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Review: The Weeknd @ Orpheum Theatre in Los Angeles, 12/15/12

You couldn’t help but feel the hype as you walked pass the long entrance line at the Orpheum Theatre in Downtown LA on that crisp Saturday night. Despite the chilly weather, Abel Tesfaye’s (The Weeknd) fans waited patiently outside for their chance to see the R&B star. And they had nothing but smiles on all their faces in anticipation of the evening the ahead. Upon enterning the historic Orpheum Theatre, people we’re literally walking on top of black balloons with “XO” screened on them… which seemed a nice little touch for the sold out show.

I’ll admit, after seeing The Weeknd perform live during this year’s Coachella Music and Arts Festival, I’d grown slightly weary of his live presence. Fortunately, that Saturday night was not the case. Abel’s voice was in fine tune. His vocal expression displayed impressive control. Add his trusty 7 piece band, and some lighting thrills, and track’s like “Twenty Eight”, via his recent Trilogy release, culminated as cherry toppers for the evening. The Weeknd showed that his live show still has lots to say.

Unfortunately there was absolutely no photography was allowed inside the venue that night. Hopefully this video will give you a taste of what it was like inside. By Russ Ramos

The Weeknd canada (Facebook)

reviewed by
12-19-12

Damien Jurado – Kalla Hus

The syrupy toned Damien Jurado drops off a Christmas original in the form of the ballad-y “Kalla Hus”. A collaboration with fellow Seattle musician Kyle Zantos, who composed the music for the tune, the track gets right the references to winter-y vistas and that special brand of holiday nostalgia and regret as well as jingle bells. There are jingle bells. Get it, girl.

Damien Jurado washington(Facebook)

Rating 8.2

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reviewed by
12-17-12

Interview w/ Krewella

To say that Krewella have had a big 2012 is a bit of an understatement. The hotly tipped EDM trio from Chicago have done nothing short of being everywhere that they need to be this year, gigging with the likes of Zedd, Diplo, Pretty Lights, etc. and in addition have just released a new Play Harder EP featuring the blogo-smash “Come & Get It”. Fact – we couldn’t possibly be banging any harder to “Come & Get It” at b.3.h.q. as of late. Jahan and Yasmine Yousaf and Rain Man from the Krewella crew recently caught up with Brian Litwin from team B3SCI for a quick chat. Check out what the band had to say below:

B3SCI: You guys seem particularly selective with the group’s official releases. And with the material that has been released, the online community goes crazy for. What’s creative process behind putting together a true Krewella banger?

KREWELLA: Definitely. The three of us have learned so much from one another over the last few years that we have very similar tastes. It helps a lot when releasing content because we can catch so many things that we think might not sound right, and we can collectively come up with a solution. Also our two managers Jake Udell and Nathan Lim have great ears and give great feedback as well. It’s really a team effort.

B3SCI: Krewella’s rise has seemed explosive since your first releases, from “Strobelights” and “One Minute” to your debut EP, Play Hard showing at #1 on Beatport… what’s been the most surreal part of your journey?

KREWELLA: It’s got to be seeing fans singing our lyrics at shows. To hear a room chanting the lyrics to one of our songs is such a beautiful thing. When we were struggling to get by last winter in Chicago – creating our first EP – it was only a dream that fans would come to a Krewella show and sing along with every word!

B3SCI: We here at B3SCI love the vocal integration in Krewella, do you see adding a live element in the set anytime soon?

KREWELLA: Definitely. We don’t want to spoil any surprises but keep your eyes out!!

B3SCI: Playing as many shows as you three do, it must be hard to just sit down and relax. When you get those times to chill, what do you do?

KREWELLA: Visiting family is huge. We never anticipated being away from our loved ones as much as we have this year, so any time were not playing shows or in the studio we like to go home for a day or two. Also, cats and FIFA on xbox.

B3SCI: We’ve spent some time in Chicago and it’s refreshing to see a local act like Krewella really catch fire, especially in the EDM realm. How do you see the role of Chicago’s EDM scene nowadays?

KREWELLA: Chicago’s scene has definitely molded us into the group we are today. We started off playing grimy raves on the south side followed by even more grimy dubstep/electro partys in the city. Chicago has been having a great year with the dudes Flosstradamus and Lucky Date buzzing so hard and theres quite a few up and coming acts to look out for…

B3SCI: Your recent “Come & Get It” release dishes the Krewella party touch with more of a DnB vibe. With the various dubstep, house and moombahton explorations on your early material, can fans expect to see more DnB and other new ideas on future tracks? Is there a correlation to what you guys are listening to right now?

KREWELLA: We’re totally into DnB and drumstep, and we’re already working on some tunes for the album. We’re really loving Netsky and Pendulum right now!

B3SCI: Having gigged with major acts like Diplo, Benny Benassi, Pretty Lights, DJ Fresh, and having presence at so many major festivals around the world, what’s the next adventure for Krewella?

KREWELLA: The next adventure is to finish up our first full length album. We’ve been working on it as much as possible on the road these last few months and we have a bunch of studio days at the top of 2013 to really start completing it.

B3SCI: You guys seem to gravitate towards Jameson like whoa, what is your love affair with that specific libation and how did it come about?

KREWELLA: It was like love at first drink. We can’t remember the first time we had Jameson or who offered it, but we know it never went away after that.

B3SCI: After watching a look at your behind-the-scenes life in the docufilm, Krewlife. Looking forward, is safe to assume that more genitals will be rubbed on unsuspecting faces?

KREWELLA: Hopefully not… but probably.

Krewella (Facebook)

reviewed by
12-14-12

Review: Poolside w/ Goldroom @ Dim Mak Studios in Hollywood, Ca 12/4/12

Just like any Tuesday night on famous Hollywood Blvd, the streets were loaded with the usual seedy characters, hipsters, club goers and dirty dog vendors. Though Hollywood can be intoxicating, I was clear minded that night and ready for a much anticipated show from hyped DJ Goldroom and Poolside (DJ set) at Dim Mak Studios.

Resident DJ Bones kicked things off mixing in different tracks from a variety of different genres. He did a nice job of warming up the trickling in late-night crowd. As the decks switched hands to tropical disco producer, Goldroom, the audience made their way more towards the dance floor. Josh Legg aka Goldroom had clearly come to Dim Mak that night with a plan to get the audience moving. An absolute highlight of the set was when he dropped his incredible remix of Niki & The Dove’s “Mother Project”.

As Goldroom wrapped things up he gave way to Poolside, the headliner for the evening. Having already seen and covered Poolside a handful of times, at Filter’s Culture Collide Fest and recently reviewing their edit of Laid Back’s “Fly Away”, I am what you may call a fan of their daytime disco sound. I was curious how a DJ set would come across, and was not a bit worried about the crowd response. Poolside opened their set to a packed house and played “Kiss You Forever” with the crowd singing through most of the song. The collective’s high energy set and overall mix blew me away that night. By Brian Litwin

Laid Back – Fly Away (Poolside Edit)

Poolside california (Facebook)
Goldroom california (Facebook)

Rating 8.2

brown8

reviewed by
12-08-12

CREEP – Call Her (ft. Tricky & School of Seven Bells’ Alejandra De Heza)

CREEP have just let loose on this new single featuring School of Seven Bells’ Alejandra De Heza and trip hop star Tricky. The down-tempo cut treads a dark and chilly gaze offering just a taste of what’s to come from CREEP’s debut album expected next year.

CREEP – Call Her (ft. Tricky & School of Seven Bells’ Alejandra De Heza)

CREEP (Facebook) (Purchase)

Rating 8.3

brown8

reviewed by
12-05-12

Review: Rah Rah @ The Bootleg Bar in Los Angeles on Wednesday 11/28/12

It’s no surprise that Canada has treated this 6-piece from Regina, Saskatchewan so well. Having been crowned “Best New Canadian Band” and “Best New Alternative Band” by iTunes Canada in 2009, Rah Rah recently released their new album The Poet’s Dead in the US and it’s an album I’ve spent some time with. For several band members, their last week’s visit to LA for a small handful of shows was their first trip ever to California. As with other folk-flavored rock bands that veer between a harder and softer dynamic, I’d hoped this live show would rock (rather than put me to sleep). I’m glad to say this band not only rocked it, but exceeded lofty expectations. Rah Rah can play. Literally, band members often switched up on instruments, between tunes or even sometimes mid-song. They perfectly nailed their tempos and crescendos bringing select highlights to a supreme level of intensity.

Rah Rah’s set opened with their infectious song, “Art & A Wife”. This track reminds of New Pornographers around the time of their Twin Cinema album. Throughout the song, and even the set, Rah Rah feature male-female vocal exchanges. In general, four band members in Rah Rah provided lead vocals with Marshall Burns handling most of them. Marshall’s voice sounds a bit like Neil Young — more so live than on the recordings. His vocal on “Dead Men” was a highlight that night, as was “Prairie Girl” sung by Erin Passmore. And some locally Regina-flavored humor was found in the set’s finale, “Duet For Emmylou And The Grievous Angel”.

Rah Rah obviously enjoy playing, and they have a down to earth, winning way in their stage manner. Still building their loyal L.A. following the comfortable crowd was responsive and offered them a very warm encore. By Bruce Rave

*Check out Bruce’s Moheak Radio “Go Deep” show on Sunday nights 7-9 pm Pacific, 10-12 am Eastern, 3-5 am GMT. Listen to past shows at Bruce’s blog and follow Bruce on Twitter.

Rah Rah (Facebook)

reviewed by
12-03-12

B3SCI Reviews IROCKE

Let’s say that you really wanted to catch Radiohead at Coachella this past year, but you live somewhere like Chicago and are not interested in paying a small fortune to sweat your ass off in the middle of the desert… what did you end up doing? You live streamed the shit out of that festival! Apply that same concept but on a nightly, worldwide scale, and we introduce you to your next favorite live content streaming destination, IROCKE. With over 2,000 live shows now streaming per month, this new start-up based out of Hermosa Beach, Ca. is at the forefront of what just might be the next big step in the rapidly evolving music industry.

B3SCI recently paid visit to the official beta launch party for IROCKE and received a first hand look at what the hype is all about. Mingling with different bloggers, venue owners, artists, managers, marketing execs, live streaming sources and others, we realized the true viability in the live streaming industry. Live music from Tom Freund and friends (tomfruend.com) was accompanied throughout the evening by a collection of brief speeches from IROCKE co-founder Karl Rogers and representatives of SkyRoomLive, ShowGo.tv, and TRI Studios (Bob Weir’s state of the art studio). In fine fashion, being projected on the back wall during the party was IROCKE in full swing, showcasing real time and live streams from Benny Benassi, Andrew W.K. gigs taking place around the country.

IROCKE is now open to the public. Visit the site and the first thing you will notice on the home page is an intuitive layout and design. It’s simple to use and easy to navigate, with many cool features, like sortable live shows by genre and other criteria. Also, members who choose to sign-up with IROCKE have the ability to click on an artist and see where they are playing next and what live streams have already happened. As a member of IROCKE, you can personalize your own profile with RSVPs for streams, sharing capabilities with friends and more. Throw in the fact that membership to join is currently free – and you have a winning recipe. With an expanding roster of live streams, IROCKE is the new source for live streaming music performances worldwide. By Brian Litwin

IROCKE california (Official)

reviewed by
11-28-12

B3SCI Presents: Gavin Turek, Jhameel, Kenan Bell, Hustle Roses + more @ Central S.A.P.C in Santa Monica 11/27/12

We have an exciting announcement for those of you in the SoCal/Los Angeles area this coming week! On Tuesday (11/27) B3SCI is teaming up with Central S.A.P.C to present November’s artist in residency and rising star Gavin Turek, who will be joined by a stellar bill of talent including Jhameel, Kenan Bell, Hustle Roses and a very special secret guest TBA (stay tuned for this one!).

To say the least the gig is a can’t miss, and to make things even better… it’s absolutely FREE! So come hang out with us and enjoy some great music plus oceanside breezes in Santa Monica this Tuesday night. Additional details on the show are here at Central S.A.P.C. and also check out some fresh videos and tunes below to get you in the mood. See you all there!

The Central S.A.P.C. california (Gig Info) (This Show on Facebook)

TOKiMONSTA – Little Pleasures (Feat. Gavin Turek)

reviewed by
11-24-12

The Aves – In Vogue

Aussie quartet, The Aves, came stateside recently to record their new digital EP Anywhere Else. Fronted by lead singer and rhythm guitar player Lucy Campbell, The Aves have a very clean, garage-pop sound that’s amply explored with their single “In Vouge”. Having toured most of the major markets in the world, and with some catchy tunes to boot, The Aves are gaining steam as ones worth keeping on your radar. By Brian Litwin

The Aves (Facebook)

Rating 8.1

reviewed by
11-16-12

Albert – Lucky (ft Anna Lena)

New electronic producer Albert throws down some heavily chill drenched vibes on his forthcoming release “Lucky”. For the track, the Copenhagen based producer links up with the vocal and lyrical stylings of Anna Lena for an eerie composition of pragmatically spaced instrumentation, illustrating the ultimate sonic hibernation. You can get “Lucky” and it’s remix package soon via London based Studio Rockers. Be sure to check out the stunning visuals for the track below and stay tuned for more to come from this promising young talent on the rise.

Albert – Lucky (ft Anna Lena)

Albert denmark (Facebook)
Studio Rockers (Label)

Rating 8.6

reviewed by
11-15-12

Interview w/ Triptides

In anticipation to their forthcoming Sun Pavilion full length release on November 19th, we recently had the chance to catch up with Glenn from midwest based indie garage rock trio Triptides for a quick Q&A. Check out our conversation below:

B3SCI: How did Triptides and the trio of Glenn, Josh and Josh come to be?

TRIPTIDES: Josh Menashe and I met at Indiana University. We happened to sit next to each other in a rather large history class called “Rock and Roll in the 70’s and 80’s.” The first thing I ever said to him was “do you know who the singer for Nirvana is?” It turned out that he lived in the dorm next to mine so we started playing guitar together before class until eventually we were jamming all the time. Josh Morrow joined last spring a few months after seeing us perform at a living room show. He had played drums in Josh Menashe’s other band Ivory Wave for a few shows so they already had a musical connection through that.

B3SCI: It seems much of Triptides early material was recorded in a bedroom and/or basement in Bloomington, Indiana. How did you guys initially channel your sunniness sounds of summer in this type of environment?

TRIPTIDES: We kept the sunshine in our heads. Most of the time we would just forget about our surroundings and become completely absorbed in our headphones. At that point it doesn’t matter where you are.

B3SCI: Speaking of environments, how has Bloomington, Indiana embraced Triptides?

TRIPTIDES: Bloomington has been really supportive. People always get crazy when we play a really loud house show. There’s a lot of music going on here and it’s become almost perfectly intertwined with the party scene, which is cool because usually there’s a handful of big parties going on each weekend and a lot of different types of people will end up at the same parties, and then end up enjoying the same music.

B3SCI: Guitar melody and hooks are pretty front and center on your new Sun Pavilion LP. At what point does guitar come into the Triptides songwriting process? Is there a particular writing process in general with your songs?

TRIPTIDES: A lot of the hooks are just riffs we’ve come up with randomly and then think “this could be part of a song.” Sometimes the song is based entirely around a riff (“English Rain”) and the other parts are figured out after. Sometimes the riffs are created after we’ve figured out the entire song and are looking for ways to ornament it (“Bright Sky”). With those songs, the hooks are notes that we hear in our heads while listening to them and we want everyone else to hear them also.

B3SCI: A lesson from the school of Triptides. Who are some of the most underrated surf bands (or any other type bands) that we need to check out ASAP?

TRIPTIDES: The Tornadoes, The Tornados (UK), The Belairs and The Pyramids are all pretty great surf groups. Other great bands I’m listening to right now are July, Lazy Smoke, Broadcast, Rainbow Ffoly and the Leopards.

B3SCI: On a similar note, next time you head to a record store, what are you heading for first?

TRIPTIDES: The new Melody’s Echo Chamber album.

B3SCI: Your recent Halloween-friendly single, “Graveyard” has a bopping snappy emphasis that we can’t resist. Is there an affect or vibe that you were aiming for on this tune with such a spooky title?

TRIPTIDES: The title actually came after the song was written and recorded. The vibe was supposed to be somewhere between a continued longing for someone even after accepting that love is dead.

B3SCI: How has Triptides evolved as a band on Sun Pavilion from your previous full length Psychic Summer LP and other releases?

TRIPTIDES: We’ve moved away from a strictly summer sound and are currently experimenting with the astral properties of the other seasons.

B3SCI: Sun Pavilion seems to have a nod to timeless British guitar pop. How, if at all, has British pop music of past and present influenced Triptides?

TRIPTIDES: The Beatles are one of our favorite bands. They’ve taught us a lot about songwriting and melody. Piper at the Gates of Dawn has definitely been an influence. The Troggs, Hendrix and Cream have definitely influenced the heavier aspects of our sound.

B3SCI: The band seems to have a passion for analog recording. How important would you say the recording process is to the Triptides sound?

TRIPTIDES: It’s been very important so far. We started with a 4 track Portastudio but for Sun Pavilion we used an 8 track Portastudio. The recording process is key to our writing process; we frequently don’t know how the bass/piano/2nd guitar is going to sound until we’ve recorded other parts of the song. A lot of time I’ll demo out every part of a song on the 8 track just to show it to the band – it’s our equivalent of sheet music.

B3SCI: Is there a track on Sun Pavilion that you feel particularly proud of as a band?

TRIPTIDES: We probably worked on the track “Morning Dew” the longest. It went through a bunch of different versions and started out sounding a lot different. It took a lot of demos before it ended up sounding how it does on the record.

B3SCI: When can fans expect to catch Triptides on tour?

TRIPTIDES: Possibly this winter, definitely this summer.

B3SCI: When Triptides isn’t playing music, what passions bide your time?

TRIPTIDES: Space travel, super smash brothers and records.

B3SCI: We’re hooking you guys up with a free ride on the B3SCI time machine, where are you guys heading?

TRIPTIDES: Pink Floyd’s “Games For May” concert, May 12, 1967

Triptides indiana (Bandcamp)

reviewed by
11-14-12

Lovelier Other – Leave This Behind

“Leave This Behind” is a track best explored through listening than explaining. With emphasis on delicacy and cohesive melody, the song finds a heartfelt stride in electronic inspired lullaby. Lovelier Other showcase a steady adeptness towards delay-spinkled atmospheres. Stay tuned for more to come from this little known collective that we presume comes to us by way of Iceland.

Lovelier Other – Leave This Behind

Lovelier Other iceland (Soundcloud)

Rating 7.9

reviewed by
11-14-12