A few weeks ago, me & the BFF went to check out a show that was very nostalgic for us... Redd Kross.
In the late 80's and early 90's, I used to drive from Berkeley to LA to see Redd Kross with my BFF all the time. Sure, they came to the Bay too, and I'd see them there, but to see them in LA with my friends was way better. We love, love loved them, and every show was a blast. The McDonald Brothers had this long, beautiful hair which they rocked with wild abandon. They would bust out into the most unexpected covers at any moment, tell crazy stories and hilarious jokes, and then hit us with their yowling bubblegum punk and we always left with hot, sweaty smiles on our faces.
The last show they did at the Echoplex on November 2nd was no exception. Even though no one's hair was as long (or in some cases, existent), and the were no covers, and not as many jokes... There was still silliness and rock. The busted out stuff they hadn't done in forever ("Linda Blair!"), and played them chronologically. And when you thought they were through, they started all over again with a new set! So, once again, we left with hot, sweaty smiles on our faces.
Here's a clip of one of the tracks they did - except that this is a fuzzy old video of them in their wild tressed glory. It's for "I'll Blow You A Kiss In The Wind."
And here's a clip of the original version. See why Redd Kross are such geniuses? Swoooooooon...
I'm not the only one who likes Ms. Jones, it turns out... Her show at the El Rey next Tuesday is sold out, and I got to give away all my tix on Little Radio last night. Thanks so much for writing in! She is a blast live, I can't wait!
And now, the playlist:
Little Radio Playlist 11/26/07
Shark Fin Blues - The Drones Speed & Sleep (acoustic) - Kristin Hersh Freak Scene - Dinosaur Jr. Malibu '69 - Grant McLennan Suddenly Upside Down - Oranger Reckoner - Radiohead Polar Bear - Ride Starman - David Bowie Smoke - Dimmer Nights Are Long - Intramural Traffic Boom - Piero Piccioni Spreadin' Honey - The Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band Dead End Street - Lou Rawls The Wrong Way - TV On the Radio This Land Is Your Land - Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings Tell Me - Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings Got To Be The Way It Is - Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings How Long Do I Have To wait For You (Ticklah remix) - Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings 100 Days, 100 Nights - Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings To hell With Poverty - Gang of Four Romantic Rights - Death From Above 1979 Feel Good Hit of the Summer - Queens of the Stone Age Double Vision - The Ponys Country Girl - Primal Scream Foolin' Around - Patsy Cline Brown Eyed Handsome Man - Wanda Jackson Give Back the Key To My Heart - Uncle Tupelo Up On Cripple Creek - The Band Red Eye To Nashville - The Brillantines Shake Sugaree - Mary Lou Lord & Elliott Smith Think - Lyn Collins
I'm giving away tickets to see the amazing Miss SHARON JONES on Little Radio during my show this Monday. Tune in for details, and tons of great music!
The Sharon Jones show will be Tuesday, December 4th at the El Rey. If you've never seen her, then for God's sake - GO! They don't call her the female James Brown for nothin'!
Read a really cool interview I got to do with her here.
The Mo Show Mondays 6-8pm PST (9pm EST, 3am Tuesday in Berlin and 1pm Tuesday in Sydney) LittleRadio.com
And once I'm done at Little Radio, I'm gonna get my ass over to The Thought Gallery on Cahuenga, next door to the Burgundy Room in Hollywood, to check out Torrance Stonewall Jackson. He's got a voice that shivers me timbers - and will shiver yours too. Check him out - it's free and fantastic!
I'm getting my playlist from tonight's show up quickly. Because you guys asked, and thank you for doing so! It's nice to know folks are out there listening. Well, folks other than my Dad (thanks Padre!).
So here 'tis:
Little Radio Playlist 11/19/07
Band On the Run - Foo Fighters Ockham's Razor - The Mint Chicks Check It Out - Komeda He's A Mover - Nikki & The Corvettes Hey Sailor - The Detroit Cobras Annie's Gone - Redd Kross Careless Whisper - The Gossip Spy - Intramural Kitty In The Middle - The Presets The Dreaming - Kate Bush Boyz - M.I.A. Sweet Talk - Spank Rock Go Places - The New Pornographers She Goes To Bed - Jason Falkner When My Baby's Beside Me - Big Star Death & he Maiden - The Verlaines The Killing Moon - Echo & The Bunnymen What A Bam Bam - Derrick Morgan Swing & Dine - The Melodians Cupid - Amy Winehouse Young Americans - David Bowie Spooky - Dusty Springfield In The Mausoleum - Beirut Gypsy's Curse - Calexico Arrow To My Drunken Eye - Carla Bozulich City of Sleep - Great Northern Ghosts - Japan Dirty Little Secret - Carolyn Mark & the Roommates Dumb - Tim Rogers & the temperance Union Teenage FBI - Guided By Voices
Well, it went something like that. I don't know - I realized I forgot to write down the Redd Kross track, so I put it where I think it goes. We'll all have to wait for the podcast to be sure. That damn newfangled webcam has thrown me off my game!
Tune in every week! The Mo Show Mondays 6-8pm PST LittleRadio.com
I suppose it was actually the Walt Disney Hall last Friday night, for a lovely night of Bittersweet Country with Neko Case. At least that's how it was billed.
It was Neko playing songs in the round (I guess that's how you see things in this particular space) and having to explain each one before performing... It was a songwriter's series, you see, and the LA Phil required those invited to 'fess up a bit about the lyrics. Neko Case is not exactly a linear writer these days, tending to represent several perspectives within a single song without much to clue you in.
I rarely remember what is performed at shows I go to - I think I'm just too "in the moment" or something - but here's what I remember about this. "Favorite" was the first song she wrote completely on her own and it was about a dream where Fate is your friend but causes bad things to happen to you anyway. "Star Witness" is about a boy walking through his neighborhood and the things he sees and hears along the way. "Hold On Hold On" is about being a feeling lame for being single. "Lady Pilot" is about how she was on a scary flight once, but found out there was a lady pilot so she figured everything would be okay. "I Wish I Was The Moon" is about her dad, and "Dirty Knife" is based on a story her Ukranian grandmother told her.
That's how I remember it, and I'm probably not totally right, but hey - that's memory for you. Besides, I was pretty "in the moment," because it was pretty "awesome."
Here's a clip from a show I got to see in my hometown (or right next door) at the Belly Up tavern in Solana Beach last February, doing one of my absolute favorites, "Favorite."
Southern California doesn't really have seasons... it's either hot, cold, dry or wet. Sure, I can't wear miniskirts and shorts every day right now, but I can still wear t-shirts and the occasional hoodie, you know? And then this week, we have another lovely heatwave. This is soooooo easy on my wardrobe...
But you really just want to know what I played on my radio show the other night, right? Here goes!
Little Radio Playlist 11/12/07
Bliss In Concrete - Pelican Raleigh - Arcwelder Rocks Off - The High Society NYC 73 - The High Society Ice Cream Song - The Dynamics Could I Be Right - On The Speakers Move Over - Betchadupa From the Ground - Intramural Wanderlust - The Delays Hideaway - Comet Gain Our Secrets - im, Son of james Lovesick - Lisa Germano My Favorite Book - Stars Time Stands Still - Cut Copy Fancy Footwork - Chromeo This Is Helena - OMD Easier To Say - Betty LaVette Why (Am I Treated So Bad) - The Sweet Inspirations God Will Dry My Weeping Eyes - The Horace Family Hard To Handle - Patty Drew True Love Pt. 2 - X Monkey david Wine - David Allen Coe Saint John - Cold War Kids My own Blood - Luther Russell Christian in Black - Rogue Wave The Crane Wife 3 - The Decemberists A Hint of Blood - Mobius Band Bad Penny - Big Black Boychucker - Rocket from the Crypt
If you wanna check it out yourself, go here to download the show.
Tune in every week! The Mo Show Mondays 6-8pm PST LittleRadio.com
Last Friday, Raquel & I went to see M.I.A. The thing I think I liked best about this show was M.I.A.'s ability to make white people act like dorks. Really. The place was not as packed with hipsters as I thought (M.I.A. is just sooooo 2004) altough there were a few American Apparel rejects strutting their gold spandex tube top stuff.
When M.I.A. & gang hit the stage, it was full on third world glamfest. Anyone who's done a bit of traveling, has family from another country (a non -European one), or has wandered over to Telemundo has seen it: Girls in tight shiny outfits shaking their asses and yelling, hoodies and sunglasses and fancy lights along with stage projections of street dancing and even more booty shots than you see in a T-Pain video.
That was the M.I.A. show - pushed full force onto an appreciative audience of white people who danced like fools and sang loudly as if they knew the all the words and pumped their fists and shot their fingers in the air whenever the keyboards blasted a gunshot sound effect.
It was a damn good time.
(And here's a clip from her at Lollapalooza... not even close to last Friday, but still fun for sure.)
It's finally gotten nippy in the air, the sun is hiding behind the clouds, and the music is getting melodramatic and dreamy. Kinda. Well, see for yourself:
Little Radio Playlist 11/5/07
This Time - The Drones Panic in Detroit - David Bowie If It Was Good Enough For Daddy - Clarence Reid Give It Up Or Turn it Loose - Lyn Collins I Know It's Wrong - All Smiles Love's lost uarantee - Rogue Wave All The Miles - Amy Millan No Mater Where You Go... - Blanche My Pal - Peabody Linda Blair - Redd Kross I Wanna Be Adored - The Stone Roses Maze of Love - Dave Clark Five How Does it Feel - The Creation Try A Little Sunshine - Factory Cosmic Sea - Mystic Moods Barracuda - Miho Hatori Pretend - Paula Frazer & Tarnation Blame You - Edith Frost A New England - Billy Bragg Nobody Cares - Sarabeth Tucek Brunettes Against Bubblegum Youth - The Brunettes Steady Boyfriend - April Young Do You Wanna Hold Me - Bow Wow Wow Hook & Sling - Eddie Bo You've Been Gone Too Long - Ann Sexton Your Thing Ain't No Good Without My Thing - Marie "Queenie" Lyons Soul Dressing - Booker T & the MG's Nantes - Beirut Rocket - Intramural Love's Easy Tears - Cocteau Twins Tomorrow Never Knows - Beatles Hack It Off - Barkmarket
And guess what? It got posted right away, so go here to download the show.
Tune in every week! The Mo Show Mondays 6-8pm PST LittleRadio.com
Uni and I had a nice little time on Little Radio last night... She came by with her special ukelele friend Sally Luka all the way from the shimmering forest of San Francisco and played a couple songs for us before getting ready for her Glamtrak tour. Yep - playing shows anywhere Amtrak stops in the U.S. of A. Whoa! Check out Uni's MySpace page here for some tunes and download the Little Radio show here. It's great fun!
And here's what else went down:
Little Radio Playlist 10/29/07
Everyday Weapon - The Ponys Black Mountain - Isobel Campbell & Mark Lanegan Explain - Sarah Blasko Know You Now - The Someloves Shine a Light - Wolf Parade I Changed My Mind - Quannum feat. Lyrics Born Running Out - Mable John Georgia Morning Dew - Johnny Adams You're Gonna Miss Me - Ann Sexton Lonely Just Like Me - Arthur Alexander
UNI & HER UKELELE INTERVIEW!!
The Middle - Great Northern What's Your Take On Cassavetes - Le Tigre Catholic Block - Sonic youth Hippy Dippy Do - Rocket from the Crypt My Baby Left Me - Wanda Jackson Nights Are Long - Intramural Lilly White - Rocky Votolato Black Leather Coat - Luther Russell Sometimes I Feel So Lonely - Primal Scream Gray Skies (You & Me) - Jim, Son of James Big John Jeeter - Snatch & The Poontangs Voices Inside (Everything Is Everything) - Donnie Hathaway The Day I Found Myself - Honey Cone The Bitterest Pill (I Ever Had To Swallow) - The Jam Perfect Skin - Lloyd Cole & The Commotions Celluloid Heroes - The Kinks
And thanks for tuning in, downloading, just being there!
She's a lovely L.A. based Americana singer, with an amazing voice and equally amazing songs. Just listen and see if you don't fall in love, while simultaneously wanting to get rip roaring drunk and then cry to your dog about it. Beautiful stuff.
I was lucky enough to have her as a guest on my Little Radio show last Monday, so download it here.
And here is the playlist for the show:
Little Radio Playlist 10/22/07
Something Strange Happens - The Orange Peels A Man Like Me - Beulah Winter Windows - Sea Wolf Cliquot - Beirut Details of the War - Clap Your Hands Say Yeah Allergic - Ken Andrews This Is A Landslide - Intramural 15 Step - Radiohead All the Way to Her - Dimmer It's A Shame - Desmond Dekker Make Me Yours - Phyllis Dillon I Want To Go Home - Derrick Morgan Can't You See - Ken Boothe What's Happening Brother - Marvin Gaye Lewis IV - Lewis Taylor I've Just Seen A Face - The Beatles 37 Hours - Kristin Hersh Wolves (Song of the Shepherd Dog) - Iron & Wine Roll On The Rusted days - Howlin' Rain Outta Mind (Outta Sight) - Wilco Fido - The Byrds Hands On The Wheel - Carla Bozulich (with Willie Nelson)
SALLY JAYE INTERVIEW!!
Skinny Boy - Amy Millan The World I Used to Be Afraid Of - Blanche Shuffle Your Feet - Black Rebel Motorcycle Club
And that's all, folks!
Remember to tune in every Monday from 6-8pm PST, at Little Radio.
I grew up in San Diego, which is pretty much totally on fire right now.
Some of my friend's families have been evacuated, but considering that a quarter of a million people have been evacuated in San Diego County, that isn't so surprising. The mayor told folks not to go to work today and even asked people not to use their cell phones so as to leave valuable carrier space available.
My family is good right now; they live close to the coast and should be ok. My dad sent the above image (he's a science teacher) so we could get a grasp on it. Here in Silverlake, we're just getting the haze from the Malibu fires. But my friend's dad, also on the coast, took a picture of the sun, so you can get an idea of what the air quality is like at the beach in Encinitas today...
Get your oxygen masks, everyone, it's gonna be a long one...
The Mo Show on Mondays kicked off this week and it was, of course, alot of fun. Even though my naked friend didn't show up. Sigh...
Little Radio Playlist 10/15/07
I Don't Want Nobody to Lead Me On- The Dynamics Woman of the Ghetto - Marlena Shaw I'll Take Care of You - Sterling Harrison Wedlock Is A Padlock - Laura Lee The Living Kind - Ups & Downs Catapult - R.E.M. Anything Could Happen - The Clean My Little Rad Book - Love La Nostra Favola - Jimmy Fontana Desdemona - John's Children Holy Chord - Dappled Cities English Roundabout - XTC Sunshine Smile - Adorable Selina's Melodie Fountain - Serena Maneesh Island In The Sun - The Paragons Tuane - Hammer I'm A Man - Spencer Davis Group Bossa Beat - Franco De Gemini & Alessandroni Laisse Tomber Les Filles - France Gall One Way Ticket To Nowhere - David Allen Coe The Heathen Song - Kill Devil Hills You Love Me - DeVotchka The Grand tour - George Jones Needlepoint - Intramural Stray - Lush She Speeds - The Straightjacket Fits Come In Out of the Rain - Engineers Lying - Martina Topley-Bird Disco 1 - The Mess Hall Women (Make You Feel Alright) - The Easybeats Out of Control - The Lime Spiders Just One Look - The Hollies
So catch the show next Monday, when I'll be interviewing a fantastic local Americana artist, Sally Jaye. I heart her.
The Mo Show... on MO-ndays! 6-8pm PST (9pm EST, 3am Tuesday in Berlin and 1pm Tuesday in Sydney) Little Radio .com
When I lived in Berkeley. There was a Naked Guy. Well, to be honest, there were lots of naked guys and gals, usually older ones that you don't really want to see naked, but... well... it was Berkeley.
There was one guy in particular (his name was Andrew, I think) who was a student at Cal and used to do everything naked. Buying books, going to class, at home, whatever. It became a big deal, causing the campus to set up regulations and such. I mostly didn't want to sit anywhere he had sat, you know? Ew.
I heard he had drug problems and died. I know the drug part is true, not sure about the dead part. The Naked Guy came to mind recently as I've been encountering my own naked guy.
A couple months ago while leaving the Little Radio warehouse, Jimmy and I encounter a naked guy. I saw him first as I was walking out, and there was a naked man standing between the two dumpsters across the street. I couldn't see a lick of clothing anywhere, and he was playing with himself in an absent minded way. Spaced out. I turned to Jimmy and said, "Naked guy - across the street." Jimmy said, "Oh yea. That guy wanders around here, but he usually has clothes on." "Does he seems like he wants us to watch?" I said. "No," Jimmy replied,"He seems kind of out of it, actually."
We continued talking outside, my back to the guy, when Jimmy said, "Okay, now that's weird." "The guy?" "Yea, I'm not sure what he's doing. Probably we should go." And so we did. When I got home, I told my roommate about it and said, "The whole thing totally reminded me of Berkeley."
Last Thursday, as I drove up to Little Radio, I parked and started to wrap up a conversation that I was having with my mom. There was a guy up the street, leaning against the wall under the light, who started walking away. I was sitting in my car, about to get out, when I noticed the guy was walking up towards the dumpsters across from me. "Oh, great..." I thought. "A weirdo." I got of the phone with my mom and glanced over to see he was now standing in the street with his pants down, shirt up, sneakers on, actively pursuing that most solo of all solo activities... jerking off.
I called Jimmy: "Do me a favor and come down here as soon as possible." Jimmy swung open the door and the guy backed behind the dumpster. "Naked guy!" I said, knowing that it was the same dude (guess I remembered the equipment). I haven't seen him again, but we know he'll be back. He must have figured out that girls hang out at Little Radio.
I'm not leaving LA (although I do miss my beloved Bay Area terribly), but I am moving time slots. on Little Radio, that is.
So check it:
NEW DAY AND TIME!!!
Mo MONDAYS! 6-8pm PST (9pm EST, 3am Tuesdays in Berlin and 1pm Tuesdays in Sydney) LittleRadio.com
Tune in and feel the love.
So here's the playlist for my last Thursday show.
Little Radio Playlist 10/11/07
The Great Stack-A-Lee - Snatch & The Poontangs (aka The Johnny Otis Show) Funkorgy - Funkafreak 15 Step - Radiohead Polar Bear - Ride Inside Out - The Mighty Lemon Drops Secret Spy Plane - Virginia Dare Halah - Mazzy Star Golden Thing - Throwing Muses Yr Mangled Heart - The Gossip Go Tell The Woman - Grinderman Nights Are Long - Intramural Hey you - Sarabeth Tucek Diane - Helen Stellar A Gentle Sound - The Railway Children A Year From Now - Blanche Get Thee Gone - The Geraldine Fibbers Portland, Oregon - Loretta Lynn (and Jack White) Peaches - The Stranglers Pushing Up The Daises - The Colourfield Mount Wroclai (Idle Days) - Beirut Something's Changed - Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings Proud Woman - Johnny Adams You Did Me Wrong (You Used Me For A Good Thing) - Priscilla Price Love Ritual - Al Green Right On - Ray Barretto Letter To An Old Dog - Sun (Rafael Toral Mix) This Is A Landslide - Intramural Devastation - The Besnard lakes May Tomorrow Be A Perfect Day - Donny & Marie Osmond
This was a farewell, and a bit of an Intramural special. But I'll write more on that later...
Well, I saw so much music last month, that OF COURSE I had to play it! Once I finally got back to Little Radio, that is.
Little Radio Playlist 10/4/07
P.A.C.O. - Ladytron Disco Infiltrator - LCD Soundsystem XR2 - M.I.A. Fly Me to The Moon - Lyn Collins It's A Shame - The Spinners Sara Smile - Hall & Oates Nude As The News - Cat Power How I Came To Know - Lois Maffeo & Brendan Canty Twinkle Twinkle - Uni & Her Ukelele Poor Poor Pitiful Me - Linda Ronstadt Methamphetamine Blues - Mark Lanegan No More Now - The Smoke Circles -You Am I Kiss Me Deadly - Generation X Official Suburbian Superman - Suzi Quatro 7 Heures De Matin - Jacqueline Taieb Laisse Tomber Les Filles - France Gall Les Filles Cest Fait (Pour Faire L'Amour) - Charlotte Leslie Les Rois Mages - Sheila J'aime Les Filles - Jacques Dutronc Every Word Means No - Let's Active Georgia You Were Right - Sally Jaye She's Got You - Patsy Cline If You Were Alien - The Brunettes Telling Lies - Great Northern Wake Up - Arcade Fire Hook and Sling - Edie Bo Adeniji - The Budos Band Let's Go (It's Summertime) - James Reese & the Progressions The Lighthouse - Interpol
Stay tuned... we'll have some fun guests this month. I hope!
You know, there were a lot of shows to see this past September. And, lucky me, I got to see bunches!
My month got off to a soulful start, as I went with my Amoeba alums up to the Hollywood Bowl on a chartered school bus to see the Spinners open for Hall & Oates.
As we drove up, there was a posse of young men walking in with curly dark hair and Oates moustaches, which drew hearty applause from us geeks. The Spinners started up, and everyone knew every song. The dancing was good, although not particularly synchronized (and I'm talking about the well dressed men on stage - maybe they just forgot the moves?). Hall & Oates? Amazing. How Daryl Hall can sing the way he does is a small miracle - talk about blue eyed soul! The show ended somewhat abruptly - there was no encore - and I read later that hall wasn't feeling too hot. Well, you couldn't tell, and evidently I was the only one who was okay with the fact that "Private Eyes" was left off the setlist that night. The Amoeba kids got our section singing an enthusiastic rendition of it to make up for that fact.
Back on the 11th, I was whisked off by my pal Buzz for some Art Brut. He had made me see them at Coachella a couple years ago, and although I thought the album was okay, I fell in love with the live show. This evening was no exception. We bounced happily on the floor while Eddie Argos ranted in his calculated British way about girls, drinking, and Morissey. Among other things. I LOVE that guy. Brains turn me on, evidently.
The next night was the continuing Buddy residency at the lovely Bordello (formerly Little Pedro's) downtown. Buddy is a star of the local Hotel Cafe crowd, and it was great to see him there out of his element. First on the bill was the lovely Sally Jaye, an Americana singer with more than a touch of Hope Sandoval in her - I swear that if you added more reverb to some of her songs, you'd have Mazzy Star. Her voice is beautiful and inviting, and even from the stage she makes you feel like you're her best friend at a cozy dinner.
Everest, local sensitive rockers, rounded out the bill with intensely catchy new stuff, previewing their upcoming album. These indie-country-ish guys are heading into quite an October... The Autumn Fest in Big Sir and Neil Young's revered Bridge School benefit concerts are next on their list, with a new full length any second. (photo by Shayna Peveler)
And then... Justin Timberlake.
I have to say, I expected much more screaming from the young ladies present. I think there was more of a commotion when the Beckhams arrived than during the show. The audience was having a blast - don't get me wrong. I just remember seeing Duran Duran in 1982 and not being able to hear a goddamn thing.
Raquel and I had very, very good seats. Justin's concert-in-the-round concept worked in our favor, as we saw an awful lot of the kid. He put on a great show. Really great. Just enough dancing, real live singing, and oodles of charm. Oh yea, and Timbaland did the intermission music, as it were. And Kanye West dropped in. (OK, I sort of lost my shit at that moment.)
(This video was taken by someone sitting very close to us, because I essentially saw the same thing. Total coolness.)
Me, Kevs, the BFF, Giselle and Skye were all supposed to see the White Stripes that week, but Meg fell apart. I know how you feel, Meg - hang in there!
So we wiped our tears and went on... to the Arcade Fire and LCD Soundsystem show at the Bowl. LCD was a blast - but I think I would have liked it better in a sweaty club after a few drinks. I felt too detached from the party. Even the new tracks were fun - as they had taken some getting used to for me when I got the record.
Arcade Fire are legendary for their live shows, and deservedly so. The intensity and joy they project from the stage can't help but affect the audience. I hadn't seen them since the release of "Neon Bible," a record I think is lovely but on the dour side, so I wondered how it would come across live. Well, lovely and dour. The energy of the night came, more often than not, from the older material, and there was plenty of singing and dancing for all. And headbanging, screaming, laughing, clapping, etc...
On the 21st, it was Cat Power. The first two times I'd seen her, she ran off the stage in tears, apologizing for sucking. It was heartbreaking. I wouldn't buy tickets to her shows anymore, since she never seemed to go through with them anyway. But at Coachella two years ago, I caught some of her new and improved set, and it was good. So I was only too happy to go with Kevs and Skye to see her at the Avalon with her Dirty Delta Blues Band. She did loads of covers - both from her covers album as well as her upcoming covers album, and she sort of did covers of her own music... All of her own sings which she performed had been almost completely re-arranged, rendering them practically unrecognizable unless you figured out the lyrics right away. It could be both frustrating and amazing, and I applaud her courage to do that. She sounded amazing, was happy and joking with the crowd, and played a great show. See? There's a reason I love cats.
That Saturday, I went to Safari Sam's to check out Sally Jaye again. She was playing a benefit which was hosted by the of the five Kids in The Hall: Dave Foley, Bruce McCullough, and Kevin McDonald. I LOVED Kids in The Hall. Between each band set, they guys would do a couple skits. They'd fuck up and laugh, they'd improve, but mostly, they were hilarious. Those guys are genius, no matter what they do, it seems. I left after seeing a rocking set by Brian Wright and the Waco Tragedies, more rough and tumble Americana stuff which had Dave Foley up in front hootin' and hollerin'.
The following week, there was a great freebie show at Hollywood and Highland - if you took the subway. The subway? In L.A.? Damn straight. Ladytron and Great Northern played in the central courtyard area for the car-free and those with cars, if you wanted to stand up on the walkways, as many people did. Great Northern represented - Rachel's voice was beautiful as always, their indie only adding to the blue twilight atmosphere of the evening. When the sun was finally down, Ladytron came on, lights blazing and synthesizers synchronized. Oh, there are lots of other instruments too, but you really notice those keyboards, don't you?
And finally, winding up the month, DeVotchka. I'd be in love with Nick Urata, the dramatic lead singer of the group, if he didn't take the whole hobo/gypsy thing so literally. He looks like he just rolled out of the back of a train half the time, bottle of red wine in one hand and guitar in the other. It's quite charming, and they mesmerize me with that whole mariachi-spaghetti western-polka-gypsy musical styling. How can you argue with a band that uses tuba and cello and trumpet and accordian as well as the standard bass-guitar-drum combo? Not me, that's for sure.
Now to head into Rocktober! After I get some sleep.
Those last couple weeks of August and early September, I was in either Ephrata, Pennsylvania or the Bay Area. (You may have noticed that I get to the Bay Area as often as I can.)
My brother and I were off to PA to see the relatives. Ephrata is a tiny town (by my urban/suburban standards) with a tiny little main street and lots of horse & buggies. You see, it's in Pennsylvania Dutch country, which means Amish. The surrounding towns have names like Intercourse, Paradise, Virginville and Blueball (my brother and I were very sad to learn the Blueball Hotel had been torn down). The grocery store by my aunt and uncle's house is have paved for cars and half hitching posts for horses.
We spent most of our time with relatives, but did have one particularly interesting afternoon at a big weekly flea market which features Amish food (baked goods, jams, etc) and the regular cheapie t-shirts and stuff, as well as a section for animals. Evidently there are livestock auctions earlier in the day, and at the end of the day when we were there, you could have your choice of available chickens, quails, pigeons, geese, doves, hamsters, rabbits and guinea pigs. My brother and I have a particular fondness for bunnies and guinea pigs as we've owned both. Most of these animals were crammed by the dozens in cages (the birds) and cardboard boxes (the rodents) so we'd open them up and have a look. I spotted a guinea pig on the bottom of the pile that looked like one we used to have, so I reached in to give it a pet when the other 5 or so scurried off, kicking this one wildly in the process. It didn't budge. Revealed, I noticed it was pretty dead. I went to tell the kid who seemed to be running the show at the moment, but he just sort of shrugged while the little kids nearby ran to check out the dead thing in the box. Guinea pigs aren't the brightest creatures on the planet, and it's more than possible the others smothered it. But still... Well, my brother took plenty of pictures and we're liberal california folk, so those pictures will make it into the right hands.
It just reminded me that there are alot more than just miles separating us from the folks in that small town. I did enjoy the homemade ice cream (made from real Amish cows!)and whoopie pies - the pumpkin ones will leave a permanent mark on my taste buds, in the best way.
And I did enjoy my relatives an awful lot too.
Then a quick trip to the Bay to see a couple long lost friends and have lots of time doing boring girl stuff, like shopping and eating and chatting. Although it was definitely not boring, especially if you knew us girls.
So I'm back and settled in, and promise to be "regular."
Did you wanna know what went down? Well, here ya go...
We had special guests tonight... the amazing and unique DENGUE FEVER!
Little Radio Playlists 9/13/07
Alimony - The Hummingbirds You're No Good - Swinging Blue Jeans One Man - Eulogies I Don't Care - The Pictures You Made Me Like It - 1990s Southside Funk - Soul Seven DENGUE FEVER INTERVIEW! 3 TRACKS... Escape From Dragon House Tooth & Nail ? (a cover of a Cambodian song) One Thousand Tears of A Tarantula Hong Kong Garden - Siouxsie & the Banshees Tthhee Ppaarrttyy - Justice Miss Lucifer - Primal Scream Disaster - The Besnard Lakes Everything I've Got - Ed Kuepper Ain't That Crazy - Derrick Morgan You're Like Heaven to Me - Phyllis Dillon Pony express - The Pioneers Soul Revival - Zap Pow Beautiful Day - Spider Harrison Be For Real - Marlena Shaw Buick Mackane - T. Rex I Can Only Give you Everything - Van Morrison The Way She Goes - Henry's Dress
Remember, Little Radio.com... Most Thursdays from 8-10 PST, 11pm EST, 5am Fridays in Berlin and 3pm Fridays in Sydney...
Download it once it's online http://www.littleradio.com/shows/show/23. Or email Little Radio and tell 'em to get that shit posted!
Dap Walk - Ernie & the Top Notes, Inc. Sometimes I Feel So Lonely - Primal Scream Jesus Is Just Alright - The Byrds Ride Or Die - The Budos Band Tighten Up Tighter - Billy Ball & the Upsetters feat. Roosevelt Matthews Sleeping During the Day - The Mint Chicks Breakin' My Own Heart - Uni & Her Ukelele Well Well Well - Le Tigre Catcher - Komeda Disorder - Joy Division Hey You - Sarabeth Tucek My Own Blood - Luther Russell Terrified - Trevor Childs Birthday - Sugarcubes (w/ Jesus & Mary Chain) Fire Fire Fire - Dappled Cities Circles - Le Fleur De Lys I'll Keep Holding On - The Action Green Eyes - Husker Du Hot Dog! That Made Him Mad - Wanda Jackson He'd Be A Diamond - Mary Lou Lord Cactus Cat - Look Blue Go Purple Girl Don't Come - Sandie Saw hat's How It Goes - The Breakaways Brunettes Against Bubblegum Youth - The Brunettes I've Just Seen A Face - The Dillards Kingdom Of The Animals - Iron & Wine Nausea - X The Thang (Pt. 1) - Eddie Bo South Side of the Street - Johnny Adams Kissing My Love - Cold Blood California Stars - Billy Bragg & Wilco
Remember, Little Radio.com... Most Thursdays from 8-10 PST, 11pm EST, 5am Fridays in Berlin and 3pm Fridays in Sydney...
Download the shows here! We're kinda behind, but there are some nice older ones...
The McDonald Brothers had this long, beautiful hair which they rocked with wild abandon. They would bust out into the most unexpected covers at any moment, tell crazy stories and hilarious jokes, and then hit us with their yowling bubblegum punk and we always left with hot, sweaty smiles on our faces. 
