Film School "Fission"

Photo Credit: Andrew Youssef

My first encounter with Film School dates back to August 2007 when they blew up Spaceland in support of their highly overlooked album Hideout. The album was a tasty swirl of dense guitars intertwined with synthesizer washes that coalesced into haunting songs.

Having parted way with Beggars Banquet, Film School is back with a new album Fission on Hi Speed Soul Records that dials back the guitar noise and turns up the ethereal with stronger songwriting and catchier melodies. Some sonic reference points one could detect would be a blend of Stone Roses, The Cure and Lush.

"Heart Full of Pentagons" immediately captures your attention with its windstorm of ambiance and center channeled vocals by Greg Bertens. Lorelei Plotczyk shines throughout the album adding her shimmering vocals to broaden the scope of their sound, especially on tracks like "Meet Around 10" and "Nothing's Mine".

Their new album will be released on 8/31 and will be available as a limited autographed clear vinyl through the Hi Speed Soul record store. A tour has been announced that kicks off in San Diego on 9/19 at the Casbah before linking up with The Depreciation Guild who also released an astounding album Spirit Youth. I plan on being at the Casbah and Echo shows and you should too.

Film School Tour 2010

Sept 19 – San Diego, CA – The Casbah*
Sept 20 – Tucson, AZ - Plush
Sept 22 – Dallas, TX – The Nightmare**
Sept 23 – Austin, TX – The Parish** #
Sept 24 – Baton Rouge, LA – Spanish Moon
Sept 25 – Atlanta, GA – The Masquerade
Sept 27 – Chapel Hill, NC – Local 506

with The Depreciation Guild:
Sept 28 – Washington, DC – DC9
Sept 29 – Philadelphia, PA – Johnny Brenda’s
Sept 30 – Brooklyn, NY – Glasslands $
Oct 01 – New York, NY – Mercury Lounge
Oct 02 – Cambridge, MA – TT The Bears
Oct 03 – Montreal, QC, Canada – Pop Montreal at Casa Del Popolo
Oct 04 – Toronto, ON, Canada – El Mocambo
Oct 06 – St Louis, MO – Firebird
Oct 07 – Newport, KY – Southgate House @
Oct 08 – Chicago, IL – Schubas Tavern
Oct 09 – Milwaukee, WI – The Cactus Club
Oct 10 – Minneapolis, MN – 7th Street Entry
Oct 11 – Omaha, NE – The Waiting Room w/ The Depreciation Guild
Oct 12 – Denver, CO – Hi Dive
Oct 13 – Salt Lake City, UT – Urban Lounge
Oct 15 – Seattle, WA – Sunset Tavern
Oct 16 – Portland, OR – Mississippi Studios

With Love Like Fire
Oct 19 – San Francisco, CA – The Independent
Oct 20 – Santa Cruz – The Crepe Place
Oct 21 – Los Angeles, CA – The Echo

* performing with Dream Tiger
** performing with TV Torso
# performing with Monahans
$ performing with Home Video
@ performing with The Harlequins

Film School and The Pity Party at Spaceland

Some of my favorite Los Angeles based bands played together for a banner night at Spaceland. The number of effect pedals that collectively cluttered the stage on this particular night must have hit one hundred. I couldn't have been any happier.

The Meeting Places





I unfortunately missed the return showing for The Meeting Places at the Silverlake Lounge. I was excited that they were added to the bill with The Pity Party and Film School as their textural soundscapes started off the evening. I can only describe The Meeting Places as a cross between the song structures of Lush and noisy shoegaze of My Bloody Valentine. I have had a few discussions about guitar pedals with Scott Mcdonald (Guitars) and he impressed me with his use of Roger Mayer pedals. Chase Harris had an equally impressive setup as he had some Analog Man pedals in his arsenal. Their double Fender Jazzmaster attack was extremely effective as they worked through "Love Like The Movies". "Where'd You Go" filled all of Spaceland with ripples of dense reverb. The Meeting Places are currently working on new material and hopefully they will debut some new material next time I catch them.

The Pity Party






The Pity Party perservered. An unfortunate bicycle accident claimed the talented finger of M (Guitars/Vocals) who was bandaged and battered. Luckily, The Pity Party has a lot of friends in high places as they recruited Will from The Deadly Syndrome, Hiram from The Human Value and Jason 71 from Eskimohunter to pitch in sonic reinterruptations of the fractured songs of the Pity Party. "H.O.T.S" was an adrenaline pumping rocker as Heisenflei (Drums/Vocals) started off so fast that they started the song over again. Jason 71 added some interesting octaves to "Love Lies" to fill out the sound as M was stationed behind the microphone singing along. I enjoyed the reengineered versions of the songs and started to think that someone should orchestrate a cover show featuring a slew of Los Angeles bands. I implore you to visit the Pity Party myspace page and purchase their Orgy Porgy EP which should expedite the healing of M's finger.

Film School





Film School wrapped up another US tour with a hometown blow out at Spaceland. They have been touring since early July and were a finely tuned noise wrecking machine. I have come to the conclusion that after every time I see Film School it is my favorite show. My number of reviews for Film School is rapidly approaching the 20's as they wind down the touring cycle for Hideout. I was absolutely floored when Lorelei Plotczyk (Bass) played the descending bass line for "Harmed" which is one of the few songs I haven't heard live. "Sick Hipster Nursed By Suicide Girl" is still one of my favorite songs and drowns the listener in sound. Film School will head out to the UK with British Sea Power for a number of dates before they head back into the studio to work on the next record. I can easily testify that they have come a long way since I first saw them almost a year ago at Spaceland. I am sure they will dazzle the UK with their massive wall of sound. I can only hope that I get to hear their follow up to Hideout soon.

Film School, The Henry Clay People and The Parson Red Heads at Little Radio

Little Radio knows how to throw a party. Ten dollars for three bands and all you can drink? It was the perfect way to wind down the July 4th weekend.

The Parson Red Heads





The sunny weather was a perfect backdrop for the summer soaked tunes of The Parson Red Heads. A fewer number of Parson Red Heads hit the stage which actually enhanced their particular set as the focus shifted to Evan Way (Vocals/Guitars) who gently strummed his Fender telecaster as he led the band through some songs from their album King Giraffe. The Parson Red Heads also played "Out To Sea" and "Got It All" from their recently released EP Owl & Timber. "Punctual as Usual" was one of the stand out tracks of their set with the backing vocal harmonies and organ keyboards creeping along in the background. The Parson Red Heads will be heading out with Earlimart for a west coast tour stopping by the Detroit Bar on August 9th with the Henry Clay People.

The Henry Clay People





The Henry Clay People continue to blitz Southern California playing just about every week at some location. Things are looking up for The Henry Clay People as their next full length release will be on Aquarium Drunkard's label Autumn Tone records. I am still enjoying their most recent release Working Part Time on Jaxart records. The Henry Clay People usually have a drink or two prior to hitting the stage but fact that free alcohol was flowing at Little Radio only enhanced the chaos that would unfold on stage. It didn't take too long before empty Colt 45 cans littered the stage as attempts to supply the band with water were feeble. "Working Part Time" was one of the few recognizable songs from their catalog as their other tracks were impromptu covers of the Traveling Wilbury's "Handle With Care" , Tom Petty's "I Won't Back Down" and Neil Young's "Rockin' In The Free World". I think multiple hepatocytes were obliterated during their set.


Film School





After wrapping up a successful campaign opening for Swervedriver, Film School is about to embark on another vast U.S tour to support one of my favorite albums of 2007 Hideout. I looked back in the archives and found out that I have covered Film School twelve times. So feel free to check out all my prior reviews of the band. I would like to point out that Dave Dupuis's (Guitars) pedalboard has been reconfigured as he has added an Eventide Time Factor and a Death By Audio Interstellar Overdriver Supreme. I am still researching the make of his vintage green tremolo pedal that had a massive swirl of sound. Film School is playing Spaceland on August 6th to close out their tour and you can bet I will be there.

Swervedriver at the Henry Fonda Theater

My show options for Saturday were mind boggling. Some of the choices included The Cure at the Hollywood Bowl or I could hang out with my brother at Iron Maiden. I opted for the sonic bliss of Swervedriver, Film School and Xu Xu Fang. I was already sad that I missed the Swervedriver Casbah show but was ready for a sonic blast at the Henry Fonda Theater.

Xu Xu Fang







Xu Xu Fang have been on my radar for quite sometime but I have always managed to miss their shows due to conflicts. This was quite the introduction to the world of Xu Xu Fang as they filled up the stage with their dense sheets of noise along with billowing smoke. Xu Xu Fang crowded the stage with their trio of guitarists as they doled out portions of fuzzy guitars splattered against atmospheric keyboards. Xu Xu Fang played some selections from their EP The Mourning Son. "The Mourning Son" heavily droned as light Rhodes keyboard notes sprinkled across the song like chocolate sprinkles on a rich chocolate cake. "Good Times Have Gone Away" was a guitar tour de force that partially recalled My Bloody Valentine with an injection of The Velvet Underground. Xu Xu Fang will be at the Viper Room on June 16th with the Human Value and it will be intense.


Film School






Film School never sounded better. I think anyone who was in attendance would agree that the Henry Fonda was dialed in as the auditory clarity for Film School was top notch. The icy chill of the keyboards from Jason Ruck paired with James Smith's steady drumming knocked out any audience members who were unaware of the sonic storm that Film School churns out. "Compare" and "Lectric" were some of the many highlights of their set with a severe knockout punch administered in the form of "He's A Deep Deep Lake". Greg Bertens (Vocals/Guitars) was wildly swinging his Fender Guitar around the stage as Dave Dupuis (Guitars) was enjoying the large stage area by jumping around. Film School did a triumphant wave to the crowd at the end of their set and smiled knowing they knocked it out of the park.

Swervedriver







Adam Franklin blew me away when I caught his solo show at the Echo in July of 2007. I never thought I would get the chance to see a full blown Swervedriver reunion as they used to tour with one of my all time favorite bands Hum.

Swervedriver quickly announced their presence with a blazing version of "Sci-Flyer" right out of the gates. Adam Franklin (Vocals/Guitars) was deftly using his tremolo arm for the dreamy notes as Jimmy Hartridge (Guitars) added his thick guitar work to the mix as Jez Hindmarsch (Drums) furiously pounded away. It had seemed like Swervedriver had never left. The ripping guitars didn't stop as they demolished "Sandblasted" from their album Raise. It was pure sonic ear candy. I had a feeling that the majority of the audience as full of musicians and guitar worshipers. Steve George (Bass) was anchoring the low end with his Fender Jazz Bass as Adam and Jimmy frequently switched guitars all night. As much as I wanted to believe that Adam had a dense rack mounted setup for his guitar rig, I spotted only a few Boss pedals and a Matchless amplifier. I hate to believe it but guitar tone lies in the hands of the guitar player.

"Duel" was another sonic romp with injected nitrogen into the already speeding set from Swervedriver. I was extremely thankful for being at the Henry Fonda at this point and was quickly reaffirmed that I had made the right decision. It was literal sonic heaven as Swervedriver tackled "Girl On A Motorbike" and "Rave Down". The ante was upped with a show stopping version of "Duress" and the closing coda of "Last Train To Satansville". Thank you Swervedriver. Thank you very much.