In an effort to help out their fellow Iowans, SoCal-based Iowa transplants Tyler and Jessica Kamerman are organizing a benefit concert called Reach Out for the flood-bedeviled citizens of that Midwestern state.

If you would like to support Reach Out, contact Tyler Kamerman at (310) 968-2365.

The details for this event:

WHEN: Tuesday, July 1 at 8:00 p.m., $20 admission [all proceeds go to United Way of Iowa and tax-deductible contributions will be accepted]
WHERE: 14 Below (1348 14th St., Santa Monica CA 90404)
WHO: The Nadas, Christopher Hawley Rollers, Sharon Temple, DJ Quickie Mart and The Quiet

Luchadores—those masked wrestlers­ from south of the frontera—will be taking over the Grove of Anaheim tonight in what’s sure to be a spectacle of high-flying moves and debauchery.

Tonight’s event is Lucha Va Voom Sexo Y Violencia, and Mexican wrestlers from all over Mexico, Los Angeles and Texas will be battling for ring supremacy, the honor of their hometown and the coveted Summer-Nacionales cup.

In between matches, the ring gets hot with burlesque performances from New York’s Wau Wau Sisters, Chicago’s Michelle L’Amour, LA’s Lucy Fur, Karis and Lola La Cereza.

Oh wait! There will be midgets, too. Doing... I’m not sure. Wrestling? Probably. Performing burlesque? One can only hope.

The great LA-based counterculture magazine Arthur needs to raise $20,000 by July 1 or it will have to cease publishing.

LA Weekly's Randall Roberts summarizes the sorry scenario on our sister paper's blog here.

If you're so inspired, you can donate money to Arthur's worthy cause by using the widget below.

This almost just in: Extravagantly entertaining psych-rock eccentrics Dark Meat fly in from Athens, Georgia to play Vestal Watch tonight. (Dunno if all 17 members will make the trip.) Travis Keller of Buddyhead will be DJing some rock tuneage and there'll also be a preview of Vestal's fall/holiday line. (Vestal sells timepieces, softgoods and accessories for the rock-and-roll set.)

Vestal HQ, 730 W. 17th St., Costa Mesa, (949) 631-7036; www.vestalwatch.com; 8 p.m. All ages.

Dark Meat live at the 40 Watt Club

Last Night: Yacht at the Samueli Theater on June 26, 2008

Better Than: Playing Dance Dance Revolution and it burns more calories then Wii Fit.

Download: See A Penny (Pick It Up) from their album I Believe In You. Your Magic Is Real.

Is it art? Is it electro? Is it electro art? I'm not quite sure, but I do know that last night was an infectious dance party in the form of Yacht sailed into the Samueli Theater with support from Mika Miko.

Club soda, red telephone microphone, beach ball, saxophone and youthful rambunctiousness were some of the ingredients of Mika Miko. With the assistance of Dean Spunt from No Age on drums, Mika Miko tore through their set like the Tasmanian devil with a batch of furious punk-spiked tunes, each of which barely clocked over the two-minute mark. Jenna Thornhill put Bill Clinton to shame with her skills on the saxophone. "Business Cats" sounded like it came from the era of Black Flag and would have fit well on the Repo Man soundtrack.

Yacht—the dynamic duo of Jona Bechtolt (vocals) and Claire Evans (vocals)—deployed a large projection screen, two microphones, a laptop computer, and their contagious energy to create a memorable concert experience. Jona and Claire made up for the lack of live instrumentation with spastic performances and heavy crowd interaction. Jona would frequently jump into the crowd and mosh/dance his way through the throngs as he carved out his own spot on the dance floor.

"It's Coming To Get You" recalled some synthesizer patches from the 1980s as Claire and Jona harmonized while dancing up a storm. Jona was dressed like Don Johnson from Miami Vice for the projections while they tackled "Summer Song", which Jona mentioned will be released by the LCD Soundsystem-run label DFA. The track was a pulsating wave of cowbell, electronic drums and hand claps that made you move.

Jona and Claire also took out some time to answer some questions from the crowd. I learned that Yacht are inspired by the music creation programs of Ableton Live and Reason. The video for "See a Penny (Pick It Up) coincided with an 8-bit storm of sound that would make Nintendo fans drop their controllers and dance. Yacht sailed into the sunset with a Love Boat send off by inviting everyone on stage for one last shake-down. Don't miss the boat on Yacht.

Critic's Notebook:

Personal Bias: Any band endorsed by LCD Soundsystem is worthy of checking out.

Random Detail: Jona's penchant for the '80s was evident as he momentarily quoted some dialog from Back to the Future in between songs.

By The Way: Yacht will play the O2 Wireless festival in London with Fatboy Slim, Cut Copy, MSTRKRFT and Neon Neon.

View more photos of the event here.

As part of their Lights In The Sky North American tour, Nine Inch Nails will play the Forum Sat. Sept. 6. Atlanta space/drone rockers Deerhunter will open (a surprisingly, bold choice by Mr. Trent Reznor). Tickets go on sale June 28 at 10 a.m. through LiveNation.com and Ticketmaster.com.

Since Reznor and Interscope Records parted ways, NIN have been on a prolific roll; Trent seems creatively rejuvenated now that he's working for himself and not a major label. I especially enjoyed the two-disc set of electronics-heavy instrumentals, Ghosts I-IV, NIN released earlier this year. You can download for free NIN's latest album, The Slip, at www.nin.com. Judging from what I've heard of it, The Slip still contains enough requisite Reznor angst to fuel several thousand high-school graduating classes through the next few semesters.

Nine Inch Nails’ 2008 touring lineup includes NIN fixtures Robin Finck, Alessandro Cortini and Josh Freese, as well as Justin Meldal-Johnson, an established LA studio pro who's played bass for Beck and Garbage. “We’ve added, we’ve subtracted and we’ve wound up with unquestionably the strongest lineup I’ve EVER had,” Reznor posted on his website, adding, “We’ve been working on something really special for these shows and so far I couldn’t be happier with the results.”

More data about The Slip:

The Slip marks the first time Nine Inch Nails—or any artist of NIN’s stature—has made its new album available completely for free as a DRM-free digital download. The Slip is available as a high-quality MP3 or in a variety of lossless formats including, for the first time, a higher-than-CD quality 24 bit 96k version. All downloads include a PDF with credits and artwork. In addition, The Slip, like its instrumental predecessor, Ghosts I-IV, is being released under a Creative Commons license, allowing fans to distribute the songs and files freely and without fear of copyright infringement. Like the free single “Discipline” released to terrestrial radio stations and their websites and the track “Echoplex” appearing on iLike, The Slip is a classic straightforward NIN album. A physical configuration on CD and vinyl is in the works for a July release.

Here's are vids for "Starfucker Inc." and "We're in This Together" [embedding's disabled].

Bird Names: Straight-up winging it...

Acrobatics Everyday has another big show tonight for the cognoscenti and curious over at the UC Irvine campus' Phoenix Grille, 8 p.m., $5. Here's your lineup, darlings:

BIRD NAMES Ramshackle, eerie Fall-like indie rock from Chicago.

WUMMIN Psychedelic avant-opera duo from LA.

IMAGINE "THE" BAND From LA, a fucked-up performance art/“a cappella ambient comedy” ordeal; the ideal opening act for grimly lame "comedian" Neil Hamburger.

JEHOVAH'S FITNESS Purveyors of scrappy, tuneful lo-fi rock for whom a shoestring budget would be a step up in production.

Quirky Portland electro-pop thrillers YACHT and spunky LA punk funsters Mika Miko are playing Samueli Theater at the Orange County Performing Arts Center Thursday June 26, and we have two tickets to give away.

First person to comment to this post will win them.

Here's a video of YACHT's “I Luv a Computer” to whet your appetite.

One of the fringe benefits of spending an afternoon at Mike McHugh's Distillery Studios recently to watch LA cult-pop figure Ariel Pink and band work on their next album was discovering the existence of a 1964 Russian film titled Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors, directed by Sergei Parajanov (sometimes rendered Paradjanov). The group's drummer had the DVD in the studio and Matt Castille, who's producing Ariel Pink's forthcoming full-length, compared Shadows to Alejandro Jodorowsky's The Holy Mountain. Praise doesn't come any higher in my world, so I made a note to research Shadows.

I punched the title into YouTube's search engine and was duly rewarded with several intriguing clips. What stood out besides the striking, baffling imagery was the soundtrack, a devastatingly haunting and beautiful tapestry of what I assume to be Russian folk songs and also some sublime drones that one could imagine coming out on La Monte Young's Just Dreams label or VHF Records, a font of avant-garde drone production based in Virginia. Frustratingly, efforts to find out who's responsible for this unspeakably gorgeous and moving music have proved fruitless.

Essentially, Shadows is described as a “Carpathian Romeo and Juliet tale,” which, from what I've read and viewed on YouTube, is like saying Ulysses is a story about a Dubliner. New York Times' Dave Kehr observed: “With its vision of nature in Dionysian riot, its chorus line of extravagantly costumed peasants and its shifting point of view, it is hard to tell where ethnography ends in this extraordinary film, and where fantasy begins.”

Sounds like a must-see—and must-hear—film.

I think I have to start liking Kid Rock now.....eeeewwww.....

From BBC News:

"Kid Rock said his record company Atlantic had asked him to 'stand up for illegal downloading' a few years ago because it told him 'people are stealing from us and stealing from you'."

Kid Rock has just played his first UK shows for five years

"And I go: 'Wait a second, you've been stealing from the artists for years. Now you want me to stand up for you?

"'I was telling kids—download it illegally, I don't care. I want you to hear my music so I can play live.'"

"Asked whether he was worried about illegal downloading, he replied: 'I don't agree with it. I think we should level the playing field. I don't mind people stealing my music, that's fine. But I think they should steal everything.

"'You know how much money the oil companies have? If you need some gas, just go fill your tank off and drive off, they're not going to miss it.'"

We see Willie, but we don't hear him much . . . great song, nonetheless . .

Boy George: He plans to make up those missed dates.

Ex-Culture Club front androgyne Boy George has had to cancel his upcoming US tour (including a July 13 date at the Grove of Anaheim) after being denied a work visa. In recent years, George has forged a career as a DJ who plays mediocre house music in fairly sizable clubs.

Read the statement from his management after the jump.

The video trailer for Beck's Modern Guilt (out July 8 on DGC) is up now on Amazon.com's site. The clip's stylized B&W starkness pays homage to Warhol and Truffault, while the peppy, urgent retro-surf pop shimmying recalls B-52's, with unexpected tangents into analog-electronic tomfoolery and clipped, staccato funk and what could be a sideways nod to Motown. Intriguing, if not mind-blowing...

Jessica Dobson @ Hibbleton Gallery on 6/21

Since the Weekly’s profile feature “True Story” on melancholy pop songstress Jessica Dobson, she has added another shining star to her galaxy as she prepares to go on tour with Beck—one of music’s most revered sonic astronauts.

On the night before she departed for a European tour, Dobson savored a few more comfortable moments surrounded by family, friends (and a room full of sexy thick bearded men, Japanese cartoons and superheroes) in the heart of downtown Fullerton. Dobson paid a visit to the newly opened Hibbleton Gallery on Wilshire St.

It was more or less a hometown show for Dobson who is known by most of her fans under the moniker Deep Sea Diver. This La Habra-grown talent became a solid fixture in the local Fullerton scene before being snapped up by Atlantic Records (a label she has parted ways with recently) for a chance at some major exposure.

Once again at the helm of her musical destiny, her confidence and talent seemed to seep through every song played during her brief half-hour set last night. The whole place went silent as Dobson’s acoustic strumming bounced off the white walls and her soothing voice washed over the crowd. One of the best things about art gallery acoustic shows is that it forces out most of the background noise pollution so even the slightest nuances in the music can make an impact on the audience. Even for a show of this type, Dobson’s emotion during songs like “Wearing Thin” and “We’re All Chalked Up and Spitting Dust” commanded silence that was only interrupted by the slow creak of the front door as some late comers shuffled in to catch the rest of the set.

In the quiet atmosphere it almost felt like we were in Dobson’s bedroom watching her practice. She capped off her set by giving us a taste of some musical roots that most fans of her music would have already guessed. Her cover of The Smith’s “Ask” was definitely one of the highlights, followed by the upbeat pop of “New Caves."

Critic’s Notebook

Personal bias: This was the best art gallery show I’ve been to since Matt Embree played Koos in Long Beach last spring.

Random Detail: The weather outside was so humid and hot that my friends and I had a wet T-shirt contest right after the show . . . I won.

By the Way: Deep Sea Diver revealed that Dobson will be releasing an album when she gets back from tour so keep stalking her MySpace for more details.

An employee at a Fred Meyer store in Portland, Oregon mistakenly ordered vinyl LPs of R.E.M.'s latest album, Accelerate, instead of the CD-DVD version, and a funny thing happened: 20 of the vinyl copies sold the first day they were put on the shelves. Now this retailer is going to stock the format that the music industry hoped would die a quarter century ago in 60 of its stores in Oregon, Washington and Alaska.

“It's not just a nostalgia thing," Melinda Merrill, spokeswoman for Fred Meyer, told an AP reporter. "The response from customers has just been that they like it, they feel like it has a better sound." Other large companies like Best Buy are testing the waters for wax, too. Amazon.com created a vinyl-only section on its site last fall, as well.

Manufacturers' shipments of vinyl records increased more than 36 percent from 2006 to 2007, according to the Recording Industry Association of America, reaching a total of more than 1.3 million. Vinyl sales still lag way behind those of CDs and digital downloads, but many consumers are realizing that the analog format still has some crackling, popping life in it. The tables may be turning for vinyl yet.

[From cnn.com]

Here's a news segment by CBS Sunday Morning that touches on this phenomenon.

Khia's new single, “Be Your Lady,” is unremarkable R&B boilerplate with a sluggish rhythm that I can imagine clearing dance floors nationwide. What is remarkable about the song are the lyrics, which are helpfully flashed onscreen in the video below.

The crass materialism and unsexy salaciousness are breathtaking—or maybe I just don't listen to enough new R&B to be inured to this sort of mentality. The Atlanta-based singer's delivery doesn't reveal a trace of facetiousness; she seems utterly sincere when she declares, “if it ain't about that cash, then it ain't about us, honey.”

Maybe a lot of guys dig this sort of attitude, but it seems both toxically retrograde for the feminist “cause” (whatever that is nowadays) and corny (“I wanna meet your mother/I wanna cook your dinner and fold your clothes/I wanna have your baby, etc.”), and, I dunno, devoid of that good ol' romantic whatsis upon which male/female relations have been based for centuries. The lyrics have all the warmth of a corporate business plan (“I'm that bitch that you need on your side so you can run this shit"). But who cares if you can “eat out” Khia while she's fixing you breakfast “butt naked”?

Now, her 2002 club smash “My Neck, My Back” is more like it. Its single-minded, relentless focus on Khia receiving oral pleasure is refreshing in this male-dominated domain, and it has no pretensions other than to get a tongue (any tongue, as long as a man's attached to it) in her groove. Plus, the music's much sexier and, I daresay, cunning, than that of “Be Your Lady.”

“Be Your Lady”

“My Neck, My Back”

Belated congrats to the fabulous Stew, who won a Tony Award in NYC on Sunday for the book of his hit Broadway musical Passing Strange (though it should've taken home the Best Musical trophy, which went instead to In the Heights). For much of the '90s, Stew helmed the amazing LA band The Negro Problem, which played Long Beach and OC clubs with fondly-remembered frequency. (Right now, I'm remembering the NP gig I caught one night at the Lava Lounge at Java Lanes Bowling Alley, but then I remember that the place has since been bulldozed for condos, then I start weeping, and it's really not pretty.)

Check out this clip of highlights from the musical. (Stew is the large-framed, bespectacled African-American gent, FYI.) Only question now is, will it play OCPAC when it inevitably tours? Or even better - Club Mesa! Oh, wait.....

Get some head (microphones) and become the envy of your audiophile amigos. Neumann in Berlin (of course) designed this noggin-y novelty.

The KU 100 dummy head is a replica of the human head with a microphone built into each ear.

When the recorded audio signal is reproduced through high-quality headphones the listener perceives a sound image almost identical to the one he would have heard at the recording location of the dummy head (head-related stereophony).

When played back through loudspeakers, the sound matches to a high degree that of conventional stereo microphones, placed in the same position. However, a superior quality is added, that of a distinct spatial depth perception.

Tip: Scott Lonheim

The Cool Kids are A+ students of old-school rap, and they make it sound so easy. The Chicago duo of Mikey Rocks (19) and Chuck Inglish (23) strip hip-hop down to stark funk beats, casual smears of bass, a bleep or blip or clap here or there and a laid-back flow that rarely rises above sotto voce. Their boasts are braggadoci(oh well) and they don't give a fuck if you believe the veracity of them. Think early Run-DMC crossed with Suicide (for the production) and LL Cool J on Quaaludes (for the delivery) and a staunch belief that less is more than enough.

The Cool Kids' new EP, The Bake Sale (Chocolate Industries), consists of 10 variations on this theme: blasé raps that ooze confidence and production so minimal you want to mentally fill in the gaps with sampled strings, chicken-scratch guitar riffs or brass stabs, but then you realize the tracks sound dope as hell as they are, in all their skeletal anti-glory.

After the unearned bluster of so much '00s hip-hop, the Cool Kids' slouching, heavy-lidded funk and understated self-awareness sound incredibly fresh. They've received a lot of hype so far, but to these jaded ears, it seems deserved. The Bake Sale is one of my favorite hip-hop releases of 2008, even if it is just a highly detailed and skilled parody of Reagan-era rap—though I believe the Cool Kids are sincere. Ultimately, though, I don't care if they're goofin' or troofin'. The Bake Sale is some lackadaisical, funkdamental awesomeness.

“Jingling” obviously refers to LL's “Jingling Baby,” but its laggard electro patter is much less hyper than Cool James' antecedent. The Cool Kids even acknowledge this when they rap about receiving a note that asks them to “pick up the pace.” But they steadfastly keep it chill, regardless. They rhyme “Spike Lee” with “They girlfriends want a guy just like me.” They flout thuggishness with “No sense in throwin' punches/Let's do lunch, man/You like me, too/Ain't no future in your frontin'.” In "Jingling," whispers trump bellows and backward-sucking sounds usurp boom-bap. It's a weird universe the Cool Kids inhabit, and I, for one, am grateful.

The two-day lineup for this year's San Diego Street Scene was just announced today, and it doesn't look half bad, in this humble ex-music editor's opinion. Headliners include Beck, the Black Crowes, X, Tegan and Sara, Justice, plus Spoon, TV on the Radio, STS9 (Sound Tribe Sector 9), Michael Franti & Spearhead, The National, Atmosphere, Cat Power, Hot Chip, The New Pornographers, Vampire Weekend, The Hives, Cold War Kids, Ghostland Observatory, Spiritualized, Antibalas, Man Man, The Mother Hips, Tokyo Police Club.....fuck it, just click right here.

I'm hoping more bands are announced, and maybe even a third day, because Street Scene used to be one of the most sonically diverse affairs around -- they had whole stages filled with world music, Latin/Mexican and reggae acts, and it seemed like New Orleans fave sons the Wild Magnolias would play every year. I haven't been to it since that era. But the best news for me is that the Scene is returning to the actual STREETS of downtown San Diego, from whence the shindig got its name. Its migrated weirdly for at least the last 6 or 7 years, to places like the Del Mar Fairgrounds and the parking lot of Qualcomm Park, which is the friggin' stadium where the Chargers play. Sorry, but this boy is done attending music fests in asphalt parking lots, ever since that one year when Warped was held in the Honda Center lot (some of the bloodiest mosh pits in history, though - highly entertaining).

Hurley Entertainment is hosting a day-long music/fashion/sports event Wed. June 18 at its Costa Mesa headquarters (1945 Placentia Ave.). Action starts at 2 p.m., with bands playing at 4 p.m.

Vans Warped Tour 2008 acts Beat Union (Clash/Jam/Joe Jackson-style new wave/punk from Birmingham, England), Broadway Calls (peppy pop-punk from Oregon) and DJ Geometric will be performing while the Hurley Skate and the Soil BMX teams will be demonstrating their skills. Also, Hurley and Science Records will be displaying and giving away some of their clothing and musical goods, respectively. In addition, you can tour Hurley's new state of the art recording studio and take in the “Show of Hands” art display and “Collaboration Clothing,” a joint effort between musicians and visual artists. Wahoo's Fish Tacos will provide free food and drinks.

Donations will be accepted to benefit Jay Adams, an original Z-Boy who's considered one of the most original and influential skateboarders ever. According to a press release, “Jay Adams is being released from jail and is coming to work at Hurley to manage the Skatepark. Hurley is looking to assist him with a job, our moral support and financially as well, in an effort to let him hit the ground running with no worries except getting on the right track and supporting his family.”

Check out this vid, Jay Adams: The Original DogTown Z-Boy

The Growlers, Some Days, Gantez Warrior @ The Coach House on 6/14

Better Than: Wiping out on a crappy rented surf board

We may have been a few dark miles away from the foamy beaches of San Juan Capistrano, but after watching wave after wave of psychedelic surf rock crash over the audience at the Coach House, I felt like I should have packed sun screen and flip flops. Last night, The Growlers roused flocks of dudes and dudettes (sorry for using that word, but in this case I think it works) from all over south county to deliver their free flowin' brand of soulful surf psychedelics and feverish punk rock.

I made my way toward the lights of the stage to find a faint dose of jangling guitar and apathetic vocals. The warm up band was finishing up their set. Just looking at them on stage with their scraggly mop tops and sun tanned skin reminded me of a bus load of Jeff Spicoli’s disciples engaging in a loose percussion pow wow. After a few minutes I was debating whether or not to wait in the parking lot for the headliner.

Things got better though (but not much), with the moody rock delivery of a band called Some Days. For one thing, drummer/lead singer Anthony Matarazzo a.k.a. “Tony Days” warmed up to the crowd by saying “I just found out that I’m HIV negative.” With that comment the band got the most applause of their set.

I’m not sure if Days was drunk or not, but from watching him wail away on a towel-covered drum set and screaming into the mic, I am willing to bet he was. At first I was hoping the band’s stripped down, no frills style would grow on me, but by the middle of the set I was regretting my decision to sit so close to the stage.

By 10 p.m. or so, the audience seemed eager to get to The Growlers. But not before a mild set of surf punk courtesy of Gantzen Warrior. Sporting board shorts and Hawaiian shirts, GW looked like they had come straight from the beach. Backed by the Growlers’ drummer Brian Stewart, they gave the crowd a well appreciated surf beat pinched in with some snazzy song titles like “Chocolate Covered Ecstasy.” A dance party on the side stage resumed and the audience seemed to become a blur of flowing arms and hips. However, the band’s good time image got a little sour during their tune “Arabian Love Song #69.” What can I say—lyrics about Mohammed in the sand with a turban on his head enjoying his oil and reading the Koran, weren't exactly conjuring up good vibrations.

After that I was glad to finally get to watch The Growlers finally get on stage in their matching shiny blue suits. The crowd was at full volume as the band shuffled into position, looking slicker than a gang of used car salesmen. Front man Brooks Nielson wasn’t shy about showing off his fluency in Spanish as he greeted the crowd: “Hi everyone, we are Los Growlers, that’s Spanish for ‘The Growlers.'” Impressive. But what actually did impress me was the band’s full sound that balanced on a swinging back beat rhythm, shimmering guitars and reverb for days.

Nielson’s ghostly melodic vocals trailed over the work of his other bandmates Matt Taylor (guitar), Scott Montoya (bass), Miles Patterson (keyboard/guitar) and Brian Stewart (drums). Following the trend of the night, fans of the band couldn’t help but turn the stage into a dance floor as groups of girls got up there and grinded to the music.

All in all, the bands psychedelic beach rhythms took me straight to the ocean. I even think I felt sand squishing between my toes as left the parking lot.

Critic's notebook

Personal bias: God bless reverb

Random Detail: The best stage decoration ever: A chimpanzee wearing a pink Afro wig.

By the way: Check out the Growlers’ review in Locals Only by Dave Segal.

View photos of the concert here.

What's the Rub? Glad you asked. The Rub are a DJ collective from NYC consisting of Cosmo Baker, DJ Eleven and DJ Ayres. They're renowned for their History of Hip Hop mixtapes that compile a year's worth of classics from 1979 to 1999 (talk about obsessiveness; DAMN), their clever mashups, their regular night at Brooklyn's Southpaw club and their overall party-rocking prowess.

One of the Rub crew, DJ Ayres, mans the decks tonight at Detroit Bar. This cat gives you maximum bang for your ADHDance-music buck. Expect to hear lots of familiar cuts recontextualized and given fresh makeovers. The fact that dude looks like an Amish carpenter only enhances his appeal.

Here's a teaser for you—Ayres' remix of Notorious B.I.G.'s “Dead Wrong.”

OC Weekly freelancer Ben Westhoff has a blog post detailing what could possibly be the worst press release ever—and it's for Lil Wayne's Tha Carter III, only one of the most anticipated albums of 2008. Check out Ben's dissection of the press release's awfulness and then look for his review of Tha Carter III in the Weekly on stands/online June 19.

Here's the video for "Lollipop," of which you're probably already sick, but it has a weirdly alien aura and is pretty downcast for a major-label single filled with sexual innuendo.

If there were ever a guide to throw a great party, Sutra sure got it right this time. The blueprint is simple, although damn near impossible to recreate unless you've got the cred and resources.

First thing, you need a theme. Dirty Disco? Boogie Nights? Yep, sounds good. It's been a while since the '70s themed extravaganzas have hit the circuit, so does this mean they're novel again? Looks like it. And put the word "dirty" in front of anything, it just gets infinitely cooler.

Next, gotta have the eye candy. Playboy would seem like the obvious first choice (duh), but what about going right past all those bunny wannabe's to the queen sex pot? That would be recently appointed 2008 Playmate Of The Year Jayde Nicole. Think she would come to your party? Let alone host it? In your dreams.

Finally and arguably most importantly is the music. Again, Sutra goes right to the top: world renowned DJ/music producer Steve Aoki to spin a special live '70s set that will be nothing less than fanfuckingtastic.

Being Sutra's first annual Dirty Disco party, there's the slightest chance it's going to be a dud. But by slightest chance, it's about as possible as playing that stupid "lime in the coconut" game and not throwing up, which translates to about one in a sqillion.

The catch: '70s disco attire is required for entry, so you have to participate. Just think tight and glitzy. Hot pants and halter tops. What you would wear with a pair of roller skates if you didn't plan on actually, um, skating. Men should go the Travolta route, naturally. No need for platforms tough, guys, unless you have practiced dancing in them. As hot as tight pants and open shirts can be, most ladies dont dig guys in heels. sorry.

According to Sutra, this is "sure to sell out" and unlike most venues that claim it, Dirty Disco probably will. Pre-sale tickets run $20 (hey, that's less than five gallons of gas), but the cut-off is today at 1 p.m. You can purchase them here. Didn't get them in time? Try your luck at the door, but getting turned away while in costume is one of the most embarrassing things to happen to a club-goer. In other words, sucks to be you.

You are not dreaming: Native Tongues OGs De La Soul are slated to perform tonight at swank Costa Mesa club Sutra Lounge, typically host to mainstream dance-music DJs and a clientele not exactly known for being down with backpack rappers. We just found out about this show this morning (thanks, Vickie!).

Apparently, it's been over five years since the über clever and smart East Coast hip-hop trio last played Sutra, so there's something of a tradition for these guys to grace the venue with their deep canon of hits. This seems so wrong that it has to be awesome. Let's hope they do the track below.

Sutra Lounge, 1870 Harbor Blvd. in the Triangle Square, Costa Mesa, 92627, 949-722-7103; 9 p.m., $20.

Lonely, introverted music nerds rejoice! Your days of cyber self-love are nearing an end, and it’s just a few cicks away. There’s another dating website on the ‘net but this one is just for you.

It’s called Rocknrolldating.com

Los Angeles resident and site creator Daniel House said, as quoted by the Register:

“Music has always been such a critical part of my lifestyle and it’s an important part of who you are,” House said. “I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had a friend say ‘He’s a cool guy, but his taste in music sucked so I knew it wouldn’t last.’ ”

Now, we all know sucky taste in music is a matter of opinion. And those passionate opinions you may have about a band like Linkin Park (and you wonder why you’re still single?) could lead you to the gentleman or lady of your dreams.

You can browse by either music category ­—Stoner Rock, Math Rock, Industrial...
or by individual bands —Radiohead, Bob Dylan, Weezer...

And the best part? It’s totally free to join.

Long Beach's Crystal Antlers received a coveted “Best New Music” recommendation from popular webzine Pitchfork today, along with a lofty 8.5 rating for their self-released EP (produced by Ikey Owens). Expect the stormy rock quintet to enter a new tax bracket any minute now. (Check out Erin DeWitt's Crystal Antlers review in our Locals Only column from April 10.)

Crystal Antlers open for Dax Riggs at the Glass House, June 13 and play the Little Radio Summer Camp with Imaad Wasif and Two Part Beast and the Pity Party June 14.

Crystal Antlers at this year's SXSW fest [caution: very trebly].

Dynamics—they used to be a given in recordings cut during the analog era. Now, apparently, we need an organized body to notify the music industry's tastemakers and consumers weaned on MP3s that a song not compressed to hell is not fatally flawed. What the fucking fuck?!

Read all about this tragic state of affairs here, while the old grump typing this post tries to decompress (rimshot).

The money quotes from Turn Me Up!™'s manifesto:

Turn Me Up!™ is a non-profit music industry organization campaigning to give artists back the choice to release more dynamic records. To be clear, it's not our goal to discourage loud records; they are, of course, a valid choice for many artists. We simply want to make the choice for a more dynamic record an option for artists.

Today, artists generally feel they have to master their records to be as loud as everybody else's. This certainly works for many artists. However, there are many other artists who feel their music would be better served by a more dynamic record, but who don't feel like that option is available to them.

Tip: My former colleague Jason Pettigrew

As of this post, the outcome of tonight's Lakers v. Celtics game has yet to be determined (or has it? Even as we speak, a cadre of bookie oracles gathers in an underground bunker beneath the Las Vegas strip to call the spread), but regardless of the outcome, Leviathan Brother (and committed basketball fan) Sean O'Connell pledges that the band will give their A game during their appearance at Orange's The District Lounge tonight.

The Los Angeles based Leviathan Brothers (consisting of keyboardist O'Connell and percussionist Miles Senzaki) have been playing in LA county and the Inland Empire for over three years now, but they have made few forays behind the Orange Curtain. Performing jazz covers of pop music and a smattering of instrumental originals, the band has been receiving accolades for their exciting and original approach to jazz arrangement. Dave Segal has written about them here and here, but sometimes it takes the persuasive power that only an effusive blog post can provide to prod people into action.

In the interest of full disclosure, it must be stated that O'Connell is a contributor to our Calendar section (selections can be seen here) and an associate of mine, but you don't have to take my potentially biased word for it. Consider the endorsements of L.A. Weekly's Greg Burk, some guy named Craig who has a jazz blog and South Park animator Ryan Quincy, who created a music video for one of the band's originals and is currently working on the cover art for their new album. Check out some of their tracks for yourself at their MySpace page and, for a taste of some of that legendary witty stage banter, read some of O'Connell's extra-curricular musings on the band's blog. Hey, Segal wasn't O'Connell's school chum and he still likes them, so that should count for something.

Whether tonight's show shall be a soothing salve for your wounded Laker loving soul or a joyous celebration of a well-deserved victory, come on out, wear your yellow and purple and be prepared to party. The music's pure swinging trippiness is appropriate for almost any emotional state. Expect plenty of arcane digital samples, "Hey, I recognize that song!" moments and perhaps an animal mask or two as the Leviathan Brothers teach Orange County to love jazz again.

The Leviathan Brothers perform two sets tonight at the District Lounge, 223 W. Chapman Ave., Orange, (714) 639-7777; www.thedistrictlounge.com. 9 p.m.-12 a.m. Free.

Pictured: Leviathan Brother Sean O'Connell looks on as bandmate Miles Senzaki shrinks a drum kit using only his mind.

As you may have noticed, I've been immersed in a summer-song mindset the past few weeks in preparation for our Summer Guide. Of course, I had to include a Beach Boys song in the best summer songs feature; after much cogitation, I settled on the rather obvious “Good Vibrations,” but I just as easily could've included “Feel Flows,” which we'll discuss for this week's Video Savant.

“Feel Flows” is an oft-overlooked gem in the Beach Boys' catalog. It can be found on Surf's Up, a relatively subdued LP from 1971 that also includes another of my all-time favorite BB cuts, “'Til I Die” (covered by the Josephine Wiggs Experience, trivia fans).

Written by Carl Wilson and Jack Rieley, “Feel Flows” features the Boys' patented intricate vocal arrangement, tailored to induce maximum goosebumpage. The song's perfectly pitched between mellow elation and somber resignation. It's like a magnificently engineered roller coaster of profound emotions or some new kind of prayer for surfers, devoid of the group's earlier kitsch/cornball elements. The lyrics wax mystical and poetic about things like “White hot glistening shadowy flows” and “Unfolding enveloping missiles of soul” (oh, for acid as potent as it was back then...).

About a third of the way in, a weird section featuring guest musician Charles Lloyd's trippy flute arabesques and Carl's surprisingly warped organ and guitar locutions interrupts the song's dominant, almost Terry Riley-esque keyboard mantra and Carl's poised, pious singing. Just when you think your skin can't take on any more chills, this 90-second passage layers on the sublimity even thicker.

“Fun, Fun, Fun” it ain't, but damn if “Feel Flows” won't be giving you deep aesthetic pleasure till you're senile. “Feel Flows” convinces you that the Beach Boys occasionally could be conduits for something approaching the divine, even if they were some weird, damaged and obnoxious SOBs.

To celebrate the end of another school year at UC Irvine, Sam Farzin of Acrobatics Everyday is throwing a partay (those are 34 percent more fun than a traditional party) involving at least 10 bands. The bill includes the following rising indie-rock luminaries (they're much more entertaining than descending indie-rock luminaries):

DEVON WILLIAMS
TALKDEMONIC
THE GREAT WHITE JENKINS
RED PONY CLOCK
LLOYD AND MICHAEL
VOICE ON TAPE
GLASSER
INFINITE BODY
RAFTER
PALMS

The action goes down Sat. June 14 at Phoenix Grille. Cover is a reasonable $8.

In the meantime, peruse Talkdemonic's “Mountain Cats” video.

[The Sex Pistols are playing only one US date on their current tour. Ben Marcus went to Las Vegas to file this review of their opening date for Heard Mentality.]

Jonesy’s Jukebox on Indie 103.1FM is a guilty addiction we’ll have to live without for most the next three months—all summer long without a daily fix of Steve Jones’ guitar strumming and gastrointestinal rhythm section (although Jones will be doing occasional broadcasts from a special studio set up in London). Last week as Jonesy did his last shows, he packed his guitars and T-shirts and sex toys, and hit the road for a three-month tour with the Sex Pistols. The pioneering ’70s punk band have regrouped 30 years later and are following in the steps of the Rolling Stones, the Police, Yes, the Who and Led Zeppelin to push the parameters of “Too old to rock and roll, too young to die.”

On June 7, the Sex Pistols played the Joint at the Hard Rock Hotel. This concert was “On for young and old” as the Australians say. There was a fairly equal mix of people in the crowd.

Sid Vicious is famously dead, and the current incarnation of the Sex Pistols is actually the original band: Glen Matlock on bass, Paul Cook on drums, Steve Jones playing guitar and Johnny Rotten singing. Anyone who listens to Jonesy’s Jukebox regularly understands that this is the better deal, as Sid couldn’t really play at all—Jonesy did all the bass parts for Never Mind the Bollocks. Sid was on stage because he looked good and then looked horrible. He was there to hit people on the head with guitars, spit blood on them and carve things into his chest.

Because of Sid, the Sex Pistols weren’t always known for their punctuality. It’s hard to make a gig when your bassist is in the hospital, with the words “Gimme a fix” self-etched into his chest with a razor. But that was then, and now, the Sex Pistols show started at 9 on the dot, following opening act Louis XIV, who didn’t really connect with a crowd who was there to see legend. The Sex Pistols’ set began with a recorded overture of “There Will Always Be an England,” as searchlights crisscrossed the stage, looking for trouble. The roar of the crowd took on the timbre of Nazi bombers over London—until Steve Jones walked out on stage first, followed by the rest of the lovely lads, and the place went berserk.

Jonesy’s radio guests politely describe him as robust, and while he was once the angry young man of rock and roll, he is now the Henry the VIII. Jones has put on a few (he talks about his weight struggles on his show) while Matlock and Cook looked like rock stars: fit and ready to rumble. Johnny Rotten came on stage looking like he had just rolled out of bed—a hospital bed. He had on a billowy top that looked like a 19th-century nightshirt, and his hair was messed up. Rotten is not as lean and mean as he used to be. These days his appearance morphs from a crazed Harpo Marx to Roman Polanski to Mickey Rourke to Doc from Back to the Future. Rotten came out singing a bouncy, cabaret version of “Pretty Vacant” and somewhere, the Rat Pack boys were smiling, because Johnny Rotten foremost is a great showman. He can work a crowd with the best of them and at the Joint he had 1,400 punk rock fans ready to drink his spit.

Which was a good thing, because if there is any element of the Sex Pistols that has been worn down by time, it is Johnny Rotten’s voice. He is 52 years old now, and not capable of the sustained, wailing, beautiful banshee screeches he could belt out show after show during his youth.

After the cabaret version of “Pretty Vacant,” the band launched into the real thing and for the next hour the Sex Pistols rocked the house. At one point, the band was playing the overture for “Anarchy in the UK,” and Rotten told the crowd, “I want you to sing along with me on this. I hope you know the words because I bloody well might not.” But the crowd was game, and they became a factor in the show, adding the weight of 1,400 voices to Rotten’s vocals, and giving him opportunities to cruise, holding out the microphone to the audience as his throat recalibrated.

Steve Jones will never be confused with rock-guitar virtuosos like Jimmy Page or Pete Townshend, but what Jonesy puts behind his power chords is sheer joy. This is a guy who loves to play rock guitar. He is rightfully proud of the effect he has had on rock music, and the effect his guitar has on people. Jonesy was having a ball stage left. He played in front of cabinets marked with a red cross on a white background, which gave the subliminal message that these guys in their 50s might succumb at any minute from the excesses of their decadent lifestyle.

The Sex Pistols played their greatest hits: “Liar,” “Submission,” “Belsen Was a Gas,” “Anarchy for the UK” and then came out for two encores: a cover of the Modern Lovers’ “Roadrunner” and also “Silver Machine,” a Jonesy favorite by Hawkwind that Johnny described as “Fuckin’ ’orrible.”

Toward the end of the show, someone on the second balcony said, “Pretty damned good, but no surprises. I thought they mi