by Brad Roberts
I can't stand it! This Make Music Pasadena line up is fucking fantastic. I've attended a number of these Pasadena festivals in the past and always loved the attractive settings and 'old-town' atmosphere that characterizes the whole affair. It's also nice that it's all crammed into one day, Saturday, June 16th, with many of the absolute best bands in L.A. populating 35, or so, stages and performance spaces all over the downtown Pasadena area. And it looks like the weather is going to be perfect, sunny and mid-70s, and as this festival has been baking hot in the past, this is welcome news.
Lots of name bands for audience draw, but it's the secondary and daytime bands that hold the greatest allure for me. Everybody from Torches to Touché, The Lonely Wild to The Happy Hollows, from NO to SoKo and Judson and Tenlons Fort and on and on and on...For local music alone, it's as exciting a schedule as I could imagine.
The rest of the week has a few choice offerings as well such as The Henry Clay People beginning a tour with Motion City Soundtrack swinging through L.A. at The Troubadour on Friday.
Monday, June 11
- SuperSoul Monday w/ Jason Joseph & The Spectacular w/ special guests, Brandon Coleman, Bravesoul, Dana Williams @ Hotel Cafe
- Brandi Carlile @ The Grammy Museum
- JJAMZ, Busy Living, The New Limb, Monte Mar @ The Satellite
- "School Night!" w/ Pyramids, Broken Anchor, MMOTHS, Sea of Bees @ Bardot
- Blondfire, The Colourist, Daniel Bedingfield, Red Circle Underground @ Bootleg Bar
- Darin Bennett and The Requiem, Jonnine Zapata & Friends @ Los Globos
- E.S.P., Hecuba, Dreamers, Midi Matilda @ The Echo
- French Quarter, Emperor X, Keychain, Martin @ The Smell
- NASA Space Universe, Surgeons, Torn By Teeth @ Pehrspace
- Philanthro LA presents Of Verona, Ancient Lasers @ The Central
DECISION:
O.K. It's the Monday residencies again and the synthy glam rock of Blondfire (at right) and the indie-pop of The Colorist have Red Circle Underground to add variety to the bill at Bootleg Bar, The New Limb and Monte Mar join JJAMZ for their Satellite residency, while E.S.P. offer Hecuba and Dreamers on the bill at The Echo.
Tuesday, June 12
- Stephen Steinbrink, Emperor X, Tommy Santee Klaws @ Poo-Bah Record Shop
- Motion City Soundtrack @ Amoeba Music
- Kete Miller Heidke, Boys School, Mighty Forces, We Are The West, All Spots To Black @ Hotel Cafe
- Mac McCaughan @ Origami Vinyl
- Shawn Colvin, Buddy Miller, Viktor Krauss @ El Rey
- The Tallest Man On Earth, Strand of Oaks @ The Wiltern
- Nite Jewel, Paradise, Nicholas Krgovich @ The Echo
- Buzzbands LA presents Tenlons Fort, Frank Lenz, Xander Smith, Olentangy John @ Lot 1
- Neighbors, The Peach Kings, Squarefish, Frank and Derol @ Bootleg Bar
- RAC, Plastic Plates, The Magician @ Dim Mak Studios
- The Life and Times, Ume, Census @ The Satellite
- Warships, The Small Hours, Western Scene @ The Central
- Annie Stela, Your Dad's Kid, Lucas Field @ Harvard & Stone
DECISION:
Motion City Soundtrack (shown at right) are at The Troubadour on Friday night, but you can get a preview at a free show at Amoeba this evening. Warships continue at residency at The Central, but my choices are the Buzzbands LA show at Lot 1 with Tenlons Fort and Olentangy John and Tommy Santee Klaws at Poo-Bah Record Shop in Pasadena.
Wednesday, June 13
- "Desert Nights" w/ The Sister Ruby Band, Lael Neale, Angelo de Augustine @ The Standard
- Cardoza, Seizure, Veterans of Future Wars @ Lot 1
- Sister Crayon, Sea of Bees, Churches @ The Echo
- Dntel, Baths @ The Airliner
- Tidelands, School Knights, The Yawpers @ The Central
- SNEAKPEEK, Basement Babies, Boy Beach, Honeydrip @ Bootleg Bar
- Maxi Wild, Thurlow, King Devil @ The Satellite
- Phantom Planet, Haim @ The Troubadour
- Joshua Smith, Rozzi Crane, Julie Neumark w/ The Luis Oliart Trio, Chely Wright @ Hotel Cafe
DECISION:
Random sets are scattered through town like Haim (at right) opening for the reunited Phantom Planet at The Troubadour, Thurlow at The Satellite, Cardoza at Lot 1 and Sister Crayon at The Echo. But Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday seem like warm ups for the Make Music Pasadena festival on Saturday.
Thursday, June 14
- John Doe, The Lonely Wild, Son Ark @ The Echo
- I Am Apollo, Hello Echo, American Tomahawk @ Bootleg Bar
- The Cold Front, Hides, Don Peyote, Blood Buddies @ American Legion Post 208, Highland Park
- Sea of Bees, Henry Wolfe @ Del Monte Speakeasy at Townhouse, Venice
- Dot Hacker, Yellow Red Sparks EP release, The Chuck Dukowski Sextet record release, Capgun Coup, Mike Watt & The Missingmen @ The Satellite
- Downtown Art Walk with Bright Beast, Free Moral Agents, and The Endangered @ The Last Bookstore, 400 Main St.
- Walk Off The Earth, Avalanche City, The Mowgli's @ El Rey
- Phantom Planet, Blake Mills @ The Troubadour
- Nicholas Chacon, Big Sexy, Sounds of Noise, + TBA @ Lot 1
- Barfth, Bloody Death Skull @ Echo Country Outpost
- Helena, Mariah McManus, Alicia Witt record release, Kristen Toedtman, Cara Salimando @ Hotel Cafe
DECISION:
The festive weekend really gets started tonight with lots of good shows. The Downtown Artwalk is always a lot of fun and tonight there's music by everybody's favorite hot new band, Bright Beast at The Last Bookstore (that statement may be a sadder truth than we know). Sea of Bees appeared at The Echo last night and tonight are playing in Venice at The Del Monte Speakesy at The Townhouse with the genetically talented Henry Wolfe.
I think the line up at The Echo is quite amazing, with the legendary X-man John Doe (left) headlining the wonderful young bands, The Lonely Wild (at the right, who also play Make Music Pasadena for the second year in a row) and Son Ark. This is not to be missed.
Also Yellow Red Sparks have an EP release show at The Satellite.
Friday, June 15
- Motion City Soundtrack, The Henry Clay People, The Front Bottoms @ The Troubadour
- The Temper Trap, Crocodiles @ Hollywood Palladium
- Golden State, Sam Shelton, The Dustbowl Revival, Song Preservation Society, Ari Herstand @Hotel Cafe
- Capgun Coup @ Origami Vinyl
- Kin (songs by Mary Karr & Rodney Crowell), Steuart Smith @ McCabe's
- Mayer Hawthorne & The County, Harlan @ The Wiltern
- The Cribs, Lovely Bad Things, Devin @ El Rey
- Japandroids, Cadence Weapon @Echoplex
- The Drowning Man, River City Extension, Last American Buffalo, Ben Henderson @ The Satellite
- Greyhounz, Typecast @Bootleg Theatre
- Here We Go Magic, Thrillionaire, Line & Circle @ The Echo
- Nicki Bluhm and The Gramblers, Ethan Gold, Edwards & Edwards @ Bootleg Bar
- Spaceships, James Supercave, Census, Vs. Colour @ The Smell
DECISION:
Tonight The Henry Clay People storm the stage of The Troubadour as they embark on a tour with Motion City Soundtrack. Motion City Soundtrack was one of the bands I saw on video as I was being drawn back into rock and roll six years ago and their video for a song called "Everything's Alright" had tons of creative energy and showmanship that, oddly enough, remind me of The Henry Clay People (above). This is a good pairing and what a way to start the weekend!
Saturday, June 16
- Make Music Pasadena 2012 @ Colorado Blvd. and Fair Oaks, Pasadena
- "Saturdays Off The 405" w/ Allen Stone @ The Getty Center
- How To Dress Well, Babe Rainbow, The Holloys @ The Echo
- Drug Cabin @ Origami Vinyl
- Indigo Girls, The Shadowboxers @ The Wiltern
- So & So record release, Mind the Gap, Minus Ned @ Hotel Cafe
- Scissor Sisters, Rye Rye @ Hollywood Palladium
- The Vivids, Sound of Noise, Assembly of Mazes, 1050 Lies @ Lot 1
- Thrice, Animals As Leaders @ Club Nokia
- White Arrows, The Beat Connection, MMOTHS @ The Troubadour
- Sarah Jaffe, Secret Colours, Burning Hotels @ The Satellite
- A Club Called Rhonda @ Los Globos
- Beach Life Kings, Brett Miller @ The Central
- Sylvia Juncosa Band, Patsy deKline and The Rolling Blackouts, Monogroove, Freda Rente' & the X ChemicalKNOW BS @ Mr. T's Bowl
DECISION:
What can you say about a day that starts out with The Happy Hollows and ends with Grouplove except good luck. Make Music Pasadena may be the festival of the season and I intend to soak up as much of it as I can. Those first two bands appear on the Old Pasadena Indie Rock Stage. Meanwhile there's international sounds from SoKo, Y la Bamba and Dengue Fever on the Playhouse District Eclectic Stage, as local music is beautifully represented by NO at Levitt Pavilion, and The Lonely Wild and Vanish Valley on the Armory Center for the Arts Americana Stage. Touché, Pageants and Torches appear on the Old Town Pub Stage, but my favorite performance space last year was the Magestical Roof Courtyard Stage (shown at right) with it's magical setting among the unique shops and lush vegetation. Tenlons Fort, Shadow Shadow Shade, Judson, Paulie Pesh and One Trick Pony are among the bands that could keep me there all day long.
Sunday, June 17
- Descendants of the Earth Benefit Show @ Hotel Cafe
- Jim Kweskin @ McCabe's
- Airships, The Bicycats, Elijah Behar @ Bootleg Bar
- Jonny Polonsky,Justin Webb, John Carpenter, Joe Cassidy, Cassandra @ The Satellite
- RØSENKØPF, Bestial Mouths, Vex Ruffin @ The Echo
DECISION:
Today will be a day to recover and if you must go out, what a trip to see Jim Kweskin after all these years. His Jug Band was a favorite of an old friend of mine back in the sixties. Tonight he is playing at McCabe's.
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