Sunday 01.18.09: Blue Diamond Benefit with HELLO DRAGON / THE HECTORS / THE BREAK UPS / SPIDER PROBLEM

Hello Dragon

A power-popped fission of spacey rock and melodic indie pop laced with boy/girl harmonies, Hello Dragon’s Quantum Explorers is a shiny and sun-glinted collection of oddball gems—under the acoustic/electric guitar interplay, reaching vocals and propellant rhythms are a cycle of lyrics circling subjects as disparate as Los Angeles, cryptozoology, and quantum physics. Despite the sideways angles of the off-kilter subject matter, the music is breezy, top-down road music, most especially the one-two punch of “Birds of Prey” and “Rats of L.A.” The former is a looping, pulsing drive of stuttered guitars and arcing vocal harmonies; the latter is such a lovely and concise distillation of epic, swinging pop choruses that it generates a near marionette-like headbobbing amidst the irresistible and ever-present “ahhhh woooo ohhhh”s so as to sound like the song Rivers Cuomo gave up trying to write and perfect twelve years ago. – Web In Front

with:
The Hectors || Listen
The Breakups
Spider Problem

8:30pm / $8 / 21+

Wednesday 01.14.09: Indie 103.1 presents CLUB NME with JER’XS / SEAN BROWN / PLUS SPECIAL GUESTS / HELL YA! DJS

JER’XS || Watch

with:
Sean Brown
Hell ya! Deejays: Hellya Heather, J-Star and Encore, plus Soild Todd spinning.
No cover after midnight.

8:30pm / $5 / 21+

Thursday 01.08.09: KXLU and LA Record present GANGI / BLANK BLUE / DAEDELUS / GASLAMP KILLER

Gangi

When onetime folky Matt Gangi hit Manimal Vinyl’s showcase at the Cake Shop Tuesday with his band, aptly called Gangi, the fluttery shirts, shoestring headband, and acoustic strums I expected were nowhere to be found. Framed by shimmery curtains and Christmas lights, Matt and his mallet-wielding drummer Lyle Nesse occupied the stage with self-assurance and opened each song with a sound sample that segued into pre-recorded dance floor beats, synth, and rhythm guitar to form a backdrop for Gangi’s reedy vocals. At times the band’s sound recalled the Brian Jonestown Massacre’s psych-pop, and at others — particularly during “Animals” — Massachusetts duo the Books. But when Gangi ventured into the crowd, hand raised fervently above his head, comparisons seemed petty next to the charming enthusiasm of a musician putting aside freak folk archetypes and finding his own voice. – Spin.com

with:
Blank Blue || Listen
Daedelus || Listen
The Gaslamp Killer || Listen

8:30pm / $8 / 21+

Wednesday 01.07.09: Indie 103.1 Presents CLUB NME with IKOMA / THEM TERRIBLES / CARLOTTA

Ikoma || Watch

Brighton based band IKOMA seem to think it’s time to put the rock back into the roll and they may have a point. IKOMA seem to have a sound that whilst drawing on the fine traditions of American rock also has a melodic Indie snarl. Searing guitar riffs underpin vocals packed with attitude which are far more palatable than the old school “constipated shriek” of yore. They have taken the rock template, updated it and ensured it doesn’t sound hackneyed or clichéd, whilst the band’s image mixes the classic “rawk” look with what appears to be the results of the New York Dolls and Guns and Roses having some sort of logistical mix-up involving stage apparel. IKOMA are fast establishing a reputation for being hugely entertaining in a live setting and their debut single “Last Chance Honey” is set for release in the very near future. It’s got attitude, melody and a good old fashioned big bollocked Rock chorus- it recalls elements of Crazyhead’s excellent cover of the Sonics “Have Love Will Travel” which is a can only be a good thing. – The VPME

with:
Them Terribles
Carlotta

Resident DJs Dia and Solid Todd spinning. No cover after midnight.

8:30pm / $5 / 21+

Wednesday 01.21.09: Indie 103.1 presents CLUB NME with THE ETTES / USELESS KEYS / TULSA SKULL SWINGERS

The Ettes || Listen || Watch || MP3

Incorporating the big-beat stomp minimalism of the White Stripes and Ramones, the country-fried attitude of Wanda Jackson, and the raw, sexy power of the Cramps, The Ettes are able to take a blues punk genre becoming staler by the minute and reinvent it in their own image. What really sets this effort apart is not the ever-present thump of drummer Maria “Poni” Silver, or the dark, garage-inspired bass lines by Jeremy “Jem” Cohen. It isn’t even the fuzzy, bluesy guitar work of guitarist/singer Lindsay “Coco” Hames. What makes Look at Life Again Soon really hum is Hames’ brilliant vocal work. For this reviewer, it was love at first listen. Her catty, defiant snarl is just enough to put Hames in the ‘punk rock vocalist’ category, but the undeniable twang in her delivery will make any listener fall head over heels. With irresistibly flirtatious lines like ‘You got your big ideas/They ain’t as big as mine’, how can you not? Add these ingredients to tight, power-packed songwriting, and a hit is born. – Amplifier Magazine

with:
Useless Keys || Listen
Tulsa Skull Swingers

8:30pm / $8 / 21+

Tuesday 12.30.08: YOU ME AND IOWA / CALAMITY MAGNET / COLA-COLA / DISSOLVER

You Me & Iowa || Listen || Watch

The band exists somewhere within a triangle created by the technical mastery of Minus the Bear, the lyrical complexity of Death Cab for Cutie, and pop sensibilities that have been hard to find since the heyday of the Beach Boys. From the first cut, “Dress the Stage,” the record sets sail across waves of poppy rock hooks that are firmly grounded by the band’s musical knowledge – perhaps not surprisingly, knowing that the quintet has between them a wealth of formal training. Adventures was produced and engineered by Dave Newton of Mighty Lemon Drop fame and mixed by J. Robbins (Dismemberment Plan). Couple that production experience with a band as drenched in talent as YM&I and the result is an album that never slows, sinks, or ever sounds anything like any other band on the scene. – The Source Weekly

with:
Calamity Magnet || Listen
Cola-Cola || Listen
Dissolver

8:30pm / $8 / 21+

Friday 02.13.08: DON CABALLERO / SBACH / DD/MM/YYYY

Don Caballero || Watch

As the second album by the new incarnation of Don Caballero, led by the last remaining original member, drum virtuoso Damon Che, Punkgasm finds the band desperately searching for a new direction. Some of the old sensibilities remain, but here they rifle through various styles outside the realm of syncopated interplay, even (gasp!) incorporating songs with vocals. While it’s interesting to see them try to break the holding pattern of intricately carved polyrhythms, the trio’s try-anything behavior results in a random assortment of songs, some of which will leave old-time fans scratching their heads and wondering, who is this? “Why Is the Couch Always Wet” swims in My Morning Jacket reverb and harmonies, “Celestial Dusty Groove” mimics the choppy indie rock of Jawbox and Shiner, and the titular song that ends the album is a ’70s punk throwback to the Fall and P.I.L., complete with snidely squeaked vocals. The good news is that these songs are actually executed quite well, and the group seems to have a chameleon-like ability to impersonate. – Insound

with:
sBACH (Spencer Seim from Hella)
DD/MM/YYYY

8:30pm / $12 advance; $14 day of show / 21+

Sunday 02.08.08: SUKI EWERS / DALLAS DON AND THE ECHO PARK PLAYERS / PATRIA JACOBS

Suki Ewers || Watch

Suki Ewers has spent her career perfecting a glorious, countrified strand of dream-pop as part of bands Mazzy Star, Opal and Anemone, and this new Kramer-produced solo outing is comparable with the slowcore loveliness of Low, the stargazing Nashville sounds of Cortney Tidwell, and most obviously, the opiated balladry of former bandmate Hope Sandoval, particularly on the brilliant opener ‘Time After Time’. The songwriting and production are in perfect harmony, sounding like a pedal steel-toting Velvet Underground on ‘All Day Long’, whilst spouting blasts of echoing guitar distortion and searing synthesizer on ‘This Must Be Heaven’. Sidestepping the dream-pop pitfalls, Ewers never hides her songs – or for that matter her vocals – behind the array of studio techniques and effects that help shape this album, and Kind Of Hazy resounds far more clearly than its title might have you believe. – Boomkat

with:
Dallas Don and the Echo Park Players
Patria Jacobs

8:30pm / FREE / 21+

Saturday 02.21.08: GRAILS / JAMES BLACKSHAW / SUN ARAW

Grails || Listen || Watch

Imbibed from the dark lip of divine quasi-metal deliverance, Doomsdayer’s Holiday, the latest from Portland ’s Grails, is a portentous brew, heady with intoxicating textures that spilleth over. The band’s unique approach to instrumental rock—which meanders ever so slightly toward faint, sun streaked horizons—relies on few of the conventions shared by their contemporaries. Where Mogwai or Explosions In The Sky opt for quiet/loud dynamics and rely considerably on carefully crafted crescendos, Grails seem to cast their compositions onto a gently flowing breeze, set adrift without effort, though far from aimless. – Treble

with:
James Blackshaw || Listen
Sun Araw

8:30pm / $8 advance; $10 day of show / 21+

Wednesday 02.18.08: Indie 103 presents CLUB NME with THE MYSTERY JETS / LOW FLYING OWLS

The Mystery Jets || Listen || Watch

The story of Twenty One runs thus, then – a young quartet of musicians plug away for years in a practice space on Eel Pie Island, West London, under the tutelage of one Henry Harrison…Once there, they find local man-about-town and esteemed DJ Erol Alkan, who takes over production duties for the second album and coaxes pop from a band with skills hardened during their time studying “loads of prog stuff” but re-invigorated by a new sense of youthful abandon and independence. The result is a modern pop masterpiece.

All of which is almost true – Mystery Jets’ new album is certainly a fantastic record bursting with life and colour and personality, reaching out towards the listener in slugs of moody bass and dazzling, club-drugged synth lines. But, on reflection, perhaps the hailing of Twenty One as a masterpiece does a disservice to its creators. This is an album as much about the growth of a band, and the process by which the record got here, blasting joyously from speakers, as it is about the songs contained therein…Twenty One is the sound of guitar music finding its place in London in 2008 but doesn’t take itself too seriously to think that’ll last the summer, past whoever and whatever comes along next. Thankfully, the quartet’s past should see them avoid the pitfalls of zeitgeist convention they’ve managed to confound so far.

Musically, this raids the ’80s for the only thing left worth taking, tracks like ‘Two Doors Down’ recalling the tableau vivant pop of ABC, while those flaring synth lines, presumably devised by Alkan, fire across the top of the mix in the same way that Antibalas’ horns added much-needed colour to the Foals record. That track is _Twenty One’s discoball hero, building through levels of Smiths-y guitar surf before erupting into a bewildering chorus, sounding like Whitney Houston’s ‘I Want to Dance With Somebody (Who Loves Me)’ as sung by Squeeze or The Kinks. It is ridiculously good.
It’s an ease that suits Mystery Jets as well as their music, and, finally, I can come to reject the term ‘masterpiece’ as the natural growth of this band promises to propel them on and up, into dizzy and deserved, ever-fresher stratospheres.- Drowned in Sound

with:
Low Flying Owls

8:30pm / $15 advance; $17 day of show / 21+

Thursday 02.05.08: THE FREEKS (members of Nebula/ Zen Guerrilla/ Earthless/&Wellwater Conspiracy) / DAVIS (member of Fu Manchu) / SASQUATCH / SASSY

The Freeks || Listen || Watch

In guitarist Isaiah Mitchell’s hidden Hillcrest alleyway apartment, Ruben Romano settles down to talk about his ragtag collection of musician friends dubbed The Freeks. Romano is down from Orange County after a full shift at his day job to put in a quick night of rehearsing and recording with Mitchell, who’s best known for his heavy riffage with San Diego’s Earthless and as the No. 2 guitar-slinger for Lady Dottie & The Diamonds. The Freeks were never meant to be a real group; it was more of a fun recording project for Romano and a getaway for his friends with full-time bands. Now he finds himself coordinating mini-rehearsals all over the state in preparation for the band’s first U.S. dates.

Sitars, swirling organs and backwards noises decorate The Freeks’ songs, only to be split up by instrumental interludes jam-packed with spacey weirdness. Song titles like “Descent of the Yellow Chrysalis” and “Dance of the Moth Queen,” plus a slew of trippy album and poster artwork, further add to the notion of Summer of Love-type influences, but the band avoids actual hippie costuming. – San Diego CityBeat

with:
Davis (member of Fu Manchu)
Sasquatch
Sassy

8:30pm / $8 / 21+

Wednesday 02.04.09: Indie 103 presents CLUB NME with LITTLE BOOTS / LOVE GRENADES / LEXICONDON

Little Boots || Listen || Watch

We’re not sure about you, but with all the substandard, will-this-do pop music thrown in our direction these days we’ve become so familiar with the feeling of trying to find the good in something that it’s a complete shock to the system to have, right in front of us, an artist where the real game is trying to find something bad. But there’s nothing. Little Boots is a totally bullet proof 21st century popstar. She writes and produces and performs. The stuff she writes and produces and performs is really incredibly brilliant: bright, sophisticated modern pop music full of hooks and tunes and exciting sounds and sonic tricks. She can pull the whole thing off live, combining the aforementioned brilliant pop music with a funny, likeable, stylish and confident stage presence… This is Kylie and the Pet Shop Boys all in one person – the popstar we’ve all been waiting for for years and years and years. – Popjustice

with:
Love Grenades
LexiconDon

8:30pm / $8 Advance; $10 day of show / 21+

Sunday 01.11.09: MAD PLANET / SUMKID AND THE MILKY WAY / THE POPULAR FANS

Mad Planet

with:
Sumkid and The Milky Way
The Popular Fans

8:30pm / FREE / 21+

Thursday 01.15.09: TRIBE AFTER TRIBE / THE THRIFTSTORE ALLSTARS / PAUL NEWSOME

Tribe After Tribe || Watch

It seems that more and more metal bands are turning their heads to global problems. And while bands like Gojira and Tyr are trying to get our attention to environmental problems, Tribe After Tribe is the one holding a pacifist sign. And the word ‘pacifist’ seems a little primitive when we are talking about their work, especially the latest release “M.O.A.B.”.

The South African musician, mystic and thinker Robbi Robb takes you on an eye-opening journey to the world you live in, yet might not be aware of. The problems Robbi is pointing us at are as complex as their musical representation. It’s downright difficult to label this album with any particular style. 13 band members in total deliver diverse atmospheres, from tribal rock and Pink Floyd level psychedelia to ambient and “mystic Sufi chants”. Get it all on the “Truth and Reconciliation” and “Holy City Warrior”. The effects and samples are impressive and play a crucial role in the story being told. And though the narrative and the story itself is partially based on religious sources, the point is too important to appreciate prejudice on this.

It is and at the same time neither religious nor political. More of a deeper insight on what’s in the human heart. So what exactly is “M.O.A.B.”? Robbi can answer that: “Put down the guns, put down the books, put away the pointing fingers of blame .. come away from the temples and into the fields, and there let us work together to eradicate disease and poverty from the face of the Earth. This is the ‘Mother Of All Battles’. – Abort Magazine

with:
The Thriftstore Allstars
Paul Newsome

8:30pm / $8 advance, $10 Day of Show / 21+

Saturday 01.17.09: PARAMOUNT STYLES (Scott McCloud from Girls Against Boys) / RADEMACHER / MODEL/ACTRESS

Paramount Styles (Scott McCloud from Girls Against Boys) || Watch

Girls Against Boys are more on hold than broken up, so among other things, lead growler/master of “fuck you” sass Scott McCloud has decided to take a calmer approach on his debut under the Paramount Styles name. The song titles retain certain distinguishing characteristics such as “AllEyesAreOnYouNowMyPet” and “Drunx, Whores & MZK People,” but hearing acoustic guitars, plenty of piano and easygoing riffs, and a gentler air of contemplative observations (especially on the latter song) are definitely new. Thankfully (one hopes), humanity has reached a state at which going that route isn’t seen as selling out or going soft, and if people do try that approach with you about this album, laugh at them loudly before hacking into their bank account (if you’re into that).

Failure American Style is more of a stylistic patchwork than simply Girls Against Boys go unplugged, in any event—and sometimes to surprising effect. “Hollywood Tales 2″ is a ghostly kind of Sonic Youth tribute, “Total Trash” crossed with “Rain on Tin” and classic rock, an approach revisited later with “These Starry Nights.” McCloud sometimes aims for the perfectly understandable, and at others for the kind of murky threat with which he made his name, but the generally brisk, sometimes skeletal arrangements take precedence throughout. There’s even a mournful instrumental that should soundtrack whatever midlife-crisis movie will be made for the generation of (former) alternakids, wherever they are. – OC Weekly

with:
Rademacher
Model/Actress

8:30pm / $8 advance, $10 day of show / 21+

Friday 01.16.09: THE MUFFS / THE DOLLYROTS / CALAMITY MAGNET

The Muffs || Listen || Watch

Kim Shattuck formed the Muffs with bassist Ronnie Barnett, drummer Criss Crass and Melanie Vammen in 1991. After two singles for indie labels Sub Pop and Sympathy for the Record Industry in 1991/92, which generated a large underground buzz, the Muffs were picked up by Warner Bros and subsequently released their powerful eponymous debut album in 1993. Shortly after, Crass left the group and was replaced temporarily by drummer Jim Laspesa for the tour.

After switching to Reprise Records in 1994 and after a year of touring in venues throughout the world, the Muffs headed back into the studio to record the follow-up, Blonder and Blonder released in 1995; now a three-piece due to Vammen’s departure.

Right before recording Blonder and Blonder, ex- Redd Kross drummer and longtime Muffs friend Roy McDonald joined the group. Happy Birthday to Me followed in 1997 and two years later in 1999 Alert Today, Alive Tomorrow was released by Fat Wreckords; a rarities collection, Hamburger, appeared in early 2000 on Sympathy for the Record Industry… The Muffs released their new CD Really Really Happy on Five Foot Two Records during the Summer 2004 and toured the US and Japan later that year.

with:
The Dollyrots || Listen
Calamity Magnet || Listen

8:30pm / $10 advance, $12 Day of Show / 21+

Sunday 01.25.09: NEIL HAMBURGER / RON LYNCH / BRENT WEINBACH / BRYSON LANG / IMAGINE “THE” BAND

Neil Hamburger

If Neil Hamburger wasn’t the Funniest Man in America, why would the record company keep letting him make so many albums? Can’t answer that question, can you? No, it’s beyond dispute, he is the funniest. End of debate. Don’t even mention Jack Kevorkian, Neil is waaaaay, waaaaaaaay more side-splittingly hilarious, and he’s a much bigger bummer. And he’s got a million of ‘em – why, if one of his jokes falls flat or makes you groan or feel like gagging, or say the next 80 or 90 “gags” don’t exactly make you howl with uproarious laughter, just wait, because Neil will pounce with just a killer, killer line that will make you pee in your pants and nudge the guy next to you so he spills his drink (and when he hits you, that’ll be funny too). You’ll be glad you shelled out your money and chose to spend your time, on a Sunday night, no less, with America’s funny man, Neil Hamburger. – LA Weekly

with:
Ron Lynch
Brent Weinbach || Watch
Imagine “The” Band || Listen
Bryson Lang

8:30pm / $8 / 21+

Saturday 01.03.09: BABYLAND / BIG BOY / THE KRIS SPECIAL / WALK

Babyland || Listen || Watch

Babyland’s 2004 album, The Finger signified a shift in direction for the legendary electronic junk punk duo. Though the aggression was still present, it was no longer the dominant element. Lead vocalist Dan Gatto’s hoarse-voiced exultations were less often aggressive screams than expressions of melancholy or even hope, and the electronics were less raw, bordering on emotive synthpop. While some of the band’s old school fans decried what they saw as a softening of Babyland’s sound, most were able to appreciate The Finger for what it was: an expression of growing musical maturity. Not Modern, a four-song preview of Babyland’s forthcoming fifth album, presages a further expansion of that maturity. Title track “Not Modern” itself, which will only be released on this EP, is still possessed of a punk energy, thanks mostly to percussionist Smith’s work on his homemade drum kit, an Einstürzende Neubauten-inspired arrangement of recycled oil drums and scrap metal. Still, it’s as melodic as it is aggressive; though Gatto’s vocals are at their most breathless and intense, the rapid-fire layers of tinny analog sequences are layered into an unexpectedly pretty harmony set off by wistful piano phrases. – Regen Magazine

with:
Big Boy
The Kris Special || Listen
Walk

8:30pm / $8 / 21+

Saturday 01.10.09: Indie 103.1 presents AFTERNOONS / THE HENRY CLAY PEOPLE / LEMON SUN / THE FLYING TOURBILLON ORCHESTRA

Afternoons || Watch || MP3

The Afternoons delivered a sparkling set that strayed only slightly from the musical styles of Irving. A propulsive bass riff kicked off “Graffiti Artist” as the jangling guitars glided into place. My ears were already perked when a trumpet sounded to fill out their sound. Brian Canning and Steven Scott handled the guitars and vocals with Claire Mckeown adding another layer of opera like vocals. The Afternoons only have four songs on their Myspace page but I assume they will have some more material in time for their Spaceland residency in June. It won’t take long for the Afternoons to reconstitute the buzz they had with Irving and propel them to greater heights. – Amateur Chemist

with:
The Henry Clay People || Listen
Lemon Sun || Listen
The Flying Tourbillon Orchestra

8:30pm / $8 advance, $10 day of show / 21+

Friday 01.09.09: Indie 103.1 presents AFTERNOONS / XU XU FANG / EAGLE AND TALON

Afternoons || Watch || MP3

The Afternoons delivered a sparkling set that strayed only slightly from the musical styles of Irving. A propulsive bass riff kicked off “Graffiti Artist” as the jangling guitars glided into place. My ears were already perked when a trumpet sounded to fill out their sound. Brian Canning and Steven Scott handled the guitars and vocals with Claire Mckeown adding another layer of opera like vocals. The Afternoons only have four songs on their Myspace page but I assume they will have some more material in time for their Spaceland residency in June. It won’t take long for the Afternoons to reconstitute the buzz they had with Irving and propel them to greater heights. – Amateur Chemist

with:
Xu Xu Fang || Listen
Eagle & Talon || Listen

8:30pm / $8 advance, $10 day of show / 21+

Wednesday 12.17.08: Indie 103.1 presents CLUB NME with THEM TERRIBLES

Them Terribles || Watch

Them Terribles kicked things off with an amazing set. The singer, Matt Green, has an amazing stage presence. I bought their album when I saw they were playing this show, and it’s an amazing record. I love a band that can command a crowd, and these guys are going to be something to see after a few more years of winning fans. The set got the crowd moving and the band kept the energy high through the whole set – A Face In the Crowd

8:30pm / $8 / 21+

Thursday 12.18.08: CLOSED

Thursday 12.11.08: AUTOMATIC DRAWING / COLLISIONS

Automatic Drawing || Watch

It’s a rare case when you find a band just immediately fucking likable… where multiple songs grab you right away and you wonder why or how the hell you’ve never heard of them before.

It’s the very definition of a band crush – and new group Automatic Drawing (who make smarty pop music loosely reminiscent of early Belle & Sebastian and Interpol) is, as such, infinitely crushable. – Radio Free Silverlake

with:
Collisions

8:30pm / $5 / 21+

Thursday 01.08.09: SPACELAND ON ICE with WAIT.THINK.FAST @ Pershing Square

Spaceland Productions Presents:

Wait.Think.Fast.

@ Pershing Square
532 South Olive St
Los Angeles, CA 90013

FMI: Downtown On Ice

7pm / FREE / all ages

Thursday 12.18.08: SPACELAND ON ICE with DOGWEED / BOLLWEEVIL @ Pershing Square

Spaceland Productions Presents:

Dogweed
Bollweevil

@ Pershing Square
532 South Olive St
Los Angeles, CA 90013

FMI: Downtown On Ice

7pm / FREE / all ages

Thursday 12.11.08: SPACELAND ON ICE with HOLLOYS / RUMSPRINGA @ Pershing Square

Spaceland Productions Presents:

Holloys
Rumspringa || Listen

@ Pershing Square
532 South Olive St
Los Angeles, CA 90013

FMI: Downtown On Ice

7pm / FREE / all ages

Tuesday 01.27.09: Tuesday Night Residency – SARA LOV (from Devics) / HANDS / BRAM / YEARBOOK PICTURES

Sara Lov || Listen || MP3

The Los Angeles-based dream-pop band Devics has enchanted fans for years with its beautifully dark and moody music, but there’s hardly been a peep from the band since its 2007 album, Push the Heart. Thankfully, both singer Sara Lov and pianist Dustin O’Halloran have kept busy during Devics’ hiatus. Each is working on solo material, the latest of which is Lov’s The Young Eyes EP. Though it isn’t set for a physical release until January, the EP can currently be purchased as a digital download. It’s a glimpse into what will be Lov’s solo debut, Seasoned Eyes Were Beaming, due out in 2009.

Beginning with “New York,” The Young Eyes could at first be easily mistaken for a Devics record. O’Halloran not only helped co-write the song, but his piano playing gently backs Lov’s flawless, heartfelt vocals… Lov’s take on the Arcade Fire’s “My Body is a Cage” is absolute perfection. Her voice is irresistibly seductive on this song, and hopefully the upcoming full-length Seasoned Eyes Were Beaming will follow in a similar, melancholic path. – NPR

with:
Hands
BRAM
Yearbook Pictures

8:30pm / $10 advance, $12 day of show / 21+

Tuesday 01.20.09: Tuesday Night Residency – SARA LOV (from Devics) / WILLOUGHBY / THE ONE AM RADIO / EVAN WAY (from the Parson Red Heads)

Sara Lov || Listen || MP3

The Los Angeles-based dream-pop band Devics has enchanted fans for years with its beautifully dark and moody music, but there’s hardly been a peep from the band since its 2007 album, Push the Heart. Thankfully, both singer Sara Lov and pianist Dustin O’Halloran have kept busy during Devics’ hiatus. Each is working on solo material, the latest of which is Lov’s The Young Eyes EP. Though it isn’t set for a physical release until January, the EP can currently be purchased as a digital download. It’s a glimpse into what will be Lov’s solo debut, Seasoned Eyes Were Beaming, due out in 2009.

Beginning with “New York,” The Young Eyes could at first be easily mistaken for a Devics record. O’Halloran not only helped co-write the song, but his piano playing gently backs Lov’s flawless, heartfelt vocals… Lov’s take on the Arcade Fire’s “My Body is a Cage” is absolute perfection. Her voice is irresistibly seductive on this song, and hopefully the upcoming full-length Seasoned Eyes Were Beaming will follow in a similar, melancholic path. – NPR

with:
Willoughby || Listen
The One AM Radio || Listen
Evan Way (of the Parson Red Heads)

8:30pm / $10 advance, $12 day of show / 21+

Tuesday 01.13.09: Tuesday Night Residency – SARA LOV (from Devics) / LEARNING MUSIC / MODWHEELMOOD / PINK MOCHI

Sara Lov || Listen || MP3

The Los Angeles-based dream-pop band Devics has enchanted fans for years with its beautifully dark and moody music, but there’s hardly been a peep from the band since its 2007 album, Push the Heart. Thankfully, both singer Sara Lov and pianist Dustin O’Halloran have kept busy during Devics’ hiatus. Each is working on solo material, the latest of which is Lov’s The Young Eyes EP. Though it isn’t set for a physical release until January, the EP can currently be purchased as a digital download. It’s a glimpse into what will be Lov’s solo debut, Seasoned Eyes Were Beaming, due out in 2009.

Beginning with “New York,” The Young Eyes could at first be easily mistaken for a Devics record. O’Halloran not only helped co-write the song, but his piano playing gently backs Lov’s flawless, heartfelt vocals… Lov’s take on the Arcade Fire’s “My Body is a Cage” is absolute perfection. Her voice is irresistibly seductive on this song, and hopefully the upcoming full-length Seasoned Eyes Were Beaming will follow in a similar, melancholic path. – NPR

with:
Learning Music
Modwheelmood || Listen
Pink Mochi

8:30pm / $10 advance, $12 day of show / 21+

Tuesday 01.06.08: Tuesday Night Residency – SARA LOV (from Devics) / PATRICK PARK / HANK

Sara Lov || Listen || MP3

The Los Angeles-based dream-pop band Devics has enchanted fans for years with its beautifully dark and moody music, but there’s hardly been a peep from the band since its 2007 album, Push the Heart. Thankfully, both singer Sara Lov and pianist Dustin O’Halloran have kept busy during Devics’ hiatus. Each is working on solo material, the latest of which is Lov’s The Young Eyes EP. Though it isn’t set for a physical release until January, the EP can currently be purchased as a digital download. It’s a glimpse into what will be Lov’s solo debut, Seasoned Eyes Were Beaming, due out in 2009.

Beginning with “New York,” The Young Eyes could at first be easily mistaken for a Devics record. O’Halloran not only helped co-write the song, but his piano playing gently backs Lov’s flawless, heartfelt vocals… Lov’s take on the Arcade Fire’s “My Body is a Cage” is absolute perfection. Her voice is irresistibly seductive on this song, and hopefully the upcoming full-length Seasoned Eyes Were Beaming will follow in a similar, melancholic path. – NPR

with:
Patrick Park || Listen
Hank

8:30pm / $10 advance, $12 day of show / 21+

Saturday 12.27.08: PRINCETON / BODIES OF WATER ACOUSTIC DUO (Meredith and David Metcalf) / NO LITTLE KINDNESS

Princeton || Listen

They may have an Ivy-bred name, but Eagle Rock, CA’s Princeton are more concerned with chamber-pop than condescension. Comprised of brothers Jesse and Matt Kivel, plus longtime pal Ben Usen, Princeton combine the Glaswegian gloom of Tigermilk-era Belle and Sebastian with sublime orchestration and Vampire Weekend’s bouncy, lilting rhythmic structures to formulate a sound that will send listeners off to a regal pop Valhalla. Check out the fluttering woodwinds and galloping melody of “Ms. Bentwich.” – Spin.com

with:
Bodies of Water as an Acoustic Duo (Meredith and David Metcalf)
No Little Kindness || Listen

8:30pm / $8 / 21+

Monday 01.26.09: Monday Night Residency – ROCCO DELUCA / MARVELOUS TOY / THE PETROJVIC BLASTING CO. / PAWNSHOP KINGS

Rocco DeLuca || Listen || Watch

L.A. based acclaimed performer and songwriter Rocco DeLuca has completed work on his latest recording ‘Mercy,’ produced by Daniel Lanois and slated for release March 10, 2009 on Ironworks Music. Already noted for his highly praised debut — “this man is a star” raved Billboard — on the new album
Rocco delivers eleven emotionally charged, soulful songs built upon the foundation of his utterly inventive dobro playing and visceral, emotional songwriting.

Highlights on ‘Mercy’ include the title track – a slow burning ballad that highlights Deluca’s delicate and flawless falsetto and is backed by UK based band Keane, “I Trust You To Kill Me” — a driving dobro and piano centered plea and the hard rocking “Save Yourself,” latter recently added to VH1 and Fuse slated to be featured on the DVD for Fox’s feature length ‘24 – Redemption’ on November 25th. The album is centered on Deluca’s innovative playing of the resonator guitar and his multi-octave vocals — moving seamlessly from dark and haunted to light and crystalline.

with:
Marvelous Toy || Listen
The Petrojvic Blasting Co. || Listen
Pawnshop Kings

8:30pm / FREE / 21+

Monday 01.19.08: Monday Night Residency – ROCCO DELUCA / MUSEE MECANIQUE / CORREATOWN

Rocco DeLuca || Listen || Watch

L.A. based acclaimed performer and songwriter Rocco DeLuca has completed work on his latest recording ‘Mercy,’ produced by Daniel Lanois and slated for release March 10, 2009 on Ironworks Music. Already noted for his highly praised debut — “this man is a star” raved Billboard — on the new album
Rocco delivers eleven emotionally charged, soulful songs built upon the foundation of his utterly inventive dobro playing and visceral, emotional songwriting.

Highlights on ‘Mercy’ include the title track – a slow burning ballad that highlights Deluca’s delicate and flawless falsetto and is backed by UK based band Keane, “I Trust You To Kill Me” — a driving dobro and piano centered plea and the hard rocking “Save Yourself,” latter recently added to VH1 and Fuse slated to be featured on the DVD for Fox’s feature length ‘24 – Redemption’ on November 25th. The album is centered on Deluca’s innovative playing of the resonator guitar and his multi-octave vocals — moving seamlessly from dark and haunted to light and crystalline.

with:
Musee Mecanique
Correatown || Listen

8:30pm / FREE / 21+

Monday 01.12.09: Monday Night Residency – ROCCO DELUCA / IDA MARIA / HONEYHONEY / JILLIAN HANK LEIGH

Rocco DeLuca || Listen || Watch

L.A. based acclaimed performer and songwriter Rocco DeLuca has completed work on his latest recording ‘Mercy,’ produced by Daniel Lanois and slated for release March 10, 2009 on Ironworks Music. Already noted for his highly praised debut — “this man is a star” raved Billboard — on the new album
Rocco delivers eleven emotionally charged, soulful songs built upon the foundation of his utterly inventive dobro playing and visceral, emotional songwriting.

Highlights on ‘Mercy’ include the title track – a slow burning ballad that highlights Deluca’s delicate and flawless falsetto and is backed by UK based band Keane, “I Trust You To Kill Me” — a driving dobro and piano centered plea and the hard rocking “Save Yourself,” latter recently added to VH1 and Fuse slated to be featured on the DVD for Fox’s feature length ‘24 – Redemption’ on November 25th. The album is centered on Deluca’s innovative playing of the resonator guitar and his multi-octave vocals — moving seamlessly from dark and haunted to light and crystalline.

with:
Ida Maria (from Norway) || Listen
HoneyHoney || Listen
Jillian Hank Leigh

8:30pm / FREE / 21+

Monday 01.05.08: Monday Night Residency – ROCCO DELUCA / CRASH KINGS / JASON DIAZ

Rocco DeLuca || Listen || Watch

L.A. based acclaimed performer and songwriter Rocco DeLuca has completed work on his latest recording ‘Mercy,’ produced by Daniel Lanois and slated for release March 10, 2009 on Ironworks Music. Already noted for his highly praised debut — “this man is a star” raved Billboard — on the new album
Rocco delivers eleven emotionally charged, soulful songs built upon the foundation of his utterly inventive dobro playing and visceral, emotional songwriting.

Highlights on ‘Mercy’ include the title track – a slow burning ballad that highlights Deluca’s delicate and flawless falsetto and is backed by UK based band Keane, “I Trust You To Kill Me” — a driving dobro and piano centered plea and the hard rocking “Save Yourself,” latter recently added to VH1 and Fuse slated to be featured on the DVD for Fox’s feature length ‘24 – Redemption’ on November 25th. The album is centered on Deluca’s innovative playing of the resonator guitar and his multi-octave vocals — moving seamlessly from dark and haunted to light and crystalline.

with:
Crash Kings
Jason Diaz || Listen

8:30pm / FREE / 21+

Thursday 01.22.09: WOVENHAND / SILVER SUMMIT / BLUE GIANT

Wovenhand || Watch

Don’t come to David Eugene Edwards looking for a catchy melody to whistle. If there’s something getting stuck in your head while listening to his austere, harrowing Americana, it’s the cutting edge of a heavenly archangel’s flaming sword. Ten Stones finds the songwriter adhering to the stylistic template he’s been refining since his days fronting 16 Horsepower. Edwards unleashes his chilling signature holler, foregoing traditional melodies in favor of a near-chanted rock liturgy about Old Testament judgment (“Not one stone / Atop another will stand… / This weary melody ends / The host of heaven descends”) and humanity’s moral decrepitude. If this new record departs stylistically from his massive catalog in any way, it’s the infusion of crunching, distorted guitar. His previous solo records under the Wovenhand moniker felt more foreboding than explosive, the gathering of black clouds threatening but never quite lashing the parched earth below. Searing guitar riffage on Ten Stones’ opening track “The Beautiful Axe” offers a sonic facsimile to the fire that cascaded down from heaven, singing the hair off Elijah’s arms and consuming both altar and sacrifice when he confronted the prophets of Baal. Edwards is similarly unafraid of using pyrotechnics to testify on behalf of his one true God. – Paste Magazine

with:
Silver Summit || Listen
Blue Giant || Listen

8:30pm / $10 advance, $12 Day Of Show / 21+

Friday 12.19.08: YAHOWHA 13 / THE MOON UPSTAIRS / ROBEDOOR

YaHoWha 13

“YaHoWha 13 makes Devendra Banhart look like Don Rumsfeld” -LA Times

YaHoWha 13 is the experimental musical outlet of The Source Family, a communal religious group living in the Hollywood Hills in the early 1970s who decided to fuse their musical talents and spirituality by forming an improvisational, psychedelic music group.

They began making LPs in 1973, all of which were recorded after hours of meditation at 3-6 AM in a soundproofed garage that served as the musicians studio in the family’s communal residence. All of the records with Father Yod’s participation were completely improvised, with no rehearsals or overdubs. Most of the albums were small-press runs, with only 500 to 1000 copies made under the Higher Key Records imprint. They were sold to the general public in Father Yod’s wildly popular vegetarian Source Restaurant for $10. These same records currently retail for thousands of dollars and are highly sought after by record collectors around the world. Though only 9 LPs were produced and released, it is rumored that more than 65 albums were recorded by the group and have since been destroyed.

The band changed members occasionally, morphing into various incarnations from Father Yod & The Spirit of ‘76 to YaHoWa 13 to The Savage Sons of YaHoWa, Yodship, and Fire Water Air, but the key players were always the same (Djin Aquarian on guitar, Octavius Aquarian on drums, and Sunflower
Aquarian on bass). YaHoWha 13 released their latest, “Sonic Portation,” on October 28th via Prophase Records.

with:
The Moon Upstairs || Listen
Robedoor

8:30pm / $10 advance, $12 day of show / 21+

Wednesday 12.10.08: Indie 103.1 presents CLUB NME with POP LEVI / FRENCH MIAMI / THE NEW REGIME

Pop Levi || Listen || Watch

Nobody is putting out music like Pop Levi’s right now. Levi calls his sound astral rock ‘n’ roll-much catchier than the more descriptive psych-glam-garage-blues-rock fusion. If you need an artistic point of reference, think Prince meets Marc Bolan mixed with probably a bit too much Syd Barrett for his own good. It’s not the most unusual group of influences, but Levi works them into a sound all his own.

Infectious up-tempo numbers like “Sugar Assault Me Now” and “Pick-Me-Up Uppercut” show that Levi has some ready-for-primetime swish in his step, especially the latter, with its overt sexuality. He seems equally comfortable with his acoustic, strumming some contemplative tearjerkers like “Skip Ghetto” and “From the Day That You Were Born,” and he has enough soul to pull off blues-funk tracks like “Blue Honey” and “Hades’ Lady.” This is to say that Pop Levi can do it all, and do it all well. – Prefix Mag

with:
French Miami
The New Regime || Listen

8:30pm / $8 / 21+

Tuesday 12.02.08: VIOLENT SOHO (from Australia)

Violent Soho || Watch

2008 has already been a huge year for the four piece, having toured almost non stop with a bunch of other Aussie acts, including their current jaunt with The Mess Hall.

June saw the release of their debut album, “We Don’t Belong Here”, which has been causing quite the stir among music fans and critics alike. It’s a dirty, relentless rock affair that doesn’t skip a beat from opening track “Love is a Heavy Word”, which has been a Triple J favourite.

While the band’s early nineties influences are apparent, the question remains whether or not we are allowed to call them grunge.

“We used to call ourselves a grunge band, but then people started talking about a grunge revolution… we didn’t want to get swept up in some kind of fashion thing, and we don’t want to be pigeonholed”, says Luke.

That would be a nightmare for a band whose lack of pretension is apparent in everything they do.

“At the end of the day, you can call us whatever you want. We’re continually writing and we just want to make good, honest music”.

While Luke says the boys aren’t nervous about playing to a bunch of discerning Pixies fans at the Black Francis gigs, he’s shit scared of what the man himself might think.

“It’s slowly sinking in… we might actually get to speak to Frank Black, Frank Black might actually watch us play”.

It wouldn’t seem that Violent Soho have much to worry about in that regard. In the short time they have been gigging around the traps, they have already carved out a reputation as one of the best live acts going. – Virgin Music Blog

8:30pm / $8 / 21+

Friday 12.05.08: DAWES / ROBERT FRANCIS / THE ROMANY RYE / THE NATIVES (DJ SET)

Dawes || Watch

Robert Francis

with:
The Romany Rye
The Natives DJing all night

8:30pm / $8 / 21+

Saturday 12.20.08: THE GREAT DECEIVERS (Tribute to King Crimson) / NINJA ACADEMY / POLAR GOLDIE CATS

The Great Deceivers || Watch

The Great Deceivers consist of drums, bass, keys, electric guitar and violin, plus a host of pedal boards and psychedelic effects. They faithfully reproduce some of the most challenging and original music of the late 60s and 1970s. The violinist in particular is an extraordinary talent and managed to sound alot like Crimson guitarist Robert Fripp at times. The keyboardist seamlessly melded with the harder edged sound produced by the group and sang quite well to boot. It is to the band’s credit that they managed to coordinate arrangements with violin and keys on a song like “Red” that didn’t originally feature these instruments. The Great Deceivers’ guitar player probably has the hardest job in this band and he pulled it off admirably for this first gig. He even threw in a few musical nods to Adrian Belew now and again which added a freshness I was not expecting since this material pre-dates Belew’s now famous additionto King Crimson. The rhythm section played with a non-traditional and accomplished flair. The fat, distorted bass and precision drumming provided a steadfast epoxy that solidified this radical, visionary music. – All Access Magazine

with:
Ninja Academy || Listen
Polar Goldie Cats || Listen

8:30pm / $8 / 21+

Sunday 12.13.08: VAN STONE / THE RINGERS / LIGHTNIN WOODCOCK

Van Stone || Watch

Van Stone is Palmdale’s number 3 rock band, right behind number 1 Skirge, and number 2 Wind Jammer. DUH! Now, the only way we’re ever gonna catch Skirge is if all you Van Stoniacs pull together and help us raise money for a van… My mom said we can’t borrow her Nissan Sentra anymore, ‘cuz the last time we used it to haul all the ekwipment to the gig we scratched her roof with “Terry” (our six foot stainless steel lazer skull). Now I got all you Stoniacs beggin’ me to play here and there and promisin’ that you’ll let me skrew your sister and shit. BUT WE AIN’T GOT NO WHEELS!!… So if you want us to come to yer shit hole town then get off yer asses and buy our debut album: Van Stone I… and while yer at it pick up a t-shirt… the shipping is still the same, so you save money… and you could save a life too… Our shirts have been approved by the American Medical Response association for use as an emergency tourniquet… and that’s one to grow on. LIVE STONED!

with:
The Ringers
Lightnin’ Woodcock

8:30pm / $8 advance, $10 Day of show / 21+

Tuesday 12.09.08: ROBOTANISTS / KISSING COUSINS / ONE TRICK PONY / TWO GUNS

Robotansists || Listen (EP Release)

Only seven (7) songs/almost thirty-seven (37) minutes long, it’s not something of grand proportions. But, it is filled with stuff that can tickle your fancy like you’re trying to get a Tickle Me Doll modeled after you. The opener track is “Wait A Minute Here.” This was the second song that I’ve heard from this act(first being the Joy Division cover). I’ve heard this song many months ago. Still, it brings such a strong longing sense that it’s hard to properly compare it to something else. The simplicity of it adds such an epic feeling to the song. You might ask how is such possible. It’s simple, really, the fact that it feels so bare bones is how it fuels the “just out of reach” sensation of the song that the lyrics bring. Vocally, Sarah(lead vocalist) is amazing. The first half of the song, it sounds like she’s singing in the shower with the water off. Alone. Thinking about the muse of the song. Either that, or inside of an empty building strolling the halls while you listen to her from the other end. I can’t tell you how many music video ideas I had swimming around in my head when I heard this song(and still do every time I hear it). Daniel(lead guitarist)’s finger work is nothing to downplay in the least bit. He’s not merely strumming an acoustic guitar, he’s plucking at you’re heart’s attention while Sarah holds your head in a submission maneuver. If you’re not captivated by this song, then I don’t know how you can ever claim to have been in love and possess a heart. – Opinionhated

with:
Kissing Cousins
One Trick Pony || Listen
Two Guns

8:30pm / $8 / 21+

Wednesday 12.03.08: Indie 103.1 Presents AFTERNOONS / USELESS KEYS / BILLYGOAT

Afternoons || Watch || MP3

The Afternoons delivered a sparkling set that strayed only slightly from the musical styles of Irving. A propulsive bass riff kicked off “Graffiti Artist” as the jangling guitars glided into place. My ears were already perked when a trumpet sounded to fill out their sound. Brian Canning and Steven Scott handled the guitars and vocals with Claire Mckeown adding another layer of opera like vocals. The Afternoons only have four songs on their Myspace page but I assume they will have some more material in time for their Spaceland residency in June. It won’t take long for the Afternoons to reconstitute the buzz they had with Irving and propel them to greater heights. – Amateur Chemist

with:
Useless Keys || Listen
Billygoat

8:30pm / $8 / 21+

Friday 12.26.08: CLOSED

Thursday 12.25.08: CLOSED

Wednesday 12.24.08: CLOSED

Tuesday 12.23.08: CLOSED

Wednesday 12.31.08: Indie 103.1 presents CLUB NME with THE HENRY CLAY PEOPLE / THE PITY PARTY / THE HAPPY HOLLOWS

The Henry Clay People || Listen || Watch

The spasmodic sagacity of the Henry Clay People can be a little like watching somebody karaoke the encyclopedia, and the L.A. quartet’s spate of shows in late 2007 seemed to augur their rise to bigger stages. The prolific foursome is getting ready for a February residency at the Echo (batten down the fixtures) by putting the finishing touches on a new EP. With last year’s album “Blacklist the Kid With the Red Moustache” just making it into many local music collections, TCHP will have the five-song “Working Part Time” EP ready for the residency. The title track ought to be the anthem for every indie rocker who juggles a day job with being in a band. And, front man Joey Siara says, the band is writing and recording more new material. – LA Times Buzz Bands

with:
The Pity Party
The Happy Hollows || Listen

8:30pm / $10 / 21+

Monday 12.29.08: THE MOVIES / EVEREST / LOVE LIES SLEEPING / ROSES KINGS CASTLES (Adam Ficek from Babyshambles)

The Movies

…the Movies were, more than anything celebrating being the Movies—a ferociously talented live act bathed in a synthy haze of weary sleaze and winking, knowing lyrics, while simultaneously echoing the Bunnymen and remaining firmly, wildly original… Their set was an impassioned, alternately subdued and unhinged performance, as James whirled around the stage in a wild-eyed fever between bassist Jessica Gelt’s sinewy, rhythmic sway and the ambient wash of keyboardist Brian Cleary, demanding that audience members kiss to win copies of the new LP, furiously running in place, and riding the mic stand—once again proving that he is one of the funniest and most dynamic singers in the L.A. music scene (the man can croon, too). The Movies’ show spun between two poles: songs like the melodic, synth-stung “Get Your Macho Out” and the slow-motion whirlpool of “Creation Lake” were a down-tempo counterpoint to the warped snarl of “Autograph” and the glistening stutter-cool of “If I Had the Cash,” with the reeling keyboard intro and propulsive, howled choruses of “Missed Opportunities” unifying both ends of the band’s spectrum before falling into “When I Was in Nam”’s sleep-drawled slow groove of Caucasoid funk. – Web In Front

with:
Everest || Listen
Love Lies Sleeping || Listen
Roses Kings Castles (Adam Ficek from the Babyshambles) || Listen

8:30pm / FREE / 21+

Monday 12.22.08: THE MOVIES / VOXHAUL BROADCAST / THE DAMSELLES / ADELINE & THE PHILISTINES

The Movies

…the Movies were, more than anything celebrating being the Movies—a ferociously talented live act bathed in a synthy haze of weary sleaze and winking, knowing lyrics, while simultaneously echoing the Bunnymen and remaining firmly, wildly original… Their set was an impassioned, alternately subdued and unhinged performance, as James whirled around the stage in a wild-eyed fever between bassist Jessica Gelt’s sinewy, rhythmic sway and the ambient wash of keyboardist Brian Cleary, demanding that audience members kiss to win copies of the new LP, furiously running in place, and riding the mic stand—once again proving that he is one of the funniest and most dynamic singers in the L.A. music scene (the man can croon, too). The Movies’ show spun between two poles: songs like the melodic, synth-stung “Get Your Macho Out” and the slow-motion whirlpool of “Creation Lake” were a down-tempo counterpoint to the warped snarl of “Autograph” and the glistening stutter-cool of “If I Had the Cash,” with the reeling keyboard intro and propulsive, howled choruses of “Missed Opportunities” unifying both ends of the band’s spectrum before falling into “When I Was in Nam”’s sleep-drawled slow groove of Caucasoid funk. – Web In Front

with:
Voxhaul Broadcast
The Damselles
Adeline & The Philistines
DJ Solid Todd

8:30pm / FREE / 21+

Monday 12.15.08: THE MOVIES / NICO STAI / DEMO TEAM / THE SAVAGES / DJ JIMMY TAMBORELLO

The Movies

…the Movies were, more than anything celebrating being the Movies—a ferociously talented live act bathed in a synthy haze of weary sleaze and winking, knowing lyrics, while simultaneously echoing the Bunnymen and remaining firmly, wildly original… Their set was an impassioned, alternately subdued and unhinged performance, as James whirled around the stage in a wild-eyed fever between bassist Jessica Gelt’s sinewy, rhythmic sway and the ambient wash of keyboardist Brian Cleary, demanding that audience members kiss to win copies of the new LP, furiously running in place, and riding the mic stand—once again proving that he is one of the funniest and most dynamic singers in the L.A. music scene (the man can croon, too). The Movies’ show spun between two poles: songs like the melodic, synth-stung “Get Your Macho Out” and the slow-motion whirlpool of “Creation Lake” were a down-tempo counterpoint to the warped snarl of “Autograph” and the glistening stutter-cool of “If I Had the Cash,” with the reeling keyboard intro and propulsive, howled choruses of “Missed Opportunities” unifying both ends of the band’s spectrum before falling into “When I Was in Nam”’s sleep-drawled slow groove of Caucasoid funk. – Web In Front

with:
Nico Stai
Demo Team || Listen
The Savages || Listen
DJ Jimmy Tamborello

8:30pm / FREE SHOW / 21+

Monday 12.08.08: THE MOVIES / RADEMACHER / VIBE SLAYER / SARAH NEGAHDARI / DJ DAVE NEWTON

The Movies

…the Movies were, more than anything celebrating being the Movies—a ferociously talented live act bathed in a synthy haze of weary sleaze and winking, knowing lyrics, while simultaneously echoing the Bunnymen and remaining firmly, wildly original… Their set was an impassioned, alternately subdued and unhinged performance, as James whirled around the stage in a wild-eyed fever between bassist Jessica Gelt’s sinewy, rhythmic sway and the ambient wash of keyboardist Brian Cleary, demanding that audience members kiss to win copies of the new LP, furiously running in place, and riding the mic stand—once again proving that he is one of the funniest and most dynamic singers in the L.A. music scene (the man can croon, too). The Movies’ show spun between two poles: songs like the melodic, synth-stung “Get Your Macho Out” and the slow-motion whirlpool of “Creation Lake” were a down-tempo counterpoint to the warped snarl of “Autograph” and the glistening stutter-cool of “If I Had the Cash,” with the reeling keyboard intro and propulsive, howled choruses of “Missed Opportunities” unifying both ends of the band’s spectrum before falling into “When I Was in Nam”’s sleep-drawled slow groove of Caucasoid funk. – Web In Front

with:
Rademacher
Vibeslayer
Sarah Negahdari (from Happy Hollows)
DJ Dave Newton

8:30pm / FREE SHOW / 21+

Monday 12.01.08: THE MOVIES / EAGLE & TALON / WRONG WAY DRIVER / THE LEMURS / DJ KEVIN BRONSON

The Movies

…the Movies were, more than anything celebrating being the Movies—a ferociously talented live act bathed in a synthy haze of weary sleaze and winking, knowing lyrics, while simultaneously echoing the Bunnymen and remaining firmly, wildly original… Their set was an impassioned, alternately subdued and unhinged performance, as James whirled around the stage in a wild-eyed fever between bassist Jessica Gelt’s sinewy, rhythmic sway and the ambient wash of keyboardist Brian Cleary, demanding that audience members kiss to win copies of the new LP, furiously running in place, and riding the mic stand—once again proving that he is one of the funniest and most dynamic singers in the L.A. music scene (the man can croon, too). The Movies’ show spun between two poles: songs like the melodic, synth-stung “Get Your Macho Out” and the slow-motion whirlpool of “Creation Lake” were a down-tempo counterpoint to the warped snarl of “Autograph” and the glistening stutter-cool of “If I Had the Cash,” with the reeling keyboard intro and propulsive, howled choruses of “Missed Opportunities” unifying both ends of the band’s spectrum before falling into “When I Was in Nam”’s sleep-drawled slow groove of Caucasoid funk. – Web In Front

with:
Eagle & Talon || Listen
Wrong Way Driver
The Lemurs || Listen
DJ Kevin Bronson

8:30pm / FREE SHOW / 21+

Saturday 12.06.08: DRESSY BESSY / COLOURMUSIC / THE MINOR CANON

Dressy Bessy || Listen || Watch

When Tammy Ealom started singing about a gal obsessed with the ‘60s in the song “Do You Whisper?” on Saturday night, it was hard not to think the song was, well, about Ealom herself. In most photos of the band you’ll find Ealom decked out in a ‘60s-inspired get-up and she plays a Hagstrom II guitar from the era as well. You can also hear it in a lot of the bouncy pop tunes she’s written over the last decade.

But on the band’s new album, Holler and Stomp, that ‘60s thing just ain’t quite as prevalent as it’s been on previous albums. Buy hey, musicians have to grow and with that comes change. While the music gotten a tad edgier and harder and some of the bubblegum pop has been shaved off, Ealom, guitarist John Hill (who also plays in Apples in Stereo), bassist Rob Greene and company still put on a hell of energetic show.

They ran through nearly the entire new album, tossed in few awesome cuts from their 2003’s self-titled album like “This May Hurt (A Little),” “Baby Six String,” and “Just Once More,” as well as a few from Electrified. And if that wasn’t enough, the band pulled out “Extra-Ordinary” from its 1999 debut album, Pink Hearts Yellow Moons. – Westword

with:
Colourmusic || Listen
The Minor Canon

8:30pm / $8 Advance, $10 day of show / 21+

Sunday 12.07.08: Indie 103.1 presents FRIENDLY FIRES / FUNERAL PARTY / GLASSER

Friendly Fires || Watch || MP3

But the big surprise of the night was the first opener Friendly Fires, who pulled off a trick I’ve been waiting for a band to fully realize — that cowbell-heavy Liquid Liquid dance beats would sound fantastic with gigantic shoegaze-ambient guitars and the shimmering house synths that too many peers, such as M83, can’t seem to use right.

They have a humdinger of a single in “Paris,” whose lovestruck take on the City of Light (“And every night we’ll watch the stars, they’ll be out for us”) is as cliched as the day is long, but still hits with a panoramic wallop. The snare drum-less chorus is a weird little thing, and almost a comedown from the percussion-mad, Tom Tom Clubby verses, but the endearingly clumsy-dancing frontman Ed Macfarlane has an athletic falsetto that can veer from sounding like Bilinda Butcher to arena-emo in a single line.

The rest of their self-titled debut (out Sept. 1) is a bit more martial and Rapture-ish, especially the almost offensively catchy, Blondie-inspired “On Board,” but it’s expert party music (they cover old-school Chicago house dude Jamie Principle’s “Your Love” live) with the kind of starry-eyed romanticism that should transcend the nightclub circuit and into some off-peak MTV play. It doesn’t hurt that, as seen above, they look pretty good doing it. I could totally see this band opening for Panic at the Disco as easily as LCD Soundsystem, and that’s no slight. Makes a boy want to crack a decanter of Burgundy and make out with a raccoon-eyed little art student on the banks of the Seine, no? – LA Times

with:
Funeral Party
Glasser

8:30pm / $12 advance, $14 day of show / 21+

Thursday 12.04.08: RELENTLESS SEVEN / GRACE WOODROOFE

Relentless Seven

with:
Grace Woodroofe || Listen

8:30pm / $20 / 21+

Tuesday 12.16.08: KARIN TATOYAN / WAR TAPES / SEASONS / EXITMUSIC

Karin Tatoyan || Watch

A performer who swirls between musical extremes, Kárin Tatoyan is the possessor of a unique and hauntingly gorgeous voice, one that alternately croons and erupts from the center of an increasingly left-field musical approach. Her music is a strange, prismatic nebula strewn with jagged, twinkling glass—it kisses even as it cuts, it shatters and shimmers simultaneously as layers of electronica fold into pockets of post-rock minimalism and booming orchestral majesty. – Web In Front

with:
War Tapes
Seasons
Exitmusic

9PM / $8 / 21+

Saturday 12.13.08: 18TH DYE / DEVON WILLIAMS / THE MEETING PLACES

18th Dye || Listen || Watch

Comparisons to Sonic Youth aside, groundbreaking, catchy, and consistently explosive rock have always been the sonic signature of legendary 18th Dye. On the new album, Amorine Queen, 18th Dye proves their reputation from the 90’s as a well acclaimed, highly respected international rock band.

Amorine Queen reflects the energy of group’s past releases, but mixes the hard-hitting and noisy rock sound with a more melodic approach. As a result to this development, 18th Dye doesn’t just thrill the fans from ten years ago, but also carry away a new audience – a fact that’s hard to miss at their recent concerts. As in the old days, the new songs are characterized by loud guitars and catchy pop melodies – delivered with an ultra cool, almost arrogant detachment.
-Spectre Music

with:
Devon Williams
The Meeting Places || Listen

9PM / $8 / 21+

Friday 12.12.08: RADARS TO THE SKY (record release party) / WILDBIRDS & PEACEDRUMS / ARCHWAYS / THE HECTORS

Radars to the Sky || Watch

I can report to you with confidence that Radars to the Sky took advantage of the opportunity in every dimension conceivable; it was by far the best show I have seen them play… they are purveyors of an epic sound that demands and thrives on an excellent soundsystem. Their clever musical moves, swift guitar flourishes, keys that haunt beneath the skin of the thing, Andrew Spitser’s undeniable voice, and their penchant for roping you in with the beat and rhythm were as engaging as any piece of musical entertainment you could ask for. – Classical Greek Theater

with:
Wildbirds & Peacedrums || Listen
Archways
The Hectors || Listen

9PM / $8 advance; $10 day of show / 21+

Sunday 12.21.08: THE TERRAPIN / SUMMER DARLING / VAUDEVILLE / CORREATOWN

The Terrapin || Watch

with:
Summer Darling
Vaudeville
Correatown || Listen

9PM / FREE / 21+

Sunday 12.28.08: NEIL HAMBURGER / THE JUGGOLOS / ABE LINCOLN STORY / JASON ROUSE

Neil Hamburger

If Neil Hamburger wasn’t the Funniest Man in America, why would the record company keep letting him make so many albums? Can’t answer that question, can you? No, it’s beyond dispute, he is the funniest. End of debate. Don’t even mention Jack Kevorkian, Neil is waaaaay, waaaaaaaay more side-splittingly hilarious, and he’s a much bigger bummer. And he’s got a million of ‘em – why, if one of his jokes falls flat or makes you groan or feel like gagging, or say the next 80 or 90 “gags” don’t exactly make you howl with uproarious laughter, just wait, because Neil will pounce with just a killer, killer line that will make you pee in your pants and nudge the guy next to you so he spills his drink (and when he hits you, that’ll be funny too). You’ll be glad you shelled out your money and chose to spend your time, on a Sunday night, no less, with America’s funny man, Neil Hamburger. – LA Weekly

with:
The Juggolos
Abe Lincoln Story
Jason Rouse

9 pm / $8 / 21+