Hurricane

This whole New Orleans thing is just insane. My heart goes out to everyone who's been effected by the tragedy.

My friend Rebekah lives in Jackson Mississipi and managed to skirt any serious consequences but says that the power and gas lines have been shut down.

Buck's Back

Just heard from Suki (Bucks wife...girlfriend...well I'm not totally sure so I wont lable) that Buck is making a swift recovery!

Enjoy! Tiny Music World...

I'll leave it up to you to figure out why THIS is so damn funny. Yeah, I'm 35, but I've always admitted that I have the mind of a 4th grader.

Back In the Day

An entertaining look at vintage Los Angeles from 1900 through the 1920's via the assistance of old photos and post cards.

Another interesting approach to looking at early Los Angeles is Silent Echos, a book that takes the movies of Buster Keaton and uses them as a catalyst for discovery of lost and remaining pieces of this cities history.

Baby Shouts

Quick shout out to Debbie and Bill in congratulations to their new born baby Olive. Olive is the latest product from a group of high-school friends of mine that seem to all be intent on making 2005 the next baby boom year. Eve and Alex had Eero just a few months ago and Maya and Joe are expecting soon as well. Congrats everyone, can't wait to meet them all in person.

Junction Post Mortem

Not really much to say about my brief Junction experience. It was hot as balls. Usual crowd of dudes in chaps and no shirt, hipsters in cowboy boots and witty t-shirts. Food is the same as previous years, vendors verging but not meeting the standard of coercing me into actually looking at any of it.

Heard snippets of The Gossip and really wasn't interested in waiting for any of the other bands. People watching is really the only thing I enjoyed this year.

Am I too old for the whole thing? Has it played out its course? Did I just not drink enough? Well, I hope the rest of you enjoyed yourselves and maybe bought one or two of my shirts.

The picture above was taken at the junction 2 years ago.

Ghosts of Edendale

Not sure if this movie is available in any local video shops, but I found it on Netflix.

This, seemingly straight to video, independent horror movie about ghosts haunting the land where Tom Mix's studio once stood, is mildly entertaining at best. Anyone who hasn't been introduced to this bit of local lore might find it an amusing introduction.

The editing and pacing is erratic and confusing. The acting isn't horrible for B-grade horror. Paula Ficara, the female lead deserves to be in something more substantial (although I'd advise her to avoid trying to play homeless insane people ever again). The effects seems to be where the creators of this movie put most of their effort. Some effects are pretty successful, some not so much so.

I discovered this film while researching Tom Mix for the aforementioned Mixville shirts. The production company responsible for this feature named themselves Mixville Productions.

Neighborhood Gossip

I've been living in Silver Lake for about 9 years now. This place has slowly changed over the years. Traffic has gotten heavier. A wave of vintage furniture stores and children’s boutiques have popped up like Starbucks on almost every block.

It seems as though over the past year or so, the pace has increased. Those damn condo's on the corner of Silver Lake and Glendale, the great new restaurants...(Ginger Grass, Blair’s...) In addition, I think I’ve become more a part of the community and in doing so have gotten the scoop on the future of the neighborhood.

So far, here's the skinny of what I know.

My neighbors are opening a dog store on Silver Lake Blvd. above the Michelangelo restaurant. Yeah, dog shops seem to be as plentiful as the aforementioned baby boutiques. We'll see if they can put a fresh touch on it. Good Luck to them.

You may have heard about the Library that will be built on the other vacant corner across from the new condos on Glendale blvd. Its cool to have a public library so close by, but that corner sounds like its just going to get even more insane. Up the street, across from the Red Lion restaurant and bar, is Le bar. Le bar has always been one of those places that I never really saw anyone going into...yet seemed busy at times. Well, evidently, some rocker bought the place and plans to give the Lion a run for its money.

Still waiting for the new Clover to open. The place looks to be at least twice the size. What used to be the Auto Bar will soon open as a restaurant/specialty foods shop. If anyone has any good photos of Watusi and Bikini please e-mail me some copies if you are willing. If you don't know what I'm talking about, don't worry...maybe I'll do a posting dedicated to the two sometime soon.

Ten10, my friend Scott Nadeu's furniture shop, has consolidated to one of the two stores he's had over the last year or two, allowing for a new shop to take shape. I'm not quite sure what its going to be, but I have a feeling it'll be a high design something or other. Fingers crossed that itll have something new to offer, not just more of the same.

Well, thats the latest. I'll keep an ear out. Please feel free to post any interesting news you have to offer.

Junction Function

For those of you living in La, you should already be well aware of the upcoming Sunset Junction Festival this weekend. For my friends outside the area or for those who are simply too out of touch, let me quickly explain.

The Sunset Junction Street Festival occurs on Sunset Blvd. at the Junction of the Silver Lake and Los Feliz neighborhoods. Anyone who ever attended the Adams Morgan festival in D.C. can imagine a Hollywood version of the event. A place where hipsters, the Cuffs contingent (cuffs is a local leather bar), and the dwindling hispanic community (as well as anyone else who is brave or curious enough) converge onto a half-mile strip of street to eat, drink, see bands, strut their stuff, and...drink. "Donations" of 10bucks (up from the 5 it used to be when I first started attending) goes to at-risk children in the community to keep them "off the streets" (ironic huh). Previously, some pretty great bands have played. Sonic Youth, Elliot Smith, The Blasters... but beware, the stage is almost unapproachable for old foagies such as myself, who are left to stretch their necks from nearly a block away. The junction festival is actually the largest street festival in Los Angeles.

Selfishly, my reason to encourage all of you to attend, is so that you may help me by purchasing one of my freshly printed T-Shirts. The Silverlake series makes its return this year. These shirts have been nearly extinct for the last year or so due to my getting booted from my previous work space and simply not having time due to my full time job. But me and my buddy John are back with a new batch of shirts in a variety of colors and sizes. Both the Silver Lake Skunks and the Smell the Excitement versions will be available at Pull My Daisy which is located next to Eat Well cafe.

As well, a new design will make its premiere this year. Mixville shirts! Quickly stated, Tom Mix is a local icon who had his Mixville studios in the Silver Lake area during the silent era of film. John and I (now known as Free Assembly) have put together a swank looking shirt paying homage to Mr. Mix and his historic studio. We're really happy with how these turned out. I will post an image of the shirts with a little more information about Tom as soon as I can.

Silver Lake shirts will retail for $20 at the festival and probably rise to $22 after. The Mixville shirts will retail for $24.

Please support the fund raising of the festival. And PLEASE support your local neighborhood-centric T-shirt peddler!

If you can't make it to the junction or are interested in purchasing shirts after the function, send me an email at stinksgood@earthlink.net and we'll see whats left over or keep you updated to future print runs.

Weekend gone but not lost.

So, there were so many happenings this last weekend.

Shellac played three shows this weekend. I missed all of them. If anyone reading this went… please comment on the shows. Part of me hopes they were a disaster…like a disappointing meteor shower that you drive all the way out to the desert to see because it only occurs every five years…Simply because I don’t want to hear that I missed the event of the summer. But let me have it regardless. By the way, I was amazed how many people hadn't heard of Shellac, let alone Big Black. C'mon kids, know your past.

Another event I missed was the Burlesque show at the Orpheum. I had met the women who put on the event and it seems as though she put a lot of effort into it, so I hope it went well for her and I hope she is able to put on more events at the Orpheum. A burlesque show and then drinks at the Broadway bar next door certainly sounds like a swank night out.

Now don’t get me wrong, I did plenty this weekend. And no one can do everything that’s available in this town. These two events seemed especially good and it’s my own fault I missed them. Regardless, I’ll give you the lowdown on what I did actually manage to do.

Friday:
We wont discuss Friday. I was tired and grumpy and spent the night in.

Saturday:
Saturday afternoon I managed to finally get myself to the Autry to see the Once Upon a Time in Italy exhibit about Sergio Leone’s spaghetti western movies. Gobs of vintage posters, production sketches, and props from the films and a healthy look at what provoked Sergio to re-invent the American Western icon.

Yeah, I know I’ve sung the praise of the Autry before, and I’ll do it once again. The exhibit design is solid and entertaining. It’s a small exhibit that takes little time to walk through unless you sit and watch all the documentaries available, which are worth the time if you don’t feel like reading. The exhibit will be available for viewing through January, so you've got time but don't slack and miss it.

The Autry will be showing the Leone trilogy in the next few Saturdays on the lawn of the museum. The event is free to the public. If you can’t deal with the crowds at Sunset Junction next Saturday night, stop by the Autry instead.

Saturday night, I headed over to West Hollywood to hang with the honey and see a movie. We first had dinner at Gaucho Grill. An Argentinean restaurant in a strip mall next to the Sunset Five. The place was surprisingly good. The interior is typical Hollywood drab. Nothing special. But the food was quite tasty and bountiful. We ordered one chicken and one salmon dish. I don’t think we managed to finish either but not without our best effort.

After dinner we walked over to the Sunset Five and saw Jim Jarmusch’s new movie Broken Flowers. Although his movies can be hit or miss, I’ve been pretty devout in seeing any movie directed by this guy since I discovered Strangers in Paradise in college. Cigarettes and Coffee had its moments but suffered from Jarmusch’s love for awkward silence that can either make or break his films. In Broken Flowers Jim creates what might be the closest to a real narrative movie. Regardless, it pure Jarmusch; a traveling meandering story with periods of epic silence and mundanely hilarious scenarios. The acting is great, not only by Bill Murray who can probably walk through the jaded aging clown character that he’s mastered in the last few years, but by all the actors and actress’ who make their appearances here. I highly recommend the film.

Sunday:
Sunday I dropped off my latest batch of Silver lake shirts to Pull My Daisy for the Junction next weekend. I’ll hype this a bit more later in the week. Afterwards, Jenny and I had some overpriced salads at the Kasbah and then drove around checking out open houses around the east side. Prices are high, but there were a few houses that showed promise…but we were just browsing…really, don’t get any ideas. The Sunday ended at Kelly and Hueys in Glasell Park for a small party celebrating our friend David’s birthday. A very nice way to end it all.

So although I might have sounded glum about missing some good events this weekend, all in all the time wasn’t wasted.

Buck McGibbony

Earlier today, I mentioned that my old friend Buck is currently in the hospital fighting to recover from a motorcycle accident. I’d like to take a minute to say a few words about Buck McGibbony.

When I moved out to LA it was to work for a company, then called Insomniac, that was developing some interesting video game properties. Buck was employed as a programmer at Insomniac. Although a talented programmer, Buck is also deeply rooted in LA’s underground. At the time, he was the bassist for Farflung. Farflung was a psychedelic/space rock band with a devout following.

Buck hooked me up with Paige Jerret’s crew at KBLT, Los Angeles’ now infamous pirate radio station in Silver Lake.
I managed to fill in for a few DJ’s at KBLT for the last 6 months of its existence. This was without a doubt, one of the most gratifying experiences i've had in LA. Although I was incredibly shy and didn’t talk to many of the other DJ’s, being a part of it all was a huge thrill. Without Buck, I’m sure I would have never heard of the station, let alone get a chance to DJ there.

Buck grew restless at Insomniac and decided to go chase UFO’s in Colorado. Yeah, Space Rock was not just some random genre to Buck. He’s deeply interested in the potential of discovering what is lying beyond our planets and was sure that our government was/is hiding some essential information from us. So he left to reveal the conspiracy.

A year or two later, I bumped into Buck. He had moved back, having been foiled by whoever keeps the secrets secret. I continued to see him here and there for a bit, and then I’m sure our cultures took separate paths as they inevitably do for most.

I actually haven’t seen or talked to Buck for years. And I can’t tell you whether he still shares the passions that I described here.

Regardless, out of the blue, after only a week of subscribing to a local alternative mailing list I received notice of his accident.

I feel sure that Buck will rebound from this with the energy he’s had for all his challenges.

Self Help

One thing that I miss about my home town of Washington D.C. is the sense of community and natural tendency towards interest in non-profit organizations. I don't know if it was the circle of friends I found myself in, or simply that Washington is the nations capital and therefore a natural center of activism and social justice.

In Los Angeles, small alternative institutions can get swallowed up if they don't find some way of gaining mainstream acceptance.

Self Help graphics is a latino-centric collective for the arts that has managed to keep the momentum going for some 30 odd years. That is until a few months ago when Self Help unsuspectingly shut its doors just weeks before their popular yearly print sale. An institution that gathered artists from Boyle Heights and beyond to express their artistic visions since the early 70's had seemed to be met with a silent demise.

Luckily, many refused to stay silent and decided to revive the center. Self Help Graphics plans to re-open its doors in late September. The print sale is tentatively scheduled for September 25th. Please go out to the sale and support the program and the artists it gives life to.

Another institution I've just been introduced to, that I'm sure could use extra support is a book store in Highland Park called Flor y Canto. Flor y Canto is a community center and radical bookstore that offers a place for alternative political and social information and dialogue. I have yet to visit the store, so I'll reserve my praise for or against the politics and messages it may premote. But as far as I'm concerned, alternative dialogues are an important part of progressing our society and world and should be supported whenever possible. So stop by the bookstore and check out its offerings. For a more passive showing of support, try purchasing one of their cool shirts they have to offer (check the T-shirt section of the website).

Self Help Graphics is located at 3802 Cesar E. Chavez Ave, Los Angeles CA 90063.
Flor y Canto is located at 3706 N.Figueroa Ave Los Angeles, CA 90065 In NortheastLA

A quick burst of hope

An old friend of mine is, at this moment, going into surgery for some serious injuries due to a motorcycle accident. My contact with him has asked me to send out a prayer to him. I'm not terribly religious, but I do believe in the power of positive energy in general....so if you're reading this between 3 and 9p.m. on tuesday, please find your own way to wish Buck a quick and full recovery.

Big Foot

If I were younger, or not so beaten down by the man at the end of the day, or if I weren't busy writing this thing...I might be here...

THE BIGFOOT LODGE - 3172 Los Feliz Blvd., (323) 662-9227 “LA’s only log cabin lounge!”
Open 5:00 p.m. to 2:00 a.m. daily - 21 AND OVER WITH ID - Never a cover

THURSDAYS: HEE HAW HELL (Pabst Blue Ribbon Night) $2.00 Pabst, $3.00 Whiskey shots, DJ SMOKEY P spins from 8:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. DJ MORGAN takes over the turntables from 10:00 p.m. to 2:00 a.m. playing punk, rockabilly, garage, '60s, soul and '80s. SPENCER LEE projects his mondo collection of unintentionally subversive home movies, original prints of government films,
rough cuts of unfinished pornographic oddities and “educational” teenage dating films from the ‘40s to the ‘70s on the Bigfoot’s big screen!

Voted Best in LA

That's what the sign at Rick's Burgers reads. Voted best what, you may ask? Well, thats up to you to find out. Although I wouldn't say Rick's is the BEST burger stand in LA, in a pinch it'll do the trick if you're living in the Silverlake/Angelino Heights area. Ricks is located on Fletcher and Riverside.

I usually go for the Rick's Super Special. Burger, fresh fries, and a drink (including a tasty Orange Bang) for $4.99. Rick's seems clean and fresh.

My vote for best burger probably goes to the late Jay's Jay Burger, but since The Man has put Jay's down once again the vote is now up for grabs. Unfortunately, I'm going on a diet for the next month or two, so the competition will have to wait.

He Fatty

I just started a new book. I Fatty, by Jerry Stahl. A novel about the silent era comedy star Fatty (Roscoe) Arbuckle. You may have noticed the guerilla marketing around the neighborhood for the book.

Fatty, in his day, was more popular then Charlie Chaplin. The first comedian to produce and direct his own films. He was the originator of the pie in face sight gag. A true rags to riches story. Unfortunately he was also the classic sad clown. Drowning his sorrows in booze and drugs. One of his frequent watering holes was the Tam O'shanter on Los Feliz blvd. in Atwater.

I’ve been to the Tam only once. The place is worth checking out if you’re in the mood for a steak or pot-pie and whatnot. The bar (fatties favorite room) is supposed to be pretty great as well. In the coming weeks I’m hoping to return to spot for a more discerning analysis.

So far, I’m diggin the book. Although a pretty major bummer its also a page turner. I’ll give a complete review upon completion.

A Real Champion

Shortly after arriving to Los Angeles back in 1995 some friends of mine took me into Compton to a little but infamous blues bar called Babe and Ricky’s. Although I grew up walking the streets of Washington D.C. (voted most dangerous city in the US for a few years in a row), driving down to Compton kind of scared the hell out of me. The Rodney King riots were still in my mind and the neighborhoods still showed the effects of fires.

Regardless, we arrived to the bar without a scratch. The bar, small and intimate, was half filled with people who welcomed us and made us feel right at home.

A singer took the stage (well, from what I remember, there wasn’t much of a stage). The singer was a short aging woman with a gold baseball hat on. I really didn’t expect much. Although I guess I was vaguely aware of LA’s R&B history, I really didn’t have much respect for it as a Blues town. The singers name was (and is) Mickey Champion. Mickey began to belt out some songs. I don’t remember exactly what she sang, but I was definitely impressed. At one point in the performance, I turned my head to order another beer and when I focused back on Mickey I had noticed that she had placed the mic on a chair and was singing “unplugged”. Amazingly, I could hear no change in volume, in fact she might have sounded louder. Such a tiny woman, such a shiny gold cap, such an amazing voice.

This was one of many early experiences that made me grow to love the city that many people back home were sure I’d despise.

Well, we all agreed that we needed to come back to Babe and Ricky’s to see Mickey belt it out again. But for some reason, as time went by we forgot about Mickey and the bar and focused on venues closer to home.

Earlier this week I received a posting about a tribute to Mickey at a bar called Little Pedros. Much to my dismay, Mickey is certainly still singing it like nobodies business. I missed the tribute, but Mickey plays at Pedros just about every Tuesday (where chicken and corn bread is served) as well as still making appearances at Babe and Ricky’s as well as a few other venues.

Although it seems as though Mickey remains to be an immortal voice, I fear that the body can only remain so long. So get off your butt and check out Mickey Champion at one of many venues around town. She also has a new CD out that should probably be played at 11 to really get the full effect.

War of the Worlds

An early contender for coolest event of the weekend is:

Summer Cinema Night & Fundraiser: August 13.

Join us for an outdoor screening of the 1953 sci-fi classic "War of theWorlds" on Saturday, Aug. 13 at 7:30 pm. Admission, which includes snacks donated by Taix and Barragan's restaurants, is $8 for EPHS members and $10 for all others. Send your reservation to ephs@HistoricEchoPark.org.

Although Cinespia gets props for reviving the outdoor theater, its gotten way too crowded. Hopefully this neighborhood event will draw enough people to help the fundraiser yet remain low key and just below the radar.

If you're a West Sider and looking for something louder this weekend, check out Liquid Kitty's Punk Rock BBQ! Its on sunday during the day, from 1:30-7:30. Among others, Backbiter (ex-members of Clawhammer and Angry Samoans) and Chuck Dukowski Sextet (ex Black Flag, S.W.A.) are playing. Have never heard either bands, but you can't deny the history.

Blech!

Just discovered Bleep, Warp Records alternative to itunes. Although a single song costs 1.35, buying the whole album avareges the same as purchasing an album on itunes. Plus, its kinda like shopping at a local record store instead of a big ass Virgin or something. Check it out if you're in the market for some fresh idm.

In West Virginia we call em Farkles

Farkles are a variation of red-necks that had a propensity to pee and bath (yeah, they're that smart) in the river.

In Italy, it seems to be the Coke-heads who are all peeing in the river. And there seems to be a damn lot of em.

Extreme Pogo

So how insane is this thing?

It looks like something out of a 70's Disney flick. Flubber vs. the Flybar.

Yeah, its called the Flybar and its a Pogo Stick on Meth. This thing can propel the rider vertically 5 feet into the air. Its manufactured by the company that produced the original Pogo Stick back in the day. It was invented by some insane mother fucker from MIT (what do these guys get paid for over there?) and indorsed by Andy Mac who I guess is a major skate board name but i'm so out of that world its not even funny.

I stumbled across the item on Amazon for about 100 bucks off its list price of $400. Not really something you're going to buy your 5 year old for some summer fun....but what the hell.

I'm thinking they should give security guards these things at outlet malls instead of the Segway. I just love the idea of a team of foolish rent-a-cops bouncing around me like a swarm of super balls.

Make sure you check out the demo video to see what this thing can really do.

Senor Rico

At my place of employment, I'd hesitate to say that at least a third of the workers are hispanic. So, understandably, much of the food offered in the lunch room caters to this population. And this is certainly fine with me. Tamales, Papusas, Tacos, Flan, Chilequiles, and much more are offered during lunch. Some of my favorite foods. Some caterers are better then others, but thats to be expected.

But what is one to do after lunch? Mid-afternoon, a few hours after lunch and a few hours before the end of the work day, what is a man to do to get that extra empty calories to get through the day. Well, the only place to turn when working in a factory in the middle of warehouse row in downtown LA is the vending machines. Luckily, even the vending machines cater to the audience I have mentioned. Doritos brand chili lime chips, Sangria sodas, and funky microwave burritos (which i'll review later) are offered.

But my favorite these days, is the Mexican Style rice pudding offered by Senor Rico. Made in Gardena, California and delivered daily it is usually quite fresh. Each cup is topped off with a dusting of cinnamon that really makes it a step up. Every few weeks a Dulce de Leche version appears with an incredibly sweet caramel at the bottom.

The other thing that I find entertaining about Senor Rico Rice Pudding is its Logo. When the name Senor Rico would suggest a regal male figure, the character found to the left of the logo is a peppy little girl.... or is she? Regardless, it has a cuteness and style reminescent of japanese product design.

Not sure if Senor Rico is available anywhere else outside of the American Apparel food hall, but keep your eyes peeled.

Irregular Wining

So friday night I attended my 4th of several drunken cultural events held by one Julien Davies at the Echo in… Echo Park. He now calls it the Irregular Wine Tasting, previously titled Extreme Wine Tasting.

The event typically includes a tasting of 6 different wines from a select winery of Juliens choice. Paired with the wine is a theme that is always as much of a non-sequiter as anything uttered by the man himself. The event is half booze, and half Julien belting out surreal bombast about whatever comes into his head. Much of it is amusing….some just perplexing. Regardless, between the banter the audience is encouraged to drink as much of the selected wine as is available. A DJ compliments it all with tunes hand selected for the occasion. As well, bread and cheese is served.

So yeah, its as close to punk rock wine tasting as one can get. And a lot of fun too. Corks are inevitably thrown at heckling drunks, communal seating makes for interesting conversation.

The event is held, I believe, monthly if not bi-monthly. The crowd, according to Julien, ranges in size. Reservations are suggested, but you can usually squeeze in the night of and entry will cost you 20bucks.

Julien is also the wine buyer for the Silver Lake Cheese Shop and holds informal wine tastings there on the weekends.

After the event, my friends and I staggered over to the Bright Spot Diner less then a block away. Despite my efforts in being as much a SL hipster as possible I had actually never been to the Bright Spot. I was pleasantly surprised. The place has an old wood interior with the ubiquitous red vinyl booths. The food was pretty damn good for Diner fair. Jenny and I split a plate of chili fries that were flavorful but not greasy at all. Kelly got a plate of Huevos Rancheros that looked damn good, and must’ve been cause she didn’t offer me any.

All in all a solid evening in Echo Park.