DWNTWN and Draemhouse at The Hi Hat

DWNTWN

I say this often, time passes too quickly sometimes when it comes to catching up with my favorite bands. The last time I saw DWNTWN was at the 2014 Tarfest. That is 1.5 years. Ouch. Of course, I did listen to DWNTWN often online so I was able to feed my need for this pop band with the graceful vocals. Their friends and family were out on this night at The Hi Hat. The night was more than worth it after getting a hug.

Draemhouse came to Los Angeles from Seattle with a psychedelic slowdown. Before the set, they carefully decorated the stage with lights and drapery. It set the mood for hanging out at a Seattle coffee house -- okay, I haven't been to Seattle in years and have no idea what I'm talking about with that statement. I do know that Draemhouse was staying at a hotel within walking distance of the venue. As I was walking to my car, in front of me were two members of the band heading to their hotel room.


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Parker's Back and Forebear at Silverlake Lounge

Parker's Back

Parker's Back and Forebear set a mellow mood at Silverlake Lounge on a recent Monday night. Parker's Back has a drummer that uses the sticks like they're paint brushes. He makes these wide strokes that paint the air around the set. Forebear has a violinist. Hey, I have a soft spot for violinist. I couldn't help but think about Local Natives during their set. Why? I first saw Local Natives at Silverlake Lounge and they had a violinist at the time.

I'm rather sure that Parker's Back convinced all their friends to come out for the night. The place was packed for their set.

Back to Forebear's violinist. She uses the violin like an extension of her body.



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A Movie Review: 10 Cloverfield Lane

10 Cloverfield Lane. The movie opens with Michelle (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) dealing with a breakup. She gets into her car and drives into the night. In a sudden moment, a truck crashes into her. She wakes up in a small cement room that is part of a bunker, handcuffed and an intravenous tube attached to her arm. She's being held captive or is she? Eventually, the door opens and Howard (John Goodman) walks in. He doesn't initially give her a feel-good sense. She soon is introduced to another individual, Emmett (John Gallagher Jr.). Emmett tells Michelle that he fought his way into the bunker. What is going on? Howard and Emmett are convinced that America has been attacked via chemical warfare.

After Michelle is confronted with compelling proof that there is something seriously wrong in the outside world, the three of them settle into a semi-comfortable situation. Yet, signs start to pop up that indicate that Howard is not mentally stable. Michelle and Emmett initiate an attempt to gain greater freedom.

This movie reminds one of Room. I have to say that I enjoyed 10 Cloverfield Lane much better. Maybe it has to do with the Sci Fi elements of this movie. Room was about trying to escape a terrible situation. 10 Cloverfield Lane deals with taking a leap of faith, depending on gut feelings. In Cloverfield, it is obvious that something has happened. Yet, there are clues that Michelle and Emmett are being protected by a psychopath. What does one do? Which risk is worse: staying with a madman or potentially facing the aftermath of a chemical attack? The tensions just grow.

My one issue: I think there are two major flaws towards the end of the movie. One has to do with Michelle and her clothing. I don't want to give away any spoilers, but it just seemed off considering what we learned about the outside world. The second has to do with why certain parts of the bunker that broke weren't fixed. The answer to that one is obvious when it comes to the story line, but still.

Jett-K, The Alexander Noice Sextet and Max Ox at the Bootleg Theater

Jett-K

It was off to the Bootleg Theater to catch the residency band Fell Runner, but things didn't work out as planned. Some unanticipated foot poisoning led to their need to cancel for the night. That didn't mean that all was lost. In fact, it was a great night of music. I ran into three new bands/musicians that were just great.

The night started out with the simple tones of a guzheng (a Chinese string instrument) via Jett-K. This was my first time ever having seen Jett-K (who now is heading off to Berlin for awhile), but I did catch her backing up Queen Kwong.

Then the night moved on to some great jazz via the one-two punch of The Alexander Noice Sextet and Max Ox. I'm not positive if using jazz is the right genre to apply to The Alexander Noice Sextet. Part of me just wants to say that they're trance as they'll put you into an awesome trance with those haunting high pitch vocals. What did I notice: on the last song, the bassist was off just a bit so Alexander turned to him and shook his head. Alexander then made sure that the bassist understood the proper beat. When the bassist got it, Alexander nodded approval.

Max Ox just broke out the pure jazz. During one stretch, a handful of friends/fans started yelling out "Pizza." Either an inside joke or a well known joke that I just wasn't getting. The chanting of "Pizza" did fit in just perfectly with the beats.


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LP with Chelsea Lankes and Josiah at The Echo

LP

My March residency started out at The Echo. Obviously, driven by LP's residency, but it didn't hurt that Chelsea Lankes was on the bill. It so happened that she was the first one up on stage, which surprised me. I thought for sure she'd be on at 10 p.m. When I first saw her at The Bootleg, she was also first on stage.

Up next came Josiah with Tennessee brilliance. He openly admitted that some of his songs were about pass girlfriends and that one song led to a breakup with his then girlfriend. Hmm, the Taylor Swift of the Los Angeles music scene?

LP was the draw of the night. One person next to me told me that he hadn't been out to see a band in a year. He loved LP and when he heard she was doing the free residency at The Echo he knew he was coming out. Well, it did sound like he had a great time along with everyone else.

Had a brief discussion with a photography for LA Record. It is always nice to talk to fellow photographers.

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BERU, Sextile and Ghost Noise at The Smell

Sextile

My occasional trip to The Smell happened on a recent Saturday night. It was amazingly fun. BERU opened the night with a theatrical set. The lead singer started the set wearing a horror-like face mask. Two of the band members wore some light up shoes. To close the set, two friends of the bands came out wearing masks and tossing flower petals into the crowd.

Sextile has to be considered the band of the night. This band reminds me of a cool mix of local bands Eastern Conference Champions (unfortunately no longer around) and Feels along with midwestern band Prizzy Prizzy Please. My random impression: I think the drummer basically runs this band. She seemed to be telling her band mates what to do.

Ghost Noise uses the keyboards to wow the crowd. The main keyboardist goes with his emotions. His hands spoke the language of their music. Each band member had a bouquet of artificial flowers on their mic stands. I think the guitarist was the least concerned about the bouquet. The bouquet kept falling off the mic stand and she'd just ignore the flowers on the floor. One of her band mates would then pick up the flowers and put it back in place.


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Blondfire with Bloke and Bird at Harvard and Stone

Blondfire

I was trying to figure out what I was going to do on a Wednesday night as I didn't feel like staying home. I looked around and noticed that Blondfire was playing a free show at Harvard and Stone. The last time I saw Blondfire was in 2012. The last time I went to Harvard and Stone was probably 2014 or early 2015. I decided to head on out.

First up; however, Bloke and Bird. This band comes in from Sweden. The two members of the band, Jennifer Akerman and Lorenzo Jansson Kilman, were doing a simple acoustic set so it is difficult to say what their sound is when they have a backup band. Anyways, while they were on stage, I have to say that I noticed a lot of very attractive people in the audience. Well, I'd learned later that I was within inches of Jennifer's sister who just happens to be Malin Akerman. Yes, she is in Watchmen, but I've also been catching Billions on Showtime.

Blondfire hit the stage next. Lead singer Erica Driscoll was dressed in '80s retro-chic. I loved the rectangular skinny tie. Their music has an innocence to it. I absolutely love their closing song "Where the Kids Are." Admittedly, I haven't seen this band since 2012 so most of their songs are new to me; however, their set was largely dedicated to their upcoming album release. Solid stuff.


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The Controversy and Pom Poms at The Satellite: Night 2

The Controversy

Lucky for me, February had 5 Mondays. That seems a little strange for such a short month, but it was so. I got to do my normal Monday night residency venue cycle and then add in a repeat venue. My repeat venue was The Satellite where I got to see The Controversy and Pom Poms for a second time.

I arrived at around 9:45 p.m. and ran into a couple friends who were there to see The Controversy, as well.

Pom Poms hit the stage with fans crowding the stage. To me, there were much more folks at The Satellite this Monday night versus my earlier February night. It appears like music fans started to hear about this night of music and began to show up. On stage with the Pom Poms was a dinosaur. It was actually a pinata. At the end of their set, they beat it up and out poured candy.

What I noticed: a Satellite waitress took a look at the candy that was on the floor. I could tell she wanted some, but then she walked away. She came by again. I could see her eyes. She wanted some candy. Finally, on her third pass, she knelt down and grabbed some candy.

The Controversy came up next. Lead singer Laura was dressed in leather. She also ditched her shoes and went bare footed on stage. It is so fun photographing The Controversy, but it was a tough night for me. Red lights flooded downwards. And then the floor lights that The Controversy used were hitting my camera straight on. No matter. The night isn't only about me taking cool photos, it is also about listening to some great music.

What I noticed: One The Controversy fan was head banging the whole set.


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