Tomorrow, Friday October 29: Second Annual Rock 'N Roll Circus at the Echoplex

Last year's Circus was a lot of fun and this year's will be even better with the addition of The Little Ones, who were picture perfect at the Echo in August. Wear a costume, get a CD with one song from each of the bands performing. I may or may not be dressed as a devil.

Complete details from the fine sirs of The Henry Clay People:

We did it last year....and we're doing it again this year....only BIGGER. We're taking over both the ECHO and ECHOPLEX in Los Angeles: 14 bands, comedians, food trucks, face painting, games, raffles, free popcorn and sno-cones, cotton candy, maybe some magic...?

Oh yeah...it's Halloween weekend too... Anyone who comes ...dressed in a Halloween costume, or as some type of circus performer, will get a FREE mix cd w/ a song from all (most?) of the bands performing.

Friday, Oct 29 at the ECHO and ECHOPLEX

7pm doors, music at 8pm.

$10 tix in advance/$12 dos

and the lineup:

THE HENRY CLAY PEOPLE
THE LITTLE ONES
ANDY CLOCKWISE
WE BARBARIANS
THE MONOLATORS
THE DIG
DOWNTOWN/UNION

PLUS "side show acoustic performances" by:

RED CORTEZ
MANHATTAN MURDER MYSTERY
OLIN AND THE MOON
THE STEELWELLS
RADEMACHER
MARVELOUS TOY
THE HECTORS

HOSTED BY
MATT DWYER and MATT BRAUNGER

Happy Fitz & The Tantrums Record Release Day! Album Stream, New Video, Free Download!

CER Favorites Fitz & The Tantrums' meteoric rise hits another milestone today with the release of their new album, Pickin' Up The Pieces, on Dangerbird Records. The band celebrates with an in-store performance at Amoeba at 7pm. Attendance is mandatory. FATT also play in LA on Saturday night at Milk Studios. [For you New Yorkers, FATT hits the Mercury Lounge on September 25]

Stream the new album right here:

And here's FATT's new video for "Moneygrabber:"



Finally, you can download the MP3 of "Moneygrabber" here:

Let the celebration begin!

Casxio's First Full Length Album: Help Fund It!

CER Favorites Casxio are looking for fans to help fund the printing and marketing of their first album, which will be released in September. Those who donate will be rewarded, handsomely.

From the band:

Hello fans and friends!

The money you donate here will go towards printing the first Casxio album! Those of you who have been following us for a couple years know what a special occasion this is. We've been slaving over this album for quite a while and want nothing more than to share it with you... in fact, that's why we slave in the first place! We are slaves for you! And we love it!
The first $3000 will go towards the printing of the album including album artwork. Any amount after that will be used to promote the album, which is quite important as well. So let your heart be your guide and give whatever you can and reap the benefits. That's right! benefits! We have rewards for donations $10, $20, $30, and $50 and up.

To help out, just click the box below.

Video Encounter: Steel Train on David Letterman!!!

So so so so proud of these guys. Big congrats to Evan and Dan.

What 2 Go 2: July 12 - 16

It's all about Spaceland this week. I haven't been there in over 3 months and I'm hoping to make up for that in short order.

Monday: Wait.Think.Fast. and Cue the Moon open for the Summer Darling residency at Spaceland.

Tuesday: Free show at the Viper Room with Las Vegas' Imagine Dragons (who put on probably the most intense show I've seen this year at said Viper Room in April) and Hey Champ (who will likely turn the Viper Room into a dance party). ID is on at 10, Hey Champ at 11. Brandon of SUPERGOODMUSIC DJs downstairs.

Wednesday: The Californian is at Spaceland, where they will debut their new lineup.

Thursday: Dusty Rhodes and the River Band celebrate the release of their new album at Spaceland.

Video Encounter: Abraham Linkin's "I Got It At Ross"

Hip-hop for our troubled times. So timely and so enjoyable. Thanks to Molly for the tip.

Video Encounter: Local Natives XBOX Commercial

And that's why some bands sign to Universal Music Publishing.

And that's why some bands don't.

Henry Clay People Record Release Show on Tuesday at Spaceland

The flyer tells you everything you need to know, except one thing: You should really be there.

Video Encounter: Local Natives' "World News"

CER All-Time Favorites (it's highly unlikely that this blog would even exist if not for them) Local Natives released their video today for "World News." I'm not sure if the video is supposed to be understood, but if it is I clearly don't get it. Nonetheless, it will surely hold your attention for four and a half minutes.

Friday Night Should Be Spent at Pehrspace

Tomorrow night is the Feed Your Head Second Anniversary Show. Feed Your Head is an LA music blog started by Brad Roberts, who I frequently see at shows but have never introduced myself to (yes, I am increasingly embarrassed about that). Many moons ago, Brad was kind enough to link to CER from his blog. In and of itself that should be sufficient for me to want to attend a show celebrating Feed Your Head's second anniversary of existence, but Brad has assembled a superb lineup that makes for required attendance even if I knew nothing about Feed Your Head:

Seasons (10pm), Radars to the Sky (acoustic at midnight), Downtown/Union (opening up at 9) George Glass (11pm) and a "special solo interlude" from Harley of Red Cortez.

For a brief description of what each band has scheduled for the night, straight from their mouths, head over to Radio Free Silverlake's story on the show.

See you there.

What 2 Go 2: April 26 - May 2

Enormous week coming up, the biggest of 2010 so far.

Monday: Last night of Walking Sleep's residency at the Echo, with three exciting supporting acts: Obi Best, Radar Brothers, and, most importantly, The Elk.

• The Elk are an LA band playing a "secret" show. I assume that because I know who The Elk actually are that the secret is out. But here's a big hint: the Elk River flows through Clay County, West Virginia.
  
• As for the other two bands, I've been wanting to see Obi Best for almost a year, and they've got a couple new, interesting demos on their Myspace page. The Radar Brothers are pleasant indie rock on Merge Records.

Tuesday: Two bands worth checking out at two different venues: The Californian is at Spaceland while Chasing Kings are at Silverlake Lounge.

• The Californian is a band to keep your eye on. It's unfortunate that their Myspace page only provides one minute thirty second samples of four songs, but it takes less than 6 minutes to know they're more than worthwhile. Also unfortunate is that they're on at midnight.

Friday: Fantastic lineup at Pehrspace, featuring His Orchestra, Cue the Moon, and I Heart Lung.

• My interest was first piqued about this show because His Orchestra is playing. I saw His Orchestra at Silverlake Lounge in February and each and every band member is incredibly talented. I was truly impressed, and even though they didn't finish their set until after 1am I never considered leaving early.
  
• But even without His Orchestra, Cue the Moon would be worth the trip. Definitely another band to keep your eye on.
  
• I Heart Lung is a two-piece instrumental band. It's good stuff, but I question how it's going to translate at Pehrspace.

Saturday: Avi Buffalo's record release show at the Troubadour. VoicesVoices and The Wailing Wall (a/k/a Jesse Rifkin, who attended Orthodox Jewish Day School for 11 years) open. Because it's a record release show, because I'm looking forward to seeing how much Avi and his band have grown over the past year, and because I'm very curious about The Wailing Wall, it's the CER Show of the Week.

Avi Buffalo Album Stream -- Listen Right Here

The album sounds great. I highly recommend you take a listen or two. Stream it right here with this handy player (available through April 27, when the album is released):



Avi Buffalo's record release show is on Saturday, May 1 at the Troubadour. I've been skeptical of the band's live show in the past, but it's been a year since I last saw them, and I'm looking forward to being impressed by what a year of shows can do to a band.

Tickets to the show are still available, but they're likely to sell out in advance. Here's the ticket link.

What 2 Go 2 Special Alert: Local Natives at the Troubadour on Friday, June 4

Coachella exclusivity doesn't last forever. Local Natives' first LA show since December's uncomfortably sold out show at the Echo will be on June 4 at the Troubadour as part of their tour with labelmates Suckers. Local friends The Union Line will start the night's festivities.

Considering that the Echo show sold out, and especially considering everything thereafter (Pitchfork, Coachella, sold out shows across the country, including two at the Bowery Ballroom, etc.) this show is going to sell out fast once word gets out. As this is the last date of the tour, it's possible that a second date will be added, but there's definitely no guarantees. The next time the Troubadour is free is June 8, and LN is at Bonnaroo on June 10, which probably eliminates that possibility. Perhaps LN will pull a Passion Pit and book the Echoplex for a second show.

While I'm happy that this show is not at a larger venue, I am very surprised, since this show could definitely fill the Echoplex or El Rey. There's going to be a lot of unhappy fans getting shut out.

In December I was wrong when I wrote that the Echo show may be LN's last in a small venue in LA, but I don't see how this won't be it.

Best get your tickets now, which you can do at this link.

(Thanks to The Scenestar for the tip)

UPDATE 4/20: Troubadour show is sold out, but they've added a second show at Bootleg (21+). Tickets on sale now here.

UPDATE 4/21: Bootleg is sold out. No word on whether there will be a third show.

What 2 Go 2: April 19 - 25

Monday: Franklin for Short opens (at 9pm) the third night of Walking Sleep's residency at the Echo. Franklin for Short hails from Ventura, and they're gooood. Folky indie rock. They'll be opening a couple dates for Kings of Convenience in June. Parson Red Heads are also on the bill tonight, following FFS at 10. And, of course, there's Walking Sleep at 11. Unquestionably the CER Show of the Week.

Here's some FFS tunes for your enjoyment:




Tuesday: Assuming you're not going to the 75th anniversary screening of Reefer Madness at the Vine Theatre in Hollywood, then Taylor Hawkins and the Coattail Riders play the Troubadour. You never know, but Dave Grohl could make an appearance. Dios opens up.

Wednesday: Signals (ex-Mae Shi) at Echo Curio.

Friday: I'll be getting my pop-rock fix at the Troubadour, where Tyrone Wells headlines.

Sunday: The Monolators and Sean Bones are at the Echo. It's simply unacceptable that I haven't seen The Monolators yet. Sean Bones is on the roster of the can-do-no-wrong Frenchkiss Records.

Video Encounter: Best Coast's "When I'm With You"

Fun. Fantastic. Best Coast. I like to describe them as surf-punk-love-fuzz, regardless of whether that's a completely accurate description.

Video Encounter: Walking Sleep's "As a Volunteer (acoustic)"

Lots of videos this week. Here's one from Walking Sleep, proud owners of the Echo's April residency. This one particular song reminds me a lot of The Original Brothers and Sisters of Love, a band from Ann Arbor who disbanded in 2003 (and who, it turns out, got a 7.3 from Pitchfork for their album H.O.M.E.S. back in 2001). Many of the members of TOBASOL are now in the Great Lakes Myth Society, who rarely tour, but who I was very happy to catch at SXSW last year.

The video was filmed at the Red Lion Tavern in Silverlake on a rainy Sunday morning.

Walking Sleep - "As a Volunteer" from elliot glass on Vimeo.

Walking Sleep's next show is on Monday at the Echo for night two of their residency. As always, admission is free.

Video Encounter: Family of the Year at SXSW 2010

CER Favorites Family of the Year are back in Los Angeles after their recent tour, which took them all over the country, including to Niagara Falls and SXSW. The band has posted a video documenting their tour, set to the song "Chugjug" off their recently released (and great) EP, which you can stream and purchase here.



FOTY are also offering a free download of their unreleased track "chrissy."

I highly recommend that you catch FOTY live at the Bootleg Theatre this Friday. They take the stage at 10:30pm.

Video Encounter: Letting Up Despite Great Faults' "Our Younger Noise"

CER Favorites Letting Up Despite Great Faults released their video for "Our Younger Noise" today. It's lovely, and features the first recorded paper airplane fight I've ever seen.

Letting Up Despite Great Faults: "Our Younger Noise" from Christopher j Ewing on Vimeo.

Now if they would just turn up the vocals when they perform, nothing could stop them.

What 2 Go 2: April 5 - 11

Foster the People

Monday: Night 1 of Walking Sleep's Echo residency. The only opening band that interests me is Carsick Cars, a Chinese indie rock band on their first US tour.

Wednesday: Foster the People, one of the bands in the growing SUPERGOODMUSIC family, opens up at Spaceland. CER's Show of the Week.

• FTP has only played a handful of shows, but have already made it to SXSW and back, and have been drawing comparisons to MGMT and Peter, Bjorn & John. In short, best get on this train before it speeds away from the station. They don't have a Myspace page, but their homepage has a player in the bottom left corner. Stick around after FTP to check out The Fling.

• Link to download 2010's Song of the Summer: FTP's "Pumped up Kicks" here

• Unofficial video for Pumped Up Kicks:

Thursday: Two good choices:

• Night 2 of 3 of We Are the World's Thursday residency at the Echo, celebrating the release of their record, Clay Stones. If you haven't seen We Are the World, you must. Their performances are visually captivating.

• The Minor Cannon is at the Silverlake Lounge. Minor Cannon is on my long list of bands that I should have been by now.
  

Friday: Family of the Year, one of CER's New Favorites, is at the Bootleg Theatre with The Janks. Thankfully FOTY takes the stage before midnight (10:30 pm), unlike the last time I saw them.

Saturday: Wires in the Walls brings their blend of indie rock and Americana to the Bootleg for its EP Release Show. Olin & The Moon opens at 10:30, Wires is on at 11:30.

LA Bands To See @ SXSW

This is a day late (and the font is a little off), but for those of you lucky enough to be in Austin and looking for the best LA has to offer, here's CER's SXSW recommendations:

Family of the Year

• Thursday: 1:30 @ Cafe Mundi
  
• Friday: 5:00 @ Maggie Mae's, 8:00 @ Ale House

His Orchestra

• Thursday: 5:00 @ Creekside Lounge

Best Coast

• Thursday: 3:00 @ Fader Fort, 4:00 @ Red Fez
  
• Friday: 3:30 @ Emo’s, 6:00 @ Klub Krucial
  
• Saturday: 2:00 @ Maggie Mae’s, 4:00 @ Mexican American Cultural Center, 6:45 @ Max’s Wine Dive, 11:00 @ Barbarella

Letting Up Despite Great Faults

• Thursday: 10:30 @ Sneakerfest
• Friday: 1:30 @ Clive Bar
• Saturday: 1:00 @ Moose Lodge, 2:45PM @ Home Slice Pizza
  

Happy Hollows

• Thursday 12:30 @ Scoot Inn, 3:00 @ Lustre Pearl, 4:30 @ Lambert’s
• Friday: 1:30 @ Republic Live, 8:00 @ Guero’s
  
• Saturday: 5:00 @ Home Slice Pizza

Casxio

• Thursday: 5:00 @ Blind Pig rooftop, 10:10 @ Malverde
  
• Friday: 5:15 @ Shangri-La
  
• Saturday: 2:40 @ Peckerheads

Henry Clay People

• Thursday: 2:00 @ Threadgill’s, 3:45 @ Lambert’s, 8:30 @ Club de Ville
  
• Friday: 3:30 @ Anne’s on 6th, 6:00 @ Pure Volume House
  
• Saturday: 2:30 @ Kung Fu Saloon, 6:00 @ Home Slice Pizza

Nico Stai

• Thursday: 8:00 @ Uncorked Bar
• Friday: 3:00 @ The Acquarium, 10:30 @ Maggie Mae's
• Saturday: 2:00 @ The Shangri-la
  

Also, Kittens Ablaze’s showcase is at 1am on Friday night at Wave.

I'm jealous of all of you. Have fun.

The Henry Clay People Sign to TBD Records, To Tour With Drive by Truckers

It's great to see the bands we love get the recognition they deserve. In January The Henry Clay People opened for Olin & The Moon's residency at the Echo and their set consisted of their entire unreleased new album, played front to back. If you've seen HCP play anytime over the past 6 to 8 months, you've already heard a lot of the songs. There's multiple winners on it, including "End of an Empire," and two of the four new songs they wrote for their April Spaceland residency. The album will also include re-recordings of "This Ain't a Scene" and "Working Part Time," which appeared on their previous release, For Cheap or For Free. I do lament, though, the omission of "The Switch Kids" (CER's subtitle is taken from that song).

We now know when we'll see the album, and on what label. And we also know that HCP will be playing 10 sets at SXSW, which should be a record (Local Natives only play a measly nine. Time to step up your game, guys). From the band:

TBD Records!

Hello friends, strangers, loved ones, and whoever else cares to read this-

We are extremely pleased to announce that we will be releasing our new record "Somewhere on the Golden Coast" in early June of 2010 on TBD Records (Radiohead, White Rabbits, Port O'Brien). The record was recorded mostly at The Ship in Eagle Rock, CA by Aaron Espinoza and at Rollercoaster in Burbank, with David Newton. Aaron's new imprint The Ship Records is also helping with the release.

The idea was to track the record as live as possible onto tape, leaving that dirt under the fingernails kinda feel. So yeah, there is a good amount of dirt, but hopefully other stuff too. We threw a couple of tracks on the ole myspace. Check back in case we decide to throw a couple more on.

We're also happy to announce a whole tone of upcoming dates, kicking off with 10 shows at SXSW in Austin, an LA show with Admiral Radley (Grandaddy/Earlimart super band), and some dates with Drive by Truckers (more to come too).

More later!

Love,
The Henry Clay People

upcoming dates;

SXSW Schedule

3/17 Wednesday
12:50 – QuinnStorm & C3 Presents @ Lamberts
2:20 – LittleRadio @ Red Eye Fly
Night – Stubbs inside between outside sets for NPR showcase, two sets

3/18 Thursday
2:00 – Roky Erikson’s Ice-Cream Social @ Threadgill’s
3:45 – Aquarium Drunkard @ Lamberts
8:30 – Billions Showcase @ Club Deville

3/19 Friday
3:30 – Buddyhead @ Annies on 6th
6:00 – Pure Volume @ 504 Trinity St

3/20 Saturday
2:30 – Pianos NYC @ Kung Fu Saloon
5:15 – The Ship & WOXY @ Homeslice
_____________

3/24 - Bootleg Theatre - Los Angeles, CA w/ Admiral Radley
5/5 – Rialto Theatre – Tucson, AZ w/ Drive-By Truckers
5/6 - House of Blues - San Diego, CA w/ Drive-By Truckers
5/7 - Avalon - Los Angeles, CA w/ Drive-By Truckers
5/8 - The Fillmore - San Francisco, CA w/ Drive-By Truckers
5/12 – In The Venue – Salt Lake City, UT w/ Drive-By Truckers

For an "inside" perspective, check out Mouse's take over at Classical Geek Theatre.

What 2 Go 2: March 8 - 14

I'm excited for this week. Every band listed below is be one that I have never seen before (with one exception that I think you'll let slide).

Monday: Seaspin, Repeater and The Romany Rye at the Silverlake Lounge. Night Two of Seaspin's March residency.

• Seaspin is a female-fronted band playing dark shoegazy rock. Interestingly, the primary members of Seaspin were formerly of Your Enemies' Friends.
  
• Repeater is a post-punk band from Long Beach.
  
• The Romany Rye is a great folk-rock/alt-country band.
  

Personally, I'm very interested in seeing The Romany Rye, and since they're on at 9, I'll be happily parking myself at the Silverlake Lounge all night. Repeater's on at 10, and Seaspin is on at 11.

Tuesday: Another night to spend at the Silverlake Lounge, although this time it will cost you $8. Random Patterns (9pm), Superhumanoids (10pm), and his Orchestra (12pm).

• Random Patterns is, understandably, sometimes random and hard to classify. But they should be fun, and I heard good things about their set opening for the Happy Hollows residency last year.
• Superhumanoids describe themselves as "an electronic experiment to escape the everyday of the everyday," but there's a lot more indie rock in there than the description would lead one to believe. They've got a good sound.
  
• his Orchestra. Piano-powered indie pop with some unusual instruments thrown in for good measure. I've been trying to see this band for over 6 months. They're scheduled to hit the stage at midnight, but I'll stay as late as necessary in order to finally see them. (Bonus: the band is fronted by the oldest son in Big Love.)

Wednesday: If you got tickets to see Delta Spirit at the Bootleg, have fun. It's sold out.

Saturday: Two shows to check out:

• First, the one repeat of the week: Best Coast claims to be doing an in-store performance at the Bloomingdale's at the [edit: Beverly Center, not Century City Mall] in the afternoon. I don't know if this is actually going to happen (and my mind is boggling just thinking about it), but if does, I will of course be there to witness it, and I'll bring my camera.
  

• Second, The Franks are at Origami Vinyl at 7pm.

Keeping Up: LA Band Name Changes

It's noteworthy how many LA bands have changed their names over the last few months. So far we have:

1. The Afternoons, who are now Shadow Shadow Shade (See them tonight at the Echo at 10pm with The Rhone Occupation)
2. The Jakes, who are now Young the Giant (Eshon's new project is called Backwards Forwards.)
   
3. The Flying Tourbillon Orchestra, who are now Walking Sleep (They have the April Echo residency)
   

And new names coming soon . . .

• Aushua, according to Kevin Bronson.
• Castledoor's new incarnation

I will refrain from commenting on the quality of these new names -- my blog is named like a record label.

Tonight at the Bootleg Theater: Gold Motel & Family of the Year

And we're back. CER is returning, hopefully in full force, after ramping down for a few months. SXSW 2010 may not be in the cards, but it's time to jump back into LA music.

So let's start off big tonight at the Bootleg Theater. Unfortunately it's an all ages show, but it promises to be an exciting one. Gold Motel, the new solo project from Greta of The Hush Sound, is scheduled to be on at 10pm, and Family of the Year (not to be confused with Story of the Year, or Father of the Year) wraps things up at 11:30. Michael Runion plays in between.

FOTY is definitely a band to keep your eye on. You can name your price for digital downloads of their LP and EP on their website. Tonight is their last show before they head out on a tour that takes them to SXSW.

Castledoor's Last Show, LANME's First Show: Tomorrow Night at Spaceland

I was hoping not to have to use the "Band Breakups" label again (and especially on CER's one year anniversary), but Castledoor has just announced that tomorrow night will be their final show. No reasons given yet, but if the past is any indication, having their hopes of breaking out of the local scene dashed repeatedly over the years likely has something to do with it. The breakup is especially jarring as it comes on the heels of their recent completion of recording for a new EP, and indications that things were once again looking up.

Castledoor will be opening for the last night of Princeton's Spaceland residency. They should be on at 10pm, preceded by the debut of LANME (Los Angeles New Music Ensemble), who describe tomorrow's performance as "[t]he first run of a series of ground-breaking compositions that fuse together rock, post-minimalism, hip hop, and electronics."

One band ending, one ensemble beginning. And all for free. Definitely worth attending. Sadly, I will be out of town for work.

Castledoor's final music video (the song begins at around 00:45):



A look back at Castledoor through the eyes of CER:

Castledoor at Echoplex (4/28/2009) and at Temporary Spaces (5/1/2009)

Album Review: Castledoor's Shouting at Mountains

Castledoor, Local Natives @ Spaceland (6/22/2009)

Closing the Loop

The pesky Pitchfork review that I mentioned at the end of last year as the only thing standing between Local Natives and 2010 domination? It's now a catapult. 8.4 and Best New Music.

Video Encounter: The Happy Hollows "Death to Vivek Kemp"

The music video for The Happy Hollows "Death to Vivek Kemp" was released today. It was directed by Ben Hoste, who also directed The Voyeurs' video for "The Night I Died," which is somewhere on this blog if you look for it.

From Ben:

"I was super excited to direct a music video for The Happy Hollows’ song “Death to Vivek Kemp”. It was released today and premiered on The Daily Swarm where they said some nice things about it (which is appreciated), so head over there and check it out. It was a pleasure working with Sarah, Charlie, and Chris, they are some of the friendliest and most talented musicians I know, and at this point I feel as though I know them intimately having spent hundreds of hours drawing each one of them over and over and over and over. Hope you enjoy it and buy their record! It’s fantastic."