This is Los Angeles. When you hear fabulous vocals from a singer, your first thought is that this person competed in American Idol (okay, or The Voice). That is the case when it comes to Perrin York who was a contestant in Season 18 (aired in 2020) of American Idol.
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| Perrin York at Hotel Ziggy |
Gretchen Klempa split her set at Zebulon into two. Her first three songs were from a previously released album called Human Nature. The next three songs were new songs. Then she ended the set with Dogbite that her fans recognized with cheers.
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| Gretchen Klempa at Zebulon |
I will admit that I was feeling this deep desire to catch some live music. I totally understand that due to the fires that hit Los Angeles starting January 7th that venues needed to shut down due to the potential for the fires to spread (as well as thick smoke that would have made for very uncomfortable situations inside the venues for both the musicians and audience) and a show of empathy. In fact, I was ready to go out on January 8th to Hotel Ziggy to catch Kat French, but then the Sunset Fires flared up and I thought that was a really stupid idea.
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| Ultraviolet Communication at Club Tee Gee |
I have not seen Ben Reddell perform all that often, but he is a very familiar face in the Los Angeles music scene. He is one of the movers and shakers in the Americana-Country scene as he curates the Grand Ole Echo series each year at The Echo. The 2025 series should be starting up on the last Sunday of March or the first Sunday of April. I tangentially did a Q&A related to the Grand Ole Echo last year. If interested, you can read my interview with Charlie Overbey over on US Rocker Music. He was playing Grand Ole Echo to celebrate his In Good Company record release. I unfortunately wasn't able to make the record release party as I was up in Big Bear - that sounds like an Americana thing to do, right?
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| Ben Reddell at Club Tee Gee |
A Handful of Show Alerts
Sunday, Feb 23rd: Osnova at Gold Diggers. Doors at 7 p.m.I walked into Zebulon and John Williams was being blasted over the loudspeakers. The music sparked a sense of positivity. The massive Los Angeles fires had just started that day and evening (Tuesday) and there wasn't yet an understanding of the true magnitude of the damage. Yet, it is depressing when there are fires that burn across Los Angeles and the music gave that window of good cheer (that obviously did not last when the reality of the situation hit home).
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| Cesar Maria at the Zebulon |
Strangely, the last time I was at Permanent Records Roadhouse was June of 2024. That really needed to change quickly in 2025. I happened to notice via Night Talks that there was an Altadena Wildfire relief event occurring on a Friday night at 6 p.m. What better way to spend a Friday night: donate funds to those impacted by the Eaton Canyon fire and catch a favorite band called Night Talks.
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| Maryze at Permanent Records Roadhouse |
