Tonight in L.A. (October 11, 2012)

On this interesting date (10/11/12) – there are a few line ups with a one, two, three punch that may make your music taste buds salivate.  AWOLNATION, Imagine Dragons and Zeale at Club Nokia has to be the tastiest bill and its only made sweeter by the fact that they are giving away a free EP at http://awolnationmusic.com/downloads/

K. Flay, Michna and Air Dubai should deliver for the hip-hop set, while Jhameel, Tic Tic Boom! and Trapdoor Special should hopefully do the same over at Saint Rocke for South Bay residents that dig emerging indie artists.

Spectacular musicianship will undoubtedly be on display at Coach House where Steve Kimcok, Bernie Worrell, Wally Ingram and Andy Hess take stage.  The same can likely be said for the interesting Dudamel Conducts Where The Wild Things Are at Walt Disney Concert Hall – which begins its first of four consecutive nights. 

Other notable acts include Girl Talk with Dev at The Observatory, Dr. John at The Valley Performing Arts Center and Egyptian Lover at New Wave Bar.  Find a full list of LA's shows tonight below

• Harlow Gold @ Harvelle’s

• FD and The Club Pacific Band, Mollusk Sound + Special Guests @ Del Monte Speakeasy

• Megan Daniels (DJ) @ Yost Theater (GI Joes & Army Hoes night/18+)

• John Parr, Fast Machine @ Brixton South Bay

• The Lovely Bad Things, Honey Badgers, The Withers, You Me and Us @ Alex’s Bar

• Datadrone, Kosmo Kat, Time & Energy, Flying Hand @ Detroit Bar (FREE)

• Alfie Boe  @ The Wiltern

• AWOLNATION, Imagine Dragons, Zeale @ Club Nokia (SOLD OUT)

• Madonna @ Staples Center

• Jason Bonham’s Led Zeppelin Experience @ Greek Theatre

• Dudamel Conducts Where The Wild Things Are @ Walt Disney Concert Hall

• Patti Smith (Live Webcast) @ Amoeba Records

• Sketchy Black Dog I @ bluewhale

• OohlaLA Festival 2012: Tomorrow’s World, Housse de Racket, Citizens!, Lescop@ El Rey Theatre

• J Boog, Hot Rain, Common Kings @ House of Blues – Sunset Strip

• Bettye LaVette @ Troubadour

• Cage 9, That Metal Bar, Black Belt Karate, The Sammus Theory, Marishi Ten @ The Viper Room

• Sleeping With Sirens, Heartist, You Only Live Once @ The Roxy

• Favorite Dreams, Craig Elkins, Harold Honey @ Lot 1 Café (FREE)

• Amanda Jo Williams, Falling Still @ Harvard & Stone

• Lily LaRue, Tori Adorable, Mae Lust, Ms. Honey Badger, Prix De Beaute @ One Eyed Gypsy

• Northern Youth, The Union Line, Jarrett Killen, Young Empress @ Bootleg Bar

• Wounded Lion, Dreamsalon, Magic Trash @ The Satellite

• Giant Giant Sand, Russ Tolman Band, Brian Lopez @ The Echoplex

• K. Flay, Michna, Air Dubai @ The Echo

• Judson McKinney, Haley & Michaels, The Blank Tapes, Neil Bryden, Lily Elise @ The Hotel Café

• The Cooling Time, Detective, The Kyle Sowashes, Dolby Fuckers, Nate Weiner @ Silverlake Lounge

• Mario Jose, Alexander Cardinale @ Room 5 Lounge

• The Vignatis @ Molly Malones

• Girl Talk, Dev, Five Knives @ The Observatory

• Eddie Izzard @ Largo (730; 930)

• Poncho Sanchez @ Vitello’s Jazz & Supper Club

• Ryan Fuller, Ruthann Friedman, Downtown/Union @ 3 Clubs

• Bananarama, Bullet & Snowfox @ Hard Rock Café

• Death Lens, Santoros, Earth Like Planets, Graham McRae @ Los Globos

• The Janks @ O’Brien’s

• Alberta Cross @ Westfield Centurt City Shopping Center

• Todd Beeson @ Genghis Cohen

• Jhameel, Tic Tic Boom!, Trapdoor Special @ Saint Rocke

• Steve Vai, Beverly McClellan @ City National Grove of Anaheim

• Steve Kimock, Bernie Worrell, Wally Ingram, Andy Hess @ Coach House

• California Honeydrops @ SLO Brew

• Dr. John & The Lower 911, Blind Boys of Alabama @ Valley Performing Arts Center

• Rufus Wainwright @ Fox Performing Arts Center

• Jason Lee Bruns Jazz Collective, Kevin Bachelder, Kim Richmond @ Catalina Bar & Grill

• Trash Monsters, Rezurex, Triggers @ House of Blues – Anaheim

• Versus: ft. Human Life @ The Central SAPC

• Corb Lund @ The Mint

• Jessie Payo, Elizaveta, Milow @ WitZend

• Suzanne Kraft, Young Adults, Yazner @ Tommy Palace

• The Charlies, Oliver @ Exchange LA

• Egyptian Lover @ New Wave Bar

• Patrolled By Radar, Psychedelic Cowboys, Son Ark @ Redwood Bar

Dynamite Mash Ups This Wednesday

Go HAM with Kids & Explosions this Wednesday at The Central SAPC as the oscar-nominated mash-up artist Josh Raskin introduces you to his madness....which is kind of like an AP or Ivy League version of Girl Talk.  Kids & Explosions material is just superior to those pseudo standard schitzo pop mash-ups.   Here is a sample below...

If you like what you heard - enter our contest to win a pair of free tickets to the show by emailing contest@supergoodmusic.com or tweeting out @supergoodmusic @thecentralsapc and @kidsnexplosions.

Outside Lands Feedback

Outside Lands Festival capped off what has easily been the best festival season of my SUPERGOOD career. While there are actually a few local (Sunset Strip Music Festival, Sunset Junction) and a few more destination (North Coast Music Festival, De Luna Music Festival or Treasure Island Festival, VooDoo Fest) – after the huge Deadmau5 and Arcade Fire closing sets, it may as well have been the end because I’m satisfied.

Exiting to people’s claims of “receiving their money’s worth,” I can only confirm why they might have felt that way.

From the opening day’s very first acts – New Orelans Klezmer Allstars, Release The Sunbird, Marky and Arann Harris & The Farm Band each who started at noon on Friday (my personal first was Phantogram) to the final note of Arcade Fire – there was a little sample of almost every musical genre and a concentration on all flavors of rock and roll. As far as rock goes – Outside Lands really brought the heat this year with Grammy award winning Arcade Fire, Muse, Phish, The Shins, The Black Keys, The Decemberists, Arctic Monkeys, Beirut, OK Go, Warren Haynes Band and more.

With only few disappointments (Big Boi did not really perform due to technical difficulty; I missed K. Flay, Charles Bradley and Tune-Yards) and lots of high lights – the 4^th Outside Lands and the return to a three-day festival was a big success in my opinion. Given that the event pretty much sold out - I’d say it was a success by the organizer’s standards too.

After a 24 hour decompression here are a few takeaways:

· The Stone Foxes are the next Black Keys. While the San Francisco based quartet are noticeably and understandably different, they both embrace the same bad ass bluesy and gritty rock and roll. No wonder both of their music has been on Sons of Anarchy and they’ve already played a show together in Arizona. I can only hope that trend continues and they are doing a run f dates together. Sign me up for a spot trailing that tour. With some attendees claiming the Foxes Saturday afternoon throwdown as the best show of the festival, they might be willing to join that caravan too. For the uninitiated I’d definitely advise checking out the free download of their song “Psycho” on their website and hit up El Cid on August 28^th when they close out Sunset Junction. Its part of the package for Junction attendees, but I think access can also be purchased separately.

· People on the lawn in San Francisco can really get down to some funk music, the people in the press tent…not so much. The Original Meters and The Greyboy Allstars turned out good sets on the mainstage and Phish dropped a version of “Funky Bitch” as well as “Mike’s Song > I Am Hydrogen > Weekapaug Groove.” Sunday didn’t have as much funky music – although I missed Charles Bradley & The Menahan Street Band, whom I’m guessing held it down.

· Phish isn’t slowing down. They didn’t blow my socks off – but I wouldn’t be sad to see them again either. While I’m certainly no roadie or a Phishhead – the guys can certainly still play “Rock and Roll” in their elder (and sober?) state. With a substantial catalogue to choose from, they managed to play some new songs I’m definitely not familiar with as well as a half dozen covers (“2001”, “Roses Are Free”, “Rock and Roll”, “Peaches En Regalia” “Life on Mars?” and “Funky Bitch”) and fan favorites (“Mike’s Song > I Am Hydrogen > Weekapaug Groove” and “Tweezer”).

· The Roots should put out an album called “Greatest Wedding Band of All Time” and do all covers that people love to get down to. They docovers at their concerts – it used to be hip-hop medleys, but now it has turned into full blown rock and roll, funk and hip-hop covers. I was particularly impressed with their rendition of Gil Scott Heron’s “The Bottle.” No disrespect – they are amazing at doing it, but they are also an exceptional band and also have their own great original material. Nonetheless, they get the biggest rise from the crowd doing covers and “Here I Come” – the Jimmy Fallon theme song. The covers seemed to get even more fan fare than “If You Got Me”, the groups biggest hit to date. All that said, despite crushing other people’s songs sometimes better than the originals themselves, they are much more than the greatest wedding band of all time. Bonus - someone whipped out one of the parachutes we all used to played with in phys ed class in kindergarten and 1st grade

· Watching Girl Talk and the crowd at Girl Talk is fun…being in the middle of a Girl Talk crowd is a recipe for getting touched by strangers. It is really cool to look over a crowd from a perch (which you can find at OLF) and see how certain songs resonate (or don’t) with a majority of the crowd. A surprisingly popular drop was “Got Your Money” by Ol’ Dirty Bastard.

· Erykah Badu is a force. Her energy pulled me away from Phish and I was sad I hadn’t seen more of her set. Her voice is beautiful, her band was kicking it and her soul is undeniable.

* Big Boi not playing was disappointing – but Dave Chapelle appearing and doing some comedy was DOPE.

* Big Hassle does a great job coordinating press and providing for a good experience for people covering the festival.

* Deadmau5 new cubes are a new experience. Don't miss his tour!

Madeon is Girl Talk 2.0

Check out this video and judge for yourself. Madeon takes ideology from Gregg Gillis' crazy mixology, but updates the sound with a focus more on current music than some of the older gems that Girl Talk includes in his mixes. I was officially convinced I have to see Madeon around two minutes and fifteen seconds in when he dropped some Gossip.

The ROO(t) Down - Bonnaroo Day 3

Day three began like a typical Bonnaroo day does for most - hot, sweaty, stanky and early. Thankfully, my camp locale had running water showers which meant my funk was quickly washed away. It must have seeped into the soil because bands started whipping out their New Orleans funk flavor.

The first act I caught was Black Joe Lewis & The Honeybears at This Tent. Their bluesy funky southern rock was very fitting for Bonnaroo and a welcome way to ring in another hot day.

I caught the Mongolian band Hanggai playing some eclectic folk tunes in The Other Tent before meeting my former tennis teacher at Deer Tick. An elder fan of indie rock, I enjoyed taking in the perspective of a slightly more senior festival attendee (tennis teacher is 13 years older than I am). He was camping with the Total Access Package which, while pricey, sounds awesome. Golf cart service to and from your air-conditioned RV that is fully stocked with your own rider, admittance to prime viewing locations for all shows irrespective of the time you show up and access to a handful of areas backstage. Its a wannabe rockstar's dream. If you have the money - you might want to consider it.

After tolerating Deer Tick (not really my bag), I cruised to the microbrew tent for some of the over 20 varieties of top ale, before checking out much hyped Chiddy Bang. Lucky for us, we came in as they were breaking into their indie rock mash-up "Too Fake" that samples the Hockey song of the same title.

Alison Krauss & Union Station performed at the Which Stage with Jerry Douglas as a guest, and I followed that with a little Portugal The Man in That Tent. They were both fleeting visits before checking out Wiz Khalifa on the main stage.

Hoping to serve as a warm up for Eminem, Wiz rifled through cuts of his Kush & OJ Mixtape, and his first major label album Rolling Papers. While much of the crowd was familiar with the latter, a surprising handful knew the former. "Black and Yellow" was the obvious anchor - arousing the crowd and exciting some recitations.

When time came for Mumford & Sons, I tried to venture toward the Which Stage. Although I'd generally enjoyed their music, I've become a real fan since their private acoustic performance at Wakarusa. Enjoying performances of "Little Lion Man", "Cave" and many others of Sigh No More, as well as a few ones that I believe were now - I took in the show from a perch above a massive audience. The crowd was enormous. Bigger than I've ever seen at Which Stage before. The field of people that amassed suggested that Mumford & Sons should have been on the main stage and Wiz at Which.

The indie folkers blessed the crowd with their beautiful tunes and set the bar high for the rest of the night. I carried the torch over to !!! at This Tent to hear some more pulsing grooves while indulging in some chow from Eat Box in the Food Truck Oasis.

The California originated dance punkers provided a great soundtrack - with a few tracks from my favorite album of theirs, Myth Takes, but I left for The Other Tent after about a half hour to get to Bootsy Collins at The Other Tent. Unfortunately, that experienced extreme delays and, while I patiently waited - it cramped my style on seeing The Black Keys show. Bootsy didn't get going until halfway through the Keys' set - which meant I was missing the boys from Akron because they'll be at other festivals I'm at whereas Bootsy won't be.

Thankfully, I made the right decision. The crowd was chanting for Bootsy (not booing) and spontaneously singing Parliament songs before he got on. And when he arrived, Bootsy threw the funk down! Busting out with three backing singers and some starry eyed glasses, in his glitter-glam jacket he announced without saying it that he was a funk doctor from another planet.

Even Kareem Abdul Jabbar was there to see him get down, along with Ivan Neville, Stanton Moore and handful of other funk fanatics. The crowd roared Parliament lyrics and funk classics back to the band that kept fueling the fire with renditions that went heavy on the bass.

The lighter sounds of another legend, Buffalo Springfield, just didn't keep the fire going as strong after Collins laid his guitar to rest. Although Neil Young and Stephen Stills and Richie Furay really put on a display at Which Stage - it didn't match Collins' fury and was not the best lead in to Eminem. Nonetheless, the one of few Buffalo shows (I believe there were only 6 this summer) was quite enjoyable.

Headliner Eminem found himself sandwiched amongst a bunch of artists that don't really blend well with his styles. Embracing his comeback moment, Eminem attempted to produce an epic moment for his Recovery that just fell a little flat. Although he carried it with his substantial bank of hits, he failed to draw the Bonnaroo crowds energy to levels you might expect for a headliner. His performance overall did not rival Weezy's of the night before and had many opining about how Jay-Z's performance last year really set the bar much higher.

Despite the criticism's, he invited out Royce Da 5'9 to do perhaps the first live performance of "Fast Lane" - the new single penned by him and Eminem as Bad Meets Evil. The vast majority of the crowd appeared to be unfamiliar with the track - but for me it was the highlight of the performance. Royce was inspired and Eminem seemed to have a bit more pep spitting some of the fire that reminded me of his younger days. Perhaps that would have come to bear if Dr. Dre, who was rumored to be in attendance, had taken to the stage - but that sadly did not happen.

Instead, Eminem marched off after a little more than 60 minutes and appeared to be calling it a night. Someone must have intervened back stage because he came out and reignited for another ten to fifteen minutes - but my head was already in another place and that place was on my way to see Scissor Sisters.

The gaymous group were throwing down in This Tent and I wanted nothing other than to be part of the dance party. Excellent choice. Trading in the noodle jams of String Cheese Incident to the poppy dancehall thrusting jams of the Sisters. They recently toured with Lady Gaga off the strength off their 2010 release, Night Work. Songs like "Night Life" went off to a vocal and happy crowd clearly geared for getting down not just for the glamorous queens, but also Girl Talk later on. I raged onward for both.

Gregg Michael Gillis, better known as Girl Talk, through down his poptacular mash ups for the handsome part of an hour and a half (really closer to two hours). Frequently inducing roars from multitudes of fans or the actual singing of lyrics - he kept the crowd going strong and adrenaline pumping drawing a crowd that was similar in size to Bassnectar's the night before.

Gogol Bordello was an artist I indulged live for the first time and it was a trip through multiple sound textures. Without any preconceived notions about the live performance

Sound Tribe Sector 9 really threw it down. To impress new fans, as well as to satisfy their faithful, STS9 played, literally, until the sun came up extending their slated set far beyond its posted 4 a.m end time. Perhaps determined to outlast Gogol Bordello or simply determined to return the 'Roo to its roots of being an all night fiesta - they broke it down with their jammed electro jungle rock.

Greg Gillis Gets Going Again - Girl Talk Returns to The Palladium

Monday night I had the pleasure of seeing Girl Talk at the Hollywood Palladium. Just in case any of the readers out there are anything like my sister, I’m not talking about the super awesome teenage girl game from the 90’s, though the Girl Talk I am writing about does bring back a different kind of nostalgia. Do you remember in high school when there was that amazing party thrown by one of your friends when their parents were out of town, your best friend was the DJ and it was one of the most epic nights of your teen life? I do, and Monday night Gregg Gillis took me right back to to that high school house party again.

With searing mash ups of the best and most classic songs, he can take you from Deep Purple to Biggie Smalls to Ke$ha to New Order in a span of two minutes. The entire crowd at The Palladium didn’t stop moving all night, sweat and smells be damned! It was as if all of the white people in the room had been practicing their whole lives to dance that night because truth is, they have. Last night was the night when every hipster, square, and business person put their inhibitions aside and showed the moves they had been practicing in their mirrors at home for years. (Don’t lie, I know I’m not the only one who does this.)

The bopping Gillis was flanked by two dozen happily dancing concert goers on stage. Dripping in sweat and shirtless he flowed on from “Every Day” to “On and On” and then to “Let it Out." As soon as John Lennon’s “Imagine” came in through the sound system the crowd went wild and every one sang in unison while multi-colored balloons fluttered down from the ceiling. Girl Talk is an experience, and though most excellent when jamming at home prepping for a night out, it’s on a whole other level when you’re surrounded by thousands of other bouncing bodies. You may have missed out on last nights show, but lucky for you Gillis will be making his rounds and find his way back to the Hollywood Palladium on the 26th. So don’t miss out, pay the $25 to take the time tunnel back to high school. It’s well worth it.

post by Lauren Lomma