Quarantine Online Sets: Version 36

The following online sets took place nearly two weeks back, but I still have fond memories of a recent Wednesday night. It started off with WFNM and Disco Shrine. This is the second time Disco Shrine has played an online set for WFNM. I'm pretty sure I got a shout out at the start of the set. I love getting shout outs. It only happens on rare occasions. What's so cool about her online sets is that they're so similar to her live sets. She spent the set dancing to the camera with microphone in hand. A highlight song was her recent release, "Future Memories."

Disco Shrine

Next up was Royal and the Serpent. I just recently came across them via a Buzzbands' Spotify playlist. On the playlist was the song, "Overwhelmed." I was immediately overwhelmed by the song. I couldn't get it out of my head. The lead singer has rather unique vocals. For WFNM, I loved her interaction with the online audience. A very memorable set. 

Royal and the Serpent

Karmic closed out the night on WFNM. The whole band got together for their set. The two lead singers just have the best vocals. They blend together for some New Age Jazz sounds. There is also the undercurrent of Latin influence. This is the type of music you play while on a drive up the California coast. 

Karmic

After Karmic, I switched over to Desert Nights to catch Lauren Barth. While she played, I imagined myself sitting at a coffee house. I was drinking hot chocolate and eating chocolate chip cookies. And I was scanning a photography book while the beautiful music drifted through my ears. Someday.

Lauren Barth

Quick Hit Band Interview: Karmic

Karmic at Sunstock Solar Festival

Interview with the band. Enjoy:

Is there a specific decision the band has made (good or bad) that it feels other bands/artists can learn from? We have really stuck to the idea that there is strength in numbers. We have a really great team around us of fellow musicians, managers, friends, supporters, and it's all about lifting each other up. Any business can get greedy, but this is the antithesis where we are all working together for a greater good.

Sunstock Solar Festival 2018

This year's Sunstock Solar Festival took on the vibe of a prior festival called Bloomfest that used to happen in the Arts District. Sunstock took over Gramercy Place, which is between the major streets of Hollywood and Franklin in Hollywood. The street had a stage on one end and then various food trucks, advocacy tables, vendors and art installations set up along the street corridor. There was even a children's tent. Though Gramercy might be a relatively unknown street in Los Angeles, there were plenty of ways to get to it via public transportation. I personally took the opportunity to jump on the 180 metro line to get to the festival. There was also a very chill environment surrounding the festival. There was no formal entrance. No one was checking bags. Though there were police and security, they mainly stayed at the two entrances and the beer garden. It really had a neighborhood feel to it, which is also what made Bloomfest so fun (even though in both Bloomfest and Sunstock cases, I did not live in the neighborhoods).

Karmic

You also know an event is a success when crowds refuse to allow the final band of the night to stop singing, Karmic. In fact, the crowd pushed Karmic to go 5 minutes pass the 10 p.m. cut-off time by demanding an encore. The crowd just ate up this duo's electronic pop beats.

Top Shelf Brass Band

Trapdoor Social

Top Shelf Brass Band perhaps stole the day with their brass band sounds. They had the crowd dancing and basically going nuts throughout their 30 minute set. Trapdoor Social, led by Sunstock Solar Festival founder Skylar, also got the crowd going with their anthem sounding rock-pop sounds.

Valley Hush

Valley Hush opened the festival with some chill vibes. One individual in the crowd told me that they are for sure the next indie band from Los Angeles to breakout.

Kinney

Kinney had a short set just before Karmic hit the stage. One has to give her the award for being the most supportive musician of the festival. She was out there dancing along to nearly all the bands.

El Mañana

The Epilogues

Other bands playing the festival were El Mañana, The Epilogues and Cayucas. The Epilogues were playing their first set after a couple years apart. Essentially, it was their reunion show. Cayucas brought some tropical sounds. Did I really see 3 synth/keyboards spread across the stage? El Mañana brought some Latin American inspired pop sounds.

Cayucas