Tuesday 09.02.08: THE WOMBATS / AFTERNOONS / POP NOIR @ echoplex

The Wombats || Listen

Let’s be honest, how could an album that contains Let’s Dance To Joy Division possibly fail? It just can’t, can it? Singles like this come along about once every five years, if not once a decade. This one song alone would have ensured The Wombats a glowing review.

That’s not all the lads from 2008′s European City of Culture have to offer, though. From the opening acapella harmonising of Tales Of Girls, Boys and Marsupials, which also kicks off their near-perfect live performances, A Guide To Love, Loss And Desperation is a wonderful musical experience, easily one of the albums of the year and one of those irritating debuts that are so good they should be illegal.

The Wombats are a rare gem. Catchy enough for the charts, indie enough for the music press, sarcastic enough for the miserable sods who moan that music was better when it came on slabs of black plastic, fresh enough for the kids who are getting a bit fed up with Arctic Monkeys and, best of all, clever enough to get Joy Division fans onto the dancefloor in a more original way than Bernard Sumner ever thought of. And with better tunes. – Music OMH

with:
Afternoons
Pop Noir || Listen

@ Echoplex
enter at
1154 Glendale Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90026

Save Money when you order tickets by mobile phone
text Happy to 467467

7 pm / $15 advance; $17 day of show / All Ages

Tuesday 09.02.08: 400 BLOWS / TRICLOPS @ echo

400 Blows || Listen || Watch

with:
Triclops || Listen

8:30pm / $8 / 18+

Wednesday 09.03.08: THE NIGHT MARCHERS / COLOUR REVOLT / SLANG CHICKENS @ echo

The Night Marchers

John “Speedo” Reis is, without a doubt, one of underground music’s finest showmen, and it could also be argued that he’s the most underappreciated frontman from the alt-rock ’90s. Not to dismiss his work with Pitchfork, Drive Like Jehu, Hot Snakes, Sultans, etc., but Reis always seemed to put his best foot forward with Rocket From The Crypt, and he’s injected The Night Marchers with a similarly ecstatic mix of ferocious garage-rock and populist pop. As always, this stuff is better suited for the stage, and it would be foolish not to assume that horns could make The Night Marchers even better, but with the assistance of a band that includes a couple of fellow ex-Snakes, Reis has made his best record since Rocket’s Scream, Dracula, Scream! heyday. Simple certainly doesn’t equal thin on See You In Magic, a 47-minute blitzkrieg bop that balances punky stompers with perfectly subdued moments like “Panther In Crime” and “We’re Goin’ Down.” The latter even finds Reis’ rough croon somehow making Armageddon sound truly wonderful. – The Onion AV Club

with:
Colour Revolt || Listen
Slang Chickens

Save Money when you order tickets by mobile phone
text Magic to 467467

8:30pm / $12 adv, $14 dos / 18+

Wednesday 09.03.08: DUB CLUB with SISTER CAROL @ echoplex

Sister Carol || Listen

with Resident DJs:
Tom Chasteen
Roy Corderoy
The Dungeonmaster
Boss Harmony

Spinning the best in classic reggae, dub and dancehall

@ Echoplex
1154 Glendale Blvd
(Main Entrance is through Alley)
Los Angeles, CA 90026

FMI:
Dub Club on MySpace

9pm / $12 / 21+

Thursday 09.04.08: WHY? / RAFTER / Dub Lab DJs @ echoplex

Why? || Listen

Answering the question, nay, even making an attempt at answering “So, what do they sound like?” is deserving of a gold star. WHY? is a three-piece from Oakland, composed of beat- and word-smith Yoni Wolf, his brother Josiah, and Doug McDiarmid, joined on Alopecia by bassist Mark Erickson and Fog’s Andrew Broder. They’re really less of a black hole and more of a modified vacuum cleaner. They suck up everything along with the dirt: experimental hip-hop, indie rock, sugar-loaded pop, minimalist balladry, etc. And then, once the components are all bundled together, they flip the switch and send it all tumbling back out again and into the recording studio. More plainly, WHY? is the alphabet soup of independent music. Clever, biting, creative, intense, storied, and lurid. There’s really nothing else like it.

Alopecia, their third full-length release and second as a full band, is a darkly tinged juggernaut. 2005’s supremely wonderful but admittedly melancholic Elephant Eyelash is downright cheery in relation. The songs of Alopecia find a renewed interest from Yoni Wolf in delivering straight-up beats and rhymes alongside his more sing-songy efforts. Unsurprisingly, his styles of old and new fit together like it ain’t no joke. – Tiny Mix Tapes

with:
Rafter || Listen
Dub Lab DJs

@ Echoplex
enter at
1154 Glendale Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90026

Save Money when you order tickets by mobile phone
text Alopecia to 467467

7pm / $13 adv, $15 dos / All Ages

Thursday 09.04.08: THE SHACKELTONS / LAMPS @ echo

The Shackeltons || Listen

What makes bands like Pixies, Fugazi, and Les Savy Fav so exciting — and what makes the Shackeltons, from Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, similarly thrilling — is a breathlessness, a creeping sense that crouched behind the towering melodies and heard-’em-before razor guitars (think Television, in addition to the aforementioned bands), there’s complete breakdown. A half-dozen times on their debut, the Shackeltons sound completely convincing, and that’s about six more times than most bands ever manage. – Spin.com

with:
Lamps

8:30pm / $7 / 18+

Thursday 09.04.08: RESPECT @ echoplex

@ Echoplex
Enter at
1154 Glendale Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90026

FMI: Respect on Myspace

10pm / $10 / 18+

Friday 09.05.08: Screening of “Such Hawks Such Hounds: Scenes from the American Hard Rock Underground” @ echoplex

Such Hawks Such Hounds explores the music and musicians of the American hard rock underground circa 1970-2007. With appearances by Acid King, Comets on Fire, Dead Meadow, Earthless, Fatso Jetson, High on Fire, Kyuss, Om, Sleep, Sunn O))) and many more, this feature documentary is a multi-sensory sampling of the psychedelic and/or ’70s proto-metal-derived styles that have in recent years formed a rich tapestry of unclassifiable sounds. Through interviews, live performances and archival footage, Such Hawks taps the cinematic possibilities of an exciting and ever-evolving subgenre.

@ Echoplex
enter at
1154 Glendale Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90026

8pm / FREE / all ages

Friday 09.05.08: CLUB UNDERGROUND with THE BLACK WATCH / THE VOYEURS @ echo

with:
The Black Watch || Listen
The Voyeurs

plus resident DJs spinning the best in Brit / Indie / Soul / Twee / Madchester / Punk / Glam

FMI: ClubUnderground.net

9pm / $5 if 21+, $7 under 21 / 18+

Saturday 09.06.08: BOOTIE LA @ echoplex

BOOTIE LA
LA’s monthly mashup bootleg party

Back from Bootie at Burning Man, resident Bootie mashup DJs:
ADRIAN & the MYSTERIOUS D

From Indie 103.1′s “Neon Noise”:
DJ PAUL V.

Midnight mashup show:
R.A.I.D. (Random Acts of Irreverent Dance)

Hooping performances by:
Hoopatron

Launched in 2003, Bootie was the first club night in the United States dedicated solely to the burgeoning artform of the bootleg mashup — and is now the biggest mashup event in the world, with monthly parties in seven cities on two continents. Mixing and matching every conceivable musical genre, era, and style into one big dance party where everyone feels welcome, Bootie provides the soundtrack for the A.D.D. generation — with free mashup CDs given away like candy!
Resident DJs Adrian, the Mysterious D, and Paul V. keep your brain guessing and body dancing with creative song combinations, celebrating — and satirizing — the many different forms of music. The synchronized dance troupe R.A.I.D. (Random Acts of Irreverent Dance) will perform the midnight mashup show to one of Bootie’s biggest hits, and Hoopatron returns to the stage for some hula-hoop go-go dancing!

FREE Bootie CDs to the first 75 people through the door!

FMI: http://www.BootieLA.com

9pm / $5 before 10 pm, $10 after / 21+

Saturday 09.06.08: SMOG 2 YEAR ANNIVERSARY @ echo

with:
Plastician (Rinse FM, TerrorRhythm, BBC Radio 1, Rephlex, London UK)
Cyrus (Tectonic, Random Trio, Sub FM, London UK)
12th Planet
Knife Dreams
DJ Evol
DLX
Emu
Pawn
Unit
Subcode

MCs: Kemst & BYPASS

Art Installations by: Spectr

Turbosound by: Mobius

FMI: www.smogla.com

9pm / $10 before 11pm, $15 after / 21+

Sunday 09.07.08: Tee Pee Records & Filter present MANIFEST DESTINY FEST with WITCHCRAFT / EARTHLESS / WITCH / THE WARLOCKS / GRAVEYARD & MORE @ echoplex

with:
Witchcraft
Earthless
Witch
The Warlocks
Graveyard
Assemble Head in Sunburst Sound
Ancestors
Night Horse
TK Webb and The Visions

@ Echoplex
enter at
1154 Glendale Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90026

Save Money when you order tickets by mobile phone
text Festival to 467467

3pm / $15 / all ages

Sunday 09.07.08: GRAND OLE ECHO with MIKE STINSON / WEST OF TEXAS / THE LINCOLN BEDROOM @ echo

with:
Mike Stinson
West of Texas || Listen
The Lincoln Bedroom

hosted by Chris Morris and DJ Cuz’n Roy

5pm / FREE / all ages

Sunday 09.07.08: PART TIME PUNKS @ echo

resident djs Michael Stock and Benny Shambles spinning mutant disco * Postpunk * indiepop

FMI:
Part Time Punks on Myspace

10pm / $5 / 18+

Monday 09.08.08: Monday Night Residency – DEATH TO ANDERS / ROBERT FRANCIS / THE HENRY CLAY PEOPLE – ACOUSTIC SET / MANHATTAN MURDER MYSTERY @ echo

Death to Anders || Listen

While it’s up to the listener to decide whether or not Death to Anders’ new album, Fictitious Business, is a concept album — Danson says “maybe” — there’s no question that it’s an ambitious accomplishment both in songwriting and production that demands to be listened to in its entirety. A self-described “surreal and cryptic look at life in the 21st century,” the album takes listeners on an intense journey full of abrupt turns through beautiful and paranoid terrain marked by lush walls of sound, rollicking melodies, noisy swells and questioning lyrics. There’s a lot of variety within and between each of the 10 songs, but an ongoing narrative with repeating themes sews it all together. – Performer Mag

with:
Robert Francis
The Henry Clay People (Acoustic Set) || Listen
Manhattan Murder Mystery

8:30pm / FREE / 21+

Tuesday 09.09.08: Filthy Rogue presents FORREST DAY / THE DIAMOND LIGHT (formerly Rozaline) @ echo

Wednesday 09.10.08: BODIES OF WATER / THROW ME THE STATUE / PRINCETON @ echo

Bodies of Water || Listen

Bodies of Water may have waited barely a year to release a follow-up to their hand-clapping, head-nodding, heaven-looking debut, but musically, they take their time. “Under the Pines”, a mostly instrumental track from their upcoming A Certain Feeling, takes a while to get to its verse, instead carefully establishing a theatrical organ-and-power-chords overture with all the rock-opera oomph of a homespun Jim Steinman. They project toward the rafters, but build the song carefully, bringing in David Metcalf’s snaky guitar line and letting their wordless harmonies comment on the earthly action of music. The first verse doesn’t kick in until after the two-minute mark, but the chorus sets the song loose: “Under and under and under and under the pines!” they shout in unison, alluding to Leadbelly or Nirvana or those 40 days in the wilderness. Here’s hoping they never make just a three-minute pop song. – Pitchfork

with:
Throw Me The Statue
Princeton || Listen

7:30pm / $10 / All ages

Wednesday 09.10.08: DUB CLUB @ echoplex

with Resident DJs:
Tom Chasteen
Roy Corderoy
The Dungeonmaster
Boss Harmony

Spinning the best in classic reggae, dub and dancehall

@ Echoplex
1154 Glendale Blvd
(Main Entrance is through Alley)
Los Angeles, CA 90026

FMI:
Dub Club on MySpace

9pm / $5 / 21+

Thursday 09.11.08: RESPECT with SABURUKO / ONKET with PHENETIC / NOFACE / MC XYZ @ echoplex

with:
SABURUKO (Integral, Horizons Music, NY)
ONKET w/PHENETIC (Sonus Music, DENVER)
NOFACE

plus Resident MC XYZ

@ Echoplex
Enter at
1154 Glendale Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90026

FMI: Respect on Myspace

10pm / $5 before 11pm, $10 after / 18+

Friday 09.12.08: SUPREME BEINGS OF LEISURE / CARMEN RIZZO @ echoplex

Supreme Beings of Leisure || Watch

Trip-hop band’s third release in six years, “11i” is a dark and moody mix of entrancing tunes. Vampy siren Geri Soriano-Lightwood’s vocals are in rare form, adding the right amount of diva to the tunework of Ramin Sakurai; together, the pair create a sound that promises to take listeners down the rabbit hole. While the album can be a bit somber and pitchy at times, “11i” is brimming with tantalizing, soulful tracks; “The Light” and “Oneness” are electronica at its most seductive, filled with rhythmic thumping and dark undertones, while “Ride” and “Mirror” are upbeat efforts, though far from the realm of conventional dance music. – Variety

with:
Carmen Rizzo || Listen

@ Echoplex
enter at
1154 Glendale Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90026

RSVP at http://losangeles.going.com/supremebeings

9pm / free with RSVP / 21+

Friday 09.12.08: CLUB UNDERGROUND with THE STRANGE BOYS & Special Guests @ echo

with:
The Strange Boys

plus resident DJs spinning the best in Brit / Indie / Soul / Twee / Madchester / Punk / Glam

FMI: ClubUnderground.net

9pm / $5 if 21+, $7 under 21 / 18+

Saturday 09.13.08: DESCARGA with TOY SELECTAH & RESIDENT DJs @ echo

Toy Selectah

As a Remixer, DJ Toy Selectah’s repertoire includes work for artists such as: Blanquito Man, Calle 13, Diplo, Thievery Corporation, She’s a Tease, Up Bustle and Out, Ocote Soul Sounds, Federico Aubele, Sonidero Nacional, Grupo Fantasma, Miranda, Gustavo Cerati, Locos Por Juana, Ely Guerra, Cabas, Juanes, Notch, Alejandro Sanz, Shakira, Julieta Venegas, Gallego, Don Omar, Celso Piña, Kinky, Zurdok, Café Tacvba, Molotov, Manu Chao, Eminem, Cypress Hill, La Tremenda Korte, El Gran Silencio, Hakim, Plastilina Mosh, Sonidero Nacional, Sekreto, Jumbo, Caballeros del Plan G, Wisin y Yandel, Dj Blass, Vicentico, Paulina Rubio, Sargento García, Dante Spinetta, Tatiana, Los Tetas, Octavio Mesa, Malverde, Abusivo, Los Telez, La Comuna, División Minúscula and many others.

¡Descarga! is a monthly Afro-Latin music gathering for the people. This event is an alternative to the commercial salsa nights that have dominated the LA scene for years. Resident DJs Sloe Poke, Mando, Bobby Soul, Loslito, and Mexican Dubwiser spin classic salsa and cumbia; plus merengue, punta and reggaeton. With live bands gracing the stage at midnight at nearly every show, it has become the taste-making New York to L.A. soiree, running over 5 years strong.

FMI:
www.descargaclub.com
Descarga on Myspace

9pm / $10 / 21+

Saturday 09.13.08: DERBY DOLLS AFTERPARTY @ echoplex

@ Echoplex
enter at
1154 Glendale Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90026

10pm / FREE / 21+

Sunday 09.14.08: Grand Ole Echo with DUANE JARVIS / KURT ROSS @ echo

with:
Duane Jarvis
Kurt Ross

hosted by Chris Morris and DJ Cuz’n Roy

5pm / FREE / all ages

Sunday 09.14.08: PART TIME PUNKS with NIKKI OBSCURE / MASTER B.E.T.A @ echo

with:
Nikki Obscure
Master B.E.T.A

plus resident djs Michael Stock and Benny Shambles spinning mutant disco * Postpunk * indiepop

FMI:
Part Time Punks on Myspace

10pm / $5 / 18+

Monday 09.15.08: Monday Night Residency – DEATH TO ANDERS / RADARS TO THE SKY / THE TRANSMISSIONS / THE MONOLATORS @ echo

Death to Anders || Listen

While it’s up to the listener to decide whether or not Death to Anders’ new album, Fictitious Business, is a concept album — Danson says “maybe” — there’s no question that it’s an ambitious accomplishment both in songwriting and production that demands to be listened to in its entirety. A self-described “surreal and cryptic look at life in the 21st century,” the album takes listeners on an intense journey full of abrupt turns through beautiful and paranoid terrain marked by lush walls of sound, rollicking melodies, noisy swells and questioning lyrics. There’s a lot of variety within and between each of the 10 songs, but an ongoing narrative with repeating themes sews it all together. – Performer Mag

with:
Radars To The Sky
The Transmissions || Listen
The Monolators || Listen

8:30pm / FREE / 21+

Tuesday 09.16.08: HELL YA! presents TURBOWEEKEND / GOOD WITH GRENADES / GOODBYE ELLIOTT / DAVE SMALLEN @ echo

with:
Turboweekend (from Denmark)
Good With Grenades
Goodbye Elliott
Dave Smallen

8:30pm / $5 / 18+

Wednesday 09.17.08: DUB CLUB with JOEY ALTRUDA & CLASSIC RIDDIMS / MARK MORALES / SPECIAL GUESTS @ echoplex and echo

Joey Altruda + Classic Riddims

plus guest dj Mark Morales from Hot Shot soundsystem downstairs

Echodelic Soundsystem with special guests

Spinning the best in classic reggae, dub and dancehall

@ Echoplex
1154 Glendale Blvd
(Main Entrance is through Alley)
Los Angeles, CA 90026

FMI:
Dub Club on MySpace

9pm / $10 / 18+

Thursday 09.18.08: MILES BENJAMIN ANTHONY ROBINSON / BLACK DIAMOND HEAVIES @ echo

Miles Benjamin Anthony Robinson || Watch

Life definitely handed Miles Benjamin Anthony Robinson loads of lemons (and first names), but he chose Atmosphere’s route and painted that shit gold on his self-titled amalgam of alt-country, blues, and garage grit. Even without firsthand experience of “tits dragging in the dust,” you can’t help feeling the ache in this multi-racial Brooklyn-via-Oregon troubadour’s tenor. The 25-year-old’s ruminations on homelessness, alienation, and trying (and failing) to kick drugs hark back to David Ryan Adams, Jeffrey Scott Tweedy, and Townes Van Zandt at their most downtrodden. Thankfully, Robinson’s self-knowledge and self-conscious attempts to avoid veering into clichéd tortured-artist territory serve to cut the tension nicely: On “Buriedfed,” he declares: “This is my last song about myself/About my friends/Find something else to sing.” – The Village Voice

with:
Black Diamond Heavies || Listen

8:30pm / $7 / 18+

Thursday 09.18.08: RESPECT – Westcoast Poppin Exhibition 4 with FAUST & SHORTEE / EDIT / CLUTCH / U-OME @ echoplex

With:
FAUST & SHORTEE (Urban Assault)
EDIT [LIVE PA] (Glitch Mob, Alpha Pup)
CLUTCH
U-OME
Resident MC XYZ + MC JULZ

Plus Dance Crew Performances By:
FOREIGN XCHANGE
MACHINE GONE FUNK
FUNNY BONES

@ Echoplex
Enter at
1154 Glendale Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90026

FMI: Respect on Myspace

10pm / $5 before 11pm, $10 after / 18+

Friday 09.19.08: MAN MAN / CRYSTAL ANTLERS / JONAH RAY @ echoplex

Man Man || Listen || Watch

Part swampy juke joint brawlers, part smooth Philly warehouse doo-wop crooners, a sprinkling of wild-eyed, demon-haunted art hustler, and a hint of punky kindergarten playroom Pollyannas, Man Man bring their incomparable vision of “pop music” to bear with Rabbit Habits, their Anti- Records debut. Having honed their legendarily exuberant live show to hypothalamus-tickling perfection opening for such indie stalwarts as Modest Mouse, Arcade Fire and Cat Power, the band has captured the fiery spirit and essence of a Man Man show and etched it into 45 minutes of the most raucous, weirdly moving, spiritually uplifting music this side of Oppenheimer’s great beyond. Stand-out tracks such as “Top Drawer” and “Big Trouble” illustrate Man Man’s ability to provoke and inspire in a single instance.
Man Man’s power isn’t derived from the genres they stumble across, or the maniac light in their eyes, or the sweat pooling in their beards. It’s the unbearable sadness in their marrow and how they transform it, like the existentially distressed but heroically steadfast men men they are, into a terrible and lionhearted joy.” – Pitchfork

with:
Crystal Antlers
Jonah Ray

@ Echoplex
enter at
1154 Glendale Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90026

Save Money when you order tickets by mobile phone
text Rabbithabit to 467467

8pm / $15 advance; $17 day of show / 18+

Friday 9.19.08: CLUB UNDERGROUND @ echo

with resident DJs spinning the best in Brit / Indie / Soul / Twee / Madchester / Punk / Glam

FMI: ClubUnderground.net

9pm / $5 if 21+, $7 under 21 / 18+

Saturday 09.20.08: Los Dukes presents FAKE PROBLEMS / COBRA SKULLS / LOOK MEXICO / FRANK TURNER @ echo

Fake Problems || Listen

The dirty rock and folk-punk traces akin to performers like Lucero, Tim Barry and Against Me! permeate from almost every track. From the sloshy sing-along choruses of the album’s title track kicking things off and leading right into the stomping manifesto of “Born & Raised,” to the subtle twang of “Cold on the Soul,” a wide array of sound, style and substance flows from the record. Adding even further to the plethora of audio experimentation are the horns (mind you, not ska horns) buzzing on the swaggering number “Busy Bees” (pun not intended).

“Crest on the Crest” and “To Repel Ghosts,” two highlights of the entire collection, continue with the unforced and honest fun found in the infectious choruses. In the latter, singer Chris Farren showcases his growing vocal range with both soft-yet-sharp sounding verses, and raspy and jubilant peaks in the dizzying chorus. Somehow the whole experience is perfectly complimented with very faint fiddle strumming away in the background. – Punknews.org

with:
Cobra Skulls || Listen
Look Mexico || Listen
Frank Turner || Listen

5pm / $7 / all ages

Saturday 09.20.08: LIAM FINN / THE VEILS / KARIN TATOYAN @ echoplex

Liam Finn || Listen || Watch

On his full-length debut, the child of Kiwi pop kingpin Neil Finn (Split Enz, Crowded House) is more a descendant of the scattershot aesthetic that Todd Rundgren perfected on his 1972 masterpiece Something/Anything. Often producing and playing all the instruments, Liam loops hook-happy guitars through syncopated rhythms (“Second Chance,” “Energy Spent”), serves up classic-pop reproductions (the Beach Boys-esque “Lullaby”), and tosses in odds and ends both ridiculous (the honking “Better to Be”) and sublime (the gently folk-rocking “Wise Man”). Skillful if occasionally rickety, Lightning showcases a confident, evolving voice. – Spin

with: The Veils
Karin Tatoyan

@ Echoplex
enter at
1154 Glendale Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90026

Save Money when you order tickets by mobile phone
text liamfinn to 467467

8pm / $12 adv, $14 dos / 18+

Saturday 09.20.08: HANG THE DJS 5 YEAR ANNIVERSARY PARTY @ echo

Live Performances:
The Growlers
Team Robespierre ( IHEARTCOMIX, NYC)

Guest DJs:
ROXY COTTONTAIL ( Iheartcomix, NYC, Club Sway)
Gina Turner ( Staccato)
Tim (OK GO!)
DIA ( Club NME, Super Soul Sundays- Short Stop)
CLASS IXX
EDIE ( HTDJ’ S)

spinning the best in: indie, international pop, britpop, electro, disco, post-punk, new wave, no wave, hiphop and more..

FMI:
Hang The DJs on Myspace

10pm / $7 / 18+

Sunday 09.21.08: GRAND OLE ECHO presents I SEE HAWKS IN LA @ echo

with:
I See Hawks in LA || Listen

hosted by Chris Morris and DJ Cuz’n Roy

5pm / FREE / all ages

Sunday 09.21.08: CROOKED COWBOY AND THE FRESHWATER INDIANS ORCHESTRA @ echoplex

Crooked Cowboy & The Freshwater Indians

Next to curtained-off lanes, a seven-piece band spills over a low stage and onto the floor. The band is in the middle of a number, a feisty bit of two-step twang with wordless vocals. At the end of every
verse, a moan of feedback beckons the band to explode into a feverish climax, and just as you think the song must spiral off into abandon, it just as quickly hunkers back down into its tight and menacing shuffle. The song ends, and as the last hit is still wallowing in its lush reverb, the bassist puts down his bass and turns to the MPC sampler sitting on the chair next to him. You barely have time to wonder if a drumbeat or pre-recorded synth loop is imminent before gamelan bells ring out incongruously, ominously, and the band lurches into a martial apocalyptic dirge that sounds like something Ennio Morricone would write after spending 10 years in a Balinese rock cult. The sound. The sound is a very physical thing— immense without being cacophonous, echoing without being murky, possessed of a great and terrible clarity and power. The Freshwater Indians are not a particularly loud band, but they are certainly one you can feel in your chest. – Mean Magazine

@ Echoplex
enter at
1154 Glendale Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90026

9pm / $10 / 18+

Sunday 09.21.08: PART TIME PUNKS with WARPAINT / VUM @ echo

with:
Warpaint
Vum

plus resident djs Michael Stock and Benny Shambles spinning mutant disco * Postpunk * indiepop

FMI:
Part Time Punks on Myspace

10pm / $5 / 18+

Monday 09.22.08: Monday Night Residency Acoustic Night – DEATH TO ANDERS / SARAH NEGADARI (from Happy Hollows) / MAD GREGS @ echo

Death to Anders || Listen

While it’s up to the listener to decide whether or not Death to Anders’ new album, Fictitious Business, is a concept album — Danson says “maybe” — there’s no question that it’s an ambitious accomplishment both in songwriting and production that demands to be listened to in its entirety. A self-described “surreal and cryptic look at life in the 21st century,” the album takes listeners on an intense journey full of abrupt turns through beautiful and paranoid terrain marked by lush walls of sound, rollicking melodies, noisy swells and questioning lyrics. There’s a lot of variety within and between each of the 10 songs, but an ongoing narrative with repeating themes sews it all together. – Performer Mag

with:
Sarah Negadari (from Happy Hollows)
One Trick Pony || Listen
Mad Gregs

8:30pm / FREE / 21+

Tuesday 09.23.08: BRANT BJORK / THE HIGH SAINTS / THE CHUCK DUKOWSKI SEXTET @ echo

Brant Bjork || Listen || Watch

Brant Bjork is one of those musicians whose understated brilliance one can imagine Lester Bangs endlessly praising in an obtuse and meandering essay (were Bangs not twenty-five years dead). Bjork’s music is of the sort that inspires and requires uncompromising loyalty from his devotees and to those not indoctrinated, may seem easily dismissed.

Read a bio of Brant Bjork and you will most likely encounter a roster of “desert” or “stoner” bands that he once graced with his presence behind the skins: Kyuss, Fu Manchu. But the remarkable thing about Bjork’s solo material is the absence of the heaviness generally associated with the apocryphal desert rock label (or stigma, depending on who you are talking to). Mr. Bjork has made a career out of breaking stock stoner-rock character into something of a slacker funk enigma ever since his first solo album Jalamanta surprised and befuddled fans of the aforementioned stoner schtick. – Blog Critics Magazine

with:
The High Saints || Listen
The Chuck Dukowski Sextet || Listen

8:30pm / $12 / 18+

Wednesday 09.24.08: THE NEW YEAR / A WEATHER / MODERN MEMORY @ echo

The New Year || Listen || Watch

The New Year has emerged from the studio with 10 songs that will comprise their upcoming self-titled album, to be released September 9, 2008.

The Brothers Kadane, along w/ the rest of the group, have been making music for the last 17 years – in the 1990s with Bedhead and for the last decade with The New Year. They take their time making records, and this is only their third, and the first since 2004′s The End is Near.

Lyrically, these ten songs address the interlocked themes of lost time, frustrated desire, and the need for others. Although musically these may be the band’s most varied songs — for a band that made innovative use of three guitars, almost half the songs here are built around the piano — it is the careful sequence of these songs that brings the story the lyrics tell together.

With:
A Weather || Listen
Modern Memory || Listen

Save Money when you order tickets by mobile phone
text Gasoline to 467467

8:30pm / $10 adv, $12 dos / 18+

Wednesday 09.24.08: DUB CLUB @ echopex

with Resident DJs:
Tom Chasteen
Roy Corderoy
The Dungeonmaster
Boss Harmony

Spinning the best in classic reggae, dub and dancehall

@ Echoplex
1154 Glendale Blvd
(Main Entrance is through Alley)
Los Angeles, CA 90026

FMI:
Dub Club on MySpace

9pm / $5 / 21+

Thursday 09.25.08: Oh My Rockness presents RA RA RIOT / TUSSLE / WALTER MEEGO / LEMONADE @ ECHO

Ra Ra Riot || Listen

The band played and sang with completely unself-conscious abandon. I know that this is what we expect of all bands, especially bands that project Ra Ra Riot’s brand of catchy rockness, but here genuine excitement and genuine gratefulness shined through the players’ faces. They rampaged around the stage, knocking into each, dancing around, hugging, singing. They looked like an amoeba stuck under glass, constantly pushing out and reshaping itself at its periphery but always remaining stuck together. Or a less ridiculous metaphor: it was a living room dance party with really close friends and family. They presented themselves as a model for the kind of life we’d all like to have: togetherness, happiness, and boundless energy. – Loose Record

with:
Tussle || Listen
Walter Meego || Listen
Lemonade

8pm / $10 adv, $12 dos / 18+

Thursday 09.25.08: Aquarium Drunkard presents MISSION OF BURMA performing “Vs” / HANK IV @ ECHOPLEX

Mission of Burma || Listen

Mission of Burma helped define early-80s post-punk, adding tape manipulation to the typical guitar-bass-drums and pushing punk’s limits without compromising its rebellious spirit. Now almost 30 years later, the band’s debut album Vs. remains a staple. – Pitchfork

with:
Hank IV || Listen

@ Echoplex
Enter at
1154 Glendale Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90026

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7:30 pm / $20 / 18+

Thursday 09.25.08: RESPECT with VICIOUS CIRCLE / HAZEN / SCOOBA / MC DINO / MC XYZ @ echoplex

With:
VICIOUS CIRCLE (Universal Imprint, Renegade Hardware,UK)
HAZEN (Temple Of Boom,BassRush)
SCOOBA
MC DINO (UAontheDL.com)
Resident MC XYZ

@ Echoplex
Enter at
1154 Glendale Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90026

FMI: Respect on Myspace

10pm / $5 before 11pm, $10 after / 18+

Friday 09.26.08: SILVER JEWS / JAMES JACKSON TOTH @ echoplex

Silver Jews || Listen

Lookout Mountain, Lookout Sea is the sixth, and best, full-length release by Silver Jews, Berman’s two-decade-long project, which he’s gradually transformed from a Pavement-infused guitar band (Stephen Malkmus was an early member) to a crystal-clear country-rock concern, with twang and torch, piano flourishes, the occasional church organ and an ever-present drive. It was produced in Nashville, Berman’s home, by Mark Nevers, who himself has carved out a secret little corner of the country-music capital by overseeing beautiful albums by Lambchop, Bonnie “Prince” Billy and Calexico — as well as engineering everyone from Marie Osmond and Etta James to George Jones and Johnny Cash.

And it’s Cash’s voice that Berman’s most closely resembles. Except Berman’s is flatter, and any extended rave on his lyrical expertise must contain this proverbial asterisk: His is a punctured tire of a voice, with a sad-sack style that suggests an insurance salesman with a stuffy nose more than it does the Man in Black. It’s droll and it’s rough, but it pushes, it moves, it travels where Berman wants it to, or nearly. It’s singing as necessity, and God bless him for putting it out there. The good thing is that Berman’s wife, Cassie Berman, is the perfect foil, and her harmonies on “Open Field” and “Suffering Jukebox” help balance the tones. – LA Weekly

with:
James Jackson Toth

@ Echoplex
Enter at
1154 Glendale Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90026

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8pm / $20 / 18+

Friday 09.26.08: CLUB UNDERGROUND with THE OOHLAS @ echo

The Oohlas || Listen

with resident DJs spinning the best in Brit / Indie / Soul / Twee / Madchester / Punk / Glam

FMI: ClubUnderground.net

9pm / $5 if 21+, $7 under 21 / 18+

Saturday 09.27.08: RUMSPRINGA / VOXHAUL BROADCAST / FUNERAL PARTY / THE FRANKS @ echo

Rumspringa || Listen

Counterbalancing equal parts lounge act warbling with Om-eliciting séance reverb, album openers “I Run Amiss” and “Shake ‘em Loose Tonight” ease listeners in, recanting dialogue between children and parents before the inevitable Rumspringa.

Frontman Joey Stevens’ whinnied delivery drops into deeper registers with “Goldmine,” a faster-paced musing on the finer points of enjoying cannabis sativa in a semi-feverish state. As the EP centerpiece, “Goldmine” not only becomes the obvious record highlight, but also embodies the height of frivolity that a so-called Rumspringa is said to have.

After reaching such a height, there isn’t much room to go anywhere but down – in tempo and pitch, that is. Stevens’ brassy voice goes guttural on “In the Jungle,” wavering back and forth between percussionist Itaru de la Vega’s steady hi-hats and the thick-frosted layers of raw bass. – Performer Mag

with:
Voxhaul Broadcast
Funeral Party
The Franks

8:30pm / $8 / 18+

Saturday 09.27.08: CLUB SUICIDE @ echoplex

with:
DJ Amanda Jones (Das Bunker, Perversion, Malediction Society)
DJ Robert Lockerby (Clockwork Orange)

spinning the best in Electro, Indie, and ’80s.

The last Saturday of every month!

Come and check out our SUICIDE GIRL GO-GO DANCERS!

@ Echoplex
enter at
1154 Glendale Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90026

FMI: CLUBSUICIDE.NET

10pm / $5 before 11pm with pass, $12 after / 18+

Sunday 09.28.08: GRAND OLE ECHO with COUSIN LOVERS / HELLO DARLIN’ @ echoplex

with:
The Cousin Lovers || Listen
Hello Darlin’

@ Echoplex
enter at 1154 Glendale Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90026

hosted by Chris Morris and DJ Cuz’n Roy

5pm / FREE / all ages

Sunday 09.28.08: PART TIME PUNKS with SPECTRUM (Sonic Boom from Spaceman 3) / LSD & THE SEARCH FOR GOD / FARFLUNG @ echo

with:
Spectrum || Listen
LSD & The Search For God
Farflung || Listen

plus resident djs Michael Stock and Benny Shambles spinning mutant disco * Postpunk * indiepop

FMI:
Part Time Punks on Myspace

10pm / $12 / 18+

Monday 09.29.08: Monday Night Residency – DEATH TO ANDERS / FOL CHEN / RADEMACHER / DIE ROCKERS DIE @ echo

Death to Anders || Listen

While it’s up to the listener to decide whether or not Death to Anders’ new album, Fictitious Business, is a concept album — Danson says “maybe” — there’s no question that it’s an ambitious accomplishment both in songwriting and production that demands to be listened to in its entirety. A self-described “surreal and cryptic look at life in the 21st century,” the album takes listeners on an intense journey full of abrupt turns through beautiful and paranoid terrain marked by lush walls of sound, rollicking melodies, noisy swells and questioning lyrics. There’s a lot of variety within and between each of the 10 songs, but an ongoing narrative with repeating themes sews it all together. – Performer Mag

with:
Fol Chen
Rademacher
Die Rockers Die || Listen

8:30pm / FREE / 21+

Tuesday 09.30.08: DAN LE SAC VS. SCROOBIUS PIP / B DOLAN / DJ PAUL V. @ echo

Dan Le Sac v. Scroobius Pip

Pip, the man with the densest, most imposing beard in UK rap, has a similarly formidable set of rhymes that delight throughout Angles. On Development, Scroobius praises Mos Def for rhyming the alphabet, before a mid-song switching of beat sees him rap the periodic table to hilarious and exhilarating effect.

This smart spitting, redolent of a suburban Skinny Man or more long-in-the-tooth Mike Skinner, is used to effectively elicit poignancy on Tommy and most notably on Magician’s Assistant. While a moody soundscape sounds like a scary stagger away from consciousness, Pip chats about self-harm. The result is a better anti-suicide ode than REM’s Everybody Hurts.

Le Sac’s production highlights include cutting Dizzee Rascal grime beats into Fixed, meaty trance throbs on the malevolent shoplifting tale of the title track and his inspired use of a sample from Radiohead’s Planet Telex on Letter From God To Man. It’s to his credit there’s as much deft imagination in the music as there is in the lyrics. – BBC

with:
B Dolan
DJ Paul V.

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9pm / $10 / 18+