Caitlin Rose – The Stand-In (ATO/RED) The Nashville chanteuse's sophomore full-length is full of soulful Americana tunes that reflect not only her country roots but her love of artists of all genres, such as Bob Dylan, Linda Ronstadt and the Replacements. Rose's voice shines on every track of The Stand-In, whether it floats over a simple beat on "Pink Champagne," over a wailing slide guitar on "I Was Cruel" or over horn blares on "Old Numbers." She stops by Bootleg Theater for a performance in a few months, on May 2.
Bajofondo – Presente (Sony Masterworks) I absolutely love the video for the Latin Grammy-winning collective's first single, "Pide piso," off their latest album. Besides its ability to immediately get me dancing, as most of the tracks on Presente do, the entire video is like a 1980s 8-bit video game. You can witness songs from the new album, as well as older favorites, come to life at the Fonda on March 18.
The Last Bison – Inheritance (Republic) The septet of Last Bison immediately transport you to a front porch in their home state of Virginia with the opening strums of a banjo on "Switzerland," the first single from their debut album. In no time flat, you'll be clapping, stomping your feet and singing along with frontman Ben Hardesty, his father Dan, sister Annah and lifelong friends Andrew and Jay Benfante, Teresa Totheroh and Amos Houseworth. The entirety of Inheritance is guarantee to captivate, from the title track that opens the album with a burst of energy to the more solemn "River Rhine" and plaintive "Distance." The Last Bison swings through the Mint on March 30. Ólöf Arnalds – Sudden Elevation (One Little Indian) The Icelandic singer-songwriter's completely unique vocals never fail to strike a chord from first listen. Sudden Elevation, her second U.S release, was largely recorded during a a two-week, partially snowed-in stay at a seaside cabin in the west of Iceland, and, in turn, each track feels completely intimate. The album highlights her compelling voice, enhanced by acoustic guitar and charango as well as subtle hints of a koto, keyboards, strings and electric guitar. It also features contributions by her two sisters, producer Skúli Sverrisson and Magnús Trygvason Eliassen on gossamer drum.
Javelin – Hi Beams (Luaka Bop) "Nnormal," the first single from the pair of cousins' sophomore effort, grabs you from its pulsating intro and keeps your attention with robotic vocals, beeps and heart-thumping bass. George Langford and Tom Van Buskirk continually shift aural landscapes from track to track throughout, but their ability to intellectually and physically stimulate your musical senses is consistent throughout Hi Beams.
Superhuman Happiness – Hands (The Royal Potato Family) One thing you should never do when preparing to listen to a Superhuman Happiness song is have expectations of what instruments you're about to hear. Aside from guitar power chords, funky bass lines, pulsing drums, analog keyboards and playful horns, don't be surprised at the random beeps, buzzes and other sounds that make Hands such a joy to listen to. I am such a sucker for hand claps, so you know exactly why I love this album. Also available – Autechre's Exai; Ayatollah's Avant Garde; Blanche Blanche Blanche's Wooden Ball; Blue Hawaii's Untogether; Boz Scaggs' Memphis; The Cave Singers' Naomi; Chelsea Light Moving's self-titled; Demigodz's KILLmatic; Hollis Brown's Ride on the Train; How to Destroy Angels' Welcome Oblivion; Josh Ritter's The Beast in Its Tracks; Kate Nash's Girl Talk; Krokus' Dirty Dynamite; Luke Bryan's Spring Break: Here to Party; Madeleine Peyroux's The Blue Room; Making Movies' A La Deriva; Palmyra Delran's You Are What You Absorb; Rhye's Woman; Robyn Hitchcock's Love From London; Soilwork's The Living Infinite; Son Volt's Honky Tonk; Stubborn Heart's self-titled; Suuns' Images Du Futur; They Might Be Giants' Nanobots; The Woolen Men's self-titled; Young Dreams' Between Places; Youth Lagoon's Wondrous Bughouse
DVD RELEASES
Film –Wreck-It Ralph features the voices of John C. Reilly, Sarah Silverman and Jane Lynch; The remake of 1984's Red Dawn stars Chris Hemsworth and Josh Hutcherson; Gerard Butler is a retired soccer player trying to win back his ex (Jessica Biel) while dodging the advance of several other women (Judy Greer, Uma Thurman, Catherine Zeta-Jones) in Playing for Keeps; The Twilight Saga comes to an end with Breaking Dawn Part 2.
Also available –The Bay; California Solo; Collaborator; A Dark Truth; Heleno; Interview with a Hitman; The Intouchables; Lay the Favorite; Unconditional; Waiting for Lightning
I've showcased the work of painter Héctor Pónce before (L.A.'s Teachers), and this is another of his murals near MacArthur Park. El Último Beso depicts a touching farewell between an American soldier and his love. The work is painted on the side of Metro Mall Swapmeet on Westlake Avenue at 7th Street in Westlake.
Matt Pond @ Echoplex (Echo Park)
Having sold over 100,000 albums to date, Matt Pond has shed the PA from his stage moniker, partnered with a new label and focused all of the reinvigorated energy into a new album. I'm quite addicted to "Love To Get Used," the first single off the New York-based artist's latest effort, The Lives Inside the Lines in Your Hand, released earlier this month. The entire album is full of honest yet optimistic tunes that are sure to have every body in the Echoplex moving along to the music.
FILM
Wayne Federman International Film Festival @ The Cinefamily (Mid-City West)
Although you may not recognize his name, you'll surely remember Wayne Federman's face from his numerous film and TV credits, including Step Brothers, Funny People and "Curb Your Enthusiasm." Work by the actor, and former "Late Night with Jimmy Fallon" writer, is celebrated in this second annual, three-day event. Each film is curated by stand-up comedians – who will also be on hand to introduce and field Q&A questions – including Sarah Silverman's choice Crimes and Misdemeanors tonight, Aziz Ansari with Back to the Future on Friday and Nick Kroll with Raising Arizona on Saturday, among others.
FRIDAY, MARCH 1
FILM
In Theaters This Week
The must-see film of the week is A Place at the Table, a documentary that focuses on hunger in America. See it, and take action here; Bryan Singer directs Nicholas Hoult, Stanley Tucci, Ewan McGregor and Bill Nighy in Jack the Giant Slayer, based on the "Jack and the Beanstalk" story; Ed Harris and David Duchovny in Phantom; A twisted family drama, Stoker stars Mia Wasikowska, Matthew Goode and Nicole Kidman; Ray Winstone, rapper Plan B, Damian Lewis and Hayley Atwell in The Sweeney. Also in theaters: 21 & Over; Genius on Hold; The Last Exorcism Part II
MUSIC
Free Energy @ Bootleg Bar (Westlake)
It's impossible to watch the quintet's video for "Girls Want Rock" and not burst out laughing. It's also hard not to break out dancing while listening to most of the songs on their recently released sophomore album, Love Sign. Wake Up Lucid and the Chances get the party started tonight at Bootleg.
Youngblood Hawke
SATURDAY, MARCH 2
CULTURE
Big 'Cap Day @ Santa Anita Park (Arcadia)
Featuring a $750,000 handicap, attendees can expect some exciting races throughout the day. Not only that, but KROQ is hosting a performance by Youngblood Hawke, DJ sets between races, premium food trucks and a selection of 50 craft/microbrew beers. All the entertainment is free with your $5 General Admission to the track.
FILM
Willow @ The Aero (Santa Monica)
Most people know Warwick Davis as Griphook from Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows or the final season of "An Idiot Abroad," but he will forever be Willow Ufgood to me. The reluctant hero must protect the infant Elora Danan from evil Queen Bavmorda with the help of Madmartigan (Val Kilmer) and Sorsha (Joanne Whalley). American Cinematheque celebrates the 25th anniversary of the fantasy adventure with a screening of the film and a discussion with screenwriter Bob Dolman, moderated by Entertainment Weekly's Geoff Boucher.
MUSIC
Katie Noonan @ Room 5 (Mid-City West)
Katie Noonan sings like an angel, an extremely soulful, jazzy angel. The Australian songstress – who has worked with Bruno Mars, Sia and Tim Finn, among others – makes her West Coast debut at Room 5 Lounge. She's touring in support of her latest album, Songbook, and has performed with world-famous orchestras, for several Prime Ministers, members of the British and Danish royal families and the Dalai Lama.
The Last Royals (Eric Ryan Anderson)
SUNDAY, MARCH 3
MUSIC
The Last Royals @ The Troubadour (West Hollywood)
The Brooklyn duo kick of a West Coast tour with the Hush Sound tonight at the Troubadour in support of their debut album, Twistification (out now via Ooh La La). If you haven't seen their video for "Crystal Vases," it's a definite must-watch. I'm sure that their live shows are just as fun, so make sure to strap on your dancing shoes before heading out to WeHo.
MONDAY, MARCH 4
MUSIC
BRAINSTORM @ The Echo (Echo Park)
The Portland, Ore. trio of Adam Baz, Patrick Phillips and Tamara Barnes join the lineup for the first night of Harriet's March residency. As you listen to their latest album, last October's Heat Waves, and their recently released new single, "She Moves," it's a little hard to believe that their big, art-pop sound is created by only three people. Can't wait to experience it all in person.
TUESDAY, MARCH 5
MUSIC
Maserati @ The Satellite (Silver Lake)
Listening to music from the Athens, Ga. foursome is the perfect way to get energized for the week ahead. Experiencing their powerful, thundering sound fill a small venue like the Satellite is even better. They released Maserati VII, their first album since drummer Jerry Fuchs' passing, to much acclaim last fall, and it definitely carries on the hard-driving, relentless rhythms they have come to be known for.
It's a gloriously sunny and clear morning, ideal for driving along the coast, and as I make the trek from Silver Lake to Topanga Canyon to meet up with singer-songwriter and filmmaker Haroula Rose at one of her favorite spots in Los Angeles, her latest effort, last summer's So Easy EP, serves as the soundtrack for my drive. When I turn off PCH and head into the rustic hills of Topanga, a line from one particular track, "Slow Dancing," sticks out from the rest: "My dreams, they still haunt me, like those sounds of the canyon." The lyric stays with me the rest of my trip, and I can't wait to ask the artist about its inspiration.
Once we find each other inside of Cafe Mimosa, a small, French-themed café and coffee shop, the tables are already full of customers who are reading or busy working on their laptops, so we decide to take a seat at an outdoor table beneath a canopy of tree branches. I don't blame those inside for staking claim to all the tables; it really is the perfect reading and writing nook. Haroula admits to spending lots of time doing just that when she lived just a mile away from Cafe Mimosa.
"It feels like you're in someone's house when you're here," she says, enjoying her usual order: a cup of coffee and bagel.
Even though she's moved inland to Koreatown/Mid-Wilshire, she still comes out to Topanga and Cafe Mimosa from time to time. I take a sip of a delicious strawberry-banana smoothie and ask her about that line from "Slow Dancing."
"I was totally talking about Topanga," she answers with a smile. "The house where I lived, it felt like you were in the wild. There were all these animal noises, it felt like you were in a tree house. Some nights, you would hear coyotes attack an animal. It was terrifying; it sounded like a witches' dance of some kind, and once that animal stops crying out, you know that they've eaten it. It was disturbing. One time there was a mountain lion outside the window trying to attack a family of raccoons. That stuff would freak me out because I'm from Chicago. But now, I don't even hear crickets in Koreatown because of Wilshire Boulevard. I just pretend that the traffic is waves – until I hear sirens blaring."
Although she misses having her own outdoor space and the rustic environment of Topanga Canyon, she's having quite the experience living in an old building in the city.
"It's been an intense week; I thought my place was possessed. The guy who used to live in my apartment, we were talking on the phone, and he brought it up on his own: 'You know your place is haunted, right? There's someone that lives there, but he's not going to hurt you. It's not a malicious spirit, but it's definitely his turf.' It's a little crazy sometimes guests will show up when I'm not there, try to get in and can't even though the key works fine. They have to be let in by the building manager. Stuff like that is a little weird. Maybe there is something to it, I just have to respect it and not be scared of it. Some friends say, 'Well, this is when you should be writing the most songs,'" she laughs. "Last night I had a couple friends come over and we moved all of my furniture around to change the energy of the room, and it felt a lot better. I slept peacefully for the first time in a long time."
Haroula grew up in Chicago and spent a lot of time traveling around the world before settling in Los Angeles five years ago. Her parents immigrated to the states from Greece (Her last name is Spyropoulos.), and she's visited Greece many times. After graduating from the University of Chicago with a degree in English, she lived in Spain on a Fulbright grant, teaching English and drama in Madrid.
"I traveled a ton when I was there because it was so easy, all you have to do is hop on a train or a boat. I went to the Middle East for a month, which was an unforgettable trip. In fact, I keep reading about everything happening in Syria and commiserate with my friend who I traveled there with. A lot of the places we went were some of the most gorgeous ruins we've ever seen because it's not a touristy place, it's very untarnished. Sometimes you would show up and be the only ones at certain sites. You would see a little boy shepherd with his sheep walk across and feel like you're in another place and time. A lot of that stuff is destroyed, which is heartbreaking. Trips like that, you have to go when you can because you never know if you'll be able to see it again."
She has also traveled to Italy, Morocco, Scandinavia, Prague and attended a writing retreat in England. During her travels she began cultivating a love for photography and being able to capture all of the great landscapes and memories on film. All of this globe-trotting enables her to be very specific when focusing on why Los Angeles ended up being her new home base.
"I feel like this is a little microcosm here, with people from all over the world. I could use some more public transportation, but overall it's nice to come here to Topanga Canyon within half an hour and take a hike if you want or go Downtown and feel like you're in a real city," she shares. "I love that L.A. has everything you want, you just have to find it, which is the fun part. You have music and films from everywhere and people are generally more relaxed and open. All of these great musical acts travel through here. I just took a friend to the Disney Concert Hall to see the Kodo drummers. When she walked out, her mouth was dropped to the ground and she said, 'I've never seen anything like that.' It almost feels like they're from another planet. They don't even flinch, blink or smile the whole time, until the end. They do this one thing where they do these tiny, percussive hits that grow into the sound of the rain. You close your eyes, and it really sounds like rain."
Usually Haroula goes to shows at Bootleg Theater or Hotel Café. She says that the best shows she's seen in L.A. have been at the El Rey or Largo. Love for music is something that she definitely inherited from her parents.
"They both love music. My mom has a really pretty voice, and my dad remembers lyrics from his childhood. My mom had a Greek radio, so we would be listening to it 24/7. They came here so young and didn't even really speak English, so I think that music was a way to stay connected to [Greece] when they couldn't necessarily go back all the time," she reflects. "I would hear all kinds of stuff growing up; they had so many amazing records. I have an older brother and sister, and they were both big music fans, too."
The music Haroula heard whenever her family attended services at their Greek Orthodox church also impacted her musical upbringing. During high school that she began to explore her own niche of music, including artists such as Cat Stevens and the Byrds, and piqued her interest in learning how to play the guitar. She also loved performing in plays and musical theater, and spent a lot her time reading.
"I always was a reader. I don't play sports. I wanted to read and put on plays with friends, act or be in a musical," she recalls. "I loved and still love Roald Dahl and his stories. My favorite book was Danny, the Champion of the World. I also loved The BFG about a giant who comes and gives you dreams at night. He sucks away the nightmares and puts them in a bag. I had an active imagination and thought all of that stuff could totally be real. We weren't really censored as kids, we could watch whatever we wanted, and I remembering seeing Romeo and Juliet as a kid and thinking that I didn't know you could feel that from seeing something. All of that made me want to read more, to read the actual play."
Haroula is still an avid reader who favors novels by Ernest Hemingway, poems by Leonard Cohen and e.e. cummings, plays by Tennessee Williams, Sarah Ruhl ("The Clean House" in particular) and Anton Chekhov. She specifically quotes the opening lines of Chekhov's "The Seagull" when I ask her about her favorites: Medvedenko asks, "Why is it you always wear black," and Masha replies, "I'm in mourning for my life." She has a great story about her current literary obsession, a book she pulls from her purse to show me and recommend that I read soon.
"I did a show in Minnesota in December, which was a dream come true. I've loved Mason Jennings for the longest time. I think he has an incredible voice that just keeps getting better, and his songwriting is awesome. I cover one of his songs ["Duluth" on her debut album, These Open Roads], and I got to sing it with him in his home town," she tells. "I also got to check out all these frozen lakes, and there's a bookstore [Birchbark Books] in Minneapolis owned by this author, Louise Erdrich. Mason and his wife, who is also a writer, told me to check her and the bookstore out. I had been reading a lot of Native American mythology and folklore and wanting to learn more about the land where we live, and there was this book in the store that covered everything I wanted to know. I don't think I would have found it anywhere else. I bought Louise Erdrich's book, The Master Butchers SInging Club. It is so good that I don't want to finish reading it, and now I want to read every book that she's ever written. She's created this whole universe, where every detail feels so real and helps you get to know this character that feels like a real person."
Her favorite bookstore is actually the Seminary Co-op in Chicago, but as far as L.A. shops, she likes Book Soup and Skylight. For restaurants, she frequents Girasole and Café Gratitude in Larchmont Village, the Park in Echo Park for the roast chicken with fries and her favorite is Little Dom's in Los Feliz.
"My dad's a chef and my mom's an amazing cook, so I love to cook," she admits. "I get obsessed with one thing and make it all different kinds of ways. I love making a simple roast chicken with vegetables and potatoes, and I'll do it with different sauces – mustard, garlic. I also go to this butcher in Los Feliz [McCall's Meat & Fish Co.] and get some short ribs or brisket and make it in different ways. I like to make my own salad dressings and try all kinds of different salads, too."
Dreaming up new recipes is just another outlet for Haroula's innate creativity. She really has always had an active imagination, and luckily found a way to channel her ideas into stories from a young age.
"When you're a kid, you have English classes in school where they give you whatever parameters and tell you to share about your vacation. Sometimes I would elaborate on things. One time we were caught in a storm on a boat, which was pretty scary, but I remember writing a story about it that was even more elaborate than what had really happened," she remembers. "I had a surgery because my appendix burst and was in the hospital for eight days. A friend of my dad's brought me some Calvin and Hobbes comic books, and those ended up being a seminal work for me. Even now when I don't feel well, it makes me feel better to read them. He also gave me a blank notebook, some pens and crayons, so I started writing a story about my operation, how serious it all was. I remember sitting there, sad and bored, making stuff up."
Movies were also a big part of Haroula's life growing up, and it was through film that she eventually realized she wanted to become involved in some aspect of entertainment.
"I loved that version of Romeo and Juliet from 1968 – how it looked and how real it felt, the music in it. I remember seeing Days of Heaven when I was in high school and thinking that it was like poetry, but visual. I didn't know you could do film or music for real, that they weren't just hobbies, because everyone I knew was more practical. You could love theater and singing but they were for fun; you had to make sure you had a 'grown-up' gig. So in college I was an English major, and you watch a lot of films in classes and write a lot – that ended up helping in the long run. I fell into a job at a music house after college, a recording studio in Chicago and that was totally unplanned. Someone heard me sing and asked me to sing in a commercial then asked me to work at the studio. I had taken my GRE and was going to go to grad school and teach abroad. I don't think I would have pursued music or film if I hadn't had that moment happen. It changed everything."
She encountered many musicians, composers, engineers and directors during her time at the recording studio and working at Steppenwolf Theatre Company. She realized that she loved the entire process of writing, casting and producing plays and films.
"All these filmmakers were like, 'If you like that stuff, why don't you think about film school? Being a filmmaker ties in all of these things you love; you should look into it,'" she recalls. "If I was going to do that, I realized that I should go to L.A. Someone introduced me to a producer who owned a big company in Los Angeles who said he would hire me if I moved, and that's when I came here."
She enrolled in USC's MFA film program, but only stayed there for two semesters.
"I think if I had I gone sooner I would have stuck around, but since I had already shot stuff on my own – in Spain I did a little movie with my students, and I shot footage on this pilgrimage with my friend and her dad who was this really amazing cinematographer – learning by doing it, I didn't feel like I wanted to be in school for three more years. I rather just be working and creating instead of paying so much money to go to school. So I saved all that money and am trying to do it my own way."
Besides releasing 2009's Someday EP, These Open Roads in 2011 and So Easy in the summer of last year, Haroula has continued to pursue a film career working on a few projects with friends she met in film school. One is a short called "No Love Song" that she wrote all the music for, stars in and co-wrote the screenplay for with Evan Endicott.
"It's about a couple who were together and break up. They were in a band together, too, and they have to write one last song together. Rosanna Arquette is in it, which is cool. She plays our manager and did an amazing job. It was fun seeing a pro act out the words we wrote," Haroula shares.
Haroula just attended the Sundance Film Festival for another project, a film called Fruitvale, about a 2009 shooting in Oakland, Calif. The film, starring Michael B. Jordan, Melonie Diaz, Chad Michael Murray, and Octavia Spencer and produced by Forest Whitaker, was written and directed by Haroula's former classmate Ryan Coogler. Fruitvale was purchased by Harvey Weinstein for distribution and won the Grand Jury Prize and Audience Award at the festival.
"That was a totally surreal experience. On my very first day at USC, I met Ryan, and he's someone that you just know that people will write about one day. He's an amazing person and awesome talent. It was a real privilege to work on his first big movie. I [produced and] music supervised, which was a totally different experience with all of the contracts and logistics of what fits where. Luckily he had some very specific ideas of what he wanted because, what do I know about the Oakland hip-hop world of 2008," she laughs. "It's very exciting because it's an important movie in terms of what's going on politically and socially right now, so it's cool to think that a lot of people will get to see it, even in other countries."
The blending of Haroula cultural heritage with her American identity is a notion that she is attempting to explore in her next full-length album. She intends to tie together the feeling and instruments of those old Greek songs her family would listen to during her childhood with elements of folk and bluegrass.
"Greece is an east-meets-west kind of place, so you have regular rock, acoustic and Spanish guitars, but they also have the bouzouki, the oud and all of these instruments that have a bigger, barrel-y sound with a high stringed, almost like what I think of as a bell, an awake kind of sound that's super happy. Then, when you play it over sad, more somber songs, it sounds amazing too. They use clarinets and oboes in a way that's really interesting as well," she says. "I'm trying to figure out a way to work all of that in, a combination of all those things. We'll see how it turns out."
Atoms for Peace – AMOK (XL)
Music masterminds Thom Yorke (vocals, keyboards, guitars and programming), Flea (bass), Nigel Godrich (production and programming), Joey Waronker (drums) and Mauro Refosco (percussion) unite to unleash a debut album full of dance rhythms that veer from the airy and haunting to, dare I say it, joyful. AMOK is a must for anyone who loves Yorke's solo material, as well as Radiohead's last album, The King of Limbs.
Emmylou Harris & Rodney Crowell – Old Yellow Moon (Nonesuch)
Country Music Hall of Fame inductee Emmylou Harris is one of my favorite singer-songwriters. Grammy-winning musician and songwriter Rodney Crowell joined her Hot Band as guitarist and harmony singer in 1975. This duets album is their first official collaboration, and it was produced by Brian Ahern (Johnny Cash, George Jones, Roy Orbison). They'll join She & Him for a performance at the Hollywood Bowl on June 23.
Gold Fields – Black Sun (Astralwerks)
The Australian fivesome admits to taking three stabs at making this debut before arriving at the final version of Black Sun that becomes available today. Blending elements of pop, tribal beats and dance on tracks like first single "Dark Again," the entire album is sure to move you. Their show at the Troubadour on Thursday is already sold out, but if you weren't able to get tickets you can watch them perform on "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" Wednesday night or "Last Call With Carson Daly" on March 28. Ivan & Alyosha – All The Times We Had (Missing Piece/Dualtone)
Seattle's Ivan & Alyosha are one of those groups that you should never miss seeing live when they swing through town (Their next L.A. stop is March 19 at the Echo.) because they don't just put on a good show, they give you an experience. After crisscrossing the country over the past few years and releasing three EPs, the band unveils its debut full-length, of which lead vocalist and acoustic guitarist Tim Wilson says: "We didn't get it perfect, but I definitely think we got it right." Lose yourself in the imperfection of "Running for Cover," "The Fold" and the title track, which features Aimee Mann.
Kavinsky – OutRun (Record Makers/Republic/Casablanca) Drive had one of the best film soundtracks of 2011, especially its lead track, the Guy-Manuel de Homem Christo (of Daft Punk) produced "Nightcall" by Kavinsky. His debut album is sure to please those who were craving more from the French electronic producer. One viewing of the video for OutRun's first single, "ProtoVision," with Kavinsky wearing sunglass, letterman jacket and fingerless leather gloves at the helm of a bright red Ferrari Testarossa, gives you a sense of the entire album. To celebrate OutRun's release, Kavinsky makes a rare U.S. appearance at Lot 613 in the Downtown Arts District on March 6.
Shout Out Louds – Optica (Merge)
Optica marks the 10-year anniversary of the Swedish quintet's debut album, Howl Howl Gaff Gaff, and they're still one of indie pop's greatest treasures. With songs like "Walking in Your Footsteps" and "Illusions," the band's fourth album will immediately have you dancing around your apartment. In no time at all you'll have the lyrics down pat, so you can sing along to every word when they perform at the El Rey on May 23.
Also available – Alcoa's Bone & Marrow; Bret Michaels' Good Songs & Great Friends; Cappadonna's Eyrth, Wynd & Fyre; Ill Bill's The Grimy Awards; Joan Armatrading's Starlight; Johnny Marr's The Messenger; Justin Hayward's Spirits of the Western Sky; KMFDM's KUNST; Kutt Calhoun's Black Gold; The Mavericks' In Time; Mister Lies' Mowgli; Mount Moriah's Miracle Temple; Plumb's Need You Now; Sally Shapiro's Somewhere Else; Steve Wilson's The Raven That Refused to Sing; The Sharp Things' Green is Good; Various Artists' Reason to Believe - The Songs of Tim Hardin; Woodpigeon's Thumbtacks + Glue; Young Boys' New York Sun
DVD RELEASES
Film –The Master, written and directed by Paul Thomas Anderson, stars Oscar-nominated Joaquin Phoenix, Philip Seymour Hoffman and Amy Adams in a portrait of post World War II America; Jonny Weston plays surfer Jay Moriarity as he attempts to take on the legendary California surf break in Chasing Mavericks, which also stars Gerard Butler.
TV –Africa: Eye to Eye with the Unknown; The Client List: The Complete First Season; Law & Order: The Twelfth Year
Music –Eagles: Farewell Live from Melbourne
Also Available –Border Run; Chicken with Plums; A Company of Heroes; Escape Fire: The Fight to Rescue American Healthcare; Girls Against Boys; Holy Motors; How to Survive a Plague; The Loneliest Planet
I came across this Ewsoe y Kofie Mural in the alley next to the Vista Theater on Sunset Drive (at Hollywood Boulevard) in Los Feliz one day after seeing a movie. A member of the West Coast Artists Crew, Augustine Kofie – who is known for the use of intersecting lines and geometrical shapes in his pieces – primarily painted the backgrounds of the mural. While PDB's Ewsoe did the house character, cracks and type. You can see more of Kofie's work in the #ArtShareLA exhibit at Art Share L.A. from March 1 through April 7, 2013 in Downtown.
El Sportivo & the Blooz @ El Cid (Silver Lake) New York-based Daron Hollowell (aka El Sportivo) celebrates the Feb. 26 release of the collective's debut album (via White Iris) with a special release show featuring his White Iris partner, L.A. producer and musician Lewis Pesacov (guitarist of Fool's Gold, Foreign Born; Best Coast producer). Nights + Weekends' country-tinged, blues rock tracks – such as "Waking World" and "Oh Lowe," dripping with sultry lap steel, and the plaintive "The Night's So Cold" – leave me breathless. Seeing the songs performed live is going to be quite a treat.
FOOD
$5 Ramen @ Daikokuya (Little Tokyo) It's the 11th anniversary of the ramen shop's Little Tokyo location, so they're celebrating by offering bowls of their regular size tonkotsu ramen topped with luxurious Kurobuta pork belly chashu for only $5 (regular prize is $8.95). Normally there is a line out the door and a wait time of an hour for a seat in the restaurant, so be prepared to hang around the front of the shop for a while a bit longer for this $5 deal that lasts through Friday.
FRIDAY, FEB. 22
ART
Gibson Guitartown Charity Auction @ Bonhams (Hollywood) The massive Gibson guitar sculptures that adorn the Sunset Strip end this year's tour tonight as they are auctioned off to benefit the Los Angeles Fund of Public Education's "Arts Matter" campaign, supporting art and music eduction in public schools. The 18 guitars feature designs by the likes of Shepard Fairey and RISK, celebrating Sunset Strip legends from the Doors to Buffalo Springfield and have been autographed by artists such as Stephen Stills, Zakk Wylde and members of Bad Religion and Dead Sara.
Keri Russell in Dark Skies (Dimension Films)
FILM
In Theaters This Week Josh Hamilton and Keri Russell ("Felicity," "The Americans") are a couple trying to save their family from aliens in the sci-fi/horror pic Dark Skies; Inescapable stars Alexander Siddig, Marisa Tomei and Pacey, I mean, Joshua Jackson; Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson plays a father whose wrongly accused son is serving a prison sentence for drug distribution, so he obviously has to go undercover to infiltrate the drug cartel in Snitch. Also in theaters: Bless Me, Ultima
Oscar-Nominated Shorts of 2012 @ The Egyptian (Hollywood) American Cinematheque's Oscar Season series continues with a day of screenings of Oscar-Nominated shorts. Beginning with the live-action http://www.americancinemathequecalendar.com/content/oscar-nominated-live-action-shorts-of-2012 at 7:30 p.m. ("Asad," "Buzkashi Boys," "Curfew," "Death of a Shadow" and "Henry"), directors from each short are going to be on hand to introduce their works. The evening continues with the animated shorts at 10 p.m.: "Adam and Dog," "Fresh Guacamole," "Head Over Heels," "Maggie Simpson in the Longest Daycare" and "Paperman," as well as three additional shorts.
MUSIC
Control @ Avalon (Hollywood) It's not common for club nights in Hollywood to last as long as the Friday dance destination known as Control at Avalon Hollywood has, featuring sets by artists like Skrillex, Rusko and Wolfgang Gartner over the years. The evening celebrates its four-year anniversary tonight with a first-time performance by Jack Beats, joined by Carnage and resident Whiiite.
SATURDAY, FEB. 23
FILM
Best Picture Showcase @ AMC Theaters (citywide) If you've been too busy to catch all of this year's Oscar nominees for Best Picture in the theaters, this is your chance to see all nine of them in AMC's annual, one-day marathon event. For $60, you can watch Amour, Argo, Beasts of the Southern Wild, Django Unchained, Les Misérables, Life of Pi, Lincoln, Silver Linings Playbook and Zero Dark Thirty all in a row, from 10 a.m. today through 7:55 a.m. Sunday, just in time to get some sleep before the broadcast of the award show tomorrow night.
MONDAY, FEB. 25
Skye
MUSIC
Skye @ Hotel Café (Hollywood) The Morcheeba frontwoman released her third solo effort, Back to Now, last fall, produced by the Grammy-winning Stephen Fitzmaurice (Paloma Faith, Metronomy). The album is a gorgeous blend of Skye Edwards' ethereal voice, synth – of course – and strings. The undisputed Queen of Trip-hop stops by Hotel Café for a two-night stand that starts tonight. Don't miss the experience of seeing her perform in such an intimate venue.
TUESDAY, FEB. 26
MUSIC
The Lovely Bad Things @ The Echo (Echo Park) The L.A./O.C. foursome wrap up their February Tuesday-night residency at the Echo on the very day their new album, The Late Great Whatever, releases via Volcom. The band successfully blends a plethora of influences, from the Pixies and Sonic Youth to the B-52s and Redd Kross, into their own brand of punk rock that will have you dancing, thrashing your head around and even laughing. Catch them live before they spread their wings across the country on the way to SXSW.
WEDNESDAY, FEB. 27
MUSIC
Willy Moon @ Bootleg Theater (Westlake) You may recognize the Kiwi-English musician's frenetic "Yeah Yeah" from Apple's commercial where the new iPod touch and nano models jump and flail across the screen. However, there is so much more to the artist. Although he is a mere 23 years old, he culls musical arrangements and sounds from eras past for a fresh, unique sound. He swings through the Bootleg in anticipation of the April 2 release of Here's Willy Moon.
Javelin – Hi Beams (Luaka Bop)
