Giant Robot Store and GR2 News
I interviewed Sandy, the drummer from Dum Dum Girls, in GR68. Great answers, cool person, amazing band. My only regret was that I didn't get to see them play–something I do for pretty much every group I interview for GR–because they were in Europe. So I had no problem going out on a rainy Tuesday night to see them at The Echoplex. Especially since Abe Vigoda was opening. Last time I tried to see them was in Paris with another Sub Pop band (No Age) and it was sold out. I was stuck outside. Abe Vigoda's new album is drastically different than their previous ones. Gone are the warm “tropical punk” vibrations, replaced by a cold, Pornography-era Cure toughness (although bass player David Reichart's stage presence is actually more Paul Simonon than Simon Gallup). Above: Singer Michael Vidal unleashes. New percussionist/keyboardist Dane Chadwick bust from behind the kit to play some guitar and even sing. Juan is still the man. The new songs that come across as cold (and great) at home sounded way tougher live. Especially the ones with drum machines. I can't wait to re-listen to them loud on headphones. Headliners Dum Dum Girls made a statement by setting up and tuning their own gear: they don't need dudes to do their heavy lifting and they don't need to wear sweatpants when they're doing it, either. What comes across as fuzzed-out post-girl-group sounds on vinyl, is revealed to be a beast onstage. Maybe it's the power of the full band being together? Dum Dum Girls break out the buzzsaws but do it with the coolness of Poison Ivy. The leader of the gang is Dee Dee. Look at that. Not one drop of sweat under the lamps on a damp evening. They went through their material with cool intensity. No BS or posturing needed to blow away the audience–just a ton of attitude and skill, as well as a couple hits. The Echoplex is a large venue, and Dum Dum Girls filled it up with their icy sounds and stares. There's an EP coming soon and a new album about to be recorded, so expect bigger and radder (yet sadder) shows to come. Everyone exited the club after 1:00 a.m. to a perfectly drizzly, cool, and beautiful evening hinting at what's to come.
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Eric gets to write the “Favorite Things” section of Giant Robot magazine, so I was honored to be asked to come up with a holiday guide for the GR shops. I know that's not quite the same but I still had a lot of fun writing descriptions of and thoughts on my choices. Not surprisingly, a lot of what I selected involved friends (Eric and Michael Aki, Yukinori Dehara, David Horvath, Money Mark), friends of GR (Le Merde, Twinkie Chan, Margaret Kilgallen, Snoopy), and my personal heroes (Christopher Doyle, Booska), and I think you can find just about all of it scattered around my house! Check out the link here, and should you decide to buy any of it–or anything else–as a gifts, try using the code “freeshipping” if it totals over 50 bucks. We're extending it until December 19. p.s. There's also a bonus video I shot of Michelle, edited by Eric with some bonus footage he had laying around!
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After I was interviewed by Joe Escalante for the morning show that he hosted on the late Indie 103.1, he asked me if I had ever eaten at Tokyo 7-7. He described the Culver City diner as a time warp tucked between the shadow of a massive parking lot and the back side of mini-malls, with an impossibly cheap menu where you could get rice instead of potatoes with your breakfast. Yes, it lived up to his billing. Upon hearing that the restaurant is closing this week due to an unreasonable rent increase, I was one of his many friends and acquaintances who hit him up for one more meal there. Somehow I made the cut, and we met there for lunch today. Joe got the teriyaki burger with rice and iced tea. I got the veggie royale (omelette on rice) and coffee. Our bill was about 12 bucks. We tipped a little extra because we spent a long time lingering, talking about The Vandals' ongoing battle with Variety, struggles faced by bands and band members (not to mention magazines and shops), my sordid past as a Jungle Cruise guy, and life in general. There's also the owners' and employees' retirement to consider, and more than a few of the staff stopped to say hi to Joe one more time. He wondered alound which one was going to get his autographed Indie 103.1 glossy that hangs on one of the wood-paneled walls. While there was some heaviness, the moment wasn't that depressing. Joe's actually going back to Tokyo 7-7 to meet someone else tomorrow. And he just got Kelly Osbourne's actual Dancing With The Stars hoody in the mail. Sweet, but that's a story you'll have to hear from him. Maybe on one of his radio shows. R.I.P. Tokyo 7-7. Long live Tokyo Joe.
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On Friday night, I was asked to take part in a Giant Robot talk at the Pacific Asia Museum in Pasadena. For my presentation, I showed the process and shared anecdotes pertaining to some of the more unusual articles over the magazine's 68-issue run. By far, the piece that received the strongest response was my essay about monosodium glutamate from GR66 (July-August 2010). Although it was anti- anti-MSG, it came off to many as pro-MSG. Does that make sense? To many in the audience, it didn't. There was an outpouring of rebuttals full of emotion and concern. Likewise, I actually received a letter from a reader who was worried about me poisoning myself and encouraging GR followers to do the same. Here's the article for your consideration. Pass it around and let me know what you think. Decades before children’s toys made in China were discovered to be adorned with lead-based paint or White Rabbit Candy was found to include Melamine, there was monosodium glutamate. The fear it inspired was big enough to not only inspire a disease (“Chinese Food Syndrome”) but also start an industry (“No MSG” neon signage for restaurants).
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When I arrived for OFF!'s in-store at Vacation Vinyl on Sunset tonight, the only other non-employee in the Silver Lake shop was the band's singer, Keith Morris (ex-Black Flag, Circle Jerks…). Not awkward. He's a totally approachable guy that will talk to any fan–even ones that have interviewed him at length. He asked if I bought into the hype of their newly released box-set of 7″ singles. What could I say? There I was. Eventually, the staff cleared out the shop, had everyone line up, and gave priority to customers who pre-ordered the OFF! release. I snagged a spot right in front of Steven McDonald's amp. I totally forgot earplugs, but there are some musicians I don't mind losing some hearing for. Being that close actually made taking pictures difficult for an unschooled photographer like me… So much movement so close to the lens with uneven light, and there was no way to get the entire band with any sharpness since the pancake is so flat. I just played with the settings, fired off a load of shots, and trusted that a few would work out. (The pics you see are uncropped and unbalanced.) This shows the small size of the record store. I like the shop a lot, and was a little worried about it being leveled by skins, mohawks, and jocks feeding off the pure punk energy of OFF! and turning it into Fender's Ballroom. But the show was totally civil and not even a sausage party. What can I say that I haven't already gushed many times over in this blog or at any chance I get. OFF! is an incredible group with rad talents from all sorts of bands reaching back into their primal punk rock roots and going, well, off. Afterward, I got to talk to Keith, Steven, and Mario–all cool dudes that I happen to have had contact or mutual acquaintances with. Maybe I'll say hi to axe man Dimitri next time I catch them, probably sooner than later.
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