Photos by Tito da Costa

Saturday night, I carpooled on down to the Summer Camp event at the Art & Mayhem gallery in Atwater Village (not to be confused with the Little Radio Summer Camp–can you say “theme conflict?”). The “camp” theme this night was universally interpreted as Indian feathers and headbands for the girls (totally hot) and shorts and knee-socks for the guys (kind of gross). And there was some kind of Friday the 13th theme going on too. And kids were doing arts and crafts, and playing games with water balloons and three legged races and shit like that–but I was more into the aural tug-of-war going on between the different acts of the night.
»continue reading Summer Camp at Art & Mayhem Gallery, 6/14/08

Picnic dinners and an arty film at Hollywood Forever Cemetery, rekindling friendships with people who live in apartment buildings with pools, dusting off your terrycloth onesie–and the subsequent horrific realization that playing dodgeball one night a week has not, in fact, diminished the damage inflicted by all those late night bacon wrapped hot dogs–these are all sure signs that summer is here (yay!)

Well if you haven’t in summers past, it’s high time you added Little Radio Summer Camp to that list of reasons why you love summer. I was lucky enough to attend last weekend’s very first Summer Camp of the year, and if the backyard BBQ’s, sunburned shoulders and longing glances out my office window hadn’t already indicated to me that summer is here, LRSC would have done the trick.
»continue reading Little Radio Summer Camp, Saturday June 14

Remember how the Blues Brothers parodied soul music, yet strived to be actually kinda good at at the same time? It was making fun of soul music while still aspiring to be soul?

Dethklok is like that for death metal, but far more perfectly. Whereas Dan Akroyd and John Belushi could never really sing to beat the bands they parodied/idolized (or, in more recent times, Tenacious D never attempted to forge their concept rock prog metal into the true eight-album song cycle it deserved), the touring version of Dethklok plays metal more brutal than lots of “real” head-banging bands, who would never be able to match Dethklok’s deep grizzly growl while simultaneously keeping their serpent tongues cemented into their cheeks.

There had been rumors that the touring version of Dethklok looked more or less like the cartoon version, with a raven-haired stocky lead singer, two skinny Swedish-looking guitarists, a balding red-haired drummer and a bassist with a murdery-face. That sounded unlikely to me—I expected a multi-media animated concoction similar to a Gorillaz concert, perhaps five guys playing behind five screens with a corresponding Dethklok character projected on each.

Instead, the stage show itself was neither a costume party nor a clever stage play, but something perhaps a tad too simple: a group of four average-looking, short-haired guys playing in front of one big screen, upon which they projected cartoon sequences recycled directly from the TV show.
»continue reading Dethklok at the Wiltern, June 6, 2008

Saturday 7 June 2008
Geffen Contemporary
7–9pm: Music set by special guest Henry Rollins

Music and Exhibition Highlight Tours from 7–9pm

Screening of Underground Forces starts at 9pm

FREE for MOCA members or with museum admission

Years before the birth of MTV, artist Joe Rees and his organization Target Video began taping and editing what would become some of the first conceptually and aesthetically driven music videos. In conjunction with the J. Paul Getty Museum’s exhibition California Video, MOCA presents a special outdoor screening of a two–hour Target Video program Underground Forces, featuring rare footage of west coast punk and New Wave bands, their east coast and European counterparts, and a healthy sampling of the artists, musicians, and fans that populated California’s underground scene in the late-1970s and early ‘80s. The show includes Target Video’s creative montages and performances by the Avengers, Bad Brains, Bauhaus, Black Flag, Circle Jerks, The Cramps, Dead Kennedys, Devo, The Dils, Flipper, The Germs, The Gun Club, Johanna Went, the Mutants, Negative Trend, the Plugz, the Ramones, the Screamers, SRL, X, and the Weirdos, among others.
Image courtesy of TargetVideo77

“Feel free to bring your lawn chair or blanket and enjoy an evening of art and film under the stars.”

General museum admission is $10 for adults, $5 for students with I.D. and seniors 65+, and free for MOCA members and children under 12.

HEADS UP AND WARY OF SPAM
Ladytron & Datarock will be DJing at the venerable All Star Lanes in Eagle Rock following their gig this Thursday, the first of a two-night stand at the Fonda for both outfits. No cover; plus, while you enjoy their tasty selections, word has it bowling and drinks will be free. Which drinks are free? We don’t know. Sparks is an educated guess.

As mentioned there’s no cover for the party, but you’ll need to RSVP with your name and email address here to get on the list. Warning: Checking those little boxes = Toyota will spam you and probably call you, if you are foolish enough to submit your phone number(s).

SEE ALSO
» Coachella 2008 Friday: Battles, Vampire Weekend, The Black Lips and Datarock
» Ladytron Returns With Velocifero
» Ladytron @ UCLA, 11/2/06
» Datarock @ Troubadour, 6/13/07

Mysterious, sporadic, categorically unreliable as a weekend guide - not unlike your cat in that aspect - the Losanjealous Benevolent Society compiles strange happenings and fun events in LA; the more bizarre, the better. If you’re organizing or know of an event you think belongs on the list, send the info to tips@losanjealous.com.

Today’s installment gets one entry and one entry only. No plans Saturday? Please for the love of God somebody go do this and blog it for us. It could be great. It could also be terrible. We are counting on you to tell us which.

SATURDAY

Midnight Madness Scavenger Hunt (Sans Michael J Fox) @ Hollywood & Highland

A high-tech, scavenger-hunt-esque game around the Hollywood neighborhood followed by a screening of the 1980 Disney cult-classic “Midnight Madness.” The game is going to have players navigating the area using a mobile device that feeds them missions, asking them to find clues, solve puzzles, interact with secret agents, and create funny pictures and videos. The photos and videos will be screened at the Egyptian with the audience voting on the best ones, followed by the screening of Midnight Madness, and then a Q&A with the film’s co-director, David Wechter.

What: A high-tech, real-life adventure game in and around Hollywood & Highland
When: Sat 10 May. Meet at 3 PM for registration. Game is 3:45-5:45, awards ceremony at 7:30, movie at 8.
Where: The Egyptian Theatre; 6712 Hollywood Boulevard

Tickets are $32 General Admission; $30 Student/Senior and $28 Cinematheque Members. Film only tickets are also available; however, anybody opting to watch the film without going on the scavenger hunt will no longer be allowed to read Losanjealous.

Buy yo’ tickets here.

AND A SUBTLE REMINDER
My Bloody Valentine tickets go on sale Saturday morning. Godspeed.

The full-on downpour during Stevie Wonder’s headlining slot…the morning thunderstorm that kept us waiting for hours inside a dark house in the ninth ward…the musicians you’ve never heard of that unfailingly blow your mind…the food, the ridiculous overconsumption of that food you just can’t quite replicate anywhere else…truly, the weekend was full of all of the reasons that have kept me returning to New Orleans for its annual Jazz & Heritage Festival the last thirteen years in a row. I haven’t stopped since my first taste; they must be doing something right. Rough timeline goes a little like this:

»continue reading New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival 2008 Three-Day Photo Mix: The New Orleans Jazz Vipers, Aaron Neville’s Gospel Soul, The Roots, John Mooney & Bluesiana, Bobby McFerrin & Chick Corea, The John Hammond Quartet, A Tribute to Max Roach feat. Jason Marsalis, Chubby Carrier & The Bayou Swamp Band, Snooks Eaglin, The Neville Brothers & More…

Meanwhile, Back in L.A….

While everyone in the free world was at Coachella this weekend, I stayed in L.A. and enjoyed the fabulous weather (HOT! It was really hot here, people). Some friends and I decided to cool down on Saturday by stopping by one of the Fluids: A Happening by Allan Kaprow gigantic ice igloo art installations at the Rios Clementi Hale Studios on Larchmont. Given the fact that it was 122 degrees, hanging out with some gigantic ice blocks sounded pretty great.
»continue reading Fluids: A Happening by Allan Kaprow

Anybody make it out to Amoeba last night to catch Flight of the Conchords? Come the 6pm hour I was deep in thought, hunched over the Coachooser in the Sandalwood Conference Room at the Marina Del Rey Courtyard Marriott with a team of analysts determining the precise location and time of their unannounced appearance at the fest this weekend.

We’ve got midnight reports from Metblogs and LA Weekly Style Council. Looks packed. Who else turned out…and how was it?
 
 

How would you respond to this question:

“There is a grilled cheese tournament this weekend. Any interest in covering/judging it?”

If your response would make you sound like something of a lunatic, I think we’d be good friends. It was in the name of journalism (and a deep love of butter, bread, and mostly, cheese) that I attended the “The 1st 6th Annual National Grilled Cheese Invitational” last Saturday, April 19th. It was located in Griffith Park, and after getting lost in the park for 20 minutes (the promised signs directing attendees to the exact spot were nonexistent), a run-in with what would be the first of many eccentric grilled cheese competitors, and almost getting into a brawl with another car-load of equally hungry attendees over a coveted parking spot (my switchblade comb scared them off, and we were victorious), we made it to the Crystal Springs Picnic Grove just as the sun was starting to show its pretty face.

Q. Why is this grilled cheese chef different from all other grilled cheese chefs?
A. Because he took two vans, cut them in half, and then welded them together to make one giant van…awesome
»continue reading Losanjealous Visits The 1st 6th Annual Grilled Cheese Invitational

Back-to-back RSVP-mandatory alcohol-suffused parties you may want to be aware of at this time:

Tuesday Apr 22

Boosted presents Claw Money’s Case Collection Release Afterparty (!?!?)
featuring special guest Santogold
Devlin & Darko, Roxy Cottontail, DJ Pube$
at the Bordello Bar; 9pm - 2am, 21+
Complimentary drinks from Skyy Vodka
You must RSVP for entry! RSVP to rsvp@swindlemagazine.com by april 21 (that’s today).

Wednesday Apr 23

FADER 53 Issue Release Party
feat. Abe Vigoda, DJs Cali Dewitt & Jenna (Mika Miko)
1269 East 6th Street (Warehouse between Alameda & Mateo)
Free Bass Ale; 9PM
RSVP HERE

Via Bumbershoot.org comes an early lineup announcement for the 38th annual Space-Needle- Key-Arena- Experience-Music-Project- inclusive event up in Seattle over Labor Day weekend. For the uninitiated, the festival is not so much an exercise in stagehopping as it is checking out the activities between the stages while thoroughly enjoying the last truly great bit of weather afforded the city before nine months of rain set in. On to the lineup:

Beck, Stone Temple Pilots, Lucinda Williams, Neko Case, Ingrid Michaelson, Del Tha Funkee Homosapien, Jakob Dylan, !!!, Lee “Scratch” Perry, Saul Williams, Joe Bonamassa, M. Ward, The Walkmen, Asylum St. Spankers, Dan Deacon, MIDIval PunditZ, Blitzen Trapper, Bedouin Soundclash, Tim Finn, Dale Watson, John Vanderslice, Final Fantasy, The Fall of Troy, Orgone, Forro in the Dark, Ryan Bingham, Wreckless Eric & Amy Rigby, Arthur & Yu, Darondo and Nino Moschella, Pacifika…

»continue reading Bumbershoot 2008 Early Lineup Revealed; Tickets On Sale Now

Mysterious, sporadic, occasionally ludicrous - not unlike your eighth grade Wednesday hot lunch - the Losanjealous Benevolent Society compiles strange happenings and fun events in LA; the more bizarre, the better. If you’re organizing or know of an event you think belongs on the list, send the info to tips@losanjealous.com.

N/B: Hooray! Today’s edition hits the stands a day early thanks to the overabundance of foolish/interesting things taking place tonight.

THURSDAY

Ajay Kapur: Robotics + Tabla/Sitar @ Machine Project
A robot will play the tablas. Machine Project; free, 5-7pm. This event epitomizes the ideal Benevolent Society event if ever there were one. Sully forth to Echo Park, post-haste.

Glen Wexler Fantastic Voyage opening @ Arclight
This is not a movie. This is a surreal photo exhibit somehow tied to Eric Idle. Mayhap you try to sneak into a free movie afterward. Arclight; 7-9pm (RSVP may be required - see website)

»continue reading Losanjealous Benevolent Society Events, April 3: Your Weekend To-Do List

Mysterious, sporadic, occasionally inappropriate - not unlike your grandfather - the Losanjealous Benevolent Society compiles strange happenings and fun events in LA; the more bizarre, the better. If you’re organizing or know of an event you think belongs on the list, send the info to tips@losanjealous.com.

FRIDAY

American Zombie Premiere @ Laemmle Sunset 5
Since when did you turn down a zombie movie on the big screen? $6 coupon for the opening weekend here. Showtimes: 12:30, 2:50, 5:10, 7:30 & 10:00. Q&A schedule: Friday (3/28) and Saturday (3/29) after the 7:30PM show.

SATURDAY

Santa Monica Airport Art Walk
Free; 1:00 – 5:00pm. Browse the art, look at planes, possibly look at art depicting planes. The Ruskin Group Theater will perform highlights from its popular trademark monthly offering at 2 p.m., 3 p.m. and 4 p.m.; admission to the theatre is equally free. Send Hamp Simmons up to heaven in style this year. Won’t you? @ Santa Monica Airport (Directions)

»continue reading Weekend To-Do List

Mysterious, sporadic, occasionally cryptic - not unlike your neighbor’s cat - the Losanjealous Benevolent Society compiles strange happenings and fun events in LA; the more bizarre, the better. If you’re organizing or know of an event you think belongs on the list, send the info to tips@losanjealous.com.

SATURDAY

Beer, Bloggers & Cupcakes @ Farmer’s Market
Join the Metblogs crew and POWNCE at high noon for free food and drink (while it lasts); stick around to talk shop.

Ambient Music + Total Darkness @ Betalevel
The audio portion of this 47 minute performance will be documented for the Akashic Recordings (durations/dedications) series. The visual portion of this performance will not be documented. Because it will be Dark! There would be no point!! … Seating at 8:30. Darkness promptly at 9. If you arrive after the commencement of Darkness, please be aware that you will be confronted… with Darkness!!

SUNDAY (Easter Evening)

Vosotros CD Release Party @ FOUND
Vosotros is a music project/label spawned by Gabe Noel and John Gillilan. For the past year they’ve assembled friends & bands, once a month, into a Little Tokyo venue for a project dubbed “The Lazy Susan”, the idea being that if you bring three or four disparate artists into one venue for one night, you get a sort of Lazy Susan effect. Got it? Got it. Sunday’s listening party features a CD based on Gabe’s own monthly collaborations. The project is thoughtfully packaged in biodegradable material and rests easy on your ears while still challenging them. (Read: KPFK ready.) Sunday, 1903 Hyperion Ave in the ‘Lake; 7pm.

8:30am. Sandalwood Conference Room, Marina Del Rey Courtyard Marriott. DF and LaVerne Casagrande sit across a lacquered hardwood table in the midst of a heated tete-a-tete. Let’s listen in!

“Okay, LaVerne, if no one is trying to kill me, then what do you make of this letter I got yesterday?”

“DF, this is a coupon book offering ‘Killer discounts’ on geriatric toilietries. It’s not even addressed to you.”

“Wrong again, LaVerne. ‘Valued Customer’ is one of my many pseudonyms. Anyway, check out this mysterious note someone put under my door.”

“Hm… ‘OMG, DF! I M going 2 kil U!!! BRB!’ OK, so some fourteen year old is trying to freak you out. I still don’t understand why this means you can’t cover the Derby Dolls this weekend.”

“My God, LaVerne! March fifteenth? Caesar and Brutus? The Ides of March? Do I have to draw you a goddamned diagram?”

“Actually, that might be nice.”

DF draws diagram. The diagram features a snowman in an adorable top hat machine-gunning Osama bin Laden. After several spirited “U-S-A!” chants, DF and LaVerne resume their conversazione.

“Look, DF, I know you want to lay low this Saturday night to avoid assassination attempts, but death risk is part of working for the cultural monolith that is Losanjealous. You’re going to cover the Derby Dolls this weekend, and that’s final.”

Will the Ides of March spell doom for DF at the Doll Factory this weekend? There’s only one way to find out: hie ye hence to the Derby Dolls bout this Saturday eve (advance tix available here). Who knows, maybe the bloodthirsty assassin will be you!

Photo (C) 2008 by 3dsean. Do not use without owner’s permission.