It was a Pink Friday for many employees of CBS radio stations here in LA--Pink Slip Friday, that is.
More radio (& television) news: Longtime LA-area on-air personality Gil Stratton died yesterday of heart failure. He was 68. Stratton was seen most recently on air as the weekend sportscaster on KCBS in the 1990s.
Residents of a housing project known as Dogtown have more green now than before thanks to the 250 trees planted by volunteers as part of the Million Trees LA project.
We got you talking today about stereotypes and impressions of Los Angeles as filtered through a transplanted Angeleno playing host to an out-of-towner. Just in case you find yourself hosting folks from another part of the country--or the world--you might want to see what suggestions are made from local foodies when the topic of "Where should I take visitors from Indiana?" to dine comes up.
For the second straight year, the Hip Hop Live tour, which teamed up top emcees with the instrumentation of ten plus piece band, rolled into the House of Blues. The lineup for this year's tour featured Little Brother, David Banner and Talib Kweli. Once again the band backing the three acts was the Los Angeles-based Rhythm Roots Allstars.
Just like many other hip-hop shows, the stage on this night was very crowded. Unlike your typical hip-hop show, however, almost everyone found on stage actually had a purpose for being on stage. When you've got a ten piece band, complete with multiple percussionists, guitars, bass and a horn section, real-estate on even a stage as large as the HOB's is at a premium.
The lack of space on stage had little effect on David Banner, who was sandwiched betwen the sets of Little Brother and Kweli. The man who informed us that "Stuntin' is a Habit," spent more time off of the stage than he did on the stage. Every member of the packed House of Blues crowd was given the opportunity to get up close and personal with Banner. Some might have gotten a little too personal, including the female audience member who found herself on her back on the receiving end of sweaty dry humping by David Banner during "Like a Pimp," or the large audience member whose shoulders served as a seat for Banner, but neither seemed to mind. It must have been Banner's charm.
Banner's charm along with his energy and enthusiasm were on display throughout his 40 minute set. The Mississippi native not only busted out all of his hits including "Get Like Me" and "Suicide Doors" but he also used the help of the band to channel Nirvana's "Smells like Teen Spirit." Prior to kicking the show into high gear, Banner informed the audience that he was going to take us on a trip. He was not lying. A trip with the perfect mixture of chaos and charisma actually would have been a more accurate description.
Talib Kweli had the tough task of following up Banner. Where Banner's set was heavy on bounce and seemingly light on structure, Kweli brought a set that was the perfect compliment to the man who took the stage prior to him.
Kweli, a rapper who has performed alongside bands before, seemed to gel the best with Rhythm Roots Allstars. A seasoned veteran who has shared the stage with the likes of The Roots and Soulive, Kweli brought a well organized set that tapped into hits like "Get By" and "Hot Thing" along with underground smashes like "The Blast" and "Definition."
The tightly woven set wasn't the only thing the Brooklyn born emcee brought with him. Kweli called on cameo performances from West Coasters Strong Arm Steady and Dr. Dre's latest pupil Bishop Lamont. The larger than life Lamont performed "Grow Up," a single that was ripping up radio in the late Summer before suddenly disappearing at the request of Interscope.
After two years of highly entertaining hip-hop, one hopes that Hip-Hop Live tour does not disappear. Thank you to sponsors Sony and Flow.TV for bringing together an incredible live band with sure shot emcees.
DCist talked to a storeowner who had to move artwork that satirizes Sarah Palin after receiving threats.
Shanghaiist fell off the chair watching this vlog by a gay expat teen in Shanghai who recently came out to his mom over Skype--only to have her come out to him in return!
So let's say you've got some high-quality homegrown all bagged up and ready to go but no one to buy it--I mean, let's face it, the economy these days doesn't leave much room for luxury items--where can you go? Well, the internet, obviously. Since the goods have a pretty fixed street value, eBay might seem out of the question, so the next logical choice for online wheeling, and, in this case, dealing, is the mecca of the mundane, aka Craigslist.
This may well have been the though pattern for Ronald Gray, 36, of Moreno Valley and Frank Lewis, 30, of Wildomar, who got the bright idea to advertise on Craigslist that they had some marijuana for sale. It shouldn't have come as a surprise to the men that the dudes meeting them Friday night for the pick-up were actually undercover cops, who wound up busting them on suspicion of growing and selling. The deal that almost was went down in Hemet, and yielded the authorities "three-quarters of a pound of packaged marijuana, a small amount of marijuana being dried, and an unloaded rifle," and that "four plants were growing in the yard."
Recycle your e-waste. / Photo by blakespot via flickr.
No, not that spot. We’re talking about “green spots” that are popping up all over LA to help make getting rid of e-waste easy enough. Let’s face it, we’re a gadget-crazy, disposable nation -- and while it’s so much more convenient to toss the old TV in the dumpster behind your apartment or throw batteries in the trash, it does a lot more damage to the environment and ground water then you think.
So to help you get rid of old batteries, fluorescent tubes, cell phones, TVs, computer equipment, shredders, VCRs, telephones, microwaves, VCRs, etc., there are a number of ways to find drop-off spots. Here are a few links quick for easy reference:
The South Coast Air Quality Management District has released a smoke advisory due to the Marek Wildland Fire in National Angeles Forest above the Northeast Valley. They urge people "to exercise caution and avoid unnecessary outdoor activities in any area directly impacted by smoke," in areas where one not only just see smoke, but can smell it. In areas directly impacted by the smoke, " In areas directly impacted by smoke. "everyone should avoid any vigorous outdoor or indoor exertion; people with respiratory or heart disease, the elderly, and children should remain indoors. Keep your windows and doors closed unless it is extremely hot inside. In these cases, seek alternate shelter. Run your air conditioner if you have one. Keep the fresh air intake closed and the filter clean to prevent bringing additional smoke inside."
Efforts by mainstream media and Hollywood to use a Saint Bernard to replace Beethoven in our hearts and minds have failed, despite numerous attempts. As part of the Colburn Celebrity Series, Andras Schiff is halfway complete on his journey to perform all 32 Beethoven piano sonatas. 16 were performed last year in four concerts and he starts again this Wednesday for our classical pick of the week. This week includes some of Beethoven's greatest works, including the "Tempest" and the "Waldstein." These works are often performed, but rarely done well (recommended performances include Alfred Brendel, if you can overlook a mistake here and there). Andras Schiff is considered one of the consummate performers of Beethoven and Mozart. You will be hard pressed to find anyone with the same level of musicality and technical precision for these sonatas. Having attended several of his previous performances (and performances of just about every pianist the last few years), LAist has noticed that he gets some of the loudest and most enthusiastic responses from the crowd with his flawless performances. If you happen to be in New York, he has been performing the same cycle at Carnegie Hall. There are many tickets left for this show between 40 and 100 dollars. If you buy his CD (at the gift store there), he usually does a CD signing right after the show.
For fans of Robert Wilson and Puccini, the LA Opera has been staging performances of Madame Butterfly, closing this week on the 18th. You can find more information here. Since most 20th century has been neglected as of late, here is a Messiaen goodie found on youtube featuring frequent collaborators Pierre Boulez and Pierre-Laurent Amard on the piano. As most of you know, many venues have been celebrating his 100th year with performances of his best known works.
More contemporary acts, like Tel Aviv’s shock-rock troupe Monotonix and Baltimore’s experimental electronic whiz Dan Deacon, clearly flourish on Bumbershoot’s bleeding edge. They do cater to the youthful and rather brazen demographic. But the irrepressible synergy between fringe artist and audience truly befit the moment—as if they had somehow hand-sewn the festival’s very seams.
The scantily clad Israeli rockers of Monotonix, who performed off the stage for less than a quarter of an hour, could only be deterred by forcible appeals. That is to say, their set was cut short by security for safety reasons. A literal pancake of people folding like pleats is, by definition, a rock concert. But the notion of playing an entire set virtually mid-air, atop a sea of open palms, certainly drives the point home. The rollicking foundation of rock and roll is very much alive and kicking—just on the opposite side of the world.
And for however short their set may have been, it seemed like an eternity. Every second stretches out and slows down in a euphoric free-for-all. In the maelstrom of activity, a leg, a guitar, or even a human being in a trash can whip past you. The whole experience—a relatively woozy entanglement—is comparable to a swift yet perpetual rush of blood to the head.
There is an image gallery to this entry which you can view at LAist
Like most performers that weekend, Dan Deacon fed off of the crowd’s energy; unlike the almost riotous ones though, as he demonstrated in Seattle, he cannot fully supply that energy himself. The Baltimore-bred behemoth of a man relies heavily upon the responsiveness of a crowd. And, much like Monotonix, Deacon shuns the stage, performing literally within the audience. He pounces around like a predator, pummeling toy-like gadgets and singing with one claw-shaped fist in the air.
But no less than measured conduct and orderliness are physical necessities; to perform amidst a brimming crowd, face-to-face and arm-in-arm with fresh-faced fans, utterly drives him. Deacon successfully employs wild games en masse during his zany dance-infused songs. His playful disposition galvanizes the crowd into action.
Furthermore, it is this sort of unedited, unbearably close interaction that distinguishes the Bumbershoot Festival from the rest in the Northwest and beyond. Surely, it is an annual congregation of the arts that draws summer to an idyllic and salubrious close. But it expresses movingly the profound nature of music. No other festival properly conveys the interconnective concepts on which the edifice of music was built.
Like figurative loose stitching, music not only bands people together, but also provides a structural sense of closure. It is an exoskeleton of humanity, so to speak.
The Movies will be playing the Bigler Benefit Show tonight at the Echoplex | Photo via the Movies Myspace
Our Pick: The Bigler Benefit Show w/ No Age, David Scott Stone, The Movies, Modern Memory, The Tyde, Dublab DJs @ Echoplex
Sunday afternoon in LA has been taken over by matinee performances. We're really excited about Kid Rockers, a wondrous series of shows that aims to bring families and great indie music/comedy together. LA-based indie rockers the Deadly Syndrome and the Afternoons will be playing at the Echo for the kiddies, along with comedians Patton Oswalt and Seth Herzog. You must have a child in hand to gain entrance. Inara George ("bird") and Greg Kurstin ("bee") will be performing a special solo show up the street at Tangier Restaurant in Los Feliz. But for those of you who are looking to enjoy a lazy Sunday afternoon, we suggest you save your energy for the Bigler Benefit Show at the Echoplex. The fundraiser, which features hometown favorites No Age and the Movies, is being held in Michele Bigler's honor. Recently, the artist/local music scene fixture was diagnosed with cancer and, like far too many Americans, does not have health insurance. All proceeds will go towards Bigler's treatment.
The Movies - "Rock In The Slinghot"
Shiloe CD Release Party, The Pacific, Love’s Like Smoke, Kissing Cousins @ Spaceland (Free!)
The Bigler Benefit Show w/ No Age, David Scott Stone, The Movies, Modern Memory, The Tyde, Dublab DJs @ Echoplex
The Rhone Occupation @ The Airliner
Grand Ole Echo Presents: Dead Rock West, Chris Shiflett @ The Echo (Free!)
Large Professor, DJ Muggs & Planet Asia, People Under the Stairs (DJ set) @ Knitting Factory
Brad Senne, Fort King @ Echo Curio (Early Show)
Lateral Hyetography, ((sounder)), Fantastic Sleep @ Echo Curio (Late Show)
Part Time Punks Presents: Killdozer @ The Echo
Kid Rockers Presents: The Deadly Syndrome, The Afternoons @ The Echo (Early Show; 1 PM)
Rachael Cantu, Alex & Sam, My Hawaii, Mad Gregs @ Tangier Lounge
Inara George and Greg Kurstin @ Tangier Restaurant (Early Show; 5 PM)
Brunch Americana: Mike Stinson @ Safari Sam’s (Free! Early Show; 1 PM)
Yngwie Malmsteen @ Avalon
k.d. lang @ Malibu Performing Arts Center
The LAFD is reporting a fatal fall at the Topanga Plaza shopping mall, located at 6600 Topanga Boulevard in Canoga Park. According to the LAFD's Brian Humphrey: "One person [is] dead at scene of (long?) fall at shopping mall." No further details are currently available. The mall is operated by the Westfield chain of malls, and opens for business on Sundays at 11 a.m. It is not clear if the incident took place before or during shopping hours or at what location in the mall the fall happened.
At least two residences and three motor homes were destroyed this morning in the Marek Wildland Fire, which broke out around 2 a.m. in the rugged Angeles National Forest about 20 miles northeast of downtown LA.
More than 1,000 people have been evacuated from Lopez and Kagel Canyons and 900 firefighting personnel are on the scene and in the air, according to InciWeb.
Winds from the north are keeping the fire away from a nearby animal sanctuary and rehabilitation facility. The 160-acre Wildlife Waystation houses more than 400 animals, including lions, bears and deer.
* The fire was 20 percent contained as of 2:55 p.m.,The fire was 10 percent contained as of 10:20 a.m. however, strong Santa Ana winds were expected to pickup throughout LA County through Tuesday. The cause of the fire is under investigation.
Tune into KNX 1070 AM for the latest or stream via this link.
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Want to hang this in your living room? Find out how after the jump | Photo by Tom Andrews/LAist
So here are this week's top posts, as endorsed by you via the recommend feature, or as indicated by the level of talk going on in the comments:
Most Commented Echo Park Named One of Top 10 Great Neighborhoods This week, the American Planning Association "singled out Echo Park because of its breathtaking topography set in the hills above downtown, historic architecture, pedestrian-oriented streets and stairways, and engaged residents." Well, la di da, Echo Park! Who knew?
Two Polls Show Gay Marriage Ban Passing The Yes on Prop 8 people are raising money by the boatload to help tell voters that if Prop 8 doesn't pass their worst fears (per an email, "nightmares") would come true. Two adults pledging to love and honor each other for life is nasty, isn't it? Some polls are showing that Prop 8 may well see a victory in the voting booth come November.
A Call to End Metrolink Service On the heels of last month's tragic crash and in the wake of multiple discussions about safety and reliability, James E. Moore II, chairman of USC's department of industrial and systems engineering and director of the transportation engineering program, wrote in the Times that "if Metrolink service were discontinued tomorrow and all those passengers got back in their cars, there would be no perceptible change in freeway congestion or travel times."
Most Recommended Shepard Fairey's New Window Installation Check out the windows of TenOverSix, an accessories boutique on Beverly between La Brea and Fairfax for two large and five small Shepard Fairey posters endorsing Obama. The artwork is meant to remind everyone to get out and vote for change, and will be auctioned off on October 16th.
Palindrome: The Best Site EVER It's not nice to play with your food, but it can be nice to play with your words, especially when the words of Republican VP nom Sarah Palin words are on the menu. Culver City's Jordan Kolasinski created Palindrome, a site where you can play around with things Palin has said, sort of like "magnetic poetry." Feel free to liberally sprinkle your new Palindromes with "you betcha."
Rude Awakening for Varsity Brawlers The LA Derby Dolls pitted the loss-worn Fight Crew against the brand new Varsity Brawlers last weekend, and just to show them how they roll around the rink, the Fight Crew delivered a sound thrashing. Check out the killer pics!
Although you might not realize it, chances are you’ve hummed a Jason Reeves song at some point in the last year. For example, he co-wrote 10 songs, including the ubiquitous “Bubbly,” on Colbie Caillat’s debut album, and he also shares writing credits on Lenka’s current single, “The Show,” which was recently a free featured download on iTunes.
Last month, Reeves struck out on his own with The Magnificent Adventures of Heartache (and Other Frightening Tales), his first album on the Warner Brothers label. He definitely knows his way around a love—as well as a breakup—song, and if these “tales” are any indication, this singer/songwriter will be around for a long while. LAist recently met Reeves for lunch at the Aroma Cafe to discuss the new album, robot pianos and Reeves’ current tour with Tyrone Wells.
LAist: You’ve mentioned that your music is heavily informed by literature. Do you feel that the album sort of reflects the natural progression of a novel?
Jason Reeves: I hope so, though I’d rather call it a fairytale than a novel.
“The Fragrant Taste of Rain” covers a lot of ground. It goes from spoken word to singing, intimate to orchestral, and robot-like to a whisper. Can you tell me a little more about it?
That was just something I wrote down with no intention of it being a song. We were in the studio just messing around and playing this really old piano from the 1800s. I had brought a whole bunch of stuff that I had written, and Mikal Blue, the producer, said I had to sing—and in some places, speak—those words. It was just a freestyle, one-take thing that we did. We added the layers to it afterwards, but initially it was just me on that piano with a microphone.
I love the piano in “Reaching.” It seems to shift the mood along with your voice. What was the process of writing that one?
The piano part was Mikal doing a take on that same really old piano. And the guitar I used to record that song on is from the 60s, so we had these two older instruments, and I think they gather energy over time. It just seems like the older they are, if they’re kept up well, they’re so much better than new instruments. So that’s really all we needed.
How does “Sunbeam Lights” fit into the story of the album? It’s so short and sweet.
You’re the first person who has asked about this song. It sort of is the line in the middle of the album. It’s actually the bridge of “Gasoline” but happy, with the words turned around. I was really just wanting to make a really blissed-out bridge of “Gasoline” as a precursor that would add weight to it when it came around later.
You wrote “New Hampshire” without ever before visiting the state. Have you toured there yet?
No, I haven’t. We’ve been to almost every state, but we haven’t been there. It’s crazy!
If you could write about a place you’ve never visited overseas, what would that be?
New Zealand. I love New Zealand but I’ve never been there. (laughs)
I know you play both piano and guitar. Which one do you write with most often?
Guitar. Just because I can’t have a piano everywhere—it’s not easy to carry. And I hate keyboards cause they’re just, like, robot pianos and they feel fake.
This album really covers an emotional gamut. At the beginning it has this unabashed happiness, then it ends with an almost bittersweet hope. Your last lines are “Don’t know where to go from here.” Where do you think your next album will take it?
Oh wow, I don’t know yet. I’ve written a lot of it but I haven’t finished, so I think I’ll keep that a secret.
You collaborated with Colbie Caillat on her hit album. What’s the songwriting process like for you when you’re writing with someone else—does it speed up the process or make it slower?
Well, it’s like a multiplication of two people’s imaginations and experiences rather than just one. So it’s not addition. When you put two people together, it seems like the potential just opens up completely—into a different place than you would expect. It’s not just like “Oh, there are two people, so it’s going to be twice as good.” I think it’s insanely larger than that. So that’s my favorite part about writing with somebody—there’s this limitless possibility and that’s why it’s exciting. You would never get that song if you were writing by yourself. It just wouldn’t exist.
It seems like you’ve worked with a lot of Hotel Cafe regulars. Have you ever played there?
Yeah, we used to play there all the time. It used to be our spot, but we’ve been gone so long that we haven’t had a chance to go back there yet. But I love it. It’s my favorite—there’s something really magical happening in that room every day.
How did your collaboration with Tyrone Wells happen? Are you planning to release that song you co-wrote (“Give Me One Reason”)?
Tyrone’s amazing. I love that guy. We’re definitely planning on recording the song; we just don’t know when. It just gets really complicated when you have two really different, busy schedules. We actually met in order to write together. I guess he wanted to write with me and we just became really good friends after that. We’ve toured a couple times together and now we’re on tour again.
I know you just played the Glass House in Pomona. Any upcoming gigs in LA?
I don’t think we have anything set up yet, but we may play one in the fall sometime, maybe November. We’ll see.
Jason Reeves - "You in a Song"
You were the number one unsigned folk artist on myspace last year, and they gave you a bunch of other titles as well. Do you feel that the current music model makes it easier or harder for artists today?
I think it makes it a lot harder, actually. Well, in terms of getting out to people, it’s a lot easier. But at the same time it makes it so much harder because of how many people there are. You’d think it’d be perfect that you can reach a million people in one second, but now there are a million people trying to reach a million people. So it kind of works both ways.
I know that when you were young, you took lessons from a blind piano teacher. Do you think that changed the way you approached music since it was more of a sensory experience?
Sure, I play by ear because of that and I don’t pay attention to notes or care what the chords are called. She taught me how to feel the music instead of thinking about it. Once again, going back to the robot thing, I think that reading music and getting too deep into the theory of things can turn you into more of a robot programmed to play certain things, instead of just being a human trying to express yourself through music.
You really have a California sound even though you didn’t grow up in Southern California. Are you a big fan of 60s surf music?
Yeah, for sure, I think that’s one of the reasons my music has that feel. Another reason is the fact that I got changed by California—just by the beauty of it. Immediately. I don’t think anybody can come here without being completely transformed just by the “golden-ness” of this place or something.
I don’t know how to explain it, but I think that has a lot to do with the way people make music, too. It’s all about where you live.
In one of her interviews, Colbie said that you love photography. Have you had much time to pursue that hobby since the music thing has taken off?
Actually, I take my camera with me on tour and I’ve been taking thousands of pictures. I have way too many to even deal with right now. I need more hard drive space!
What do you shoot with?
I have a Canon 40D. I’m still learning a lot about it but I love it.
Now that you’ve been living in LA for a little while, do you have any favorite hangouts?
This is one of them [Aroma Cafe]. I mean, I don’t even know if we should tell people that. Maybe we should keep it a secret—but I guess it’s obviously not a secret judging by the crowd! (laughs)
Thanks for speaking with LAist, Jason!
In addition to his new album, Reeves will soon be releasing a live iTunes Originals session. More information will be available soon via his myspace page.
THIS CULTURE TASTES LIKE CHICKEN
The city will host their 21st annual "Taste of Encino" cultural festival. The event will take over a strip of Ventura Blvd. and include music, dance, and storytelling. This free festival will also feature a moon bounce and rock climbing wall for you to enjoy. I'm sure your kids will like them a bit more though.
VISIT THE OTHER SIDE OF THE VALLEY
This is the last day of Pasadena's Art Weekend which includes an art market and several live music performances through out the day. The market is run by the Art Center College of Design staff, students, and alumni, and also features their work. It's the perfect place to see new styles and ideas in the art world. After that, walk up to De Lacey St. for the outdoor music festival with performances from Mexican, soul, and classical bands as well as a set from West Indian Girl.
ATTEND A DOUBLE-OPENING
Frank Pictures Gallery in Santa Monica is dedicating tonight to two talented artists and their new exhibits. First is Robert Stivers' photography show entitled, "Dresses and Shoes". Then Stephen Gamson premieres his new sculptures and paintings, "Portraits and Conversations". Both artists will be at the opening. No RSVP required.
SPEND THE DAY IN THE REY
Marina Del Rey wants you to know it exists. It isn't just some boring seaside town that the occasional LMU student might bike through: It's got culture and style. Get over to Burton Chace Park for some fun and family-oriented activities. For $5 you can participate in the water kayaking, ride the rides, and even pick out a pumpkin. Live entertainment, local businesses, and food vendors will add to the festivities.
Traffic in Upstate New York. Also, my parents' favorite restaurant. ALSO, Amish people think getting their picture taken is a sin. Whoops.
When you live in Los Angeles for too long, your mind starts getting clogged with the smoggy air and fake conversations that surround you, and you lose the ability to make reasonable assertions about the rest of America. I've been here for a year and I'm already forgetting the small stuff. Is Wichita a city or something I ate downtown on a dare? Probably both. Or neither. See, I don't know anymore!
And if you're from California to begin with, may God help you. I bet if you had to draw a map of the United States it would just be the great Golden State with a pair of sunglasses on it, a little bubble for New York City with a skull & crossbones and question mark next to it, and the rest is vaguely defined with large white crosses and guns that shoot cowboy hats at you.
The truth is, most of America is comprised of hard-working folk who have to do manual labor to survive. I didn't move to LA because I wanted to give handjobs for promotions at Fox Studios, I came because I was lazy. I know what a cord of wood or an unplowed acre looks like: work. And I'll be damned if I'm going to take any job that means I can't wear my Chuck Taylors. However, my father doesn't believe in Chuck Taylors. He believes in Red Wing boots and Wranglers and facial hair in an unironic way. I don't know if he believes in God, but I bet if he did he would think God was lazy too. He also believes that Los Angeles is the worst place in America to live.
A little background: my father lives in upstate New York. Not Catskill upstate, where people have million dollar cottages next to streams and Starbucks. My father lives 20 miles south of the Canadian border at the TOP of America. The town he lives in measures 400 families, with a median income of $18,000. They got a Starbucks last year and it closed BECAUSE NO ONE WENT TO IT. In upstate New York, you get 8 feet of snow for nine months a year and you buy your Folgers in a 40 gallon drum and have it hand-delivered by the Brawny Man. That's how it works.
So naturally, when my father arrived at LAX, he was confused by the multiple lanes of traffic and the electronic billboards. And when he showed up to my apartment in a rented PT Cruiser (I know, I know…he really decided to spoil himself on this trip), he was almost unintelligible. Sensory overload had forced him to get off the freeway two exits late and spend half an hour looking for La Brea by driving up and down Crenshaw. He told me he didn't know who Amber was but there were a lot of people looking for her, and some crazy asshole had tried to take his arm off with a motorcycle as he was sitting in the parking lot that is the 405. When I tried to explain that lane-splitting is legal, he got so confused I had to sit him down and give him one of my $7 Fiji waters.
Hard as she tried, the City of Angels held no charms for my skeptical father. We went to Venice, where he gave every bum he saw a dollar, until they formed into a pecking mob around him, like pigeons with bandanas. We tried the upper-crust Caffe Primo in West Hollywood where I pointed out Jessica Biel, but my father only cared that “foreign foods” (read: paninis) 'gave him gas'. This from a man who has had exactly one burrito in his life. We toured downtown, but the big buildings were confusing because it meant you couldn't see the horizon line. We even stumbled onto a film set off Figueroa, where my father got chided by a 30-pound teenager in a headset for trying to see if the leading man was Charles Bronson. Yes, my father still thinks Charles Bronson is a working actor.
My father hated Los Angeles in ways that don't even make sense. He said the Hollywood sign was too small, and and he confused more than one Charlie Chaplain look-a-like for Hitler. He said there weren't enough pools. I tried to take him to Pink's but he said the "last thing he needed was a titty bar." He flatly refused to support Dodgers of any kind, especially draft, and at one point I caught him looking for Reba McEntire’s star on the walk of fame.
It’s not that my father is a curmudgeonly old farmer; far from it. He has absolutely no problem driving the hour-plus to Syracuse, NY to check out the Barnes and Noble at the mall. He enjoys an upscale J.C. Penny as much as the next folk. And maybe it’s my fault, for flying the coop and heading to the biggest hen farm on the west coast. It’s a different life in upstate New York; my father’s neighbors are a corn field and a cemetery. Here, my neighbors include: someone with a television that only gets CourtTV, a dog that’s routinely beaten with what sounds like a harpsichord, and a smell that may actually be someone’s dead carcass. I thought my father would at least respect that similarity with his own house, but no.
Three days later my father left, knowing nothing of the Los Angeles I have come to love. We did not taste of the heavenly Book Soup, we abstained from the greasy taco trucks that serve our fine city, and we did not tackle the PCH in the PT Cruiser. But that’s OK with me. I’m beginning to think like the rest of California, and maybe it’s better that way. Maybe the all-encompassing and insular nature of the great left coast, and of this amazing city, really should be left to the professionals. I think next time my father wants to visit, I’ll meet him halfway. I hear Oklahoma City just got a basketball team AND electricity.
A fire aided by overnight winds broke out around 2 this morning in Little Tujunga Canyon and has already claimed 500 acres of brush and has forced the evacuation of about 1,200 nearby residents. Mandatory evacuations are currently in effect in Kagel Canyon, Lopez Canyon, and Little Tujunga Canyon. Residents of nearby Lakeview Terrace are on the ready, but are not required to evacuate as of yet. The cool temperature was an asset to firefighters who responded to the blaze. The cause of the fire is currently unknown.
In an apparent attempt to escape justice, the Japanese man who was just brought back to the US to face murder charges was found dead in his cell from an apparent suicide. His lawyer is confused by the move and an investigation is still pending.
Some suspicious letters containing a white powder sent to "comedian" Bill Maher were found to be harmless. The theater where Maher was performing had to be evacuated as a precaution. There is no truth to the rumor that a showing of his film "Religulous" was used to evacuate the theater.
A DWP worker needed rescuing after falling down an underground vault. The vault is filled with a bunch of live wires and the worker was lucky to escape with minor injuries.
The inaugural performance at Palm Desert's McCallum Theater featuring Boz Scaggs was canceled last night after a letter containing a suspicious substance and a threatening message directed at Bill Maher arrived at the venue.
Maher, whose pointed, yet hilarious cynicism is now on display at a theatre near you (his deity-doubting documentary Religulous opened Oct. 3) performed at the McCallum Theater tonight as scheduled. The substance was deemed unharmful. An FBI Joint Terrorism Task Force is Investigating the incident.
Below, check out Maher's recommendations for future presidential debates from last night's Real Time with Bill Maher:
Back in August, a large mural went up on the facade of Quicksilver SiteLA on Sunset Blvd. It's a vision for the future of transportation and was executed by the locally based drawing group Sumi Ink Club, who will have events next week leading up to an exhibition in November. But tonight, an exhibition called "We Ride By Night" opens featuring art influenced by LA bicycle culture with cyclist Dorothy Le curating. The event goes to 9:00 p.m. at the gallery in Silver Lake. Below are photos of the building just in case you were wondering what it was when passing by.
There is an image gallery to this entry which you can view at LAist
With the November election approaching, people are doing whatever they can to get the message out. This photo, taken in Silver Lake came to LAist in our Tips inbox, and shows one truck owner's way of spreading the "No on 8" message. Bumper sticker, button, and t-shirt makers take notice: "Love, Not 8" is tres catchy, yes?
For the second straight year, the 
The lack of space on stage had little effect on David Banner, who was sandwiched betwen the sets of Little Brother and Kweli. The man who informed us that "Stuntin' is a Habit," spent more time off of the stage than he did on the stage. Every member of the packed House of Blues crowd was given the opportunity to get up close and personal with Banner. Some might have gotten a little too personal, including the female audience member who found herself on her back on the receiving end of sweaty dry humping by David Banner during "Like a Pimp," or the large audience member whose shoulders served as a seat for Banner, but neither seemed to mind. It must have been Banner's charm. 
Talib Kweli had the tough task of following up Banner. Where Banner's set was heavy on bounce and seemingly light on structure, Kweli brought a set that was the perfect compliment to the man who took the stage prior to him. 
So let's say you've got some high-quality homegrown all bagged up and ready to go but no one to buy it--I mean, let's face it, the economy these days doesn't leave much room for luxury items--where can you go? Well, the internet, obviously. Since the goods have a pretty fixed street value, eBay might seem out of the question, so the next logical choice for online wheeling, and, in this case, dealing, is the mecca of the mundane, aka Craigslist.
The 
The LAFD is reporting a fatal fall at the Topanga Plaza shopping mall, located at 6600 Topanga Boulevard in Canoga Park. According to the LAFD's Brian Humphrey: "One person [is] dead at scene of (long?) fall at shopping mall." No further details are currently available. The 
I love the piano in “Reaching.” It seems to shift the mood along with your voice. What was the process of writing that one?
This album really covers an emotional gamut. At the beginning it has this unabashed happiness, then it ends with an almost bittersweet hope. Your last lines are “Don’t know where to go from here.” Where do you think your next album will take it?
A fire aided by overnight winds 
The inaugural performance at Palm Desert's 
For the first time since a recent crime wave hit the Melrose shopping district area, arrests have been made. Streets robberies around the trendy Me