​Toni Monroe may claim to be the "Biggest Bitch in the Game," but she's not what we'd classify as a bitch at all. She is a woman on a mission, and that mission is to go hard. Releasing Big Girl Cookies: First Batch on January 5, this West Coast native's mixtape features DJ Crazy Toones, Kurupt, and showcases that no matter what you look like, you can still lay it down. You can catch this powerful lady at the Key Club this New Years Eve with DJ Quik serving up a performance that is sure to start 2012 off with a bang!

OC Weekly (Ali Lerman): You're a more curvaceous woman and I like that you own it. You seem comfortable in your own skin.

Toni Monroe: Yeah well I've been watching it the last couple months because I feel like this is the heaviest I've ever been. So I'm like, you better slow down! I know you're the biggest bitch and you claim it, but you really have to be the biggest bitch! You'll still be the biggest bitch if you're down 50!

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Black Face: Milo Gonzalez, Eugene Robinson, Tom Dobrov and Chuck Dukowski

​A couple months ago, we learned that Oxbow's Eugene Robinson linked up with Black Flag bassist Chuck Dukowski for a new project called Black Face, which features Flag's Duk on bass, Oxbow's Robinson on vocals, Insect vs. Robots' Milo Gonzalez (Duk's son) on guitar and Oxbow alum Tom Dobrov on drums.

​They've just recorded four songs that were written around My War-era Flag that nobody in the world apart from Dukowski has ever heard before: "Monster," "Leave Me Out to Rot," "Where Will We Run" and "I Want to Kill You."

Black Face release their "I Want to Kill You" b/w "Monster" 7" today on Hydra Head. (Tip: Head to Vacation Vinyl in LA to grab the record; if you're one of the first 10 to buy it you'll receive a special uncut jacket print.)

Robinson speaks here about the formation of the band and why Black Face is not Black Flag.

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​First, we told you what OC record stores are having Black Friday Record Store Day sales. Now, we're letting you know what RSD releases you should look out for. Here are 15 essential Black Friday Record Store Day releases you might be able to score this Friday. (No guarantees, though -- most of these are limited editions!)

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Courtesy of Parallel

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It has been a busy few weeks for Anaheim's Parallel. They were voted Best Hip-Hop Act of 2011 by the Weekly's readers in our Best Of issue in October. Now, they're on the heels of their record release, Dont Sleep [sic], set to drop Friday. The crew will celebrate the release at the Rhythm Lounge in Long Beach.

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R. Scott Moxley / OC Weekly

​As more information from the July beating death of Fullerton homeless man Kelly Thomas by six police officers surfaces, two new songs by local singer-songwriter Julian Porte and rapper BNF give their perspective on the subject of police brutality.

Singer-songwriter Porte, 25, a Santa Fe Springs resident who makes a living as a street musician, wrote "The Ballad of Kelly Thomas" in the wee hours of last Thursday morning. It inspired him after having a conversation with his mother about the case that has riled up many Fullerton residents for weeks. (Listen to it after the jump.)

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​After getting butterflies and more than 10.5 million views on YouTube, Anaheim Hills resident Alana Lee, who was also an ARK Music Factory discovery, signs a contract with indie label 37 Records, gets ready to release her new single, "Synchronize," and to record an EP.
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Courtesy of Josh Freese

​So the last time we checked in with Josh Freese, he'd just released a full-length, Since 1972, and was leading a self-marketing revolution by peddling experience packages to crazed fans: $20,000 got you a game of mini golf with Maynard James Keenan, Mark Mothersbaugh and Freese; $5,000 bought a private tour of Disneyland and a letter from Stone Gossard; and $500 offered an all-you-can-eat steak-and-shrimp dinner at your local Sizzler.

A feature of some of the limited-edition packages? Your own song written for you by Freese himself, which would be made available on iTunes.

Well, Freese has made good on his promise: My New Friends is a five-song EP (out today!) about the new pals he met on his strange, strange journey through the Spearmint Rhino trips and floats in a sensory-deprivation tank somewhere on the Venice Boardwalk.More »

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Christopher Victorio/OC Weekly

​MEN
Feb. 3, 2011
Fingerprints

Click here to see the photos!

There's not much on the walls, and all the merch that aren't CDs or vinyl are nowhere to be found, but if you squint long and hard enough, you can see that the new Fingerprints location near the intersection of Fourth Street and Long Beach Boulevard is going to be an improvement over the cramped quarters of its former Second Street abode.

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​Drummer Josh Freese (Nine Inch Nails, DEVO, A Perfect Circle, the Vandals, etc.) made headlines last year with his ingenious marketing scheme promoting his solo record Since 1972. And now he's back for more: His next solo project, titled My New Friends, is set for an April 1 release date.

Memorably, Freese offered his (very devoted) fans a tiered pricing plan in promotion of his previous solo album, with "fan experience packages" from $250 for a meal at PF Chang's or Sizzler (your choice!) to $5,000 for a private tour of Disneyland and a personalized letter from Pearl Jam's Stone Gossard on his fave song off Since 1972.

So will he offering more packages to go along with My New Friends? Of course. The real question: How much would you pay to fly in Dexter Holland's plane or hold a séance with Tommy Lee?  

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