Built to Spill and friends at Sunset Junction

This weekend was Sunset Junction. Yes, I've heard the arguments about the Silver Lake street fair costing too much, actually hurting the businesses, forgetting its gay and Latino roots, and everything else. But every year I still enjoy the undeniable energy and some cool bands (Sonic Youth, New York Dolls, and Blonde Redhead are recent headliners that I've enjoyed), not to mention running into a load of friends. Above, Shakespeare of the world famous, people pleasing, roots fueled I&I Sound System/ice cream truck. To the right, a smattering of O.G. Sunset Junction fans...


My brother and I got there just in time to see Mika Miko. I'm a big fan of the band and was glad to see them represent L.A., youth, and females in full force. They channel, combine, and twist the local punk heritage and Riot Grrl in a super energetic and fun way.



Video co-directed by GR friend/rocker in her own right Lana Kim!


Next up was the opposite: old-school, proto-punk dudes from the Pac Northwest, The Sonics. Beyond Sub Pop's recent issue, I wasn't super familiar with their body of work beyond classics like "Have Love, Will Travel" and "Strychnine," which have been covered by Stiv Bators/Charlie Sexton and The Fuzztones, respectively. The funny thing is that their set was also heavy on covers of bands that influenced them, like Little Richard and The Beatles. Which ones were the covers was probably slightly harder to decipher for the younger audience members, but that would be no excuse...



After that, it was time for some food. Greg and I supplemented some agua frescas from a booth was a chile relleno burrito from Tacos Delta... Gotta support the stands but also the local businesses, right? FYI, the venerable stand on Sunset now has longer hours.


Returned just in time for Built To Spill's first song. This year's event was relatively uncrowded so it was easy to get right in front, even for the headliner. There was also a nice breeze all afternoon and evening, which felt good, but also inevitably wafted smoke into my face. Bummer. Hane isn't one of those people that blew smoke on me, but she is another friend of GR and person that I see at rock shows. We were standing right behind her and she didn't notice until I responded to her text message asking me where I was.



I'd seen Doug Martch play with Calvin Johnson in the Halo Benders years ago at the Atomic Cafe in Little Tokyo, but have never seen Built To Spill. So I was stoked that (1) the sound was really good and (2) they played all the hits in an hour--including some of my favorite songs off The Normal Years.


When the final song was to tea-baggers (the bad kind) in the band's hometown of Boise, I thought it was going to be "Sick & Wrong." Nope. No Clash-influenced cover of "Paper Planes" or "White Man in Hammersmith Palais," just days after Joe Strummer's birthday, either. But the 20-minute sendoff was epic and left everyone content... As we walked back to the car, we heard Arrested Development say farewell from their stage and could hear the strains of Morris Day & The Time ending their set, as well.



Another perfect summer night in L.A.--and it doesn't hurt that my in-laws live a block away, so I have permitted parking and was able to snag complimentary tickets.