Figs Vision with Wam Dingis and Decorator at the Bootleg Theater

Figs Vision

My last music night out for 2015 was great. I headed off to the Bootleg Theater to catch one last residency band. Starting off the night for me was Wam Dingis. A rock band with a lead singer who knows how to use the stage to his advantage. Decorator blew me away with their soul rock. They sold the crowd, also. Their music is just so catchy and their lead singer is just so charismatic on stage. Figs Vision was on their last night of their residency. They had four dancers that helped throughout their set. I can't help but focus on those dancers. They just put on one artistic show, just like the band they were supporting.


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My Favorite "Found" Bands in 2015

Well, I'm a little late here (my excuse -- works been a killer, work being the work that allows me to live for photography), but here's my favorite "found" bands of 2015 list. I say "found," because some of these bands have been around for awhile.

It was a three peat at the Echo on an October night. LA Witch followed by Colleen Green, both supported the residency of Kim and the Created. I got to watch one brilliant band after another. Back to back to back. It was like watching the LA Lakers winning 3 championships in a row. That October night was perfect.

I volunteered to do some photography at Culture Collide. I love Culture Collide, because I feel like I'm taking a quick trip across the globe. So what countries did I get to visit? Well, there was Level and Tyson from Norway and Mobivstrip from Peru. I got to catch Level and Tyson twice. I wish I had gotten the chance to see Mobivstrip twice.

Culture Collide wasn't the only music festival I got to attend in 2015. I also headed out to Make Music Pasadena and Brokechella. Make Music Pasadena started out with a home run as I ran into Juliet Piper. In fact, thinking back on the festival, she was the highlight. At Brokechella, Skye Townsend was nervous, but gave the performance of the festival. It was way too short of a set.

I came across the following 3 bands/musicians while heading out to catch other bands. I saw Elohim at the Echo. She's just amazing, a young version of IO Echo. I was off to see a friend play at Hotel Cafe and there was Katie Burden. And then at The Satellite, I got to catch LANY. During their set, I was thinking, this band is going to break out.

A Movie Review: Carol

Carol. It has been awhile since I saw this film, but I just can't get over how lovely the movie is. The movie has taken on a fairy tale resonance with me. The love affair between Carol (Cate Blanchett) and Therese (Rooney Mara) is beautifully told.

Carol and Theresa meet at a department store. Theresa works in the toy department. Carol is looking for a Christmas gift. There is immediate attraction. Carol on the sly leaves behind her gloves while ordering a train set. Theresa takes the opportunity to connect with Carol. There are complications. Both are in relationships with men. Carol is married with a child, but has had previous relationships with women. Theresa has a boyfriend.

I love the interactions between Carol and Theresa. Theresa is much younger and to some degree much more timid about moving forward with the relationship. Carol is more aggressive in a subtle way. Outside influences play a significant role in their relationship and the way the must navigate through this breaks the heart.

A Movie Review. Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) has disappeared, driven by the fact that his nephew Ben Solo/Kylo Ren (Adam Driver) turned to the dark side while training to be a Jedi under his guidance. Yet, his sister Princess/General Leia (Carrie Fisher) needs him. The Empire has returned to the scene, re-emerging as The First Order. The problem is that no one knows where Luke Skywalker is; however, Luke did leave a clue -- probably in case an emergency arose.

Leia sends pilot Poe Dameron (Oscar Isaac) to meet with Lor San Tekka (Max von Sydow) who has a map that leads to Luke Skywalker. Somehow, The First Order is also aware that Lor San Tekka knows the location of Luke Skywalker. So both The Resistance and The First Order descend on the planet Jakku. Poe Dameron arrives first, but The First Order soon descends on the scene. Poe Dameron hides the map with robot BB-8. Poe is than taken prisoner by Kylo Ren.

BB-8 eventually runs into Rey (Daisy Ridley). The First Order figures out that BB-8 has the map and put out a bounty on the robot. With the assistance of a former stormtrooper Finn (John Boyega), Rey escapes the First Order and flies off in the Millennium Falcon!!! Han Solo (Harrison Ford) and Chewbacca (Peter Mayhew) find a pin needle in a haystack, coming across their ship.

This provides the set-up for the rest of the movie as the Resistance must both battle The First Order and search for Luke Skywalker.

So what did I think of this major blockbuster movie?

A pleasant enough popcorn movie. I say pleasant. It isn't a brilliant popcorn movie like the first Iron Man or The Dark Knight. The major knock I have on this is that I couldn't help but think this movie is nothing more than J.J. Abrams' youthful re-imagination of Star Wars: A New Hope.

Also, what gets really irritating about this movie is all the wink winks to the original Star Wars. It got to the point where it felt like J.J. Abrams was ripping off the first movie.

And what's up with both Rey and Finn holding their own to some degree with Kylo Ren in their individual lightsaber fights? It just drives me nuts when a highly trained warrior has difficulty fighting folks with limited skills. That's the one thing that irritated me with Man of Steel. How could Superman battle a trained warrior in General Zod when Superman had no previous experience in dealing with someone so powerful?

So I've read some of the theories out there and here's what I think about two of them (spoilers). Please note I'm not a super Star Wars fan so I don't know every minor detail about the franchise.

Is Kylo Ren a double agent? I don't think so. Someone killing off the person that he killed off (I'll leave that one a secret), would seem to indicate he is not a double agent. One should only go so far. If Kylo is a double agent, he went too far in killing off you-know-who. I'm not saying that Kylo Ren won't eventually find redemption, I'm just saying he's no double agent.

Who is Rey's father? Luke? Leia? Obi-Wan's grandchild? Or reincarnation of Darth Vader. I toss out the Darth Vader part. As mentioned in one article I read, Darth Vader was redeemed in Return of the Jedi. Also, it just seems too out in left field to learn that Rey is the reincarnation of Darth Vader. I could buy her being Luke's, Leia's or Obi-Wan's. The more seems to give credence to all 3 ideas. Rey being Luke's daughter seems the most obvious based on the movie, but then that could just be a red herring.

Rainbow Jackson and Fakers at The Satellite

Rainbow Jackson

It was an entertaining night of 70s inspired rock music. Fakers led the night off for me, rocking their way to a 40 minute set. They can get wild on stage, especially when the drummer takes his turn at the microphone. Friends and family were in support. Rainbow Jackson is doing the December residency. This band doesn't just stand around playing music. They use the stage, the whole stage. It makes for a level of comfort with their environment.

Vision with Rudy De Anda and Part Time at The Echo

Vision

A nice night at The Echoplex. With another music lineup happening at The Echo, the December residency was shifted to The Echoplex. Rudy De Anda and Part Time opened up for Vision. Rudy De Anda gave us some Latin rock, Spanish lyrics drawing even us non-Spanish speakers into the set. Part Time had this nerdy cool fashion sense. There was also this casual manner to their sound. Vision has this rapid fire rock sound. It was slowed temporarily when the lead guitarist busted a string. Once that was fixed, it was onward.

Noticed: as I was leaving The Echoplex a young woman was coming up, "I'm here to see Vision." I almost turned to tell her, "You need to come back next week. You just missed them."

JT Schweitzer, Ian and Slow Rose at Pehrspace

Ian

It was a perfect night at Pehrspace to catch some bands. The crowd size was just perfect. Not too packed in and not too empty. Just the perfect number of folks. It was also a typical winter night in Los Angeles with the temperature around 50 F.

And then we had a solid lineup featuring JT Schweitzer, Ian  Slow Rose. JT Schweitzer decided to play with his back to the audience, focusing in on the sounds of his guitar. Ian was a solo night, featuring the lead singer of the band. She mentioned that her music sounded so much sadder when she did the solo gig versus performing with her band. She didn't mean for it to sound sad. Slow Rose ended the night for me. They spread themselves around Pehrspace and jammed through a single 30 minute song.


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A Movie Review: Creed

Creed. Adonis Johnson (Michael B. Jordan) has a troubled youth. But then fate arrives. Mary Anne Creed (Phylicia Rashad), wife of former heavyweight champion Apollo Creed, arrives at a youth facility. Adonis is not her son. Apollo had an extramarital affair and Adonis is his son. So because of this relationship, she takes him in.

The movie fast forwards to Adonis as a young adult. He has a solid job at a Los Angeles financial firm. Yet, he wants to be a boxer like his father. During the weekends, he heads down to Mexico for boxing bouts. After a string of victories, he decides to resign from his job and make boxing his career. Mary Anne is furious and a local boxing training camp in Los Angeles refuses to train him.

He decides to head to Philadelphia and see if he can convince Rocky Balboa (Sylvester Stallone) to train him. Rocky resists, but is eventually convinced to become his trainer. Word eventually gets out that Adonis is Apollo's son. Adonis is then given a chance to fight the current light heavyweight champion Conlan (Tony Bellew). It might seem ridiculous for a new comer to be given a chance to fight the current champion; however, the current champion due to his crazy lifestyle is facing time in prison, which will essentially end his boxing career. Also, a planned fight was cancelled because the challenger broke his hand. So he desperately wants one last fight before heading off to prison.

This is a great movie that provides homage to the Rocky movies, but at the same time hands the reins over to (should he want it) Michael B. Jordan. There is the catch the chicken scene. There is a photo of Rocky with his young son, who now lives in Vancouver. There is a scene of bikers (not young kids), surrounding Adonis as he is out running.

I'm not saying this is an Oscar worthy film, but it is a solid popcorn movie.

And the 1st or 2nd sequel will probably have Conlan getting an early release from prison and challenging a cocky new champion Creed to a re-match.

A Movie Review: Brooklyn

Brooklyn. Eilis (Saoirse Ronan) lives in a small Irish town. She is unable to find full-time work so via the Catholic Church, she is able to relocate to New York where she is employed by a department store and lives at a boarding house for women. The local priest that sponsored her move to New York signs her up for accounting courses at a local night college. She also runs into a young Italian named Tony (Emory Cohen) at an Irish dance hall event. They start dating and consider getting married. Then disaster strikes back in Ireland. Eilis' sister Rose (Fiona Glascott) dies unexpectedly. Eilis heads back home where the temptation to stay is strong. She ends up being torn between her new life in America and the familiarity of Ireland.

There are a couple things with this movie that irritate me. First, I just don't by the relationship between Eilis and Tony. I feel like a snob for saying so, but Eilis is way smarter and intelligent then Tony. I can't help but think in the long run she'd grow bored with him. Second, we know up front that she moves to America due to her inability to find work. When the decision to return to America or not must finally be made, she comes up with a totally different reason for coming to her final decision. And I really don't support the final argument she makes -- trying here not to give spoilers -- because I think it is defensive and weak.

I will say this movie does shine in places. For example, the time spent on the ship and how Eilis must learn how to navigate life on a boat provide some great tidbits of 1950s travel. I also enjoyed the scenes of Eilis back in Ireland and seeing how even though it appears she hasn't changed all that much as a person, she really had taken on the look of a big city woman.

I just can't say that this is a brilliant movie, because I found the underlying theme of the movie (a decision regarding the old vs new) flawed.

The Big Pink with Elohim and Drool at The Echo

The Big Pink

The Big Pink comes to Los Angeles via London. Their music has purpose. The vocals are dictated with purpose. The Big Pink just appears earnest in making sure you know that they're leading you on a journey.

Elohim is shrouded in mystery. She had stage hands set up her equipment. Then she came on stage and gave us a show that reminded me of IO Echo. Instead of thanking the audience, she went with pre-recorded messages, wishing everyone a good Thanksgiving.

Drool opened the night with an avant-garde set.

Noticed: one of the Drool musicians was pressed up against the stage during The Big Pink set.


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Whispertown and Ben Hazlewood at The Satellite

Whispertown

I believe the last time I saw Whispertown was way back in 2010. Well, actually, at the time the band name was Whispertown 2000. I still remember the first time I saw Whispertown 2000. It was at a venue that no longer exists on the corner of Western and Sunset. Life just flies by, doesn't it. I've said that a couple times recently as I've caught some other bands that I haven't seen in years. I couldn't help but notice that one of her songs sent tears down the cheeks of a local musician.

Opening up the night was Ben Hazlewood. He's from Australia and has a power vocal sound that makes you think of old school love songs. He's out touring America.


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A Movie Review: The Peanuts Movie

The Peanuts Movie. Honestly, what a sweat and simple movie. The over-arching story line is about Charlie Brown and his crush on the Little Red-Haired Girl. The movie doesn't go for updating the Peanuts for a new generation. There are no cell phones. No computers. Phone calls are still made via rotary phones.

The movie also interweaves all the old favorites from the Peanuts catalog. There is the hockey game on the frozen pond. There is Charlie Brown trying to fly a kite. Lucy is still charging 5 cents for her advice -- though I did notice she gave Charlie Brown a free book. And Sally considers her brother a hero even though he finds himself filled with self doubt. And then there is the adorable Snoopy, flying his dog house over Europe.

Yes, this is a movie for children and all adults who are still young at heart.

 

A Movie Review: Spotlight

Spotlight. This movie is based on real events regarding a massive cover-up by the Boston Catholic Archdiocese regarding child molestation. The movie title comes from the investigative team for the Boston Globe. Walter Robinson (Michael Keaton) leads the team as they carefully go through the evidence. Many of their leads come from newspaper clippings where short articles were written up regarding settlements between the Catholic Church and victims, but no follow-ups were ever made. So this isn't just a move about the corruption within a church, but also about the free pass provided the church by the community.

This is a movie that really makes one consider a career in journalism. I think a top notch movie often does that -- be it a musician, an FBI agent, a police detective. I love how this movie follows the reporters as they question victims, former Catholic leaders, lawyers and various other individuals.

There is a lot more to love about this movie:

I love how the movie deals with the most simplest of things -- time, as an example. Sacha Pfeiffer (Rachel McAdams) is working with a support group, interviewing various members of the group. Unfortunately, Sept 11th, 2001 happens and the whole newspaper focuses in on the aftermath of the terrorist attack. I really like how Sacha Pfeiffer responds to the group leader, mentioning the fact that 2 months has passed. It allows the viewer to put things into a timeline context.

I love how the movie makes things personal when Matt Carroll (Brian d'Arcy James) figures out that child molesters are living just around the corner of his house. It is personal, because he has children and he obviously knows the neighborhood children. And yet, he can't say anything to his neighbors.

I love how the movie tosses in tidbits. One being that we're viewing the final days of a dying media -- the all powerful newspaper; that we're just about to enter a new world of journalism.

And being a numbers guy: I love how they toss out statistics throughout the movie.

What would I have liked to have seen in this movie:

I would have loved a few scenes of Cardinal Law (Len Cariou), meeting with his staff as they discussed the Spotlight investigation. Cardinal Law knew the investigation was happening. What was he thinking? Well, maybe that is just something we don't know.