Blank Blue: Blissin' up.

On May 6, Ubiquity Records will release Blank Blue's debut album, Western Water Music II. This is good news because, among other things, Blank Blue—the recording project of soulful Long Beach musicians Elvin “Nobody” Estela and Niki Randa—were named the Weekly's Best Local Rock Band in our 2007 best-of issue.

You can hear a few songs from the full-length on Blank Blue's MySpace. That's some sweet-ass baroque, funky psychedelia. Spring is in the air... and in the water, apparently.

In a further swipe at the face of Music Industry giants, The Raconteurs have announced the release of their sophomore album... next Tuesday.

No promoting.

“March 25 became the soonest date to have it available in EVERY FORMAT AT ONCE. The band have done no interviews or advertisements for this record before this announcement.

The group added that they wanted the sudden release so that everyone, fans and media, got the record at the same time “so that no one has an upper hand on anyone else regarding it’s availability, reception or perception.”
--as stated in an NME article

The 14-track album (which was finished about a week ago) will be released March 25.

Long Beach's psychedelic drone sorcerers Magic Lantern have earned an exalted place in my pantheon of favorite area bands (see my enthusiastic praise here and here). Now ML guitarist Cameron Stallones has a new solo album out under the moniker Sun Araw, titled The Phynx (on LA's Not Not Fun). Limited to 155 copies.

We haven't heard The Phynx yet, but you can read the label description below and buy it here. Sounds very promising.

Sun Araw - "The Phynx" NNF112—CDR ($6) Long Beach psychonauts Magic Lantern get ranted about a lot by us for their mystic ability to overwhelm and transport, and don’t expect that to stop soon. But in the meantime we’ve had the good fortune to learn about ML guitarist Cameron Stallones’ solo universe as Sun Araw and, no surprise, the silver apple don’t fall too far from the tree (so to speak). Spanning Spacemen 3 garage cosmos, Starving Weirdos coastal séance, and a healthy stratosphere of pan-dimensional astral feedbackers, The Phynx is a fantastic four-track suite that floats freely from form to formlessness in the blink of a third eye. A great journey into white light dirge and dead distortion blues, and as killer a debut full-length as a label/listener/fan/head could hope for. Fingers are crossed that more Sun Araw sunbeams shine down our ears again before ’08 is out. Stenciled CDRs in full-color mysterio-portrait foldover artwork by Stallones, and sanctified with a triad of kaleidoscope stickers.

The last place you would expect to find members of an OC band that managed to claw its way out of the depths of obscurity and into some money is underneath the dim lights of a cramped stage at a neighborhood sports bar and family restaurant.

Yet that's where we ran into Chris Tsagakis, drummer for the SoCal progressive ska powerhouse Rx Bandits last Thursday. The man performed his solo electro/drum side project Technology at Haskell's Prospector in Long Beach in front of a crowded bar packed with friends and fans alike.

Following him that night were fellow Rx Bandits band mates Joe Troy and Matt Embree, who thrashed in the bass and drum punk duo Coke vs. Bills.

Tsagakis, though a man of few words, took a few moments before the show to bless the crowd with some insight into the creation of Technology.

If you're looking for great rock & roll this Saturday night, you could do a whole lot worse (and really, you could, like that Guns N' Roses tribute creature at the HOB, or whatever it is at the Coach House that “features members of Yes”—gag) than the Foxy reunion at Cero's Bar in Anaheim (316 S. Euclid St., 714-317-3136; myspace.com/cerosbar).

Foxy was one of a jillion vastly underrated but totally kick-ass OC bands I came across during my seven-year stint as the Weekly's music editor, and to this day, their CDs (Foxy Por Vida, and an EP that I think had a picture of some tits on the cover) are still lovingly kept in my homebound collection. (That Lit album? Notsomuch.)

Foxy was chiefly Lisa “LP” Parker and Greg Antista's baby, and they were kind enough to allow the Weekly permission to stick two of their songs, “Sick Inside” and “Promises & Lies,” on our CD comps back when we were doing them. Amazing, liberating guitar-bass-drums music, and not a single dud tune in their repertoire. Here's something I wrote about 'em back in '01.

Also on the bill: Two other exceptional OC bands, All the Madmen and Boobie Trap. Only question is, why isn't this happening at the Doll Hut?

Oh, and don't get the OC Foxy confused with the Foxy that recorded the timeless disco anthem “Get Off.” Still, I just gotta post this clip:

The Mashed Potatos played an amazing set at the Hellman House in Long Beach on Saturday night. They were getting the dance party started inside, while outside was raging with firedancers, a mobile jacuzzi (located in the bed of a camouflaged truck, complete with fountains!), and some guy dressed up like a tomato, and booze booze booze.

All in all, it was a great time with a couple hundred of the area's most beautiful people and the best DJs around.

Thanks for everything, Kehni!

"Wintertime in Hollywood" by the Lovetones is not the type of song that normally takes hostage of my internal jukebox in 2007, but it's been doing just that for the last two days. Its full, chiming guitars, swooping bass line, mellifluous white soul vocals and profound tone of bittersweet wistfulness move me to my almost-hollow core. That and it reminds me a lot of George Harrison's "My Sweet Lord" crossed with Ringo Starr's "It Don't Come Easy," which is a fantastic thing to be reminded of—even in 2007.

You can find "Wintertime in Hollywood" on the Lovetones' sporadically brilliant psych-rock album, Axiom (Tee Pee Records; out June 19) or go to the Australian band's MySpace page for immediate gratification. I'm also pleased to report that they will be playing The Prospector in Long Beach on June 16.

It was a 100 degrees out this afternoon, it took me 45 minutes to find a space and park (real helpful employees out here), 15 to locate press will call and enter then maybe another five to situate where the fuck I was. I told myself two years ago I'd never do this again and here I am again: it's hot, the boyfriend is miserable, I've realized once again just how much I hate people (read: hipsters in every color of American Apparel track shorts available), but seeing Jesus & the Mary Chain perform a near flawless set of all the hits (seriously. Just. The. Hits. And a new song), with Scarlett Johansson (also known as Girl-I'd-Go-Gay-For #3) singing backup on "Just Like Honey," has almost made it worth it.

That and seeing Rufus Wainwright in a striped leisure suit complete with short shorts calling himself the "gay Frank Sinatra." Awesome.

Anyway, Interpol is starting, and soon Sonic Youth, and I'm stuck in the press tent. Enjoy the (sideways—I'm dumb, sorry—just tilt your head sideways, it'll just be as if you're there, I promise) video of Rufus Wainwright performing "14th Street" off of Want One.

OC quartet Venus Infers may be the best band ever to pun on a Velvet Underground song title... until somebody comes up with You're a Peon, Son. Tonight the group's celebrating the release of the five-song EP But You Already Knew That. Led by Trisha Smith's vocals and Davis Fetters' guitar, the music's uniformly smart and tart, dreamy and creamy, sparky and not at all snarky. Venus Infers' sound is ideal for spring, when you want something light and iridescent that injects a sprightly bounce in your stride. Well, that line of reasoning applies in areas of the country where there actually are seasons, but I hope you catch my drift. Venus Infers' drift is definitely worth catching, as well. Check 'em out at Detroit Bar tonight with Jena Malone and Her Bloodstains and the Color Turning at 9 p.m.

From Pitchfork:

On March 20, Epic/Legacy will celebrate the 40-year anniversary of the release of the group's 1967 debut, A Whole New Thing, by reissuing it along with the rest of the band's seven pre-solo Sly or Family Stone "comeback" albums. All seven albums (chronologically: A Whole New Thing, Dance to the Music, Life, Stand!, There's a Riot Goin' On, Fresh, Small Talk) will come as limited edition digipaks with bonus tracks, plenty of which are previously unreleased. According to a press release, they will also feature "restored and expanded packaging, including rare photos, memorabilia, and new liner notes by a diverse group of writers and artists."

IN OTHER NEWS: LA record store Ooga Booga has a batch of Calvin Johnson-created mixtapes for sale. Each tape covers a different type of music, with genres ranging from Soviet-era rock and pop to power pop from the '70s to Jamaican reggae b-sides. They're $10 each and probably will earn you all sorts of street cred.

To their credit, Pitchfork compiled a more-or-less well done 25 worst album covers of the year list, but they're remiss in not recognizing the power of a well done album cover. Rather than complain, we're taking matters into our own hands and making a list of our own. If RIAA doomsayers are to be believed, the great sun of the era of the tangible album is being eclipsed by filesharing, iTunes, and the menacing iPod. Art should be more important today than ever, if for no other reason than to give internet savvy fans a reason (other than goodwill) to buy your record.
In this list, there will be no countdown, instead, categories.

Photography

Destroyer - Rubies

It's the patchy sunlight, the atmospheric lamp, the stacks of books, the quaint, lived-in feeling. It's Destroyer personified. (Miles)

Justin Timberlake - Futuresex/Lovesounds
If there was a "Most Improved" category, Justin would take it, hands down. Justified, though a solid record was a tacky purple morass that made Timberlake look more aging teen idol than budding pop star. As a photo, Futuresex is an American Apparel ad gone classy, way to go, dude! (Kevin)

Grizzly Bear - Yellow House
Original, sharp, and above all nostalgic: You're a little kid giving a last once-over to the house you were born in, everything is empty and the truck is waiting outside. (Kevin)

The Mars Volta - Amputechture
Miles gave me guff for this one. Whatever. Mars Volta put too much thought into their music: its masturbatory, trying, and self-congratulating. If their music was as good as this cover: simple, dramatic, strange, and calm, they might have found an actual working formula. (Kevin)

Six Organs of Admittance - The Sun Awakens
When your record's cover corresponds with its title, your ground gets shaky: are you making a joke? Are you trying to be clever? Unless you're Weird Al (Poodle Hat!), you're better off leaving it blank. In Six Organs' case, it's perfect: subtle, cathartic, and dark. The aesthetics stop the bad pun dead in its tracks. (Kevin)

Casiotone for the Painfully Alone - Etiquette
A perfectly ghostly, surreal and captivating illustration. Nothing says "bone-crushingly depressed" quite like a dinner party with an alligator. (Miles)

Islands - Return to the Sea
Contrary to what your eyes might be telling you, this is a painting. SHOCKING! What makes this cover, though, is the bold, modern typeface. It takes the force of the glacier and lets you know that damnit, Islands are forever. (Miles)

Cornelius - Sensuous
This shows exactly why font is important. A lot of album covers fail in what they're trying to execute because the band excludes their name, the result: Boring! In this case, the text makes the cover. So nice, he wrote it twice! (Kevin)

Tom Child (Calendar Editor)
Beirut - Gulag Orkestar
The picture reflects the same geographic mystery of the music—it could be anywhere really—but I like to imagine the car has pulled alongside the road just outside some unpronounceable town east of the Adriatic sea. It's been decades since the reactor meltdown, but there's still that tinge of magic in the air. These Baltic beauties will take you to their local bar, get you trashed, let you sing onstage with the gypsy band, and make you fall in love with them. In the morning, you'll board the train broken-hearted and missing your shoes. The perfect match of cover art with music.

Miles Clements (Intern)
Subtle - For Hero: For Fool
Subtle's striped-faced "Our Hero Yes" looks like he's about to pull off a military coup. The war medals let you know that he's accomplished. The flaming hair lets you know that he's a loose cannon. Either way: the perfect compliment to the band's abstract, psychedelic hip-hop.

Kevin Ferguson (Intern)
Genghis Tron - Dead Mountain Mouth
If I could have an enormous poster of this on my wall, I would. The bigger the better. Note the stones in front of the hut (that's fucking ON FIRE WITH CREEPY BIRDS HOVERING ABOVE): they read GT, which means that this cover was probably made with the band in mind.

Ellen Griley (Managing Editor)
Walkmen - Pussy Cats
I honestly hope that this is how the Walkmen write their songs. If it's not, then I can assure you and them that we would all be better off if they did. Visualize the possibilities, people. If what just popped into your heads isn't the definition of pure musical synergy, then I don't know what is. (Note: Miles wrote this for Ellen because she's super sick!)

Jennie Warren (Photo Editor)
J Dilla - The Shining
We have this music package that we have to put in our year end issue. I was searching for a cool 'urban' artist photo and came across J Dilla, whom I've never heard. But I do know the Pharcyde and A Tribe Called Quest. Shows how much i know bout hip and hop. Sad that he passed, but great album cover. I love the 70's reference mixed in with a touch of bling. And the gothic portrait in the gold frame is so good! Oh and the font is...hmmm...just yummy.

Chris disagrees whole-heartedly with my appreciation of Birds & Batteries, but I can't seem to shake my fascination with "Smoking the Filter." Delete the dance-ish tracks, and you have a song Richard Manuel (or actually, on second listen, probably Rick Danko) could've written (post-Band). Delete the vocals, and you have a pleasant instrumental electro track that's perfect for listening to on repeat all the live-long day. A must-listen for anyone stressed.

Also, when I caught these guys a few weeks back up at the Eagle Rock Sunday Night Bowling and Drinking Club, I couldn't stop from rubbing my feet together, as you do when you are a) sitting on the stage and b) filled with warm, fuzzy, wish-they-lived-here feelings. They're from San Francisco, but hopefully they'll be back soon.

Bikeride is BACK! New album, new shows, and an appearance on MOJO's March compilation (out in February). Let's check what the band has to say:

Well, we're happy to say we'll be participating in a Beatles Sargeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band covers record for MOJO magazine. It's to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the greatest album ever made. We'll be doing "Being For the Benefit of Mr. Kite", probably Lennon's trippiest song ever, and a perfect time capsule for 1967. It will be out in MOJO's March issue which will also coincide with Bikeride's release of The Kiss. Look for it on stands at the beginning of February.

On that note, the release of The Kiss has been moved back to March 6 to accomodate our biggest distributor, Red Eye. You'll also be able to buy it at Best Buy, Amazon, iTunes and all the other big ones (except Tower, RIP). As soon as it's in out hands MySpacers will be able to get an early copy. We'll also be selling it at our February 10th show at Di Piazza's. For locals, Fingerprints will be stocking it early too. We'll let you know.

AS FOR TONIGHT: Shopping. Duh. But if you like free drinks, there's Pabsts for $0 from 10 to 11 p.m. tonight at Avalon.

First, it was the break-up of Dead Moon, whom you might remember from Oliver Hall's CD review a few weeks back. And today, we learned of the unfortunate passing of Shocking Blue lead singer Mariska Veres, whose stunning voice you might remember from the original version of "Venus." The band also recorded "Love Buzz," which most Nirvana fans know and love. My personal favorite, however, is "Rock in the Sea." Please, don't hunt the internet for free downloads. Go out and buy a best of Shocking Blue. They deserve it.

Avalon Bar resident DJ duo Acid Girls (who--get this--are actually boys!) hit the Laguna Beach Art Museum tonight for a night of sweat and sauce. To get a better idea of what they're into, visit Isochronal's excellent blog.

ALSO! I love you. Sorry you were left at the bottom of the cd box for so long. [Thanks, lil' Z.]

Blue Cheer signing a boob.