So the Oscars are this weekend. That’s happening. But there’s also a slew of shows that you cannot miss, all with some musical acts that I’m sure even the Academy would find pleasing. So without further ado, we present to you the top shows that YOU need to see this week.
Continue reading Award worthy performances in San Diego this week
If you’re single this year, don’t fret. Not everything is about chocolates, champagne and cheesy cards. There are a slew of amazing shows happening in San Diego, and you need to check them out. Who knows, maybe the person of your dreams will be waiting in the crowd? (Too cheesy? Yeah, let’s just focus on the music.) Continue reading Forget Valentine’s Day: Here’s what you should do this week
Meet one-man-music-machine Let’s Drive to Alaska, and learn why he’s going to become your next favorite dance/electronic project. Continue reading The Theme Song this Week is by Let’s Drive to Alaska
In case you didn’t know, it was my birthday this week (I’m a 9/11 baby…is that such a thing now?), and while I didn’t celebrate that much, it did keep me busy enough to step away from weekend show reviews. But never fear! TGIF and the weekend is here!
Let me discuss three amazing reasons to be at the Soda Bar today…
Insert really spooky Friday the 13th reference here. Or, experience one in the flesh tonight at Soda Bar, for a rock ‘n roll party that is worthy of the number 13. Headliners The Creepy Creeps are definitely on my radar — mostly because I’m a huge Halloween and horror movie fanatic, but also because their tunes are the perfect mix of high energy, punk, and yes, eery appeal. They’re along the lines of rockabilly, if those rockabilly tunes was the backdrop for a zombie surfing party. Their eccentric onstage costumes only help to drive their music to the surreal.
The Burning of Rome has lit their own fire in the local San Diego music scene, and with their recent San Diego Music Award nomination, they’re a must-see on my list. Watch them live if you enjoy music that will blow your mind. They’re often eloquent without being too polished, atmospheric without being too abstract, and they occasionally shred with gritty 70s rock vibes. I can’t help but love this band.
Adding to the rock ‘n roll dance party is Tape Deck Mountain, who have seamlessly mixed grungy guitar riffs with ethereal vocals and melodies, wavering on the gentle one moment, and then breaking into the mystical force of rock in the next. Their tunes are the perfect companions of music lovers, since every note is absolutely thrilling to the ears.
There are other exciting bands on this lineup so get there early and spend your Friday the 13th in style!
For more information on the San Diego Music Thing, including the full lineup and how to buy tickets and passes, check out the official website.
Each day I’m going to discuss a San Diego Music Thing performance that you can’t miss, so that you are — hopefully — ready for this overwhelmingly awesome music festival this weekend. But a week isn’t even enough time to go through everything, because that is how big this fest really is!
Still, I can offer some highlights, so that you can make a very well-informed decision on who you should see first. Actually, just duplicate yourself and see them all. It’s for the best that way!
Starting off…
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San Diego’s indie pop love child, Manuok, is a music project that really showcases just what this music scene can offer. Feel proud to be a So Cal music lover as you sway along to the crooning voice of the brains behind this solo project, multi-instrumentalist Scott Mercado. Legendary, impeccable, mellow and fascinating are just a few spot-on adjectives that come to mind.
Ed Ghost Tucker is the kind of act that immediately pulls you in — with a genre-bending approach to music that is mostly folky-surf tunes with a hint of jazz appeal. Smart and alluring, their music is the perfect backdrop to nearly any venue. When performing live, Ed Ghost Tucker knows how to control their volume and dynamic, adding perspective to music that is already beaming with depth. If you enjoy beachy vibes and the jazzy version of Vampire Weekend, Ed Ghost Tucker will not disappoint you.
Rounding out this trifecta of awesome sauce is Boy King, a rock ‘n roll based group that isn’t afraid to bring a bit of an edge to the party. With guitar riffs like Wolfmother and The Black Keys, and lead singer Megan Liscomb channeling a 70s rock goddess, Boy King is sure to prove they’re royalty among local rock ‘n roll.
For more information on the San Diego Music Thing, including the full lineup and how to purchases tickets and passes, check out the official website.
San Diego based musician Addy G has just released a new hip hop EP, Opiate Soup, and the style and subject matter may remind you of a previously fluent time in rap’s history. His EP is occasionally a nod to 90s hip hop thoroughfare while also offering witty and modern one-liners that reference anything from cartoons to Star Wars. Though a bit unpredictable at times, his style is clear, and it does a good job of leaving a few jaws open after just one listen. Addy G is adding to his musical resume, and with a recent move to Los Angeles, he’s ready to take on even bigger hurdles on his quest to further his music career.
Below, we discussed his influences and what draws him to the often shocking, heavily drug-laden, and quick-witted subject matter of the Opiate Soup EP.
TheIndieSD: When did you start writing?
I’ve been writing for as long as I can remember. I attempted to rap in high school but I ended up getting made fun of because I wasn’t very popular. Some kids played my earliest material at the Homecoming game for the whole school to hear and even though a lot of people thought it was cool those fuckers still did it to make fun of me. After that experience, I decided that I would really take the time to find my niche and style and come back full force with shit that people would find tight and love.
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TISD: Why does hip hop and rap appeal to you? What do you relate to the most about these genres of music?
Hip hop and rap are alluring because you have the ability to create a persona or put forth a personality that, in the real world, may not be practical. It’s almost like living a fantasy and tapping into that feeling is amazing. I love words. I love playing with words. And I play with words in a very specific way; my syntax is unique. One of the main reasons I love hip hop so much is that I get to see what other people do with words and what those words mean to them…it provides perspectives that aren’t normally available. There’s a give and take, like an interaction between the listener and artist, that’s present in hip hop, which is not as prevalent in other genres of music. Lyrics mean different things to different people, and how an individual interprets a given line or song is always interesting to observe.
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TISD: Being a drummer as well, do you prefer drumming or rapping?
Damn that’s a brutal question to which I have no answer. I will say that I view rapping as “drumming with words,” in that each syllable is a note, and that’s one of the reasons I am drawn to rapping.
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TISD: You’re making a big move to LA soon! Will you be taking on a part of the LA music scene?
Hell to the yes. Well, I’ll be attending law school at USC, so however much time I have to spare will be spent pursuing music.
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TISD: How do you balance your music with other obligations?
It’s all about time management and what’s important to you. If you truly love something, you will find a way to make time for it. For me, hip hop is not always a passion I can spend every hour of every day on, but I make sure to keep time allotted to write and record.
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TISD: Do you think image ties into an artist’s importance? What is your opinion of your own image when it comes to your music?
Image is so critical! I feel like I’m still in the early stages of developing my image so I don’t know where I’ll be by the time I drop my full length album.
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TISD: What do you think makes “good” music?
I think the biggest thing is a genuine motivation to do something significant and impact people’s lives. People who do music for pussy, money or fame always end up falling short and it seriously comes through in their music.
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TISD: Do you have a favorite SD venue or favorite performance so far?
The Casbah in San Diego remains to this day my favorite venue to play. I’ve been on stage there 3 times so far, and I absolutely love it.
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TISD: There are a lot of drug references in your music. Do you have experience with drugs? What inspires these themes in your music? Why have you chosen the world of drugs as a central theme for the EP?
I do have experience(s) with drugs. My music is always reminiscent of what’s going on in my life, and for the past two years I’ve been having significant health problems that have required me to be on painkillers. Drugs are fine in moderation, but I think the problem comes when it becomes a lifestyle rather than recreation. Being on pain pills for as long as I have, I have felt the irresistible lure of making them a priority and having that be a part of my lifestyle and it’s really difficult when you’re on them for so long not become addicted [sic]. I think speaking about my experiences and being honest helps me deal with it in a healthy way. My mentality about drugs has always been, “if it comes from the planet, than go for it. If it’s a man made drug, stay the fuck away.” Following that vein, I’m a huge proponent of marijuana. You might see me in public with my eyes red, cheesin’ for no reason.
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TISD: Your bio mentions there are a lot of 90s references in your music. Were you creating a nostalgic EP that reminds listeners of the hip hop of that era? What 90s artists influence your music the most? (Other than the obvious, which can definitely be said is Eminem — agree or disagree?)
Well, when it says “90s references,” it means references in my lyrics to big things in the 90s like Pokemon, Power Rangers or Rugrats – basically my childhood. However, you do bring up a good point about my music being stylistically a throwback. I didn’t set out to create a nostalgic EP, but I feel like in the 90s, hip hop was focused way more on the lyrics and content which is just now starting to make a resurgence today. I think the reason it feels like its from the 90s is because I set out to make music that is intelligent and lyrically focused, and that was the main quality of rap in the 90s.
I take that as a compliment that my music is like old school Eminem. I love his music, especially the Marshall Mathers LP.
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TISD: How would you explain your subject matter and your songs to someone who is listening to it for the first time?
I wouldn’t try to. I would just let them listen to it themselves and make their own evaluation. What I think about my music should not affect what you think of it, and vice versa. Like I mentioned earlier, there is an interaction between listener and artist, and its up to the listener what they take away from my music. I wouldn’t dare sully that relationship by prefacing my music with any sort of explanation.
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TISD: The track Gangster Rough contains a lot of dark imagery, including violence. How much of this is based on your own personal opinions of violence?
Being Indian, I am a huge Gandhi fan. Violence is something that’s not really in my nature, but I definitely have thoughts about acting that way. Rapping about it is a way to deal with those urges in a healthy manner, rather than actually going out and doing something harmful. At the end of the day though, a woman should never be hit by a man. Unless she doesn’t make me a sammich.
By the way, Jamie Rose did an absolutely amazing job on this track. Her voice is so fucking sexy. She is the front woman for a band called SXO, so make sure you check them out.
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TISD: “Drug Abuse” is probably the biggest ode to the 90s on the album, agree or disagree?
Debatable – that song was really influenced by Eminem’s song, “Drug Ballad,” which was on the Marshall Mathers LP, from 2000. I wanted to do a song like that where people could listen to it and be like, “damn this kid is insane.” But I feel like it’s truly infectious and Jimmy did a great job on the hook we wrote. Jimmy’s hook definitely has that 90s feel to it, but I don’t think by any means that “Drug Abuse” is an ode to an entire era of music.
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TISD: At the end of “Drug Abuse”, Patterson sings “And if this world is mine, then I better tell the truth. And if I ever lie, I’m guilty of abuse.” What is the story or the meaning behind that powerful line?
There are a few things happening with that line – first, the literal meaning of the lyrics has to do with the nature of an addict, where lying is prevalent and pervasive. If I’m going to accomplish things in life, I can’t be a drug addict, which means I’ll tell the truth. If I lie, then you know that I’m hiding something. In a more personal sense, this song has a lot to do with my fear of not being successful in life. I’m starting law school this month at USC, and my potential is sky high. The lyrics in the verses have to do with having fun on drugs, and the chorus is a stark contrast to show what the cost of that fun is. The song represents my personal fear of not achieving my potential due to the consumption of drugs. Like I said, I’ve been on painkillers for a long time, and I’m very scared that I will fail in law school because of drugs.
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TISD: What do you want fans to take from your music as a whole?
I want to create music that is absolutely jaw dropping. I want people to laugh and groan and be impressed. I want listeners to be like, “oh FUCK” when I spit a line that hits hard. I want my lyrics to be complex and deep enough to the point where a listener won’t get everything on the first listen. The more they listen to the track, the more they’ll pick up on and the more they’ll get out of it. In my mind, that’s what creates longevity and replayability [sic] in a song. And I think that with these first four tracks, I’ve accomplished that. If someone likes them enough to keep listening, they’ll keep understanding more and more things that they may have missed before. I want my tracks to keep on giving.
The Opiate Soup EP is now available via iTunes and CD Baby. Take a listen to the tracks below or on his Facebook and let us know what you think in the comment section!
Continuing to place its stamp on the SD music scene is Sleeping Giant Music, San Diego’s only licensed music agency, who just launched a premier recording facility following their open house on August 21st. The grand opening featured tours of the state-of-the-art facility and even prizes to win free studio time.
Designed by SGM co-founders, Freddie Hard and Mike Beltran, Auralex Acoustics and Professional Sound and Music, this has been a long standing dream for the music industry veterans.
“We book over 350 shows locally a month and all these artists were working out of their home studios. We realized there was a demand for a recording studio with a professional quality live and control room,” said Mike Beltran.
For more information regarding control room and live room specs, along with studio rates, please visit www.SGMstudio.com.
This week is going to be a very, very busy experience for San Diego locals and tourists alike. One of the best parts of Comic Con week happens outside of the convention center doors, as music venues, bars, and restaurants open their doors to all sorts of characters and fans for music and art events. Many can argue that Comic Con has become warped from what it once started as; however, on the plus side, the convention always sparks a fiery interest in the arts among San Diego’s culturally conscious scenes.
Below are a few events taking place tonight and later this week. So if your week was looking a little boring…consider these events your remedy against monotony. Enjoy!
Rips Entertainment Presents: FILTER: Music and Art Event at The Merrow (formerly The Ruby Room)
Rips Entertainment is featuring Filter, a showcase of art and tunes from some of San Diego’s most intriguing acts this Thursday, and best of all, the event is free in your Comic Con attire or with your Comic Con badge. From the vast musical tastes of Southern Cali DJ act Burn One, to the atmospheric pulse behind AbJo’s style (seriously check out The Art of Refixing below, and tell me it doesn’t make your heart beat a little faster.) — not to mention the art that FILTER events are known for, this is going to be one of the best ways to spend a Thursday night. The entire event will be covered and streamed live on Breakbread.tv (as well as The Griffin event below!) if you can’t be there in person. Oh yeah, I did mention it was free, right?
Rips Entertainment Presents: The Griffin Comic-Con Friday with Animals of Kin, Hills Like Elephants
Comic-Con isn’t the only place crawling with celebrities this week. The Griffin is opening its doors to convention goers with a set list featuring A-list indie acts. SD favorite Hills Like Elephants always brings the indie party and never disappoints. Actors Sarah Roemer, Ryan Donowho, and Tim Jo paired up with bassist Joe, drummer Chad, and Steve Saba to round out Animals of Kin, an indie folk band that calls The Mamas and Papas a musical influence. (And rightly so!) There’s plenty of other amazing acts on this bill — Goodnight Ravenswood & Seawall — plus a little art to make sure you’re culturally well-rounded. My mouth is watering at the indie goodness!
Hotline Comic Con with Miami Horror
It’s an 80s dance party this Friday Downtown, as Hotline Miami hosts its own little video game-themed mini Con, complete with DJ acts and music inspired by and from the indie game of the same title. However this event is not for kids, since it’s a 21+ drinking party with a headlining DJ set by Australia’s Miami Horror. Dancing shoes? Check. Video games? Check. Amazing DJs? Check. Sounds like a Comic Con after party heaven.
Let us know if you’re attending any of these events! Get out there and shake your Con Cons, amigos.
They say word of mouth is an amazing marketing tool. That could be proven true for Little Hurricane, since I knew about this group well before I ever heard a sound. San Diego’s bluesy indie darling has been making waves since 2010, and in that short time they’ve managed to carry out the near impossible: they’ve forged a path for their band that turned Little Hurricane into a large force to be admired.
Some people in the San Diego music scene might say that finding musicians on Craigslist just doesn’t work. Try and tell that to lead singer Anthony Catalano and drummer C.C. Spina. According to their Wikipedia page, that’s exactly how the duo got its humble beginnings, and just by taking a listen to the result, one could argue that it was fate. Fans of The Black Keys, The Dead Weather, and The Lumineers will absolutely adore the edgy, almost angsty approach to blues and folk that Little Hurricane has become synonymous for. Catalano pours his heart out in lyrics and style alike, with a voice that has mastered just the right amount of rasp. Spina is the perfect piece of the puzzle, and her eerily soothing vocals shine in duet style tracks like “Crocodile Tears” and “Give Em Hell”.
Related: Another San Diego star, Social Club
Their 2012 album Homewrecker lives up to its dramatic title, as it has the kind of music that will dilate your pupils and send goosebumps across your skin in the best way possible! Full of energy, intrigue, and even a little seduction, the songs are all unique enough to keep you entertained from beginning to end, yet can be intertwined into one mesmerizing bluesy story. Don’t believe me? I dare you to take the Little Hurricane challenge and listen (if you haven’t already), to see if a storm hasn’t grown inside of you by the last track. “Give Em Hell” is the perfect melodramatic conclusion to the album; the song is ominously uplifting, like the perfect villain’s soundtrack. Spina croons behind Anthony Catalano like the little voice in your ear or the little devil on your shoulder. This final track seems to wrap up the consciousness of the entire album with perfection.
I haven’t seen this band live — yet — but if their fan base is a testament to how amazing they are, then I’d bet money that Little Hurricane delivers when they’re on stage, as well. They’re now on tour, so check them out at the Belly Up this Friday May 31st in San Diego, or at any of their other tour dates.
Also at the Belly Up this Week: Trouble in the Wind
As an added treat, you can download a free mp3 via their website. Check out the video for “Haunted Heart” below.
Yesod Williams dishes on new album, tour with Cypress Hill. Good news boys, girls, Rastafarians, islanders, and party people. If you’ve been anticipating some new music from Pepper, then you may just be in luck this year. Fresh off their tour with Sublime with Rome and the legendary Cypress Hill, the Hawaii natives turned San Diego locals of Pepper are ready for “Pepper 2.0”, as they call it, and they’ve got a lot in store for you.
So if you didn’t get to see them on theirn tour stops in 2012, which included the Chula Vista Cricket Wireless Amphitheater where I met up and spoke with drummer Yesod Williams, then don’t fret! Because odds are your fall music forecast is about to get a little spicy. I can tell you from experience that Williams, bassist Bret Bollinger and vocalist/guitarist Kaleo Wassman never disappoint, and their rowdy live attitude is just as zesty as their band name.
Their southern Cali show got off to a bit of a rocky start as they were waiting nervously for the arrival of their bassist Bret, but lucky for them they were on tour with some of the nicest guys in the business.
“The craziest thing was today, Brett almost didn’t make the show.” Williams told me, when I asked him to divulge in any interesting stories from their tour so far. “Kaleo was teaching Rome [from Sublime with Rome] bass lines so that he could step in.” Which might have confused Pepper and Sublime with Rome fans just a bit, but definitely would have been an interesting story to tell.
Fortunately the mini disaster was diverted, Bollinger arrived minutes before their start time, the guys played a raging set that proved that even the oldest people in the audience could get up on their feet and dance, and I spoke with Yesod Williams backstage after all was sang and done. Williams dished on how the tour with Sublime with Rome and Cypress Hill was going, and he had all glowing reviews.
“I remember when ‘Hits from the Bong’ came out, I sat in my room with the tape and listened to it and stopped it and rewound it and wrote down all the lyrics for it.” Williams practically gushes over extraordinary act Cypress Hill (who, by the way, should be a must see if you haven’t seen them live already!) “And everyone’s so nice. There’s no hierarchies out here.” Williams even explained that “one of the Sublime crew guys is about to give me a tattoo on the back of my calf.” I had to commend all three Pepper members on their amazing hospitality — they really knew how to make a girl feel at home — so it’s easy to believe that the three bands rounded out a big, warm tour-family experience.
Bassist Bret Bollinger got away with being late this time, since the guys are now San Diego natives who also happen to really love this city. “San Diego’s definitely our second home. We started the band of course in Kona [Hawaii] where we’re from, and then we moved over here in ’99 and we didn’t know anything.” Williams said. “It was one of those things where we almost got raised in San Diego, as far as our music career goes.”
And their favorite Mexican food in San Diego? “It’s not open anymore, but there was a place in Oceanside called To’s, and it also kept us alive. When we first moved to California we had no money, but they had these really cheap bean burritos that we would order an extra tortilla with and it would basically feed us for two or three days.”
I was most anxious to get the details on future Pepper releases, especially because it has been nearly four years since the guys had a new release. “Everyone don’t worry!” Said Williams, already beaming with enthusiasm. “I promise to God that Pepper is going to have a new album.” It’s obvious that Williams is ready for some fresh blood, as he lamented, “It drives me crazy! I sometimes wake up at night like ‘God we have no new songs to play.'” — which may have been why the band opted out of playing their mainstream success “Give It Up” during their San Diego performance.
The trio is working with talented and diverse Matt Wallace (whom Williams affectionately called Matt Walrus), a producer who has dabbled in everything from Spin Doctors to Deftones to Faith No More, a real favorite of Pepper. Williams assured me that the album will be out “sooner rather than later”, since Pepper has been taking most of the year to work on this release.
When a band puts that much dedication into a recording, you know it’s going to have the attention to detail that is appreciated and loved by old fans and new fans alike. If you’re already familiar with Pepper, you may remember a really unique 3D tour video release created for the song “Drunk Girl“, on their 2010 EP Stitches — which even came complete with throwback red and blue based 3D glasses. (I still have my 3D Pepper glasses!)
“That was in 2010, we released the EP Stitches, and we went into it with the intention of making a full album. We got in [the studio], and were like….’I think four of these songs are ready, the rest aren’t.'” Now those additional songs are polished, and they are going on the new Pepper release that’s currently “95 to 98% done” according to Williams. “It’s so refreshing to have a new song to play.”
“When the new album comes out, we’re going to be hitting it hard.” Says Williams; but don’t worry, a band like Pepper is not all work and no play. “Making music and having fun is the main thing.” Williams adds, rounding out the idea that a brand new tour with brand new songs — and brand new rowdy experiences — is going to be the highlight of Pepper’s 2013.
The Indie 