Notes from Vivace Show Alerts (Los Angeles): Nov 30th - Dec 6th

A Handful of Show Alerts 

Sunday, Nov 30th: Soft Palms and UGHH at The Lyric Hyperion. Doors at 8 p.m.

You can read my Soft Palms song spotlight for "Rainbows" here.

You can read my UGHH review at Happy Sundays Fest here. 

Sunday, Nov 30th: The What Four at Permanent Records Roadhouse. Doors at 6 p.m.

I recently wrote a review of their set at Frogtown Brewery, which you can read here.

Monday, Dec 1st: Brenda Carsey at Hotel Cafe. Doors at 8 p.m.

In 2018, I covered her at Echo Park Rising for Buzzbands, you can see a photo of the set here.

Wednesday, Dec 3rd: Alice Sandahl at Gold-Diggers. Doors at 7 p.m.

You can read my song spotlight for "Walk It Off" here. 

Wednesday, Dec 3rd: Baba Jenkins at Hotel Ziggy. Doors at 7 p.m.
You can read my song spotlight for "Wild" here.

Wednesday, Dec 3rd: Devon Thompson at El Cid. Doors at 7 p.m.

Got introduced to Devon Thompson via The Smell.

Wednesday, Dec 3rd: Rachel Goodrich at Healing Force Records. Doors at 8 p.m.

You can read my song spotlight for "Why Do We Fall in Love?" here. 

Thursday, Dec 4th: Pegzilla at The Goldfish. Doors at 8 p.m.

You can read my song spotlight for "Giver" here.

Friday, Dec 5th: Cosmic Kitten and Mike Watt at the Redwood Bar. Doors at 8 p.m.

You can read my Cosmic Kitten spotlight for "Hole in my Soul"  here. 

In 2024, I covered Mike Watt for US Rocker Music when he played Happy Sundays Long Beach, which you can read here. 

Saturday, Dec 6th: Crisis Actor and Jagged Baptist Club at Permanent Records Roadhouse. Doors at 9 p.m.

I recently wrote a Crisis Actor review of their Old Towne Pub set, which you can read here. 

You can read my Jagged Baptist Club song spotlight for "Temptation Death House" here. 

Photo Reviews: The Dandy Warhols (a night at The Bellwether)

A few weeks back, I got to shoot The Dandy Warhols at The Bellwether for US Rocker Music. You can read the article here. 

I figured I'd discuss a couple photos that I took. I'm happy with the shots. I got to the venue perhaps 15 minutes later than I anticipated due to the fact that I accidentally walked pass the side street that I needed to turn on and so I had to loop back. When I finally got inside the venue, there were really no good places to stand next to the stage. Would there have been if I got there 15 minutes earlier? Who knows. The venue recently took out their photo pit area that was in front of the stage. I'm not saying that if I had found a spot next to the stage that I would have stayed there the whole night. I'm just saying I didn't get a chance to shoot right up front. 

Review: Movie Club has the Soundtrack to Your Favorite Movies

Movie Club reached out to me in August 2023 to see if I was interested in coming to their residency at Harvard & Stone. I wasn't able to catch their immediate night as I had plans to catch a couple bands at Zebulon. The following week, I got sick. They pinged me a couple months later about a set they were playing at Gold-Diggers. Not only did I get to catch their set for the first time ever, but I also got to cross paths again with Wargirl (a band I hadn't seen since 2017, but left an impression at the time). What's the point of this background? Every so often bands reach out to me and I have to decline. But hey, keep asking, because I do my best to eventually make it out to a set (as long as the set is played in my definition of the core Los Angeles music scene or better explained as within a 10 mile radius of Glendale -- ha ha).

Movie Club at Permanent Records Roadhouse

Song Spotlight: Rituals of Mine's Devoted (a night at Zebulon)

I came across Rituals of Mine back in 2019 when they opened for Y La Bamba. I covered the night for Buzzbands. You can read that article here. I had specifically wanted to cover that set, because I ran across Y La Bamba in 2017 at the Music Tastes Good festival in Long Beach and really enjoyed their set. 

Rituals of Mine at Zebulon

Song Spotlight: Zara's Breathe Child (a night at Hotel Ziggy)

Zara (aka Zara Sargsyan) took the Hotel Ziggy's WFNM showcase stage for the second time this past October. The first time was back in November 2024. I was lucky enough to catch both sets. The recent Berklee College graduate had fellow alumni Angelo Della Valle playing backing guitar. Zara also played the guitar while singing. The duo guitars made for nifty jazz-pop interplay with intricate fingerpicking one her part. Her vocals had those Basia vibes from the 1980s-1990s. This was all perfectly highlighted from the top with the opening song "Stolen Joy."       

Zara at Hotel Ziggy

Song Spotlight: Holy Wars' Metamorphosis (a night at Pico Union Project)

As I mentioned in my Ramonda Hammer write up (you can read that here), I had a rather thrilling back to back nights in the Los Angeles music scene. Thursday night it was Ramonda Hammer at The Goldfish and then Friday night (11/21) it was off to see Holy Wars at Pico Union Project. Those two bands are two of my favorite bands in Los Angeles and it had been a rather long time since I last saw either band on stage. 

Holy Wars at Pico Union Project

Song Spotlight: Ramonda Hammer's Eyelash (a night at The Goldfish)

It was a thrilling back to back nights for me in the Los Angels music scene. I got to reconnect with two favorite bands that included an introduction to their new music. On Thursday (Nov 20th), I went to The Goldfish to catch Ramonda Hammer and then on Friday I saw Holy Wars. These are two of my favorite Los Angeles based bands, but it had been awhile since I last saw either one of them. 

Ramonda Hammer at The Goldfish

Notes from Vivace Show Alerts (Los Angeles): Nov 23rd - Nov 29th

A Handful (less than) of Show Alerts 

Sunday, Nov 23rd: Fashion Club at The Roxy. Doors at 7 p.m.
Lead singer Pascal Stevenson is in the band Moaning and for long time Los Angeles music fans, used to be in Moses Campbell.

  

Wednesday, Nov 26th: Mikayla McLean and Ron Blakely at Hotel Ziggy. Doors at 7 p.m.

Read my Song Spotlight for Mikayla McLean's "Run!" here.

Read my Song Spotlight for Ron Blakely's "Tired" here.

Saturday, Nov 29th: My Veronica at Oblivion. Doors at 7 p.m.

I listed My Veronica as one of my favorite new bands of 2024. You can read that post here.

Song Spotlight: Nico May's Give 'Em Hell (a night at Hotel Ziggy)

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

Song Spotlight: John Vincent III's City Rain (a night at the Greek Theatre)

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

Song Spotlight: The Chameleons' Feels Like The End Of The World (a night at the Belasco)

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

Song Spotlight: donna's burn, Pt. 2 (a night at Permanent Records Roadhouse)

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

Song Spotlight: Laveda's Cellphone (a night 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