L.A. RECORD » parson redheads

MAR. 25: SAY HI + PARSON REDHEADS + YELLOW OSTRICH + BLAIR

Shane Carpenter — Wed, 23 Mar 2011 23:15:41 +0000

SAY HI, PARSON REDHEADS, YELLOW OSTRICH, AND BLAIR ON FRIDAY MAR. 25TH AT THE ECHO, 1822 WEST SUNSET BOULEVARD, LOS ANGELES. 8:30PM/ $12/ 18+

Sept. 21: Parson Redheads + Red Cortez + The World Record

Intern — Wed, 15 Sep 2010 01:01:42 +0000

LEARNING MUSIC + FORT WIFE + EVAN WAY + BEERS AND BRATS AT BEDROCKTOBERFEST THIS AFTERNOON!

lar_import — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 19:26:15 +0000

We’ll be installed in the lobby of the brand-new Bedrock L.A. rehearsal and recording studio—home of the prototype Echoplex, one of John Lee Hooker’s guitars, vocal mics used by Bowie and a whole arsenal of insane vintage equipment—this afternoon, so come say hi if you’re going and go if you’re not already going! Learning Music, Evan Way (from Parson Redheads) and Fort Wife (with Avi Buffalo) will all be performing. And it’s free if you RSVP’d to rsvp@bedrockla.com! Bedrock is located at 1623 Alessandro which is near Glendale and Alvarado in Echo Park. Map here and more info here and hope to see you soon!

CONTEST: WIN A DIXON SNARE DRUM + MORE FROM BEDROCK!

lar_import — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 23:42:47 +0000

The folks at Bedrock—Echo Park’s newest rehearsal and recording studio and soon-to-be newest microbrewery!—have given us a brand new Dixon snare plus four Dixon t-shirts and four VIP passes to the Bedrock grand opening on Sunday, October 25! A lot of L.A. RECORD friends are helping out with this event, like IS GOOD radio and the folks from Learning Music, who will be performing along Fort Wife (with Avi Buffalo) and Evan Way from Parson Redheads.

If you’d like to enter to win—we’ll do a random drawing the day of the event!—just email us with the subject SNARE at fortherecord [at] larecord.com. If you’d just like to buy a Dixon snare, Bedrock is the exclusive L.A. dealer.

If you’d just like to attend Bedrock’s opening, which like a good Octoberfest—or in this case a Bedrocktoberfest—will have beer and sausages, just email rsvp [at] bedrockla.com. It’s free and you get a +1, too!

You can claim your new snare and sausages at Bedrock that Sunday, and they will be taking photos of you with the snare and the sausages if you would like them in the photo too. And there are coupons for guitar or bass repair and rehearsal at Bedrock in this month’s L.A. RECORD. For more information, visit Bedrock at bedrockla.com and best of luck!

J TILLMAN @ THE ECHO

lar_import — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 18:54:47 +0000

J Tillman’s everything you’d expect from a Fleet Foxes solo effort: a haunting voice, harmony-rich breakdowns, and quite an impressive hirsute face. He toured on his own for several years before joining the Foxes later in their recordings to play drums, but Tillman’s music had already felt like a natural extension of their Americana aesthetic. His is a more ’70s Neil Young-centric, introspective folk rock, one that’s musical vocabulary is just as expanding and all-inclusive as his better known group. A towering presence on stage, it was hard not to hang onto every note he sung and the somber lyrics they carried forth. One appreciated the Echo for finally living up to its name with Tillman’s seasoned voice filling up the entire room and the walls sending its best approximation back to our grateful ears. And what a voice, an uncanny combination of Jason Molina and Will Oldham’s vocal timbres, it’s probably at its most effective when Tillman would simply, wordlessly hum. Maybe it was all that hair covering his face that made some of his cries resound like a lone wolf howling in the darkness. Whatever it was, not a one spoke a word during such intimate moments. Most of the material revolved around slow tempo, forlorn ballads, which might not be the best choice in keeping an audience up past the midnight hour. Still, hiding underneath these songs was a slow-burning tension that threatened to break through. Tillman’s rhythm section made certain to accent this, the drummer practically chomping at the bit, crashing and thundering on skins and cymbals even at a snail’s pace, while the bassist’s rumblings provided a nice counterpoint to the frontman’s soft strumming and wandering words. Every once in a while the band gave right into this musical force they’d been holding back, and like first rain falling on a desert, Tillman would pick up a tambourine with the apparent intent of smashing it to pieces while the band let loose a storm of frenzied energy. Evan Way of Parson Redheads played the slot before, his band playing easily likable, upbeat folk songs in a Dylan vein. He seemed as excited to see the headliner as all of us were, settling into the crowd as soon as he was done to get a good view of the show.

—Greg Garabedian

THE HANDSOME FAMILY + MORE @ SPACELAND

lar_import — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 20:42:26 +0000

A wave of silence interrupted the usual ambient discord of Spaceland when the first act Evan Way (of Parson Redheads) took the stage. He brandished only an acoustic guitar and softly strummed chords while singing with particular aplomb. He had a messianic beard and an equally pure look about the rest of him, and he seemed nervous in front of the quiet crowd—though it could have just been the jocky looking man who stared at him the entire set while nursing a lonely beer. The second man on the bill, Daniel Knox, drew a more lively response. He practically shouted in operatic baritone while playing cheery waltzes on a keyboard—or they sounded cheery until I realized the lyrics were about tying up women and killing them with knives. By the end of his set, the witty Knox had won support and a few laughs from the confused crowd, even if some of the women seemed slightly less comfortable with his Jack the Ripper vibe. Finally, the husband-and-wife team of the Handsome Family took to the stage with their band and launched into a rocking country tune, complete with train-track drums and a fiddle. Their lyrics touched on many subjects—love ballads by insects and trees with deep longings. I looked around the room at all the affluent Silver Lake denizens who had descended on the tiny club. They seemed to be enjoying themselves. The grey-hairs rocked along with the beat and mouthed the words silently in a way that clearly showed they’d found something very personal in the lyrics. Harmony filled the air and their down-home music had a calming effect on everyone in attendance. “We can’t hear the fiddle!” yelled a man from the back corner of the venue. “Shut the fuck up!” retorted another voice in the darkness.

—Steven Martinez

PARSON RED HEADS: ORANGUFANG

lar_import — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 23:46:00 +0000

Download: The Parson Red Heads “Raymond”

(from Orangufang out now on JAXART and available from L.A. RECORD)

The Parson Red Heads’ opening song “Raymond” shows off the band’s talent for soaring harmonies and rousing musical interludes—I must admit that my initial thoughts on the song was that it sounded pretty average, but after a couple of listens the melodies stick and you’re stomping your foot to the bass drum and playing air drums with drummer Brette Marie Way. “You Can Leave It” sounds like your typical California neo-folk-rock song—something you play in your car to impress your friend from the Midwest because it reminds them you can drive around during the winter with your air conditioner on. The clear winner for me was “I Knew a Young Girl.” Stripped of all the fuzz and fog that are associated with trying to sound vintage, the song stands alone—haunting but at the same time beautiful. Singer-songwriter Evan Way guides you with his melody until the gentle backing vocals of Brette Marie carry you off. Before you’re wisped away into the Pacific, the song ends and you’re alone—or with that friend from the Midwest.

—Gabriel Aguirre

The Parson Red Head’s Orangufang is out now on JAXART.

PARSON REDHEADS + ROBERT FRANCIS @ TROUBADOUR

lar_import — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 19:25:43 +0000

It’s always nice to see an eastside favorite like Parson Redheads playing on the Troubadour’s big stage—even though the lighting traditionally sucks ass and the sound mix isn’t much better. It’s interesting to see Eastie bands without their home crowd, since most Silverlakers can’t afford the Troubadour door cover, let alone their overpriced drinks. At least the place has ghosts. Parson Redheads filled the big stage like they’ve played it before, which is to be expected since they do a good share of touring throughout the year and they ARE a great live band. This was the first time I had seen them since they altered their lineup a bit, with three guitars, a slide, and four-vocal harmonies led by Evan Way. Aesthetically, the band misses Way’s sister keyboardist Erin (left to focus on acting) and her twisty tambourine playing, but musically they are still fun in the sun. The band played local favorites like “Got it All”—classic West Coast psychedelic pop that veers into jam land—and broke out some new numbers as well.

Robert Francis is currently L.A.’s singer-songwriter dujour. His recent residency shows attThe Echo brought out a bunch of Topanga stars for cameos, but his songs don’t yet register with me. He has charisma to spare and he always has great musicians backing him, but after seeing him two-and-a-half times, I still can’t give you a lyric or a melody. Don’t get me wrong, the audience was digging him, and he drew a strong crowd to the Troubadour for a Thursday, but he seems to be one of those John Mayer/Jack Johnson type guys that sell millions of records but are interchangeable. He’s only 20 though, so he’s still got plenty of time to grow into his music. I’ll give Francis another shot to win me over when he plays the Roxy in July.

—Scott Schultz

[ed. note: Photos coming soon...]

PHOTOS: BLITZEN TRAPPER W/ PARSON REDHEADS

lar_import — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 18:27:54 +0000

scott schultz

For more photos check out: larecord.com/photos

PHOTOS: PARSON REDHEADS @ THE ECHO

lar_import — Sun, 17 Aug 2008 18:30:17 +0000

scott schultz