Weekly Fliers (4/2/09)

Welcome everyone to this weeks edition of The Weekly Fliers. Yes I changed then name due to the fact that I have been finding myself posting these a little later than Tuesday so I thought I'd make it easier on myself and post it anytime during the week. This week we've got some great shows to tell you about.

Just a few to make sure you check out, this Friday, April 3rd, at the Indio Polo Grounds will be the return of Fatso Jetson to their hometown playing a show with a bunch of other bands benefiting children with M.S. Please go, you're helping out a well deserving cause and at the same time you get to check out some great music.

Lately there have been a lot of shows/festivals that have grown around the idea of the big annual Coachella Fest. Personally I can't stand festivals especially over rated, over blown, over priced, juggernauts like the Coachella. I only go to this thing if I can get in for free or for cheap, which there are multiple ways of doing so. Those of you who have done one of these methods in the past know what I'm talking about. But if you still can't figure out a way to get in one of these ways, there is always an alternative. Go check out Faux-chella on April 10th. Playing that show will be Abe Vigoda, Blue Jungle, Bastidas, Sons & Daughters, amongst many others. It's only $10 and you get either a beer or wine upon entry. But if you prefer, with another $2 donation you can get a pretty heavy handed mixed drink. That should be a good time.

One final show to mention is the KXLU Fundraiser supporting Free Form Radio. This takes place on April 11th and features one of my favorite bands Meho Plaza. Also playing are Foot Village, Voices Voices, The Happy Hollows, and others including No Age doing a DJ set.

That's all for this week. As always check with the venue for any last minute schedule changes or cancellations.

Dum Dum Girls - Catholicked

I really have to thank Rogers and everyone else at Family Time and the Family Time Blog for introducing this band to me. This band is one of my new favorite bands. I'm going to have to pick up a copy of the "Yours Alone" 12" EP soon. Check them out: Dum Dum Girls.

Flier Tuesday (3/24/09)

Welcome everyone to another edition of Daily Dares Flier Tuesdays. I was asked recently why I post these fliers especially if I have no stake in who actually goes to these shows. I make no money helping people advertise these shows, so why bother? Well, the answer to that is multi-faceted. Obviously one reason is that I want to get the word out about the music not just in my own home town but everything here in Southern California. SoCal is my home and I'm damn proud of it.

Yet one of the biggest reasons is that I actually enjoy seeing the creativity and time that goes into these fliers. Take for instance the flier for the show taking place on the 29th of this month with TPF!, Narwhal Party, Conejos and others. The one with the shark. I don't know the correlation between the shark and the bands that are playing that night but it drew me in. Someone put some thought into that. Or the artwork done for the Jared Mees and the Grown Children show at the Knitting Factory on March 30th. There have been nights where I wished that I could shoot my brain out of my head like the guy in the picture, usually after night of way to much Budwiser. And I've always liked the fliers made by Planet Lunch like the one he made for Evident, Golden Animals, Slipping Into Darkness and a few others taking place on April 3rd at The Point After.

Aside from the aforementioned shows you should go check out The Mae Shi, Pre, Foot Village, and Past Lives at The Smell on the 26th. I think I might be there. Also go to the Kava Lounge on the 29th in San Diego for the One Night Only show. I'm disappointed that I will have to miss this show for a multitude of reasons. Yet you shouldn't. Go check out the fliers for yourself. I'm sure you'll find something worth checking out.

That's all for now. As always check with the venue for any schedule changes of cancelations.

Review: Ancient Crux - Interracial Coupling

Rapid Youth is Travis, Tyler, and Brent. Ancient Crux is the restructuring of said band. Not a completely new band because it's members are basically the same members of Rapid Youth. They take a musical idea and apply it to the same outfit yet completely changing the outcome of what would normally be a Rapid Youth CD.

The name of this album fits the mood. Complete opposites in structure coming together to create something different. Notice I didn't say "something beautiful". Reason being is that not every mash up of styles works. Take for instance Limp Bizkit or more recently the hardcore/electro/screamo/pop/hip-hop garbage of Brokencyde. If you haven't heard Brokencyde before, consider yourself lucky.

In the case of Ancient Crux though the idea of taking seemingly polar opposites and putting them together works to their advantage. What do I mean, you ask. The first time I heard the CD, the first two words that came to mind were "surf goth". Then I immediately thought that this would be the kind of music that would be on the soundtrack of Twin Peaks if they were to ever remake it. Sunny and dark. An oxymoron in audio form. The music is as if Roy Orbison joined a goth band and told them that they were going to to start making surf tunes.

I usually hate these kinds of reviews, but honestly, I enjoy this CD and wanted to do it justice. Yet I don't listen to much goth nor am I a follower of surf music. Yet I can recognize these elements and I can tell the difference between the two but also can tell when something works. It's pretty obvious that these guys have enough knowledge in both the sunny and darker elements to make a sound as cohesive and enjoyable as Interracial Coupling.

Ancient Crux - Interracial Coupling
Available through Family Time Records

Flier Tuesday (3/17/09)

Happy St. Patty's day everyone. If you're planning on partying it up tonight be safe out there and have a good time. Save me some corned beef and all the fixings.

Saturday night at the Themselves show, which took place at The Point After, I was approached by an old friend that asked me about a previous blog where I told valley promoters not to book shows at The Point After anymore. He was asking me why I felt that way. I explained to him that the place has a lot going against it.

First off is the positioning of the stage. Unless you are standing in the walkway in front of it, it will be difficult to get a large crowd going. There is just so much space between the performers and the crowd that it feels as if you are miles away from the performers. The railing doesn't help either. Secondly, the walkway in front of the stage can fit only so many people. So if you're not there in the walkway good luck if you really want to get somewhat close to the band. Third, there is no place to dance. I know not all people dance at shows, but when you get acts that have a dance groove to them, they really like it when the crowd can dance in front of them. Limited space in front means no room to dance which also means that its harder for a band to connect with a crowd. Fourth is the fact that it is a sports bar. Regular bars are okay for shows because you may have the occasional knuckle head usual heckling the band. Yet when you add the fact that you've got a group of regulars that are there not for the show but to watch the game/UFC fight/boxing match, it just adds to the frustration. I've also heard rumors of bands not getting paid due to issues with the venue itself or the promoters and I've also heard about bands saying that they'd never play there again due to poor treatment. I can't really verify that so I have to throw that out in my reasoning.

Regardless, just because a venue is not good for a show doesn't mean it is not a good place for a party. Case in point; the Themselves show. With the large speaker system that was rented for the night, the way the performers were set up pushed way up close to the railing, the "skybox" room upstairs set up for people to dance and have a good time, the lighting, the TV monitors above set to a mood inducing light show, the whole place was conducive to a party atmosphere. And it worked. All the other shows I've been to or heard about kind of fell flat. The guys at Kil Atwil and Aesthetic Arrest really know what they're doing when it comes to throwing a party. If The Point After ever decided to become a nightclub then I think it would have the potential to be a prime party spot. My viewpoint may be altered but I still don't apologize for what I said previously. To quote S. Pineda from his myspace page "All I have now is honesty".

Saturday was the day I realized how far reaching this all can be and how much further it can go in time. I know some of you will disagree with my point of view. That's fine. You're allowed to. That just means that we have to agree to disagree. Don't take it personal. I'm not attacking anyone. In fact if you disagree with me let me know. I am more than willing to hear your side of a story. Maybe you can convince me to change my mind. But I will never apologize about my honesty.

On that note, let's get to this weeks fliers shall we.

Some shows I'd like to make note on; at the Echo Curio, there is a show every night from now until the 28th of March. I don't have fliers for every single show but go check out their myspace page. Another reminder about the Dusty Rhodes and the River Band show on March 20th. Come to this show early and meet up with us for the Zombie walk. More details on the flier. We'll try to provide some fake blood for this show but it would really help out if you did your makeup. On April 3rd Fatso Jetson returns to the desert to play a show with some friends of theirs, Brant Bjork. That should be a good show. And on April 6th, one of my favorite groups, Dalmacio von Diamond and The Enochian Keys are playing at Pherespace.

That's all for now. As always check with the venue for any schedule changes or cancellations.

Flier Tuesday (3/10/09)

The scarcity of the moment will bring you to where you need to be.

For a second there, those of us in my home town held our breath at the thought that J Dee's Landing was closing down for good. For a good several weeks in February, shows at J Dee's had to be shuffled around; even canceled. But on March 6th good news was to be had and the grand re-opening happened.

It's weird to feel like this about something such as a bar. To many of us though, it meant good memories; first times, goodbyes, celebrations, good music, bad music, but overall something special. Not just a bar but a living breathing being giving life to a valley previously on life support. It's not all ages but it gave those of us that are of age an opportunity to bring something to the community that was in desperate need; life to a music scene. A barely beating pulse but alive regardless.

One of those shows that had to be shuffled around was a show that we've been wanting to put on for quite some time now and now it's finally happening. Daily Dares, along with 5000 Photography and Phinds.net brings to you Dusty Rhodes and the River Band on March 20th, 2009. Also playing that night will be Sol District, Sand Like Snow, and Slipping into Darkness. This is a night you will not want to miss.

Other shows that you should check out; at the Echo Curio on March 14th will be our good friends No Paws (No Lions), Moses Campbell, Enid The Owl, and Franklin For Short. Also, for you Juno soundtrack fans and Kimya Dawson fans, on April 14th she'll be performing in Pamona with our friends Halloween Swim Team. And don't forget to go check out Halloween Swim Team this Friday at Red Cove and go see Themselves at the Point After on March 14th.

That's all for now. Good luck to everyone making their way to SXSW. Have a good time and I'll see you when you get back. As always, check with venues for any schedule changes or cancelations.

Review: The Girl With Violent Arms - Two Song Sampler

I usually don't do reviews for acts not from Southern California but in the case of The Girl With Violent Arms two song sampler I made an exception to the rule. Why? Three reasons; first of all The Girl With Violent Arms is a one man band originally from Colton, which if you don't know already, is part of the I.E. Secondly, his upcoming album, of which these two songs are from, is being released by Southern California based label How To Be a Microwave. Third, he made the trek, recently, from Northern California all the way down to our little town of Palm Springs to play a show. So I owe him this much at the very least. With that being said...

I have an affinity for noise. Personally, I can sit around for hours just making interesting noises come out of instruments. It's definitely not for everyone and those aspiring to endeavor into this genre may come out the other side more frustrated than successful. Yet I do feel that a good noise band has a lot in common with a good free form jazz band. It takes an incredibly talented and patient mind to successfully employ the use of random noises, feedback, blips, loops, squelches, chirps, and such to create a song that discriminating noise fiends would enjoy. Even more so when it comes to those who attempt to integrate noise and pop. Sonic Youth, and more recently No Age, have done this with a level of success that have alluded others greatly.

Being this is just a sampler from the upcoming album The Sun Will Swallow Me Whole and possibly rough cuts of songs I must tread these waters carefully. Mostly because I enjoy these songs and seeing his live performance I understand the task he is undertaking. His live performance can be a bit confounding to the casual listener. It takes the kind of patience that noise fans and free form jazz followers alike are gifted with. It takes time to "get it" but in the end it's extremely worthwhile.

The first song on the sampler, Glass Shatters, begins and kind of bumps up against the meat of the song, A.K.A. the more musically recognizable to the pedestrian ear, like the comedy skit part of a rap CD but with a little more tact. But once the song gets going that's where it begins to earn it's merit. Central Nervous System is much less noise much more pop. It chugs along like an angry steam engine with a sole purpose of smashing into a car that makes the poor choice of crossing the tracks at the wrong time.

This sampler definitely whets my appetite for the full length. Some may dispute that this is not a noise band, possibly Mario himself, A.K.A. TGWVA, may disagree. Regardless, there are many people whose ambition is far beyond their reach. Here is not the case. Yet once again, for my tastes, the live version of TGWVA is a bit more rewarding to witness in comparison to the recorded version but not by much.

The Girl With Violent Arms - Two Song Sampler
The Sun Will Swallow Me Whole
Available soon through How To Be a Microwave

Flier Tuesday (3/3/09)

Welcome back for another edition of Flier Tuesdays and have we got some shows for you. This week we've got some great shows to tell you about. So let's get Started.

First up we've got a couple of shows that are taking place on the same night. On Thursday, March 5th, at El Jardin, performing will be Furious Stylz, the new group consisting of Anticon mainstay Telephone Jim Jesus and the group who just recently did a lengthy stint as Sole's backing band, The Skyrider Band. They will performing along with Egconfused and a couple groups from around my way, Griefshare and Mira La Luz.

Also that night at The Smell will be Megawand, Michael Nhat, Halloween Swim Team, and Not The Government. I just recently did a short write up on Michael Nhat and if you haven't seen this guy perform, from what I've heard it's very unique. Go check out the small feature I did on him and watch the video.

Just a reminder, I mentioned this last week but don't forget to check out Themselves at the Point After. It's going to be awesome regardless of the awful venue. Word of advice to the promoters in The Coachella Valley; stop doing shows at the Point After. It's a terrible place to have shows. I know you feel like your options are few but I 'd rather have the acts that I invite to play as well as the show goers have a great time in a tiny hole in the wall then to have people saying that they couldn't enjoy themselves. You are not doing the artists you invite to play a favor at all. If the band has a bad show it does nothing to help them. Bigger venues do not necessarily mean better shows. Start thinking out of the box.

Lastly, some shameless self promotion. There is a new all ages venue here in the valley and we along with 5000 Photography and Phinds.net are fortunate enough to be promoting them. It is called Red Cove and on March 13th, Halloween Swim Team, Cristopher Cichocki, Alien Soundtracks, and Grrrips will be performing. Grrrips is a local guy doing his first live performance out here in the valley and Cristopher Cichocki is a visual performance artist out of La Quinta. Come and check this show out.

That's it for this week. As always check with the venue for any last minute cancelations or venue changes. Take care.