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Old Canes is the work of Lawrence, KS native Chris Crisci (of The Appleseed Cast). The band has an eclectic indie-folk sound with lush instrumentation reminicent of Band of Horses or Sea Wolf. His most recent album Feral Harmonic was released on 10/20 through Omaha’s Saddle Creek Records. A limited edition set of HANDMADE CD & LP packaging is available. You can download an MP3 of “Trust” from Feral Harmonic here.

I highly recommend getting to the show by 9pm to see LA up-and-comers Sol Giant & I Will Never Be The Same. Drink specials kick in just as Old Canes takes the stage…the perfect Sunday!

Advance Tix Are Available for $8 or can be purchased at the door for $10.

Boom Boom Satellites at 12am, Old Canes at 11pm, I Will Never Be The Same at 10pm, Sol Giant at 9pm, The Salutation at 8pm, DJ High Voltage spinning throughout the night.

“I CAN’T PAY MY RENT BUT I’M FUCKING GORGEOUS!”

Recently signed to Perez Hilton’s label and even more recently signed to a huge deal with Interscope, New York glam punks SEMI PRECIOUS WEAPONS are a quartet of handsome gents burning high energy Rock N’ Roll that will sting your ears and tease your nethers. It’s danceably infectious AC/DC-meets-Rocky Horror swagger has been lighting up clubs for the past 3 years with fabulously filthy/gorgeous frontman Justin Tranter tearing up stages and after parties like a platinum-blond transvestite GODZILLA!

“I GOT A DIAMOND IN MY POCKET AND A GUN IN MY PURSE SCREAM SEMI PRECIOUS WEAPONS OR YOU MIGHT GET HURT!”

Rounding out the group is the unstoppable trio of Dynamite Drummer Dan Crean, Wig-Afficianato Guitarist Stevy Pyne and Bass Beast Cole Whittle using every inch of every stage at every show. As an exception to the rule, typically you would find an act that rocks this hard and dirty and looks this good to be light on real musical talent but SPW actually met at the prestigious Berklee College of music in Boston.

“STICKY WITH CHAMPAGNE, THAT’S OK IT’S HER BIRTHDAY!”

SPW will be doing 2 shows at The Viper Room in November: Friday the 13th & Wed the 25th. An excellent review of a trio of shows at The Viper Room last July can be found on their blog. A recent interview by Sunset Strip Ambassador and Buzzfinder Brent X. Mendoza with Lead Singer and Daytime Jewlery Designer Justin Tranter (Fetty) can be found @ TheSunsetStrip.com.

“HER HAIR, HER HAIR, HER HAIR IS ON FIRE! SHE DON’T NO WATER LET HER FUCKING HEAD BURN!”

Semi Precious Weapons are currently recording their follow up to 2008’s We Love You with Jack Joseph Puig in Los Angeles and will be opening for Lady Gaga on The Monster Ball Tour (LA Shows @ Nokia Dec 21-23).

“PUT A DIAMOND IN IT AND BITE DOWN!”

“ROCK AND ROLL NEVER LOOKED SO BEAUTIFUL!”

“Weezer is playing a sorta secret show @ The Roxy, u in?” was the text message that woke me up Monday morning. What a glorious way to start the week!

With little prompting I was invited to check out the show which ended up being an 8 song session which goes up Yahoo! Originals (similar to Sessions @ AOL) for Guitar Hero 5 Fridays. Mixed into their 8 song set were 2 new tracks, the current single “If You Are Wondering If I Want You To (I Want You To)“ and “I’m Your Daddy” from the upcoming album produced by Butch Walker. For those unfamiliar, Butch Walker was the focal point of late-90’s breakouts The Marvelous 3 and in the decade since has been writing and producing albums for some of the biggest hit-makers in the world (P!nk, Katy Perry, Avril Lavigne) while releasing brilliant solo albums revered by his rabidly dedicated fans…myself included.

As a fan of Weezer since 1994’s “Blue” Album (Released the Day before my 14th birthday …on Cassette!), and really, who wasn’t? I’ve been disappointed in most of what has been released after 2001’s “Green” (Released the day after my 21st Birthday). But fans of the old sound, take heart! If the 2 new songs from yesterday’s set are any indication of a paradigm shift in Weezer’s sound then I am happy to announce that Butch Walker may have finally cured Weezer of their bad case of queso that plagued most of their 2000’s singles. “Troublemaker” makes my stomach physically ache.

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Living in LA provides the advantageous opportunity to see some pretty big stars jump onstage unexpectedly and play a couple songs with their friends. Last night’s show at The Viper Room (AliUptown’s Bday! 8-29-2009) was one of these occasions when not 1 but 2 of the original 5 members of Guns ‘N Roses joined the band Aces ‘N’ Eights to play “It’s So Easy” and “Mama Kin” at the end of their set. Slash appeared amiable but a bit withdrawn onstage. Of course he shredded ass like only he can. Adler seemed elated to be playing again with the guitar god and did a good job on the old songs.

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There is a fire blazing a couple blocks away at Hammond and Phyllis in WeHo. It’s next to an elementary school and an apartment complex which will both probably be smoke damaged. Neighbors claimed the house was covered in overgrown weeds and bushes and it was a “creepy” house. The land itself is probably worth a bucket of cash!

No word on whether anyone was inside. Its raining ash on Sunset and San Vicente right now.

***Edit via an email received from the editor at LAist:***

from the wires… “Firefighters are searching for a possible victim inside a burning
home at 940 Hammond St. in West Hollywood, says Inspector Frank Garrido of the
Los Angeles County Firefighters.”

After the masked and suspendored band members had broken through the fabric finish line of their set and screamed their name, the first words out of my mouth were, “Holy Fucking Shit”.

I haven’t been knocked on my ass by a band like that in a long time (Aside from the equally high-waisted Janelle Monae, I’d be embarrassed to tell you whom else). Did I say band? I think that as of right now, that term is no longer relevant. As of tonight I don’t think I ever want to be in another band ever again.

Echo Park’s We Are The World opened the show tonight at The Viper Room and instantly won over the WeHo/Echo hybrid crowd with their blend of throbbing electronic beats, performance art intensity and high energy choreography. Yes, choreography. The hats came straight from Fosse, the bold graphic lycra masks from Grace Jones, the vocals strong and striking like Laurie Anderson or Annie Lennox. Aesthetically, they are like The Locust for theater students. A few in the audience came with an idea of what to expect and the rest of the crowd will probably need a bit of time to absorb what they’ve seen tonight. I’m not sure I know myself, but I want more.

The 4-piece WATW’s Live Setup is largely backing tracks playing through a Mac connected to midi drumpads. The lead singer was masked as she commanded the stage and had piercingly beautiful eyes. The drumming was tight and made creative use of the palette of live sounds available to the band’s sole instrumentalist. The Two backing vocalists/dancers were in constant, voracious motion and altogether it was like watching an engine move in precision.

We Are The World get a 9.5/10. Avant garde and brilliant, this is the line that art shares with  music.

Thanks to the Viper Room for the guest access. Add them to your Twitter @ twitter.com/TheViperRoom