Strange Beach House

You guys, I love Beach House. I have been saying that about this band for a while now, but really they are Goddamn good. Victoria Legrand's voice is the stuff gravel-y dreams are made of and their ethereal tunes make me feel all kinds of feelings. I saw them at the Wiltern (http://www.livenation.com/the-wiltern-tickets-los-angeles/venue/73790) Tuesday night, and while that venue is certainly not my favorite (come on dudes, if we all have general admission tickets, you can't let only SOME people stand up near the stage!), Beach House sounded great as always. They also upped their show-game with some strobe lights and videos and things:

Okay so we were in the front on the balcony, but we actually had a really good view. One complaint is that the band plays all of their songs EXACTLY as they sound on the album, which is consistent and nice, but I'd love like, ONE freaky breakdown, or something. Anyway, they played all of their hits on top of their new stuff and the set was actually really long; they were up there for about 2 hours. Worth checking out when they come to your town...

Strange Girls

Hey-ho Strange Ones! I am loving the new Dum Dum Girls EP "End of Daze." Even though this band's name is, well, DUMB, this record is retro and dreamy and affecting. It will remind you of a semi-anxious nightmare you had when you were 17...in a good way. CHECK IT OUT!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q3f9ZiH6Euw

Forbes, Stop Copying Me!

I mean, duh:

http://www.forbes.com/sites/morganbrennan/2012/09/20/americas-hippest-hipster-neighborhoods/

Strange! Good Pizza in LA

Lil' ones, GC and I discovered Pizzanista this weekend (http://www.pizzanista.com/). So, it's kind of a schlep, and in sort of a scary middle-of-nowhere area downtown (they deliver within two miles but sadly, Silver Lake is further than that), but this is the closest thing I've had to a New York slice in LA.

It's funky and full of young skaters and they have a large selection of pizzas as well as delicious salads (I had the spicy chopped, YUM). We split the Margherita (amazing classic with a grana padano KICK), the Meat Jesus (I mean, the name says it all), and my personal favorite, this pizza with large hunks of ricotta on it whose name I cannot recall (sorry Pizzanista). Anyway, RECOMMEND.

Strange Venue

Yo Lil' Ones, have any of you ever been to the John Anson Ford Amphitheatre (http://fordtheatres.org/) in Universal City? Neither had I before last night where I saw the Walkmen put on a WONDERFUL concert and let me tell you, it is AWESOME there.  It's like the anti-Hollywood Bowl. It looks like it used to be an old Spanish-style church or fortress and in between the striking stone walls is a little stage with beautifully groomed trees behind it. There's no particular seating, so you can just roll in whenever and sit right by the stage. We actually took the SUBWAY to Universal City and then the Ford provides free shuttles to and from the concert venue. It was surprisingly easy and worked out perfectly.

And the Walkmen were GREAT:

Isn't it dashing how lead singer Hamilton Leithauser always dresses up to perform? His voice was INSANE and the sound is so good at the Ford. I definitely cried when the did "In The New Year" and "Line by Line." I thought Leithauser was going to lose his voice but he just never did, straining his neck and belting out song after song. The band had a brass quartet join in on a couple of numbers, which was great and they played a perfect mix of old and new tunes. What did it for me though was when they closed with "We've Been Had." It's a strange song and sounds different from their other stuff, but the crowd went nuts for it. What a special night!

Strange Mercat

Last night Noey, the Gentleman Caller, and I went to Baco Mercat downtown (http://bacomercat.com/). BECAUSE WE WANTED TO. It's real cute-looking from the outside and the inside is in one of those nice downtown rooms with incredibly high ceilings but, you guys, THERE IS NO AC. Like, we sweat right through our meal. Some people are into this, I can only really do it with BBQ. Go for the outdoor seating, if anything. Anyway, this restaurant has been getting RAVES, possibly due to a Brussels sprouts Caesar salad that is no longer on the menu according to one Emily Moffet. I, however, give it a MEH. And I know my shit, and by shit I mean food. The best thing we got was this okra, resting in one of the best tomato sauces I've ever tasted:

Oh yeah, I was definitely the annoying girl taking pictures of our food last night. Also, swell, all of the pictures came out incredibly dark because at concerts I have to turn off the flash. ANYWAY, yum to the okra. Then we got this somewhat disappointing spaghetti squash with creamed corn, which was a little al dente and vinegar-y, in my humble opinion:

Everything was pretty full of vinegar; I think it's a thing at Baco. GC got two sodas, because the place makes special, vinegar-based sodas (also did I mention it was hot as BALLS in there?); one was a delicious blueberry thing and the other, a blood orange, was, well...vinegarific. Anyway, then we got this actually really great, oil-slicked beef tartare that came with cherry tomatoes and a freshly baked, dense hunk of bread (I love a bread hunk). Then we all got sandwiches, or "baco." Noey and GC went for the "toron," which was salty and delicious and I think it involved oxtail. I went for the chicken which was done in a spicy "lebni" sauce with crunchy cabbage. The bread was that great, thick kind of pita. Mmm:

Yeah, dark I know. I probably would've enjoyed this sandwich more if I wasn't pretty full. But of course, we had to get dessert. We decided to try a banana cream rice pudding with caramel sauce because please, did you read what I just typed? It was great flavor-wise, but GC and I agreed we prefer a thicker, more rice-ful consistency (Noey, however, does NOT):

Okay, okay I'll turn my flash on. Anyway, it was decent. If it's not to hot out and you're into vinegar, RECOMMEND.

Strange Spice

Hey Lil' Ones! Last week I went with my lovely friend Leah Newman to Spice Table downtown, right at the edge of Little Tokyo (http://www.thespicetable.com/). It is LOVELY inside: low-lighting coming from birdcage fixtures, whitewashed exposed brick, and well-spaced wooden tables. I didn't even take a picture because it was so classy. Attracting a slightly older crowd than I expected, Spice Table wasn't loud or wild. The food was...INSANELY good. Okay, so I am going to tell you what us two women ordered, but just don't judge me too harshly, okay (it did not help that this place is reasonable priced and therefore allowed us to GO FOR IT)? SMALL PLATES, STRANGERS, SMALL PLATES.

So we got: Kaya toast, which is basically a toasted coconut jam sandwich that you dip into gooey egg and soy sauce (AWESOME), crab toast where the dipping sauce is this almost-curry with hunks of soft cooked crab, an oyster omelet (my least favorite, but still interesting), pigtail that you cut up yourself and sandwich in mixed greens then dip in a sort of vinaigrette, and BONE MARROW with a delicious relish that you scoop up with more fresh bread OKAY I AM A FOOD MONSTER DON'T HATE ME BYE!

PS There was also creamed kale. That also happened.

Gettin' Strange at FYF 2013

Welp, Lil' Strangers, this Labor Day weekend I once again hopped on the subway downtown to attend the Fuck Yeah Festival (I am sorry, that is its NAME). And once again, in spite of the heat and the dust, this was my favorite festival of the year. In all seriousness, I like FYF more than a Coachella or Bonnaroo because it is young (this was only its ninth year in existence) and it just, frankly, doesn't give a shit about itself. Also I just have to travel downtown and don't have to get a hotel.

Like on day one (Saturday), Noelia and I walked in and I realized the tickets I got in the mail did not include my wristbands (I got some email saying I had to go pick them up at Origami Records in Echo Park but like, seriously guys? Just mail me all of my shit, thanks). Randomly, one of the festival managers, a gentle looking man in a hat and bandanna by the name of Sean, had wandered over to "regulate." Initially, he brushed me off, telling me I had to go wait at the box office with all the other riff-raff. I made a terrible face as I began to walk away (I was VIP! Now I had to stand behind 500 days of manic pixie dream girls to get my goddamn wristband?!), but I think Sean noticed my near-meltdown and called us inside, telling us to go to the "merch" counter and tell "James that Sean sent us" and James would hook me up with my concert bracelets. Of course, once we trekked the half-mile over to James we were greeted with "yeah, I got Sean's email. No one gave me a single wristband, though. I mean, its FYF, girls." WELL SAID. So it was back to the box office for us. However, I bypassed the line by deciding that this was a "customer service" issue more than a "box office" problem (there was no line at customer service). The very kind gentleman there gave me both wristbands, admitting that if this was later in the day, I'd be screwed, but he was feeling generous and we were super punctual. MISSION ACCOMPLISHED! We were in.

Okay, now to the important stuff: the music. I guess the real reason I love FYF is that they get the smaller bands I've been loving at tiny venues all year and also some of the odder bands that I wouldn't pay to see on their own, but that I really enjoy checking out as part of a festival. We started out with King Tuff (okay lie: we started out in the VIP beer garden swooning at salty, salt-and-pepper haired comedian Marc Maron). I've blogged about Tuff before, but they're a very fun, old-school pop/garage outfit. The lead singer kind of looks like Andrew WK and  his two band mates both look like Matthew McConaughey in Dazed and Confused. Anyway, what a fun way to start:

The next great band we saw was Cloud Nothings. EFFING. INCREDIBLE. This band also has a garage-pop base, but they end up rocking much harder than King Tuff, especially live. What incredible, precise musicians. There was literally a twenty minute breakdown where no one sang a note and I was completely mesmerized. And the main singer looks like THIS:

Cute, young, glasses fellow who can WAIL WAIL WAIL on that guitar. Please check these guys out live if you get the chance. Then came John Maus, who was bizarre. Like his music is very mellow and he played to a pre-recorded track, but was SCREAMING and pulling out his hair and rubbing his jeans like he was having a bad acid trip. Oh also, he was in jeans and a long-sleeved button down and had NO SWEAT STAINS. Like, what?

Oh, I know. I am a professional photographer. Anyway, then we caught the end of the Men's performance and like, they are good, but were much more compelling when I saw them at the Smell downtown (maybe they were too hot...like sweaty).  Also the Men came before Cloud Nothings but see? They weren't memorable so I don't remember where they fit into our experience. Then we took a bit of a break in the beer garden, listening to Warpaint (always lovely and sharp) and then headed to Tanlines who really surprised me! They were so fun and melodically dance-y!

Cool green background, right? Then we danced in the beer garden to Sleigh Bells who are just loud and jarringly silly/fun:

Boom! Then this girl needed to call it a NIGHT.

Sunday we went down a bit later and I drove. When we parked, Noey and I decided to spend 45 minutes in my car listening to Toni Braxton, Monica, and Brian McKnight for some inexplicable reason -- oh wait, I know, BECAUSE THEY ARE ALL AWESOME AND THE 90'S WERE THE BEST. Anyway, we started our Sunday with he lingering strains of Wild Nothings, which sounded kinda MEH. Then came Father John Misty. Now, I really like his stuff, but it sounds pretty folksy and mellow and the lead singer is the drummer from Fleet Foxes, so I thought he would look like all of this sounds. No:

This picture does not do justice to what he was doing onstage. He kinds of looks hot and Fassbender-ish with his glasses on, but he was writhing around doing a faux-Jagger thing and acting a FOOL to the point where I could barely look at him. Whatever; he is new at this whole front man thing, I can give him a break. I still really like this song/video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KtOToiIDNRA

Yeah, hi Aubrey Plaza! Anyway, then it was time for this hardcore band, Lightning Bolt, that I love, but would only check out at FYF:

Yeah, um that is the drummer/lead singer. He sings through a ball-microphone strapped into his mouth by a MASK. Scary! The band is strangely tuneful, though. I stood on the periphery of the mosh pit with my buddy Rob, but of course Noey got right up in there and managed to emerge unscathed; my hero! Anyway, then we took a giant break in the beer garden where we shared a terrible $9 cheeseburger that consisted of an overdone slab of meat with a Kraft single placed gently on top (they still kind of need to work out the food situation at this thing, but it was much better than years past). We casually listened to Dinosaur Jr., who still sound great in that comforting, old-timey way (the 90's, man). Then Desaparecidos came on Conor Oberst reminded me I am in love with his voice, although this is a much more animated act than he usually does. Liked it a lot:

Then Yeasayer came on and they're overrated, I think.  Anyway, I was kind of fading, so it was my time to go. There were many wonderful bands that I missed, but I did what I could. It was a GREAT ONE, you guys. Hope to see you there next year!

Strange Orange

Hey, Noey turned me onto this song by Blood Orange called Champagne Coast. It's sexy and the video is real weird:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nO6y1-erVEw

Happy Humpday!

FINALLY, Some Strange Sushi

Lil' Strangers, there is this weird phenomenon in Silverlake where there are like, NO good sushi places. I am open to your commentary on this subject but honestly, nothing I've tried has impressed me. UNTIL LAST FRIDAY. The inner room at Cowboys and Turbans has been remade into a sushi bar called Ji (http://www.yelp.com/biz/ji-sushi-los-angeles), and I am telling you, it is TASTY.

The dude-caller and I didn't order much, but what we did get was a whole bunch of simple, well-prepared fish. We started with a half-dozen oysters (yeah, they do OYSTERS at Ji) and they were deliciously sauced with vinegar and green onion, though they were a bit on the creamy side. Then I got the sashimi regular and all the fish was SO GOOD. The salmon was bright and clean:

Mmm. There was some really solid albacore, a refreshing yellowtail and a thick, dark brick of tuna. But the real treat was the special fish of the day: red snapper. The (very friendly) chef torches the skin of the snapper giving it a light char that just made the fish taste really special. Yum:

This is actually the nigiri version. I got the sashimi and the gentleman caller liked it so much he ordered more. I washed everything down with an Asahi, which they have on tap. Oh ALSO, there's a giant flat screen TV that plays sports so if you want some good sushi, but don't want to miss the big game, this place is super for you. Yay! Finally good raw fish in my neighborhood.