Posts in LA Local
staying in LA over spring break?
Interesting things to do this weekend: Who could turn down free pizza? I can guarantee you that Captain Ahab and Sonic Death Rabbit will put on a great show. And I'd really like to know more about the genre, acoustic beardcore. address/map On Sunday there will be another "beat swap meet" in Chinatown, outside of the Grand Star Jazz Club from 12-6pm. You can buy, sell, or trade records and purchase dj related items and apparel. Inside the club, there will be a party going on. You can get in free to this if you bring a canned good. (the swap meet itself is outside and free) address/map
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Animal Collective Fonda Date Officially the 26th... Again
Has anybody been feeling a little dicked around by Ticketmaster? If you purchased a ticket for the Henry Fonda show with Animal Collective, Lucky Dragons, and Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti, then you may have received an alert via e-mail/phone yesterday that the show was re-scheduled for Monday 2/23. If you changed your schedule, then you may like me be totally pissed off that another alert arrived this morning that the show was re-scheduled again to the date AC has on their Myspace, Thursday the 26th. We've already been through so many uncertainties and date changes. Ticketmaster really needs to get it together. I feel like I should at least be refunded my convenience fee.
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Bicycle Thievery Near USC and Beyond
The USC campus has never been immune to bicycle thievery, but in the last month this has proved especially apparent. Within my small circle alone, two bicycle thefts and two wheel losses (unfortunately including my own) have occurred in the last month. Here are a few tips for novices and experts for prevention:
  • Get a great U-Lock. This article by Slate may be two years old, but the principle remains the same: not all locks were created equal. Another lesson learned is that security may come at a price. The Kryptonite New York Fahgettaboudit U-lock was the winner and can be found on Ebay for as low as $50. An investment, really, as the true value of a bicycle is not known until it's gone...
  • Even for short-term locking, use a cord lock in addition to the U-lock. Especially if you have quick-release wheels and even if you have a bolted-on wheel, an additional 15 seconds of locking really is worth it.
  • Lock through the frame, wheel, and to a rack, even if this means more walking to find an appropriate place. Pull the cord lock through your frame, front wheel, and to your lock.
Other guides to safe locking: SF Bicycle Coalition, eHow.
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film fanatic
Movies are expensive to go to and lately with our poor economy, some theaters have been going out of business. Unfortunately, the most expensive and corporate ones are still standing and constantly flooded with people. Here's a list of some cheaper and more interesting alternatives that not everybody knows about. Academy 6 1003 Colorado Blvd (Pasadena) This is hands down my favorite theater in Los Angeles. Showing all the movies you might have missed, mainstream and independent, its a great place to go if you want to avoid crowds and inflated movie/popcorn prices. The free parking lot in the back and its proximity to the Lake metro station make your trip worthwhile and if that doesn't, the $3 admission will. The best part, however, is $2 matinees and $1 Sundays. Even better is the tiny Gourmet Cobbler Factory on your way back to the parking lot, which you should stop at and pick up the most delicious peach cobbler ever made! Highland 3 5604 N. Figueroa St (Highland Park) Not the most amazing selection of movies (mostly mainstream) and not the cleanest theater but the movies are $3 on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. All other days, movies are $6. It's also in close proximity to the highland park metro station and there's plenty of street parking. Los Feliz 3 1822 Vermont Ave (Los Feliz) I've only been here once but my experience was pretty satisfying. The theater room was narrow and the screen was very small and high up, I felt as if I were in an old train. Some people may find this slightly bothersome but I really enjoyed it. My favorite movies of 2008 have been playing at this theater all year, its relatively cheap ($6 matinees), and its located right next to Fred 62 (great food)! Laemmle's Playhouse 7 (Pasadena) This is the ultimate place to go for independent and less mainstream movies. A little pricier than others ($8.50 students / $7 matinee), but it is walking distance from the Memorial Park metro station and it has a free parking lot located 1 block behind the theater. Vista 4473 Sunset Dr (Silverlake) A beautiful and elegant theater, screening one movie at a time at a rather cheap price of $8 ($5 matinee). Occasionally they have midnight screenings but currently there isn't anything scheduled that I know of. Street parking is a bit tricky but the theater is in walking distance from the Vermont/Sunset metro station. Echo Park Film Center 1200 N. Alvarado St (Echo Park) Not actually a theater but on Thursday nights they have open screenings where anyone can come and show films they have made. Its free, inspiring and fun. They also sell super 8 film and rent out camera equipment. If you are a student you can get a yearly membership for $20 and get 50% off all equipment you rent. Fairfax Regency 7907 Beverly Blvd (West Hollywood) A quick drive down the 10 freeway will get you to this theater, where admission is $7.50 ($5 matinee) and parking is available around the corner. The chairs are comfortable but the rooms are quite cold. I have only had great experiences at this theater and they tend to show intelligent and interesting movies. They also screen midnight movies every Friday and over the next few weeks you can go see The Big Lebowski, Robocop, The Princess Bride, and Ghostbusters among other cult favorites. Good movies out right now: Waltz with Bashir Slumdog Millionaire Milk Curious Case of Benjamin Button Frost/Nixon Doubt The Wrestler Wendy & Lucy (Fairfax & Academy 6) Let The Right One In (Fairfax) Synecdoche, New York (Fairfax)
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The Ultimate L.A. Fusion Food: Korean BBQ and Tacos

KOREAN BBQ TACOS. My mouth salivated when I heard about them. My mouth was salivating while I was eating them. My mouth is salivating right now thinking about them. The hybridization of L.A. cultures is now complete, as evidenced by this fusion of fomerly unacquainted, yet quintessentially Angeleno foods (I can't believe you guys haven't met yet!). Kogi takes its mission for fusion seriously, offering not only the delicious BBQ with a light refreshing salsa, but other specials like a kimchi quesadilla and Korean horchata (Korchata). While gourmet on-the-go is not typical for taco trucks, Kogi has executed the idea with resounding success. Tacos and beverages are $2 a pop. Burritos and specials are around $5. Expect a bit of a line, and prepare to eat on the curb. I recommend 3 tacos for a hungry person, and 4 tacos if you have to wait more than twenty minutes. The burritos are a bit heavy for me (scrambled egg, hash browns, and tofu! yeow!), but for a hungry man it may be the cure for what ails you You'll be served by ultra-friendly people at a random street corner. The young entrepreneurs utilize mediums like Flickr and Twitter, so you'll know exactly where the traveling truck will be. A rough schedule is posted on their website. Contrary to what you might think appropriate, the truck does not remain parked at Wilshire and Alvarado (heh). Venice seems to be their main location, but I have caught them twice in Little Tokyo. For a Korean girl who has ousted meat, the tofu tacos may be a saving grace. Thank you, Kogi.
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Riding After Midnight: Late Nights and Bikes in LA
Midnight Ridin' (Judas Priest reference in the title there...) 12:30 AM, Saturday night.  I was debating between going straight home after leaving my friend's place and stopping at another friend's for a party...just for a second...maybe one drink... Seriously, just one.  Oh COME on, quit judging me... I was riding down 29th Street on my Bianchi road bike when I decided to call my friend to see if her shindig was still going on, so I stopped at 29th and Menlo.  As the call started to go through, I noticed a mass of 40 to 50 bicycles approaching with little lights twinkling like diamonds.  I knew those bicycles had to be the Midnight Ridazz... * * * * * * * * * * Midnight Ridazz = a party on wheels.  Power in numbers, in two wheels we trust.  Riding with friends and having a beer without ever stopping at a bar (or stopping in general).  Just looking for an escape on a cool weekend night in LA.  Dancing to music from a sound system pulled by a bike trailer--one hand in the air, the other on a brake lever (or maybe you don't have brakes, you fixie hipster--yeah, I went there). And the journey itself is the only destination. Midnight Ridazz started one night in 2004 when a group of eight friends in Echo Park were bored and decided to make a bit of an event out of their usual trip to the bar.  They biked through Downtown and surrounding areas on a tour of local fountains. The group of friends turned into a mass of people in a matter of years, almost exclusively by word of mouth.  With the growth of cycling between 2004 and 2008, especially road and fixed-gear cycles, the group exploded; eight people became (in some cases) eight hundred, and rides couldn't be organized by a few people. Now, anyone can organize their own ride on the Midnight Ridazz website and see who else is organizing theirs.  Typically the rides are 20 to 40 miles at a slow to medium pace, often taking place in Echo Park, Downtown, or Hollywood--many times, all of these places in one night. The explosion of alternative bike culture around the United States has spawned an entire culture around late night rides.  Midnight Ridazz isn't the only late night ride in Los Angeles anymore.  Besides the dozens of smaller rides throughout the week, there are major staples in the diet of late night LA rides. Monday, there's the now-legendary Wolfpack Hustle: unless you're mad into lycra and have Tour de France aspirations, this is probably the fastest ride in the United States.  Tuesday, Bicykillers in the San Fernando Valley--don't ask me the details of the ride, thems Valley folk.  Wednesday, the Koreatown Forge and Gorge: pedal reasonably fast, eat shittons of food--what more in life is there?  Last Friday of every month, Critical Mass: arguably the largest and most famous ride because it takes place all over the world on the same day: young, old, hipsters, business people...all out for a slow-paced joyride throughout their respective metropolises.  The Saturday after the third Friday of each month, C.R.A.N.K. MOB, a self-proclaimed "monthly bike ride dance party masquerade carnival sextravaganza": more party than ride, but it's all the same in the end, really. But of course, there's the classic ride: the Midnight Ridazz Friday night rides. * * * * * Spoke Cards Come to think of it, my first ride was a Midnight Ridazz ride.  The "Mother of All Rides" in mid-March was a glorified scavenger hunt.  Two people dressed in egg costumes hid throughout a moderately-sized section of Hollywood.  Four groups, each with about a hundred to two-hundred riders, went on a hunt for the "eggs."  Once found, the winning groups got spoke cards: collectible momentos as proof of going on a ride, to be proudly displayed in the spokes of your bike wheel. (And no, it's not like putting baseball cards in your spokes when you're a kid because you wanted your bike to sound like a motorcycle.)  From there, the four groups converged and sped through all parts of Hollywood and surrounding areas: The Grove at Third and Fairfax, Hollywood and Highland, and Melrose. As I made my way through the massive pack of riders, the music changed: one person slung a ghetto-blaster over his back, playing the best in electronica at the time (Digitalism!), then another bike pulling a sound system blasting guilty pleasures (Journey? Foreigner...dear God).  I talked to strangers--elated to be on the ride, excited to meet me and anyone else.  There were moments of pure speed.  Heading South on La Brea from Hollywood toward The Grove is a slight downhill.  We picked up speed, gunned passed cars, cheering all along the way. If you asked me why this first experience got me so hooked on bikes, it would be hard to put it in words.  I think part of it is the innate human desire for the thrill of velocity, the lust for a bit of controlled danger.  Good music blasted from trailers throughout the mass of 5-600 people had lots to do with it.  But I think most of it had to do with the beauty of human congregation in pursuit of noble goals.  Simple goals.  Share the speed, the feeling of exclusivity, the collective ownership of the road for at least one cool night.  A few miles.  A few hours in an alternate, irreverent reality. Most cars we encountered that night honked in approval, and drivers cheered out their windows.  You can't help but holler back.  And smile. And maybe that's what it was...I couldn't stop smiling that night as I cruised through those potted-and-pitted Hollywood streets. * * * * * * * * * * The twinkling lights and bikes approached and stopped at the same corner I was on, 29th and Menlo.  What a strange place for a group of riders... ...what a strange group of riders. Some cyclists were in full Viking suits (yes, with horned helmets), some with puppets, others in shiny metallic jumpsuits.  I approached the group and asked someone (who turned out to be Ryan, the ride organizer) about the ride... Me: Hey, what ride is this? Ryan: Midnight Ridazz, Robots ride! Me: Where we going? Ryan: Dunno, but we're gonna party, come with! The Robots ride, it turned out, was an off-shoot of Midnight Ridazz.  Like C.R.A.N.K. MOB, it's more like "party with a bit of riding" than "riding with a bit of party."  Fine by me. We biked through The Row, and not surprisingly, ran into many Greek parties and people.  Most were appreciative.  One was a douchebag.  He took his bike (a beach cruiser, but not that it REALLY matters in the end) and threw it into the street for the express purpose of fucking somebody up.  Unfortunately, somebody did fall as a result of it.  Well, one of the Robots riders didn't take that so well...Fist + Face. We ended up on the USC campus at McCarthy Quad and Leavey Library.  The promenade in front of the library, so often frequented by students looking for a smoke or phone break any other day of the week,  filled with people looking for a beer and dance break.  After everyone had their fill of dance and drink, we rolled out to the LA Coliseum, where just hours before, it was populated by tailgate parties for a USC football game: middle-aged men recalling their college days to the dismay of their wives and embarrassment of their four-year-old children. Once there, we went down to the bowels of the Coliseum's underground parking structure.  We carved through the parking lot ramps and got to the lowest level in the parking structure, where dancing, drinking, and debauchery continued. It seems maybe as though we were in Hell...so far beneath the earth, with so much vice.  But to everyone there, it was Heaven.
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this week is crazy
Tuesday: The Cinematic Orchestra (at the Troubadour) I cannot express how incredible they are live, you will have to experience it for yourself. If you aren't familiar with their music, its jazzy, electronic, and soothing. My favorite album of theirs, Man with a Movie Camera was written as a soundtrack to the 1929 Russian silent film of the same name. Somewhere on the internet you can find the movie with the soundtrack applied to it (here's a preview on youtube, where you can watch the whole thing in 9 parts) -it's the coolest thing ever. Everything lines up perfectly. But I digress, go see them live, you will not be disappointed.  Wednesday The Low End Theory is a night at a club called The Airliner in Downtown LA. If you haven't caught on yet, it is hip hop based yet many electronic artists DJ there frequently. Resident DJ's incude Daddy Kev, Nobody, Gaslamp Killer, D-Styles among others. This week they are celebrating Big Dada rapper K-the-I???'s (yes that's his name) release party. Next month, Flying Lotus will be making an appearance that you will not want to miss. (18+)  Thursday El Guincho is playing at the echo. He's a crazy dude from Spain who makes tribe-like worldly pop music. Guaranteed to give you a good show and a fun time. And for those 21+, a bit of a party will be going down at the Roosevelt Hotel with a pop-up store from my favorite vintage/designer clothes store, Apartment 3. There will be music, swimming, and shopping and it will be happening weekly. Here's the infoFriday  The one and only DAEDELUS (+  Busdriver, etc) at the one and only Ground Zero Coffee House brought to you by us, KSCR. $5 donation would be nice, yes. And if you can't appreciate Daedelus's music, please get yourself checked, and if you haven't heard him, check him out!!! Saturday: Hauschka and Tom Brosseau at Largo (i think its 21+) I'm going to have to oppress my ridiculous fan-girl excitement but OH MY GOD. Tom Brosseau has the most beautiful voice ever. He goes around with a guitar and serenades the world with his woeful songs. And Hauschka put out one of my favorite albums this year - Ferndorf. A mix of classical, ambient, electronic beauty. If there was a genre for him, it would be "experimental piano."  And that is all I know of so far. Have fun and be safe people.  
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