Holy Ghost!--See Sunday

Friday, May 17

Sederra
House of Blues Anaheim
Anytime the punk shredders of Sederra come to the House of Blues Anaheim, they have a habit of bringing the entire Fullerton punk scene with them. Last time they played the Mouse House for free, they stuffed the place to capacity to the point where they had to turn people away. This weekend, they've decided to follow up on that madness by offering another free show that combines their rocket-propelled skate punk with a few other bands that offer something for everyone. Joined by pop punk lads Seven Year War, prog-reggae outfit Solution, FM rockers Warner Drive and Ethanz Ride and ska punkers Stupid Flanders. One thing all these bands have in common: crazy-ass fans! (Nate Jackson)

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Standup comic K-von is much more than a pretty face. Born to a Persian dad and an American mom, his humor thrives on pushing ethnic boundaries, so everyone gets their fair share of jabs, no matter who you rooted for during the Iran-Iraq War.

Keeping a versatile style has landed him gigs alongside greats such as Russell Peters and Maz Jobrani, a role on the MTV show Disaster Date, and the job of the spokesperson for ScamBook.com, plus, it has made his road schedule seemingly nonstop. He's wrapping up Nowruz (a.k.a. the Persian New Year) with back-to-back shows and a live taping this Sunday at the Irvine Improv. So grab a date to squeeze in a few laughs; don't forget that celebrating another culture's New Year is still reason enough to hook up at the end of the night.

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Face to Face--See Friday

Friday, May 10

Lil' B
The Observatory
Lil B, the heavily tattooed Berkeley, California rapper with a gleaming grill and oversized earrings, entered the hip-hop game in 2006 as part of Bay Area rap group The Pack.
Over the last three years he's garnered a tremendous Internet following, popularizing the words "swag" and "based," the latter an amorphous, catchall term that essentially means being yourself, doing what you want, and being proud of it. Having recorded and released more than 40 projects and over 1,000 songs, he was the subject of all manner of NPR think piece and critical over-analyzation when he first gained popularity in 2011. It was, to say the least, vexing.Now that the dust has settled, most critics have moved on. However, it's become increasingly clear that Lil B is one of the most important rappers of the past few years. He's influenced just about everyone who's doing anything interesting in hip-hop right now. (Max Bell)

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Mike Carano

Why do people even bust my balls? I make people laugh.

Credit his size or his controversial humor, but there's really no room for middle ground when it comes to your feelings about comedian Ralphie May. Usually, you either love him or hate him depending on tolerance for vulgarity riddled with truth. Of course, May wouldn't have it any other way. With an edgy and topical set that's delivered with a sharp tongue and southern drawl, Ralphie's crazy schedule makes him one of the busiest road comics out there, selling out venues across the country. How he even squeezes in time to record the sex-fueled and super hilarious "Perfect 10 Podcast" with his wife (and fellow comedian) Lahna Turner--while raising two kids-- is beyond us.

A national touring schedule can take its toll on anyone, let alone a big man like May. So it's no surprise that he chose to take some time off last year to recuperate. But this year, May is ready to take his show back on the road. Known to do a longer set than most, you'll get more bang for your buck when he rolls through OC to headline the Brea Improv May 9th through 12th. We recently sat down with May to get an update on his health, an inside scoop on the podcast, and let him chime in on his love/hate relationship with the a-hole Internet trolls. (You know who you are.)

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John Gilhooley

Manic Hispanic--See Sunday

Friday, May 3

Basscon
The Yost Theater
Friday night's alright for partying down, so make your way over to Santa Ana's historic Yost Theater for Basscon tonight. The Yost has been putting out great EDM and trance music nights for a while now, but Basscon looks like its going to be an intense night of hard dance music. Six DJs from around the world will be serving up the untz untz untz on the dancefloor, so get there early for what should be a great way to start the Cinco de Mayo weekend. Bring your friends! (Aimee Murillo)

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DJ Shadow--See Friday

Friday, April 26

DJ Shadow
The Observatory
Boasting one of the most extensive vinyl record collections ever--at a whopping 60,000 LPs--DJ Shadow's range is overwhelmingly impressive and his influence well-known. The Davis, California native rose to the ranks of DJ notoriety with London-based record label Mo' Wax by experimenting with mixing classic funk, rock, '60s garage, ambient, and hip-hop together, creating one of the earliest forms of instrumental hip-hop. Beyond that, his collaborations with Little Dragon, Thom Yorke and Cut Chemist have further solidified his reputation as a master remixer and music producer (highly recommended: DJ Shadow and Cut Chemist's Product Placement album--which features hundreds of retro radio commercials and television spots embedded into obscure funk, hip-hop and jazz singles--will have you throwing on an impromptu dance party before you can say "Side B"). DJ Shadow comes to Orange County tonight pulling multiple music styles out his sleeve (or record sleeves) at the Observatory. (Aimee Murillo)

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Heather E./Yelp

For record collectors everywhere (including this one), this Saturday is their Christmas. Yep, Record Store Day is here once again. Beginning in 2008, the event celebrates independent record stores with the release (and re-release in some cases) of super rare, limited edition (or out of print) albums and singles (some of the vinyls are in special colors). There are so many great stores in OC to support, so if you want these rarities you better hit up shops like TKO in Huntington Beach, Dr. Freeclouds Record Shoppe in Fountain Valley, Black Hole and Burger Records in Fullerton, Bionic in Cypress, Second Spin and Factory Records in Costa Mesa, Pepperland in Orange, Left of the Dial in Santa Ana and Fingerprints in Long Beach. If we've forgotten anyone, we apologize in advance.

With so many great releases, it's hard to pinpoint which ones to snag, but that's what we're going to try to do here. Without further ado, here are some of the best releases that you should get your hands on this Saturday.

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Cyrus Roushan

The left brow is the money maker.

It helps to have funny friends in high places. Just ask Chris D'Elia. His biggest gig to date came when pal Whitney Cummings wrote a part for him on her show "Whitney." He's also been making us laugh for a while as a voice on an Internet radio show called the "Ten Minute Podcast" with his boys (and fellow comics) Bryan Callen and Will Sasso. But aside from a few helping hands he's received, he's also become known in the comedy world in his own right for being a pretty good (yet totally goofy) guy with a sick sense of humor and an even sicker set of eyebrows. He's coming to do his first full weekend at the Irvine Improv this April 18th-21st and since Chris seems to be oh so helpful through advice and videos on-line (good and bad), we decided to pick his brain on a few topics before his Irvine run just for you.

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Colin Youn-Wolff

Coachella--All weekend!

Friday, April 12

Coachella
Empire Polo Club
This year's granddaddy of Southern California rolls into Indio for weekend one of an insane three-day sprawl of sound, now in its 12th year. Friday's lineup topped by Britain's revived rock legends The Stone Roses and features other marquis acts likeTrent Reznor's new project How to Destroy Angels, Jurassic Five, Passion Pit and Yeah Yeah Yeahs that we can't wait to cover in between sprints to the DoLab and the insane amount of half-naked people watching, which is half the reason we show up anyway. Stay tuned for our full coverage this weekend. You can find the full list of artists and set times here. (Nate Jackson)

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Martha Davis and the Motels--See Saturday

Friday, April 5

Feeding People
Fingerprints
Feeding People play a delightful brand of fuzzy-buzzy garage rock seasoned with reverby vocals and spooky-circus guitar riffs. At times, they're reminiscent of the Doors (but if the Doors had made it to the late '70s.) Another way to conceptualize Feeding People is to imagine local band Death Hymn Number 9 on a few bumps of mescaline followed by a Valium chaser. Singer Jessie Jones' voice pushes the overdrive to its limits, resulting in a sweet spot of fuzzy goodness. And while they specialize in revving up the crowd with their punk rock spirit, they're more than a one-trick band. Dig the song "Island Universe," sad, wistful and introspective, it's a soft cushion amidst this band's jagged repertoire. (Brandon Ferguson) More »