by Brad Roberts
SXSW opens the music part of the festival on Tuesday in Austin, and that pretty much decimates our fair city. I'm sure the festival will go on as planned and be a lot of fun. But how does one forget the images of devastation, destruction and death from Japan that have flooded all our consciousness and shows you what real decimation is. That's a really tall order. Still, the list of local bands who are participating this year is quite impressive and Radio Free Silver Lake has lined up a couple of roving reporters to send dispatches from the front.
Bands ranging from The Belle Brigade to Eastern Conference Champions to Lord Huron to Pepper Rabbit, all fairly recent L.A. transplants, litter the schedule making Los Angeles rightfully proud as a major hub attracting all sorts of talented musicians. Also represented are long-time East Side residents like The Airborne Toxic Event, Leslie Stevens and the Badgers, Olin and the Moon, Light FM, The Submarines and Voxhaul Broadcast...I'm merely scratching the surface here.
At Radio Free Silver Lake we're fighting back by hosting two shows this week in our empty little town. Week three of the George Glass residency Free Tuesdays at LaBrie's looks to be just as exciting as the last two, with Francisco the Man and Shirley Rolls on the bill this time around. Then on Wednesday, we present a SXSW tribute showcase at Silver Lake Lounge starring Wilding, POLLS and Space Waves, in case you can't get enough of us.
Friday night is big with good shows at The Echo with Torches in Trees and Marvelous Toy, Seasons open for Timonium and Young Hunting at the Eagle Rock Center for the Arts and a cool bill plays at Lot 1 Cafe. Also Devo play the Club Nokia on Saturday, so it turns out not so shabby. Check it out below...
Oh, and DeVotchKa Saturday night at The Fonda was one of the best shows I have ever seen.
Monday, March 14
- KCRW's "School Night" w/ We Are Scientists, Polock @ Bardot
- TD Lind, Nicole Vaughn, Parker Ainsworth, Avasa & Matty Love @ Hotel Cafe
- Tahiti 80, Maniac @ The Troubadour
- HoneyHoney, The Wild Feathers, Milo Greene @ Bootleg Theatre
- Spirit Vine, Dark Moon, Dante VS Zombies, Rumspringa @ The Echo
- Bowery Beasts, Peg Leg Love, John Carpenter, Billie Jack @ Silver Lake Lounge
- Living Things, Those Dancing Days, Young Legionnaire, Frankie & The Heartstrings @ The Satellite
- Spider Problem, Stab City, Aftergloam, Strong Killings, Sex Wolf @ Five Stars Bar
- Tujunga, Coup Pigeons, Sexhair, Injured Ninja, Forced Into Femininity @ Pehrspace
DECISION:
Even the normally active Monday night seems subdued with the residencies of HoneyHoney, Spirit Vine, Bowery Beasts and Living Things trying to drum up business from the few of us left in town. The biggest splash seems to be the KCRW "School Night" event at Bardot, who have scored We Are Scientists (at right) and openers, Polock, for a major bill at this attractive venue.
Tuesday, March 15
- George Glass, Francisco the Man, Shirley Rolls @ LaBrie's
- Alpine Decline, Residual Echoes @ The Echo
- Bryan Master, Chris Pureka, The Morgansterns, The Black Atlantic @ Hotel Cafe
- Noah & The Whale, Luke Rathborne @ The Troubadour
- The Smiths Indeed @ The Satellite
- Family Band, Papercranes, The Moor @ Bootleg Theatre
- Treason, Artilleri, Number 2 @ Silver Lake Lounge
- Triumph of Lethargy Skinned Alive to Death, Crazy Band, Mikki and the Mauses @ The Smell
DECISION:
In spite of everything, we at Radio Free Silver Lake will, nonetheless, hold our weekly event of Free Tuesdays at LaBrie's this week with a really hot bil of George Glass, Francisco the Man and Shirley Rolls (shown at right). I'm happy about this line up because I've been trying forever to see these two supporting bands and I always just miss them. SXSW begins today in Austin Texas and good luck to all the bands performing and best wishes for safe travels. I'm really sad I have to miss Alpine Decline again as I am so enamored of their record. Tonight they're at The Echo.
Wednesday, March 16
- Radio Free Silver Lake presents Wilding, POLLS, Space Waves @ Silver Lake Lounge
- Early Winters, Nightmare & The Cat, Penelope Fortier, Chasing Kings @ Hotel Cafe
- Liz Phair, Cathy @ The Troubadour
- The Downtown Train and more @ Lot 1 Cafe
- Spain, Rats @ The Satellite
- Linda Draper, Old Toy Trains, Chief Nowhere, Dominic Campanella @ Bootleg Theatre
DECISION:
And tonight, for your listening pleasure, we present another Radio Free Silver Lake show when we host Wilding (at right), POLLS and Space Waves at the Silver Lake Lounge as a SXSW showcase (or as Kathryn calls it here: South By Silver Lake...I like that). Space Waves are another band I keep missing and Wilding and POLLS are always good so I'm looking forward to this show as well.
Thursday, March 17
- State Radio, The Tontons @ The Troubadour
- Alkaline Trio, Cobra Skulls, Dead Country @ Mayan Theatre
- Le Switch, Sounds of Asteroth, Last Round Down, The Damselles @ The Echo
- Brooklyn Rundfunk Orkestrata, The Makepeace Brothers record release, Speed the Band, Renee Olstead, Melneh Kurdian @ Hotel Cafe
- Antenna the End, Big Black Delta, Old Codes @ Silver Lake Lounge
- Cowboy Soul, U Me and The Machine, Mother Echo, Arson Pedestrian, Banna Beag Mall @ Mr. T's Bowl
- The Entrance Band, White Fence, Farmer Dave Scher @ The Satellite
DECISION:
State Radio are a Reggae/Indie band from Boston and I saw them a few years ago at the old Knitting Factory on Hollywood Blvd and I remember being impressed enough to pick up their very good CD, Up Against the Crown from 2006. Tonight they're back in town to play The Troubadour. Le Switch (shown above) heads a good show at The Echo and The Entrance Band play The Satellite.
Friday, March 18
- Torches in Trees, Marvelous Toy @ The Echo
- The Neighborhood, Haunted Tiger, The Schoenberg Knife Fight Ensemble, Zaptra @ Lot 1 Cafe
- Lava Band @ Bootleg Theatre
- The 88 w/ Douglas Lee, Pan Am record release, Farspeaker, Tim Fagan, Linda Draper @ Hotel Cafe
- Dan Band @ Henry Fonda Music Box Theatre
- Timonium, Young Hunting, Seasons @ Eagle Rock Center for the Arts
- The Ex, Death Sentence Panda @ The Satellite
- Truth & Salvage Co., George Stanford, Foster Timms @ The Troubadour
- Foot Foot @ Pehrspace
- Good Night Billygoat, Dirt Bird, Featherbeard @ HM 157
DECISION:
The amazing double bill of Torches in Trees and Marvelous Toy at The Echo make going out this Friday night absolutely necessary. And if that isn't enough for you, there's a great show in Eagle Rock at the Center for the Arts with Timonium, Young Hunting and Seasons. What a shitty choice to have to make! And then I learn about the Schoenberg Knife Fight Ensemble having a show at Lot 1 Cafe, opening for The Neighborhood. If the timing is right, maybe I can do another Echo/Lot 1 split like I did a few weeks ago.
Saturday, March 19
- Sister Spit: Next Generation Tour @ The Echo (6 PM)
- The Modern Drone, Hazel, Einsteins Dirty Secret, Indio Downey, Matt Savan @ El Rey
- Clara C w/ Julia Price, Steve Carlson, Tyler Hilton, Caroline Brooks @ Hotel Cafe
- Capital Cities, Alex Kemp, Audiafauna, Indigo Child, Ben Osipo @ The Troubadour
- Devo @ Club Nokia
- Kissing Cousins, The Terrapin, Buffalo, Electric @ Space 2710
- Wild Up, David Shane Smith, Seasons, Entropy Ensemble @ Bootleg Theatre
- Big Dick, Brendan Hines, LA Soul Project, The Chisels @ The Satellite
- Death at Space Camp, Carbol Fusion, Therapy Session, No Look Escape, Some Go Haunting @ Mr. T's Bowl
DECISION:
The city dries up this weekend with just a few shows taking place. The KIssing Cousins/The Terrapin show at Space 2710 sounds good and then there's the legendary Devo at Club Nokia.
Sunday, March 20
- Raul Malo @ Hotel Cafe
- Fujiya & Miyagi, Fol Chen, The Holidays @ The Echo
- Jack Fris Radio Choir, The Irish Goodbye, The Carrions @ The Satellite
DECISION:
Fol Chen return to the stage of The Echo to open for Fujiya and Miyagi in a show that's bound to sell out.
There'll be a lot more next week, but let me know what I've misssed: [email protected]
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