YLOS: While We Are Gone

Alright - as excited as I am about going up to North Lake Tahoe this weekend for the Wanderlust Festival (I mean Moby, Brazilian Girls, the beds at the Resort at Squaw Creek) - I'm a little bummed about missing some of these great shows/events that are going on this weekend here in town.

And here's why:

Thurs. July 29th @ 9PM

Sophia's Thai Kitchen | 129 E St. | Davis

21+ | $5

Breathe Owl Breathe - (MI)

This trio from Michigan have recently performed for Daytrotter and their track "Boat" has also been featured on Pitchfork's Forkcast.

Expect banjos, plastic toys, cellos, violins, glockenspiels, and vibraphones.

genre: folk, indie, slow-coustic

Doombird - (Sac)

This local band is busy busy busy getting ready for their CD release party on August 29th at Harlows.

I saw them open for John Vanderslice and Sea of Bees recently at the Townhouse Lounge and was thoroughly impressed.

Expect: a song about the lead singer's cat, a trombone-playing pianist, and perhaps a cello and violin section.

genre: indie, folk


Friday July 30th @ 9PM
Sacramento Comedy Spot  1050 20th St. Suite #130
$12 | All Ages

John Ross' CD/DVD Taping/Party

This pretty much explains it:

or if you're not into laughing...and don't have any pets (watch the video)

Sophia's Thai Kitchen 
9PM | 129 E St. | Davis

Fruit Bats

These United States

Sat. July 31st @ 6PM
The Artisan | 1901 Del Paso Boulevard | Sac.
$10 | ALL AGES

Launch Design and Music Festival

Check out this years great line up!

Music:

The New Humans
Sea of Bees
Doombird
The Faint (DJ Set)
. . . and more

Plus a Fashion Show

And Art:

John Horton
Joel Lee
Brady Tuazon
Alexa Wolfe

Paduta Goes to Wanderlust!

I am so excited to go to the second annual Wanderlust Festival at Squaw Valley in North Lake Tahoe this weekend! Last year I was amazed by the beauty of the surroundings, the caliber of performances (Spoon, Amanda F. Palmer, Broken Social Scene and Girl Talk to name a few) and of course...

the funitel. 

This year it's a little different - instead of being a music festival with yoga, its the other way around. Perhaps due to lack of show attendance, the organizers of this year's festival are scaling back and centering the focus on what many attendees are there for to begin with: the yoga.

So no more trips up the funitel for all day back to back shows at the top of the mountain, that is unless you go up there for one of the dozens of yoga classes offered.


There are however a number of musical performances I am highly anticipating this weekend:

Moby (DJ Set)

That's right - the master of not just electro-house music but vegan cuisine will be spinning on the ones and twos on Friday @ 10:30 pm on the Pulse Stage PLUS an acoustic set @ 5:30 on Saturday!

Perhaps his tunes are not presently pushed with the same commercial veracity of the late 90s, but I was actually quite impressed with his 2009 release Wait for Me.

And let's be honest, I had his hit album Play on repeat throughout most of my adolescence and teenage-hood. "Run On" - that was the track for me.


Pretty Lights

Performing Friday @ 9PM on the Pulse Stage is producer Derek Vincent Smith and drummer Cory Eberhard a.k.a. Pretty Lights. Similar to Girl Talk, these guys mix and sample music from different artists of different genres live.

Mash-up artists however have come into a bit of controversy with copyright infringement. Smith has responded to these accusations by saying "one thing I've run into a lot, is people that immediately judge artists who sample as music thieves without enough creativity to make good music on their own. [...] But I strive to always use samples in a way that brings new life and feeling to them."

They've released three albums on the Pretty Lights label which are all available as free downloads off the official website.

Photo by Tobin Voggesser

Brazilian Girls

I first listened to this trio of New Yorkers while I volunteered for Off Air at Sacramento's Capital Public Radio.

I don't even know how to describe their music but I do know I will be snapping pics in the front row of their headlining show on Sunday @ 8:30PM on the Pulse Stage!

Here's why:

I will be tweeting live from the festival, as well as updating Paduta's Facebook and posting videos of the shows on our blog, so keep checking in for our Wanderlust coverage!

And take a look back at Off Air's coverage of the inaugural Wanderlust Festival: videos, photos, interviews and more. 

You Love Our Scene

And here's why:
Weekend Show Edition!

Friday July 23rd

Lite Brite the very loud and very awesome three piece band from Sacramento will be headlining this Friday's Concert in the Park Series.

With them will be fellow indie rockers Prieta (who says they are in a relationship with Lite Brite on Facebook) and Musical Charis (whose debut album People People is being released by JMB Records the very same day!).

Come on out, eat some great food, and watch three amazing local bands at Cesar Chavez Park in Downtown Sacramento.

5:30-8:30PM - ALL AGES - FREE!!!

Mike Colossal's Birthday Bash 

If it's too hot for you, come out to Butch N Nellie's coffee shop for a birthday party you don't want to miss. Mike Colossal will be doing live mixing and scratching with fellow Sacramento hip hop artists Poor from Tribe of Levi and Mr. P Chill, along with the rest of the Velvet Wax crew!

Have an iced coffee or a cold brewski and celebrate local influential hip hop!

Saturday July 24th

Boats the punk/powerpop group are releasing their "Totally Jawsome" LP and performing at Luigi's Fungarden this Saturday to spread the word. This three piece band is becoming a fixture of the Sacramento music scene. Their tunes are loud, energic and a lot of fun!

To celebrate the release, local punk icons The Secretions will be performing along with Bastards of Young and Ashtray.

All and all it should be a loud, explosive night. Get there early, grab a beer and a slice and have a blast!

7PM - ALL AGES - $5

Also Coming Up:

*Jerry Perry Presents* with:
Be Brave Bold Robot, Odame, Secret Argyle, & Jem and Scout

Old Ironsides - 1901 10th St. - Sacramento

9PM - 12 AM | 21+ | $7

*Concerts4Charity* Benefit Concert at Beatnik 

Supporting the McClatchy Music Program Boosters with:

Musical Charis, Prieta, Lite Brite, & Goodness Gracious Me

Beer By Sudwerk

Beatnik Studios | 2421 17th | 5PM

YLOS: Agent Ribbons

And here's why...

Agent Ribbons Natalie Gordon, Lauren Hess, and Naomi Cheri are not only vintage enthusiasts, with a sound Amanda F. Palmer would be proud of, they are from Sacramento!

Well, actually they were from Sacramento. After becoming the sweethearts of the Capital City, they packed their bags and moved to Austin, Texas to explore and hopefully expand their career.

Apparently it was a good move, because Agent Ribbons and their song "I'm Alright" are featured on today's edition of NPR's All Songs Considered.

Host Robin Hilton says the girls describe their sound as "minimalist cabaret garage pop" and that it's unfortunate their latest album Chateau Crone (Antenna Farm Records) won't be released until October because he thinks it is a "perfect summer record."

Check out this video directed by Chelsea Wolfe* 

*Hint* Chelsea Wolfe is ALSO from Sacramento.

The Unsigned Experience 3 - DJ Mike Colossal

Sacramento's DJ Mike Colossal has been scratching for over ten years. His knowledge of music from all genres is astounding. This is a young man who can mix together everything from Metalica to Notorious B.I.G., Le Tigre to traditional mariachi.

He is quickly becoming a staple of the local hip hop community and has recently opened for a number of iconic hip hop acts - most recently Busdriver at the Blue Lamp. 



Not only that but as a member of the LBGT community, he is looking to create socially conscious hip hop music that doesn't glorify hate speech toward anyone based on their sexual orientation.

Mike Colossal will be performing at his very own Birthday Bash at Butch n' Nellies coffee shop on Friday July 23rd along with other local hip hop performers like Poor from Tribe of Levi, Mr P Chill and the Velvet Wax.

A few weeks ago, I asked him some questions about his career as an unsigned artist, the local scene, and how to make it without a label.

How did you start getting booked for gigs? What was your first professional gig?

I started booking gigs through my campus radio station called KSSU and through a local promotion company called 12s Wax. I volunteered at the station as a radio deejay and as part of the management team. The two joined forces: KSSU sponsered the flyers, brought promotional goodies, etc. 12's Wax booked the gigs and took care of security and money. My first gig was at the second version of the Capital Garage in Sacramento. There I would scratch, mix and play the latest hip-hop, with some breaks and funk.


What web tools do you use to promote your music?

Originally, MySpace was a huge part of promotion. I would post bulletins promoting the show using three different accounts. I would write new bulletins each time, add new YouTube videos of either myself or of featured artists who were going to be present, added my artist profile songs in to give people a taste of my music.

Facebook today isn't as kind to artists as MySpace is. When I do shows I tell people to check out my MySpace or Twitter accounts. MySpace is like having my own website and Twitter gives a real feel of connection. I don't post a lot of BS since I have to keep it poignant. I tell them about my shows, let them know what I'm working on.

I use zSHARE to save my music and send it to other artists to collaborate on. Or, I upload my mix on there and post the link on MySpace and people can download it for free.


What other kinds of media do you use (audio, visual, etc.)?

I run stacks of flyers to local record stores, clothing boutiques, and food spots, book stores; anywhere they would let me leave them. On occasion I will flyer Sac State and personally hand out flyers and invite people to shows. We even make large posters for the shows and tape them up in windows and telephone poles. 

I still don't have internet at my current residence and that is why it is still important to make sure I flyer personally (for all us poor people). I also add as much media (videos, songs, downloadable mixes) to the internet to keep people satisfied until my next show. I'm also printing mixtapes and handing them out free at my expense, bootlegging my shows so people hear and want to see my live performances. I see free CD's as an audio business card and resume. People look it over and see if they like it and if do, then they will remember me.

Are you actively looking to be signed by a label?

With such a lack of a need for labels these days, I am not looking to be signed. My current goal is to be able to do lives shows (my MPC/scratch/mixing performances) and to sell merch and get my music out. If it stays steady at a local or regional level, I would be happy with that for the rest of my life, but recently doing shows out of state makes me want to get my music out to more people live, get out my DVDs with trippy animation and my music on them, and get CD's (and eventually LP's) in to fans' hands.

Describe the Sacramento music scene and how you interact with it. Where are your favorite places to perform?

I can't speak for the Sacramento music scene as a whole, only the hip-hop scene and that is a pretty incestuous scene. Few people really make a name for themselves off merit. Hip-hop shows usually consist of people bringing out all their Facebook friends and shows never usually pan out (unless a national hip-hop act headlines). That is why groups, cliques, and collectives dominate the scene for a while then fade out because their friends cannot keep supporting them alone. When people do get big, they just leave the Sac scene because they can flourish without it on a larger scale.  

Shows also lack good sound quality and planning making them drag on a long time.

Los Hermanos 1200 w/ Mike Colossal @ the Golden Bear 10/30/09

Some of the best places to perform in Sacramento are Capital Garage, Golden Bear, Butch n' Nellies, Press Club, the Distillery, Sac State, and the Java Lounge. These places are usually down to let you do whatever it is you want to do, as long as you put real effort into it. They are always down to let you do a one-time show and will allow you to do a weekly or monthly as long as it keeps bringing in revenue.




*Listen to "Interstellar Love Jam" by Mike Colossal PLUS his interview about the Sacramento hip hop scene with Nick Brunner on Off Air - Smart Rock Radio.*


Here's the BIG question: do you think unsigned musicians have any influence over the music industry?

Unsigned musicians don't have influence on the music industry, only the fans. Before, record labels were the MySpaces and Twitters and Facebooks. They gave an artist the ability to be recognized on a national level. Now with the internet, you can get that recognition without the industry. If you promote, do shows, leave free CD's for fans you can be your OWN industry. Radiohead said "fuck it" and showed a whole generation of musicians you can do it without the industry. Although musicians can only gain so much fame without the industry, but most artists can create a sustainable fan base.

Also with promoting being in the hands of the artist, artists can be as big or small as they see fit. Before you couldn't make a living being a part time musician. But now that you can do a lot of promotion at home on your own time, you can go to work from 9-5, update social network sites, records in your home studio, make your cool flyers on the computer, print them out at a local show, and hustle your ass off on your free time.

People don't have to worry about making a huge record industry flop, have terrible show attendance, get dropped and never be heard of again. People can now be effective artists at their own pace. And people are ready to run in the long marathon of becoming artists, not just sprinting for fame. Those cats don't last.

Don't miss Mike Colossal's Birthday Bash at Butch n' Nellies (19th & I Street) on July 23rd from 7-10PM. Great music and quite possibly the best cappuccino in Sacramento!

Check out Mike Colossal on:

MySpace
Twitter

It's ALL AGES, and only $3 donation - come out and support!

YLOS: This Just In! Zach Hill & "Sacto Smile"

You LOVE our Scene and Here's Why...

Zach Hill former Hella drummer (he hella drums too!) is releasing his first solo album featuring help from No Age, Deerhoof, Devendra Banhart and many others. Oh, and did I mention A.) he's from Sacramento, B.) this was filmed in Sacramento, and C.) I recognize not only the kick ass chick who terrorizes Midtown, but many of the video's landmarks?

Alright enough bragging.

The album is called Face Tat (Sargent House) and will be released October 19th.



Track List (Courtesy of Pitchfork):

01 Memo to the Man
02 The Primitives Talk
03 Ex-Ravers
04 The Sacto Smile
05 Green Bricks
06 House of Hits
07 Jackers
08 Burner in the Video
09 Dizzy From the Twins
10 Gross Sales
11 Total Recall
12 Face Tat
13 Second Life

Witness the destruction!


Zach Hill - The Sacto Smile from Sargent House on Vimeo.

W00T La Route!

One of my new favorite things to do at the moment is to check out Consequence of Sound's Festival Outlook. In my quest to gather more support for Paduta - Fresh Music Every Day, I go and check where I can go pass out business cards, meet bands, find future site contributers/users. And quite frankly CoS is the best place to find info on every festival you can think of!

While perusing festival updates, I came across this hot French piece: La Route du Rock. From August 13-15th, Euro hipsters will crowd the Emerald Coast of France to see acts like Caribou (who I love), Massive Attack, The National, Dum Dum Girls, and Follower of @paduta the Flaming Lips (to name a few).

Now, I was torn between the sure-thing (Outside Lands SF) and a dream. How could I POSSIBLY rationalize attending when I write for a small blog for a website still under construction based out of the Sacramento area?

BOOM! Ganglians!

That's right Sacramento's very own Ganglians is attending La Route du Rock as part of their European Tour. I'd say that's reasonable and logical justification to fly halfway around the world for a three day event...right? Guys?

Oh well, the Ganglians are awesome! And I'll go to France someday...

You Love Our Scene

There seems to be a quiet debate within the Sacramento community about whether or not we actually have a music "scene." And while I agree, perhaps we do not have the established and easily recognizable "sound" that other cities are associated with (i.e. Seattle and Grunge, Portland and Indie Folk, New York and Hot Dudes/Chicks in Leather Pants with Keyboards), I do not agree that we are sans scene. We in fact have some amazing venues, great local bands, and a ton of local music supporters.

So, with that said I introduce a new feature on Paduta's blog; a weekly local show preview called "You Love Our Scene" . . . 

And here's why:

Friday - July 16th

The Freebadge Serenaders

are releasing their first CD of hilarious and nostalgic music they like to call "discount jazz." And since every ticket includes a copy of their album with the price of admission you could really afford to go to this show. As an added bonus special guests like Keith Lowell Jensen, John Ross, Stunt Improv, and a baton-twirler will also be performing along with the men of the hour: Greg Sabin and Patrick Skiffington (a.k.a. the Freebadge Serenaders).

8-10PM @ Sacramento Comedy Spot (20th between J and K - MARRs) $15 for one - $20 per couple!!!

Admiral Radley (Jason Lytle/Aaron Burtch of Grandaddy and Aaron Espinoza/Ariana Murray of Earlimart) recently released one of the most highly anticipated and well received albums of 2010 with the collaborative I Heart California (The Ship). 

Exclusive First Listen @ NPR Music

Though both bands can be considered quite shoegazy, their collaboration is upbeat, even at times humorous (i.e. "I'm all Fucked Up on Beer"). 

With them Jared Dreams of Far Out Things and localites Sea of Bees will also be performing.

*Presented by Concerts 4 Charity* 

@ the Blue Lamp (1400 Alhambra) 9-11:30PM 

$10 --> Buy Tickets Here 21+

Saturday July 17th

Desario is no stranger to the Sacramento music scene (the members of this band have also been a part of Holiday Flyers, California Oranges and Rocketship). Last year they released their first album Zero Point Zero (Darla) which features inviting vocals (seriously, Conley sounds like a guy you want to know) and upbeat pop tracks (I like "Nautical Ways"). 

With them are indie/southern rock out of Oakland outfit the Shants, and Manteca's Boy Scouts who say they do "glam glam glam" but I say they are more like if Juno and Paulie formed a band (in a good way).

@ Luigi's Fungarden  (20th between J and K - MARRs) 8:30-11:30PM *ALL AGES*

*Some Other Shows You Won't Want to Miss*

The Aggrolites @ The Blue Lamp 9-11:30PM, $12 
--> Buy Tickets Here 

Bastards of Young CD Release Party w/ Ashtray, 
and The Secretions @ the Press Club 5-9PM, $5 21+

The Unsigned Experience 2 - SIMPL3JACK

Last week I featured an interview with indie folk duo Westwood and Willow about their experience as unsigned musicians.

This week, an interview with a very different band. They are a Sacramento punk band that have played the Friday Night Concert in the Park Series a number of times, have already gathered a good sized following, and...they're not even in high school yet.

SIMPL3JACK is Cole, Wyatt, and Ryan and none of them are over 13 years old. As you'll see, their answers reflect a simple and honest love of making music. For them, being in a band isn't about being a business or creating a product. It's about having fun!



Photo by Barry Wisdom


How long after the band formed were you able to start booking shows?
SIMPL3JACK formed as a result of Cole and Wyatt wanting to be in an elementary school talent show. The owver of Fuddruckers, Angelo Negrete, was in the crowd that night and told us he was blown away. He signed us on as the summer entertainers for his Fudd's Thursday Car Shows. Suddenly we were in a band.

How did you get booked for shows?
After playing the first FUDD show, people started going crazy asking for shows. It was the end of the school year, so there were a ton of graduation parties. SIMPL3JACK also played a bunch of birthday parties and park type shows. Word of mouth pretty much kept the calendar full month after month.

Where was your first professional gig?
SIMPL3JACK got free food at FUDDS, so I guess that was the first professional gig. One of our song lyrics is "Didn't make a red cent, but we got free food." That is kind of how most shows go. Thanks to Jerry Perry we got to open the Concert in the Park series this year and got paid real money.

Photo by Jeff Harris

What web tools do you use to promote the band?
We use primarily Facebook. We have a MySpace page, but it sucks. We never really are on it. We also have a band page. We probably need to make it better. That is a project for this summer.

What kind of media do you use to promote the band? Audio, visual, etc?
We are lucky to have a zillion fans. We use a lot of photos that our friends take. We also love to make funny videos of us goofing around and posting them on YouTube. We are going to make a bunch more this summer.

Do you use any websites specifically aimed at unsigned musicians to help promote the  band? Last FM? iLike? Something else?
ReverbNation: we are just getting started with this stuff. We want to get on all of them soon but we would rather spend time making music. Maybe we should hire someone to do this for us. Do you know anybody?

What kind of fan-base do you have? About how many fans/followers do you have? Is there a specific age range?
Facebook has been a great tool for us. We are just getting ready to break 2,000 fans this week. Most of them are kids our age or teenagers. We also have a ton of club owners, promoters, and family that follow us. We are also pretty psyched to have Debora Iyall (singer of iconic SF '80's New Wave band Romeo Void), Jack Johnson, Kepi Ghoulie, Barry Melton (Country Joe and the Fish) as fans.

Are you actively looking to be signed by a label?
We are 12, and we have only been playing for like a year. We don't even really know what it means to get signed. We want to play music and get good gigs where people are there to hear bands play. We want to get a zillion bands together and build a music scene here in Sacramento.

In your own words, describe the Sacramento music scene. Where are your favorite places to perform?
It is kind of weird for us. We don't really get to play too many clubs because we are too young. We became friends with Dog Party and do a ton of shows with them. They are the best band in Sacramento - by far! We have met some super cool people like Jerry Perry, who has really been awesome to us. Pat Haight from Pinnacle Recording College also has been super great to us [He had us in to do a recording at his school.]. We love to play Cesar Chavez, Shire Road Club and the Crest was of course awesome. Really anywhere that people are into music is fun to play.

Do you think unsigned musicians have any influence over the music industry? Why or why not? And if so, how?
I'm not sure. I know that a lot of people watch our videos on YouTube and have then become fans of the band on Facebook, and the numbers keep getting bigger, and they all keep asking for an album. I'm not sure if this would be considered influence. I don't have an Adam's Apple yet.

What are you favorite bands?
The White Stripes and the Black Keys have been huge influences for us, but each of us have our own inspirations. Cole loves the Wu Tang Clan and '80's hardcore punk; Wyatt loves Led Zeppelin (anything Jon Bonham); Ryan loves the Red Hot Chili Peppers (anything Flea touches).

SIMPL3JACK may be on summer vacation but they still have a full schedule. Here are a few of their upcoming shows:

July 10th - 2nd Saturday Downtown (24th & K w/ Dog Party)
July 15h - FUDDS (@ 6pm)

Check SIMPL3JACK Out:

Official Site
Facebook
MySpace
YouTube

Next time...I get ready for my interview

with Sacramento's New Humans,

and post my interview with DJ Mike Colossal!