music

Street Scene Schedule

Sara Leave a comment

Apparently, the Street Scene line up was released in the last week or so. Man, I feel out of touch. Personally, I remember there being more bands announced than are on the line up but I understand how that goes. Anyhow, here is the list of bands/times that I will not be missing out on :

Friday
4:40-5:20 Chester French @ Zarabanda Stage
5:45-6:30 MGMT @ Zarabanda Stage
7:45-8:30 TV on the Radio @ Fulana Stage
8:35-9:35 Spoon @ Fulano Stage
9:35-9:45 Cat Power @ Zarabanda Stage (I just need time to see her squirm)
9:45-10:15 Devotchka @ Casbah Stage (maybe)
10:15-11:15 Vampire Weekend @ Zarabanda Stage
11:15-12:00 Beck @ Fulano Stage

Saturday
4:30-5:05 West Indian Girl @ Fulana Stage
5:30-6:05 Dengue Fever @ Casbah Stage
6:30-7:10 Tokyo Police Club @ Casbah Stage
7:35-8:25 Tegan & Sara @ Fulana Stage
8:30-9:20 X @ Fulano Stage

Note: When I’m not at these bands, I will be hanging with my husband… yeah, different schedules. Maybe he will let me post his, but I doubt it. Also if I get bored, I will definitely be moving on. And likewise, if I hear something cool I will be drawn to it like a moth to a light (rarely happens, but awesome when it does).

I need a break…

Sara Leave a comment

With my largest event of the year next week, I am ready to relax. It has been non-stop for the last couple of weeks including managing to see some shows. I think my body is ready to kill me.

Aside from working extremely long days, I have made it to LA to watch Nada Surf play to an all ages crowd (where they actually allow you to drink next to people under 21), I booked a show at the House of Blues restaurant stage and watched Roger play with the reunited Blasphemous Guitars. They is the simple recap… I really wish I had more time to go into detail. But the following is all ya get:

The Troubadour in LA rocks. Much like a Austin club. We stood next to high school girls that disregarded any concert etiquette (talking/screaming during songs while standing near the front, taking myspace photos with the band in the background, etc.). the back up vocals were off mainly because Daniel, the bassist was nursing a messed up knee in Spain (WTF?), but also the sound guy had the rest of the mics (besides Matthew’s) turned down low. Got home at 2 a.m.

Booked a Derby Doll fundraiser at HOB. Tough to book because of the night and the type of music requested (all girl bands). The headliner bailed three day prior to the show. None of the bands had all girls… in fact only one of the bands even had girls in it (and they were dolls). The line up ended up being Tan Sister Radio, Unruly Bangs and My Laughing Face. So sad I couldn’t stay since Roger was playing the Belly Up.

Got to the show just in time to hang a bit before the great performance. Watching the crowd who were all out to see Super Diamond was interesting. The grown up version of the girls that we had seen at Nada Surf were front and center. Really, someone needs to teach these girls a lesson. The crowd loved Killing an Arab (mashed with Rage Against the Machine) but was almost offended by People are People (mashed with Marilyn Manson). Who knew?

Off for a week of non-stop work and absolutely no fun… See ya all at the San Diego Music Awards and/or Street Scene.

Traffic Jams, Robots, Dogs and Mods

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This past week has been such a blur. I don’t want to hear anyone saying that I have become domestic or a homebody. Roger and I found ourselves out of the house six out of seven nights this week. The following is a short/mid-length recap of the places we managed to squeeze into our already chaotic schedule.

Monday
We went to see Matthew Sweet at Belly Up. See previous post.

Tuesday
After a lovely relaxing dinner on the patio of Apertivo on 30th, Roger and I took a walk over to U-31 for the last Too Cool for Karaoke at that venue (see this previous post).

On the way, we popped into Avalon on Ohio Street. We had the good fortune to meet the owner, Mark who has multiple generations that have lived in San Diego. He is savvy to the history of San Diego as well as to the history of the building that the Avalon now occupies. We talked about the space and it’s capacity issues. Due to zoning and the layout of the building, it only has a 50 person capacity when it could easily fit 200-300 people. He is working on getting it designated as a historical landmark in order to get a variance that could bump up the capacity to at least 150 people. Be patient, this could be an awesome all ages venue in North Park. For now, stop by every now and again to support his efforts. What he is doing for the community at large is not easy or cheap.

The last night of Too Cool for Karaoke was busy. Not as packed as the Derby Doll fundraiser, but busy… as in Adam and Pants couldn’t really keep up with the requests. I offered assistance with organization since I wasn’t drinking and I don’t really sing. It was a fun night… next stop is San Diego Sports Club for this source of entertainment.

Wednesday
Leaving at 3:45ish, we headed down to the worst planned venue in San Diego, Cricket Wireless Amphitheater for Radiohead. We tailgated in the parking lot for hours before the show, playing Yahtzee and talking to my sister and her friend. The show itself was incredible. It was a spiritual experience for many. Mesmerized by the beautiful lyrics and masterful sounds, I really wasn’t braced for the long wait to get out of the parking lot at the end of the night. I am not really an aggressive driver, so we didn’t arrive home until after 1 p.m. Knowing that the 805 was closed didn’t really affect my route, since Roger and I are pretty good with our Thomas Bros. maps. I really wish the City of Chula Vista would reconsider their city planning efforts.

Thursday
Being that it was the last Thursday of the month, one could easily find us playing music trivia at Whistle Stop. This month’s name that tune was done by the Satanic Puppeteer Orchestra. It is a robot singing songs. It is a bit borderline to a standup comedy act with music as it’s roots. They are definitely innovative and worth checking out if you haven’t seen them.

Friday
Friday was a horrible day. I needed at least one night off this week. I really didn’t want to see anyone.

Saturday
We ended up at the Radio Room on Saturday night for a benefit for a friend’s dog, Whiskey. The show featured three bands: Unruly Bangs, The Mice and Spazboy. It was really a derby-like night as two of the bands had derby ties. I managed to stay for the first two bands, but was exhausted from working most of the day.

Sunday
After a long day at the races, we managed to make it down to the Casbah for Manual Scan. A popular and influential Mod revival band from the 1980s, Manual Scan made it’s own revival the other night performing live for the first time in who knows how long for a crowd excited fans and scooter club members. It looks like Manual Scan may be back in action pending each of the band member’s personal scheduling conflicts.

I really want to get better at posting before I go out (advertising awesome things that you should be at) but I really can’t see that happening. There is lot of awesome things coming up in San Diego this month in particular. Please get out of your hole and check things out. If you need advice on what is cool, email me or check out all of the other cool music blogs in San Diego to the right.

Matthew Sweet, Belly Up Tavern: 8/25/2008

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“You still can’t hide from the ugly truth…” – Matthew Sweet

The truth behind Matthew Sweet’s popularity is still a mystery to me. Last night’s show at the Belly Up, I was mesmerized by the crowd that turned up. I consider myself a fan of Matthew Sweet after Roger introduced his music to me when we first started dating. But I am still trying to figure out if there is a deeper meaning to being a Matthew Sweet fan. Last night’s crowd was filled with characters that I really could only link together one commonality: a connection to nostalgic memories of being a loser (or actually still a loser).

For those who were there, I hate to offend. But watching the single guy bopping his head to the music clutching his vinyl record to be signed after the show and the older couple that sat the entire show except for the five songs that they knew, where they got up excitedly and sang along… I had to wonder.

If you were there, think about it. Look deep inside and ask yourself, “why do I like Matthew Sweet?” His music is actually quite average. He has one hit per album (as Chuck Klosterman so nicely put it). They are not complex songs. And certainly not hard rocking dance songs (as some did not seem to realize last night). So why? I can only attribute it to the same feeling as when watching a John Cusack movie. Their is a connection to the persona… a feeling of love and loss, a feeling of longing for someone else or to be someone else. I guess I sometimes connect this feeling to a sad state of disillusionment that so many “losers” are associated with. Perhaps I am attaching much more profound reasoning than the reality that some people just like Matthew Sweet just because…

Last night’s show was the first show of a mini tour (4 dates) in Southern California, in preparation for his larger tour in October. It was obvious that this was the case within the first song of the set where none of their three guitarists could remember the chords to the song. They crashed right through it… The rest of the show was not as bad but you could see the concentration on their faces as they peered at one another, trying to remember how to play each song.

Today is the official date that his album, Sunshine Lies is released, but the CD was available for purchase at last night’s show. He actually was offering to the first 50 people who bought the album a chance to meet him after the show. There was roughly 250 people at the show, maybe 25 people bought CDs. I am sorry to say, Matthew Sweet, you are not the big shot you think you are… well at least not here in San Diego.

As we drove home, Roger and I discussed whether the Belly Up was the appropriate venue for Matthew Sweet to play in San Diego. He did not sell out the show, not even close. His crowd would not dare step into the Casbah and Anthology is too upscale. The only place we could think of is a smaller showroom at one of the casinos. What does that say about his draw to loserdom?

This Just In…

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I really am not sure if this is public news yet. No one told me I shouldn’t post it, but then again no one told me that I could. I figure since the change happens in a week and a half, word was bound to get out anyway. And considering my source, they might as well have just put it up on myspace, facebook, twitter and rented a big billboard with the news. Anyhow, here is the low down…

Too Cool for Karaoke‘s last night will be next Tuesday at U31. Some would say, not again others would exclaim, “why?” considering last night’s Derby Doll fundraiser nearly filled the room. Well to me this move is not the biggest shocker in the world but the cause of the shakedown is.

After years of performing blues to the hipster crowd in City Heights, the long standing gig is up… Lady Dottie & the Diamonds will be moving to Monday nights at U31 in North Park. This move is scheduled to take place starting September 1st. I guess that means get your butt to Tower Bar for their last Monday night show next week. I personally have had many memories of Dottie at the Tower. That is where I remember first seeing Roger for the first time and asking my friend who the cute guy is. I also remember the ambulance being called when Lady Dottie’s husband collapsed (though that was not his final show). This move is good for Dottie & the Diamonds, but still a nostalgically sad one.

But don’t fear, Monday night bull riding at U31 will be moved to Tuesday nights. And Adam Gimbel is working (already) to find a new home for those who love to hear the sound of their own voice, singing songs that they didn’t write. Potential new locations include the Office and the newly changed hands, San Diego Sports Club.