Radio Free Silver Lake

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.

Rob Danson of Death to Anders: Five Songs

Death to Anders has been recording and playing music in Los Angeles for as long as Radio Free Silver Lake has been around to cover them. The band was part of the  Central Second Collective, a group of eastside bands that came together to promote independent music, so it's only natural that RFSL is presenting the second night of the band's residency at Casey's this Saturday. To get you in the mood, we asked founding member and frontman Rob Danson to write about some of the songs that have influenced him most.

By Rob Danson
This Saturday, February 11th, my band Death to Anders will host our second residency night at Casey's in Downtown LA.  Our entire residency is filled with bands whose music has had a tremendous impact on us. This week, Manhattan Murder Mystery and Health Club will share the bill.  For our final show (February 25th), we will perform the PIXIES album "Surfer Rosa" in sequence and in its entirety...an album which has shaped Death to Anders songs, emotions, and overall craft.    Here is a list of five songs which is currently inspiring my musical life:

Pixies - "Where is My Mind"
We want to make the final show of our February residency something special, something that we will remember, and something that evokes true inspiration for Death to Anders. We tossed around a bunch of ideas, and at the end, we decided to cover the Pixies album "Surfer Rosa." We've been learning this album every week since the beginning of January. We'd start by learning 2-3 songs each week. Yesterday, we rehearsed the entire album for the first time. Learning these songs has been an incredible, heartwarming and challenging journey. I feel like we've really bonded as a band and have learned so much. The Pixies are one of the bands that will forever impact our musical hearts. We are so excited to play this album on February 25th!

Interview: LA Font

By Kathryn Pinto

LA Font, one of the most promising bands on the RFSL beat, came onto the scene like a bolt of lightning a year or a year and a half ago, all balls and bluster like they cut their teeth on the Replacements and the Buzzcocks. Their name came up for every Best of 2011 list, only to be thrown out on technicalities. Best New Band: they already had an album out (The American Leagues), Best albums? It came out in 2010. In January the band launched a successful Kickstarter campaign to record their second album. The Kickstarter project revealed deep support for LA Font in the Los Angeles music community as well as the band’s understanding of how to use social media to connect with their fans and supporters. We caught up with front man Danny Bobbe via email in the while  the project was still in progress.

How would you describe your sound? What is the new album going to be like?

Whiskey straight. New album's gonna be a burner.

What are you listening to?

Burger Records threw a comp of theirs on Bandcamp. Got me into Personal and the Pizzas. "I can read, I can read, I can read, I can read!" Yeah man! Me too!

What were some of your favorite live shows of the last year?

James Murphy spinning records at Hard Summer. It was like David Bowie wrote "Sound and Vision" for that moment in time.

Judson McKinney: Five Songs

Monday night Radio Free Silver Lake presents the first week of Judson McKinney’s February residency Tuesday at the Silverlake Lounge. Last year we had a chance to speak with Judson at several RFSL shows. He often stayed past the last set to talk about his new projects, the craft of songwriting, and some of the artists who have influenced him most. As a way of introduction to his residency we asked him to continue that conversation in a guest post.

By Judson McKinney

Five Songs from Five Artists that Matter to Me (and You)
In case you haven't tuned in yet, Radio Free Silver Lake will be presenting Night 1 of my February residency at Silverlake Lounge.  A night that launches a whole month of great music, all free, every Monday night.  In preparing for Night 1, RFSL has asked me to write a little about the music that I love and that has been influential to me.
I'd like to look at five amazing songs from five tremendous artists.

1)  "Plane Wreck at Los Gatos" –  Woody Guthrie
Time spent in Guthrie's canon keeps one away from complacency, whether one is an artist or a human being.  Guthrie was an idealist, but so vastly different from many today, in that he was also a poet of great skill. 

This particular song, also known as "Deportee," was apparently written by Guthrie after his astonishment that the news coverage of this crash did not include the names of its Mexican victims, who were migrant farm workers.  "The radio says, They are just deportees."

The L.A. Show Low Down (Or: "My Life Is Rolling With The Tide, I'd Like To See It Be An Open Ride...")

by Brad Roberts

January was such a surprising and exciting month for music in this town, that I wonder if February can keep up. Judging from this week, it's off to a good start. I'll stop sounding like a broken record next week as this is the last of the Seasons residency nights on Monday at The Echo, but tonight they are appearing with a string quartet and horn section(!), so again they are the show of the week. This should be quite the blow-out with Robotanists, Little Red Lung and Paulie Pesh on the bill. When Seasons take the stage, which should fill up like a can of sardines, the sound will be overwhelming. In addition to selections from the four EP's they've been highlighting all month, I'm sure there will be unexpected surprises. I can't wait! The book cover illustration above is by Marshall Peck III.

A genuine rock and roll legend who deserves this stature is Jorma Kaukonen, who's been playing for nearly fifty years, in Jefferson Airplane, Jefferson Starship, Hot Tuna and as a solo act, has four sold out shows on Friday and Saturday at McCabe's. He plays this gig occasionally and it is always sold out by the time I hear about it. Damn! I must keep a closer watch on McCabe's concert listings.

I'm real happy to see Aaron Embry back out making music. Ever since I got to know Aaron and Nikki Embry through Amnion, I've been a fan of his unique and inspired abilities. He has a date in Venice on Monday, which I can't attend, but I'll be at Hotel Cafe on Thursday where he appears at nine o'clock. And on Saturday I'm hosting another Feed Your Head show at Lot 1 with a sparkling line up Cody The Band, The Health Club, Socialistics and Fort KIng.