What got me heading out to the WFNM showcase at Hotel Ziggy on a late September evening? It was Nico May. I took a listen to all the bands and singers for the night and as soon as I heard "Lover, Who Hurt You?" on Spotify, I knew I was heading out. His vocals and music had influences from Benson Boone and Morgan Wallen with a touch of Shaboozey. During his set he mentioned that he is a fan of Zach Bryan so I'll include that country artist, as well.
 |
| Nico May at Hotel Ziggy |
I don't get to shoot the Greek Theatre as often as I'd like. This particular night with headliner The Head And The Heart represented my second time (and final time) getting to shoot at the venue this 2025 season. You can read my US Rocker Music review here. I live in Glendale and so it is only a four mile drive. Since I hate paying for parking, I'll drive into Los Feliz and park in an area that I know generally has plenty of free parking and do the long walk up to the theatre. One of the best moments of any night at the Greek Theatre is when the last song has been performed and everyone is heading home. That's when I'm part of perhaps 200 people who are just as cheap as I am and are walking down the Hollywood Hills and into Los Feliz. Not only is the whole walk representative of my own cheapness, but it also gives me a cardio workout (the walk up, not so much the walk down).
 |
| John Vincent III at the Greek Theatre |
For a band that formed in 1981 and has taken some rather lengthy breaks (per Wikipedia, two breaks that lasted over a decade each), The Chameleons have had a rather active 2025. They spent July touring with the Psychedelic Furs across the United States. Their first full length album in 24 years, Artic Moon, was released in September. Then they did a 11 stop headline tour across the west coast of the United States during parts of September and October. When this posts on my personal blog, they'll be in the middle of European tour.
 |
| The Chameleons at the Belasco |
Donna opened up for my favorite New York City band Laveda on Oct 1st at Permanent Records Roadhouse. I covered the night for US Rocker Music. You can read the article here. For some strange reason the band name sounded very familiar to me even though I knew I'd never seen them before. My first thought was that I must have come across the band name during Echo Park Rising. That wasn't the case. I finally figured it out. They played on a July bill with Hysteria at Zebulon. I'm a fan of Hysteria so why didn't I go to that set? I was sick during that timeframe and ended up not going out at all for a full week. It took two and half months before catching donna live. In the Los Angeles music scene, there is always a second, third, fourth chance to catch a band. That is what makes the scene so vibrant.
 |
| Donna at Permanent Records Roadhouse |
I first came across Laveda in 2022 at Permanent Records Roadhouse. They were playing along side a couple favorite bands of mine: Janelane and Mo Dotti. I went out that night specifically to catch Janelane and Mo Dotti, because it isn't that often where both bands are paired up. I remember being surprised at how many people were at the venue, not to see my two favorite bands (not that they didn't have their fan base), but were there specifically to see Laveda.
 |
| Laveda at Permanent Records Roadhouse |
Prior to heading off to the late September WFNM showcase at Hotel Ziggy, I listened to the music of the various performers for the night. That included opener Adam Wilson. I went to his Instagram page and clicked on his links. There was a Youtube video to his song "Together." The song is a duet with Kia (KIA) Knoester, a WFNM alumni who I had happened to catch a year prior at Bar Lubitsch. I was thinking it would be awesome if that song was on the setlist. But I wasn't holding out much hope. When I arrived, I noticed her in the crowd and my hopes rose ever so slightly, but I was keeping a pessimistic viewpoint -- why get my hopes up too high.
 |
| Adam Wilson at Hotel Ziggy |
A Handful of Show Alerts
I was recently invited to cover Dum Dum Records's four year anniversary party at Midnight Hour Records. You can read my article here on US Rocker Music. I was familiar with two of the three bands on the bill. The headliner was Taleen Kali. In 2023, I covered the band's Flower of Life release party for Buzzbands (read that article here) and the inaugural Dum Dum Fest for US Rocker Music (read that article here). Gottlieb was the other band I knew about and they made my 2024 list of favorite new bands (you can read that list here). What about that third band that was unknown to me? The name of that band was Sunder.
 |
| Sunder at Midnight Hour Records |
I first came across Taleen Kali (the eponymous for lead singer Taleen Kali) in 2017 at The Hi Hat (the current location of The Goldifsh). It was a blending of genres night. On one end you had Lucy & La Mer and MetronOhm (Annabelle Freedman) providing singer-songwriter tunes and on the punk side you had Wasi and Taleen Kali. Since that point in time, I've followed the band throughout the years with 2023 being the highlight as I covered the band's Flower of Life release party for Buzzbands (read that article here) and the inaugural Dum Dum Fest for US Rocker Music (read that article here).
 |
| Taleen Kali at Midnight Hour Records |
Horse Rider opened up a The Witching Hours night at Zebulon. From what I can tell, they're an Austin based band that has since moved out to Los Angeles. I was impressed with how they perfectly blended their bass and guitar play to create their layered music that slowly unfolded. The lyrics (as per my interpretation) leans towards how people deal with various difficulties that life throws at a person and sometimes not for the better. For example, their song "Call" starts off with the lyrics, "When you pick up the gun. Not gonna let em talk to you that way." Is it about a school shooter or an encounter with this individual, "Im just sittin at the corner store."
 |
| Horse Rider at Zebulon |
In late September, Hannah Hughes closed out at a Swyndle Monday night showcase at Harvard & Stone. Hughes is someone I started following via Julez and the Rollerz. I first came across the band at Happy Sundays Long Beach in 2022. (I covered the festival for Buzzbands and you can read a comment I made about the band here.) I only caught a couple songs that day as I was jumping around from band to band, but they did leave an impression as I ended up catching the band 4 different times in 2023. It also so happened that 2023 was the first time I caught a solo Hannah Hughes set at Hotel Cafe. I've had the privilege of both using my photos on their Instagram pages. I should note that Hughes left the band earlier this year -- should you show up to one of their sets for the first time ever and wonder if I'm getting bands mixed up in my head.
 |
| Hannah Hughes at Harvard & Stone |
There was a time when Portland bands were the top of the list for me to see (such as The Lower 48 that ended their run in 2018 and, of course, Y La Bamba). I once told music friends that I'd never seen a Portland band that I didn't love immediately. For some reason, I don't feel like I run across Portland bands all that often these days. Perhaps I need to be more purposeful in my search.
 |
| Madisenxoxo at The Goldfish |
I love randomly heading out on nights when I don't know any of the bands. If the night is free, it is all the better, because there is low risk (just my time) to taking a chance on unknown bands / musicians. Promoters such as AM Presents Music, Ryan Pollie, Swyndle, and WFNM as well as Zebulon (venue) over the last few years have provided me with that opportunity. Recently, Rocknite over at the The Goldfish has stepped into the mix.
 |
| Still Blank at The Goldfish |
A Handful (bucketful) of Show Alerts
Sunday, Nov 9th: Lael Neale at the Lodge Room. Doors at 7 p.m.Neska Rose has to be one of the quirkiest singers in Los Angeles. She has to rank up there with Henry Hall. For better known names beyond the Los Angeles music scene, go with Amanda Palmer, Björk, and Laurie Anderson.
 |
| Neska Rose at Hotel Ziggy |
I've followed Bardo's career for a number of years via Chicano Batman. For those not in the know, Bardo Martinez is the lead vocalist for the band. Last year, I got to cover the band for US Rocker Music, which you can read here. I even went knowing I would get to cover only the first three songs before being escorted out of the venue. I could have put my gear back into my car and returned to the venue, but I have some expensive gear and I wasn't going to be one of those photographers who goes viral on social media for doing something stupid.
 |
| Bardo at Zebulon |
I cross paths with Sun Colony on occasion. I first caught the band back in late 2018. At the time, Lauren Andino from Tremours and L.A. Witch was playing guitar with the band. I do believe this was the first time I saw her on stage. Since that time, the band has gone through some line-up changes, but their shoegaze sound remains intact via founding member Derek Mabra. (In some ways, Andino has also kept that shoegaze tradition going via Tremours.)
 |
| Sun Colony at Zebulon |
The week ending September 13th was a rather joyous moment in the Los Angeles music scene. On Tuesday night, KCRW x School Night relaunched at Zebulon after ending their run in December 2024. Then on Friday night at Sassafras Saloon, Small Town Friday Nights relaunched after having to end its run at the Silverlake Lounge due to an ownership change at the bar in July 2024.
 |
| Ryan Hahn & The Believers at Sassafras Saloon |
My first encounter with The Little Miss (the moniker for Hayley Johnson) was back in 2018 at the Resident. I'm not going to lie, that was one strange first time encounter. Why? It was a mash up night. The headliner was Ever So Android (renamed Boy Deluxe a few years later). They're an electronic punk band. The Little Miss, a country folk singer. I was there for Ever So Android, but enjoyed The Little Miss and continued to follow Johnson throughout the years.
 |
| The Little Miss at Sassafras Saloon |
Ron Blakely hit the stage with high expectations on my part during their WFNM showcase at Bar Lubitsch. First off, WFNM founder Grant Owens mentioned to me that Blakely had great vocals. Then Giselle (who opened prior to their set) pumped them up during her set. (You can read my Song Spotlight of her song "Skeleton" here.)
 |
| Ron Blakely at Bar Lubitsch |
A Handful (bucketful) of Show Alerts
Sunday, Nov 2nd: Primitive Ring at Zebulon. Doors at 8 p.m.Seeing Kelcey Ayer in concert always reminds me of my first few years in the Los Angeles music scene. Way back in 2009, a friend mentioned to me that I should head to the Silverlake Lounge to catch a band called Local Natives. The place was packed from stage to entrance. Somehow I was allowed inside -- I'm sure the fire marshal would have shut the place down. I squeezed my way to the front of the stage so that I could take photos of the band. It was love at first sight. And via Local Natives, I connected with bands such as Eastern Conference Champions (Mondo Cozmo) and Family of the Year.
 |
| Kelcey Ayer at The Goldfish |
