The last stop on my Art Around Adams tour was to see Mittens back at the library stage. I had seen the band play about a month ago at The Kava Lounge so I already knew how much fun they were. Mittens play a style of indie-pop that looks back but still has a modern feel to it. Their band bio mentions being inspired by groups like Rilo Kiley, The Cranberries and The Cardigans – and I can certainly hear the influence of those bands in their sound – but there’s also no mistaking their love of early ’60s girl groups like The Ronettes, The Shirelles and Martha & the Vandellas. Throw in some surf-rock licks and well-timed blistering guitar solos, to go along with their 3-part harmonies and big hooks, and you have Mittens! Continue reading →
My father was 26 years old when the Beatles‘ Please Please Me came out. I used to tell him that he was still young enough then to have followed the Beatles and the Stones instead of staying on the path that lead to Andy Williams and Glen Campbell. But the die was cast by that point, and rock ‘n’ roll was not going to be my dad’s thing. However, it turns out there was a section of his record collection that I would eventually come to fully appreciate. For as the British Invasion was in full swing, my dad was listening to The Lonely Bull, South of the Border and Whipped Cream & Other Delights by Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass. It turned out my dad was much cooler back then than I ever gave him credit for! Continue reading →
I made it through the first 55 years of my life without ever seeing The Schizophonics and now I’ve seen them four times this year already. I was doing it wrong! The first time I saw The SchizophonicsI had no idea what to expect. It was a crowded night at The Casbah and I was near the back craning my neck looking for the second guitarist. I turned around to say something to my friend and he was doing the same damn thing! Continue reading →
There were so many great bands to see at last weekend’s Art Around Adams festival but fortunately whoever scheduled this event managed to have all my favorites playing at different times.
First up was Imagery Machine. I imagine the beginning of this group to have gone something like this: “Hey, we should start a band!” – “Good idea, what kind of music should we play?” – “Let’s play all kinds.” – “Ok, I’m in!”
That’s an exaggeration of course but Imaginary Machine does have an expansive sound that draws on many different influences. Just check the two videos posted below. The first clip is of “Lyon”, a summery rock song with a gorgeous vocal melody by Jennie Lynn and intertwining guitar leads. The second is “Drum Winds”, a full blown reggae jam that gives everyone in the band a chance to shine, including the two backup singers, Kristin Jennings and Daechelle Hernandez. It’s a highlight of the song when they switch from providing harmonies for Jennie to becoming co-lead vocalists for a chorus in the middle of the track. And check out the solos by James Howard (Retra) on guitar, Tyler Shimkus (Mittens) on drums, and Will Mino and bass – these guys can flat out play plus you can easily tell just how much fun they are having throughout the performance.
Imagery Machine bills itself as a rock/reggae/prog band – and that’s an interesting combination already – but even that doesn’t fully describe the scope of their sound. This is a relatively new band, having formed just last November, yet already they have performed on some of San Diego’s best stages like The House of Blues and The Belly Up Tavern. As nice as those venues are, on this day a sun-splashed stage next to the Kensington Library was the perfect setting and a great start to a day of art and music on Adams Avenue.
Here’s “Lyon” and “Drum Winds” at Art Around Adams:
The Who has been one of my favorite groups since I can remember knowing about rock ‘n’ roll. I can recall the first time I heard Quadrophenia in junior high and it has been in my main listening rotation ever since. In high school “Baba O’Reilly”, from Who’s Next, was still played regularly at school dances and when I got to college my roommate had a GIANT promo picture of the cover art from Who Are You hanging in our dorm room. I’ve seen The Who several times, including a trip to The Forum in the mid-’70s and the Quadrophenia tour just a few years ago. Including this last show, if I close my eyes and just take in the music I don’t feel that the passage of time has diminished their power and musicality at all. Sure, it’s not the same without Keith Moon and The Ox, but with Zak Starkey on drums and Pino Palladino on bass the creative duo of Pete Townsend and Roger Daltrey have found very capable substitutes.
Frightened Rabbit, the ten-year-old indie rock band from Glasgow, writes big, melodic songs tackling complex and often uncomfortable topics. They’re touring in support of their outstanding new LP, Painting of a Panic Attack, whose songs explore dark territory, yet are delivered with energy, passion and hooks layered upon hooks.
If anyone needed a reminder of how fun rock ‘n’ roll can still be, they should have been to this show at The Casbah in San Diego. The Casbah was celebrating its 25th anniversary and was hosting bands from throughout its storied history, along with the kind of acts that should keep the venue vital for another quarter of a century.
First up on an all San Diego bill were newcomers, The Phantoms. This group features Victor Penalosa, the current drummer for the Flamin’ Groovies, on guitar and vocals, and a fantastic backing band of Xavier Anaya on lead guitar, Chris Iandolo on bass and Jarrod Lucas (from The Dragons) on drums. They opened with the lead song from their self-titled debut album, “Baby Loves Her Rock and Roll”, which sounded like a revved up long-lost song by The Beat (Paul Collins’ not English). The Phantoms then charged through their 10 song set as if they were the headliners with songs like “Stab My Broken Heart”, which besides kicking ass throughout, ended with the opening riff to “Love Gun” by KISS. The set then ended with a garage rockin’ version of Bob Seger’s “Rosalie” and then an homage to the bassist for glam-rock heroes Mott The Hoople with “The Ballad of Overend Watts”. These guys seem to be channeling the late 70’s/early 80’s power pop of The Plimsouls, 20/20 and the aforementioned Beat and are definitely a band keep an eye on.
Did you love the 90′s? Everyone loves the 90’s!. Apparently so does The Palace Ballroom, an indie/post-grunge/melodic alt-rock band from San Diego. And really, fuck it, don’t worry about genres or labels or styles – just click the white arrow in the red box, turn your volume up, and rock out
This atmospheric track off the San Diego duo’s debut LP, The Grey, has a timeless quality to it and is perfect for when you want to just chill out. Lion & the Lady is comprised of Al (I’m not happy unless I’m in 17 bands) Howard and Trent Hancock of ghostbird
I got home around 1:30am after just leaving a 3:20 long Neil Young show and I wanted to learn a little more about his new backing band, Promise of the Real. I found a great article that went into detail about their relationship with Neil, how the tour came together, and what they did to prepare for it. Then at the bottom I read some of the comments and the one on the top read:
MaxSoundsMusic 