A Movie Review: How to Lose Friends & Alienate People

How to Lose Friends & Alienate People.  Sidney Young (Simon Pegg) is trying to launch a celebrity magazine in London.  His efforts aren't going very far.  In fact, he's mostly a pariah in the London scene.  And yet, somehow, he catches the eye of Clayton Harding (Jeff Bridges), an editor of the New York based "Sharps" magazine.  Though Clayton Harding brings him on, he still starts at the bottom.  He learns how to navigate through the celebrity scene of New York and see his star rise at the magazine.

Though there is a much better movie out there about the New York celebrity scene, this movie does have a low key style (actually somewhat like the normal Simon Pegg movie) fun to it.  And you've got to love Megan Fox (Sophie Maes), Gillian Anderson (Eleanor Johnson) and Kristen Dunst (Alison Olsen).

Maudlin Strangers at Bootleg HiFi

Maudlin Strangers.  They are a touch maudlin.  Their fans are hardly not so.  Catch the drummer.  His facial expressions are awesome.

Quote of the night:  It is so hot up here.  But then I'm stupid for wearing a jacket.  This jacket isn't coming off.

Dorothy at Bootleg HiFi

Dorothy.  She took the stage and you knew there was something special about to take place.  She just went at it and captivated the audience with her Sunset Strip vocals and attitude.  And that awesome band . . .

The Gromble at Bootleg HiFi

The Gromble. With their slightly stretched vocals, this band will rock you through their set.

Feels at Echo Park Rising

Feels. The last time I saw Feels, they were called Raw Geronimo.  I really didn't know what to expect considering that they went through some losses and additions of members, which resulting in the name change.

Lead vocalist Laena Geronimo still holds sway as the band continues with psychedelic sounds.  The percussion rhythms are replaced with guitar strings.  And most definitely, they hold you in enjoyable captive.

P.S.  I actually did this, I headed down to Echo Park Rising to see just the Feels.  I arrived while they were setting up and left after their set.  I am that kind of strange person sometimes.

A Movie Review: The Place Beyond the Pines

The Place Beyond the Pines.  Luke (Ryan Gosling) is a traveling motorcycle stunt driver.  In one town he passes through, he runs into one of his flames, Romina (Eva Mendes).  He finds out that they have a child.  She's already moved on to an individual who is likely to provide a more stable relationship.  Luke decides to stay in town to try to rekindle the romance and to be more involved with his child.  

Deciding to stay in town results in Luke losing his income stream.  To earn money, he turns to robbing banks.  This is where he ends up running into a cop named Avery (Bradley Cooper).  

This movie is definitely well acted.  What else would you expect when Ryan Gosling, Eva Mendes and Bradley Cooper are involved.  On the other hand, I had a major problem with the movie when the sons of both Luke and Avery become frenemies in the movie.  It was just such an obvious moment that perfectly helped out with the plot, which kind of led one to figure out how the movie was likely to end.

Also, I'm not sure if the encounter between Avery and Luke should have been as controversial within the police department as it was made out to be.  Maybe a more veteran cop would have handled things differently, but considering the circumstances of the encounter (a confrontation with an individual who was guilty of armed robbery) I would tend to provide some lenience to the cop's actions.  

The Future League at The Satellite

The Future League.  Does the drummer have a Brazilian blowout haircut?  That was the question out there for this August residency band.

The Vim Dicta at The Satellite

The Vim Dicta.  First thing I thought when watching this band:  I love the vocals by the lead singer.  Her vocals have that perfect deepness.

Jenny O in Pasadena

Jenny O. Sometimes you don't see someone for nearly a year and a half and when you do see them again you get a free concert that lasts 1 hour and 30 minutes. Hey, that sort of works out, doesn't it.

Jenny O, the songstress.

I did notice He's My Brother, She's My Sister in the audience.  I was hoping they might join in for a song or two.

The Shakers at The Viper Room

The Shakers. When ever The Shakers are about to hit the stage, the Viper Room always seems to fill up.  Why is that?  Maybe because they're amazing.

Hudson at The Viper Room

Hudson. Sometimes it is good to remove yourself from the Eastside music scene.  Of course, I did notice that Hudson has played The Satellite so maybe I just drove off to the Sunset Strip to catch a different fan vibe.  They play some serious Rock and Roll with a stage performance to match.

We are Kings and Queens at Silverlake Lounge

We are Kings and Queens.  Deliberate sounds that thrill.

Burning Jet Black at Silverlake Lounge

Burning Jet Black. Head nodding rock packaged in an entertaining stage presentation.