Glasvegas at the Henry Fonda Theater

Some of my favorite bands hail from Scotland. Jesus and The Mary Chain, Mogwai and Teenage Fanclub all comprise distinct spots in my music collection and are frequently visited throughout the year. Glasvegas also hail from Scotland and I was interested to see if they could live up to their esteemed countrymen.

Ida Maria






It seems that bands are coming to grips with the notion that they have to tour constantly to sustain momentum from the release of their album. I just saw Ida Maria almost a month ago when she played the Detroit Bar for OC Weekly. I didn't review the show but I do vividly remember her taking shots of Jagermeister on stage.

Ida Maria may have been slightly inebriated for her show at the Detroit bar, but came to slay and play on this particular night. It was a large Los Angeles crowd, so Ida smartly filed a top performance kicking things off with "Morning Light". Clothed in a sparkling gold dress, Ida thrashed away on her Fender Stratocaster in between emphatically waving her arms to "Louie".

Her band mates looked and sounded sharp ably rounding out her poignant tunes. The crowd responded favorably to her set with some of the high points being "Stella" and "I Like You So Much Better When Your Naked". Ida really shines on "Oh My God" in which she demonstrates she has more to offer then raspy vocals.

Ida will continue to open for Glasvegas on this tour with notable slots at Lollapalooza and the Monolith Festival in Colorado. If she turns in performances like she did at the Henry Fonda, she won't be opening for other bands much longer.


Glasvegas





Glasvegas continues to storm the US in support of their debut album. I was disappointed they cancelled their appearance at Coachella this year as they were one of the bands I was interested in checking out. I also missed their extremely sold out Troubadour show a few months back coupled with an stripped down show at the Hollywood Forever.

In case you missed the memo, Glasvegas has quite the following in the UK. NME has praised the band and their self-titled debut album lauding it in the same company of Oasis and Blur. Glasvegas have maintained a grueling tour schedule to help spread the word and make an impact here stateside.

Glasvegas made quite a splash opening with my favorite song "Geraldine" with its careening guitars and soaring vocal harmonies. James Allan (Vocals/Guitars) was the essence of cool with his Ray Ban shades and beautiful Fender Jazzmaster. His cousin Rab Allan (Guitars) had a lefty Fender Stratocaster plugged into a wall of Fender amplifiers to produce an avalanche of thick fuzzy guitars.

While I felt Caroline Mckay's drumming was a tad on the robotic side, the wall of sound between the guitars and the steady bass playing of Paul Donoghue lived up to the hype and can't be ignored. Glasvegas also employed a heavy dose of strobe lights along with the brilliant lighting rig of the Henry Fonda theater make it one of the better lit shows of the year.

The guitars continued to jangle during "It's My Own Cheating Heart That Makes Me Cry" while James Allan's thick Scottish accent adds a distinctive charm to all their songs. Glasvegas would even dip into their Christmas EP by tackling the not so warm but definitely fuzzy tune "Fuck You, It's Over".

"Flowers And Football Tops" was another impressive track with James leading the crowd to sing the catchy "Wha Whoa Oh". Glasvegas did slow things down a tad with "Ice Cream Van" but immediately resumed their quickened pace with a scorching version of "Go Square Go". The evening came to a close with faithful versions of "S.A.D Light" and "Daddy's Gone". I would assume this show would bring a close to the touring cycle for their album, but you never know these days.

The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart at the Echo

It was a hot summer day and an even hotter line up at the Echo. The Pains of Being Pure at Heart kicked off their tour after their well received set at the Pitchfork Festival.

Champagne Socialists




Champagne Socialists kicked things off with a garage rocky set led by the spunky lead vocals of Jihae Simmons Meek. They seemed like a young band trying to work out the kinks as indicated by their myspace page originating back to November of 2008. They happen to be labelmates of The Pain of Being Pure At Heart with their EP being released on Slumberland records.

I was thinking their set might have been more appropriate for the Smell. It was no coincidence that they will be playing the Smell in November after their short tour with The Pains of Being Pure At Heart ends. They reminded me vocally of Dance Hall Crashers if they listened to Sixties garage rock especially "Teardrop Tattoo".

Girls






Girls started slow but finished extremely strong. Looking like they just got off the trolley from San Francisco, Girls defied my visual expectations with a solid sonically sculpted set. "Solitude" was my only prior exposure to their wide branching sounds with its breezy '50s stylized rock.

The Girls recently made headlines about their penchant for drugs elucidated by Stereogum. It was interesting to note the Girls walk the walk and talk the talk as the members had some dark circles under their eyes. I guess they didn't get much sleep the night before.

I also dug their live rendition of "Hellhole Rat Race". I will be investigating their full length album when it is released. Girls will be back soon opening for Los Campesinos! at the El Rey Theatre on August 21 and Detroit Bar on August 23. I hope to catch one of those shows.


The Pains of Being Pure At Heart






The Pains of Being Pure At Heart might be the easiest and longest term to google for a band name. While they probably should have consulted someone prior to choosing their band name, they don't need any lessons on creating catchy tunes.

I had heard "Young Adult Friction" and was intrigued enough to check them out. In the gear department, I was excited when I saw a Nord Lead 2x keyboard for Peggy Wang (Keyboards/Vocals) and a homemade fuzz pedal setup for Kip Berman. (Vocals/Guitars).

I will admit I am a sucker for jangly guitars. It just so happened that the guitars didn't relent with their sugary textures. It was difficult to hear Peggy's keyboards in the mix but the two guitars roared all night backed by the constant thumping of Alex Naidus (Bass) and Kurt Feldman (Drums).

What really sold me was how impressive their new songs sounded. A new EP will be released on September 22 entitled Higher Than The Stars. The title track had parts of Teenage Fanclub mixed with elements of Stone Roses as I couldn't help bounce along. The songs are short and sweet with addiction potential of your favorite candy.

The Pains of Being Pure At Heart will be back for a show at the Troubadour on September 19th with Cymbals Eat Guitars and the Depreciation Guild along with a stop at the Casbah on September 21st. I will definitely catch them again.

Jarvis Cocker at the Wiltern

Check out my photos of Jarvis Cocker at the Wiltern over at Stereogum.

Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks at the Echoplex

Check out my photos of Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks at the Echoplex over at Stereogum.

Elbow at the Wiltern

Check out my photos of Elbow and Mellowdrone at the Wiltern over at Stereogum.

Micachu and The Shapes at the Echo

Check out my photos of Micachu and The Shapes at the Echo over at Stereogum.

Foreign Born at the Detroit Bar

Foreign Born were one of the first local bands to pop up on my radar back in January 2007 when they played at Little Radio for the Plug LA Awards. It was highly ironic that the night after they played the Detroit Bar, Rolling Stone featured them as a "Breaking" artist.

Other Girls






The deluge of "Girls" bands continues but the Other Girls have been around since 2007 according to their myspace page. Other Girls are supporting their latest release Perfect Cities on Audio Eagle records.

Other Girls love the pop song format and provided a tightly spun sugary set with sonic references to The Shins and The Walkmen. It didn't long for me to enjoy the winding overdriven guitar riffs of "Hey Fella You Fell". It was easily one of the more memorable songs of the set and I can see why they are pushing it as the lead single.

"Sleep In A Year" definitely seems like a lost The Shins B-side which is meant as a compliment. Most of their songs barely clocked in the three minute territory which kept the audience engaged. The more I listen to their stuff on Myspace, the more I regret not picking up their album.

The Veils






The Veils were another strong reason to check out the show. The Veils just released their new album Sun Gangs on the veritable Rough Trade records. The Veils are helmed by Finn Andrews (Vocals, Guitars) along with the alluring Sophia Burn (Bass).

Their six song set went by in mere seconds as I was shocked their set was so brief. I checked my camera files and apparently it was a twenty-six minute set. I correlated their short set to the old adage of leave the audience wanting more. It could have also been the fact that Finn mentioned they were headlining Spaceland for Club NME the next night for a potentially longer set.

"Callilope!" trailed through the air like a trail of wistful smoke from a cigarette with Finn jangling out the chords on his Fender Jaguar. "Sit Down By The Fire" easily approached anthemic territory with its toe tapping bass and uplifting chord progression. "Larkspur" was a fitting closer to their set with Dan Raishbrook using a violin bow on his guitar for some added sustain. Sun Gangs is up on itunes for $7.99 with a bonus video.

Foreign Born





Foreign Born made one heck of a decision by signing to Secretly Canadian. I always thought they were criminally neglected on the Dim Mak records roster along with Deadly Syndrome. I really intrigued back in February 2008 when Foreign Born debuted "Early Warnings" and "Vacationing People" live when they opened for St. Vincent at the Echoplex.

Person To Person is the album that captures the true essence of Foreign Born. In the live format, Foreign Born has added more layers to their sonic palette with an additional keyboardist and percussionist. "Lion's Share" sounded even better live with Matt Popieluch (Vocals,Guitar) stomping his foot in time to the music. Lewis Pescacov (Guitars) really shines during the tropical guitar riff of "Early Warnings," yet Ariel Rechtshaid (Bass) holds it together with his stellar lefty Rickenbacker bass.

"See Us Home" brought things down a notch but still conveyed a strong redeeming message. "Vacationing People" rivals "Early Warnings" as my favorite song from their album and is propelled by the steady drumming of Garrett Ray. I think it is only a matter of opening a bigger tour to help propel Foreign Born to loftier heights. I wonder now that Rolling Stone has "Broke them" if that will made any difference in album sales.

All and Big Drill Car at the House of Blues Anaheim

Check out my photos of All and Big Drill Car at the House of Blues Anaheim over at OC Weekly.

Pete Yorn at the House of Blues Anaheim

Check out my photos of Pete Yorn at the House of Blues Anaheim over at OC Weekly.

The Mighty Mighty Bosstones at the House of Blues Anaheim

Check out my photos of the Mighty Mighty Bosstones at the House of Blues Anaheim over at OC Weekly.

Dirty Projectors at the Troubadour

Check out my photos of Dirty Projectors at the Troubadour over at Stereogum.

Death Cab For Cutie at the Hollywood Bowl

Check out my photos of Death Cab For Cutie at the Hollywood Bowl over at Stereogum.

Phoenix at the Wiltern Theatre

I started to worry when I saw the update from Twitter that Phoenix had cancelled their show the day before in San Francisco due to illness. Could they rise in time to perform at the Wiltern? It turns out Phoenix soared by turning in a buzzworthy performance with palpable electricity in the air.

Amazing Baby





Amazing Baby by the way of Brooklyn started off the evening with their straight up rock set. It was nice to see two half stacks of Orange Amplifiers power their dual guitar attack. Rewind is their debut album released on Shangri-La Music. I wasn't familiar enough with their material to cite which songs they played but they touched upon elements of psychedelic and sludge rock.

Phoenix






I can't recall the last time Phoenix played Los Angeles. It has been a few years between their album It's Never Been Like That and their latest release Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix but the wait has been worth it.

Following high profile appearances on Saturday Night Live and David Letterman, I couldn't help but chuckle when I saw the billboards in the lobby of the Wiltern indicating that this performance was going to be filmed for NBC. My suspicion is that it was being filmed for the Carson Daly show.

The soft swirl of synthesizers of "Liztomania" was quickly followed by the bouncing beats of Thomas Hedlund (Drums) who was literally leaping out of his chair propelling the songs. Thomas Mars (Vocals) may have been sick the evening before, but his voice showed no ill effects as he was hitting all the notes.

A mini-barrage of my favorite songs from It's Never Been Like That with the crooked guitar jangle of "Long Distance Call" followed by the toe tapping infectious "Consolation Prizes". Laurent Brancowitz (Guitars) was playing a hybrid Fender Telecaster morphed with a Fender Mustang pickguard. It wasn't difficult to deduce they were sponsored by Fender since I spotted their backline was filled with Fender amplifiers.

Phoenix picked off even more gems by deftly dispensing "Lasso" and "Napoleon Says". It was vocoder heaven with Phoenix reaching back to their debut album United for "Funky Squaredance". The ovation that the band received after each track was deafening. I glanced up into the balcony to see a good majority of the people dancing and standing.

Thomas Mars even held out his microphone into the crowd to amplify the applause before engaging the silky smooth feel of "Armstice". "Love Like A Sunset" did give Thomas a chance to rest his voice and lie down on the stage while the band effortlessly played the dancing groove.

The crowd hysterics continued during "Run Run Run" as a female stage invader provided the awkward moment of the evening by hopping on stage and couldn't decide whether to dance on stage or attack Thomas Mars. Despite the awkwardness, I was impressed by the sounds of soft synth pads emanating from their Yamaha keyboards on stage.

Highlights throughout the evening kept pouring in as "Sometimes In The Fall" was taken to new heights with the spectacular drumming by Thomas Hedlund. "Rome" was rose and fell epically with synthesizers dominating the song during the mid section.

Phoenix returned to another standing ovation prior to their encore of "If I Even Feel Better" and the delectable dance floor burning "1901". I already have September 16th circled on my calendar when Phoenix and Metric return to the Greek Theater.

Phoenix setlist at the Wiltern Theatre (6/28/09)
"Lisztomania"
"Long Distance Call"
"Consolation Prizes"
"Lasso"
"Napoleon Says"
"Funky Squaredance"
"Rally"
"Girlfriend"
"Armistice"
"Love Like A Sunset"
"Run Run Run "
"Too Young"
"Sometimes In The Fall"
"Rome"
"If I Ever Feel Better"
"1901"