Radio Free Silver Lake

Band Spotlight: The Deadly Syndrome

by Joe Fielder

We're pretty happy to hear that LA's The Deadly Syndrome have a new album on the way soon.

Their debut The Ortolan didn't quite capture their fantastic live show (or at least as well as their early demos), but their second release Nolens Volens was one of our clear favorites of that year. It was one of those albums where you kept listening for weeks and months, regularly changing your mind about which track was your favorite.

So, yeah, we're really looking forward to Spirits of the Stairs coming out on August 7th. 

Here's are a few songs from them, both old and new:

Band Spotlight: The Henry Clay People

by Brad Roberts

On Monday, May 14, I decided it was time to catch up with The Henry Clay People (photo at right by A. Dola Baroni) and find out what they're up to. The last year has been topsy-turvy for the band as they shed band members, pursued solo and side projects, released an EP, and refocused their priorities. So I RSVP'd for the "School Night!" they headlined that night at Bardot in Hollywood. I saw that they would not be performing until 11:45, so I didn't even venture over there till 10 PM, thereby missing Les Deux Love Orchestra, who seemed to set Bardot buzzing. Sorry I missed it.

I've been to a few "School Nights!" and really enjoyed them all. It's very different to be among a Hollywood crowd on the roof of the Avalon, across from the historic Capitol Records Tower, being so used to the laid back hipsterishness of the Silver Lake area. But it's always a little lonely as there are usually only one or two people there I even know, Kevin Bronson is one, and I wanted to share this unique and stunningly beautiful venue with everyone.

Well, the east side decided to venture westward to see The Henry Clay People on this night and, as I walked in, I noticed one, two, four, six, twelve people I know. It takes a while because the club is so dark and atmospheric it takes a good ten minutes for your eyes to adjust to the low level lighting. It would be great for cats! Many, on their first trip to Bardot, were appropriately impressed for, no matter the Hollywood element, the crowd here seems somewhat more down-to-earth and human than the bizarre creatures that populate the street level clubs on Hollywood Boulevard. Maybe it's the KCRW influence.

Saying Goodbye to Death to Anders

by Joe Fielder w/ photo by Zoe Ruth Erwin

We regret to report that one of our favorite LA acts, the iconoclastic "gregorian punk" group Death to Anders have decided to call it quits.

We'd like to sincerely thank the guys for the great musics over the years and their extensive efforts in support of the local music scene. We look forward to their next projects.

A class act to the end, Death to Anders are offering their final album -- which, we should make sure to add, is fucking great -- for free on bandcamp.

Here's a short statement by frontman Rob Danson:

"Death to Anders humbly began here in Los Angeles back in 2004. During the past eight years we started a Collective, released a slew of albums, and participated in a ton of memorable shows with some of our favorite bands. Now after many an adventure, Anders is finally dead.

"We leave with you a gift: Our fifth album, a collection of songs written throughout the past eightyears. It is available for you now as a free digital download on bandcamp. It's also available on vinyl as a "name your price" option (with a suggested donation). You can also stream the album on Spotify.

"A quick thank you to Joe Fielder, Brad Roberts, Kathryn Pinto and the rest of the Radio Free Silverlake crew for being the first blog to offer us coverage back in 2006. Thank You Kevin Bronson for having us be a part of your 3 year anniversary show last year. Thank You Zoe Ruth for your truly incredible photographs you've taken of us. Thanks to Dave Newton for all his stellar work recording our first few releases. Thanks to Ali Nikou, Eric Palmquist, and Pete Lyman for making the new album sound as good as it does, and finally, thanks to all you who ever came out to a show or shared a bill with us. It's been a blast."

 

 

Interview: Torches

by Brad Roberts

Back when they were known as Torches In Trees, I started seeing the band at a few of the Seasons shows I was always showing up at in late '08/early '09, and they made quite an impression right off. Their gorgeous blend of hazy psychedelia, jangly guitars, unusually adventurous drumming by Eric Fabbro, and the stunning on-pitch harmonies of Azad Cheikosman and Bridgette Moody caught my attention. When they shed their second guitarist and assumed their current three-member unit, I worried some of the force of their music would be sacrificed, when actually it tightened them up.

I've watched them drop "In Trees"  and become Torches, and grow into one of the most consistently reliable local bands around and seen, over and over, how they win over every audience they play for. Quality being it's own reward, they are capturing more attention all the time. I'm especially proud that both Radio Free Silver Lake and Feed Your Head have sponsored many of their shows. This Sunday, May 20th, KXLU will present  their album release show for Heads Fill Of Rust, which features a powerful line up of Tenlons Fort, Joey Siara and Manhattan Murder Mystery at The Satellite, and it FREE!

In anticipation, I reached out to Azad with a few questions.

 

Bright Beast on the Bright Beast EP

by Joe Fielder

LA's Bright Beast is new group we like comprised of members of three other groups we like... Namely,  George Glass, The Transmissions and One Trick Pony.

They're performing songs from their recently-released EP at Origami Vinyl at 7 PM on Sunday (two hours before the Torches show). You should go.

We asked the guys to write a few words about the meaning or creation of each said EP, which is available for streaming below while you read.  

"CAMERA"

This was the first real Bright Beast song Christian and I made.  The couple before were kind of silly rap songs for us to laugh at but this one came together in a way that made us start taking it a little more seriously. We split the song between us; I did drums, he did bass, both layed down guitar tracks, i did verse, he did chorus. First real collaboration. - randolph _ randy

"BLOOD SECRETS"

I remember this song took a while to come together. We had a bunch of people hanging out and drinking massive amounts of booze. At one point Randolph and I got in an argument and everyone got really uncomfortable. Then Christian broke up the spat by turning the song up really loud and everyone started drunkenly jumping around the living room without speaking. it was a strange ritualistic bit of peacemaking. _ nick

"ALLERGY"

It started with the idea of how intolerance builds in the body or psyche from repeated exposure. Ithought allergies were a good example of that. We started building music around that idea.  I recorded a super bad, "on the nose" lyrical approach to having allergies. randy's laughter throughout the track and comments at the end are a remnant of that hidden, never to be heard again, take. that's how most stuff ends up in our songs, usually as a byproduct of a failed attempt. _ christian

"SPEAKERS"

We were over at Christian's drinking and started recording. Randy wrote a synth part and then went out to get more wine. Then Christian and myself recorded a bass part, while drinking more beers. I think Christian and Randy went out to get additional beer. I forget but I think King or Nick did something; more wine. Christian had to clean up everything the next day. - rock Hearing it later, it sounded foreign, like we didn't make it but it was still familiar. We don't remember a lot from our sessions, so playing live is like learning another band's songs. - christian

"SHORT POCKETS"

The initial idea was born in drunken adventure after our first show at Pehrspace. Randy sang on the steps of the parking lot what would become the first lyrics of the song ,"Too much cash, not enough pockets" over and over and over. The song came together out of the drunken memory of our first show out. _ king

"WAR PAINT"

I thought Nick was saying, "I got war paint for her." I wrote all my lines and named the song based off that. He wasn't saying that all. Nowhere close. _ christian

George Glass on the Songs of George Glass

by Joe Fielder

We spoke to Nick Ceglio of local indie rock act George Glass recently about the band's current Indie Go Go campaign to raise funds to release their first album -- and the making of a number of songs on it.

Here's Nick:

THE FUNDRAISER
To be honest, we kept going back and forth on the whole fundraiser thing.  The idea of  approaching friends & family, hat in hand, made us a little uncomfortable, especially at a time when everyone is struggling.  Sometimes it still makes me feel a bit uneasy.  We took pride in being self contained.  But then we ran out of money and we started noticing these fundraiser campaigns were popping up more and more. We figured now would be the time to act before the whole fundraiser trend started to lose its appeal.

THE ALBUM
We tried things a little different with our new batch of songs (20 total). About half of them were conceived in the rehearsal room from top to bottom with the three of us contributing equally in the composition and arrangement of the music. We wanted not to take ourselves too seriously either.  I've spent the past thirteen years writing songs with a certain seriousness that can sometimes be interpreted as glum and depressing. So topically, a decent amount of the new material is a bit tongue-in-cheek on purpose. As far as the recordings go, the four new songs we have up on our soundcloud page right now were recorded both at Bedrock Studios in Echo Park, and in a Northern California studio that used to be an old post office. 

THE SONGS

1. "Aleph" -- The name comes from a short story I was reading at the time by Jorge Luis Borges. It's about a point in space that contains all other points and anyone who gazes into it can see everything in the universe from every angle simultaneously.  The narrator finds this point in his basement.  Lyrically I thought it would be funny to take that point in space and move it out of a basement and into an empty music venue where some random bar band is playing a lackluster set to their girlfriends and the bartender.

2. "Patchwork Girl" -- I went to this dance recital with a friend of mine and I saw a female performer who was absolutely captivating.  i became obsessed for a week or two.  I never actually met her, so instead I just wrote a song about our imaginary first date where we sneak into the Hollywood Cemetery after hours and drink booze and hunt for the graves of old movie stars.

3. "Future Former" - This was one of the two songs we recorded at the old post office up in Boulder Creek.  It was an awesome experience to leave town and spend the better part of an entire weekend doing nothing but drinking beer, eating in small-town diners and jamming. This song in particular is about the unstable art of sleeping with your friends. Yep.

4. "Side Effects" -- The other post office recording.  The song is one of our mellower recordings.  I'm really obsessed with the keyboards on this song.  They remind me of the theme song from Taxi.  It really shouldn't, because other than the tone, it doesn't really sound like the Taxi theme song at all.  Regarding the song's lyrical content, it involves the death throes of a relationship and lots of cocaine.  Just say no.

Five Songs: Live Picks from Geronimo Getty, Youth Lagoon, Stephen Sowan, Yoya, So Many Wizards

By Kathryn Pinto

Sometimes when I'm writing a review for an album I just love it makes it impossible to say anything at all. To keep you from waiting on that I'm also going to share something really short with you: Five songs from some bands I've seen live recently. Check out these songs and see these bands live.

1. Geronimo Getty

Geronimo Getty is Aaron Kyle's (Le Switch) new project, country songs in the vein of a Buck Owens Bakersfield sound. Until their recent show at the Echo I only had seen Kyle work this material solo or as a duo with longtime guitarist Chris Harrison. These were heart-wrenching, but starkly beautiful, cry-in-your-beer laments in the opening set. Geronimo Getty plays a record release show with the full band  Sunday at 6pm at 1642 Bar on Temple St with Angela Correa and Josh Norton. Geronimo Getty's debut EP Darkness Hides will be released officially May 8.

 

2. Youth Lagoon

I caught Youth Lagoon's show at the Troubadour April 12. The tentative bedroom dream pop recalls Avi Buffalo, if Avi played keyboards instead of guitar and took lyrical turns even more anxious and nostalgic. Last summer I started tweeting with and reading about Boise music community, from people like Audio Milk (now Deer Lodge). By the time Youth Lagoon's debut The Year of Hibernation was released it was deemed required listening by half a dozen voices from the Gem State.

 

3. Stephen Sowan

Stephen Sowan's eponymous band played the midnight set at the Duniven residency a week ago Monday night. The week before I had run into Sowan while talking with some mutual friends at the Satellite and talked a lot of shit about playing midight sets, so I had to go over and see if they were any good. They proved themselves deserving of a headlining spot. Sowan and his band (including Jerry Borge of Jonathan Wilson, Duniven et al) play a country-tinged musical he self describes as "Cryin' and Dyin'." Good stuff, keep an eye out for these guys.

 

4. Yoya

I had heard good things about Yoya and then happened on their late set at the Satellite and was impressed. Yoya also played a set at Brokechella where they got the crowd revved up for the final Big Moves live show.

 

5. So Many Wizards

The always excellent So Many Wizards have been playing the April residency at the Echo and they just keep getting better with every performance.

 

 

Five Songs with Downtown/Union

By Downtown/Union

Greetings, We are so very honored to have Radio Free Silver Lake present the second night of our Casey’s Irish Pub Residency (every Friday nights in April)! The first night was amazing and we aim to keep things that way with the next installment. We are big fans of Radars to the Sky and Lonely Trees, so we couldn’t be more thrilled to have them on the bill. It’s a Friday the 13^th show too, so things are bound to get a little weird... Speaking of weird, RFSL asked me to pick 5 songs that have influenced me in some way. But I thought it would be more fun to answer as a band since we all come from very different musical backgrounds. So here is a glimpse behind the curtain to see what makes D/U tick. Like I said, things might get a little weird… Happy Friday the 13^th and see you at Casey's!

B. Bory/Vocals, Guitar:
1. Tomorrow Never Knows – The Beatles:  When I became obsessed with The Beatles as a kid, I begin buying their albums in chronological order. I was young and naive, so naturally, the early mop-top era fab four, with their shiny, catchy pop-songs about love and holding hands were my favorites. There was a simplicity and innocence to the music that I really connected with. But as I got into junior high and then closer to high school, I remember things started to change…

 

Album Giveaway: LA Font, Races, NO, In the Shadow of the Mountain

By Kathryn Pinto

Sometimes we wish everyone could win the giveaways, so in that spirit these albums are available to all. Let me bring your attention to a handful of albums and EPs available to you as a free download (or streaming). Follow the links on band names to the download pages. In addition to LA Bands, there are a couple in there from Boise (Idaho--the one with all the potatoes and sugar beets), which is hosting its inaugural Treefort Music Fest this weekend. The festival lineup includes of Montreal, Built to Spill, Blitzen Trapper, AU, The Parson Red Heads and a many more bands the Northwest.

In the Shadow of the Mountain
Barn Owl Records out of Boise, Idaho is offering up several free downloads on the occasion of the Treefort Music Festival. One of the best is In the Shadow of the Mountain, a two-piece from Boise who play a genre-defying sound that runs the gamut from experimental outer sound to melodic vocal lines to jazz percussion. The duo plays a rare live show Saturday afternoon at the Treefort Music Festival.

In The Shadow of the Mountain - hey hey by Treefort Music Fest

 

Races
Races is streaming their forthcoming album Year Of The Witch which will be released  March 27th on Frenchkiss Records. In support of the album Races embarks on a West Coast tour next week, playing an album release show March 30 at The Echo.

 

LA Font
LA Font offer up a digital album (free or name your price) on their bandcamp page. If you missed their excellent show last Monday at The Echo you can catch them  tonight at Rafa's Lounge in Echo Park.

NO
Despite returning from SXSW only hours earlier, NO filled the room for their most recent Monday residency show at The Echo, many in the audience (who presumably already downloaded the free EP) singing along. They play the final night of their March residency Monday night at The Echo.

 

Modern Time Machines: Five Songs

We've known Modern Time Machines since they debuted their video for "Mammoth" at one of the Labrie's residency shows, so it was a natural for Radio Free Silver Lake to present their album release show tomorrow night with LA Font, The Pity Party, and The Monolators at The Satellite. Ben from Modern Time Machines joins us this week with a guest column sharing some of his favorite music.

By Ben Golomb

Thanks to Radio Free Silver Lake for presenting our show on Friday night. We're thrilled to share the stage with The Pity Party (we've been fans for years), our dear friends The Monolators (I've known Mary for a decade since she was my college teacher!), and the awesome LA Font. Here are some bands and songs that have inspired Modern Time Machines along the way... The list could be much, much longer, but when you're forced to pick just five, here's what I came up with:

1.     “Crown of the Sea” – The Lassie Foundation
The first time I heard the recording of this song, I literally played it over and over again on repeat, something like six or seven times in a row. I can’t really ever think of that ever having happened to me before. I bought this record based upon a recommendation, and a hunch that it would be right up my alley. This song and (The Lassie Foundation in general) finds a way to blend several of my favorite influences (shoegaze, psychedelia, Brian Wilson-esque vocals) into a very head-boppable pretty little pop song. Damn near perfect to my ears.