Radio Free Silver Lake

The L.A. Show Low Down (Or: "We Hover On The Crosswinds, There Is Time To Meet Again, Even Until The Darkest Hour...")

by Brad Roberts

The music of J. Tillman is difficult to categorize. Not strictly a freak folk singer/musician, he comes from the strong songwriting tradition of the Pacific Northwest and writes complex melodies that are fragile yet sturdy with haunting orchestrations of auto harps, mandolins and assorted musical embellishments that sometimes sweep the songs into rich audio soundscapes. Nature is a strong theme in the compositions, which are deeply personal explorations of life's mysteries half-revealed as J.'s hushed and moving vocals impart their keen wisdom and insight. This is music that will stand the test of time. The lyrics haunt me and possess me... and I can barely understand them. Some may take years to comprehend. I've always been a fan of the elusive lyric, hell, I'm still trying to figure out some of the lyrics from the sixties.

J. Tillman has been touring extensively this year on the strength of two releases, Vacilando Territory Blues and Year In the Kingdom, both of which belong on any top ten list of the year's best releases. I saw his show at The Echo last August and, just as with Fleet Foxes, for whom he plays drums, the live performance is surprisingly more muscular than the recorded music. To watch him dancing around the stage with his tambourine was an expression of pure joy I haven't been able to forget. (Thanks to Joe McQuillen of Kill The Microphone for evocative photo from that set) Since that performance, Year In the Kingdom was released and I'm looking forward to hearing those songs now that I'm familiar with them. This is also not just a solo artist, but a full band. Joshua Tillman has surrounded himself with a group of accomplished artists who play as seamlessly as it they've been together for years.  J. Tillman performs Wednesday at The Troubadour, but get there early because openers, Pearly Gates Music, another Northwest band, show tremendous promise. 

"West Coast Left Coast", the unprecedented festival that's been going on for the last couple of weeks at the Walt Disney Concert Hall celebrating "the unique spirit of California's creative renegades" for it's final week features a staggering variety of artists from The Airborne Toxic Event and Kronos Quartet to the music of Frank Zappa and my favorite film composer, Jerry Goldsmith. Check out the listings for Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday for details.

And a whole host of wonderful local bands are playing throughout the week including Seasons, The Flying Tourbillon Orchestra, Avi Buffalo, Dios, Castledoor, Marvelous Toy and more. They're all among the picks of the week.

Video Free Silver Lake: Happy Hollows, Hoof & the Heel, My Awesome Mixtape, Guy Fantastico, Fever Ray, Major Lazer

By Jed

1) I've only been to two of the Happy Hollows Spaceland residency shows this month, but have been completely blown away by both.  My only advice is to buy the album now, and see them before they start playing fan-unfriendly venues.  If you haven't been yet this month, definitely go to the residency show on Monday, November 30.  The fact that the also-awesome Pity Party is playing the same show leaves you with no excuse not to go.  Here's the only video I could find of this week's show.

Ticket Giveaway: Crash Kings at the El Rey, Friday, November 27

By Joel Robinson

Tuesday here, tickets here as well. This time for the El Rey this Friday, November 27. LA locals Crash Kings (pictured at right) hit the stage along with LA's Rooney and Michigan's Tally Hall. Radio Free Silver Lake is very pleased to be able to offer entry for a reader and guest to this fun event. Drag yourself off that thanksgiving couch (I mean, come on, it will have been a day of lounging come Friday) and check out this terrific evening!

The L.A. Show Low Down (Or: "No Destination Among Those In Service Of Time...")

by Brad Roberts

The start of the holiday season is upon us as Thanksgiving takes a big bite out of the week and shows wind down as people do the family thing. Not a lot to write about this week so I'll be brief.

Ever since the atmospheric Masonic Lodge at Hollywood Forever Cemetery started having concerts last year, I've attended as many as I could, sometimes not even really knowing who I was seeing. It's such a great venue to see an artist I don't care who is playing. In the case of The Books (above), I had heard of them, but didn't know any of their music. It only took a couple of seconds of their CD, Thought For Food, to convince me I had to go. Live music and sound samples combine to create experimental and barrier-breaking art music that would be a mere intellectual exercise were it not so incredibly beautiful and emotionally resonant. And I don't even think I'm beginning to 'get it' yet. I expect my brains to be splattered all over the interior walls of the Lodge by the end of the evening.

Julian Casablancas finishes off his third Friday in a row at downtown's Palace Theatre before heading off for a European tour. Australian rockers Wolfmother bring thenewno2 with them to The Wiltern on Tuesday night. Otherwise the big theatres are pretty dark this week.

The hot local show would be the Monday residency of The Happy Hollows at Spaceland with a super line up that includes Dios and One Trick Pony. I'd be there but for The Books. 

Interview: Letting Up Despite Great Faults

by Joe Fielder

It's been well over at year since we last spoke with LA electronic pop act Letting Up Despite Great Faults and, well, a lot has changed. New album. New line-up. New live shows -- like the one this weekend. Stuff like that.

So, good time to check back in w/ the band, right? Here's the transcript of our chat w/ lead Mike Lee from last Wednesday night. (The IM names have been changed to protect the innocent.)

RFSL (8:01:17 PM): Good evening! How are you doing tonight?

lettingup (8:01:30 PM): Hey, Joe. I'm good. How are you?

RFSL (8:01:52 PM): Pretty well. What have you been up to?

lettingup (8:02:42 PM): Just been trying to promote the new album

lettingup (8:03:01 PM): starting to play out more

lettingup (8:03:19 PM): We got a new member and with the new songs it's taken us a little while to get things straight

lettingup (8:03:38 PM): But things are falling into place okay, I think

Show Review: The Happy Hollows at Spaceland (11/16/09) "And the flowers all turn into radios..."

by Brad Roberts

 

Somebody turned the heat up under The Happy Hollows, because they came to a full boil last Monday night on the Spaceland stage. (Photo at left from an Echo show by Jeff Koga) It was completely on a whim that I even attended, but I'd gotten some writing done and was concerned about waiting until the last Monday of November to catch this residency, so I hightailed it over to Spaceland arriving before 10, only to wait in line for almost an hour for the capacity crowd to thin out a bit.

The Drums were an opening act and this band from New York/Florida had tons of industry people looking in on them, hence the crowds. When I finally got in they were on their last two or three songs and, though the crowd was super-enthusiastic, they sounded a bit generic and mechanical to me. The songs were catchy, but the performance had an overly slick feel to it.

After their set, the place emptied to all but us hard-core Happy Hollows fans. And by the time everyone on the outside got in, Spaceland was full again. It was also a happy meeting of bloggers and musicians that haven't been in the same place together for a long time, including show presenter Kevin Bronson (Buzzbands), photographer Laurie Scavo, Jed of RFSL, Mouse of Classical Geek Theatre, Matt of Gangi, Jordan Huddock of Marvelous Toy, just back from touring as a guest artist with The Henry Clay People, closing act, Evan Way, and many others. It was great to see everyone.

 

Show Review: Pinback at El Rey

by Brad Roberts

 

I suspected the Pinback concert on November 14, 2009 at El Rey would be something special and I was not disappointed. After touring extensively last year on the strength of their 2007 release, Autumn of the Seraphs, they've returned to the concert stage with a kind of career retrospective which highlights some of the more obscure and difficult of their compositions.

I'd gotten tickets for myself and a friend months ago and hadn't paid attention to ticket availability, so I was surprised as I approached the theatre on Saturday night, to be confronted by fans begging for tickets. Pinback have a large and very loyal following, but I never saw them sell out a venue before this show, and that pleased me very much. One of the best bands on earth deserves sell out crowds. (Photos courtesy of Vionnette Dover Sellers, pictured, and Chris Sellers)

And the complexion of their audience has changed in the four years I've known about them. In 2005 they were reeling from the popularity of that TV show, O.C., where their music had been featured, and they attracted frat boys and party girls, all very drunk, to their shows and I was very confused by this. In the past, I've seen both moshing in the pit and underwear throwing at their shows, which seems so at odds with their intellectually complex and emotionally melancholy music.

Video Free Silver Lake: Fiery Furnaces, Dragon Turtle, Chris Garneau, Andrew Lynch, White Denim, Apse

By Jed

If you haven't been following the recent Fiery Furnaces/Radiohead "feud", the material facts are as follows:  a) In honor of Harry Patch, the last surviving World War I veteran, who died in July, Radiohead records a song "Harry Patch (In Memory Of)", b) In an interview, Matthew Friedberger, the male sibling in the Fiery Furnaces is asked whether he has negative feelings about any other bands. His response was "Radiohead would be one.  No one would care.  it wouldn't affect them if you said Radiohead sucked."(In a later interview he clarifies that "I actually don't like Radiohead. Personally, just between you and me. I mean I don't have any regard for them, positive or negative. Which, I guess is negative."   c) either as part of the same interview, or in an effort to build additional buzz around his slam of the most beloved band of the 2000's, Friedberger makes an outrageous comment about the Harry Patch song, and feigns the mistaken belief that Radiohead had not recorded a song about the WWI veteran, but had rather most pretentiously recorded a song about avant garde composer Harry Partch; d) Friedberger's publicist releases a bizarre statement reporting that Friedberger was merely "riffing" on the names Patch and Partch and Pitchfork reflexively goes nutty over the story; e) Radiohead refuses to engage in the silliness. 

1)The Fiery Furnaces are playing at the El Rey Theatre on Saturday night.  Because they put on one of the best live performances I've seen, and they're 2009 album I'm Going Away is one of my favorites for the year, I've purchased a ticket and I'm going.  Here's the video for Charmaine Champagne, off of the latest album:

Ticket Giveaway(s): Entry to the Echo or Spaceland Wednesday, November 18

By Joel Robinson

Tuesday here at Radio Free Silver Lake and thanks to friends at the Echo and Spaceland, we are able to offer free entry to a couple great shows here in the neighborhood tomorrow night. We have two pairs of entry for the Echo with the return of Radars To The Sky and Le Switch, to be joined by Marvelous Toy and The Happy Casualties. And we have two pairs of entry for Spaceland and its presentation of Hidden Cameras (pictured below), joined by Gentleman Reg and Generationals.

Two terrific shows. I'll leave it to you to follow up with a kick to the Echo's description of their show here; and a kick to Spaceland's description of their show here, as starting points. And, as always, have a click on an act's name above for a ride by their myspace presence to get a listen (and sometimes a look) at what they'll be bringing to the evening.

After taking a few minutes to get up to speed on these outstanding Wednesday offerings, go ahead and get in on the action. A refresher on how to do that: if you are 21+, then get in on possible free entry for you and a friend by dropping an e-mail to "RFSLjoel(at)gmail(dot)com.” Include "Echo or Spaceland Wednesday" in the subject line and your full name, and a call out of which show would be your preference in the e-mail text. Be certain we receive it by NOON tomorrow, Wednesday, November 18.

As always, best of luck to all! -RFSL

The L.A. Show Low Down (Or: "And When The Numbers Count Down To None, Another Sequence Somehow Begun...")

by Brad Roberts

The Swell Season are back again in their adopted hometown of Los Angeles at The Wiltern for a couple of nights. They sold out Wednesday so quickly the had to schedule an additional night on Thursday, which is likely to sell out as well. They benefit from the low key approach they take, which always makes me think, "Yeah, they're good, charming in that movie, nice songwriters, terrific musicians", but I never have high expectations for their live shows, so they always overwhelm me whenever I see them. Highly recommended.

Ray LaMontagne seems to never tire of playing L.A. as well, what with three nights at The Orpheum beginning on Friday and continuing through the weekend. He has a strong and faithful following here. Exene Cervenka has relocated back to L.A., I hear, and on Wednesday she brings her legendary presence to Amoeba Music for a free show, singing songs from her latest solo album. Expect huge crowds and get there early if you want to get in.

A wonderful local line up on Wednesday night that should not be missed is Le Switch, showing off material from their upcoming release, Radars to the Sky, back out after a long hiatus, the always welcome honky-tonk showmanship of Marvelous Toy and the flat-out, unpretentious rock and roll of The Happy Casualties at The Echo. And that's just the tip of the iceberg in a very concert-heavy week.