I usually buy tickets to shows I really want to see (&, yes, there are MANY shows I REALLY want to see) the very moment they go on sale. I make notes in my planner, set alarms on my phone & am often online at 9:58am on Saturday morning refreshing my screen every 10 seconds until the sale officially begins. Occasionally, if I'm not 100% positive I'll be in town or there's some other reason I may possibly be unable to attend a concert announced a mere 3 months in advance, I decide to wait until 1-2 weeks before the show to start scouring Craigslist &, lately, when I've gone with that method of ticket purchase, I've been getting seriously hooked up.
Since Atmosphere (my favorite current hip hop group) was playing The Greek Theatre (my favorite outdoor venue in LA) on the last Friday of August, I wasn't sure I'd be able to go but, as August quickly drew to close, I realized I could go &, therefore, I needed tix. Luckily, I ended up getting a pair of pit tickets right up in front for only $100 total (face value). PLUS, I found THE nicest person I've EVER met on Craigslist who overnighted me a 2nd pair of 4th row tix (by far, the best seats I've ever had at The Greek) for FREE because she had to leave town for an emergency & had no way of collecting any money. This chick was simply a diehard fan who had seen Atmosphere 15x already & just wanted to be sure the tickets got used & appreciated. The tickets were more than appreciated. THANK YOU KELLY!!! Atmosphere was INCREDIBLE on Friday night! Just watch, listen & enjoy :-)
I haven't been lucky enough to have anyone submit a guest post in a long time so I'm extra stoked my fabulous co-worker Melanie sent me the following:
It had been a beautiful Saturday afternoon leading up to my night time festival excursion to Silverado Canyon and the nice weather lasted into the night. Did I say excursion? Maybe I was thinking of the last few festivals and big shows I went to in LA...or maybe I was thinking that because it was in the mountains..? However, one of the things that was special about Love Fest So Cal 2011, was the close proximity of it to my hood. Ten quick minutes of girl talk in the car into the canyon from my childhood home and we were there ( we really don't get a lot of visits from Felix Da Housecat in OC ;) ). That aside from the obvious that the whole thing took place in a gorgeous canyon surrounded by trees and mountains. Yet another beautiful facet of this Saturday night was that it was the night we were celebrating my best friend Tricia's birthday.
We walked into the show and almost instinctively skipped around over a few little hills. How could we not? There was a lot of wide open space, due to the show not being too packed yet, and we felt like kids again...kids turned loose in the park with slamming trance beating our faces in...it was time to make our way over to the 'Party For The People Stage'...to strip it of formality, the House stage. Time to get down to the business of getting our groove on.
Once we got settled in at our destination for most of the night Alex Kenji was just going up for his set. Hanging in the VIP area was pretty cool. We got to chill out on colorful fun shaped lounges and watch the hijinks of the crowd and photographers while also getting a pretty excellent view of the Djs. However cool it was to be close to them, it was also uncool to be only looking at their backs during the show so we did what we always do...we went to the front.
Alex Kenji's set was full of a really fun energy. He seemed so happy and he danced a lot while spinning. Djs who rock out have always held a special place in my heart and I have to say that I was extremely impressed. I had heard AK tracks before and thought they were upbeat and fun, but live I felt his playful dancey vibe even more ….and I liked it.
Next up was Funka-frickin-genda. I was stoked and the crowd roared as he took the stage so I could tell everyone else was too. I listened super hard, but I didn't hear 'What the Fuck...Oh well, its kinda played, but really I consider it having been long enough to throw back to that shit, can you blame me? No, you can't...that track is awesome. Regardless of the lack of WTF, Funkagenda rocked it. He went from super euro at the beginning to a point in the middle of the set where it was sounding real gritty underground LA Techno-esque. Since I am a regular at underground parties that made me feel right at home. Hard hitting house was next up on the funk-agenda..building up for you know who...Thee Real FDHC himself who was arriving back stage ….right next to Tricia and I, and proceeding right past us to take his place on the stage within moments of his arrival.
The crackling of what sounded like a sample from an old answering machine cassette poured out of the speakers as Felix started to do his thing. The whole beginning of the set seemed like an amalgam of esoteric vocal samples and housey beats. It was very new and different from many of his sets I have seen, especially at festival concerts, and then the beats got hard as fuck. Soon we were shaking our booties to Felix's mix of Depeche Mode's 'Personal Jesus' which led into 'Silver Screen Shower Scene' , a mix I'll never forget... the hoots and hollers ensued. We were screaming our little throats out and loving every moment of Felix's set. He always rocks it, and we always love it. Felix ended his set with yet another of my favorite tracks...Mr. Fingers 'Can you Feel It'. Needless to say, we were 100% jacked/rocked/whatever you want to call it. Floored by the awesomeness of Felix's set and this whole amazing party in the mountains down the street from my house. MY HOUSE...down the street from my house...it was pretty darn sick.
After that we were hanging around at the VIP bars and going back and forth between the stages and VIP areas checking out Nic Fanciulli, Paul Oakenfold, Junior Sanchez, Matt Darey, and LA Riots. We caught some awesome moments at each one of the sets and made friends with some of the other concert goers which was fun and funny. I didn't know until that night that Donald Duck, Mickey Mouse, and Hello Kitty are all House fans...I'm serious, people attended the show in giant character costumes.
Tricia's Bday celebration was a success. We seriously jacked our bodies all night long to hard beats from some of the phattest Djs on the planet. Including Chicago's own Felix Da Housecat, my unrivaled favorite artist (did I mention that yet? ;P ). Right on Trish, without your birthday we wouldn't have rocked out under the stars in a canyon all night in the company of a bunch of sweaty heads with smiles from ear to ear wearing either huge costumes or nothing but pasties, a thong and furry raver boots. The outdoor vibe kept things low key though and the negative aspect of the rave scene definitely chose to stay home that night, cause we didn't see any of it! Yay for good Bday karma and festival concerts close to home with amazing acts coming through. I'm definitely looking forward to more awesome shows (including Love Fest 2012) being held at this new venue.
The Ross Sea Party’s August residency at The Silverlake Lounge is almost over! DON’T MISS the 5ht & final show on Monday night!
MONDAY, AUGUST 29TH
9 – The Smiles
10 – LA Font
11 – The Ross Sea Party
12 – The Hectors
with special DJ set by Chuck P from KCRW
Then be sure to see RSP headlining my 1st live music event production, Vibe Fest, on Saturday, October 8th at The Vibe Hotel on Hollywood Boulevard. You will NOT be disappointed ;-)
De La Soul & A Tribe Called Quest are my top two favorite old school hip hop groups. I still have them both on heavy rotation on my iPod & their countless classic tracks are always a hit a parties. You just can't go wrong with a little Check The Rhyme, Dog Eat Dog or Me, Myself & I.
Because I love De La Soul SOOO much, I couldn't help but purchase tickets to their 8/19 show at The Hollywood Palladium (aka The Rock Boxx Tour) the very weekend they went on sale way back in May. I wasn't as concerned about seeing Z-Trip &, at the time, I didn't even realize Nosaj Thing (who I've seen a couple times now) was going to be on the bill but that was certainly a pleasant surprise!
It turned out Nosaj Thing was WAY better than I recalled him being the last 2x I saw him (once at The Airliner & once at the El Rey) then De La Soul fuckin KILLED IT (as expected because they ALWAYS do) &, finally, Z-Trip actually kinda impressed me. Nosaj Thing's music is primarily his own original music that he creates as he goes while Z-Trip is more like a party DJ who mashes up all kinds of popular old songs by artists like Beastie Boys, Jurassic Five, Black Star & Black Sheep.
"Engine, engine number 9, on the New York transit line. If that train falls off the track, pick it up, pick it up, pick it up!"
Ever since I wasn't able to get into the main room at The Natural History Museum on the 1st First Friday of 2011 to see Little Dragon, I've been 100% obsessed with them & their album Machine Dreams. Then, in July, when their latest album Ritual Union came out, I fell even deeper into love...especially with their sexy lead singer Yumiki. I was yet to actually see them live so I spent months counting down the days until I'd get to see them for my very 1st time at Outside Lands in SF on August 14th.
Shortly before, Outside Lands, Little Dragon announced a special record release show that would take place at The Roxy on Sunset Boulevard in LA on Monday, August 15th. A normal music fan would've said to themselves, "It's all good. I'm seeing Little Dragon the afternoon before in San Francisco. No need to to see them 2 times in 2 days" But, alas, I'm far from normal when it comes to concerts so I couldn't resist ordering a pair of tix to the show at The Roxy the moment they went on sale. Thank god I did that because the show sold out in less than an hour & 449 VERY lucky fans were treated to an intimate performance by Little Dragon on August 15th. It was HOT...both literally & metaphorically. I was sweating my ass off.
After seeing Little Dragon at The Roxy so up close & personal, I realized that the set I caught at Outside Lands was merely a preview. In SF, their stage was PACKED, I was pretty far away & the sun was in my eyes so I could barely see anything. LD still put on a great show & the crowd (myself included) was really into but it was NOTHING like Monday night.
Because I need to run off to another show right at this very moment, all I'm going to say is that Little Dragon is SPECTACULAR live. They're like an electronic jam band (which I never really realized before) & Yumiki is just unreal. Everyone MUST SEE a Little Dragon concert! Check it out...
So my 2011 multi-day music festival binge is finally over &, although that kinda bums me out, I’m really looking forward to NOT flying out of town for a music festival this weekend. And losing my shit last night at Little Dragon at The Roxy AND having De La Soul & Z Trip coming up on Friday at The Hollywood Palladium both certainly help distract from my usual post-festival depression. Of course, I still have several single day fests left on my 2011 calendar (FYF Fest on 9/3, Identity Fest on 9/4 & my very own VIBE FEST on 10/8!) but going balls to the walls at a fest for one day is a hell of a lot easier than doing it for 3 or 4 days.
I promise I’m not complaining about all of the AMAZING multi-day festivals I’ve attended this year (Coachella, Sasquatch, Lollapalooza & Outside Lands) but I must admit that the last day is always a little bit of a struggle. Once you’ve rallied & gotten yourself back into the show though, your adrenaline usually kicks in & you don’t feel the utter exhaustion again until the next day. I’m still pretty sore & bruised from Outside Lands this past weekend in Golden Gate Park but it’s the kind of soreness you’re proud of…like you just ran a marathon or something. I just completed a music festival marathon & now its time to relish in the memories :-)
My favorite acts of the weekend included Phantogram, Toro Y Moi, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Phish, The Shins, Arctic Monkeys, Sia, Muse, Major Lazer, Little Dragon, STS9 & Deadmau5 (who had RAD visuals &, by far, THE most wild & fun dancing crowd of the weekend).
I managed to catch the very last song of Arcade Fire’s set which was great but, unfortunately, that was all I was able to see because I couldn’t bring myself to leave Deadmau5. He was just straight-up KILLING IT. Luckily, I’ve seen Arcade Fire 3x already & know I’ll be seeing them again but I still slightly resent the Outside Lands schedulers for putting Deadmau5 & Arcade Fire on at the same time. Scheduling conflicts are a regular problem at big festivals so I’m used to it by now but it still always sucks. On the bright side, you can pretty much always guarantee that, even if you’ve had to make a painful sacrifice, you’ve done it for a good reason &, no matter which set you’re watching, you’re still having a fuckin blast & THAT is all that matters.
Phantogram – Mouthful of Diamonds
Phantogram – NEW SONG!!!
Toro Y Moi
Orgone
MGMT
Clap Your Hands Say Yeah
Dave Chappelle covering for Big Boi who, after making everyone wait well over an hour, NEVER even went on! I’m SO happy I eventually gave up & went to see Phish instead. I can’t believe I even waited that long! Not cool, Big Boi…not cool :-P
PHISH!!!
The Shins
Arctic Monkeys
Sia
Muse #1
Muse #2
Sound Tribe Sector 9 (STS9)
Little Dragon – Ritual Reunion ***KEEP AN EYE OUT for my post about Little Dragon’s 8/15 show at The Roxy on Sunset that will be up tomorrow. I got MUCH better footage ;-)
When I went to Chicago for my very 1st time for NYE 2011, I loved it SO very much that I vowed I’d be back as soon as possible. My friends informed me Lollapalooza’s 20th anniversary was coming up so, by January 1st 2011, I had already decided I was definitely travelling back to Chitown in August. By early February, I’d already booked my flights from LA to Chicago &, the moment Lollapalooza 2011 tickets went on sale, I immediately ordered my 3-day pass. I was excitedly awaiting August 5th through the 7th for over 7 months &, after just returning from Chicago late Monday night, I can say, without a doubt, that Lollapalooza 2011 exceeded all of my expectations & more. It was, as my dear friend Sarah (who’s currently & temporarily residing in Chicago) so often says, AMAZEBALLS.
After accidentally getting to LAX 2 hours early only to end up with my flight an hour delayed (I generally prefer to push my airport arrivals to the very last minute in order to keep things interesting), I didn’t get to Midway Airport in Chicago until 12:30am on Thursday night/Friday morning. Since all my friends who live in the city either don’t have cars OR have cars but don’t drive them, I was forced to splurge on a $50 cab ride to my friend’s apartment near Wrigley Field.
It’d been a long day but I was still on Pacific Time so I didn’t fall asleep until ~4am which led to me sleeping in until almost noon on Friday! There was no way I was going to catch The Naked & Famous' set at 1:30pm on Day 1 but I was OK with that because I rarely make the 1st act I want to see each day at a festival. I knew I'd for sure get into Grant Park before Foster The People started at 3pm &, since FTP were my 1st MUST SEE band of the weekend, I wasn't too concerned about missing The Naked & Famous (ALTHOUGH I did hear they were really good so they've now secured a top spot on my current to-see list).
After walking only 1/3 of a mile from my friend's apartment to the train station, I quickly & easily caught the L Line straight to Grant Park. I was a little bummed to be cruising to the fest alone since most of my Chicago friends had to work on Friday but the only reason that bothered me was because I didn't have a festival crew to preparty with. Luckily, I knew several different groups of people were also going to be at Day 1 so that meant I had people to meet up with once I arrived. I don't mind being alone at a festival here & there as long as I know I'm not going to be alone the WHOLE time. It's actually kind of nice to occasionally be on my own because then I can stage hop as much as I want & I don't have to cater to anyone else's needs except my own. I tend to be a little selfish at music festivals but I always try to warn everyone ahead of time so no one thinks I'm a bitch...hopefully ;-)
But I digress...within 10 minutes of walking through the festival's main entrance on Friday, I managed to find my friend Tucker from LA next to the big, beautiful fountain situated smack dab in the middle of Grant Park. From there, we walked over to Foster The People's stage & posted up for about 15 minutes before FTP started their set right on time at 3pm. My 1st Lollapalooza experience was officially underway.
Now, I could go on forever about everything I loved about Lollapalooza 2011 but, since I took SO many photos & videos, I figure those will pretty much speak for themselves. In a nutshell though, some of my favorite parts of the festival included the breathtaking city views, the music (obviously), all the AMAZING gourmet food provided by the uber famous chef Graham Eliot (the lobster corn dog was to die for!), getting caught in not one but TWO torrential downpours on Sunday (& still managing to save both my phone AND my camera!), watching everyone play in the mud & stare at rainbows after the rain, etc, etc.
Some of the best acts of the weekend included The Kills (I <3 Alison Mosshart SO much! She is SUCH a badass!), A Perfect Circle, Afrojack, Muse, Coldplay (they were awesome...there, I said it), Local Natives, Ween, Lykke Li, Atmosphere, MY MORNING JACKET (who played on the main stage with THE most beautiful city skyline backdrop & BLEW MY MIND for the 7th time...tying LCD Soundsystem for the most times I've ever seen one artist), Arctic Monkeys, Modeselektor, Deadmua5 & Kid Cudi.
I am finally IN CHICAGO & SO READY for my 1ST LOLLAPALOOZA EVER starting tomorrow at noon! Who will I be seeing tomorrow? Oh, you know, just The Naked & Famous, Delta Spirit, Foster The People, The Kills, A Perfect Circle, Afrojack, Muse, Girl Talk, Ratatat & MAYBE a lil bit of Coldplay...IF I can stage hop as well as I hope I can. We will see! I'm SO excited!!!
Don't miss The Ross Sea Party at Silverlake Lounge every Monday this month! Then, be sure to catch them at Vibe Fest at The Vibe Hotel on Hollywood Boulevard on Saturday, October 8th! :-) :-) :-)
There's something about taking music-loving friends to The Hollywood Bowl for their first time that gives me an enormous sense of pride & self-satisfaction. I swear I don't do it entirely for selfish purposes but it's definitely a win-win.
On Sunday night, I took 2 buddies who were visiting from Vegas to see Ziggy Marley at The Hollywood Bowl's annual Reggae Night for my 3rd year running. We bought $20 tix on our walk in from the 1 scalper we could find who wasn't trying to rip us off &, although we ended up in a section in the very back, we managed to get seats in the front row of that section so we had nothing blocking our view & plenty of room to spread out.
The overall vibe in The Bowl was super mellow & happy (I can't imagine why...haha) & everyone had SO much fun singing along to all the Bob Marley classics that were covered. My friends LOVED The Bowl & I think they left LA quite pleased with me for taking them :-)
