Besides being a solid drummer playing at Modest Mouse levels of complexity, DeLong isn’t that guy sitting in the glow of his laptop. He’s the guy dancing around stage among three laptops, a couple MIDI-interfaces and drum pads, several pedals, a number of mics plugged into different inputs, a couple Wii-remote and Sega controllers, and oh yeah the full drum-kit he rocks out on.

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What Milagres has done (which only occurred once, I bet, in the brilliantly warped Japanese movie Funky Forest: First Contact) is set to music the precise feeling of sinking into a mossy clearing in the woods at 4 a.m., on purpose.

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It was a full house at the Echoplex. A large ‘Drums’ banner hung on the stage. The excitement rose before the show even began, as loud new wave sounds bumped on the speakers. People had already set up shop at the front. I took my place and prepared for fast drum beats and sexy bass.

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Though he doesn’t look much like a typical rock star, at 91, Ravi Shankar could have fooled anyone during his mesmerizing performance at Walt Disney Concert Hall. Uniquely worthy of the term “living legend”…

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Teams, aka Sean Bowie, at Check Yo Ponytail, was a tsunami of brilliance. I couldn’t help but splash my feet about to the eclectic textures of his submerged disco trill funk. Teams’ music takes you to a another realm filled with saturated colors and aquatic vibes. I can’t get enough of his sound right now. [...]

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Security was tighter than usual. The women behind the table were awfully suspicious of people whose names were “supposed” to be on the list. I walked into the smoky venue filled with obvious Butthole Surfers fans, shirted up, and I knew this was going to be a wild show.

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With a combination of songs from their newest record, Helplessness Blues, and their first, self-titled album, the set was thoroughly satisfying and the night close to perfect. Everything was copacetic. Just as I had thought years ago, the Henry Miller Library in Big Sur was the perfect places to experience not just live music, but this music.

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This is music for seducing, being seduced, or worse yet, falling in love in some foreign locale while on vacation, giving in to the irresistible intrigue of an exotic lover in a place where the sun seems to be perpetually setting. We all know that, outside of 1980s softcore, this type of scenario never actually occurs in real life. However, if opening night at Staples Center of Sade’s sold-out run of Southern California dates is any indication, that fantasy is the preferred form of escapism for a great number of Angelenos (myself included).

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QUeUe (All photos by Chihiro Higaki) Sigh’s Smell of Farewell, the Cocteau Twins tribute night at the Smell, was also a night of interesting musical collaborations, as every single performance was an amalgamation of musicians. First up was Life Group, a project featuring co-organizer Scott Cornish, and former member of Veer Right Young Pastor, members [...]

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For anyone who wanted to see the Growlers at this year’s Sunset Junction, the festival’s cancellation was a massive blessing delivered by the city’s gavel of justice. Before I go on, I should confess my general bias against festivals and explain a couple underlying beliefs I hold about how to best experience live music: 1. [...]

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