Don't have anywhere to go on Thanksgiving? Or maybe your family eats at 3 o'clock in the afternoon and you need something to do at night since everyone usually passes out around nine. Either way, I recommend you head over to The Prospector in Long Beach for a special Thanksgiving night show with Crystal Antlers and DJ Frederick Phases.

Crystal Antlers just finished recording a new ep up in San Francisco last weekend with Ikey Owens (Mars Volta, Look Daggers, and sometimes second keyboardist in Crystal Antlers) that they plan on releasing on the 10" vinyl and 0's and 1's formats sometime next year.

Read Dave's review of their show at The Prospector from back in September.

It seemed promising: big, historic cruise ship, southern California sun, Barrington Levy and a few other well-known reggae performers. But things quickly took a turn for the worse at the first annual "Reggae Festival By the Bay" this Sunday in Long Beach when we noticed the sign posted on the parking lot entry kiosks outside the Queen Mary: "Reggae show moved indoors!"

The show was supposed to be held on a green stretch of grass with views of Long Beach harbor and downtown. But the whole thing was moved indoors because it was rumored that promoters did not have the necessaray permits following last week's auction sale of the historic cruiseliner. So, concert goers in bathing suit tops and summer dresses were ushered into three windowless floors aboard the Queen Mary. Outside, sunlight poured forth. Inside, flourescent lights lined the ceiling and gray carpet lined the floors. Inebriated reggae fans meandered through the three levels and those buying a cocktail were corraled by metal gates into an awkward corner, nowhere near the performance stage two floors below.

We lasted an hour, opting for a stroll through the ship's majestic old decks and a drink in the art deco observation bar instead. From there, we enjoyed a sunset punctuated by the occasional sad thud from the show-that-could-have-been down below.

I spent last night at Sachi, where our very own darling Ryan and Kevin have started a pet project to be held the last Thursday of the month. The last Thursday? Yeah, I'm pretty sure that's what they told me, we'll let you know. But for those of you who somehow missed the bombardment of pretty pretty advertising, it was an amazing lineup.

The Outline opened, followed by Something For Rockets and TheStart headlined. Having never seen any of them before, I thought it was going to be a night of musical discoveries and newfound favorites. But unbeknownst to me, I had seen TheStart before. My friend Kacey told me we had seen them open for Alkaline Trio, like, six years ago. How the hell did she remember that? Or worse: How the hell didn't I? Probably had something to do with the bottle of Captain Morgan we drank in the parking lot (gimme a break, I was 19).

Anyhoo- the bands were all wonderful, there was a nice high-energy-electronic-rock kind of consistency among the three, and the setup was as flashy and sharp as it gets. TheStart brought the house down with their stellar stage show, which apparently they've had at least six years to master. Even though it was a Thursday, lotsa people came out (including a certain No Doubt-er. Oh, and someone said the oldest brother from Home Improvement was there. What's his name? I thought he was in rehab with Eddie Furlong or something).

I did discover a new favorite though. Ryan introduced me to Peach Stoli. Mixed with tonic it becomes what I always imagined Ambrosia to taste like.

I know, I know. Peach Stoli isn't too far off from Captain Morgan, but at least I remember the night.

Been slowly feeding my New Year's hangover, and I'm just starting to realize it's time to start going out again and also . . . reading! Recently, I finished Sound Bites by Franz Ferdinand frontman Alex Kapranos. Kapranos's account of all the meals he ate on wheels (on tour, a few years ago) is at once both a candid look at his childhood and current life among the jetset and a richly detailed food diary, perfect for foodies and novices alike. Stay tuned for a review in the music section on January 18th.

NOW, back to the music: if you don't mind standing in a church full of teenagers, you definitely won't want to miss the CD release party for Lightmusic's debut release, Twin. Three days' notice means you better be there on Thursday, January 11th at 3210 Airport Way, Long Beach, 90806. 8 p.m. and free and I love you. [P.S. Kevin the Intern drums for Lightmusic, but we hired him because he's really smart and love the band independently.]