Music Arctic Monkeys Attract the Ladies at All Points West

August 5, 2009 - 12:37 pm

Alex Turner of the Arctic Monkeys

A trio of sexy Spanish girls was waiting in rapt anticipation to see their fave rock band, the Arctic Monkeys hit the stage. It wasn’t so much that they were ready to dance their cute behinds off, they were interested in seeing one thing: lead singer Alex Turner’s face. When the Sheffield, UK rockers emerged from backstage, the girls erupted in pure glee and simultaneously lit up cigarettes to calm their sexy nerves. The one who seemed the giddiest looked ready to fall out when Turner said in his thick English accent, “We are the Arctic Monkeys – How is everyone doing today?” Thankfully, she held it all together and screamed and shrieked like a wild banshee instead.

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Music The Lords of Altamont Give Good Hurt

August 4, 2009 - 11:43 am

The Lords of Altamont

The LA based mondo motorcycle band, The Lords of Altamont give me faith in rock n roll. Lead singer, Jake “The Preacher” Cavaliere is a true showman, whether he’s standing on his electronic organ, or owning the microphone, he commands attention. The show this past Friday night at the Good Hurt in Mar Vista CA started with a wall of sound and ended with 5 stylish but sweaty dudes giving it their all.

The Lords just returned from playing 32 shows in 35 days throughout Europe. No luxury tour coaches for these boys, just 5 guys in a rented van with a map and the passion to play. None the worse for wear they managed to make it out a little tougher, a little wiser, completely selling out of every piece of merch they took with em. Turns out they actually are big in Belguim.

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Music Gogol Bordello: Bedlam, Mayhem and a Freakin’ Awesome Good Time

August 4, 2009 - 11:20 am

Gogol Bordello at All Points West

Eugene Hutz and the Gogol Bordello posse are absolutely badass! And when they took the stage at All Points West on Saturday afternoon, they made it immediately known that they were in the mood to blow the house down. With their infectious, machine-gun paced, ska and punk-infused Gypsy rock, the collective from NYC’s Lower East Side rocked so hard that a mosh pit magically appeared with kids buggin’ and wildin’ the fuck out.

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Fashion interview The Boudoir Queen

August 3, 2009 - 12:28 pm

The Boudoir Queen

Welcome to a world of tattered silk, stained lace & decadently distressed velvet.  A world where girls eyes are always fringed with magical false eyelashes, their hair is always elegantly tousled, & they wear elaborate headpieces while lounging around the house.

This is the world of Dawn Younger-Smith, owner of The Boudoir Queen, where disheveled opulence reigns.  Citing the likes of Marchesa Louisa Casati, Kiki De Montparnasse & Erte as style icons & influences, when she isn’t busy designing stage costumes for celebrities — she’s currently creating outfits for The Veronicas tour — Dawn has been known to delight onlookers in a dress made from Aleister Crowley collage!

I pounced on her for 10 quick questions.  I like to imagine her writing her answers while wearing an immense feathered headdress!

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Film Viva

August 3, 2009 - 12:26 pm

Viva

It is 1972.  And we can tell this not just from the vibrant colors, the giant polyester collars and the macramé owl décor, but because the narrator Barbi tells us we’re in suburbia in 1972.  We meet the striking brunette Barbi while she lounges fully nude in a bubbly tub reading a pornographic magazine.  On the surface, she seems like a simple housewife living the dream life… a beautiful home, a handsome husband and liquored up neighbors to help pass the time when hubby Rick is away.  But Barbi’s perfect world slowly falls apart when she loses her job and Rick scoffs at her disapproval of his long business trips.  With her best friend Sheila, the two set off on an adventure.  The two hit the town like innocents thrown to the wolves when they meet a nice lady that suggests they have sex with men… for money.  Barbi finds the idea of being a whore romantic and she changes her name to Viva.  Fully liberated and now in control of her own life, Barbi/Viva seeks to find herself in a new world of sexual freedom.

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Bars/Clubs Featured The Dresden Room

August 3, 2009 - 12:25 pm

dresden-11

At the risk of sounding like my mom, I’ve still gotta say it: They don’t make things like they used to. Case in point: The Dresden Room, a restaurant and cocktail bar nestled amongst more contemporary joints in LA’s hipster-hood, Los Feliz, has been open since the 1940s. When you enter the Dresden, you enter some rare alternate universe where Cheers, Vegas and Sinatra all collide to form a swanky yet comfortable, unique and authentic experience. Walking in to the warmly-lit lounge on a Tuesday evening, you’d think it was a Friday or Saturday judging by the comfortably packed-in crowd, which offers a complete cast of characters—Hollywood executive types rub elbows with younger, fedora-clad twenty-somethings. There are cozy tables sprinkled throughout the room, 50s and 60s-inspired art lining the walls (by Jamie Oliff), and frosted art deco glass behind the bar. The friendly vest and bow tie-adorned bartenders call me “honey” and whip me up a house libation, pink frothy deliciousness poured into an elegant chilled martini glass.

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Music MSTRKRFT at All Points West: These Toronto Cats Go Deep

August 3, 2009 - 12:23 pm

MSTRKRFT

You haven’t really lived – I mean, really reveled in this epic journey we call life, till you’ve been front row at a MSTRKRFT show. No lie, these cats from Toronto get really DEEP. Once again, to reemphasize, I’m not talking about regular “deep,” I’m referring to “six million leagues beneath sea level – with no sunlight” type of deep.

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Music All Points West Poncho Party

August 3, 2009 - 12:23 pm

All Points West

I made the trek — from the East Village down to Battery Park, onto a ferry & across to New Jersey — to All Points West feeling optimistic about what I might see there. My mission? To document & study the fashion in the field, like a sartorial spy, eyes akimbo & trigger-happy fingers itching to take photos & extensive notes.

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Music Q-Tip at All Points West – The Tribe Reigns Forever

August 3, 2009 - 12:23 pm

Q-Tip at All Points West

Like fine wine hermetically sealed in temperature-controlled underground vaults, the artiste known as Kamaal the Abstract (or Q-Tip) just continues to get better with time. And anyone who ever doubts his relevancy in today’s music pantheon had to be present at All Points West this weekend to see the Queens, NY native completely rip up the set.

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