Things To Do In San Diego: May 29, 2008

Thursday, May 29, 2008:

• 'Sights & Sounds' art, music, comedy, and culture fest @ Bamboo Lounge
• The Small Hours @ The Bitter End
• bill, Cathryn Beeks Ordeal, AK and the 47's @ Stage Saloon
• Eve White Eve Black, Nautical Disaster, Death on Mars, Flight or Fight@ Second Wind (8515 Navajo Rd, San Carlos)
• Battlehooch, Lanterns, Crystal Antlers @ Beauty Bar
• Miss Massive Snowflake, Rise of the Speedmen, Tabernacle Based on the Old Testament, Nothingful @ Chasers
• Vagabond Opera, Max Fields @ Casbah
• Matt Haek (CD Release) @ Lestat's
• DareDevil Jane, NY Station @ Ken Club
• Musical Pursuit w/Adam Gimbel @ Whistle Stop
• A Shattered Hope, Dante's Boneyard, Negative Filter, Two Word Name @ Canes
• Detour Live @ House of Blues
• Poncho Sanchez w/ Orquesta Primo @ Belly Up
• Karaoke @ O'Connell's
• Jersey Fresh DJs @ Bar Pink Elephant
• Elephants In Mud, Sand Dollar@ 710 Beach Club
• Kevin Kinsella (of John Brown's Body, feat. members of Slightly Stoopid) @ Winston's
• Fish & The Seaweeds @ Humphrey's Backstage Lounge
• Anthology House Band @ Anthology (7:30 early show)
• Kenny Chesney, LeAnn Rimes @ Cricket Wireless Amphitheatre

Brief updates

I went to House of Blues last night for The National. That band seriously kills me. It was hard taking photos when his voice just makes you well up with tears. Not like sad tears, more like cathartic happy this-music-is-too-fucking-good tears. Too bad my HoB experience was less than stellar. Man, seriously that venue is one step forward, two steps back. I was privy to some information that just pissed me off...but I'll write about all those things later tonight with all the pictures.

In the meantime, I wanted to follow up on a few of the newsy bits I posted last week.

First, now that Street Scene is back in the works, I had a couple people point out that in addition to Cat Power scheduled to play on Friday, September 19, The New Pornographers are also sheduled to play according to the Matador Records website.

Second, a follow up about Ray Suen joining The Killers. If you take a look at my contributors, you'll see Ray was added there. He was up at Sasquatch over the weekend working for The Flaming Lips and told me he'd try to write a recap of his experience at the festival since he was going to be costumed onstage during their performance, but he hasn't done so yet. (No pressure, Ray) We chatted on Firday and he was ecstatic that he's gonna be joining up with The Killers. They're doing a huge tour so he'll be travelling all over, playing Leeds, Reading, and all those huge shows. He'll be playing guitar and keys for the band which gives him a good change from mostly strings he played with Louis XIV. Maybe enough nudging and he can write about all that himself...

Last, I wanted to mention that next week there's an election in San Diego, and I wanted to throw my endorsement behind Eric Bidwell. The guy is one of us and deserves some serious credit for having the balls to call out Mr. Douche Sanders and that complete dick, Steve Francis. Our city is in some dire need for change and I think I'd rather have someone completely green and willing to learn on the job than these dicks who just sit pretty and make backdoor deals for all their fatcat friends. If you want more info, go to http://www.revolutionarymayor.com/

I'll be online tonight to post all those pics...

Things To Do In San Diego: May 28, 2008

A few things: as always, if I missed anything or if listings changed, please e-mail me. Second, I'm looking for a band who can play Thursday night at the Sights & Sounds event. Playing this event would also include a slot at Art Around Adams, taking place on June 7. If you can play both dates, please contact me ASAP and I'll pass your info along to the organizers. Everyone keeps asking if I'll be at Swervedriver, and the answer is yes, but I'll be selling merch for the bands. If we've never met, come say hi.

Wednesday, May 28, 2008:

• The National, Ferraby Lionheart @ House of Blues
• Ladyhawk, Neva Dinova, Team Abraham @ Casbah
• Commune Wednesdays feat. The Howls, DJ Ryan, Mesh trunk show @ Whistle Stop
• Hialeah, Riddle of Steel, Marasol @ Zombie Lounge
• The Swingin Kings reunion featuring Candye Kane, Ruby Presnel, Sue Palmer, Billy Watson, Taryn Donath and Blue Largo @ Belly Up
• Saba, River City, Sweetness @ U-31
• Grin's Edge, Kyle Van Band, Void 808 @ 710 Beach Club
• Burgundy Brown, Sharif, The Predicates @ Lestat's
• Jaguar Love (feat. members of The Blood Brothers and Pretty Girls Make Graves) @ Beauty Bar
• Shrewd Lucy, Appleseed, Jeff Diamond, The Brotherhood of Sound @ O'Connell's
• Red Hot Wednesday with Robin and the Dirty Jukebox @ Bar Pink Elephant
• Whiplash, Apes of Wrath @ Tower Bar
• Cinematic Sunrise, My American Heart, Daphne Loves Derby, Jet Lag Gemini @ Soma
• Never Say Die Presents - Sound Escape & Vanity Affair, Madera & Dead on the Dance Floor @ Canes
• Random Luck, Clay Pigeons @ Winston's
• The Soul Persuaders @ Humphrey's Backstage Lounge
• Sacha Boutros @ Anthology (7:30 early show)
• Late Night Live feat. Starline Theorie @ Anthology (9:30)

Foals, Maps + Atlases, Crocodiles - Brick By Brick- 5.25.08

It ended up being a really chill weekend for me. I spent most of Saturday in Chula Vista with my family. We grilled and tried to keep up with the kids...Johanna is 9 months and trying to walk, Claudia is 9 and constantly entertains, and Jasmyne is 5 and responds to "what are you doing?" with a little sass. "Nunya!" "What's nunya?" "None ya business!", then she cracks up. I was there all day and when I got home I was wiped out. It was 9:30 and I thought I'd rest a little, but an hour later, I realized there was nowhere I'd rather be than in my bed. And it was nice. My first Saturday home in ages.



Sunday was more of the same, only we went to my sister's house in PB. I really get bothered when people talk incessantly about the weather and we cracked up because here we were in PB where it was blue skies and sunny, with a cool breeze, and the news crawl said that "dismal" weather had "ruined" Memorial Day weekend. What a bunch of pussies San Diegans can be. Wear a hoodie and stfu. Seriously. May Gray. Get over it. We went up to Kate Sessions Park for a while, too, to let the kids run around, and it was beautiful. The park was packed and we realized that since the beach booze ban, people have taken it to the parks, where it is legal to drink until 8pm (most city parks). A bunch of 20 somethings were playing kickball while a huge gathering celebrated a kid's birthday party. The view from Kate Sessions was beautiful, we could see the mountains out east, the ocean out west, the downtown skyline to the south and even further south, Mexico.



I left PB well in time to arrive at the Casbah for the FM 94/9 end of the month show. I saw some friends, had a michelada, and had some of the free Mexican grub. I caught Jamuel Saxon who opened the show, but had to split because I was told Crocodiles were starting at 9pm at Brick By Brick. I was a little bummed when I got there that they weren't actually going on until 9:30 but no big deal.

I don't know what everyone's deal is with Brick By Brick...maybe I still just have a soft spot from when a friend and I used to hang out there in college, but I've always liked it, although there were some years under different ownership where all the shows were hard rock...so there's that reputation, but really, I like the venue.

Crocodiles started the show and it was their first real San Diego show, though they played a house party on Friday. It's just Chuck and Brandon, iPod beats, some guitar, and a keyboard that was set up atop a trash can. They played in near darkness, with just a red and teal light on the floor behind them so I decided to not bust out my camera. Next time, boys... I think these guys are immensely talented and they've got such great stage presence, can't wait to see them with some actual lights on them.

I was pleased when I arrived to discover that Maps + Atlases was playing. I fell in love with the band when they played the Casbah a while back with Nurses, before Nurses bailed San Diego to move to Chicago to be with Maps + Atlases. The band is incredible, as much to listen to as to watch because of their unconventional ways of playing their instruments and the funky time signatures. I was bummed that Brick By Brick has 7 great stage lights and only used 3 of them...one green and two red, but here are a couple of pics regardless.




I was happy to see the venue filling up because I've heard of some disappointing shows there of late. Foals came out rockin and never stopped. They play fast dancey music, a la The Rapture, and I have to agree with Seth that they're guitar style is also a bit mathy. Regardless of how they're labeled, I was enthralled.








I was also impressed because one of the guitarist was shoeless on one foot and kept hopping around...whether sprained or broken, his energy never wavered and he danced all over the stage. My guess is that his foot probably felt like shit the next day.

I hung up front as long as I could but I was overwhelmed by the saucy girls, particularly the one who kept trying to have a conversation with the band between each song. "Um, excuse me. Wait, I just wanna tell you something. You guys are AWESOME!" Oh, then she tried to bust a move on Seth. Ha! So we ended up listening to the last few songs of the set on the patio.

When the band finished, I made my way back to the Casbah for Jivewire and people were shitfaced. Some nights I can't take it, but this night was just fine and everyone was cracking me up.

Tim was on the turntables...


I also found out it was Mikey's last night at the Casbah. So sad, but he's off to bigger and better things, heading off to Paris to follow his heart. So sweet and best of luck to him.


After Jivewire a bunch of friends came back to my house and we had a good time getting ridiculous until the wee hours of the morning. Wait, 7 am isn't really wee hours anymore, is it? Eventually most everyone went home until it was just a handful of us and we all ended up crashing in my bed, which suddenly wasn't as roomy.

Later Monday I thought I'd head to a couple BBQs but the sad realization that the weekend was over bummed me out and I thought I should get a clear head and avoid social drinking situations. I did head to the Casbah last night, however, so I'll get to posting those pics soon enough. Now, time to do this week's listings.

French Kicks, Weather Underground, The Parson Red Heads- Casbah 5.23.08

Last week was a rare week for me, as I actually didn't go to shows for three nights in a row. I thought I was going to see Destroyer on Tuesday, but after listening to some of the tracks in my iPod, I thought I was going to have an anxiety attack. Something about Bejar's voice didn't resonate with me, so I skipped it and caught up on the site a bit instead. On Wednesday I worked on my listings while hanging out with a couple friends at The Ken Club. The DJ there on Wednesdays is awesome so I was really enjoying myself. Then Thursday came around and the I had a shit day and I ended up working late and by the time I got home, didn't find the motivation to head to House of Blues for Dresden Dolls, especially since I'd already missed May*Star and they were the ones I was supposed to photograph anyway.

But come Friday, I was rearing to go. We had a half day at work and since I'd gotten plenty of rest on Thursday, was rearin to go. After work, I spent some time writing that incredibly long "newsy bits" post, caught up with e-mail and phone calls, and had time to striaghten out my house. By early afternoon, I was ready to start my Friday night, so Sara came and met me and we had some cocktails and played pool at the Ken Club. After a couple drinks we picked up dinner at Burger Lounge and took it back to my place. Once she left I decided I would get to the Casbah early and make sure to see all three bands.

I got there with plenty of time before The Parson Red Heads started and grabbed a cocktail. When the band started, everyone in the crowd was standing around the perimeter of the room. The "too cool" gap as had to huge for openers, apparently, but I didn't give a shit and went right up toward the front and snapped a few pics. The band sounded great. They kind of reminded me of a church band (the only thing I ever liked about church), perhaps because one of the guitarists looked like the TV Jesus from South Park, with his long hair, hippie shirt, white highwater pants and teva sandals and the girl on keys looked like an elvish Anya Marina. They had beautiful layered harmonies and the instrumentation fell into a nice folksy groove that gave them more of the feel of a "collective" and less of a standard band, and the main vocalist's voice reminded me of Cat Stevens, before he changed his name. I really dug them a lot.





Second up were The Weather Underground. I thought it a bit funny that there were a few days about a month ago when my site traffic increased for no particular reason- then I realized people were Googling "The Weather Underground" because conservative assholes were trying to link Obama to some dude who was a member of the 60s radical group of the same name. I've now seen this band several times and I'm glad they continue to play for us in SD because they have great energy and a great sound. I always like how right about the 3rd song, Harley's left leg gets kickin out sideways, then you know they've hit their stride.





Last up and the headliners for the night were The French Kicks. I have to admit that I when I made plans for the week, I was planning on going to the Ken on Friday to see the Donkeys, but it wasn't until I was checking e-mails and blogs that day that I came across a post about The French Kicks that I switched my plans. You can here the tracks that changed my mind here. I was a row back from the front of the stage; I was surprised by how many screaming girls were up front, though all the guys in the band are exceptionally good looking so it wasn't that surprising. I was stoked because they were videotaping their performance and therefore had the lights up for most of the set.





I really enjoyed the entire show and was really glad I went, but it got a little late and I split as soon as the show ended. I made my way back to the Ken Club in hopes that The Donkeys played uber late, but no such luck- they were moving their equipment outside. I hung until I couldn't hang no more and wandered home, thrilled that I had nowhere I had to be on Saturday.

Things To Do In San Diego: May 27, 2008

Looks like a lot of venues are taking a post-Memorial Day Weekend break tonight. Here's the list of places that still have stuff going on.

Tuesday, May 27, 2008:

• Ariel Pink, Fantastic Magic, The Paddle Boat @ Casbah
• Tiki Tuesday with Craig Prior and his Hawaiian Sounds @ Bar Pink Elephant
• Trans Am Tuesday w/ DJ Heather Hardcore feat. Airplane to Garcea, Lhabia@ Beauty Bar
• Parenthetical Girls, PWRFL POWER, Au @ Che Cafe
• Too Cool For Karaoke @ U-31
• Another Zeke Productions Presents...Close Talker, Back Alley Hooligans, Zombie Surf Camp @ O'Connnell's
• Jimmy Dean & The Sausage Kings, D.P.I, Cathouse Thumpers @ Winston's
• PRESSURE DROP- (sound system, roots, Rocksteady, SKA) DJs. Richie, and Jeff @ Zombie Lounge
• Breathe Carolina, Millionares, Hello Marquee, Invictus, Fight Fair @ Soma
• All American Tuesdays - Industry & Karaoke Night with DJ Levi Strauss $3 U Call Its @ Canes
• Gomango Trio @ Humphrey's Backstage Lounge
• Comedy Night Hosted by Josh Mullins @ Lestat's

Note: Hank III & Assjack @ House of Blues has been postponed

Looking ahead this week: Wed- The National @ House of Blues, Fri-Swervedriver & Film School @ Casbah

The Kills, Dax Riggs, Roxy Jones- Casbah, 5.19.08

I really thought this weekend I'd spend a lot more time on the computer to catch up with things but I spent most of Memorial Day weekend with my family. You try to write when you're adorable niece and god-sister around. Just try. So I will try and get to some of last weeks photos.

My week started off at The Casbah on Monday for Anti-Monday League. I had no idea the show would be in such demand. It supposedly had been sold out for a couple weeks. I went mostly because I'm just into Anti-Monday League shows and know they're always a good time. Unfortunately, on this night, either 70% of the audience came down from LA or they were just suddenly acting like Angelinos. People were rude and pushy, so I kept my distance, spending most of the night on the patio.

I did arrive in time to catch one song by Roxy Jones, but alas, no pics. I love those guys, though, and I know they'll be playing again soon.

Dax Riggs played second. I saw him last time he was down with his band Deadboy & The Elephantmen, and honestly, I think his sound is made to have a backing band. Still, I like his voice a lot but as I said, after a few songs went out to the patio where I ended up spending some time trying to help a couple friends get into the show. Fortunately Andrew and Tim were able to help a couple people out.



After Dax finished I made my way to the side ledge and was chatting with a couple friends when some dickwad made some comment to me about being in his way. The band was still 25 minutes away from even coming onstage, but pissy-pants irritated the shit out of me, so back to the patio I went. I ended up seeing the same p.o.s. last night at Brick By Brick and I don't think he showered since The Kills show, because his b.o. was rancid, but whatever. Sucks to be a hideous person.

Anyway, time passed and The Kills started their set with U.R.A. Fever, which I thought was pretty strange to start with their radio single, but maybe they were trying to thin the herd, like, "if that's the only song you know, you can go now." I was one of those people. I really didn't feel like fighting the crowd, so I made my way back out to the patio where I was in the presence of Casbah royalty :)

(l-r) Tim Mays, Pall Jenkins, Tim Pyles, Jimmy LaValle, Drew Andrews


I did go inside once or twice to see the show, but I can really only handle a sold out Casbah show for bands that I have more passion for. The Kills won me over to the point where I'd like to investigate their catalog a bit more, but not enough to put up with some of their fans. I never got within good shooting range, but here are a couple blurry pictures just for the hell of it.




After the show, when everyone was clearing out, we chilled out for a bit and had a couple fun photo ops with the band while people inside danced to DJ Edgartronic, then I finally made my way home. It was actually a good night, but that had very little to do with the bands and more to do with the people I was around, but sometimes that's just the way it goes.

Things To Do In San Diego: May 25-26

Sunday, May 25, 2008:

• Foals @ Lou's Records (Encinitas) - 3pm - Free
• The Local 94/9 Presents A Free Show - Bedford Grove, May*Star, Jamuel Saxon - Free Food - followed by Jivewire/One Nation Under a Groove @ 10pm @ Casbah
• Foals, Crocodiles @ Brick By Brick
• The Muslims, Mike B, Ikah Love & Dimitri, Saul Q, Yusef @ Ivy Hotel Roof
• Reason to Rebel, Savalas (Italy), Mothers Anger , Joint Method, Object , Automatique @ Zombie Lounge
• Swami Record Swap @ Bar Pink Elephant
• Eden Sundays feat. DJ Steve Aoki @ The Ivy Hotel rooftop bar (2pm-dusk)
• Dave Bodda, Chad Boyer @ San Diego Sports Club
• Victory Nightlife Presents Club Massive: Memorial Day Weekend @ House of Blues
• SALSA SUNDAY Feat. Orquesta Primo @ Belly Up
• Quiet the Moon, Janu and the Whale Shark @ Lestat's
• Corey Biggs Memorial Day Bash @ Beauty Bar
• Sunday Sessions- Roots Reggae @ O'Connell's
• Action Andy, Bobby Sanchez Combo @ Tower Bar
• Set Your Goals, Hit The Lights, I Am The Avalanche, The Years Gone By, Dear Life @ Soma
• Claire's End of the Month Happy Hour Party @ Whistle Stop
• Tribe of Kings @ U-31
• We Shot The Moon, Everybody Else @ Epicentre
• Cipes and The People, Escape Note, Andrew Ripp @ 710 Beach Club
• Atomic Punks (Tribute to Van Halen) Monsters of Rock @ Canes
• Earl Thomas @ Winston's (5-8p)
• Jose Sinatra's OB-o-ke @ Winston's (9pm)
• Reggie Smith @ Humphrey's Backstage Lounge (early show, 10a-2p)
• Memorial Day Jazz Celebration @ Humphrey's Backstage Lounge
• Rickie Lee Jones @ Anthology (7:30 early show)
• The San Diego Youth Symphony Stage Band under the direction of Carl Hammond @ Dizzy's (San Diego Wine & Culinary Center)

Monday, May 26, 2008:

• Kensington "Holiday at Home" parade and BBQ
• Anti-Monday League Presents: Margot and Nuclear So and So's, Mike Bloom, Emery Byrd @ Casbah
• Foxboro Hot Tubs, Girls with Guns @ Belly Up
• The Police, Elvis Costello & The Imposters @ Cricket Wireless Amphitheatre
• Industry Night Vinyl Mondays feat. The Physics of Meaning, The Black Hollies & A Beautiful Noise @ Beauty Bar
• Ride The Sun, SuperGiant, Dali’s Llamas(Palm Springs), TBA @ Chasers
• Jack Costanzo @ Anthology
• Miles Davis Birthday Celebration @ Dizzy's (San Diego Wine & Culinary Center) Free, All Ages, 2-8pm
• Electric Waste Band @ Winston's
• Robin Henkel @ Humphrey's Backstage Lounge
• Lady Dottie & The Diamonds @ Tower Bar
• Three One G Presents: TOTALLY TURNED OFF w/ djs Justin Pearson and Salayer Gallegos @ Zombie Lounge
• Grown Folks Music with Lorenzo and DJ Buddha @ Bar Pink Elephant
• Open Mic hosted by Isaac Cheong @ Lestat's
• U-31 is closed for an employee party. No bull!

Things To Do In San Diego: May 23-24, 2008

Friday, May 23, 2008:

• French Kicks , The Weather Underground, The Parson Redheads @ Casbah
• The Donkeys, Pen & Ink, Derek Papa @ Ken Club
• The Modlins, The Apple Miner Colony (NM), Red Pony Clock @ Chasers
• Club Pop Noir feat. fashion show by Nuclear Clothing, Fables by Barrie and Infamy Designs @ Static Lounge
• WAZ, Arrica Rose, The Wrong Trousers @ Lestat's
• Floater, Vocoder @ Brick By Brick
• Wild Weekend, The Spanks(LA), Embalmers @ Zombie Lounge
• Microphone Mike, AddiQuit, LeTron, Kink!Bot @ Beauty Bar
• Four Minutes Til Midnight, Funky A, The Big Provider @ San Diego Sports Club
• The Cult, Year Long Disaster @ Viejas Concerts In the Park
• hello marquee, five more days, out of my league, truth ends there @ Epicentre
• Bankhead Press, Illuminatus Trio @ Whistle Stop
• Rock For Darfur Benefit @ Che Cafe
• Sycuan Presents Nightwish @ House of Blues
• Capleton's Red Hot Summer Tour! w/ Jah Thunder, Kulcha Knox all backed by The Prophecy Band and Dubconcious with DJ Carlos Culture @ Belly Up
• Kindle To Ember @ O'Connell's
• Mad Juana's Voodoo Room feat. Di Nigunim @ Bar Pink Elephant
• Tony The Tyger, Mateo Londres @ Tower Bar
• As Blood Runs Black, Stick To Your Guns, Winds Of Plague, Veil Of Maya, Belay My Last @ Soma
• Feel The Noise presents Book of Martyrs, DJs Gabe Vega, Saul Q @ U-31
• Out of My League @ Epicentre
• 40 oz To Freedom, Sandollar, Social Green @ 710 Beach Club
• Buck O Nine, Sprung Monkey, One Pin Short @ Canes
• Vegitation, Plump @ Winston's
• Patty Zlakett @ Humphrey's Backstage Lounge (early show, 6-8p)
• Viva Santana @ Humphrey's Backstage Lounge (late show 9:30p)
• Poco @ Anthology (7:30 early show, 9:30 late show)
• Dizzy’s does the blues with guitarist/vocalist Nathan James, Ben Hernandez vocals/harmonica/jug/washtub bass, & gifted, Olivia Pierson @ Dizzy's (San Diego Wine & Culinary Center)
• Latin Comedy Night @ 4th & B
• Chris Williamson, Vicki Randle @ Acoustic Music San Diego
• Vicente Fernandez @ Cricket Wireless Amphitheatre

Saturday, May 24, 2008:

• Donita Sparks (of L7), Roses on Her Grave, Revenge Club @ Casbah
• Dynamite Walls, Stripes and Lines, This Holiday Life @ Belly Up
• Casiotone for the Painfully Alone, Foot Foot, Donkeys and The Sentient Manifesto @ Che Cafe
• The Howls, Longstay, Foreign Bar Fight @ Epicentre
• Nihilist, Sentinel, Lazarus @ Music Trader Sports Arena
• Attractive and Popular, Lipstick Terror, Anavan, Maniqui Lazer, Fkenal @ Chasers
• Ari Hest, Jake Newton, Ryanhood@ Lestat's
• SuperUnloader, Society! @ Winston's
• Teitur, Jessi Baylin, Kemistry @ Brick By Brick
• Breaker Breaker One Niner, Behind The Wagon @ San Diego Sports Club
• Delta Fiasco & Danger Danger w/ Shark Attack DJ’s @ Beauty Bar
• Orangello, Heaven is For Sinners @ Filter (4096 30th St.)
• Motus, Fight the Fear, Starline Theorie, Candy Asylum @ O'Connell's
• D.P.I, The Mercenaries, The Penetrators, Nuclear Tomorrow @ Zombie Lounge
• Lady Dottie & The Diamonds @ Tower Bar
• The Higher, Eye Alaska, Young Goodman, Building Rome In A Day, New Age Heros @ Soma
• Booty Bassment @ Whistle Stop
• DJ Reflex (LA), Kid Wonder @ U-31
• DJ Bad Andy @ Bar Pink Elephant
• Aeromyth, Pyromania & UFC 84 Broadcast @ 710 Beach Club
• Cash'd Out (Tribute to Johnny Cash), Grizzly Circus, Mystery Train @ Canes
• Detroit Underground @ Humphrey's Backstage Lounge
• Karla Bonoff @ Anthology (7:30 early show, 9:30 late show)
• Guitar virtuosos Fred Benedetti & George Svoboda @ Dizzy's (San Diego Wine & Culinary Center)
• Legend of Roots feat. Sammy Dread, Johnny Clarke, The Heptones, Roots Covenant @ 4th & B
• Jazz 98.1 Gaslamp Festival feat. Dave Koz, George Benson, Mindi Abair, Nick Colionne, Nils @ Gaslamp District, Downtown

The Muslims "Bright Side" KEXP song of the day!

This is huge. The Muslims are on KEXP's song on the song of the day podcast posted last night)
Link here.

If you don't know KEXP you're living under a rock...ok, just kidding, but they won the 2008 Plug Award for radio station of the year and are known tastemakers in the music biz without being music snobs about it. Congrats to our local boys!

Newsy Bits & Notes

I haven't done any "newsy bits" in quite some time and I apologize for that, but unfortunately it looks like I'll probably writing even less than I already am after a couple kinks in my personal life. But I'll keep up the Twitter, so become a follower if you want the breaking news stuff as I hear it. If you ever wanna help me out and don't want to just give an outright donation to the site, I'm open to taking submissions, news tips, cd reviews, show reviews, and a small way you can help is by clicking on some of those Google ads on my page or instead of using the Google home page, using the Google search widget on this page.

First, some personal news- looks like I'm going to be an aunt again...to twins! My brother and his wife are expecting. His 7 month deployment should be complete before the babies are due so fingers crossed and sending out positive thoughts to the universe that he's not extended beyond his scheduled tour.

On the music front, there's some things I've certainly been neglecting, so here's a few things I've come across:

• The big news of the day is that Ray Suen, who recently toured with Louis XIV and is known locally for playing with Ex-Friends and Joanie + Secretaries has joined The Killers. Turns out Dave, a high school friend of mine and apparently a friend of Ray's, recommended him and one thing lead to another and now Ray is a Killer.
• The Shambles will be playing at the House of Blues next week (in addition to a show at the Troubadour in LA)
  June 1 @ House of Blues in San Diego
  w/ The Grams and more - 21 and up!
  FREE TICKETS FOR THIS SHOW ARE AVAILABLE DIRECTLY FROM THE BAND!!, so find them on MySpace and just ask.
• If you haven't heard by now, Foxborough Hot Tubs is playing the Belly Up. The band is really Green Day, but apparently they won't be playing any Green Day songs. Tickets are only available the day of the show, with a two ticket limit per person. Personally, I'll be checking out Margot & The Nuclear So and So's at the Casbah, but if the rare performance in a small club is more your speed, plan on lining up early.
• This news came out last week, but I certainly didn't mention it. My Morning Jacket has announced a tour in support of Evil Urges, including a date in San Diego on September 25 at the Open Air Theater. You can read about the tour on NME.
• Some of our local-acts-gone-big have been getting some airplay and have big tour dates this summer. Augustana released Can't Love, Can't Hurt which is more rock and less ballad than their debut. They'll be headlining the House of Blues on June 12 and touring with Counting Crows and Maroon 5 this fall, with a stop at Cricket Amphitheatre on September 13.
• Local Tristan Prettyman released Hello...x with a video playing on VH1. No major tour announced as yet, but I suspect one will come soon, or perhaps some festival/county fair dates.
• Recently, my mom asked me if I know Jason Mraz (I don't), because she loves his new single "I'm Yours" that she's been hearing on the radio. It's from his new album We Sing, We Dance, We Steal Things (released May 13). He's got a bunch of festival and European dates this summer, but nothing announced locally.
• Another San Diego troub, Greg Laswell, is on the verge of releasing a new album, Three Flights From Alto Nido. It will be released on July 8 and he'll be playing at the House of Blues on June 25th. In his blog, he writes, "The album will have 11 tracks including alternate versions of "days go on" and "how the day sounds". and no, it will not include a fourth version of "what a day". that would be just plain silly."
  "brandon the beloved side-man and i recorded it in a little under a month and i was lucky enough to get the extremely talented greg collins to mix it. i am more proud of it that anything i have done to date and the process of recording it was something i will never forget. i will be playing a few of the new songs on the upcoming tour with ingrid michaelson."
  You might recall that Ingrid, the voice behind that catchy Old Navy commercial, featured Greg in her video for the same song as the commercial, "The Way I Am." Damn, I should start working on trying to get a photopass for that show.
• Switchfoot will be going on another Music Builds tour which benefits Habitat For Humanity. That tour hits Cricket Amphitheatre on September 27. The very holy tour also features Third Day, Robert Randolph & The Family Band, and Jars of Clay. I wonder if they'll serve beer at that show.
• I guess there was more action on the Street Scene front this week, but I already wrote what I knew here. Now I can say that the proposed dates are just Friday and Saturday, September 19 & 20. Also, I'm still holding that Cat Power is playing if all the permits go through, according to her record label. I've also heard that the festival "going back to its roots" might mean that radio stations or venues control entire stages, and The Casbah is supposedly going to be presenting a local stage, though I imagine with the help of more sponsors.
• Denver's SCMX (SoCoMusicExperience) lineup was announced today. For San Diego, we've already got The Black Keys lined up, but Denver's offerings include Gnarls Barkley, Blonde Redhead, Swayback, and P-Knuckle. Usually at least a couple bands do all of the SCMX stops, so perhaps a free Gnarls show in SD? I don't know, but after Flaming Lips last year, this lineup will surely have to bring out the big guns to top it.
• Sheryl Crow was slated to play this summer at AEG's "Concerts on The Green" venue at Qualcomm Stadium. That show has now been moved to Valley View Casino. I don't know if AEG is bailing on the venue altogether or just this show has moved, (weak sales, perhaps?) but all tickets will be automatically refunded and ticketholders will be given a special pre-sale code if they want to get tickets for the Valley View show. Pre-sale will be May 28-June 5, with onsale to the public on June 6 at 10am. Hopefully Valley View has added some large projection screens so people in the cheap seats can actually see what's going on onstage.

I've been receiving a ton of music lately, so I wanna thank all the bands who keep me in the loop. Even if I don't write reviews, it helps me to know which shows to check out, what to tell people when they ask "who are you listening to these days?" and in some cases, when bands ask me for recommendations on bands they should play with. There's also an upcoming Art Around Adams event on June 7 with an all day stage at the Ken Club and I've certainly submitted some of your names as recommended bands, so believe me, I'm listening.

It's gonna be a great 3 day weekend, rain or shine, so big love to everyone this weekend. Be safe. If you're at the Ken Club tonight, consider this your after party invitation. xoxo

Lucy's Fur Coat "Dirty Deeds" (cover)

This was the last song of the night at the Casbah by Lucy's Fur Coat on the first night of their reunion shows last week. Personally, I could've done without the cover, but perhaps the older crowd that night has more of a connection than I do to this particular song.

"Dirty Deeds" Lucy's Fur Coat

For Sale: 1 ticket to The Cure

A friend of mine has one ticket for sale for the upcoming Cure concert at Cox Arena. If you're interested, e-mail me and I'll put you in touch. The show is June 3rd.

1 ticket @ $20 Bench V row 30 seat 14.

George Michael Tickets Only $25

Oh, Los Angeles. I love how people from the big city to the north approach San Diego like we're LA. Booking shows that sell out in LA in giant venues down here with the assumption that tickets will get chomped up just as speedily.

Well, we're not LA, never will be. George Michael at Sports Arena? Cool. Tickets for crazy ticket prices? Not so much. So it appears they didn't quite get the response they were looking for, even though his tour is to start here on June 17.

This actually works out great for you. The tour is called 25 Live and for 25 hours, starting on May 25 (This Sunday), you can buy tickets at all Ticketmaster outlets for as low as $25. Don't go expecting floor seats or anything like that, but you might score something decent. Get em while you can.

Lucy's Fur Coat "Elementary"

I never straightened this out...is "fur coat" supposed to be one word? I mean, the band was always "LFC" which makes me think it's a three word name, but I've seen it written as two.
Really, who gives a shit.

Here's video number two from Friday night. I still have one more to upload, but it's a cover, so for me, this was my favorite song of the night.

Lucy's Fur Coat "Elementary"

Things To Do In San Diego: May 22, 2008

Thursday, May 22, 2008:

• Sycuan Presents Dresden Dolls, Smoosh, May Star @ House of Blues (Show starts at 7:30 on the dot. Do not miss these openers!)
• Von Bondies, Die! Die! Die!, Transfer, io Echo @ Casbah
• Hostile Combover, The Fever Sleeves @ Bar Pink Elephant
• Scarlet Symphony, Red Feathers, Jamuel Saxon @ Beauty Bar
• Dan Padilla, Ninja Gun, Cortez The Killer, Pretty Boy Thorson @ Tower Bar
• Mayfield, The Howls @ Lestat's
• ADHD, Whiskey Dicks, Exit21 @ 710 Beach Club
• Graveyard BBQ, Genghis Con-job, Whole Hog @ Brick By Brick
• Stephen Marley @ Viejas Dreamcatcher Lounge
• Hal Ketchum, Bastard Sons of Johnny Cash @ Belly Up
• Karaoke @ O'Connell's
• Eken is Dead(LA), Trigger Effect (Canada) @ Zombie Lounge
• Emarosa, Take The Crown, Lower Definition, Jamies Elsewhere, Dead And Devine @ Soma
• Leisure Society presents Crash Encore, Sam Suicide @ U-31
• Rockin Johnny White Presents - Jen Knight & One Lonely Robot, Deny the Silents, Sirens of Shipwreck @ Canes
• Tribal Seeds @ Winston's
• Ruby and The Red Hots @ Humphrey's Backstage Lounge
• Anthology House Band @ Anthology (7:30 early show)
• Benefit Jazz Concert featuring Gerald Albright and Phil Perry @ Balboa Theatre

Friday, May 23, 2008:

• The Donkeys, Pen & Ink, Derek Papa @ Ken Club
• The Modlins, The Apple Miner Colony (NM), Red Pony Clock @ Chasers
• Club Pop Noir feat. fashion show by Nuclear Clothing, Fables by Barrie and Infamy Designs @ Static Lounge
• French Kicks , The Weather Underground, The Parson Redheads @ Casbah
• WAZ, Arrica Rose, The Wrong Trousers @ Lestat's
• Floater, Vocoder @ Brick By Brick
• Wild Weekend, The Spanks(LA), Embalmers @ Zombie Lounge
• Microphone Mike, AddiQuit, LeTron, Kink!Bot @ Beauty Bar
• Four Minutes Til Midnight, Funky A, The Big Provider @ San Diego Sports Club
• The Cult, Year Long Disaster @ Viejas Concerts In the Park
• hello marquee, five more days, out of my league, truth ends there @ Epicentre
• Bankhead Press, Illuminatus Trio, Roxy Monoxide @ Whistle Stop
• Rock For Darfur Benefit @ Che Cafe
• Sycuan Presents Nightwish @ House of Blues
• Capleton's Red Hot Summer Tour! w/ Jah Thunder, Kulcha Knox all backed by The Prophecy Band and Dubconcious with DJ Carlos Culture @ Belly Up
• Kindle To Ember @ O'Connell's
• Mad Juana's Voodoo Room @ Bar Pink Elephant
• Tony The Tyger, Mateo Londres @ Tower Bar
• As Blood Runs Black, Stick To Your Guns, Winds Of Plague, Veil Of Maya, Belay My Last @ Soma
• Feel The Noise presents Book of Martyrs, DJs Gabe Vega, Saul Q @ U-31
• Out of My League @ Epicentre
• 40 oz To Freedom, Sandollar, Social Green @ 710 Beach Club
• Buck O Nine, Sprung Monkey, One Pin Short @ Canes
• Vegitation, Plump @ Winston's
• Patty Zlakett @ Humphrey's Backstage Lounge (early show, 6-8p)
• Viva Santana @ Humphrey's Backstage Lounge (late show 9:30p)
• Poco @ Anthology (7:30 early show, 9:30 late show)
• Dizzy’s does the blues with guitarist/vocalist Nathan James, Ben Hernandez vocals/harmonica/jug/washtub bass, & gifted, Olivia Pierson @ Dizzy's (San Diego Wine & Culinary Center)
• Latin Comedy Night @ 4th & B
• Chris Williamson, Vicki Randle @ Acoustic Music San Diego
• Vicente Fernandez @ Cricket Wireless Amphitheatre

Saturday, May 24, 2008:

• Donita Sparks (of L7), Roses on Her Grave, Revenge Club @ Casbah
• Dynamite Walls, Stripes and Lines, This Holiday Life @ Belly Up
• Casiotone for the Painfully Alone, Foot Foot, Donkeys and The Sentient Manifesto @ Che Cafe
• The Howls, Longstay, Foreign Bar Fight @ Epicentre
• Nihilist, Sentinel, Lazarus @ Music Trader Sports Arena
• Attractive and Popular, Lipstick Terror, Anavan, Maniqui Lazer, Fkenal @ Chasers
• Ari Hest, Jake Newton, Ryanhood@ Lestat's
• SuperUnloader, Society! @ Winston's
• Teitur, Jessi Baylin, Kemistry @ Brick By Brick
• Breaker Breaker One Niner, Behind The Wagon @ San Diego Sports Club
• Delta Fiasco & Danger Danger w/ Shark Attack DJ’s @ Beauty Bar
• Orangello, Heaven is For Sinners @ Filter (4096 30th St.)
• Motus, Fight the Fear, Starline Theorie, Candy Asylum @ O'Connell's
• D.P.I, The Mercenaries, The Penetrators, Nuclear Tomorrow @ Zombie Lounge
• Lady Dottie & The Diamonds @ Tower Bar
• The Higher, Eye Alaska, Young Goodman, Building Rome In A Day, New Age Heros @ Soma
• Booty Bassment @ Whistle Stop
• DJ Reflex (LA), Kid Wonder @ U-31
• DJ Bad Andy @ Bar Pink Elephant
• Aeromyth, Pyromania & UFC 84 Broadcast @ 710 Beach Club
• Cash'd Out (Tribute to Johnny Cash), Grizzly Circus, Mystery Train @ Canes
• Detroit Underground @ Humphrey's Backstage Lounge
• Karla Bonoff @ Anthology (7:30 early show, 9:30 late show)
• Guitar virtuosos Fred Benedetti & George Svoboda @ Dizzy's (San Diego Wine & Culinary Center)
• Legend of Roots feat. Sammy Dread, Johnny Clarke, The Heptones, Roots Covenant @ 4th & B
• Jazz 98.1 Gaslamp Festival feat. Dave Koz, George Benson, Mindi Abair, Nick Colionne, Nils @ Gaslamp District, Downtown

Sunday, May 25, 2008:

• The Local 94/9 Presents A Free Show - Bedford Grove, May*Star, Jamuel Saxon - Free Food - followed by Jivewire/One Nation Under a Groove @ 10pm @ Casbah
• Foals, Crocodiles @ Brick By Brick
• The Muslims, Mike B, Ikah Love & Dimitri, Saul Q, Yusef @ Ivy Hotel Roof
• Reason to Rebel, Savalas (Italy), Mothers Anger , Joint Method, Object , Automatique @ Zombie Lounge
• Swami Record Swap @ Bar Pink Elephant
• Eden Sundays feat. DJ Steve Aoki @ The Ivy Hotel rooftop bar (2pm-dusk)
• Dave Bodda, Chad Boyer @ San Diego Sports Club
• Victory Nightlife Presents Club Massive: Memorial Day Weekend @ House of Blues
• SALSA SUNDAY Feat. Orquesta Primo @ Belly Up
• Quiet the Moon, Janu and the Whale Shark @ Lestat's
• Corey Biggs Memorial Day Bash @ Beauty Bar
• Sunday Sessions- Roots Reggae @ O'Connell's
• Action Andy, Bobby Sanchez Combo @ Tower Bar
• Set Your Goals, Hit The Lights, I Am The Avalanche, The Years Gone By, Dear Life @ Soma
• Claire's End of the Month Happy Hour Party @ Whistle Stop
• Tribe of Kings @ U-31
• We Shot The Moon, Everybody Else @ Epicentre
• Cipes and The People, Escape Note, Andrew Ripp @ 710 Beach Club
• Atomic Punks (Tribute to Van Halen) Monsters of Rock @ Canes
• Earl Thomas @ Winston's (5-8p)
• Jose Sinatra's OB-o-ke @ Winston's (9pm)
• Reggie Smith @ Humphrey's Backstage Lounge (early show, 10a-2p)
• Memorial Day Jazz Celebration @ Humphrey's Backstage Lounge
• Rickie Lee Jones @ Anthology (7:30 early show)
• The San Diego Youth Symphony Stage Band under the direction of Carl Hammond @ Dizzy's (San Diego Wine & Culinary Center)

Things To Do In San Diego: May 22-25, 2008

Robyn "Cobrastyle"

This is pretty much the equivalent of me posting a Pink video, but Robyn was on some late night show last night and the song has been stuck in my head ever since. I pass this curse on to you.

Robyn "Cobrastyle"


And for comedy sake, remember this jam?

Lucy's Fur Coat "Treasure Hands" Casbah 5.16.08

Here's the first video from Friday. If you can't wait for the second, go to my YouTube page and you'll find "Elementary" there as well. I'll embed that one later.
The moments where the footage wanders is when the 6'5" baffoon just had to show me he was tougher than I am. Dick. But I held on for my little internet lovelies :)

Lucy's Fur Coat "Treasure Hands"

Things To Do In San Diego: May 21, 2008

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