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Showing posts from February, 2007

1) It Starts

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Artist: The Happy Hollows ( website , myspace ) Song: Meteors I've been just not caring about new (to me) bands all too much lately; not so much anti-music but just content with the regular fare served up by enjoyable bands and uninspiring sets by others. So Wednesday morning after reading multiple mentions in all the real LA music blogs, I spent a few minutes to check out the The Happy Hollows myspace page. This turns into 45 minutes of listening, watching, and downloading everything I could get online. I'm in the must see them live now mindset and hope they are as interesting as they come off in their videos. They sound sort of Pixies-ish in some songs, sort of plain silly-ish in others, and just all sorts of what I like in a band. Next Show: Monday March 6th @ The Echo - Free with Airborne Toxic Event , the resident band with major buzz in the local blogosphere, Radars to the Sky and Low vs. Diamond

Echo Park Log # 58

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Saturday was a beautiful day. Driving down Sunset Blvd I saw first the camera man in the bike line then the pink hair girl ravenously making out with another actor in the bus stop. "Did you see that?" I asked my passengers from So. Orange County. "Yeah. That's weird." "No. Not really." A few minutes later we were inside Sea Level watching The Parson Red Heads play their CD release show. J loved the female drummer while K thought the guy playing his car keys as an instrument was amusing. A little low key of a daytime show but still quite enjoyable as the four or five times I've seen them before. Made it back to my place for pizza and laughter. Like I said, Saturday was a beautiful day. random: This girl is a snob - I don't care for judgmental people and if people looked down at her at the Echo, well they suck too. How did I not notice this minuscule mention (via blogdowntown) in the LA Times? Pretty sure this is me. (why can't everyday b

some mornings

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Some mornings I'm stressing the whole 13 miles down the 110 to work, pushing in boundaries between the car ahead and me secretly shouting "why are you driving like a c***sucker?!?" Some mornings I wake up late think about a turn to the right and a day at the beach but I never stray off the normal cycle of sleep and work, sleep and work. Some mornings I'm two blocks from home when I should be sitting at my desk so I stop for gas, then breakfast before moseying it onto the freeway. I'm in my own little world this morning. Every Friday should be like this. I haven't strayed in long time

need a ticket for the police?

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well a lot of nothing actually

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I have nothing to say. Friday I laid wrecked on the couch, then on the bed among three pillows until Saturday morning. Sleep escaped me again. This last weekend I forced myself out to The Habit in Glendale with Corey followed by some serious Monkey Ball boxing matches until midnight. That would be a total of two hours of air for the whole weekend eating around strangers who clapped at invisible objects or trucks awkwardly parked in handicap zones illegally. Enjoyable but strange. That's all I've done. well I did want to call you but I didn't. I cleaned. I wrote half sentences on ATM receipts. I did want to stop by the baby shower but I didn't. Scratch the laundry. Scratch Trader Joes. I shredded a bunch of papers documenting past actions of past mistakes. So what's getting me down? Well nothing. Well I do have to figure out how much of a car I can afford this week. Well I do have to buy a car in the next day or two. All I need is it to be small, at least two whee

stupid vodka

bad hang over = I can't even make through two hours at work today. I give up. I'm going home.

Star Wars Exhibit at the Science Center

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I forgot that I did this four days ago until I saw it mentioned on Kate Danley's LJ today. Yes I'm becoming forgetful in my old age. Yes I nerded out and visited the new Stars Wars exhibit at the California Science Center on Sunday. A quick rundown if you go: It is free (most exhibits are usually not - the Science Center is always free) Doors open at 10 - Get there by 9ish to avoid crowds Go during the week if possible If you're late you might as well buy those priority IMAX tickets to skip the standby line. I was there at 9.45 on opening day and walked straight in but a hour later the stand by line wasn't too long but the folks in it had to wait for the movie crowd to pass through the exhibit first. If you happen to attend the exhibit about the time the first movie was made (I saw it at the Yerba Buena Gardens in San Francisco and assume it traveled down here) you will be a bit disappointed; This one was smaller, had far less ship models and only the important cost

my did and did nots

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Monday: Did not go out. Did not watch 24. Did not drive to Costa Mesa for a show. Did share some vegan food and watched Shop Girl w/ a friend. Tuesday: Did not go to the premiere of Number 23 at the Orpheum as planned. (more interest in the theatre than the movie) Did eat pizza with a bottle of newcastle Did play super monkey ball for hours. Wednesday: Did not call some people for Valentines. Did not go to Kiss or Kill - some good bands and a Journey cover band with ronnie of the muffs - but I can't stand Journey! Journey + living in the Bay Area during their prime = my ears bleed. Did have pancakes for dinner and fell asleep on my couch all before 6.30pm Did receive a valentines from my mom with a Trader Joes gift card. Tonight to dos: Club Yoostuh Becool presents @ The Old Towne Pub 5 bucks, 21+ Bobot Adrenaline 9.30pm, The Dollyrots 10.00pm, Pu$$y-Cow 10.30pm, New Maximum Donkey 11 pm, Inazuma 11.30 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Audio Presents @ Three of Clubs, Hollywood 21+ -- Fr

Sprites - twee for valentines day

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For you bloggers I give you my favorite song of the day: Band: Sprites Song: I started a blog nobody read mp3 After the demise of the band Barcelona, singer Jason Korzen continued on now with his wife Amy and a revolving door of friends in the musical outfit Sprites. To counter the difficulty Jason had in composing with a set group of people, Sprites was intentionally set up to have fellow musicians "...come together in different arrangements, write songs together, perform, and hang out. Nobody should ever have to be kicked out. The band would never have to break up." The result is cute, lyrically songs with witty observations of love, life and that sense of wanting a girl that you intermittently say hi to smoking outside a show. The wonderful catbirdseat describes them as "mega-twee" so you've been forewarned. You can download a bunch of songs like one about director George Romero or a nifty cover of Flesh For Lulu's I Go Crazy ( youtube vid - this

Tomorrow is Valentine's Day

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Why does Valentine's Day have to be a big deal? Now I'm not saying that you shouldn't share your love, serious like, lust with that special someone in your life. As a total sap how could I deny that momentary joy from others? I love that crap as much as the next girl guy but does it really have to be mucked up with material objects? Roses - Why not an exotic plant in a container you picked out? If you think they absolutely have to be roses, well you suck and you're boring. Dinner - Making dinner is the ideal over a (hopefully reserved) table at the nicest joint in town, but how about doing a bonfire picnic at the beach? Bring a blanket - you might get lucky this year. Candy - I don't have a sweet tooth but some of you freaks do. Instead of chocolates, may I suggest hitting up some pastries from a cool bakery before buying that heart shape box at Target. Actually tell your woman that you bought pastries because candy is so over done in this country and then hit

Jessica Dobson 1.23.07

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[So here is my post based purely on memories and assumptions - rough draft ] This has been driving me nuts: Two weeks later and I still haven't figured out a song she covered at this Prospector show. If I was a proper blogger I would've taken a note pad, a writing utensil, and a camera. But I'm lazy and this isn't really a music review blog. So lacking these basic reviewing tools I did what any professional would do: Ordered a beer and pushed my way up for a better view of Jessica Dobson and her new backing band. I remember her starting with song I think was called Dixie Driver , then next to a reworked version of Tsunamo Japan Is Snowed In which stood out in a solo set a year ago on this same stage. For that show she covered a Smiths song on her guitar (I want to say it was Shyness is Nice Ask - damn I should have written that down) and this night she switched over to bass for what I think might or might not have been a Clash song.* I'm unsure how recent the mu

echo park log #36

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Two weeks ago: Sunday morning I was walking down my block to the car and ahead of me was a couple saying a late morning goodbye next to a silver Jetta. Her hands on his hips. His right hand cupped her cheek. As I moved closer down the sidewalk they repositioned their bodies and with a little push the young man swung her out into the street. The music swirled from a third floor apartment above as her body was pulled back in with a drifting down a playground slide laugh. I scanned the moment I walked into and saw only my smile reflected in the their little bubble of time.

not what I wanted to hear last night

Band: Midway Song: Off to School - Live at the Knitting Factory ---- not best video or song by them Why: Because I'm mourning the lost of my favorite band who [reportedly] fell apart this week. [unofficial = still hope?] ( youtube link )

Tonight at Kiss or Kill

Artist: The Mulhollands Song: Baby It's Alright Why: Well I wish the video was for the song "True Romance" ( mp3 ) instead, but oh well this short, somewhat redundant song will do for now. One of the old things brought back to Kiss or Kill this year is that nearly every band is booked after seeing them live at another venue. So tonight's Girl Fronted Band theme should be filled with some good sets by some bands I'm unfamiliar with. When I used to drive out 30+ miles every Tuesday to Zen, and later the Echo, there were times when I needed to sober up a bit and ended up catching a few bands that changed the evening from why did bother wasting gas to OMG! I haven't felt this stimulated since my last girlfriend did that special thing with marshmallows and chocolate to me. yes rock n roll was just as good as smores being stuck in my mouth. Tonight Kiss or Kill present @ Safari Sam's: The Mulhollands 12:30 The Press Fire 11:45-12:15 Killola 11:00-11:30 B

lalaland

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I think you're cool. Your friends say nice things about you.

It's only a state of mind

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Things have been odd lately. The good kind of odd and not even all that odd in the odd kind of way. Finally made it through my mental block just in time for a ton of work to land on my desk - A sales ad/artwork to be completed, refiling the files pulled for review, nag my Florida rep to break some knuckles over numerous past due accounts. All fun stuff. I feel like a whirlwind of files are going to whisk me away. Thing is that I know why I had this block, you might know why I had this block but I'm not going to go into here right now. Let's just say I've been drifting within this air current of uncertainty for the last few days - bumping along the clouds, missing the pockets of turbulence and having a wonderful time not knowing where I'm going to land. Liberating and yet scary because at some point you're going to land and it is only a matter of degree on how bumpy it will be. Saturday wasn't any different: went to the Vista for my first time to catch Pan's

one big ship

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Yeah I know the Queen Mary 2 was just here in Long Beach not so long ago and yes I know it is basically the largest passenger ship ever but seeing it slip under the Golden Gate Bridge gives one a good sense of scale - especially for us folks who grew up in the Bay Area. SF Gate Article with more pictures 5 minute quicktime video on sfgate.com here

Waiting

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I have blocks in my head. I'm fine, I'm quite happy. I'm just waiting for a sign I told my friend last night in the big buttoned purple coat. I could spend all day writing circles of words in my notebook, slowly working on four posts that will get done, trying to remember what it was like before these blocks crushed my thoughts. Trying to remember how a song can change my mood. Remembering how much fun band watching can be, or how people staring across the crowd isn't. "You're doing that staring thing again" she said last night. I was. There was a moment before leaving when I stood on the curb staring out into the parking lot last night and I couldn't think what to say or what to do next. People said nice things to me last night. Underwater City People made me get up front finally. You see I didn't know how to handle crowds or start a conversation last night and though not meant to be rude I ended a group conversation with "I need to go. I