We might be rained in this gray October morning, but just last night I devoured my very first dragon fruit (a sweet, fuchsia bulb that looks like an egg from Alien and tastes like sorbet when chilled), giving me yet another reason to love life in Southern California. And dragon fruit in October is just one of the hundreds of treasures spotted at the Silverlake farmers market on Saturday.
What happens when you rant about federal banks and we happen to have a stack of fake $100 bills nearby? We give them to you to hold, and decide that it would be a fabulous touch to light them on fire. All in the name of a good photo, of course!
Tribal Seeds wandered into their interview with us sweaty, thirsty, and fresh from their outdoor set at the Sunset Strip Music Festival. Thank goodness we were there to provide them with refreshments and take the edge off. And thank goodness we took the edge off because that really facilitated us being able to engage them in some goofy antics.
Based out of San Diego, Tribal Seeds have become the band to watch in the reggae rock scene. The six member group, which features sibling duo Steven Rene and Tony-Ray Jacobo, has created a buzz with their spiritually driven and refreshing roots, rock, and reggae vibe. The guys sat down with ChinaShop to discuss the inspiration behind their controversial lyrics and explain how they were destined to be a reggae band.
Most of the bands at this year’s Sunset Strip Music Festival were of a Los Angeles origin, but Whiskey Six made the trek out from Phoenix. The band, which consists of Chriskey Strickler on lead vocals/guitar, Dave Lansing on guitar, Raf Garcia on bass, and Matt Indes on drums, is known for avoiding corporate rock and taking a raw and gritty approach to the music scene; they combine a dose of hard rock and metal while sneaking in elements of the blues.
Whiskey Six was all over The Sunset Strip this past weekend and hard to miss – Chriskey with his signature southern locks, Dan in a skull and crossbones cowboy hat, Raf sporting a Batman t-shirt, and Matt towering in height over many a festival goer. After chatting with the guys, sharing beers, and shooting some fun photos along Sunset Blvd, we decided they were the perfect candidates to involve in a social experiment.
There was no doubt an endless array of talent at this year’s Sunset Strip Music Festival, however, the line up erred on the uneven side. There were extremely established bands like Motley Crue, Bush, Public Enemy, and Buckcherry, and a plethora of up and coming rock bands – not much in between. In order to bridge the gap of the generations, we brought Whiskey Six backstage to pick the brains of Josh Todd, Keith Nelson, and Jimmy Ashhurst from Buckcherry.
Each Whiskey Six-er came armed with a question and a cowboy hat. Introductions were made and the games began. The conversation included everything from Kobe Bryant to driving around in a smelly van but all questions were answered, new friends were made (aww) and everyone left happy.
Thursday night, The Roxy was packed with fans sliding as close to the curtain as possible, fighting tooth and nail for front row status. As I waited for Nikka Costa to take the stage, I flashed back to when I saw her perform in 2005 when she toured with Lenny Kravitz in support of her album “Can’tneverdidnothin.” She put on quite a show then and I expected nothing less, six years later, from the feisty singer. Nikka knows how to work over an audience. She has to; music is in her blood. She is, after all, the daughter of renowned arranger/producer Don Costa, and more importantly the goddaughter of ‘”Ol’ Blue Eyes” himself, aka Frank Sinatra.
Just down the street from The Roxy Theatre, Talésai on The Sunset Strip has been dishing out tasty Thai cuisine to notoriously picky L.A. palates for nearly 30 years. Family owned and operated since the beginning, the restaurant is now expanding on their recipe for success and opening a neighboring “sister space”, serving up simple yet delectable street food.
The vision of chef/owner Kris Yenbamroong, Night + Market delivers a menu of Thai tapas in a unique gallery like setting. Having practically grown up in the restaurant’s kitchen, the chef has been cooking almost as long as he’s been able to hold a fork. “I’ve always been a fan of food that tastes amazing and isn’t fussy. I want everything on the plate to be essential to the dish, so that means no garnish, or fluff. That’s what street food is; it’s one thing that tastes really good and maybe one other element, like a condiment.”
For the full article, go To theroxyonsunset.com
If I remember correctly from those battle of the bands competitions I witnessed in high school, you’re usually stuck with half-assed garage groups, and, depending on your rate of alcohol consumption, the musicianship may or may not improve over the course of the evening.
But it may be best to stay sober for Red Bull’s Rock the Route, a tour-de-force which escalates the talent, the competition, and the pressure of what would otherwise be just another BOTB event. I didn’t want to miss a moment with Brighton, MA or Young Jesus, both Chicago-based indie bands who’d never ventured outside their home state. Tonight both were to be baptized in the debauchery of the infamous Viper Room and its tiny stage, which still seems best suited for a troupe of munchkins. One group had to wedge themselves onto the stage, set up, play fast, and break down faster so the next group could get their turn.
The Sunset Strip is sex, drugs, and rock ‘n roll. It has been for as long as anyone can remember. After years and years of such wear and tear, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that it might need a teensy weensy bit of tender love and care. Fortunately The Sunset Strip Business Association has its back. The committee kicked off the $5.4 million Sunset Strip Beautification Project in January 2010, giving West Hollywood a facelift with improvements such as replacing faulty traffic signals, repaving the boulevard for the first time in 75 years, planting new trees, making parking meters credit card accessible, etc… The official “re-opening” of The Strip took place on Thursday, August 12th, with the unveiling of one final touch, GuitarTown, a public art project featuring 26 ten-foot tall fiberglass Les Paul model guitar sculptures that were donated by Gibson, decorated by local artists, and scattered all over the strip.
