Welcome to the, how do you say, show?

Welcome to my mid-year show review. It’s actually not quite mid year yet but I have free time right now and who knows when I’ll feel up to the task again. So here we go.

I was pretty happy with the number of shows I attended last year. I was even able to cross bands off my “must see before I die” list, the list isn’t very long so it was relatively easy to do for me. Living in Los Angeles, helps quite a bit too.

My first show of the year was actually not until February when I saw The Blow at The Echo with Julie.  Actually it was just Kaehla from The Blow, Jona was touring with Yacht at the time. Still it was a pretty high energy, feel good time and I even got to meet Kaehla.

Next was Do Make Say Think at The Troubador with Sean. That was a really relaxed show, how can you not be with DMST? This was the show where I realized one of the best places to sit at the Troub was way in the back behind the bar. Not only do you have a seat but generally it’s far back enough that you can see over everyone, with the exception of maybe unbelievably tall person.

Then South by Southwest came and it was a big “showfest” for me. I tried to take photos of each band I saw. The flickr set is here if you’d like to see.  The most notable band for me was The Faint. I’ve loved them for years and was ecstatic when I heard they were going to be playing SxSW. Of course, I have no proof  of this because my computer and camera didn’t want to talk to each other that night and deleted all the pictures from that show. I’m going to do this list style:

  •  Yacht
  • The Mae Shi
  • Ghostland Observatory
  • The Black Lips
  • Andrew Bird
  • Tokyo Police Club
  • Bloc Party
  • Apes and Androids
  • Apostle of Hustle
  • Thunderbirds Are Now!
  • De Novo Dahl (I’d never heard of them before)

from the party we threw:

  • Deep Sea Diver (really great local band from Long Beach, CA)
  • Chuck Ragan
  • This Providence
  • Limbeck
  • MC Lars
  • Brazil
  •  The Oohlas

There might have been a couple more bands that I just don’t remember or didn’t catch their names.

Upon returning, I’m not sure if this counts but, I went to a club to see Prince Paul do a DJ set. I think that sort of counts as a show.

Then Man Man at The Roxy to start April off. That was an awesome show. I’d never heard Man Man before and it was a pretty great introduction. They have so much energy. It was so fun with lots of yelling and stompyness. I’ve started listening to them regularly since that show.

The next night I went to see Dntel (the non-Gibbard half of The Postal Service) spin at The Natural History Museum. I also caught a set by The Submarines and Plaid while I was there.

The next week it was Triple Chicken Foot in Pasadena. They’re this local  twangy banjo threesome I found online. Sort of bluegrass, folky, Appalachian music. It was quite pleasant.

The week after that I saw Lavender Diamond at the Disney REDCAT theater. They played with Indian Jewelry, which I wasn’t too fond of. I think I actually took that time to take a nap. Totally disrespectful, but it really wasn’t my cup of tea. However, Lavender Diamond was so entertaining and cute. It was quite an experience, I was a little bored at times but I’m sure any Diamond fan would have been thrilled to have been there.

Art Brut at the Troub three days later. Then Sunset Rubdown and Xiu Xiu at the Troub again about three days after that. April appears to have been a busy month for me! I didn’t even realize until now.

Next on the list is one I’ve been anticipating for awhile now. Arcade Fire at The Greek. I’m hoping it will be amazing, how could it not be? But I’m trying to play it down in my head, not get too over excited for this. I’ll let you know how it goes.

This and That

Updates, list style (because who has the time anymore?)

This:

  • new bike as of 5/19
  • new bike injuries as of 5/23
  • my iPod is officially deceased as of 5/22
  • I’ve started reading more comics (Optic Nerve, Stephen King’s Dark Tower series)

That:

  • Julie is moving to Austin, TX
  • Joss and Jeremy are moving to San Leandro, CA
  • Rachel and Randy are moving to Seattle, WA
  • Sean is moving to San Francisco, CA
  • I’m staying put and need to make new friends

Chicken Scratch

I’ve recently discovered that I love Appalaichan music. If you’re wondering what that means well, it’s a form of banjo strummin’, fiddle fiddlin’, harmoninzin’, knee-slappin’, yeeeehawin’ country/folk type music that originated in the Appalachian Mountains of the United States.

I hadn’t always known that I liked it or even what it was called. My appreciation of music has come a long way since I started developing my own tastes and discovering music back in grade school. I think I’ve always sort of liked that sound but until now I never really took it seriously as a genre of music that I could listen to or identify with as a music lover. It’s not something that you usually hear on the radio. It’s not really commerical – unless you’re defining “commerical as a commerical for mother’s day at the Chicken Scratch Shack. Or something.

I’m Chinese American. Well, I’m full blooded Chinese but I’m a first generation so I really consider myself an American (not only because I literally am but because I don’t really identify with anyone from China). This love for the sounds of twangy instruments makes me wonder what in my childhood could have inlfluenced my taste in music. How does a little girl growing up in America with traditional Chinese parents fall in love with a genre of music like old- timey Appalaichan music?

How did that happen? I wonder if these tastes and preferences are inherent in our DNA from birth and it just takes some experiementation to find them or if this is something competely learned. Is it another case of Nature Vs Nurture?

Zuki

I guess I never really noticed how much our family dog looked like a rat. I know a lot of people aren’t keen on chihuahuas because they do look rat like.

One of the downfalls of moving away from home is that I no longer get dog privileges. This means I don’t get to call her “my dog” because she never really was my dog. She belongs to my parents. One of the best things about her was that she was like a cat but better. It was like having a cat that was small and would sleep with you and keep your lap warm when you’re reading a book or watching television but without the attitude of a cat. She would ask for your attention but wouldn’t be obnoxious about it. Since moving out I don’t get to call her my dog. Of course, I could get my own dog but that would require me to purchase dog food and pay for medical bills, etc. Pets are expensive. One of the perks of living with my parents was getting to have a free dog. One that I didn’t have to really be responsible for out of duty but just for my own enjoyment.

ZukiDog

It’s the most wonderful time of the year.

the table

I’m finally into the holiday spirit, all it took was a little pumpkin carving and buying a $2,000 computer. Okay so maybe that’s not all needed to get into the holiday season but I finally feel like it’s here and it really is my favorite time of the year. The time between Halloween and New Years Day. I even wore a scarf to work today.

The bad thing about it is that I am turning 24 in January and that isn’t something I’m looking forward to. I’m not sure why I feel that 24 is too old, but it feels like it to me. I don’t feel like I have accomplised anything at 24. Although there is always the question of “How do you measure success?” I guess you can only measure by happiness. Am I happy?

Still not sure yet but I think I’ll get there.