Friday 10.23.09: Echo & Club Underground present DRAGONETTE / DAISY O’DELL @ echo

Dragonette || Listen || Watch

The musical fruit of this encounter between Dan Kurtz and Martina Sorbara was Dragonette, a band (we must at this point mention drummer Joel Stouffer and guitarist Will Stapleton) who make sharp, sardonically witty electronic pop music. From the very start, the concept was, in stark contrast to the rest of the Canadian scene during that ‘Nickelback moment‘, unashamedly and unapologetically POP. Dan explains, “I’d like to write songs that at least I can remember. And I’m very bad at remembering melodies and the lyrics, so it needs to be memorable!” The results are a dirty, hook-heavy, electropop album called Galore with monsters like “I Get Around” and “Competition”, depicting a world of guilt-free pleasure mixed with an 80s party prowess. Martina isn’t interested in writing, she says, “songs to get depressed to.” As Dan puts it, “It’s hard enough working on songs that are *fun*. I can’t even imagine what it‘s like working on miserable material…” The record has received praise from such diverse sources as the NME. UK dailies the Observer, Times and Guardian, online pop bible popjustice, and has garnered multiple mentions from Perez Hilton (whose showcase the band performed at during last year’s SXSW).

with:
Daisy O’Dell

8:30pm / $8 advance, $10 day of show / 18+

Friday 11.13.09: Echo & TILT present THUNDERHEIST / WINTER GLOVES / SUGAR AND GOLD / FRANKI CHAN @ echoplex

Thunderheist || Listen || Watch

Stealing thunder so you move that ass, the duo dubbed Thunderheist unleashes serious electrocrunk boom bap. Ribcage-rattling bass breaks laced with proper rhyming are flipped with digital booty bass, 80s-inspired electronic pop and slowed down Southern bounce, all fresh-dipped in serious swagger.

MC and singer Isis and producer Grahmzilla know how to bring it. And once they’ve brought it, it stays brung.

“Toronto’s shit-hot electro duo” (NME.com) are already a huge online phenomenon, but this first full taste of their forthcoming album comes courtesy of Nasty Mix Records in Canada. Catchy, propulsive, ecstatic and uncompromising, it’s party music of the highest order, utterly unique but sounding like its been in your head all along.

with:
Winter Gloves || Listen
Sugar and Gold
Franki Chan

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

8:30pm / $12 advance, $14 day of show / 18+

Wednesday 09.23.09: SLAVIC SOUL PARTY! (CD release show) / KILLSONIC @ echo

Slavic Soul Party! || Listen || Watch || MP3

Throbbing funk grooves, fiery Balkan brass, Gypsy accordion wizardry, and virtuoso jazz chops make Slavic Soul Party! NYC’s official #1 brass band for BalkanSoul GypsyFunk. SSP! has created an acoustic mash-up of Balkan and Gypsy sounds with North American music, weaving the gospel, techno, funk, dub, jazz, and Latin influences of New York’s neighborhoods seamlessly into a Balkan brass setting. Their original sound has never been clearer than on their new cd Taketron, a surprising re-imagining of brass band dance music that includes only two traditional songs (a blazing Moldovan oompah and a soulful Gospel journey). SSP!’s music has won the ear of fans and musicians on both sides of the Atlantic, and their tunes have been learned by Serbian brass stars Boban Markovic Orkestar and New Orleans funk sensations Galactic, among others. In addition to touring throughout the US and Europe, SSP! holds down a residency every Tuesday in Brooklyn which has become a destination for music fans from around the world.

with:
Killsonic

8:00pm / $10 / 18+

Sunday 10.11.09: PART TIME PUNKS 2ND ANNUAL FESTIVAL @ echoplex & echo

with:
THE RAINCOATS
Formed in 1977, The Raincoats were the world’s second all-girl punk band. Only, by the time Rough Trade released their debut album in 1979, they weren’t making punk music any more, but post-punk, and more akin to The Velvet Underground’s first LP or the records it shared the racks with: The Slits’ “Cut,” Young Marble Giants “Colossal Youth” and The Cure’s first LP. The only reason the band remains lesser known is that their three albums remained out of print for more than a decade before Kurt Cobain tracked them down during a pilgrimage to London in the early 90s. Cobain was also responsible for “convincing” his label, Geffen, to reissue The Raincoats three albums in 1993 (co-writing the liner notes with Kim Gordon), which paved the way for the Riot Grrrl movement.

+ guest DJs +
GANG OF FOUR members Hugo Burnham & Dave Allen
DAN SELZER (Acute Records)
Don Bolles (The Germs)
Brendan Mullen (The Masque)
James Nice (LTM/Crepuscule),
Rick Taylor (We Fought The Big One)

enter @ Echoplex
1154 Glendale Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90026

3pm / first 100 tickets at $20, second 100 tickets at $22, $25 after the first 200 sell / 18+

Friday 09.18.09: Keistar Productions & Footlong Development Present SOUL SLAM V – PRINCE & MICHAEL JACKSON @ echoplex

Keistar Productions & Footlong Development Present

SOUL SLAM: PRINCE & MICHAEL JACKSON

Celebrating The Life & Legacy Of Our Greatest Icon!
THE KING OF POP!
MICHAEL JACKSON (1958-2009 R.I.P)

&

Honoring Our Most Prolific & Influential Artist
PRINCE

with:
DJ Spinna || Listen (HIGHWATER MUSIC/BBE)

This event centers around the honoring of two of the most eclectic and innovative artists to date, Michael Jackson and Prince! From the inception of this concept back in 1999 the response for SOUL SLAM has been enormous.

DJ Spinna sets the tone of this event as he lays down track after track from both MJ’s and Princes extensive music catalogues along with tracks of their cohorts, i.e.; Jermaine Jackson, Vanity, Janet, Sheila E., J5, The Time etc. Soul Slam returns to LA in September!

Last years visit to LA brought out 1100+ people….That night’s event filled with LA’s top taste makers, fashionistas and music fans hit capacity in an hour and a half of the doors opening.

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

9pm / $11 advance, $15 day of show / 21+

Tuesday 09.08.09: SUMMER DARLING / SING ORPHEUS / YIKES! A LION / MOLINO @ echo

Summer Darling || Listen || Watch

I went back inside and was simply floored by what I heard. Summer Darling were catching full steam and plowing through a hyper tense set of amazing music full of tension and emotion. To say I am not easily impressed would be an understatement, but I was enthralled with what I heard coming off the stage.

The double Fender guitar attack really let the intricate guitar interplay shine over a thumping but precise rhythm section. At times they conjured up images of early Fugazi. Maybe not so much in the actual songwriting style, but in the tome of the music. They were above all earnest in they intentions.

When next they play do yourself a favor and catch Summer Darling. I think you will pleased. – Radio Free Silver Lake

With:
Sing Orpheus || Listen
Yikes! A Lion
Molino

8:30pm / FREE / 21+

Tuesday 10.13.09: Distressed Gentlefolk night with PAT FISH (acoustic) / MAX EIDER (acoustic) / DOWNY MILDEW / CLAY IDOLS / BLACK WATCH @ echo

Pat Fish (acoustic) || Listen || Watch

Pat Fish used to be The Jazz Butcher, and made about a million albums years ago, most notably for Alan McGee’s Creation Records. He’s still going strong, knocking up backing tracks in his house & performing songs for us on his guitar (In fact, he only dredges up one Jazz Butcher tune, the others are all new). The rhythms are hardly the height of technology, in fact, it sounds like he made them on an Amiga. But, the simplicity and homeliness adds to the effect. A few tracks veer close to sounding like muzak versions of New Order, but in general the communicative effect of these well-written songs trumps the paucity of the sonic palette. A warm welcome back. – Oxford Bands

With:
Max Eider (acoustic) || Listen
Downy Mildew
Clay Idols
The Black Watch

8pm / $10 / all ages

Monday 10.26.09: LA Underground presents Monday Night Residency with CORREATOWN / JOANIE MENDENHALL @ echo

Correatown || Listen || Watch

So open and unflinching that listening to it feels akin to eavesdropping, Angela Correa’s Spark.Burn.Fade. accomplishes the first two verbs in its title while never coming close to the last–this is a record that haunts, seduces and laments, sometimes all at once, threatening to crack your heart but never fade away. – Web In Front

There’s an inescapably seductive quality to Angela Correa’s songs; despite the fact that every song she writes is downtempo and melancholy, she has produced forty-five minutes of mellowness rather than full sedation. Correatown is ten beautiful, earthy tunes, stripped bare musically and emotionally, that trudge along at the pace of a wounded deer. Only Correa’s endlessly soothing voice and the strength of her bittersweet songs allows her to avoid the pitfalls of a “downer” album. – Splendid Magazine

with:
Joanie Mendenhall

8:30pm / FREE / 21+

Monday 10.19.09: Classical Geek Theater presents Monday Night Residency with CORREATOWN / CHARLIE WADHAMS / DEERHEART / THE HEREAFTER @ echo

Correatown || Listen || Watch

So open and unflinching that listening to it feels akin to eavesdropping, Angela Correa’s Spark.Burn.Fade. accomplishes the first two verbs in its title while never coming close to the last–this is a record that haunts, seduces and laments, sometimes all at once, threatening to crack your heart but never fade away. – Web In Front

There’s an inescapably seductive quality to Angela Correa’s songs; despite the fact that every song she writes is downtempo and melancholy, she has produced forty-five minutes of mellowness rather than full sedation. Correatown is ten beautiful, earthy tunes, stripped bare musically and emotionally, that trudge along at the pace of a wounded deer. Only Correa’s endlessly soothing voice and the strength of her bittersweet songs allows her to avoid the pitfalls of a “downer” album. – Splendid Magazine

with:
Charlie Wadhams
Deerheart
The Hereafter

8:30pm / FREE / 21+

Monday 10.12.09: Monday Night Residency with CORREATOWN / SQUARE ON SQUARE / SUMMER DARLING / THE RHONE OCCUPATION @ echo

Correatown || Listen || Watch

So open and unflinching that listening to it feels akin to eavesdropping, Angela Correa’s Spark.Burn.Fade. accomplishes the first two verbs in its title while never coming close to the last–this is a record that haunts, seduces and laments, sometimes all at once, threatening to crack your heart but never fade away. – Web In Front

There’s an inescapably seductive quality to Angela Correa’s songs; despite the fact that every song she writes is downtempo and melancholy, she has produced forty-five minutes of mellowness rather than full sedation. Correatown is ten beautiful, earthy tunes, stripped bare musically and emotionally, that trudge along at the pace of a wounded deer. Only Correa’s endlessly soothing voice and the strength of her bittersweet songs allows her to avoid the pitfalls of a “downer” album. – Splendid Magazine

with:
Square on Square
Summer Darling
The Rhone Occupation

8:30pm / FREE / 21+

Monday 10.05.09: Web In Front presents Monday Night Residency with CORREATOWN / EAGLE & TALON / THE VOYEURS / BANDITO ROYALE @ echo

Correatown || Listen || Watch

So open and unflinching that listening to it feels akin to eavesdropping, Angela Correa’s Spark.Burn.Fade. accomplishes the first two verbs in its title while never coming close to the last–this is a record that haunts, seduces and laments, sometimes all at once, threatening to crack your heart but never fade away. – Web In Front

There’s an inescapably seductive quality to Angela Correa’s songs; despite the fact that every song she writes is downtempo and melancholy, she has produced forty-five minutes of mellowness rather than full sedation. Correatown is ten beautiful, earthy tunes, stripped bare musically and emotionally, that trudge along at the pace of a wounded deer. Only Correa’s endlessly soothing voice and the strength of her bittersweet songs allows her to avoid the pitfalls of a “downer” album. – Splendid Magazine

with:
The Voyeurs
Eagle & Talon
Bandito Royale

8:30pm / FREE / 21+

Thursday 10.08.09: HAR MAR SUPERSTAR / BROTHER READE / KESHA @ echo

Har Mar Superstar || Listen || Watch

Sean Tillman keeps one foot in punk rock via Sean Na Na (which released Family Trees Or: Cope We Must in 2007), but the Minnesota-born singer has carved out an unlikely-seeming niche in the world of pop R&B as Har Mar Superstar. The shtick—pudgy dude strips to his underwear to perform slinky, sexy Prince-esque tunes—is so blatant it seems like it’d become tiresome quickly, but Har Mar pushes past novelty shock value with outrageous exuberance, tongue-in-cheek humor, and—his real secret weapon—genuine songwriting chops. The new Dark Touches, due in October, features guestwork from P.O.S., Neon Neon’s Boom Bip, and The Bird and The Bee’s Inara George. It also includes a couple tunes Tillman originally wrote for Britney Spears and The Cheetah Girls—redone here, straight-faced, with double-entendre lyrics like “I need a tall boy” unchanged. – Decider

With:
Brother Reade || Listen
Kesha

8:30pm / $10 adv; $12 doors / 18+

Tuesday 08.25.09: Otik Records presents TERRAPIN / LAST LEGS / MERRY CHRISTMAS @ echo

Terrapin

The Terrapin was birthed out of a couple of bars in Long Beach, the failure of previous bands and chance. After Vanessa and Rufo ran into Alan at The Prospector in Long Beach, a jam session was scheduled. From that point until now The Terrapin has been keeping it real… real busy. The bands first show was in March 2007 at Que Sera as a trio. That continued until mutual friend Bill was brought into play saxophone. Yes, saxophone. Once they became aware that he could play keyboards and guitar, the sax got the ax. Now he is the proud mantle holder of bassist and has the position of first chair. This stroke of genius happened due to the fact that the original three members were sick of the Spinal Tap-like relationship they had with anyone else that tried to fill the spot..

with:
Last Legs
Merry Christmas

8pm / FREE / 21+

Friday 09.04.09: SUICIDEGIRLS presents CLUB SUICIDE’S CASUAL FRIDAY @ echoplex

SuicideGirls Presents…
Club Suicide’s Casual Friday @ The Echoplex

Set off your Labor Day Weekend!

Come comfortable. Smoking jackets, robes, pajamas, slips, lingerie, kimonos, shorts, wife beaters, underwear, bathing suits…Anything silky, satiny, luxurious, or comfy….;)
(Theme not required. Anyone welcome.)

Electro, remixes, mash-ups, indie, pop, rock, 80s, 90s, and more…

With DJs…

Johnny Jewel (Clockwork Orange, Blue Mondays)
Los (Ultraluxx)
Neil In The Coffin (From War Tapes)

Sexy SuicideGirl Go-Go Dancers
SuicideGirls Merchandise Give-Aways

Photo Booth & Roaming Photo

@ Echoplex
Through the alley at…
1154 Glendale Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90026
(Valet on Glendale Blvd)

FMI: www.clubsuicide.net

10pm / $10 / 18+

Tuesday 09.15.09: VIEUX FARKA TOURE / WEAVE @ echoplex

Vieux Farka Toure || Listen || Watch || MP3

Word to the wise: get on board the Vieux Farka Touré bandwagon now. Not so you can be hip or prepared to drop his name at a cocktail party (for one thing, no one would listen to this music at a cocktail party, and more importantly, who goes to cocktail parties?) or for any reason that would behoove Starbucks to put this disc in their stores. No, the best reason to acquaint yourself with Vieux Farka Touré is because he is a surpassingly brilliant young musician who, if we are fortunate, has a long and productive career ahead of him.

It has only taken a few years, and two albums, for Vieux Farka Touré to distance himself from what could (and should) have been an overwhelming impression made by his father, Ali Farka Touré. The elder Touré, who passed on in 2006, was a living legend from Mali whose music delineated the natural but often overlooked link between traditional African music and American blues.

Fondo finds Vieux treading the natural bridge his father built between Malian music and Delta blues. Where Ali’s work, particularly his earlier albums, ceaselessly caused the listener to marvel at the common ground between the two continents, Vieux invokes and recalls the connection, but often strains to do more with both sound and tempo.

Fondo is the unequivocal announcement of a major talent, and the well-earned accolades are easy to predict. This constitutes the second consecutive triumph for Vieux Farka Touré: this is not world music so much as music from the world, and certain parts of the world we don’t hear or see as often as we should. Mostly, Fondo is the sound of a son escaping his father’s shadow, even as he shrewdly embraces many of the best elements that made his old man so memorable. – Popmatters

with:
Weave

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

8:30pm / $14 advance, $16 day of show / 18+

Friday 09.11.09: NIGHTLIFE – BEAT JUNKIE SOUND MEETS DA BEATMINERZ @ echoplex

with resident DJs THE BEAT JUNKIES:
J.ROCC
BABU
RHETTMATIC
MR. CHOC

plus special guest:
DA BEATMINERZ:
DJ EVIL DEE
MR. WALT

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

10pm / $5 before 11pm, $10 after / 21+

Sunday 10.18.09: Part Time Punks with WEAVE! / PIZZA! / guest DJ BOSS HARMONY @ echo

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

With:
Weave!
Pizza!
+ GUEST DJ BOSS HARMONY (aka David Orlando) from PUNKY REGGAE PARTY/DUB CLUB

FMI:
Part Time Punks on Myspace

10pm / $5 / 18+

Sunday 10.04.09: Part Time Punks – DUBLAB 10TH ANNIVERSARY / ALL-POST-PUNK DANCE PARTY with MARIA CATWALK @ Echo

with:
Maria Catwalk

plus dublab DJs:
Ale
Hoseh
Kutmah
Marion

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

FMI:
Part Time Punks on Myspace

10pm / $5 / 18+

Monday 09.28.09: When You Awake & LA Record present LESLIE AND THE BADGERS / SIAN ALICE GROUP / BEST COAST / PAPERPLANES @ echo

Leslie & the Badgers || Watch

Leslie & the Badgers are quietly turning into one of the city’s best quiet bands. There’s a gently glowing country-rock intimacy to the songs from their self-titled 2007 debut CD and 2008 iTunes EP, Greetings From Leslie & the Badgers, but they’re not some corny, cornpone revival outfit. Instead, tunes like “Old Timers” and “Air Force One” have intelligently heartfelt, evocative lyrics and are adorned with dreamy embellishments, such as Glenn Oyabe’s lap-steel guitar, which playfully quotes Santo & Johnny’s classic instrumental “Sleep Walk.” Singer-guitarist Leslie Stevens coos with a Neko Case–style passion on the relatively epic six-minute idyll “Black Rose Window,” where she declares, “Now the road is what takes you to brand-new places/and I’m taking myself and the radio station.” Such countrified ballads place them roughly in the same universe as fellow locals the Whispertown 2000, but the Badgers also reveal a jazzy side on “The Torture,” and they rock convincingly on uptempo barn-burners like “That’d Be Fine.” – LA Weekly

With:
Sian Alice Group
Best Coast || Listen
Paperplanes || Listen

8:30pm / FREE / 21+

Monday 09.21.09: When You Awake & Arthur Magazine present LESLIE AND THE BADGERS / DOUG PAISLEY / THE STREET AND BABE SHADOW / AMANDA JO WILLIAMS @ echo

Leslie & the Badgers || Watch

Leslie & the Badgers are quietly turning into one of the city’s best quiet bands. There’s a gently glowing country-rock intimacy to the songs from their self-titled 2007 debut CD and 2008 iTunes EP, Greetings From Leslie & the Badgers, but they’re not some corny, cornpone revival outfit. Instead, tunes like “Old Timers” and “Air Force One” have intelligently heartfelt, evocative lyrics and are adorned with dreamy embellishments, such as Glenn Oyabe’s lap-steel guitar, which playfully quotes Santo & Johnny’s classic instrumental “Sleep Walk.” Singer-guitarist Leslie Stevens coos with a Neko Case–style passion on the relatively epic six-minute idyll “Black Rose Window,” where she declares, “Now the road is what takes you to brand-new places/and I’m taking myself and the radio station.” Such countrified ballads place them roughly in the same universe as fellow locals the Whispertown 2000, but the Badgers also reveal a jazzy side on “The Torture,” and they rock convincingly on uptempo barn-burners like “That’d Be Fine.” – LA Weekly

with:
Doug Paisley
The Street and Babe Shadow
Amanda Jo Williams

8:30pm / FREE / 21+

Monday 09.14.09: When You Awake & Buzz Bands present LESLIE AND THE BADGERS / RUDY FREIDMAN / CORREATOWN / OLIN AND THE MOON @ echo

Leslie & the Badgers || Watch

Leslie & the Badgers are quietly turning into one of the city’s best quiet bands. There’s a gently glowing country-rock intimacy to the songs from their self-titled 2007 debut CD and 2008 iTunes EP, Greetings From Leslie & the Badgers, but they’re not some corny, cornpone revival outfit. Instead, tunes like “Old Timers” and “Air Force One” have intelligently heartfelt, evocative lyrics and are adorned with dreamy embellishments, such as Glenn Oyabe’s lap-steel guitar, which playfully quotes Santo & Johnny’s classic instrumental “Sleep Walk.” Singer-guitarist Leslie Stevens coos with a Neko Case–style passion on the relatively epic six-minute idyll “Black Rose Window,” where she declares, “Now the road is what takes you to brand-new places/and I’m taking myself and the radio station.” Such countrified ballads place them roughly in the same universe as fellow locals the Whispertown 2000, but the Badgers also reveal a jazzy side on “The Torture,” and they rock convincingly on uptempo barn-burners like “That’d Be Fine.” – LA Weekly

with:
Ruby Friedman || Listen
Correatown || Listen
Olin and The Moon

8:30pm / FREE / 21+

Thursday 09.03.09: LILY & THE LADIES / SECRET FYF FEST BAND / RAW POWER RANGERS / WOOLY BANDITS / BOLLWEEVIL @ echo

Lily & The Ladies

Lily Marlene (Lily and the Ladies) debuted a new backing band, which lived up to its description—in her words “reallllly heavvvy”. Lily always has an amazing ability to translate her stark blues into practically any form and still have it work and tonight was no exception. Her set ran from strait renditions of material from her solo repertoire to full out rock songs to a sweeping ballad that would put Journey to shame—all with out batting an eye. – LA Record

With:
“Secret F YEAH Festival band to perform”
Raw Power Rangers
Wooly Bandits || Listen
Bollweevil

7pm / $7 / 18+

Wednesday 09.02.09: NEW RADIANT STORM KING / FUNERAL PARTY / LOWLIGHTS / THE WALSH BROTHERS @ echo

New Radiant Storm King || Listen

It’s a shame that New Radiant Storm King aren’t better known. The New York/Northampton, MA quartet has been kicking out dependably roiling, twin-guitar-ignited indie rock for almost two decades. Yes, they’re that band: amassers of a deep, decorated catalog of releases on six different labels, and grabbers of cult appeal wherever they can find it. Like, say, Sloan or any one of an entire host of terrific rock crews both North American and British dating back to the late 80s, they don’t hit any one rock touchpoint in a particularly unique way—you wouldn’t find ‘em too easily without an accident or a recommendation. But that’s not the same thing as “formula done right,” or worse, being called derivative; NRSK is far too exciting a band for those lazy dismissals.

The thirteen songs on Moonlight make for a leaner, cleaner package than 2006’s blistering The Steady Hand, for better and for worse. The paint-stripping distortion that earns them plenty of comparisons to Swervedriver and other inspired noisemakers—and the jagged poetics that would invite Silver Jews suggestions even if guitarist Peyton Pinkerton weren’t a Jews alumnus—aren’t so much here. But the band’s deft attention to songcraft and lovingly burnished hooks are given more room to breathe, and some songs, like album closer “Fall Prey” and the la-la-la-punctuated “Midnight Comes” are downright pretty. – Popmatters

With:
Funeral Party
Lowlights
The Walsh Brothers

8:30pm / $8 / 18+

Friday 09.04.09: WHISPERTOWN 2000 / THE BELLE BRIGADE @ echo

Whispertown 2000 || Listen || Watch

Fast forward to early 2008 and Whispertown 2000, now a four-piece, had opened for Rilo Kiley and Bright Eyes across the US, self-released a decent-selling debut LP and impressed Gillian Welch so much they became the first signings to her Acony label. Lewis calls Nagler her favourite songwriter and Conor Oberst, another uber-fan, has likened her angular, country-leaning songs to “old Chinese proverbs”.

A cursory listen to this second album is enough to realise it’s not just mere hype. Swim is the kind of record you wish people made more often: rural music played by suburban kids with an intuitive feel for the unruly punk heart of old-time country. Nagler’s expressive voice has a baleful twang that shunts these songs – some with the most minimal of arrangements, some like ragged revivalist hoedowns – into the same lugubrious territory as Bonnie Billy or Oberst himself. It’s a ploy that cleverly subverts itself on “Lock And Key” and “From The Start Jamboree”, where their own communal folk shanty is appended by a foggy mountain breakdown that’s part Bill Monroe, part Silver Jews. They’re experimental too, prone to sudden squalls of guitar, weird electronic bits and even weirder whistling noises that sound like some spectral tribe hooting an advance across the Virginia hills. In the case of “Erase The Lines”, all within the same song. – Uncut

with:
The Belle Brigade

8pm / $10 / All Ages

Saturday 08.22.09: NEON NOISE – SUNSET JUNCTION AFTER PARTY @ echoplex

“NEON NOISE” MOVES TO THE ECHOPLEX -
ON THE 4th SATURDAY EACH MONTH!!!

IT ALL KICKS OFF ON SATURDAY AUGUST 22nd,
WITH A MEGA, POST-SUNSET JUNCTION DANCE PARTY!
…. Special 18+ Night! …

DJ PAUL V. DROPS BANGIN’, DIRTY ELECTRO,
MASHUPS, NU-DISKO, & INDIE ROCK REMIXES!
______________________________________________

MORE INFO TO BE REVEALED!
______________________________________________

- COVER IS ONLY $5.00 ALL NIGHT -
AND FREE ADMISSION WITH
YOUR SUNSET JUNCTION STAMP!!!

9pm / $5, Free with Sunset Junction Stamp / 18+

Thursdau 09.03.09: Bust Magazine & Comedy is the New Black present ELLE O ELLE 3 with WHITNEY CUMMINGS / NATISHA ANDERSON / SARDIA MARLEY / HANNAH GANSEN / CHARLYNE YI & MORE @ echoplex

BUST Magazine and Comedy is the New Black present

Elle O Elle 3 :The Funniest Females in Los Angeles

With:
Whitney Cummings
Natisha Anderson
Sardia Marley
Hannah Gansen
Jackie Jones
Kristen Dolemescth
Emily Jo Oehler
Charlyne Yi

Free t-shirts,gift bags and more!

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

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

7:30PM / $10 / All Ages

Friday 10.09.09: A Special Acoustic Performance from JOHN DOE AND EXENE / KID CONGO POWERS @ echoplex

John Doe & Exene

John and Exene, who took the stage in simple, black-and-white outfits, looked a little bit like the Appalachian folkies who inspire their music. Although their romance ended nearly 25 years ago, the pair retains a certain chemistry and tenderness that comes through in their patient, funny onstage banter. And, before we get into the music, there’s something else you should know about John and Exene: Their fans — from 20-somethings to 50-year-old punks — adore them. Not a moment of silence could pass without someone yelling, “We love you, Exene!” or good-naturedly joking with John.

As someone who’s devoted a lot of time to thinking about X — I just submitted a 33 1/3 proposal on Los Angeles — the performance was a chance to reflect on the way their music has evolved over the years. Although the road from punk to Americana seems long, the movements are tied together by the raucousness of rockabilly. And the space between the sex, drugs, and death that fueled LA punk and the sex-booze-death triumvirate that has driven American roots music for a century has never been that great. As it turns out, the California noir and Southern gothic aesthetics may just be kissin’ cousins.

For much of the set, John’s acoustic guitar was the only instrument accompanying their voices, as they paged through a selection of each musician’s own compositions, a handful of covers, and a sprinkling of X classics. Throughout, John and Exene kept the audience engaged. John joked about his excitement to contribute a track (“The Losing Kind”) to a Samuel L. Jackson movie and the disappointment of discovering just how bad Black Snake Moan turned out to be. As Doe put it, “Even Christina Ricci running around in her underpants couldn’t save it.” And before performing the Carter Family standard “Poor Old Heartsick Me,” they told the story of their chance meeting with June Carter, who apparently told them, “If I never sing that song again, it’ll be too soon.”

Of course, for an old X fan, the highlight of the evening was hearing two of my favorite old-school tunes, “I Must Not Think Bad Thoughts” and “In This House That I Call Home.” During the second encore (that’s right, kids — both about to turn 53 and still gracing audiences with multiple encores), a few people shouted out, “Los Angeles!”

“On an acoustic guitar? Really?” John shot back, without missing a beat. I knew he was right, but I couldn’t fault them for the request. Even on an acoustic guitar, I would’ve liked to hear it, too. – Tiny Mix Tapes

with:
Kid Congo Powers (acoustic/spoken word)

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

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

8pm / advance seated: $25.00; advance standing $20; day of show seated $27.00, Day of show standing $23/ 18+

Saturday 09.19.09: SOUTHERN CULTURE ON THE SKIDS / TRIPLE CHICKEN FOOT / SPEEDBUGGY / 5 O’CLOCK SOMEWHERE / FRANK FAIRFIELD @ Echoplex

Southern Culture on the Skids || Listen || Watch

Friday night’s Southern Culture on the Skids show at the Gothic Theatre left a mark on Denver, as they used down-home country pickin’, grinnin’ (and just the right amount of fried chicken) to lead a packed house to hillbilly stomping glee. The venue became a back woods hoe-down as frontman Rick Miller and his cohorts strung together a set of pure white-trash-in-a-blue-collar fun, with silver tongue deftly planted in cheek.

From the first strums of the opening number, Miller mixed surf, punk and country guitar wizardry with slack-jaw wit as he sang his half of the songs. Bassist (and heartbreaking truck stop beauty queen) Mary Huff belted out her share of the set in strong, sultry vocals from beneath a nearly Marge Simpson-sized, red bouffant wig, forming a no-nonsense rhythm section, and the core of funk behind the band’s shimmy-groove, with drummer Dave Hartman and touring rhythm guitarist Tim Barnes.

The quartet successfully mixed humor and sexual innuendo with the perfect amount of schtick, and ended up sounding anything but camp. Huff, decked out in white go-go boots, shining gold nylons, a miniskirt and what looked like a 7-11 clerk’s zippered uniform shirt, adjusted her makeup between almost every song. As she introduced the Wanda Jackson classic “Funnel of Love,” she also drew down the zipper on her blouse and adjusted her bra, preparing both herself and the audience for its saucy sensuality. – Denver Post

With:
Triple Chicken Foot || Listen
Speedbuggy || Listen
5 O’Clock Somewhere
Frank Fairfield

plus Vendors: Classic Hardware

Just Added! El Clasico Tattoo & Art Studio

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

7:30pm / $12 / 18+

Friday 09.04.09: 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 09.05.09: BOOTIE LA @ echoplex

BOOTIE LA
LA’s monthly mashup bootleg party

Special guest:
DJ AXEL

Resident mashup mixer:
DJ PAUL V.

Midnight Mashup Show:
ANNA KONDA as LADY GAGA

Free Bootie mashup CDs for the first 75 people!

This month, Bootie is proud to present the return of LA’s own DJ Axel, creator of the infamous bootleg CD “Breakin’ The Law,” and most recently, producer of the track “Push It Fergasonic,” from the soundtrack for the movie “17 Again,” notable for being one of the first-ever, legally-cleared, multi-label mashups.

Resident mashup mixer DJ Paul V. will be joining him on the decks, and for the Midnight Mashup Show, Anna Konda will be performing as Lady Gaga … exactly 15 months after the REAL Lady Gaga graced the stage at Bootie LA back in June of last year!

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 eight cities on three 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!

Bootie’s resident DJs keep your brain guessing and body dancing with creative song combinations, celebrating — and satirizing — the many different forms of music. Bootie showcases the best in mashup productions from around the globe and delivers them on the dance floor … because one song at a time just isn’t enough!

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

FMI: http://www.BootieLA.com

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

Saturday 09.26.09: FUNKY SOLE @ echo

with DJs:
Music Man Miles
Clifton AKA Soft Touch

FMI: Funky Sole on Myspace

10pm / FREE / 21+

Saturday 09.19.09: FUNKY SOLE @ echo

with DJs:
Music Man Miles
Clifton AKA Soft Touch

FMI: Funky Sole on Myspace

10pm / FREE / 21+

Saturday 09.12.09: FUNKY SOLE @ echo

with DJs:
Music Man Miles
Clifton AKA Soft Touch

FMI: Funky Sole on Myspace

10pm / FREE / 21+

saturday 09.05.09: FUNKY SOLE @ echo

with DJs:
Music Man Miles
Clifton AKA Soft Touch

FMI: Funky Sole on Myspace

10pm / FREE / 21+

Wednesday 09.23.09: 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

9pm / $5 / 21+

Wednesday 09.16.09: 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

9pm / $5 / 21+

Wednesday 09.09.09: DUB CLUB presents TWILIGHT CIRCUS DUB SOUND SYSTEM (DJ Set) @ echoplex

Twilight Circus Sound System || Listen || Watch

Many were taken aback when longtime Legendary Pink Dot Ryan Moore entered the yawning chasm of dub music. But they were far from disappointed with the results. Moore seized upon the analog implements of Caribbean technology and created mammoth, concave exercises in the echo chamber. His unique, thunderous sounds avoid the two fatal mistakes of contemporary dub practitioners-attempting to mimic King Tubby’s lo-fi aesthetic, and using racks of digital gear that result in dub “lite” (is there anything worse?). If you want your contacts blown out of your eyes, go straight to the “Lowell & Nine-Dub Plate.” It’s underground nuclear testing without the poison. – Tim Hasle (xlr8r.com)

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

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

Thursday 08.20.09: DOWN & DERBY ROLLER DISCO with Skate Lessons from BLADE @ echoplex

Down and Derby, the premier roller skating organization that has quickly garnered a loyal following in cities like Las Vegas, Pittsburgh and New York City will host its second Los Angeles event at The Echoplex, Thursday, July 30. Resident skate guard DJs Thee Mike B and Steve 1Der will control the roller disco rink’s turntables, broadcasting amplified sounds for the eight-wheeled revelers.

The Los Angeles event is set apart from Down and Derby parties in other cities by its authentic 70s feel. The resident DJs don’t just spin popular tunes for which the era has become known—they reach into the depths of 70s music to bring partiers the obscure hits that may not be recognizable by most, but are truly indicative of the culture and lifestyle of the era.

Down and Derby, is a retro-inspired roller-skating party created and designed to give attendees a unique nightlife experience. The interactive throwback events combine décor reminiscent of a 70s roller disco with attendees participating through wearing fashion attire evocative of the era. DJs known for pushing the limits of mixing and music production are procured, adding vibrant energy to the event with both underground and popular mixes.

The entry fee is $5 with RSVP, $10 at the door and quad skates of every size will be available to rent for another $5. Guests are welcome to bring their own roller skates to the event.

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

RSVP at www.downandderby.org

9pm / $5 with RSVP, $10 at the door / 21+

Saturday 08.29.09: BOX ELDERS / AUDACITY / TIJUANA PANTHERS @ echo

Box Elders || Listen || Watch

Omaha, Nebraska has been an overlooked outpost of rock’n'roll music for way too long and with the recent debut 7″ EP release by the brilliant pop pioneers, the Box Elders on Grotto Records, it’s sure to arouse even more suspicion. On first listen, these tracks of sparkling, yet perfectly muddy stabs at Lou Reed’s pre-VU Primitives/Beachnuts-era warbling pop hit a high watermark and effortlessly fill out a 4 song EP with nary a dud in the bunch. Featuring the relocated Jeremiah McIntyre from now defunct Chicago band The Afflictions, along with his younger brother Clayton and Dave Goldberg of the Terminals and Boom Chick Records, Box Elders have that magical something in their brutish, yet nascent pop sound that really grabs you and instantly conjures up how familiar everything fits together into songs that you can hum along to instantly . With Jeremiah’s deep appreciation for all things Redd Kross, it’s not a surprise to see a convincingly legit cover of RK’s “S & M Party” on the b-side, done with the tossed-off grace of someone who embodies the spirit of the songs way more than just how to rip them off. Great influences aside, it’s clearly their originals that stand up and bowl me over every time, and you’ll quickly see that it’s just one of those records that’s impossible to stop playing. – Victim of Time

with:
Audacity
Tijuana Panthers

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

4pm / $8 / All Ages

Monday 08.10.09: RESTAVRANT / SPIRIT VINE / HOCUS POCUS / DIRT DRESS @ echoplex

Restavrant || Listen || Watch

How ’bout filling your pipe with electro-tinged ho-made hillbilly music? The bass kicking comes in clear, but a clubby paradiddle irks alongside the slide guitar, as if a glowstick got dropped in a barrel o’ moonshine. A beer bottle precariously placed between a jostling knee cap and a tin gasoline can gets smacked by a drumstick thick as a chair leg and goes flying back at the wall. Smash. Hot bodies. Was that out loud? The contours of hot bodies. Ah, this thought has Tourette’s. You must get some very calloused hands from all that working out—I mean streamline pick-less strumming on a gee-tar. Equally intent on experimental beer spilling as percussionist J State, Troy Olaf Murrah slides a botttle up and down his fret board, twanging country roads home to gold-toothed crawdads. In a gruff froggy voice he announces they’re moving to Vancouver, going on hiatus, this will be the last show, which happens to be the (Sparks-sponsored—yay!) release party for Returns to the Tomb of Guiliano Medidici. It’s a joke. Maybe they’ll go to Vancouver, riding a wagon packed full of jangling license plates tied together with bra straps. – LA Record

With:
Spirit Vine || Listen
Hocus Pocus (Members of Dios)
Dirt Dress

8:30 / FREE / 21+

Wednesday 09.02.09: DUB CLUB presents RICHIE SPICE / SPANNER BANNER @ echoplex

RICHIE SPICE

Armed with just a microphone, one-drop rhythms and purifying lyrical flames, singer Richie Spice is the Gideon of contemporary reggae. The publicly declared “prince of fire” uses culturally uplifting, spiritually fortified words to defeat the negative content that informs much of popular (Jamaican) music. Fittingly, Gideon Boot is the title track of Spice’s brilliant fourth album. Recorded over the timeless Johnny Too Bad rhythm (taken from The Slickers 1970s hit of the same name, popularized in the film The Harder They Come) the song details Spice’s strategic plan for delivering his musical sermon to an awaiting global audience. “I need a Gideon boot and a khaki suit to stand out inna Babylon and defend the truth/ I got a strong reggae beat with a mic in my hand fe lead out de youth dem outta destruction and let de people know right from wrong.”

Just like the singer’s previous albums “Universal”, “Spice In Your Life” and “In The
Streets to Africa”, “Gideon Boot” contains inspiring messages specifically aimed at empowering vulnerable youth.

The traditional Rastafarian Nyabinghi drumming that dominates the opening cut “Babylon Falling” heralds the seriousness of Spice’s musical mission. “World Is A Cycle”, sung over producer Arif Cooper’s haunting “Guardian Angel” rhythm, is, as Spice explains, “a song for the children and for the parents saying be careful because what you do can fall right back on you and your kids.”

Also included is the current Jamaican hit “The Plane Land” which display’s Spice’s superb story telling skills. The song’s lyrics detail the frustration that oftentimes accompanies post 9/11travel. “Saddle up myself fe take interrogation…tek off mi shoes, tek off mi tam, if they ever find you with a spliff yu gone another land.” “It is a song everyone can relate to if they travel,” notes Spice, “and if they don’t travel, they will learn this is what we go through as entertainers as we go to other countries.”

Since 2004, when his apocalyptic single “Earth A Run Red” became the year’s most popular reggae song, Richie Spice has performed throughout the world, insuring that cultural roots reggae isn’t relegated to a bygone era but continues as a thriving, evolving musical genre.

with special guest:
Spanner Banner

plus 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

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

9pm / $10 advance, $10 at the door before 10pm, $15 at the door after 10pm / 21+

Tuesday 10.20.09: WHY? / AU / SERENGETI & POLYPHONIC @ echoplex

Why? || Listen || Watch || Mp3

“This record is really the least hip-hop out of anything I’ve ever been involved with.” That quote from Yoni Wolf about the follow-up to Why?’s Alopecia gave some fans of the art-rap act reason to pause. Such uneasiness is unwarranted though. Alopecia was also more rock-oriented and was the Anticon. crew’s best. During the Alopecia sessions, Wolf and Co. recorded more songs, ten of which compromise Eskimo Snow. Though both albums were recorded during the February 2007 Minneapolis sessions, the Eskimo tracks avoid the segmented recording of Alopecia, for a more “resigned” and “open” sound. Wolf also noted that Eskimo Snow is a “bit more wild, and the drums have more room mics.” – Prefix Magazine

with:
AU
Serengeti & Polyphonic

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

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

8pm / $15 / All Ages

Sunday 09.27.09: PART TIME PUNKS – FACTORY RECORDS NITE @ echo

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

FMI:
Part Time Punks on Myspace

10pm / $5 / 18+

Sunday 09.20.09: PART TIME PUNKS with THE AVENGERS / PANSY DIVISION / PAUL COLLINS BEAT (members of THE NERVES) @ echo

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

With:
The Avengers || Listen
Pansy Division || Listen
Paul Collin’s Beat || Listen

FMI:
Part Time Punks on Myspace

10pm / $12 advance, $15 day of show / 18+

Sunday 09.13.09: PART TIME PUNKS with BLUE JUNGLE / THE WIDOW BABIES @ echo

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

With:
Blue Jungle || Listen
The Widow Babies (LP Release Party) || Listen

FMI:
Part Time Punks on Myspace

10pm / $5 / 18+

Sunday 09.06.09: PART TIME PUNKS – THE SMITHS/MORRISSEY NITE @ echo

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

FMI:
Part Time Punks on Myspace

10pm / $5 / 18+

Friday 10.16.09: THAO WITH THE GET DOWN STAY DOWN / PORTLAND CELLO PROJECT / DAVID SCHULTZ @ echo

Thao with the Get Down Stay Down || Listen || Watch || Mp3

Until Hollywood gives us a good portrayal of the adolescent-leaning female, we have Portland-based Thao Nguyen and her backing band the Get Down Stay Down, who specialize in galloping indie pop with sugar-coated hooks, a frosting of horns, and a considerable dark streak. The 23-year-old singer-songwriter, whose expressive voice suggests an earthbound Beth Orton, sings about such youthful concerns as ice cream cones and cannonballs off diving boards, but with unexpected maturity, dignity, and charm. These qualities make her second full-length, We Brave Bee Stings and All, sound so immediately distinguished and spirited. Even that title makes a child’s fear sound as epic as 300.

“Feet Asleep”, which appeared on last year’s Kill Rock Stars comp The Sound the Hare Heard, begins unassumingly, with Nguyen singing against a folksy acoustic guitar theme, then the band launches into a brassy Dixieland-style chorus– one of the album’s fullest and most joyful moments– as Nguyen turns bad circulation into a metaphor for romantic complacency. Those horns pop up again more quietly on “Violet”, drawing frowns across the song as she bids farewell to a friend. Throughout Bee Stings, the Get Down Stay Down keep the music light and fast-paced, revealing a broad range of styles but never boasting about it, and Tucker Martine’s suitably slack production emphasizes the sharpness of her voice and the playfulness of her melodies. On “Fear and Convenience”, she asks, “Did he hurt you in a new way?” Nguyen sounds generally curious, even as the darker implications of her question loom over the song. Bee Stings is, in a sense, a coming-of-age album, as serious themes underscore her jaunty melodies and adult concerns encroach on her summery youthfulness. Nguyen strikes a fine balance between the two, but here’s hoping she doesn’t grow up too much. – Pitchfork

with:
Portland Cello Project || Listen
David Schultz

MOVED TO ECHO
Enter at 1822 West Sunset Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90026

8pm / $12 advance, $14 day of show / 18+

Saturday 10.17.09: WAVVES / THE SOFT PACK / GANGLIANS @ echoplex

Wavves || Listen || Watch

Wavves, né Nathan Williams of San Diego, is primed for this environment. He’s young, only 22. His musicianship isn’t stellar (probably due to his age), but it’s crafty. This self-titled debut for Woodsist is littered with addictive riffs, and each soaked in enough distortion and amplifier crust to mask any technical deficiencies. Each backbeat is propulsive, a keen lock onto garage’s incessant energy but with enough of a post-punk edge to keep the turned-up cuffs away. And most important to the kids today, Williams knows how to harmonize, and he is a whiz with the multi-track. With such enhanced vocal melodies and a balls-out style of playing, Wavves is most like a rudimentary West Coast version of Blank Dogs. Or perhaps a Times New Viking with a better post-production mix. Williams may be entering a crowded stable with this musical approach, but the sunnier Southern California temperament of his sound (however distorted) adds a surprisingly welcomed twist to the niche.

Though a solid and promising outing, Wavves isn’t a revelatory record. It fits nicely into the “scene,” however vague that semblance is these days. In a musical community where the one-man frantic punk show of Jay Reatard garnishes high critical praise and manic collector urgency whenever another 7″ drops, Williams is bound to shine. And his somewhat wholesome personality (in comparison, at least) paired with a keener pop sensibility will only further his attraction; think an aesthetic not terribly far from early Beck experiments minus the obsession with rap beats (see “Loser Year”, “Here’s to the Sun”). The world is currently too depressing to just sit back and reflect, we would much rather bang our heads and blindly sing along gleefully. Wavves makes for a perfect outlet. – Dusted Magazine

With:
The Soft Pack
Ganglians

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

8:30pm / 18+

Thursday 09.24.09: TITUS ANDRONICUS / THE SO SO GLOS / RADARS TO THE SKY @ echo

Titus Andronicus || Listen || Watch

From the muted, muffled acoustic melancholy of the opener “Fear And Loathing In Mahwah, NJ”—which erupts naturally into a fireworks display of bile and itchy impatience—Titus Andronicus’ The Airing Of Grievances brooks no bullshit. The disc is the sound of lusty youth ripping a gaping hole in the fabric of reality: Throughout The Airing’s nine sawed-off anthems, the Jersey collective comes off like a clunky, blood-knuckled Arcade Fire that just doesn’t have time for all that respectable crap. Because, you know, the world is falling apart around their heads, and they only have this one shot at eating, fighting, and fucking the entire universe. The album is being reissued by the band’s new label, XL—yes, the home of Vampire Weekend—soon, so expect The Airing to be much more visible throughout 2009. But don’t let that overshadow the fact that, with its brash and boiling-over debut, Titus Andronicus has done its small part to draw indie-rock out of the genre’s recent navel-obsessed slump. – The Onion A.V. Club

with:
The So So Glos
Radars to the Sky

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

8:30pm / $10 / 18+

Thursday 09.10.09: Friends of Friends, Flavorpill and Filter Present: LAZER SWORD / RAINBOW ARABIA / HECUBA / GHOSTS ON TAPE @ echo

Lazer Sword || Listen || Watch

Of all the acts currently pushing that future-bass-lazer-blap (whatever you prefer to call it) sound into the far reaches of today’s dancefloors, none is nearer and dearer to the heart of XLR8R than the Lazer Sword boys. Okay, that might have a little something to do with the fact that both Bryant Rutledge and Antaeus Roy are former employees of the magazine, but their time spent plugging away at subscriber emails and MP3s is hardly the reason these guys are blowing up club scenes from San Francisco to Scotland. With that in mind, we commissioned the duo to make us this hour-long mix to show off just exactly what Lazer Sword is about when it comes to music.

In true form, the boys didn’t hold back, delivering a 36-track set that features hip-hop, future-bass, electro, and more. Many of the tracks are remixes Rutledge and Roy have made themselves, and, in true Lazer Sword fashion, names like Dr. Dre and Keak Da Sneak crop up on the tracklisting.

We know Lazer Sword for its ability to bring a party with unbridled enthusiasm and a healthy sense of humor, whether that means DJing to a crowd dressed as a Jesus medallion and the Fresh Prince of Bel Air or taking one for the team and playing strange festivals populated by scary neo-hippies. – XLR8R

With:
Rainbow Arabia || Listen
Hecuba || Listen
Ghosts On Tape

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

8:30pm / $8 / 18+

Wednesday 09.09.09: Myspace Presents EMILY WELLS / JOEY RYAN / ANGIE MATTSON / KARI KIMMEL / LEAH ANDREONE @ echo

Emily Wells || Watch

Emily Wells is an amazingly talented violinist and singer. Once headhunted by major record labels but striking out on her own to keep her artistic integrity, she made the right choice here: given the freedom to create the music she wants to, she’s made one damn good album. LASTFM calls her music Symphonic Folktronica Fantasy, and though Wells dislikes genre titles (as do I), those words do give a great sense of what to expect on Symphonies.

Her music has so many ways to describe it. It’s beautiful, mixing her gothic-but-not-exactly-dark-sounding voice with violin. It’s a little dark and creepy, but also shiny and happy. It’s extremely well written, but it also flows as stream-of-consciousness thoughts. It even contains elements of rap, with a one off appearance by Count Bass D actually working extremely well. It’s like simultaneously floating along a ray of sunshine and wandering, lost and worried, in a dark labyrinth. Take a little Emilie Autumn without Autumn’s morbid streak, with a dash of the theatricality and instrumental skill of The Dresden Dolls and a sprinkling of the playful darkness and the harmonising vocals of The Pierces, and you’re halfway there. – The Bringer of Song

With:
Joey Ryan || Listen
Angie Mattson || Listen
Kari Kimmel || >Listen
Leah Andreone || Listen

8pm / FREE / All ages

Monday 09.07.09: When You Awake & Grand Ole Echo present LESLIE & THE BADGERS / WELLDIGGERS BANQUET / OLD CALIFORNIO / PAINTED HILLS @ echo

Leslie & the Badgers || Watch

Leslie & the Badgers are quietly turning into one of the city’s best quiet bands. There’s a gently glowing country-rock intimacy to the songs from their self-titled 2007 debut CD and 2008 iTunes EP, Greetings From Leslie & the Badgers, but they’re not some corny, cornpone revival outfit. Instead, tunes like “Old Timers” and “Air Force One” have intelligently heartfelt, evocative lyrics and are adorned with dreamy embellishments, such as Glenn Oyabe’s lap-steel guitar, which playfully quotes Santo & Johnny’s classic instrumental “Sleep Walk.” Singer-guitarist Leslie Stevens coos with a Neko Case–style passion on the relatively epic six-minute idyll “Black Rose Window,” where she declares, “Now the road is what takes you to brand-new places/and I’m taking myself and the radio station.” Such countrified ballads place them roughly in the same universe as fellow locals the Whispertown 2000, but the Badgers also reveal a jazzy side on “The Torture,” and they rock convincingly on uptempo barn-burners like “That’d Be Fine.” – LA Weekly

with:
Welldiggers Banquet
Old Californio
Painted Hills

8:30pm / FREE / 21+

Wednesday 08.26.09: DAWES / MICHAEL DAVIS WITH LIONS / ANDREW LYNCH @ echo

Dawes || Listen

The first album from the new quartet featuring three-quarters of Simon Dawes sneaks up on you like a moment of deja vu. Twenty-three-year-old Taylor Goldsmith crafts elegant folk-pop gems that reveal a remarkably centered songwriter who feels the currents surrounding him but won’t get swept away by any of them. Gentle twang and genteel harmonies give “North Hills” a fireside intimacy that illuminates every word of Goldsmith’s confessionals. In “When My Time Comes,” a tacit admission that he has a lot of life yet to live, he sings “The only piece of advice that continues to help / is anyone that’s making anything new breaks something else.” “Love Is All I Am” might be cringeworthy in other hands, but Goldsmith keeps it plaintive: “I’ve locked up these words / in fear that I’d say them wrong.” Unlike the foursome’s live show, “North Hills” gets a bit strummy at times, but you won’t regret shuffling along. (Expect the album to get a wider release soon, after Dawes signs a deal with a prominent independent label, reported to be ATO.) Recommended. – Buzzbands LA

With:
Michael Davis with Lions || Listen
Andrew Lynch

8pm / Free if 21+; $7 if under / All Ages

Friday 08.21.09: Echo & Club Underground present HOCKEY / THE FRENCH SEMESTER @ echo

Hockey || Listen || Watch

Hockey’s another band being chased hither and yon by thin young boys and girls wielding fat wads of cash in a bid to get them to sign to their label. It’s not surprising. Talk about ticking various demographic boxes and appealing to distinctive niche markets. This Portland four-piece, who describe themselves as “new wave/soul” on their MySpace and have been bigged-up of late by Dave (Gang of Four) Allen on his Pampelmoose website, are wordy yet funky, the gritty vocals and chunky beats equally clear and upfront in the mix. Hockey could easily be enjoyed by Dylan, Springsteen and Hold Steady fans as much as they could by devotees of LCD Soundsystem and their ilk. In fact, if James Murphy ever decides to produce the Strokes then this is roughly how it might turn out. It’s been treated by the same sort of FX used to make Julian Casablancas sound as though he’s singing through a megaphone in a wind tunnel. Witty, literate songs you can dance to – they don’t quite give Dylanesque narratives a dubstep undercarriage, but they do effect a collision of opposites that is quite unprecedented. – The Guardian UK

With:
The French Semester || Listen

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

8pm / $10 / 18+

Wednesday 08.19.09: DAWES / MISSISSIPPI MAN / THE ROMANY RYE @ echo

Dawes || Listen

The first album from the new quartet featuring three-quarters of Simon Dawes sneaks up on you like a moment of deja vu. Twenty-three-year-old Taylor Goldsmith crafts elegant folk-pop gems that reveal a remarkably centered songwriter who feels the currents surrounding him but won’t get swept away by any of them. Gentle twang and genteel harmonies give “North Hills” a fireside intimacy that illuminates every word of Goldsmith’s confessionals. In “When My Time Comes,” a tacit admission that he has a lot of life yet to live, he sings “The only piece of advice that continues to help / is anyone that’s making anything new breaks something else.” “Love Is All I Am” might be cringeworthy in other hands, but Goldsmith keeps it plaintive: “I’ve locked up these words / in fear that I’d say them wrong.” Unlike the foursome’s live show, “North Hills” gets a bit strummy at times, but you won’t regret shuffling along. (Expect the album to get a wider release soon, after Dawes signs a deal with a prominent independent label, reported to be ATO.) Recommended. – Buzzbands LA

With:
Mississippi Man
The Romany Rye

8pm / Free if 21+; $7 if under / all ages

Friday 08.07.09: IRREGULAR WINE TASTING- 4 SUICIDES FROM SUICIDE CLUB @ echoplex

Get thee to the Echoplex, aka the Julius Shulman Memorial Hall, this night for the forty-third edition of Irregular Wine Tasting, an adult-beverage haiku about which Lt. Cheryl MacWillie of the Los Angeles County coroner’s office never said: “I’ve got nothing against her personally, but Flo, the fictional cashier in the regressive insurance TV commercials, was an a–hole as far as the A-bomb was concerned.” This evening we pair five wines from Planet Vagina with four suicides from Suicide Club, then segue seamlessly into SuicideGirls presents Summer Suicide, featuring “beautiful naked punk rock, goth & emo girls with tattoos & piercings.”

Hosted by:
Julian Davies (The Cheese Store)
DJ Cuz’n Roy

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

RSVP at:
irregularwinetasting@yahoo.com
Irregular Wine Tasting on Myspace

Purchase Tickets at:
Stories
1716 W Sunset Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90026

7:30pm / $20 / 21+

Saturday 08.15.09: Vtech & Mochilla present QUANTIC AND HIS COMBO BARBARO / J.ROCC / NU-MARK / SAKE ONE / GANAS @ echoplex

Quantic & His Combo Barbaro || Listen || Watch
Featuring Alfredito Linares, Freddy Colorado, Malcolm Catto, Nidia Gongora on vocals and very special guests!

‘Tradition In Transition’ – recorded in Cali, Colombia – is the upcoming album from Quantic and his Combo Bárbaro, which sees Will ‘Quantic’ Holland mining the lesser-tapped musical sources from the Caribbean, Latin America and Africa and fusing those rediscovered psychedelic, experimental and rhythmically rich sounds of the past with deep funk and soul elements and folkloric vocal styles. This exceptional longplayer gives life to an explosive sonic snapshot of an ever-evolving musical landscape, played out by a carefully assembled international cast of musical creators.

with DJ sets from:
J.Rocc
Nu-Mark
Sake One (SF)
Ganas

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

9pm / $15.00 advance, $20.00 day of show / 21+

Thursday 08.13.09: MySpace Records presents Online [Offline] at The Echo with BURNING BRIDES/ JONNEINE ZAPATA / MARY MAGDALAN / SABROSA PURR @ echo

Burning Brides || Listen || Watch

It was pleasing to see a full house congregate at the El Mocambo for Philly rock trio Burning Brides. Critically-acclaimed but commercially underrated, they displayed no signs of rust from a layoff from playing live (Bassist Melanie Campbell and singer/guitarist Dimitri Coats recently had a baby). The band’s take on hard guitar rock is more varied than most, with their songs mixing melody and muscle to winning effect. The harmonies suggested X on steroids. Older favourites like “Glass Slipper” and “Arctic Snow” (their first ever single) still sound great, while such new songs as “Lovesick” also showed promise. As refreshing as their vibrant sound is an onstage demeanour reflecting the fact that they clearly love playing together in front of an appreciative crowd. – Exclaim!

With:
Jonneine Zapata || Listen
Mary Magdalan
Sabrosa Purr || Listen

8pm / FREE / all ages

Monday 08.24.09: SIX ORGANS OF ADMITTANCE / HORSE THIEVES / MASTER MUSICIANS OF BUKKAKE @ echo

Six Organs of Admittance || Listen || Watch || MP3

Six Organs Of Admittance’s forthcoming Luminous Night was recorded and produced by Randall Dunn, who’s manned the boards for Earth, Wolves In The Throne Room, and most recently Sunn O)))’s Monoliths & Dimensions, to name a few. It makes perfect sense to pair Dunn’s knack for layering dark, deep soundscapes with Ben Chasny’s ability to transform his psychedelic, folky, and finger-picked guitars and distinctive somnambulant vocals in otherworldly excursions. Add guest spots by Eyvind Kang (on viola), Hans Tueber, Tor Dietrichson (tabla), Matt Chamberlin (drums, percussion), etc., and you have yourself one of Six Organs’ most gorgeous collections in a line of gorgeous collections. (Full disclosure: Ben and I are friends, though this stuff would be just as beautiful if we were enemies.) See, for instance, “The Ballad Of Charley Harper,” a smeary 5-minute acoustic-and-distorted trek in honor of the Cincinnati wildlife artist that perfectly matches (and echoes) Luminous Night’s tree-lined album art. – Stereogum

With:
Horse Thieves
Master Musicians of Bukkake

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

8pm / $10 / All Ages

Tuesday 08.18.09: CORREATOWN / MARVELOUS TOY / THE BREAK UPS / KILLSONIC @ echo

Correatown || Listen

There’s an inescapably seductive quality to Angela Correa’s songs; despite the fact that every song she writes is downtempo and melancholy, she has produced forty-five minutes of mellowness rather than full sedation. Correatown is ten beautiful, earthy tunes, stripped bare musically and emotionally, that trudge along at the pace of a wounded deer. Only Correa’s endlessly soothing voice and the strength of her bittersweet songs allows her to avoid the pitfalls of a “downer” album.

Correa hails from San Diego, a town that boasts an impressive collection of singer-songwriters: Liz Janes, J Turtle, Castanets (Ray Raposa) and that Jason Mraz fellow all compete with her for coffee shop stage time. Maybe it’s the fact that San Diego’s weather is exactly the same every day, but all of these artists, Correa included, attack their music as if they’re on the tail end of a vicodin bender. When you hear the droning organ on “Hardship to Be You”, you’ll realize that time simply isn’t an issue for Correa. Similarly, “Mercurial Heart”‘s sparse guitars and “Night Light”‘s wispy vocals suggest a world where the seasons never change, the hours don’t pass and the only causes for concern are heartache and depression — two things Correa understands well. - Splendid Magazine

With:
Marvelous Toy || Listen
The Breakups
Killsonic

8;30pm / $5 / 18+

Wednesday 08.12.09: DUB CLUB presents PABLO MOSES with THE REVOLUTIONARY DREAM BAND @ echoplex

Pablo Moses || Watch

Pablo Moses, born in Jamaica as Pableto Henry, released his first album in 1975, Revolutionary Dream, issued in the United States by UA Records as, I love I Bring “ A university trained poet,” according to the Village Voices Carol Cooper, Moses articulated his Rastafarian ideology with unprecedented political frankness in a high pitched, horn-like voice over rhythms and harmonies laid down by keyboardist/ producer Geoffrey Chung. Signing with Mango Records, Moses collaborated with Chung five years later to produce his follow up, 1980′s A Song, a subtle answer to the fire of his debut release. In 1981, Pablo Moses issued his third album, entitled Pave The Way.

Tunes such as “I Man a Grasshopper” , “Dubbing is a Must” , and many others became reggae classics.
By then, Moses had amassed a strong following in Jamaica, Europe, North America and Japan. Moses’ Rastafarian themes, the crusade against injustice, inequality, greed, racism, war, and the pillage of nature were and are universal in their scope.

In 1983, Moses signed with Alligator Records to release In The Future. amplifying his political and social message with rock stylistics and the use of electronic instrumentation like the synthesizer and vocader. Moses expanded and deepened his sound and rhetoric with 1985′s Tension and 1987′s Live to Love. We Refuse, released in 1990, was a lyrical response to the political climate of the eighty’s seen as “good times”: by those who’ve closed their eyes to the underlying realities of poverty and racism, now unraveling in the ’90s. “In this album” says Moses,” I say what I ‘ve said all along, only in a modified mood, more straightforward. I refuse the Babylonian ways of society, the bully-istic attitudes. Jah made everyone with different cultures and colors just as he made different types of birds and plants for beautification.”

To this date, Pablo Moses remains one of the most original, out- spoken roots reggae artists to be found. After more than 30 years, he is still throwing out lyrics that are sociologically, political and culturally connected. Pablo Moses has toured extensively in Canada, U.S.A. South America, Central America, Europe, Scandinavia and the Caribbean. Pablo is currently almost finished with a brand new, highly anticipated upcoming album. Pablo Moses is a teacher, father and a revolutionary who has never, and will never, strayed from his path as a spokesman for the poor, oppressed and underprivileged people in the world.

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

9pm / $10 advance, $10 at the door before 10pm, $15 after / 21+

Friday 08.07.09: SuicideGirls presents SUMMER SUICIDE @ echoplex

SuicideGirls Presents…
Summer Suicide @ The Echoplex

Wear a bikini top and get in free all night!

18+ to dance/21+ to drink
2 Full Bars
ID Required

Electro, remixes, mash-ups, indie, pop, rock, 80s, 90s, and more…

With DJs…
Los (Ultraluxx)
Xian (Malediction Society, Ruin, Wumpskate)
Eddy Nightmare

Sexy SuicideGirl Go-Go Dancers
Free Glowsticks for the first 50 people
Ticket Give-Aways from Goldenvoice
SuicideGirls Merchandise Give-Aways

Photo Booth by Lisa Talbot Photography
Roaming Photo

@ The Echoplex
Through the alley at…
1154 Glendale Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90026
(Valet on Glendale Blvd)

Sign up for our email list for special discounts at clubsuicide.net

10pm / $10 / 18+

Tuesday 08.11.09: THE VOYEURS (Video Release) / KISSING COUSINS / BOX VIOLET / POLYGRAPH @ echo

The Voyeurs || Listen || Watch

Thoroughly Kinked and corner-turning rock-pop, The Voyeurs’ stately debut, Well Known Drag, rages and swoons with a kind of laser-honed songwriting precision not usually heard outside of a lavish, Rhino-released box containing the best of ‘60s powerpop. From the whiplashed and seasick dynamics of the gnashing, near-perfect “Thing People Say” to the ominous and piano-crashed menace of “The Trouble with Jerry” to the lazy, front porch acoustic haze of “New Beginnings,” Drag does anything but as it explores ringing vocal pop and percussive, sneering rock with a dedicated and knowing edge. By the time the beerhaul jaunt of “You’re a Wreck” closes the record with a playful, Merseybeat swing, the Voyeurs have not only issued a clever and catchy catalog of powerpop’s history, but they offer it a promising future as well. – Web in Front

with:
Kissing Cousins
Box Violet
Polygraph

8:30pm / $5 / 18+

Wednesday 08.05.09: DAWES / SLANG CHICKENS / BIG ECHO @ echo

Dawes || Listen

The first album from the new quartet featuring three-quarters of Simon Dawes sneaks up on you like a moment of deja vu. Twenty-three-year-old Taylor Goldsmith crafts elegant folk-pop gems that reveal a remarkably centered songwriter who feels the currents surrounding him but won’t get swept away by any of them. Gentle twang and genteel harmonies give “North Hills” a fireside intimacy that illuminates every word of Goldsmith’s confessionals. In “When My Time Comes,” a tacit admission that he has a lot of life yet to live, he sings “The only piece of advice that continues to help / is anyone that’s making anything new breaks something else.” “Love Is All I Am” might be cringeworthy in other hands, but Goldsmith keeps it plaintive: “I’ve locked up these words / in fear that I’d say them wrong.” Unlike the foursome’s live show, “North Hills” gets a bit strummy at times, but you won’t regret shuffling along. (Expect the album to get a wider release soon, after Dawes signs a deal with a prominent independent label, reported to be ATO.) Recommended. – Buzzbands LA

With:
Slang Chickens || Listen
Big Echo

8:30pm / FREE for 21+; $7 if under 21 / All ages

Wednesday 08.12.09: DAWES / PAPA / PAIGE STARK @ echo

Dawes || Listen

The first album from the new quartet featuring three-quarters of Simon Dawes sneaks up on you like a moment of deja vu. Twenty-three-year-old Taylor Goldsmith crafts elegant folk-pop gems that reveal a remarkably centered songwriter who feels the currents surrounding him but won’t get swept away by any of them. Gentle twang and genteel harmonies give “North Hills” a fireside intimacy that illuminates every word of Goldsmith’s confessionals. In “When My Time Comes,” a tacit admission that he has a lot of life yet to live, he sings “The only piece of advice that continues to help / is anyone that’s making anything new breaks something else.” “Love Is All I Am” might be cringeworthy in other hands, but Goldsmith keeps it plaintive: “I’ve locked up these words / in fear that I’d say them wrong.” Unlike the foursome’s live show, “North Hills” gets a bit strummy at times, but you won’t regret shuffling along. (Expect the album to get a wider release soon, after Dawes signs a deal with a prominent independent label, reported to be ATO.) Recommended. – Buzzbands LA

With:
Papa
Paige Stark

8:30pm / FREE for 21+; $7 if under 21 / All ages

Sunday 08.30.09: GRAND OLE ECHO with TED RUSSELL KAMP / GINA VILLALOBOS / PAPERPLANES @ echo

Ted Russell Kamp || Listen

With:
Gina Villalobos || Listen
Paperplanes || Listen

5:00pm / FREE / All Ages

Thursday 08.20.09: Echo & Folk Yeah present- J TILLMAN (Fleet Foxes) / EVAN WAY (Parson Redheads) / BIG SEARCH @ echo

J. Tillman || Watch || Listen

Carving out a darkly brooding persona with roots in Neil Young’s early ’70s output, Richard Buckner’s elliptical Americana, Nick Drake balladry, and assorted, harder-to-pinpoint gospel, country, blues, and folk idioms, Tillman’s two most recent solo long-players—Cancer and Delirium (2007) and Minor Works (2006)—are packed with memorable songs. Often built upon the simplest, ingratiating musical maneuvers–like the little stair-step acoustic guitar on Minor Works’ “Crooked Roof”–Tillman’s songs rarely hew to the literal, instead deftly navigating allegory and alienation, the occasional revelation stacked against heaps of melancholy.

On Vacilando (so named from the Spanish term, indicating a wanderer for whom the experience of travel is more important than the reaching of a destination), though, he strips away his tendency for over-production, resulting in a more focused, refined approach. Tillman’s cavernous vocal range, all texture and nuance, is front and center; meanwhile, a wise-beyond-his-years lyrical depth that, one fathoms, springs from (or, more accurately, is a reaction to) his restrictive religious upbringing, results in pithy imagery, i.e., “Suffering doesn’t know God’s name (from “New Imperial Grand Blues”) or, from the album’s opening salvo, “All that you see, you have dominion/All you don’t know, you are forbidden.”

The record’s insistently bleak tone threatens to tilt into claustrophobia at times, but Tillman winningly subverts expectations. The striking full-band cut, “Steel on Steel,” with delicious French horn/pedal steel interplay and Fleet Fox Casey Wescott on keyboards, melds agonizing romantic heartbreak to an epiphany on life’s ephemeral nature. It’s a leftfield instant pop classic, Tillman winding his silkiest vocal around the song’s glistening melody. “New Imperial Grand Blues,” in contrast, is a pulsating rocker, a jarring peek into the Crazy Horse side of Tillman’s brain. It’s a bone-rattling blues called “Master’s House”, however, that best embodies Tillman’s talent: “How easily the heart of man is tamed” he surmises, over the music, his quivering, floating tenor gaining a steady, stoic determination. It’s an explosive assessment, with implications reverberating into personal, spiritual, even geopolitical realms. Tillman’s own spirit, meanwhile, you suspect will be tough to quell. – Uncut

With:
Evan Way (Parson Red Heads)
Big Search (Foreign Born, Fool’s Gold, Glasser)

8:30pm / $10 adv, $12 at the door / All Ages

Sunday 08.16.09: GRAND OLE ECHO with DEAD ROCK WEST / RUBY FRIEDMAN ORCHESTRA / THE LONESOME HEROES @ echo

Dead Rock West || Listen

With:
Ruby Friedman
The Lonesome Heroes || Listen

5:00pm / FREE / All Ages

Monday 08.31.09: MONDAY NIGHT RESIDENCY with THE GROWLERS / MY PET SADDLE / GRAND ELEGANCE / DOGWEED @ echo

The Growlers || Listen || Watch

The Growlers play party music that’s shot through with an undertone of melancholy. It’s as if their sepia-tinted rock songs come equipped with both the drunken cheeriness and the nauseating hangover.

They know how to rollick like champs, but they can also creep along with a vaguely Eastern European worldweariness that’s endearing. They may claim Ol’ Dirty Bastard and Lee “Scratch” Perry as influences on their MySpace page (wigga, please), but the Growlers actually sound more like Man Man if they were fixated on pre-psych rock that’s too sophisticated to be considered “garage.” This nebulous quality makes the Growlers one of the most interesting bands working in the region.

The Growlers sent us a CD called The Greatest Hits, but at 25 tracks and 78 minutes, it sounds more like an archival clearinghouse of ideas. Most of these songs exude a casual, understated cool, marked by winding, mesmerizing, spangly guitars and Brooks Nielsen’s riveting, woebegone vocals. Even 38-second scraps such as “My Forehead’s Dripping Ocean” bear close listening.

They’re not very blues-rooted, but they do project an un-hokey sadness that consoles rather than brings you down (could be the band’s recessive folk genes). As I wrote in my live review on our Heard Mentality blog, “Their music possesses an insidious infectiousness that sneaks up on you like inebriation after a few sweet libations” (see “The Wildbirds and the Growlers, Detroit Bar,” Aug. 7, 2007). I bet you become besotted, too – OC Weekly

With:
My Pet Saddle
Grand Elegance
Dogweed

8:30pm / FREE for 21+, $7 for under 21 / 18+

Monday 08.17.09: MONDAY NIGHT RESIDENCY with THE GROWLERS / XU XU FANG / THELONIOUS MONSTER @ echo

The Growlers || Listen || Watch

The Growlers play party music that’s shot through with an undertone of melancholy. It’s as if their sepia-tinted rock songs come equipped with both the drunken cheeriness and the nauseating hangover.

They know how to rollick like champs, but they can also creep along with a vaguely Eastern European worldweariness that’s endearing. They may claim Ol’ Dirty Bastard and Lee “Scratch” Perry as influences on their MySpace page (wigga, please), but the Growlers actually sound more like Man Man if they were fixated on pre-psych rock that’s too sophisticated to be considered “garage.” This nebulous quality makes the Growlers one of the most interesting bands working in the region.

The Growlers sent us a CD called The Greatest Hits, but at 25 tracks and 78 minutes, it sounds more like an archival clearinghouse of ideas. Most of these songs exude a casual, understated cool, marked by winding, mesmerizing, spangly guitars and Brooks Nielsen’s riveting, woebegone vocals. Even 38-second scraps such as “My Forehead’s Dripping Ocean” bear close listening.

They’re not very blues-rooted, but they do project an un-hokey sadness that consoles rather than brings you down (could be the band’s recessive folk genes). As I wrote in my live review on our Heard Mentality blog, “Their music possesses an insidious infectiousness that sneaks up on you like inebriation after a few sweet libations” (see “The Wildbirds and the Growlers, Detroit Bar,” Aug. 7, 2007). I bet you become besotted, too – OC Weekly

with:
Xu Xu Fang || Listen
Thelonious Monster

8:30pm / FREE for 21+, $7 for under 21 / 18+

Monday 08.10.09: MONDAY NIGHT RESIDENCY with THE GROWLERS / TIJUANA PANTHERS / SOME DAYS @ echo

The Growlers || Listen || Watch

The Growlers play party music that’s shot through with an undertone of melancholy. It’s as if their sepia-tinted rock songs come equipped with both the drunken cheeriness and the nauseating hangover.

They know how to rollick like champs, but they can also creep along with a vaguely Eastern European worldweariness that’s endearing. They may claim Ol’ Dirty Bastard and Lee “Scratch” Perry as influences on their MySpace page (wigga, please), but the Growlers actually sound more like Man Man if they were fixated on pre-psych rock that’s too sophisticated to be considered “garage.” This nebulous quality makes the Growlers one of the most interesting bands working in the region.

The Growlers sent us a CD called The Greatest Hits, but at 25 tracks and 78 minutes, it sounds more like an archival clearinghouse of ideas. Most of these songs exude a casual, understated cool, marked by winding, mesmerizing, spangly guitars and Brooks Nielsen’s riveting, woebegone vocals. Even 38-second scraps such as “My Forehead’s Dripping Ocean” bear close listening.

They’re not very blues-rooted, but they do project an un-hokey sadness that consoles rather than brings you down (could be the band’s recessive folk genes). As I wrote in my live review on our Heard Mentality blog, “Their music possesses an insidious infectiousness that sneaks up on you like inebriation after a few sweet libations” (see “The Wildbirds and the Growlers, Detroit Bar,” Aug. 7, 2007). I bet you become besotted, too – OC Weekly

with:
Tijuana Panthers
Some Days

8:30pm / FREE for 21+, $7 for under 21 / 18+

Monday 08.03.09: MONDAY NIGHT RESIDENCY with THE GROWLERS / HE’S MY BROTHER, SHE’S MY SISTER / THE ZINFANDALS / VUM @ echo

The Growlers || Listen || Watch

The Growlers play party music that’s shot through with an undertone of melancholy. It’s as if their sepia-tinted rock songs come equipped with both the drunken cheeriness and the nauseating hangover.

They know how to rollick like champs, but they can also creep along with a vaguely Eastern European worldweariness that’s endearing. They may claim Ol’ Dirty Bastard and Lee “Scratch” Perry as influences on their MySpace page (wigga, please), but the Growlers actually sound more like Man Man if they were fixated on pre-psych rock that’s too sophisticated to be considered “garage.” This nebulous quality makes the Growlers one of the most interesting bands working in the region.

The Growlers sent us a CD called The Greatest Hits, but at 25 tracks and 78 minutes, it sounds more like an archival clearinghouse of ideas. Most of these songs exude a casual, understated cool, marked by winding, mesmerizing, spangly guitars and Brooks Nielsen’s riveting, woebegone vocals. Even 38-second scraps such as “My Forehead’s Dripping Ocean” bear close listening.

They’re not very blues-rooted, but they do project an un-hokey sadness that consoles rather than brings you down (could be the band’s recessive folk genes). As I wrote in my live review on our Heard Mentality blog, “Their music possesses an insidious infectiousness that sneaks up on you like inebriation after a few sweet libations” (see “The Wildbirds and the Growlers, Detroit Bar,” Aug. 7, 2007). I bet you become besotted, too – OC Weekly

with:
He’s My Brother, She’s My Sister
The Zinfandals
VUM

8:30pm / FREE / 21+

Sunday 08.30.09: PART TIME PUNKS with MARK BURGESS (THE CHAMELEONS UK) / WAR TAPES / THE NEW ROOM @ echo

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

With:
Mark Burgess (of The Chameleons UK) (playing a set of all Chameleons songs with a full band.)
War Tapes || Listen
The New Room || Listen

FMI:
Part Time Punks on Myspace

10pm / $10 advance, $12 day of show / 18+

Sunday 08.23.09: PART TIME PUNKS – BRITPOP NIGHT guest DJs from TRANSISTOR Dorian & Maurice DFL @ echo

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

FMI:
Part Time Punks on Myspace

10pm / $5 / 18+

Saturday 08.29.09: FUNKY SOLE @ echo

with DJs:
Music Man Miles
Clifton AKA Soft Touch

FMI: Funky Sole on Myspace

10pm / FREE / 21+

Saturday 08.22.09: FUNKY SOLE @ echo

with DJs:
Music Man Miles
Clifton AKA Soft Touch

FMI: Funky Sole on Myspace

10pm / FREE / 21+

Saturday 08.15.09: FUNKY SOLE @ echo

with DJs:
Music Man Miles
Clifton AKA Soft Touch

FMI: Funky Sole on Myspace

10pm / FREE / 21+

Saturday 08.08.09: FUNKY SOLE @ echo

with DJs:
Music Man Miles
Clifton AKA Soft Touch

FMI: Funky Sole on Myspace

10pm / FREE / 21+

Saturday 08.01.09: FUNKY SOLE @ echo

with DJs:
Music Man Miles
Clifton AKA Soft Touch

FMI: Funky Sole on Myspace

10pm / FREE / 21+

Wednesday 08.19.09: 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

9pm / $5 / 21+

Wednesday 08.26.09: 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

9pm / $5 / 21+

Wednesday 08.05.09: 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

9pm / $5 / 21+

Thursday 08.06.09: QUINTRON & MISS PUSSYCAT / STATIC STATIC / ALL LEATHER @ echo

Quintron & Miss Pussycat || Listen

Released on Memphis-based Goner Records, Too Thirsty 4 Love is the latest from New Orleans mad scientist, underground icon, and organ aficionado Quintron. One look at the cover gives the would-be listener some indication of what they’re in for: Quintron, dressed like a thrift-store game show host, relaxing in bed with a remarkable lady, both wearing plastic fangs, entwined in an enormous snake and enjoying a novelty ice cream drink.

In addition to posing for such swell album photos, Quintron has spent the last number years performing with puppet shows put on by his wife and partner-in-crime Miss Pussycat (whose inimitable lyrical prowess is present on most of the tracks,) and invented a drum machine that runs on spit along with countless other weird musical innovations.

Appropriately, his album contains plenty of sleazy, drum-machine fueled soul numbers including stand-outs “Waterfall” and “Final Conflict.” On tracks like “Reborn,” atmospheric, Esquivel-like lounge bizarreness abounds. – Alarm Press

with:
Static Static
All Leather || Listen (Members of The Locust, Some Girls)

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

Friday 08.14.09: Rock N Roll Summer Circus with THE HENRY CLAY PEOPLE / FOL CHEN / FLYING TOURBILLON ORCHESTRA / MARVELOUS TOY & MUCH MORE @ echoplex

The Henry Clay People || Listen || Watch
Fol Chen || Listen
The Flying Tourbillon Orchestra || Listen
Marvelous Toy || Listen

“Side Show Acoustic Performers”:
Damselles & The TC4
Roadside Graves || Listen
Les Blanks || Listen
Downtown Union
Balloon Bass
Banjo-Vi
Oof Aarted

MC’d by ELI MONOLATOR

FREE Cotton Candy and Sno-Cones

Skeeball and Prizes!!

Balloon hats–Mimes–and MORE

***Wear a moustache, come in clown or mime face, or come wearing some other type of circus attire and you get a free little mix cd with a song from each band performing***

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

8pm / $10 / 18+

Saturday 08.01.09: BOOTIE LA @ echoplex

BOOTIE LA
LA’s monthly mashup bootleg party

Special show-stopping performances every half-hour from Bootie LA’s resident dance crew:
R.A.I.D. (Random Acts of Irreverent Dance)

Resident Bootie LA DJs:
ADRIAN & the MYSTERIOUS D
DJ PAUL V.

Free Bootie mashup CDs for the first 75 people!

This month, it’s Mega R.A.I.D. at Bootie! Every half-hour, Bootie LA’s resident 15-person dance crew, R.A.I.D. (that stands for “Random Acts of Irreverent Dance”) will come out unannounced with a special choreographed mashup dance number. Gold suits will take over the Echoplex stage with several show-stopping performances! Resident DJs Adrian & the Mysterious D return from doing Bootie Brazil last month, and DJ Paul V. joins them on the decks for some hot summertime mashups.

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 eight cities on three 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!

Bootie’s resident DJs keep your brain guessing and body dancing with creative song combinations, celebrating — and satirizing — the many different forms of music. Resident dance crew R.A.I.D. (Random Acts of Irreverent Dance) performs a mashed-up dance number nearly every month. Bootie showcases the best in mashup productions from around the globe and delivers them on the dance floor … because one song at a time just isn’t enough!

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

FMI: http://www.BootieLA.com

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

Friday 08.14.09: CLUB UNDERGROUND vs GO COMMANDO with LITTLE RED RADIO / ON BLAST / DARWIN DEEZ @ echo

Little Red Radio
On Blast
Darwin Deez

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+

Friday 08.07.09: 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+

Wednesday 08.19.09: GREAT NORTHERN @ pershing square

Great Northern || Listen || Watch

On the cover of Great Northern’s debut album, Trading Twilight for Daylight, sits a barren tree backed by an arctic landscape. Such a dormant image is ironic considering the band’s lively and articulately layered sound, with traditional instrumentation being complemented by the likes of strings, brass, and other orchestral elements that are often considered too complex or overbearing to even visit the usually simplistic world of indie pop. Demonstrating the ability to take risks, Great Northern are one of the more capable bands of their element I have heard lately. Based out of Los Angeles, Great Northern was formed due to the strong friendship of pianist Rachel Stolte and guitarist Solon Bixler, both proficient songwriters and lead vocalists. – Obscure Sound

Pershing Square
532 South Olive Street
Los Angeles, CA 90013

7pm / FREE / All ages

Wednesday 08.12.09: OLIN & THE MOON / HORSE THIEVES @ pershing square

Olin & The Moon || Listen

With:
Horse Thieves

Pershing Square
532 South Olive Street
Los Angeles, CA 90013

7pm / FREE / All ages

Wednesday 08.05.09: LUKE TOP / MY PET SADDLE @ pershing square

Luke Top || Listen || Watch

Do you love your friends “more than lightning?” Are they “much more than a passing storm?” If so, perhaps they are also Friends with Luke Top and you can all connect for brunch, or form another band. It seems that everything Luke Top does seats a party of at least ten, be it with Fool’s Gold or this project, which also involves Fool’s Lewis Pesacov, Giant Drag’s Micah Calabrese, Cass McCombs, and Matt Popieluch and Ariel Rechtshaid of Foreign Born, to name a few—almost like a disease, each of these guys spreads his germs around town in different bands and projects. But rather than bring us any closer to swine flu, Luke Top’s music wants to make happy. It’s the sound of driving nowhere on a sunny afternoon. Opener “Lord, Save Me From This Valley” starts the car, then “Infant Rose” pulls the top down, shaking off a few leaves and dried berries before we hit the coastal highway. We arrive at title track, “Friends,” in third gear, jangling tambourine, handclaps, and vocal harmonies. While instruments pile up over the course of the album, adding horns and strings and even some nature sounds to the blend, every note fits in a streamline design: the road is clear, the car is clean, and the passengers smile behind their sunglasses. – LA Record

with:
My Pet Saddle

Pershing Square
532 South Olive Street
Los Angeles, CA 90013

7pm / FREE / All ages