Fit Fest!

It's every music lover/gig goers' favorite time of year, MUSIC FESTIVAL SEASON!

Heavy hitters SXSW and Coachella sprang in Spring and Napa's newbie, The Bottlerock Festival already came and went but the Festival Season is really just starting to warm up!

BFD 2012. Photo by: Marc Fong

Outside Lands 2012. Photo by: Marc Fong

Below is just a sliver-slice of some up-coming 2013 Music Festivals:

May 18th: KROQ's Weenie Roast

May 19th: LIVE105's BFD

May 24th - May 27th: Sasquatch Music Festival

June 1st: The Guinness Oyster & Music Festival in San Francisco

June 13th - June 16th: Bonnaroo Music Festival

August 2nd - August 4th: Lollapalooza

August 9th- August 11th: Ouside Lands Music, Art & Wine Festival

August 23rd - September 8th: Red Rocks Music Festival

October 4th - October 6th & October 11th - October 13th: Austin City Limits Music Festival

October 15th - October 19th: CMJ Music Marathon

October 19th & October 20th: Treasure Isalnd Music Festival

November 1st - November 3rd: VooDoo Music + Arts Experience 

 That's a SLIVER-SLICE! Why not tone up while enjoying the live tunes?!
Keep your body rockin' while you and your posse get ready to rock the day(s) away with these easy tips!

1) Stay Hydrated! (ie:DRINK WATER)

This is a general rule of thumb and may be more so at a Festival because you're on your feet out in the elements all day and night. Also, don't forget that alcohol can (and will) dehydrate you!

Often when you "feel" hungry you're actually thirsty. Even worse, you could be dehydrated! Yep, it's that's your body "tricking" your brain to give you fuel but it might not be the fuel you actually need. Silly body! Also, if you enjoy one too many beers but drank plenty of water  you won't be (or feel) as hungover as your buddy who drank no water! You'll wake up ready for the next show!

(Rock-Med tents usually give ya free water! So before you're full on in the music festival madness take a look at the map and make a mental note of where that Rock-Med tent is located and filler up as needed!)

2) Standing Calf Raises:

Stand with your feet about hip width apart with toes facing forward. Keep your knees straight and stiff but not locked. Rise up onto the balls of your feet and squeeze, moving only at the ankles then return to neutral. Do not turn your toes in or out as this puts an unnatural stress on the knees!

 Repeat (10-15 reps = 1 set) .

 (these are great practice for shorter folks to see over taller audience members too!)

3) Standing Crunch:

Stand with your feet about hip width apart with toes facing forward.Stabilize your body and prepare to balance on one leg: place your right hand on your hip and raise your left arm straight up. Extend your right leg to the side and touch the floor with the ball of your foot. Bring your left elbow down and your right knee up, touching them together as you twist to the right. Repeat (10 reps per side).



3) Standing Back Bend: 
Stand with your feet about hip width apart with toes facing forward. Look forward instead of up to keep your balance. Place your hands on your hips and slowly lean back while lifting chest up creating a slight bend in your lower back. Hold for a few seconds before returning to neutral.  
Repeat (10-15 reps = 1 set)

4) Side Bend: Stand with your feet about shoulder width apart with toes facing forward and  palms facing your torso. Place your right hand on your waist and left arm hanging down the left side of your body. Your feet should be placed at shoulder width. This will be your starting position. Keeping your back straight and your head up, bend only at the waist to the left as far as possible breathing  in as you bend to the side. Then hold for a second and come back up to the starting position as you exhale (as you bend to the side the rest of the body stationary).
                                                      Repeat (10 reps per side)

5) Eat every four hours: 

Outside Lands 2012. Photo by: Marc Fong

Carrot sticks? Check! Raisins? Check! Peanuts, grapes, apple, banana, granola bars?! CHECK! This is another general rule of thumb: don't let your blood sugar levels drop! Eating every 4 hours improves fat loss, controlling your appetite and metabolism. Pack some snacks along with the rest of your festival gear and graze the day away without gaining. It's like magic!

Of course there are a bunch of other easy, equipment free exercises to do outside like push-ups, jumping jacks, planks. Heck if the opportunity rises maybe you can do a pull up or five....go for it! Don't forget that dancing and even standing burns calories, too! 

 

Outside Lands 2012. Photo by: Marc Fong

Before busting moves and grooves at the fest I'll leave you with one last tip to put in your pocket: don't be fooled by light/lite beer fool! 

Light beer has less calories, yes it does. Did you know that it also has a lower alcohol content? It sure does. That means you might drink more light beers just to get your "healthy" buzz on than if you stuck with a good ol' "regular" brew. In the end you could be consuming more calories and possibly more alcohol even though you were trying to be good. 

Now you're ready to rock! 

Little Boots' Nocturnes out TODAY!

In 2009 she landed on the scene and struck gold  with  her debut album, Hands so you could say that four odd years later all bets are on Little Boots filling her own shoes and then some on her second album,  Nocturnes out today.

 Produced by Tim Goldsworthy (DFA Records co-founder), other key contributions include Simian Mobile Disco's James Ford and Hercules and Love Affair's Andy Butler it's no wonder this release has been highly anticipated. 

New-wave-disco is predominate throughout the ten tracks  peaking on, "Beat Beat" yet dips a bit on tracks like"Motorway" and "All for You" and the album's the shifting tempos lend a hand to a welcomed indie-rock sound from the pop songstress.  

  The unignorable catchy first single,"Broken Record"   is about not being able to shake something someone said. Likewise, with it's catchy house hooks, abundant chorus, it's intervals of pulsating bass and repetitious layers of hypnotizing robotic lyrics it does sound like a skipping or broken record. Clever.

 The crafty execution makes "Shake"  my favorite song off Nocturnes: an early build up (love), followed by softer vocals, deep(er) meaning lyrics and a twist in the beat further in translates into a song I envision lighting dance floors up!

An interesting use of  dolphin sounds moused over and in the song "Strangers"  is sort of like an element of surprise as the songs subject tugs on heart strings.
So though it is a rather sad song by way of words "Strangers" is a dance song. You  really don't come across that musical fusion too much. You either get a dance song or you get a sad song.
"Strangers" is a sad song you can actually dance too and that's a good thing!

Victoria Hesketh's (A.K.A Little Boots) style is her own, both  fashionably and musically; however, I have to say that I did pick up a little Madonna circa Ray of Light vibe from on the track "Satellites" .
Something about the sound of her voice on this particular track sounds different than it does on others. "Satellites" galactic dance-y samples also made me think of Madonna's synth heavy experimental Ray of Light album.
 

As you listen what you're hearing is Little Boots' sound evolving and maturing through out Nocturnes.
At it's core this is a pop album but with all of it's disco influences silver lined with a seemingly fresh somber-ness, Little Boots continues to bend the pop genre!

 
If albums had motos this Nocturnes' would be: If you're down, dance! That's a pretty good moto and you'll learn that this is a pretty good album when you listen to it.

Think she'll find herself in platnum status with this album? We will see!

Get out of your head and dance along with Dragonette

 Canadian rockin' electro-pop trio Dragonette has been busy on tour since the September release of their 3rd album Bodyparts and they keep on keepin' on!

 Last week the band premiered the music video for their catchy single "Giddy Up" via PAPER Magazine and next month they're hitting the road with Australian electronic music duo The Presets for a co-headling tour! I just love when bands co-headline! It's double the fun!

Kicking things off on Cinco de Mayo this is sure to be a wild tour de force through the month of May. 

Photo by: Marc Fong

5/5 Philadelphia, PA @ Union Transfer
5/7 Boston, MA @ Paradise
5/8 New York City, NY @ Terminal 5
5/9 Montreal, QC @ Le National
5/10 Toronto, ON @ Danforth Music Hall
5/12 Indianapolis, IN @ The Vogue
5/13 Columbus, OH @ Newport Music Hall
5/14 Madison, WI @ Majestic Theatre
5/15 Minneapolis, MN @ First Avenue
5/17 Lawrence, KS @ Granada Theatre
5/18 Denver, CO @ Ogden
5/19 Salt Lake City, UT @ The Depot
5/20 Phoenix, AZ @ Marquee
5/21 Los Angeles, CA @ The Avalon
5/23 Los Angeles, CA @ Avalon
5/24 San Francisco, CA @ The Fox Theater
5/25 El Paso, TX @ Neon Desert Festival 

The party doesn't stop there! 

 Dragonette's headlining tour starts in June and it doesn't stop until the end of August. That means you have all summer to track them down and check them out!

6/10 Austin, TX @ Red 7
6/11 Dallas, TX @ Cambridge Room / HOB
6/14 Miami, FL @ Grand Central
6/15 Orlando, FL @ The Social
6/16 Jacksonville, FL @ Jack Rabbits
6/18 Pensacola, FL @ Vinyl Music Hall
6/19 Atlanta, GA @ Terminal West

6/20 Chapel Hill, NC @ Local 506
6/21  Dover, DE @ Firefly Music Fest
8/4 Tumbler Ridge, Canada @ Grizfest
8/30 Cambridge, United Kingdom @ Lodestar Festival  
 

Metric @ The Fox Theater 4/18/2013

The last two times, actually the only two times I have seen Metric they have played acoustic sets (both of which were part of LIVE105's Not So Slient Night with a few years in between. Coincidence? Maybe...) 

Granted, both were really good but I was left wanting more!  

Luckily for me Metric played in Oakland between their sets at Coachella. Good thing because it was just about time for me to see them the way they should be seen, fully plugged in and rockin'!

The mood seemed subdued as the band headed into the night with “Artificial Nocturne,” “Youth Without Youth,” and “Speed The Collapse", the same first three songs off of last year's Synthetica. I thought that was kind of surprising seeing as Metric has four other albums worth of material but they didn't have a headlining tour it support of the album last year so it made sense!
Much like the underlying air heard on Synthetica, the stage remained rather ominence during this part of the show being illuminated from time to time with dark hues of reds and blues and an occasional blinding burst of white light.

Dripping in a cream colored leather tasseled jacket, a shiny silver sequence skirt and her signature goldie-blond locks Emily stayed tucked behind her keyboard for a good first half of the show. Though her look definitely fit the rock role I couldn't help but feel something was off with the leading lady.

Was it the lack of enthusiasm from the Oakland crowd?

Maybe Metric didn't get the memo that crossed arms in the crowd at a show in The Bay Area is the norm?

Maybe I just expected more energy on stage.

Yes, I was enjoying my self yet I couldn't stop wondering if Emily was enjoying herself which I got to say did take away from fully enjoying the show.

After four songs off of Synthetica Metric turned things up a notch, diving right into catalog track "Empty" giving guitarist James a chance to shine in the spotlight as he shredded the song's guitar solo. Continuing their catalog trend  "Help I'm Alive" saw fans come to life a little bit more. Emily's stage presence however, still seemed sort of phoned in, even as she sashayed around the stage.

 

Then, finally, Emily clued the crowd in about what was on her mind, an issue more and more artists are becoming more vocal about...cell phones at shows. 

In a melodramatic fashion she ranted about how cell phone cameras have changed how performers perform and that it's hard as a performer to say what's on your mind for fear of what is said being taken out of context.

 I can understand this frustration but only to a point. Scolding paying fans "face to face"when touring is music's money maker seems unfair. If you don't want to see screens at your shows then ban cell phones.

 The show moved on with less hands holding up phones during "Synthetica", "Clone", "Breathing Underwater" , "Sick Muse" and "Dead Disco". 

I was ok with the fact that the night ended on an acoustic note with nothing more than an acoustic guitar and heartfelt vocals for "Gimme Shelter". 

Thursday night's sold out show at The Fox Theater filled my electric Metric void! 

Set List 

Artificial Nocturne

Youth Without Youth

Speed the Collapse

Dreams So Real

Empty

Help I’m Alive

Synthetica

Clone

Breathing Underwater

Sick Muse

Dead Disco

Encore:

Black Sheep

Monster Hospital

Gold Guns Girls

Gimme Sympathy (Acoustic)

C2C at The Independent 4/13/2013

 Everyone with a laptop and a playlist these days is a DJ and I for one don't care to go to a show to watch someone press buttons to "make" music. I mean, sure, the music can be fun but is that really a show worth going to?

AND! What do you say? 

"I'm going to a show?"

"I'm going to watch a DJ"

"I'm going to a DJ show? A DJ act?"

  

Paris Hilton's DJing debut  in June 2012 in Brazil digitaldjtips.com 

Pressing buttons on stage at a venue does not constitute as a show in my book but going to dance to that artist's song catalog I get.

Hesitant? 

Yes. 

Close minded? 

No! 

I'm always down to go to (any type of) show because...well,  you never know...

  

 With all of that said, I'm glad I did not pass up the chance to see C2C at The Indpendent. 

In all honesty I hadn't heard of them so I did a little research and pretty much right off the bat I liked what I heard. 

The bluesy riffs and southern twang mix on "Down the Road" intrigued my senses: the sound is fresh yet has a throw back feel, like back in the height of MOBY days and I wondered if the singer (singers as I listened on) accompanied C2C on stage or was a member of C2C the vocalist or was the singing an audio sample? It also made me wonder if there would be an accompaning band with them.

 After listening I still wasn't sure what to expect but I was kind of excited to find out. 

Plus, it had to be a good sign that the show was sold out, right? 

The show started slow and steady as 20Syl, Greem, Atom and Pfel found their spots behind a large dark podem and things really got going when the build up to "The Cell" began. The dark podem doubled as the screen of bright white ever-changing images as the subte intermingled instrumental build up dropped into dance beats. There was a serious sort of intensity present with each member or maybe it was concentration. Whatever it was, it was there.

Suddenly I found myself amidst a party dancing to the techno beats mixed with a variety of vocals  being both spun and sung while I watched what the guys were doing behind the podem.
Smiling, fist pumping, looking out into the sold out crowd, dancing away from their posts behind the podem but were they spinning?!

They briefly greeted the San Francisco crowd somewhere between the 2nd and 3rd song of their set and that's when it occurred to me that the "light show" was synced to the songs which spiced the show up a little bit more.  As the geometric shapes morphed they fell into to place with each beat and the DJs active stage presence continued; a key element missing from almost all current DJ acts. All of that combined made me not want to take my focus off of the the stage, it was so fun and refreshing to see.

They got their dance on and rocked out, interacted with one another, engaged the crowd and when I made my way upstairs to snap some aerial shots that's when I was able to see that they were indeed spinning! Each of them had their own turn table behind the podem. Then, to my surprise and everyone else's I'm sure they split. Literally. 

 No the show wasn't over, it was almost as if it was just getting started! The podem split in two, separating the four DJs, excuse me, the four turntableists into dueling pairs for an fan-judged "scratch-off"!  At one point all four of them stepped out from behind their posts and rapped a moving a cover of the Beastie Boys hit “Intergalactic”as tribute to the late MCA. 

I for one can't recall the last time I saw a DJ act bring their set to such a personal level, can you?

After the show in SF, C2C headed back to Indio CA to play the second weekend at Coachella where they undoubtedly turned the tent they played in into sweaty dance party. Coachella is bunches of fun, don't get me wrong but I was so happy to be able to see C2C at The Independent because it was a show not just a uninteresting little guy on stage playing some music.

The C2C boys will be back in town for LIVE105's BFD May 19th at The Shoreline. Be sure to catch their endearing, engaging, exciting set in the Subsonic Tent, il est très bon!

The Airborne Toxic Event @ The Warfield 4/11/2013

Their 3rd album, Such Hot Blood comes out on April 30th, they released Secret, their 3rd EP on March 11th, performed their latest single "Timeless" on David Letterman the following night and before they hit the road to grace the main stage at Coachella The Airborne Toxic event gave fans in San Francisco a treat at The Warfield last week!

 

Regardless of the fact that I said excuse me, making my way to the photo pit proved tougher than expected as I found myself in a deadlock behind female fans unwilling to relinquish an inch of their standing spot. Understandably so but little did they know I had work to do!

"Gasoline" off of their self titled 2008 LP jump started Airborne's set with a contagious youth-fueled exuberance and I couldn't have been the only audience member surprised that Anna Bulbrook is now rocking the blonde! 

Aside from drummer Daren Taylor, the band did not stay in one place long: front man Mikel Jollet played the guitar center stage before bouncing to stage left and right, Steven Chen stepped into the spot light for Gasoline's guitar solo while Noah Harmon made his way from stage then practically on top of the drum set before finding his way back.

A few lucky fans in the front row got to get up close with Mikel as he teetered between the photo pit and the stage during "Happiness is Over-rated" (Happiness) while the antics on stage continued with Anna played tambourine from atop Noah's shoulders before she dove into the crowd a few songs later!

Mikel vocalized genuine gratitude to the Airborne fans for coming out to their largest SF show to date and there was no stopping his infectious smile as his focus shifted from the crowded mezzanine floor up to the  fans in (and out) of their seats in the balcony. 

 

Though the absence of "Innocence"  was a minor disappointment amidst the 14 track set-list and three song long en core I don't doubt that  everyone at The Warfield last Thursday night enjoyed the show!

 

The Airborne Toxic Event will be back in the Bay soon! 

Catch them at LIVE105's BFD 2013 on May 19th! 

Avan Lava & Little Boots

Avan Lava is hitting the road on their very first National tour opening for Little Boots!

photo credit: Shervin Lainez

photo credit: Shervin Lainez

Avan Lava's live performance has been described as raucous with a never ending energy comprised of choreographed dance breaks set to the beat of their electric Indie-pop. 

  

 

 Deemed "ones to watch at SXSW", the New York based band  is streaming their Flex Fantasy EP  and  are currently in the studio working on finishing up their debut album but they'll be taking a break from recording to play six shows with Little Boots next month. 

Can you think of a better place other than San Francisco's premier Indie Night Club, Popscene for these acts to play in the Bay? Neither can I, so snag your tickets to the party on May 3rd today! 

Thursday 5/2: Los Angeles, CA @ Echoplex
Friday 5/3: San Francisco, CA @ Rickshaw Stop 
Saturday 5/4: Philadelphia, PA @ Voyeur 

 Sunday 5/5: Cambridge, MA @ The Sinclair
Tuesday 5/7: Brooklyn, NY @ Music Hall of Williamsburg
Wednesday 5/8: Chicago, IL @ Lincoln Hall