spleen united + death kit @ bootleg theater – 10.16.09

i really didn’t feel like going out at all last night. especially to a late show. but i rallied and fortune shined upon me. caught denmark’s spleen united (photo above) and LA’s death kit at the bootleg theater. this is the second time that i’ve been to the bootleg, and between the cozy back deck and the surprisingly good bands on stage, it’s quickly becoming my favorite under the radar gem.

save for the sparsely lit stage. again, had to whip out the flash. what’s up with all the super dark shows this week???? (see harper simon post below.)

while i didn’t know much about either band upon going to the show, i left adoring them both. electro dance rock that makes you bounce. go play speen united’s “suburbia” right now on myspace. so good. and apparently death kit, a shiny new 3-piece, has only played out twice so far. wow. wow. wow.

damn good night.

more photos on flickr.

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harper simon + petra haden & jim bianco @ the echo – 10.14.09

i rarely shoot flash, but damn was the echo dark for the harper simon cd release show on wednesday. i love the new album, really i do, but the live show surprisingly didn’t do much for me. (though i was a bit mesmerized by the horn section.) buzz bands talks more about the tentative performance, along with featuring a few of my photos.

and yes, harper simon is the son of musician extraordinaire paul simon, in case you were wondering.

more photos on flickr.

manhattan murder mystery @ chuck e cheese – 10.1.09

had a fun little pizza party/photo shoot with LA’s manhattan murder mystery at chuck e cheese last week. the photos were for a feature article over on radio free silver lake.

manhattan murder mystery plays a FREE friday residency at echo curio throughout the month of october. hoping to make it there this friday!

jack penate + miike snow @ echoplex – 10.4.09

i admit, i’ve been a bit obsessed with jack penate (pictured above) for several months now. i’ve played his new cd INTO THE GROUND, as it has become the anthem of my summer in LA. maybe that’s why i was a little disappointed in his live show last night at echoplex. while he was soooo fun to watch live, he sounded quite different from the “recorded version” ingrained in my head. is it possible to know an album too well? maybe so.

then headliner miike snow took the stage and knocked out a dead-on rendition of their new album that was nothing short of pristine. hearing “silvia” live was beyond epic. (woke up with it still in my head this morning.) not so great stage chemistry though. and zero engagement with the audience.

odd seeing two bands like this play back-to-back. any way to marry miike snow’s precision with jack penate’s energy and stage charisma? or have i just dreamed up the perfect band?

a different take on the show exists over on buzz bands, along with my photos.

and more photos on flickr too.

buzz bands 1-year anniversary party @ the echo – 9.30.09

quite the lineup on wednesday at the echo for the one-year anniversary of buzz bands…. samuel stewart, eastern conference champions, voxhaul broadcast and radio freq all played to a packed house. it was my first time seeing all four bands live. such a fun night, and a great anniversary party for a blog that is near and dear to my heart.

samuel stewart is in the photo above. could possibly be my new fav in LA?!

more photos over on flickr.