good band. I’ve been laying on my bed and have listened to their album twice all the way through and I am trying to find a way to describe the music but I’m coming up blank. I guess the fact that I can lay on my bed and listen to a self produced local album all the way through twice should alone say something. I’m feeling Nada Surf, early Better Than Ezra, Longwave…somewhere along those lines. Just do yourself a favor and listen to them.

After the show I came home and was ready to settle into a late night movie but Jason and Shiloh came over so we watched Next on MTV for a bit, played a late night game of Scene It! and then called it a night. They took off around 4:30 and I nestled in for sleep.

At this moment I plan on heading to the Casbah tonight for Stephen Malkmus, but Sunday’s are hard, so we’ll see how I feel about it in 4 hours or so. In the meantime, I hope everyone had a good weekend and I’ll be updating the Things to Do shortly.

Things To Do: January 5- January 10 2007

I'm really bummed I missed Loam last night, but it's another great weekend in San Diego, so get out and see some music. I myself plan on being at the Casbah pretty much all weekend. Maybe I should just take a sleeping bag. There are plenty of other good and worthy things happening this weekend, so don't waste your time at home.

Friday, January 5:

$10 is nothing when it's a donation to a cancer center!

• Grand Ole Party, UV Tigers, The Roman Spring, The Prayers @ The Casbah $8

• Orion Frequency, Fever Sleeves, Lily White, The Secret Six @ The Ken Club
• Beautiful Trouble, Fono, Call Down Fire, Kemistry @ Cane's
• Homeless Sexuals, FleXXbronco, The Susceptibles @ Zombie Lounge
• NoFX, Strike Anywhere, Dead to me, Love Equals Death @ Soma
• KRS One, Deep Rooted @ 4th and B
• Molly Jensen & Anya Marina @ Lestat's 9:30
• Barrington Levy @ Belly Up
• Andrew Jackson Jihad, Porches, Pleasure Mammal (all from AZ) with The Vision of a Dying World @ The Horton House...3286 F Street. Bring donations for touring bands.
• Mario Escovedo and Friends @ The Whistle Stop

Saturday, January 6:

• Transfer, Swim Party, Modern Rifles, Paperplanes @ Casbah $10
• Hialeah, The Valley Areana @ The Alibi
• A Week's Worth, The Micromanics @ Rosie O'Grady's (two sets, 11p-1a) (FREE!!)

• Sultry Savage, Monsters From Mars @ Ken Club
• Charles Rowland and The Vultures, The Muslims @ Beauty Bar
• Dennis Quaid and the Sharks @ Belly Up
• While you're getting ready to go out, tune in to KPRI, 102.1 FM, from 8-9p. They will be broadcasting the Snow Patrol show that was recorded from the House Of Blues on 9/28/06 (where I spent my 30th birthday). Feel free to burn it to DVD and send me a copy!!
• Downs Family @ Honey Bee Hive
• The Binge, Critical Me, The Revents, All Ages @ O'Connell's

Sultry Savage Burlesque

Ophelia Handful, one of the many performers from the Sultry Savage Burlesque shows, is up for Miss Viva Las Veas. Help our local girl out by voting for her here. Sultry Savage Burlesque will be at the Ken Club on Saturday night with Monsters From Mars.

New Night: cocktails in kensington, this monday

Like I need another excuse to go to the Ken Club:

Ok so we are going to start a new night at The Ken Club this Monday. We will continue to do Whiskey Rebellion also but they will be switching off every other Monday. The new night will be called Cocktails In Kensington and will be hosted by Wendy O'Rourke. We are very excited about this night and hope that you all come and check it out and will also continue to come to Whiskey Rebellion. Wendy's new night will be a lounge night. We will have cocktail and martini specials. Please check out our new page at http://www.myspace.com/144847071 and add us. Hope to see all of you this Monday and every Monday.

Peter

Come check it out. If you don't happen to live in walking distance like I do, take a cab. Them pours can be heavy...

This just in: Greg Laswell

Greg Laswell's cover of "Girls Just Want To Have Fun" will be featured in the season premiere of The Hills on MTV, January 15th. Like I wasn't already gonna watch LC anyway. Seriously, twist my arm.

One Thousand Pictures

This is a bulletin posted by One Thousand Pictures. This really surprises me because the label (for some reason) sent me a shitload of stickers a few months back for no reason except that maybe I joined the mailing list when they played with SF band Every Move A Picture last year at the Casbah. I'll dig through my old (offline) blog and see if I can find my old review of that show. I was at the show as a volunteer for Music For America and was registering voters so I missed a lot of the show itself, but I definitely enjoyed myself. Anyhow, I hope they at least get their masters back so they can release their material themselves. Who needs a major record deal anyway?

Hello FRIENDS!!!

The new year has brought some rather large changes
our way, some of you already know of these changes but i believe most of you do
not. Fairly recently I received a phone call and I was informed that
our band "Onethousand pictures" was dropped from our exsisting label and our
record is not coming out. It was definately a surprise to us. On top of that,
you might have noticed that Abe (bass) and Andy (2nd guitar) have been removed
from our line up. We parted on extremely good terms but they are no longer
playing with us.

I understand that this bulletin seems like total
downer but Reid, Svend and myself are in great spirits and are more motivated
than ever to write, perform and make this band a greater success along with your
help. All of you mean the world to us, honestly. Your messages and your comments
really encourage us and make us feel great about what we do. I can't thank you
all enough for your love and support. Many of you are true believers in what we
create in this band and I want you to know that you are in fact a large
part of our final product. It's your love, hope, and encouragment that truly
inspire us to do what we do. Though the record is not coming out, I want to
share as much of our music with you as possible. If you are interested please
let us know.

Also keep an eye out for upcoming shows we will be
playing and new songs posted. ALL is good!!! We look forward to continuing our
journey with all of you, its been great so far. 2007 is going to bring great
things....i feel it. So here is a toast to "new beginnings!" I love you guys.
Hope to hear from you all real soon. Give.Hope

Love -evan

Things To Do: January 4

Look, I'm not above whoring out my blog. This is clearly evidenced by my google ads (which none of you seem to click because I haven't made a penny) but anyway, let's make a deal...you put me on your guest list, I post your flier. Simple as that. (Swim Party, I'm talking to you!) Or you just have an awesome benefit à la Blasphemous Guitars and you're posted. So thank you, Tim (Roman Spring), your fliers are now posted. New additions to my "things to do" are in bold type.

Also, no recaps thus far this week. I've been binging on "Bad Girls Club" and other bad television, and last night at Lancer's was pretty chill, so no stories to tell except that I kicked ass in pool (sorry, Andrea).

I'm really looking forward to new music coming out soon, both locally and nationally...if you haven't heard the new Modest Mouse single "dashboard", go listen to it on their MySpace page here. The new Arcade Fire track "Intervention" is great, too. Do a little research and you can access the download, though you should donate to their cause. I really like the Clap Your Hands Say Yeah tracks that I've heard, too, though they take some listening to for full appreciation.

Also, some stuff is coming out locally. If you catch Reeve Oliver live, pick up their new ep with some tracks from their forthcoming album and stuff that they wrote after recording... Vinyl Radio had a bit of a CD fiasco (i.e. sending the wrong music to be pressed), so they've decided to give away their ep since their album will be out soon. There were some copies at Taang! Records. If they're gone, let me know and I'll force Matt to replenish the supply. I expect they will also have some to hand out at the show on Monday.

Also, sorry to anyone with an RSS feed for posting, reposting, etc. My internet is giving me issues.

That's about all I've gots for now.

Thursday, January 4:

• Truckee Brothers, Loam, Dead Rock West @ Casbah $7 (Loam was my soundtrack for my first two years of college)
• Vena Cava, Dan Padilla, Tulsa (from SF), Behind the Wagon, Vanja James @ Zombie Lounge
• Barrington Levy @ Belly Up
• Blues Traveler @ House of Blues

Things To Do: January 3

Wednesday, January 3:

• Half Price Drinks @ The Tower Bar from 8-11
• Lady Dottie and The Diamonds @ Henry's Pub
• Seven Dead, Pussywhipped @ San Diego Sports Club for Pussy Galore
• Metal Skool @ Typhoon Saloon
• Jalopy and Sons Of Beaches @ Winston's. $8. All proceeds go to Ocean Beach Teen Center, a non-profit 501(c).
• The Blackout Party @ O'Connell's (Free)

Addiquit

As I mentioned in my post about the Casbah show last week, Addiquit was wasted. After writing that, Addiquit friend requested me on MySpace. So yeah, here's more about the performance, in this week's CityBeat.


Here's a piece from Troy:

The buzz got even louder at the venue—not about her music, but about whether the stumbling, slurring MC was coherent enough to play. Eventually, she did stagger on stage and performed a 10-minute set that was part drunken spectacle and part promise, in which she freestyled and asserted “I’m a street bitch” over and over to a small, gawking crowd.

“I know I was too [intoxicated]…. The Casbah was the first ‘big show’ for me,” she later said, saying it wasn’t nerves that caused her to drink up. “I think I’ve set the record for being thrown out of bars here in San Diego. My friend suggested I play the next show at lunchtime.”

As Donald Trump says, we believe in second chances.

Things To Do: January 2

This is how the week is shaping up...I will update and repost as I get updates.

Tonight, January 2:

• My Morning Jacket & Elvis Perkins in Deerland @ House of Blues (If you don't have a ticket to this show, there will be a live broadcast on FM 94/9 around 9:30)
• Corey Cava's Birthday at the Tower Bar, featuring In The Red and Batwings. Also, tonight's competitive eating contest will feature Hostess cupcakes, Twinkies, and Bologna Sandwiches. Yum! (free to participate)
• Ken Club Karaoke

Best of Show

I wasn't going to do any year end lists, but now that the year is over, I would like to list my 10 favorite shows of 2006.

10. Danielson @ The Casbah, 6/4
9. The Long Winters @ The Casbah, 9/11
8. Wolf Parade @ Casbah, 1/3
7. Gomez on the Hornblower Cruise, KPRI Private Listener Concert, 5/25
6. Death Cab for Cutie, Spoon, Mates of State @ Embarcadero 8/15
5. Snow Patrol @ House Of Blues, 9/28
4. Lucero, Rocky Votolato, William Elliott Whitmore @ Casbah 10/15
3. 94/9 Holiday Hootenanny, Featuring Modest Mouse, The Shins, Pete Yorn, Silversun Pickups, 12/9
2. Manu Chao @ Embarcadero, 7/30
1. Two Gallants & Cold War Kids 4/5

Good Job, 94/9!

94/9 Presents TV on The Radio @ Belly Up Tavern on April 1. Tickets are $15. Woo-hoo. If anyone is going to be at the BUT this week, let me know and I'll give you money so I don't have to pay a service charge.

Recap:New Year's Eve

As I have repeatedly mentioned with regards to New Year's Eve, it is a rookie night. If anything it's a nuisance that people who, on every other night of the year, would be on their sofas watching Leno, decide it's the one night a year to go out and drink ridiculous amounts of beer and shots, and then mix it all up with cheap champagne at midnight for the ultimate in drunkenness.

Per my plan, I stayed home. My friend Sara lives in the apartment upstairs from me, so we made a Trader Joe's shopping trip on Saturday and cooked appetizers and dinner on Sunday night. Stef came over and we were all stuffed...Santa Maria style tri-tip, Sour Cream and Goat Cheese mashed potatoes, spinich and artichoke dip with mediterranean flatbreat, and Gruyere and Carmelized Onion puff pastry bites.

As the night passed, Stef was on her way and Sara was ready to hit the couch, so at 11:20 I made my way to the Ken Club. It was pretty packed and there were plenty of people already at one too many, but enough of my friends were there to keep me entertained. At midnight, there was a lot of champagne to go around and after a while I ventured over to see the Creepy Creeps. Both Thee Corsairs and Monsters From Mars cancelled for whatever reason, so the Creepy Creeps played most of the night.

In all my years going to the Ken Club, this was my first time watching the Creepy Creeps. Donning powder blue tuxedos with white frilly tuxedo shirts underneath, Elvis pompadour wigs, and faces painted a ghoulish green, they rocked the stage. The music is driven by what sounds the organ and has a groocy retro rock sound. There were two go go dancers in front of the stage on lit up risers who spastically dance to the music. People in the crowd were dancing a kinda rapid twist and looked cool while doing it. The band was still going when I decided to call it quits.

A friend and I decided to check out another friend's party about half a block down the street from the bar. I should know better than to show up at a party at 1:45. Throughout my entire night, I'd had a beer and a half with dinner and 2 vodka tonics between 11:30 and 1:45. I was not even buzzed. I showed up to the party where everyone was drunk, people were making out all over the place, and people frantically tried to get every last drop out of the bottles of booze that were left. Not for me at all. I called it a night and decided I would save my steam for all the great shows that are coming up in the next couple weeks. Things to do this week coming shortly!

A Degree Don't Mean Shit

I have a degree in "Multimedia Communications", i.e. web publishing, graphic design, 3-d design, animation, etc. I am not in any of those fields because I really suck at all of them. This was the best I could come up with in an hour.

Happy Tuesday

Reasons to refrain from crying ab0ut having to go back to work:

1. Indie 103 played the new Arcade Fire single, "Intervention" and then shortly thereafter played Thom Yorke's Neil Young cover of "After the Gold Rush". This is why I stream LA radio.

2. Lots of blog reading to catch up on. Cat Dirt! Chickrawker! Dooce! Smoke And Ashes! Postsecret! Stereogum!

3. I bought some Rafter CDs the other night that I haven't had the chance to open yet. I got '10 songs' and 'Music For Total Chickens', and also got an Asthmatic Kitty sampler (22 songs!) and a side project thing(?) called Wack Ass Bitch 'Death Style'.

All this definitely compensates for the fact that I kept waking up having dreams about Perez Hilton fighting Paris Hilton to a soundtrack of Lady Sovereign's 'Love Me or Hate Me'. Which reminds me...I haven't touched TMZ in a couple weeks, either.