NFV Song Spotlight: Jia Pet's just shut up

When it comes to covering shows for a blog site (be it in the past for Buzzbands or currently for US Rocker Music), I am always there to cover the opening band. Honestly, I don't think I've ever missed an opener while covering a night for a blog site. Caveat being when there were strict restrictions on being able to shoot inside a venue where photo passes were band specific, which isn't on me. 

Jia Pet at the Lodge Room

That obviously applied to catching the opening act for SASAMI, Jia Pet, at Lodge Room. You can read my official review with photos here for US Rocker Music. What first caught my attention when Jia Pet hit the stage was her radiant smile. That alone built up some anticipation to what was upcoming. Personally, I had no idea what to expect as I'd never heard of Jia Pet before and had done no research on her music. That anticipation for the set was also helped by the fact that I'm going to assume that a couple of her friends were stage center on the floor and were enthusiastically responding to every moment of the set. 

The song spotlight is her second and third song of the night: "just shut up . . ." The reason that it is her second and third song was that she mentioned that she was gong to play it again. There was no complaints from the audience about that idea of hitting the tracks once again.

Jia Pet at the Lodge Room

The first five words of the lyrics got me, "I'm hanging on a cigarette." It is sung with almost monotone vocals, but there is this undertone of a hook to it. Personally, I don't smoke. So why would I love that opening line? It reminded me of Ariel Beesley song "Slower Than Usual." (Ariel Beesley, one of my favorite Los Angeles artists, now sings under the moniker Tender Misfit.) The part of her lyrics that talks about a cigarette goes as such, "Smoke your cigarette, slower than usual." 

The two songs are vastly different. Tender Misfit's song is punk pop and is about falling in love one night. You can watch the music video here if interested. Jia Pet's is a electronic song and is about "acting up and doing something I'll regret." A song about being young and doing things that everyone else thinks will result in regret. 

Jia Pet at the Lodge Room

I've mentioned this in past blog posts. I love watching TCM. I love watching movies from the 1930s and 1940s. Someone smoking a cigarette can be very poetic. Who cares if it causes cancer or not -- at least in the moment. Because seriously, "Everyone, Shut Up!"

Setlist: Neuro Fuzz, just shut up . . ., just shut up . . ., candy painted misfit, Bubbly, Cuckoo, Interlude (A Bee's Dream), come home honey, Ribbon.

Notes from Vivace Show Alerts (Los Angeles): June 22nd - June 28th

A Handful (Bucketful) of Show Alerts

Sunday, Jun 22nd: Night Talks at The Paramount. Doors at 7 p.m.
I covered the band in 2022 for Buzzbands. You can read it here.

Sunday, Jun 22nd: Soft Palms at Gold-Diggers. Doors at 7 p.m.
You can read my "Rainbows" song spotlight here.

Tuesday, Jun 24th: Disco Shrine at The Roxy. Doors at 7 p.m.

I've known the genius behind Disco Shrine, Jessica Delijani, for years. You can read my 2019 US Rocker Music Q&A here.

Tuesday, Jun 24th: Mikayla McLean at Hotel Ziggy. Doors at 7 p.m.

You can read my "Run!" song spotlight here.

Wednesday, Jun 25th: Seko at The Goldfish. Doors at 8 p.m.

You can read my "Danny's Song" song spotlight here.  

Wednesday, Jun 25th: The Red Pears and Archer Oh at The Echo. Doors at 7 p.m. Sold Out.

I covered both bands for US Rocker Music in 2024. You can read that article here. 

Thursday, Jun 26th: Billy Tibbals at Zebulon. Doors at 7 p.m.

You're always in for a great show when seeing Billy Tibbals.

Thursday, Jun 26th: The Red Pears at The Smell. Doors at 8 p.m. Sold Out.

Thursday, Jun 26th: WFNM's Grant Owens' birthday party at Bar Lubitsch. Doors at 7 p.m.

Friday, Jun 27th: Boy Deluxe at The Goldfish. Doors at 8 p.m.

You can read my "Bait" song spotlight here.

Friday, Jun 27th: Julez and the Rollerz at the Moroccan Lounge. Doors at 6:30 p.m.

You can read my "Call Me Up" song spotlight here.

Saturday, Jun 28th: Dengue Fever at Levitt Pavilion. Doors at 7 p.m.

I caught this band back at the 2017 Music Taste Good festival in Long Beach. You can read about that festival here.

Saturday, Jun 28th: Dum Dum Fest at The Echo. Doors at 6 p.m. Festival headlined by Male Tears.

Saturday, Jun 28th: Eastside Fux Vol III Festival (via Badass Bands) at Zebulon. Doors at 3 p.m. Festival headlined by Jagged Baptist Club.

Saturday, Jun 28th: Suzie True at Scribble. Doors at 8 p.m.
I covered their 2024 set for US Rocker Music. You can read that article here.

NFV Song Spotlight: SASAMI's Lose It All

I first came across SASAMI in January 2019 at The Echo. 

SASAMI at the Lodge Room

There's a little fun music history involved in that. 

First, The Echo used to have FOMO week. The first week of January would be dedicated to free shows at The Echo. Like any year during that music era, the week was packed with top notch local bands (you can see a schedule here). Here are some awesome performers:

NFV Song Spotlight: Hysteria's Reason to Pray

Hysteria fronted by Dakota Cosgrove took to the Zebulon for only their second set ever. The set was to celebrate their "Reason to Pray" single release. I wasn't planning on heading out on Memorial Day. I was going to stay home and watch an old war movie (Where Eagles Dare), because of . . . well . . . Memorial Day. I did watch that movie at a later date. Was it a good idea to head out to Zebulon on this night? It definitely was. 

Hysteria at Zebulon

NFV Song Spotlight: MacGregor Burns' Paradise Motel

I went off to a Ryan Pollie presents night at The Fable mainly to catch Swimming Bell. I'd seen Swimming Bell back in 2022 and figured I'd catch another set. If I were more real life work focused, I probably should have been tapping away at my computer instead of heading out to The Fable. The company I work for is going through system upgrades and people who send out reports are sending the reports out much later than normal and the reports are filled with errors. It will all get resolved eventually, but there's always that rough patch where sometimes you just got to put in the extra effort to deal with all. Well, I was like screw it, it is 8 p.m., I'm heading out to catch some live music. I should note that I don't always prioritize music over work. I often pass on various assignments for US Rocker Music due to real life work. Don't worry, I'm not trying to drive myself into unemployment due to my love of the LA music scene, but I do try to walk that fine line. 

MacGregor Burns at The Fable

NFV Song Spotlight: Julez and the Rollerz' Call Me Up

On Julez and the Rollerz's Instagram account, they announced that they were "playing a short and sweet set" at Permanent Records Roadhouse. Before heading out, that announcement was a bit of a disappointment for me. This was the first time I was going to catch the band in about a year and they were going to play a shortened set? Then I got to the venue and saw that they were playing a 9 song set. Hmm, that seemed like a normal number of songs to play during a set. Also, my estimate is that their set clocked in at the 30 minute mark. That to me is your standard set length in the LA music scene so I feel like I got more than anticipated of their 60s retro rock. I suppose that is called under-promising and over-delivering? 

Julez and the Rollerz at Permanent Records Roadhouse

NFV Song Spotlight: Audrey Lisette Band's Take Back the Memories

The Audrey Lisette Band Instagram page describes their music as "genre fluid band." The Spotify bio says that their music mixes jazz, rock, and blues. The band's WFNM night at Hotel Ziggy definitely aligned and expanded on that description. The set opened up with "Love Again" that featured her deep vocals and 70s rock chops. The song has addictive climatic moments that resolve in repeat fashion. The song ended with a lengthy and enjoyable riff.  

Audrey Lisette Band at Hotel Ziggy

Notes from Vivace Show Alerts (Los Angeles): June 15th - June 21st

A Handful of Show Alerts

Sunday, Jun 15th: El Colmo at Alex's Bar. Doors at 2 p.m.

You can read my review of 2024 set on US Rocker Music here.

Sunday, Jun 15th: Shamon Cassette at Permanent Records Roadhouse. Doors at 9 p.m.
Played the Happy Sundays Festival in 2024. You can read my US Rocker Music review of the festival here. 

Wednesday, Jun 18th: Giselle at Hotel Ziggy. Doors at 7 p.m.

You can read my song spotlight "Skeletons" here.

Friday, Jun 20th: Broken Baby at Permanent Records Roadhouse. Doors at 9 p.m.

Played  the Happy Sundays Festival in 2023. You can read my Buzzbands review of the festival here. 

Friday, Jun 20th: Jesika Von Rabbit at The Redwood Bar. Doors at 8 p.m.

You can read my song spotlight "Psychic Spice" here.

Friday, Jun 20th: Jordan Gruver at Hotel Cafe. Doors at 7 p.m.

Made my 2024 list of "favorite new to me, but maybe not to you" list. You can read that list here.

Friday, Jun 20th: Lone Kodiak at The Echo. Doors at 7 p.m.

Caught the band way back in 2016.

Friday, Jun 20th: Ramonda Hammer at Gold-Diggers. Doors at 7 p.m.
I covered their 2019 set for Buzzbands. You can read it here. 

Friday, Jun 20th: Valley Queen at Scribble. Doors at 8 p.m.

Saw Valley Queen three times in 2024. 

Saturday, Jun 21st: Shannon Lay at Zebulon. Doors at 7 p.m.

You can read my song spotlight "All This Life Going Down" here. 

Saturday, Jun 21st: Trousdale at the El Rey Theatre. Bands start at 8 p.m.

I covered the band in 2021 for Buzzbands. You can read that list here.

NFV Song Spotlight: Swimming Bell's 95 at Night

I first came across Swimming Bell, the moniker for Katie Schottland, in late November 2022. I was off to Permanent Records Roadhouse to catch an Emily Rose & the Rounders set and Swimming Bell was the opening band for me (I say opening for me as I missed Selland & Starr set -- I believe this was the night I was expecting Selland & Starr to come on after Emily Rose and was hanging out around the stage while the Permanent Records crew was breaking down equipment and I finally realized I missed their set). I learned at the time via one of my Q&A interviews that Schottland is a New York native and had moved to Los Angeles a couple years back. Since that was 2022, I'd say she's an adjusted Los Angeleno (or maybe not).   

Swimming Bell at The Fable

NFV Song Spotlight: Ferry Townes' Salt

Ferry Townes, the moniker for Julia Gargano, walked up to the Hotel Ziggy microphone during a WFNM night with a smile and an enthusiasm for her music that was shared by the audience. It didn't take long for someone to yell out, "So f*cking awesome." Her response, "Thank you, dude."

Ferry Townes at Hotel Ziggy

As I've mentioned in past blog posts, WFNM has an in with American Idol contestants. Now personally, I long ago stopped watching American Idol. My amusing excuse is that I can just catch a more curated American Idol in person at a WFNM night at either Hotel Ziggy or Bar Lubitsch. Gargano was part of Season 18 and finished 7th. Per her bio, her moniker Ferry Townes is a homage to The Staten Island Ferry, which she used frequently, having grown up on Staten Island.

Her music has an alternative pop quality that at times tip-toes over to alternative country such as her opening song "Roll One More." That song hooked me immediately. She then told the audience, "God, it feels so good to scream into a microphone right now, to be honest, it's been that type of week." With that, she launched into "Death This Morning" which is about a time when she was hanging out in London and had one too many margaritas even though she had a session the next morning.

Ferry Townes at Hotel Ziggy

When someone called out that her music was ferocious. She responded with, "Ferocious, I've got to use that adjective more often. Guys, you're a ferocious crowd." She then went into "More Than You Deserve," which is about giving a guy way too many chances. While tuning up for the cover of Miley Cyrus' High, she asked the audience to listen carefully to the lyrics. 

And I don't miss you, but, I think of you and don't know why

Ferry Townes at Hotel Ziggy

The meaning of that Cyrus song was a perfect lead-in to the song "Salt." She introduced the song by saying, "It's about the moment that you let someone go and then they just move on. What's that about? I have pride. I'd never go back and tell that person I was feeling that way, but here's the truth of that time." Like her over-all set, "Salt" was played solo with her on guitar. While strumming the guitar strings, she gave her vocals an emotionally raspy and strained quality. During a musical bridge, she whistled in a shaky manner that had one thinking she just might break out into tears. 

It's rude that you still wear the shirt that you knew was my favorite
Wish I could pour my perfume all over your bed

Quote of the night while tuning: Awkward silene or a bad joke?

Setlist (likely not in the correct order as Ferry Townes jumped around the songs list): Roll One More, Death This Morning, There It Was, Be Here, Aftermath, More Than You Deserve, High (Miley Cyrus cover), Salt, Ruby.

NFV Song Spotlight: Danny's Song by Seko

Seko was the first band up during Pretty But Wicked's night at Zebulon. I was impressed as soon as the first notes were played of their opening song "Say Hi To The Son." While writing this blog post, I had to do some research on the band (I had never heard of them before). To be honest, my first observation was that their band name is very similar to the long time Los Angeles band Sego. 

Seko at Zebulon

NFV Song Spotlight: Jagged Baptist Club's Temptation Death House

Jagged Baptist Club took to the Permanent Records Roadhouse stage, yelling out "Los Angeles!!!" The band is fronted by Blake Stokes who has to rank as one of the more engaging lead singers of the Los Angeles music scene. He gave his audience a complement after their first song of the night, "Now ladies and gentlemen of Los Angeles, California, I have to tell you something . . . I'm already impressed. We were playing eleven shows in England. And they were very good at clapping. And in the past, you Americans have not been very good at clapping. But guess what, you're very good at clapping." He then called out someone who had stopped clapping to the beat set by their drummer Morgan Ponder. 

Jagged Baptist Club at Permanent Records Roadhouse

NFV Song Spotlight: Memo PST's I Used To Be A Pretty Boy

Memo PST brought the punk to Zebulon. One has to give it up to Secret Fires who booked a great night of music. The night did belong to the headliners Gustaf, but Memo PST was not to be ignored. The band "was formed in 2022 by longtime associates Orville Neeley and Chris Shaw." Neeley takes the electric guitar duties while Shaw handles the vocals and front man responsibilities. 

Memo PST at Zebulon

Notes from Vivace Show Alerts (Los Angeles): June 8th - June 14th

A Handful of Show Alerts

Sunday, Jun 8th: Dagger Polyester at Zebulon. Doors at 7 p.m.
In 2023, I covered the band for Buzzbands, which you can read here

Sunday, Jun 8th: Lauren Lakis and Taleen Kali at The Echo. Doors at 7 p.m.
In 2023, I covered Lauren Lakis for US Rocker Music, which you can read here.

Also, in 2023, I covered Taleen Kali for Buzzbands, which you can read here.

Monday, Jun 9th: Ultraviolet Communication at Club Tee Gee. Doors at 8 p.m.
You can read my "No Return" Song Spotlight here. 

Tuesday, Jun 10th: Lucy & La Mer at Hotel Ziggy. Doors at 7 p.m.

Flash back to 2017 when Lucy & La Mer made my list of Top New Bands (new to me, but maybe not new to you) list. You can see the list here. 

Wednesday, Jun 11th: Guantanamo Baywatch at Moroccan Lounge. Doors at 9:30 p.m.
In 2023, I covered their Happy Sundays Long Beach for Buzzbands, which you can read here.

Wednesday, Jun 11th / Thursday, Jun 12th: Zola Jesus at 2220 Arts. Doors at 8 p.m.

In 2022, I covered her set for Buzzbands, which you can read here

Thursday, Jun 12th: Bitter Half at Old Town Pup. Doors at 8 p.m.

You can read my "FY IMY" Song Spotlight here.

Saturday, Jun 14th: Ava Maybee at The Roxy. Doors at 7 p.m.
In 2024, I covered her for US Rocker Music, which you can read here.

Saturday, Jun 14th: Lily Waters at Boomtown Brewery. Doors at 8 p.m.
Just like Lucy & La Mer, Lily Waters made my 2017 Top New Bands. Same link. 

NFV Song Spotlight: Paper Citizen's Heart On Fire

I've been wanting to catch up with Paper Citizen for a few months now. The band is the brainchild of Singaporean Claire Gohst. I had previously circled a date at The Escondite in January, but the night got cancelled due to the Los Angeles fires. Fast forward three months and I noticed that she was playing another show at The Escondite. This time, there was no interference to my getting to catch a set other than a rather bad accident on the southbound 2 freeway, which resulted in a less than 30 minute trip turning into a 1 hour torture drive.

Paper Citizen at The Escondite

NFV Song Spotlight: Mini Trees' Spring

I first came across Mini Trees (the moniker for Lexi Vega) at the 2019 Echo Park Rising festival. If you so wish, you can find a photo I took here on a Buzzband's photo gallery from the festival. I only caught a song or two. That's just how it is when you're running and gunning for a blog site. The band played at Trencher. Trencher was a restaurant (since closed) and I remember people coming in and out to pick up or order food throughout the time I was there. 

Mini Trees at the Art Center College of Design

The duo of Jeffertitti and Chloe Kat charm at Hotel Cafe

It was off to Hotel Cafe on a Wednesday night to cover a Lisa Crawley single release party for her song "What You Can Do." I wrote up an article for US Rocker Music with a Q&A that you can read here. The night included the opening duo of Jeffertitti and Chloe Kat. This was my first time seeing Chloe Kat on stage (I believe, always possible I've seen her as part of a backing band) though I'm rather sure I've seen her around town. As for Jeffertitti Moon, well, what long time Los Angeles music fan hasn't crossed paths with Jeffertitti?

Jeffertitti and Chloe Kat at Hotel Cafe

Quick Hit Artist Interview: Jameson Tabor

Jameson Tabor recently played the WFNM at Bar Lubitsch with keyboard support from Elise Go. He had a million dollar smile and a dance performance that was no doubt influenced by his musical acting background. His engaging performance had the crowd chanting UFO with him during the song "UFO." UFO is the acronym for Unexplored Feelings of Obsession. With arms outstretched, he provided the early crowd with a warm singing embrace to start the night off on a positive note.

Jameson Tabor at Bar Lubitsch

NFV Song Spotlight: Madam Bombs' Girl with a Fuse

I first came across Madam Bombs at The Redwood Bar in 2022 when they played alongside Speed of Light and The Pumps. At the time, I was unfamiliar with the band. I had gone there specifically to catch Speed of Light and The Pumps. Speed of Light used play in the short lived, but memorable DIY punk scene Bands In A Barbershop. I was familiar with The Pumps via Rio Infante who played in the band Strawberry Army.

Madam Bombs at The Escondite

Notes from Vivace Show Alerts (Los Angeles): June 1st - June 7th

A Handful of Show Alerts

Monday, Jun 2nd: Raue at The Roxy. Doors at 7 p.m.

Made my list of favorite new to me bands of 2023.

Tuesday, Jun 3rd: Bitter Half at the The Escondite. Doors at 8 p.m.

You can read my "FY IMY" Song Spotlight here.

Thursday, Jun 5th: Swimming Bell at Permanent Records Roadhouse. Doors at 6 p.m.

Check out her recent release "96 at Night" here on Youtube. 

Friday, Jun 6th: Guantanamo Baywatch at Alex's Bar. Doors at 8 p.m.

I covered their 2023 set at Happy Sundays Long Beach for Buzzbands, which you can read here.

Friday, Jun 6th: Sunflower Bean, Gift, Tashaki Miyaki at the Lodge Room. Doors at 7 p.m. Set times start at 8 p.m.

I covered Sunflower Bean's 2024 set at Zebulon for US Rocker Music, which you can read here.

I did a 2024 Q&A with Gift for US Rocker Music, which you can read here. 

Check out my Tashaki Miyaki "City" Song Spotlight here.