»continue reading The Mars Volta at Echoplex on December 30, 2007

With 145,067 votes at the time of closing, “BEST CONCERT 2007″ was clearly the discerning Losanjealous reader’s poll of choice, no matter the results of the “best reader’s poll” poll. (Translation: I do not trust a single one of you, but I do admire your tenacity.)

If you followed last week’s Muse vs Daft Punk war whatsoever, you may already have a bit of an idea as to how this was bound to turn out. Loanjealous readers choose the 10 best concert of 2007after the jump.

What was your Favorite Concert of 2007? . . .
»continue reading Reader Picks 2007: Unofficial Tally From 2007’s Most Popular Poll

Here in the kingdom of Southern Californialand we don’t have a king, but we do have a queen – the Rose Queen. Her reign is brief – just a year. The Queen and her court work their way up through the charm schools and debutant balls of the San Gabriel Valley. The highest call of duty for the bevy of beauties is waving very properly to their subjects and cradling a super-sized bouquet of red roses like a baby while being strapped on a flower covered barge vehicle riding toward the morning sun of the first day of the New Year. Palm trees and crystal clear blue sky provide the picture perfect backdrop.

Without a doubt the Rose Parade is the grandest and most detailed parade on the planet. It’s run with military precision by an army of men and woman dressed in red blazers over white shirts, pants and shoes. It’s oh-so civilized. The prized show horses, champion marching bands and, most importantly, the giant, rolling flower petal art procession have been a New Years Day tradition on Colorado Boulevard since 1890. If this is not American I don’t know what is!

If you’ve never been to the parade in person WHAT are you waiting for? It’s waaaaaaaaaaaaay more dazzling and fragrant in person and a zillion times better than it is on TV. You don’t have to get there the night before to get a great spot. The trick is to get a spot at the end of the route – Colorado and Sierra Madre. Get there about 8:30AM.

DIRECTIONS: From LA take the San Bernardino Fwy (10) exit at Atlantic Blvd. Go north to Huntington Drive, turn right, then left on Sierra Madre Blvd. PARK YOUR CAR just east of Sierra Madre Blvd, on a residential side street, four or five blocks South of Colorado Blvd. Then observe the legendary spectacle somewhere near the corner of Sierra Madre and Colorado Blvd, which is near the end of the parade route.

Afterwards you’ll be starving of course. For me and the gang it’s usually a hearty-heavy-fatty lunch at the North Woods Inn, nearby at the corner of Rosemead and Huntington Drive (7247 Rosemead Blvd, San Gabriel, 626-286-8284). Please don’t forget to marvel at the fake snow on the roof.

Here’s to the Rose Parade and a Happy New year to YOU!!!

Visit Charles’ site or join his Slide of the Week Mailing List.

PICK OF THE WEEK

THE
MARS VOLTA
Saturday 12/29
Echoplex
[INFO]

SATURDAY
Mars Volta @ Echoplex
Young Dubliners @ The Roxy

SUNDAY
Melvins @ Echoplex
Nikka Costa @ The Roxy

The official L.A. County Daft Punk Pyramid of Christmas Lights Award may be handed to a Valencia resident this year; watch in awe while the soundtrack attempts to channel the finest moments of your Super Mario career. Turn the speakers up as loud as possible. (And speaking of Daft Punk, you have a mere three days left to cast your votes in our various 2007 reader polls. Bragging rights for the entire 2008 calendar year are at stake among other things.)

Hat tip to coffee drinker Sean for the pointer. Need to escape the family and experience the light show in person while it lasts? Email for directions.

Fred Armisen brings Jens Hannemann and his “Complicated Drumming Technique” to town. Check out the trailer. The DVD is pretty damn funny and, at 30 minutes, just the right length for the character sketch. The titles of the fusion jams alone–”Molecular Jungle,” “Fluid Engine,” “Polynesian Nightmare”–make the gag.

Fred Armisen as Jens Hanneman @ Troubadour Mon 1/28

We come now to the poll of polls; a curiously introspective inanimate object with an inherent artistic twist M.C. Escher himself would have no choice but to admire. Blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. Let’s have your damn vote and put this nonsense to bed. Vote once now, twice after dinner, three times during the night, once after you get up tomorrow morning, once after you go to the bathroom but before you have your coffee tomorrow morning, forty times Saturday and one more time Sunday – and then you’re done. Vote goddammit.

UPDATE, 12/31: Polls closed; results now online.

Thank you for being a part of Losanjealous Reader Picks, soon a perennial classic on bookshelves nationwide.

What a long, yet informative, journey of voting this has been for all involved (and will continue to be in the foreseeable future). Drumroll, please…

At this time we have come to the best album of 2007. Your only stipulation here is that the posted submissions must have been released in 2007. NB: “Releases” include digital releases and home pressings – the key here is to find your favorite music that was distributed in some fashion beginning in 2007. And much as we hate to be heavies, this list will be monitored and releases prior to 2007 as well as blatant self-promotion entries will be removed before we publish the results.

So then. Let’s have it.

UPDATE, 12/31: Polls closed; results now online.

Full voting instructions, should you need them, fall after the jump.
»continue reading Reader Picks ‘07: Your Favorite Album

Here it comes: Live venues. Who’s doing things right? Feel free to justify your vote in the comment section and don’t be afraid to take each venue to task in regards to sound quality, schedule, acts booked, service, security, parking, and drink prices (natch). We send you a list of venues every week and give away innumerable tickets to local shows throughout the year. So? Who’s doing things right out there?

I’ve undoubtedly left off several from the list, so please do add valid venues, provided they merit a vote.

UPDATE, 12/31: Polls closed; results now online.

»continue reading Reader Picks ‘07: Your Favorite Venue

One of the greatest things about living in Los Angeles is the absolute ability to get the fuck out of Los Angeles and into something entirely different at the drop of a hat, when necessary. With that in mind, we’d like to know what your favorite day trip or weekend excursion was in 2007. Wine tasting along the Central Coast? Snorkelling in La Jolla? Hot Air Balloon hi-jinx and futile gambling in Temecula? Lay it on us. On a personal note, one of my favorite excursions was at a very secluded location in Big Bear in the autumn, as compared to winter. Solid gold.

UPDATE, 12/31: Polls closed; results now online.
»continue reading Reader Picks ‘07: Your Favorite Getaway

Boozers take heed; this one is sort of important. It’s cocktail time. We would like to know the name of your favorite drink in town. This must be a drink you can purchase in a bar, restaurant or club, so we’ll need to know both the name of the drink, the name of the establishment and, if applicable, the name of the bartender.

NB Live Music Lovers: Best Venue will come separately; refer to our previous research for both polls if applicable.

UPDATE, 12/31: Polls closed; results now online.
»continue reading Reader Picks ‘07: Your Favorite Cocktail

The healing power of human hands is not to be underestimated. Think back now on all those afternoons…there you were, naked to the world under a thin sateen sheet…scent of patchouli in the air…The Wave doling out some mindless Dave Koz fluff from a small yet curiously tasteful boombox…tulips in a white vase on a small stand near the wall…meaty slabs of flesh and ten digits slowly working sinewy tissues you had no idea your body contained…

UPDATE, 1/08: Polls closed; results now online.
»continue reading Reader Picks ‘07: Your Favorite Massage

Blah blah blah, readers this, readers that, not us not you but we, clever turn of phrase, witty aphorism, get out the vote. Who had the best cup of coffee in Los Angeles during calendar year 2007? Vote below! Confused? We asked this verysame question not long ago; refer to this page for inspiration.

UPDATE, 1/08: Polls closed; results now online.
»continue reading Reader Picks ‘07: Your Favorite Cup of Coffee

It’s going to be a long day, any way you slice it. We have an inordinate number of reader polls to shove your direction. But first, a bit of additional information regarding these polls you’ve all been an integral part of…

How long will the polls stay open?
All polls will be open through December 28. We will compile the results through the weekend with the assistance of Mailbot 6000, and post the official results at the end of the year – most likely, on December 31.

Who’s Mailbot 6000?
A more pressing question might be how you apparently managed to ask a question about the FAQ inside the FAQ itself. That said, Mailbot 6000 is a good-for-nothing, lying, rusty, lieabout junked-up piece of garbage, but he does work for us. Look at him over there now, pecking at the keyboard with his shitty little claws. If you’ve ever received a concert calendar from Losanjealous in your inbox, Mailbot 6000 played a part in the delivery.

Why is Muse listed in the best concert poll 45 times?
Muse fans across the globe are championing their cause in that particular poll, and power to them. The “Muse vs Daft Punk” faceoff is escalating to a serious boil at present.

Ok. But why is Muse at (blank) listed individually four times by itself?
Duplicate selections will be compiled into single entries when all of the polls close. For now, vote for your favorite duplicate (or vote for all of them).

Will there be a poll for best commenter? Best article? Best rock photo essay? Best press release? Why haven’t you included a poll for best (blank)?
If you have a suggestion, mail it to wassup@losanjealous.com today for evaluation. Beyond that you’ll have to wait and see. Get out the vote!

Directly beneath the clock tower in the town square of San Miguel de Cozumel, Mexico sits a large, hollow, artificial Christmas tree. Inside this tree, a pint-sized Santa Claus kindly requests that you do not destroy him. More holiday photos from south of the border TK, assuming I ever stop polling you about bathrooms and tacos.

The bathroom break. A daily necessity we are oft ashamed to reference in mixed company. Regardless, like a taco, a concert, a festival, a great breakfast and a perfect parking spot some are below average, some are average, some are good, and a select few transcend the lot to achieve the coveted status of great. What was your favorite bathroom during calendar year 2007?

UPDATE, 1/02/08: Polls closed; results now online.
»continue reading Reader Picks ‘07: Your Favorite Bathroom

We’ve a wealth of material to get through before year’s end, to be sure. Thus far we’ve asked for your take on the best individual concert, festival, breakfast and parking spot, and you have responded accordingly. While those polls remain open and incredibly active, at this time we’d like to find out what you consider your favorite taco in Los Angeles. Feel free to go granular and categorize by type as well as purveyor, i.e. “asada @ estrella – HP location #3 – but not that damn pastor” … Multiple votes are allowed so vote now, twice more this afternoon, and two dozen times after this evening’s tacos.

UPDATE, 1/02/08: Polls closed; results now online.
»continue reading Reader Picks ‘07: Your Favorite Taco

Ok people, we’ve got a lot of ground to cover today so let’s jump right into it. It matters not that Muse at The Forum is currently beating Daft Punk in the favorite individual concert poll by a vote of 11361 to 9019 at press time; we’re here to discuss public parking. According to my neighbors, the spot just west of my driveway which illegally blocks a foot or more of the drive is the greatest spot in the city, bar none. But is it truly the best? Metaphysical concept, some would argue. What makes a spot “great”? Location… price… availability… view… choose your own intangible criteria and vote, now.

UPDATE, 1/02/08: Polls closed; results now online.
»continue reading Reader Picks ‘07: Your Favorite Parking Spot

We get a lot of mail here at the Sandalwood Conference room in the Marina Del Rey Courtyard Marriott, but rarely review albums on site. The good folks at Capitol/EMI sent a Christmas sampler package our way some weeks ago. Let us now inspect and dissect the sampler package, disc by disc.

1) Merle Haggard, Hag’s Christmas (Reissue) Holy Jesus, this one is a keeper and I am not being sarcastic. Hags is downright irresistable, a real soft-on-the-inside tough guy singing spot-on stereotypically perfect titles such as “Grandma’s Homemade Christmas Card,” “Bobby Wants A Puppy Dog For Christmas” “Santa Claus and Popcorn” and the standout of the lot, “Daddy Won’t Be Home Again For Christmas” – a nice ditty about a father sending checks to his kids, presumably from jail someplace (Hags was no stranger). Recommended. Buy it here.

2) Christmas with the Chipmunks (Reissue) Who knew you could squeeze 24 additional unlistenable chipmunk holiday songs onto the same cd as the one chipmunk song you’ve actually heard? Be on the lookout for guest appearances from Rankin-Bass Rudolph, Dave Seville and Christ would you please turn that shit off now. Buy it here.
»continue reading Christmas Joy from EMI

For those of you keeping score, the seemingly impossible has happened this morning: Daft Punk has overtaken both the Foo Fighters and Muse as the best individual concert of 2007, according to the Losanjealous community at large. The score, at press time, is as follows:

DAFT PUNK @ SPORTS ARENA: 3476 (25% of all votes)
MUSE @ FORUM: 3218 (23% of all votes)
FOO FIGHTERS @ FONDA: 2908 (21% of all votes)

Kudos to the Daft fans out there for keeping the fire burning. Let that be a lesson to all of you: Vote often. Vote now, again after lunch, twice after dinner, once before bedtime, eight times while sleeping, three times before coffee tomorrow. Vote! VOTE!!!

Daft @ Vegoose by Valerie Enriquez