Chief at The Satellite

Chief hit the stage at The Satellite. I was expecting to see them earlier in the month. I went to The Satellite a couple weeks back, but had to leave before they hit the stage.  So I headed back on a recent Monday to catch them.  It took me a second to warm up to them, but once I did I couldn't get enough. 

Tashaki Miyaki at The Satellite

Tashaki Miyaki had some sound problems during their set, but it didn't matter. This band, that takes me back to Mazzy Star, just draws you into their set.

And hey, I took a photo. The first time I saw them there was a request for no photos.

Pu$$y Cow at Los Globos

Pu$$y Cow hit the stage at Los Globos.  What Kiss or Kill band were they going to target on this night:  Overnight Lows.  Pu$$y Cow was playing with Underwater City People on this night.  The second set ever played by Pu$$y Cow was with UCP.  What has changed since that time awhile back:  a hat and a bandana.  Seriously, that's it?  Well, they've gotten progressively better, I'm sure.

The audience:  the women were rocking, the men were pogo dancing.   

Underwater City People at Los Globos

After disappearing from the scene for over a year, Underwater City People hit the stage at Los Globos.  It felt like they had never left the scene.  The crowd packed the space.  The raise your hands was still in play.  The twists and turns of the guitar and bass were timed perfectly so that they didn't bang into each other.

All of us loved the Underwater City People and I'm sure most of us hope it doesn't take another year plus for them to put on another show.

P.S.  I know I love a set when I realize that I have a huge smile.  I realized quickly enough that I had a huge smile.  

Descanso Gardens: Photo

Went to Descanso Gardens recently. Lovely and here is a photo:

Santa Anita Park, 18 April, Thursday

Well, after a good day at the track followed by an okay day, I followed up with a horrible betting day at Santa Anita Park.  It didn't help that two long shots won in the 6th and 7th race.  Unlike the previous two days at the track, I didn't win a single daily double.  That hurt.  And I believe only a couple favorites won.

And it was a sad day, because I decided to do some significant pre-research into the horses.  I spend at least 4 hours doing research.  I had some time and figured I'd see if I couldn't improve my potential to win.

I guess not.

Descanso Gardens: photo

Went to Descanso Gardens recently. Lovely and here is a photo:

Santa Anita Park, Sunday April 14

It was back to the track to see if my luck would continue from Thursday.

Not so much.  I didn't get killed, but the situation was up and down.  On Thursday, I often had a winning bet on a race.  This time around, I hit it big a couple times, but then went into a serious drought the other times.

I did work out a method to my madness of using the Racing Daily Form:  1.)  look at speed of race at a similar distance for a horse; 2.) see how often the horse has run at such a distance (especially for the hillside races); 3.) see if the horse likes to run up front or from behind 4.) see if the horse faded or improved during a race 5.) look at speed of race for a horse at a distance that is either a +/- 1/2 furlong versus the current race.

Taking a look at my betting pattern over the last couple days where I've used the Racing Daily Form while trying out my new more aggressive betting style, I learned that I'm not very good at picking exactas -- even if I box the bet.  Even though I like making such a bet, it might be best if I stop making that bet.  Each of the two days, I lost money on this bet while making up money in my win-place-show and daily double bets.

Even though I think I should stop making exacta bets, my greatest joy was in Race 6 when I bet Scat Patty/Goodtobewild in a box exacta and that's how it came out.  There was a thrill there.  Of course, that was the only exacta bet I won and so net-net I lost money on my exacta bets.  I suppose my worse bet of the day was also an exacta bet in the 3rd race where I boxed the two heavy favorites (Maker or Breaker/Egg Drop) and neither even came in show.

Descanso Gardens: Photo

Went to Descanso Gardens recently. Lovely and here is a photo:

Descanso Gardens

Went to Descanso Gardens recently. Lovely and here is a photo:

Raw Geronimo at Casey's

It was off to Casey's to catch Raw Geronimo. First off, it was a pain in the butt trying to find free parking in downtown Los Angeles.  I know, I should just pay for parking, but I have this thing about getting free parking.  And as for driving, as I was heading down Hill Street, some jerk driver kept hitting his horn.  When the light turned green, I watched the car driving pass and the driver and passenger were laughing their heads off.

I got to Casey's in time to catch Raw Geronimo even though I kept driving in circles.  Lauren Fay was not with the band on this night.  It didn't matter.  Both Lauren and Laena Geronimo are two of my favorite musicians to photograph and so I was plenty busy taking photos of Laena.

Okay okay, the music.  I'm not going to say Lauren wasn't missed, but I still loved the avant pop sound ex-her presence.

Noticed at Casey's:  a former member of Black Flamingo.

Warships at The Satellite

Warships

Santa Anita Park, 4 April 2013

So I finally won some money at Santa Anita Park.  I suppose it helped that the favorites came in.

In the first and second race, I won a daily double.  I would have won an exacta, but I forgot my rule about skipping the trifectas.  For the second race, I picked a winner.

Things went downhill in the 3rd and 4th race.  My box exacta didn't have a chance as a longshot won the 3rd race.  For the 4th race I had trouble when another longshot won.

Things perked up in the 5th thru 7th race when I followed Bejarano's coattails as he won 3 in a row.  I picked up an exacta in the 5th and a daily double in the 6th/7th.  Also, in the 7th, I went with a longshot for show, Thermal Nermal with Talamo.  I figured why not go with a longshot when a top jockey is riding.

For the 8th race, I came away with nothing, but then I only went with one bet.

It felt good walking away with a little money after having spent the last few trips to Santa Anita Park a little lighter in the pocket.

I once again got the Racing Daily Form.  Did it help me pick horses or was I just lucky?  There is a lot of stats in that Form.  For a guy like me, it is fun just staring at all the stats.  For a couple races, it actually made it very difficult to make a decision.  You have a situation sometimes where it seems that all the horses in a race have raced the exact same distance at the exact same time.  So confusing.  And considering I like making a Daily Double bet, I seriously couldn't even place a Daily Double bet a couple times, because I just couldn't make a quick enough decision about the 2nd half the bet.  I suppose that might be why I should show up even earlier at the track . . .

Charming Liars at Club Moscow

What is it about British bands coming to Los Angeles? It is similar to Portland bands coming to Los Angeles. They always seem to be solid bands. Charming Liars hit the stage at Club Moscow and immediately caught my attention with their energetic rock sound.

Noticed:  Lead singer of TM87 was in the audience -- a band I caught at a music festival in Chinatown and was amused by their bickering regarding a water bottle.

The Prolific at Club Moscow

The Prolific continued a good night of music at Club Moscow.  What was cool about seeing The Prolific was that I finally got to catch Matt Fuller's new band -- previously of The Mulhollands.

New Born Authority at Club Moscow

It was a solid night of music at Club Moscow. New Born Authority took the stage first.  When they began playing, I couldn't help but think:  this band would be perfect for the Blue Star.  Too bad -- unless I'm misinformed -- that venue isn't around anymore.

Santa Anita Park: Thursday, April 4

So I finally bought a Racing Daily Form.  That form holds reams of data.  For awhile, I just looked at it, not understanding a single detail.  Eventually, I started to pick up on perhaps half of what was provided.

Did it help me make any bets?  No.  I still lost money.  Actually, I could have ended up near flat for the day, but decided just to make some bets in the 8th race.

Interesting fact:  I went to the betting seminar that is held before the races start.  A Pick 6 (a bet I don't make) was provided.  The betting expert nearly got it.  He missed on the 7th race when the heavy favorite (Horizon Sky) came in third, which was apparently a shocker for nearly all the horse racing experts.  In fact, the Racing Daily Form headline was:  Horizon Sky looks like a pick-six single.

I basically went with Exactas and Daily Doubles for the day along with some very conservative Show bets.  I missed my exacta on the first race when the final outcome of my bet was a win/show outcome versus the necessary win/place requirement.  For the second race, the outcome was flipped, which made me wonder why I hadn't boxed the bet.  The third race was my winner for the day.  I got both a Daily Double (including the fourth race) and an exacta.  It went downhill from there.  I played the daily doubles for a handful of additional races and then came the 7th race where Horizon Sky was supposed to win.  I did a couple exactas on that race and since Horizon Sky came in show, not even a box would have helped the situation.

 

Gavin Turek at Bootleg Theater

Gavin Turek is the residency singer at Bootleg this month of April.  Every once in awhile I come across a band or a musician where time seems to fly past.  This was the case with Gavin Turek.  I was totally lost in the moment when she announced that it was her last song.  Now on the rare occasion there are bands or singers who will only do a 20 minute set. I figured she was in that category.  I looked down at my watch and was shocked that 30 minutes had passed.

Her electro music will have you dancing.  And she herself dances her mind off during the set.

Interesting note:  for one of the bands the whole audience seemed to be squeezed into one of the corners of the Bootleg.  I found it amusing, perhaps no one else will find that so.

Western Scene at Bootleg

Western Scene hit the stage between residency singer Gavin Turek and Hustle Roses.  An interesting placement as both Gavin Turek and Hustle Roses have a dance sound while Western Scene is more pop-ish.  The change-up in genre was good, because their sound is awesome.

It should be noted that the Salvation sign has been transferred from Silverlake Lounge to Bootleg.

Hustle Roses at The Bootleg

Hustle Roses (Ollie Stone) has a bubbly personality.  She shines with a smile.    

Griffith Observatory

Birds of a Black Feather at Harvard and Stone

It was off to see Birds of a Black Feather at Harvard and Stone.  I only got to catch part of The Ross Sea Party. I showed up on time, but was stuck outside due to the bar being at capacity.  For the part of Ross Sea Party that I did catch, it surely sounded like they've taken it up a notch since I last saw them at Silverlake Lounge.  And for Birds of a Black Feather, the pulsing beats of southern rock merged with the beautiful harmonies of the two female lead singers results in some beautiful music.


Birds of a Black Feather



The Ross Sea Party