The Kiss, yes, the famous sculpture by Auguste Rodin. I saw it while in Paris recently and perhaps with all the romance in the air surrounding a certain greeting card holiday, it suddenly comes to mind. Not so much for it's monumental influence in the world of art but more for its creator Rodin and what he once said: "People say I think too much about women, yet, after all what is there more important to think about?" And suddenly everything becomes so clear. So in honor of Rodin, St. Valentine, and most importantly, women, I offer a little ode to a few lady friends I saw around town the last month or so, some of whom I took a few pictures of and some I'll comment on...
12 hours after landing from one of the worst experiences in air travel history, I was at El Cid watching Les Shelleys and Margo Lee. Hadn't seen ML since their band name change and their new lineup. They're probably still working out the kinks but they're oh-so close. And we all know Les Shelleys by now, right? And we're all thankful they're not changing their name to that other one, right?...
Modicum played their last show with Flash on skins at the Derby. Ryan Yerdon's the lucky new drummer who gets to see Toikka and Levy's backsides every night. The new Modicum returns in March. Prepare yourself... To be honest, I don't really care much for the two records put out by local indie pop duo Looner. And they might be a bit too quirky for some people. But I can't help not liking their shows. They're a sequencer-loaded pair that combines drum loops, live percussion and melodic guitar with beat boxing and pop vocals. I'm telling you right now they're pretty good. Ziggy Marley saw them last year at the Good Hurt and brought them on tour with them; they live a few blocks from Spaceland; and they still can't get booked in Silver Lake. Give them a bone... Cindy Wasserman's been back off touring with Grant Lee Phillips and has been playing with her band Dead Rock West for a few months. Insider hint: Be at their 2/14 show... The Sweet Hurt played at UCLA's noon show at Bruin Plaza where they were giving out free In-N-Out burgers to students. I think I only got one thing for free in college and it still itches...
Regina Spektor was a marvel to see again. She played a year ago at Spaceland as a virtual unknown and didn't draw half the crowd she did for these two Hotel Cafe shows (they even misspelled her name on the marquee). People that do know her realize that she's brilliant, in an Annie Hall meets Little Orphan Annie kind of way. If you've heard the "Summer In the City" or "Belt" demos you know what I mean. In any case, "Poor Little Rich Boy" and "Uh-Merica" were great and so was that lovely parachute blouse. Leerone, LA's own ivory-tickling chanteuse, was in the audience. Go see this girl... Kate Earl is the closest thing to an angel you'll find anywhere. You won't believe me until you meet her or until your heart bursts out of your chest when the opening lines of "Hero" are played. But you'll find out soon enough... So nice to see Red Car after about a year of hiatus. Heather Reid always delivers the sizzle. And I'm sure everyone's heard of The Bruises by now. They've only just recently completely settled in Los Angeles and they're already probably one of the better bands in town. Scouts should watch closely on this one...
A couple of Bay Area ladies visited the other night at Tangier. Why that room wasn't filled to the curb is beyond me since these artists are among the very best around. Susie Suh is going to have Rachael Yamagata fans in her pocket and you might recognize her smoky voice from your Deep Water Slang record (members of Zion I were in the house). Some fella named Glen Ballard produced her new record, out soon on Epic. Odessa Chen put out one of the most darkly poetic records last year but on stage her music hits a whole new level of beauty. Together with drummer Richard Douthit's ambient cymbal scrapes and deep kicker pounds, her songs transcend like a winter snowfall. Seriously so good. And what hasn't already been said about Amy Cooper, who finished off the night playing songs off her new record Water/Fire, produced by John Vanderslice. It's a good album but her performances are really what you should check out...
Kansas City indie rockers, Veda, did a brief stint in LA after doing some shows with Thrice. Lead singer Kristen May's wail will remind you of Maura Davis and Carina Round. And the band go heavy on amperage, enough to power a small town. They're already on many tipsheets. Here's a tip, bring earplugs. Here's another tip, I'm old... Mia Doi Todd had her long awaited CD release for "Manzanita" at the Echo. You can tell she's still getting used to playing with a band but she sounded great and what a crowd.
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Tuesday, February 08, 2005
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rollCall » los angeles rollcall » scene rollcall » idols precedence:bands» On the bubble» precedence:singer-songriters» On the bubble» precedence:venues»     |
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