Top 10 Music Blogs with an Indie Persuasion

Indie kids like to wear plaid with stripes, drink PBR and talk watch the movie “Harold and Maude.” And these are the sites where they share their favorite music tracks.

10. The Walrus

9. hear ya

8. Covert Curiosity – I love Austin, and I’ve never even been there. This is why – they have an amazing music scene there.

7. Fingertips Music – free and legal downloads, what a neat concept!

6. Electric Mustache

5. Deaf Indie Elephants

I couldn’t find a picture to put with this post and the site isn’t update as much as I’d like, but they have a good 2009 compilation of best tracks.

4. The Catbirdseat

3. Indie Shuffle – Okay, so you can’t download the tracks on this site, but they pick some fantastic songs, and if you’re internet savvy you can probably find them somewhere else anyway …

2. Obscure Sound – This site almost didn’t make the top 10. The synopsis’ were a little too long, the pictures they post are almost uninteresting and the layout is boring. But, they go to great lengths to bring you a few tracks from each featured artist. The tracks are for very specific tastes, however, so you may not find a lot of things you like here.

1. Everybody Cares – Ideally I was only posting blogs on here that have a lot of music posted and are updated frequently, but I stumbled across this blog and fell in love with the title “Everybody Cares”. It’s so true, everybody does care, and their most recent post is an Elliott Smith track which sealed the already pretty tightly sealed deal.

DANCEiSM IV Interviews and Footage

Vimeo kills it man, it’s way dope. Just kills it. Blows YouTube out of the water.

Nov. 2009 DANCEiSM - interviews of the DANCEiSM crew and footage of the last big event.

Los Angeles: tonight at Short Stop

The Short Stop on Wednesday Nights – it’s always legit, it’s always free, you’ll hear music by local east-sider Al GGGGGGGGG.

Special guest tonight, Louisahhh

Lipstick Gallery 1-31-09 – lots of girls were there.

You know a party’s good when there’s an even girl-to-guy ratio in attendance and LA Fashion Funktion was a very good party indeed.

The event went all day, 12 p.m. – 12 a.m. and the East Side Mainstream Scensters came out in full swing to support, promoting street wear from various underground artists from California and Mexico including OUTLINE and Diggers Media.

The music was dope, various artists performing electro/hiphop fusion keeping the guests toe-tapping and booty shaking all day and all night long.

Strider Bartow runs a the clothing line Outline with Frank Alvarez. I found this information out by probing one of his friends because he was too modest to share that with me.

(In this video Strider Bartow, Amanda (Diggers Media), artist from Hotub)

Hey Los Angeles it’s Saturday Niiiiiight!!!!

So much going on .. dunno what you’re up to, but there’s a Happyland birthday bash is going on tonight and it’s FREE!!

Happyland Birthday
FREE!!
9pm – 2am
311 Glendale Blvd
Here’s a little of what you can expect to be blasting through the speakers…

HAPPYLAND MUSIC PLAYER (click to re-direct to post)

And MAJOR tonight with a surprise guest. I have no idea who, but peeps are sounding pretty excited about it…
Check out the deets on the Facebook Group HERE
Galleryten
12am – 5am
Santa Fe and Hunter Blvd, downtown Los Angeles

Speaking to Obama: 2009 Inaugural Ball downtown Los Angeles

The Art of Change Inaugural Ball showcased the Muytator and the Crystal Method, both who performed in celebration of the Inauguration of President Obama into the Oval Office on Jan. 20, 2009 at the Mayan Theater in downtown Los Angeles.

The event SOLD OUT the day before, the first ever sold out show the Mutaytor has ever played, according one of the cast members.

I asked some people what they liked about Obama, and how they felt about what his Presidency might bring over the next four, possibly eight, years. Here’s what you told me.

(Elliot Deutsch on trumpet).

And here’s some footage of one of the members of the Mutaytor performing on ariel silk.

“Squeeze” Plugs Lucent L’amour 2009

“Squeeze” talks about Lucent L’amour while supporting the Mutaytor at “The Art of Change” Inagural Ball 2009 at the Mayan Theater in Los Angeles. Just a tiny little bit of footage I’ve got from last Tuesday’s “Art of Change” Inagural Ball at the Mayan Theater! More posted soon, hopefully tomorrow!

Los Angeles: Obama Inagural Ball with The Mutaytor

I didn’t stay to see the Crystal Method. Their people didn’t call my people, I couldn’t get an interview and they were going on around midnight or later and I was way to tired to stick around for anything else. The Mutaytor wore me the fuck out!

Here’s Buck, the front man of The Mutaytor, backstage tuning his guitar.

“This is one of the greatest moments of my life, shy of the night of Nov. 4th,” he said, describing his feelings about Obama’s Inauguration on Tuesday morning. “I feel like we’re a nation of adults again”.

They were vivacious, vicious and victorious. They SOLD OUT the Mayan, which I hear holds roughly 1400 people, although I’ll have to check my sources on that one.

I’m exhausted, but will post shitty camera phone pictures and video soon. I got some good scenes of Mutaytor back stage and some amazing statements about our new president.

Peace, -V

(and if you’re interested in my bus trip to the event, here’s a shot I took of the bus stop at the Santa Monica & Vermont intersection, which is apparently located directly beneath the home of a flock of birds. This could be one of the reasons people consider Los Angeles metro transit low-class.

Los Angeles: The Crystal Method Performing in Celebration of Obama’s Inaguration Downtown Los Angeles

Tonight the Crystal Method is performing along with the Mutaytor at the Mayan Theater downtown Los Angeles today, Jan. 20th. The Inaugural Ball begins at 7pm.

Tickets sold out this evening and the crowd is expected to be intense, as Mutaytor crowds always are, but on top of the excitement that Obama inspires this night should be unforgettable.

I will be backstage with the performers as I document the night on my camcorder and notepad… let freedom ring.

Peace, -V

Los Angeles: Temporary Spaces 2009-01-10

Temporary Spaces, East Hollywood: the bar, the register, the chandeliers, they all move from location to location… at least that’s how it originated.

Creative, almost genius concept, however I’m guessing it got too hectic to coordinate which is why it doesn’t move anymore.

MetroMix has a great video interview with some of the peeps who put the event together HERE.

Tonight was a stacked birthday party for dj Louisahhh (STACCATO, turntable lab), dirty dave, so the night was full of electro house with some fat beats. The system was LOUD, and it was more crowded outside than on the dance floor, making it apparent that people wanted a place to chit chat which they couldn’t do overtop the bangin’ beats inside. Oh well, the music was better than fantastic, and there were so many hipster hairstyles inside the joint I could write a blog entirely devoted to that. Maybe a week’s worth actually…

Regulars of the Temporary Spaces found it difficult to get in because it was a special private event, but it was hard for those of us who RSVP’d  as well being that a wrong email address went out instead of the correct one. No biggie, they were nice and let you in anyway as long as you could name the birthday girl, which made you feel that much more special for getting in.

RIDICULOUS SHOUT OUT TO LAWRENCE for getting a few shots of the evening! Maybe someone reading this wants to start coming out with me to shoot photos? Hmm that would be so nice.

Louisahhh HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

STACCATO

Vlectronica (me!) Hillel and Cole, Temporary Spaces aficionado