The Morning Benders – ‘All Day Day Light’ (Video)
The Morning Benders just released the handclap-heavy video for “All Day Day Light,” the latest single from their well-received album, Big Echo. As directed by Jack Ferry, the clip’s concept is simple yet elegant, showing the band playing as the seasons rapidly change around them. Given The Morning Benders’ whirlwind year, that intense passage of time is surely something they can relate to.
As 2010 barrels to a close, the band is showing no signs of letting up. They’ve got a slew of tour dates on their schedule, including a stop at the Belly Up on October 13th. The full list of dates can be found below. Continue reading…
California Boys
When you think of Southern California, it’s hard not to think of The Beach Boys. Since 1961, the legendary band has provided the official soundtrack to our fair state’s unique combination of girls, surfing, and sunshine. It’s only fitting, then, that the harmonious musicians are set to stop in San Diego on Friday, September 10. Continue reading…
Live Review – Meat Loaf at Humphreys, August 18, 2010
Photo credit: Jim Grant
It’s kind of a wonder that Meat Loaf is still performing at all. When your stage name is a direct reference to your morbid obesity, career longevity is hardly a given. But there he was at Humphrys on Wednesday, the legendary performer whose 1977 album, Bat Out of Hell, is still the fifth best-selling album of all time. And, though still a far cry from skinny, the guy actually looked pretty fit.
His voice, on the other hand, showed more signs of aging. The set began strongly, thanks to a high-powered rendition of “Hot Patootie – Bless My Soul” from Rocky Horror Picture Show. Meat Loaf also nailed “Bat Out of Hell,” a sprawling, ten-minute song that pushed his stamina to its limit. Meat Loaf complained that the song isn’t an easy one to perform when you’re sixty-two — or sexty-two, as he kept insisting — and the exertion would take its toll on his voice for the remainder of the set. Continue reading…
Poetic Memory: The LeBarons (List)
If you’re looking for a new band to fall in love with this year, you’d be hard pressed to find a better one than The LeBarons.
The two-piece just released its debut album, Sounds From The Parallel Present, as a name-your-price download on its website. No matter what you choose to pay, the album is a steal. From the evocative opening track, “Black Adam,” onward, Parallel Present draws you into a world of rich melodies and finely-tuned compositions. The songwriting is built upon a foundation of classic rock greats like David Bowie and Led Zeppelin, but the end result feels fresh and timeless.
The Los Angeles duo plans on touring Southern California in the fall. In the meantime, you can read band members Nathan Berqvist and Daniel J Frankeberger’s Poetic Memory below. Continue reading…
Live Review – The Swell Season at House of Blues, August 17, 2010
It’s hard not to love The Swell Season. Since winning the hearts of audiences — and an Oscar — with the 2006 film Once, Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova have maintained that adoration through rigorous touring, refreshing humility, and the recent release of their second album, Strict Joy.
Before The Swell Season took the stage at House of Blues on Tuesday, singer/guitarist Ryan Bingham opened up with some astonishingly derivative blues and folk. His raspy voice dripped with affectation as he rambled on about times changing and winds blowing like some copy of a copy of a copy of Bob Dylan. Continue reading…
Crank Up the Hot Hot Heat
This summer has been an unseasonably cool one for San Diego, but the mercury is finally about to rise. On Saturday, August 21, the chilliness will come to an abrupt halt when the Belly Up cranks up some Hot Hot Heat. Wordplay!
Hot Hot Heat are the Canadian party-pop band responsible for 2002′s Make Up the Breakdown and its marble-mouthed hit single, “Bandages.” Along with other popular bands of the era like The Strokes and The Vines, Hot Hot Heat were welcomed as rock saviors, come to make the airwaves safe for good music and rescue us from boy-band tyranny. Their intentions were noble, but you need only turn your radio dial to whichever Justin Bieber songs are playing right now to see that it didn’t work. Continue reading…
Sufjan Stevens Releases Surprise EP Today
The once-prolific Sufjan Stevens released a brand new EP, entitled All Delighted People, for download today. A CD and vinyl release of the EP is planned for later this year. Here’s the scoop:
All Delighted People is built around two different versions of Sufjan’s long-form epic ballad “All Delighted People,” a dramatic homage to the Apocalypse, existential ennui, and Paul Simon’s “Sounds of Silence.” The EP includes two versions of “All Delighted People,” which Sufjan debuted on his 2009 tour. Along with six other new songs, the collection is his first original song-oriented material since 2006.
The EP is Stevens’ most coherent work in years, and a return to the (somewhat) more conventional songwriting of his Illinois and Michigan albums. Its eight tracks are brimming with the naked emotion and orchestral swells that make him one of music’s most fascinating songwriters.
So what are you waiting for? Buy it or stream it here.
Poetic Memory: Jail Weddings (List)
Photo credit: Sarah Morrison Photography
Jail Weddings‘ 2009 EP, Inconvenient Dreams, has spent the last few months in constant rotation at the Owl and Bear offices, waiting defiantly for a new record to oust it from its spot at the top of our playlist. Picking up where Phil Spector and his wall of sound left off, Jail Weddings fuse doo wop, rockabilly, and soul into catchy, theatrical pop. It’s a disarming and seductive combination, which is why their EP has been getting such frequent play.
But now, at long last, an album has toppled Inconvenient Dreams from its throne, and wouldn’t you know — it’s another Jail Weddings record.
Set for release on October 12, Love Is Lawless is the Los Angeles band’s debut full-length, and it contains all the ballroom waltzes and barroom brawls we’ve come to expect. From the sublime “I Thought You Were Someone I Knew” to the cathartic “Somebody Lonely,” Love Is Lawless is not only a passionate tour de force, but a rollicking good time.
Lead singer Gabriel Hart was kind of enough to share his top influences with us (in no particular order). We’ve done a lot of Poetic Memory features here at Owl and Bear, but this has to be one of the most fascinating and revealing ones to date. Check it out, along with the video for “I Thought You Were Someone I Knew,” below. Continue reading…
The Pinkerton Effect
Photo credit: Jeffrey Mayer
Weezer‘s enduring popularity can be a sore spot for the band’s early fans.
Following the success of its first two albums, the band took a three-year hiatus in the late nineties before finally returning to the spotlight. That period is more than just an empty space on Weezer’s resume — it serves as the wedge between the band’s two distinct groups of devotees.
On one side, there are those who were weened on the classic Blue Album and the almighty Pinkerton, and who view the band’s last five albums as, at best, a goofy waste of time, or, at worst, a pillaging of their youth and cynical cash-grab on the same insidious par as the Star Wars prequels. Continue reading…
Meat Loaf Pride
Meat Loaf played at the first concert I ever went to.
That little fact isn’t something I typically share with people. and certainly not on a first date. It’s not that I regret going — the concert was a blast, and certainly the best one I’d ever seen at that point. No, it’s not regret that drives me to secrecy, it’s that — despite the flamboyant singer’s penchant for flying motorcycles and leopard-print vests — people for some reason don’t think Meat Loaf is cool. Continue reading…
Poetic Memory: Adam Haworth Stephens (List)
If you’ve heard Two Gallants, then you know how Adam Haworth Stephens‘ voice can stick with you. The singer/songwriter’s distinctive delivery and poetic lyrics have helped make the San Francisco duo one of indie rock’s most compelling acts, and now he’s venturing off on his own.
Stephens’ solo debut, We Live on Cliffs, is set for a September release on Saddle Creek. You can download the album’s first single, “The Cities That You’ve Burned” (MP3), from his website.
To celebrate the impending arrival of We Live on Cliffs, Stephens is taking his pop-inspired alt-folk on the road. And because no self-respecting tour is complete without a stop in America’s Finest City™, he’ll be headlining at the Casbah on Sunday, August 15th. Proving that two great acts are always better than one, San Diego’s favorite songbird, the always-charming Miss Erika Davies, will be opening.
Two Gallants may be on hiatus, but Stephen’s gallantry is still going strong — the scruffy musician was kind enough to share some of his influences with us. You can read his Poetic Memory, along with the rest of his tour dates, below. Continue reading…
The Soft Pack Make a Name for Themselves
It wouldn’t be summer in San Diego without the Del Mar Summer Concert Series. Every year, the renowned Del Mar Thoroughbred Club sets its sights on music lovers, lining up local and national bands for a summer-long, weekly series of concert events. Past years have featured memorable performances by bands like Violent Femmes and Devo, and this year’s run is already off to a fine start, thanks to an exciting set by local favorites Pinback.
Now, another San Diego group is set to blow the crowd away. On Friday, August 13, local buzz band The Soft Pack will wow fans and degenerate gamblers alike with their fast and furious punk rock. Continue reading…
Florence and the Machine – ‘Dog Days Are Over’ (Video)
Florence Welch isn’t shy. The lead singer of Florence and the Machine has a powerful set of pipes, and she uses it to belt out notes with abandon. As a child, Welch was frequently reprimanded in school for impromptu singing, and got her break by serenading Mairead Nash of British DJ duo Queens of Noize during a chance bathroom encounter. Welch’s outgoing personality is also evident in her lyrics — her band’s first hit was “Kiss With a Fist,” a stunning ode to passion and violence.
Florence and the Machine’s video for “Dog Days Are Over” is currently nominated for Best Rock Video and Video of the Year at the MTV Video Music Awards. Both honors will be decided by fans, so you can help the band win by voting here and here. With its Eastern imagery and soulful vocals, the video is a great demonstration of Welch’s quirky charm and tenacious talent.
After you vote, head on over to the band’s Facebook page for a free download of “Cosmic Love (Short Club Remix).” And, if you feel like “liking” the page while you’re there, don’t be shy.
Some Guy Named Ringo Starr Coming to San Diego
Back in the 1960s, a little-known band named the Beatles enjoyed a brief moment of moderate fame. Comprised of four young men from Liverpool — a town in England, apparently — the band was most notable for having influenced the much more memorable rock group The Monkees. Continue reading…
Contest: Win The Moviegoers’ New 7-inch
Inventions like the iPod and Pandora can reduce music to a blurry background din, yet no matter how jaded we become, certain songs can still pierce the fog.
“Avalanche,” by San Diego’s The Moviegoers, is one of those songs. From its moving spoken-word verse, to its soaring chorus — which features lush harmonies by band members Richard Hunter-Rivera and Jessica Monday — the track is a stirring triumph, and one of the best songs to come out of San Diego in recent years.
“Avalanche” was originally featured on the band’s out-of-print Be A Man EP, but it’s been re-recorded for inclusion on the their new 7-inch, which will be released on August 12th. And as good as “Avalanche” is, it’s only the record’s B-side; imagine how great the A-side, “Big High School,” must be.
The 7-inch was recorded by local knob twister-extraordinaire Keith Milgaten, of Jamuel Saxon/Black Mamba/The Vision of a Dying World fame. Mangoose, the label partially run by Hunter-Rivera, will release the record. The band will celebrate the fruits of their labor with a release party on September 4th at the Tin Can Ale House, but if you can’t wait until then to hear the songs, don’t despair: we generous folks at Owl and Bear are giving away a free copy.
For your chance to win The Moviegoers’ new 7-inch, send an email to contest@owlandbear.com with your name and mailing address. The winner will be selected at random on August 30.
Contest haters and the perpetually unlucky can pre-order the 7-inch here.
Review: The Dead Weather; July 19, 2010; House of Blues, San Diego
Photo credit: Nic Adler
The Dead Weather may be known as Jack White’s band, but make no mistake — the real draw is
lead singer Alison Mosshart.
Much like White’s other side project, The Raconteurs, The Dead Weather can feel like just a fun way for White to get his classic rock geek on. Similarly, Dean Fertita and Jack Lawrence’s guitar and bass work seems to exist only to plop out schlocky, metal-inspired riffs. But it is Mosshart who injects the band with some much-needed soul and, at the House of Blues show on Monday night, she brought enough for everybody. Continue reading…
Fluxx Live Returns
Click to enlarge
Last month’s inaugural Fluxx Live event was a bold addition to San Diego’s music scene. Presenters Daydream Nation used local ringers Scarlet Symphony and Dirty Sweet to lure indie fans out of their comfort zones and down the road less traveled — to Downtown’s glitzy Gaslamp district. Here’s what we said about it:
Overall, the night proved an unsuspected success, and a nice change of pace for the commingled Gaslamp and hipster crowds. The monthly event seems like just the type of shake up that San Diego’s music scene needs. If future Fluxx live events are handled as deftly as this one, we’ll wonder how we ever got by without them.
People hungry for a second taste, or newcomers curious as to what the fuss is all about, can head down to Fluxx this Thursday, July 22nd, for the second installment of the monthly event. Mix Master Mike of The Beastie Boys is headlining, and groovy dance band Hyena will be on hand as well. DJ sets from Shark Attack and DJ Leif will keep the turntables dizzy, and Tim Pyles will MC over the proceedings.
As you can tell from the lineup, this month’s Fluxx Live event is decidedly more dancey than the previous installment. It will be interesting to see whether future iterations adhere to the indie-centric, fish-out-of-water vibe that worked so well at the first event, or veer toward the clubby, typically Downtown vibe of this week’s bash. Tickets for Thursday’s event can be purchased at the door, or online. There is no dress code for the festivities, so all you Comic Con attendees are encouraged to stay in your Slave Leia costumes.
Contest: Win Shapes of Future Frames’ New 7-Inch
Photo credit: James Norton
Don’t let the name fool you — Shapes of Future Frames are a band whose time is now, and interest should only grow after they throw their release party at the Tin Can Ale House on Saturday, July 10th. For your chance to win a copy of the new record, keep reading. (more…)
Review: Dum Dum Girls & Crocodiles – July 2, 2010
Photos by T. Loper
Crocodiles and Dum Dum Girls sold out the Casbah on Friday, thanks to their respective brands of scuzz rock. Continue reading…
Review: Scarlet Symphony and Dirty Sweet; June 24, 2010; FLUXX, San Diego
FLUXX, downtown San Diego’s chic nightclub, held its first live event on Thursday, and it was a strange experiment. Instead of the typical DJs and dance music you might expect from the Gaslamp, they rounded up some ragtag indie bands to provide the night’s sounds. But it remained to be seen how the shiny shirt and hair gel crowd would respond to the fish out of water lineup. Continue reading…
Poetic Memory: Mammoth Life (List)
New bands can take a while to warm up to, but the art pop of Mammoth Life is instantly endearing. Resting somewhere between pop and folk, the Lawrence, Kansas band’s bouncy sound is sugary yet rugged, equally suited for dancing or riding a horse.
In addition to their musical prowess, Mammoth Life have an eye for style. They’ve got their own clothing line — aptly named Mammoth Life Apparel — and they recently released a seven-inch called Enlightenment: A Romantic Gospel on fancy, transparent blue vinyl. The gorgeous record is individually numbered to 250 copies.
You can snatch up a copy on Friday, June 2nd, when the band brings its catchy melodies and Midwestern charm to the Soda Bar. The Hot Moon and Flying Objects will be joining them, so don’t miss it.
Band leader/box guitarist/producer Nicholas Goss was kind enough to share his Poetic Memory with us, which you can find below. Continue reading…
Review: Josh Ritter; June 22, 2010; Belly Up Tavern, San Diego
Photo credit: T. Loper
Josh Ritter is an anachronism. With his suspenders and curly head of red, newsboy hair, he could be a turn-of-the-century busker or a character out of a Dickens novel. His minimalist, acoustic folk albums fit snugly alongside 1960s Bob Dylan and 1930s Woody Guthrie. But the thing that most sets Ritter apart from modern-day musicians isn’t his wardrobe or his music. It’s his smile. Continue reading…
Dum Dum Girls Take a Licking
Dum Dum Girls should never have gotten big.
The band began as just a side project for Kristin Gundred, who released a demo under the Dum Dum Girls name for her fledgling Zoo Music label in 2008. The songs raised some eyebrows, but no one ever expected the band to overtake Gundred’s main gig: San Diego’s fast-rising Grand Ole Party.
Downtown Gets Hip
Photo credit: Bo Cross
Hey scenesters! Do you spend most of your time frequenting bars like the Casbah and the Whistle Stop, but long for something different? Do you wish you could dance to Flo Rida and Katy Perry un-ironically? Do you find your gaze drifting toward Downtown’s glittering club scene, but stay away for fear of sacrificing your hipster cred?
Well, on Thursday, June 24th, your American Apparel-clad heart will finally get what it desires when San Diego’s indie scene invades FLUXX, the chic downtown nightclub named for its ever-changing decor and layout. Continue reading…
