British indie band The xx will continue touring 2012’s sophomore album, Coexist, throughout the world, and have added some new dates to their schedule. Included are new dates in California and the Pacific Northwest around Cochella and the Sasquatch! Music Festival. [Read more…]
Legendary post-punk band Killing Joke will be celebrating their 35th anniversary with the April 15th release of their The Singles Collection 1972-2012 via Spinefarm/Universal, a new studio album, and a world tour that kicks off in England in March and terminates in Los Angeles in May. [Read more…]
Below is the latest updated list of memorabilia for entertainment memorabilia, including rock and pop music stage and studio used equipment and costumes, as well as other entertainment memorabilia. Please contact me if you are aware of any coming events of interest to collectors.
Please also note that I update changes/additions to the calendar until the next update, in order to maintain as up to date as possible. [Read more…]
Below is the latest updated list of upcoming auction events for entertainment memorabilia, including rock and pop music stage and studio used equipment and costumes, as well as other entertainment memorabilia. Please contact me if you are aware of any coming events of interest to collectors. Please also note that I update changes/additions to the calendar until the next update, in order to maintain as up to date as possible. [Read more…]
This is part of a continuing series of my impressions and experiences staying at various hotels and resorts while traveling to attend concerts worldwide. This review is for the Tangerine Hotel in Burbank, California for a stay in October 2012. Sadly, based on my experience, I can safely say that I would never stay there again. [Read more…]
Having seen Florence + The Machine at the Mondavi Center back in April – which still remains as one of the best (of many, many) concerts I’ve been to this year, I was committed as I walked out of that venue that I would see them again soon, hopefully before the close of the year. That dream became a reality last night at the historic Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles. It was one of those circumstances in which you feel that you’ve already seen the best possible concert for a particular artist, and wonder if it is a good idea to see them again when it would be impossible to measure up to the experience that you already had. Somehow, Florence + The Machine defied all of my expectations and put on a somewhat different show, but one that at least measured up to the first experience I had seeing them months ago. They are an unbelievable band, and the most fascinating thing is that listening to the studio albums, you couldn’t know how amazing that it all translates into live music. I already gave them my highest recommendation in my first review. Whatever you might think of their music, whatever preconceived notions you may have about the live experience, I can’t imagine someone seeing this band live and not being blown away. Even one of the venue staffers I was talking with before the show was won over by them with their first of two performances at the Hollywood Bowl the night before – and let’s just say he’s not someone you would guess is a Florence + The Machine fan by any stretch of the imagination – and even he thought that they were one of the best bands he’s ever seen, and he’s in the business of working tons of shows every year. They are that fantastic, and in my opinion, one of the very top acts touring today.
Last night was the second show of New Order’s 10-date North American tour (spanning the U.S., Canada, and Mexico). One of the most important bands of my lifetime, they played classic New Order and Joy Division songs at the Greek Theatre in Los Angeles, which had a stage that dwarfed the one that they played last December at their concert at Troxy in London, which I was fortunate enough to have attended. Having been front row center for both shows, it was a bit surreal for me to see them from the exact same vantage point at such different venues and in different countries – both in their own country (which, at the time, was their first date there in five years) and now here in the United States. As the band is among my all-time favorite groups, I feel a bit challenged to evaluate the night, as the band and their music means more to me than I can put into words. It was really a stellar show, and it of course leaves me wondering, in a hopeful way, about the future of this legendary band.
This is part of a continuing series of my impressions and experiences staying at various hotels and resorts while traveling to attend concerts worldwide. This review is for the Sheraton Los Angeles Downtown Hotel, in Los Angeles, California for a stay late May/early June 2012. [Read more…]
Santigold has been on my “must see list” for a while, and with their latest tour, they did not schedule any Northern California shows, so I made a special trip to Los Angeles to see them last night, at one of my favorite venues, Club Nokia. I have been a fan since the release of their first album, and have become an even bigger fan with the release of their second album, Master of My Make-Believe. It was an absolutely fantastic night that felt like a giant celebration, with two great opening artists, so enough with the preface and I’ll get right to it. The thing that most struck me about Santi was her natural ability to make those magic connections with individual members of her audience, one by one – her eyes seeking out and locking onto people with a special smile, expression, or gesture. Wonderful stuff, and her music is so uniquely her – rare when a newer artist can produce and deliver such genuine art. I really can’t recommend enough picking up her albums and seeing her do her thing live, with her awesome band. [Read more…]
On May 31st, MusiCares held their eighth annual MAP Fund benefit in Los Angeles at Club Nokia, which honored Jerry Cantrell and Neil Lasher with the Stevie Ray Vaughan award. The award is given to those who help fellow musicians through addiction recovery. As part of the celebration, a number of artists performed the Steve-O MC’d and Moby DJ’d event, including Billy Idol, Ann and Nancy Wilson of Heart, Duff McKagan, Mark Lanegan, and Alice in Chains. [Read more…]