Associated Students Inc. Productions brought Cal State Fullerton students another edition of Wednesday concert at the Becker Amphitheatre featuring the band Nico Vega.

Playing seven of their original songs, Nico Vega had a wholehearted performance in front of the CSUF crowd of about 100. Despite the heat and technical difficulties, the band managed to put on an engaging and peculiar show.

“The sound was really good. The band is good,” said 29-year-old Michael Caffell.

Much of the show consisted of a passionate and uncanny Aja Volkmann, lead singer, as she strutted, jumped and climbed around the amphitheatre.

This indie band is a culmination of rock and soul with an energetic vibe. They play the kind of music that makes you want to get up and dance.

Musically they are reminiscent of The White Stripes, and are just as instrumentally simple with brisk and catchy songs. Nico Vega tunes feature a mixture of slow and fast tempos with tempestuous beats. The vocals resonated like a nostalgic ’60s performance by Janis Joplin.

Despite having the deceptive name of a solo act, Nico Vega is a lively trio coming out of Los Angeles.

“Nico Vega came from the original drummers mother’s maiden name,” said Koehler. “She lived a cool legacy and we thought we can continue that because she is not with us anymore.”

Comprising the band is Volkman performing vocals, Dan Epand on drums and Rich Koehler on guitar. With a little over four years playing together the band has released several EP’s and a full length self-titled album in 2009.

A lot of their songs feature a psychedelic and experimental sounds generated from their influences of Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin, John Coltrane and Miles Davis. They also credit funkadelic as a source of inspiration.

As for writing their songs, Koehler develops a riffs with other parts of the song, and together they “jam it out.”

“Aja is really great with the lyrics and Melody,” said Epand. “It happens pretty spontaneously and fast.”

The band opened with the song “Medicine Man.” The lyrical content expressed a woman’s want in a man.

Among the other songs, Nico Vega performed the crowd favorite “Gravity” an indelible tune about teasing. One the more memorable lyrics of the song, mimicked by the guitar, was “Nananananana,” a play on the classic schoolyard taunt.

Nico Vega plans to release a new album some time early next year.

The band takes off on tour along the Pacific Coast in collaboration with Metric.

There are a few rumors I’ve heard, some of which more realistic than others, about those that might make a special appearance at this year’s vaunted list of performers at the festival out in Indio. Some of the more ridiculous claims were that The Rolling Stones would make a performance by some whacked out blogger; Soundgarden was “thinking about playing” – no; and Billy Corgan of the Smashing Pumpkins only wishes people still gave a hoot about his music enough to be included in Coachella. Here’s a couple more realistic rumors of what could be going down this year in Indio:

First of all, it seems like everyone is speaking of Thom Yorke and his band of four question marks. Does this mean solo or Radiohead – something else? It’s being talked about like the second coming of Christ. Big hype for the close of night three, but we will have to see for sure to find out exactly. I’m more interested to see what Club 75 has to offer on night three. Comprised of French DJs Cassius, Busy P, Mehdi and Justice; it’s one act I wouldn’t miss. Justice slayed crowds in 2008 and gave audiences a difficult conundrum of choosing to stay and see the end of Roger Waters’ mind-blowing performance or head to the dance tent. Club 75 will definitely be a hit and it will be interesting to see if Justice plays from their new release Planisphere.

No Beastie Boys this year, due to health reasons. We got stuck with Jay-Z instead for night one, and if you ask me he is the one performer who truly sticks out like a sore thumb in the whole Coachella lineup. I’d head to the parking lot early and rest up for day two.

The folky, electro-pop band Here We Go Magic is on tour with White Rabbits and the New Pornographers. Pitchfork.com has reported that they will be playing Coachella, but there is no official release from Here We Go Magic on their Web site that they will be there. They are cool if you are into that kind of music, but not particularly a band I would rave about.

The Glitch Mob will be performing on night three of Coachella – the official kick-off to their Drink The Sea tour – and will be followed along by fellow tour-mates Deru and Free The Robots. It would be awesome to see Free The Robots playing Coachella, the Santa Ana band under Chris Alfaro will be releasing it’s first album, CTRL ALT DELETE March 30 and it would be a huge jump for Free The Robots to play for such a massive audience. They don’t show up on the actual Coachella playlist, nor do they have Coachella on their MySpace calendar, but according to The Glitch Mob’s Web site, they will be playing with them at every stop on their tour minus a few exceptions – maybe this means they will collaborate at Coachella.

These are but a few of the rumored Coachella performances this year. In the meantime, you will find me milling around Chatroulette until I happen to run into one of these bands and get the opportunity to ask them face to face. Alas, I suppose that it doesn’t even really matter much to me because of the prohibitively expensive ticket prices Goldenvoice has come up with this year. Maybe I’ll just jump the fence again.

'Odd Blood' is out now.

For fans of: Le Loup, Dirty Projectors, Animal Collective

Yeasayer’s second album may be titled Odd Blood, but that might be slightly misleading – the album is anything but odd. It’s an absolute vision for any indie music lover.

Their sound seems to change from song to song without seeming schizophrenic. But if one were to try and describe their general music, it would be a mixture of Depeche Mode’s cool rhythms, Matt & Kim’s upbeat tempo, and MGMT’s futuristic melodies. It seems conflicting, but it’s like the attraction of magnets – it just works.

The album opens with “The Children,” a track clearly synthesized to the edge of the world and back again – but in a good way. It’s dark and deep and slightly unexpected, sending the listener into a trance from which escape is only possible after the last track has finished playing.

The fifth track on the album, “O.N.E.” is a happier, lighter track, with doses of electronica expertly mixed with hints of alternative rock.

Though the lyrics are greatly overshadowed by the actual music, they’re not bad. In the album’s second track, “Ambling Alps,” they’re even a little inspirational. “Now, the world can be an unfair place at times/but your lows will have their compliment of highs/and, if anyone should cheat you, take advantage of, or beat you/raise your head and wear your wounds with pride.”

Odd Blood is both an album that one could listen to individual songs or listen to the whole album in one sitting – the contrast leaves no room for boredom or monotony. Though the songs are experimental in some forms, one thing is for sure: Yeasayer has a lot to say “yea!” abou

Johnny 2/3 of Yer Cheat'N Heart Tattoo in Gardena, Calif., one of over 300 artists from around the world at Musink, puts needle to skin as he creates a freehand traditional tribute piece. Photo by Shruti Patel/For the Daily Titan

Searing. Stabbing. The white-hot center of pain becomes a focal point as your brain struggles for distraction. After a while, you’re no longer sure if the incessant droning in your head is the hum of the tattoo machine puncturing your skin some 30,000 times per minute, injecting its indelible ink deep in your dermis or the swan song of the sonically-receptive hair-cells of your inner-ear after the last punk band to take the stage.

Welcome to Musink.

“The great thing is once somebody gets a tattoo, typically, they become one of us,” Johnny 2/3 said, shortly after spending several hours ensuring I was “one of them.”

While not the first, the damage Johnny did inside the hangar-turned-convention-hall would certainly be the most meaningful so far. The initials of loved ones lost were inscribed as part of a traditional piece – the kind Johnny is famous for. The sign outside the hangar summed it up. “Ink.”

Johnny, renowned for his traditional and realistic work in the South Bay and beyond, was one of over 300 artists from as far away as Switzerland and Japan.

Only half of the attraction, the ink-slingers worked to a soundtrack provided by the likes of punk bands spanning three decades.

Friday night saw a slow start as crowds trickled in and ’80s post-punk legends The Cult took the stage. Before they had their chance, however, a man whose name transcends all boundaries of action sports, music and art represented over the three-day convergence of counterculture took the stage.

Mike Vallely, better known as Mike V., first made a name for himself as a professional skateboarder and has fronted the hardcore outfits, Mike V. and the Rats and Revolution Mother. After hosting an all-star skate-jam on the mini-ramp, he lead his latest, By the Sword, in assaulting audiences with an array of Black Flag and Minor Threat covers, a concept he said was originally for Rev Mom and only temporary until By the Sword had more material.

“When punk rock came along, hardcore came along, it became very accessible,” Vallely said backstage after his set. Covered in ink, mostly from the notorious Kat Von D., Vallely somehow seemed to be a walking summation of the spirit of Musink.

“When I started getting tattooed, it was for outlaws,” Vallely said. “I’d like to think it’s still for outlaws, there’s just more outlaws, but I’m afraid it’s for pretty generic people now too. It’s a good thing for the people that make a living doing this kind of stuff, but maybe a bad thing for the spirit of it. But I think the real motherfuckers are still the real motherfuckers.”

Feb. 20 shot back to the ’70s and across the pond with English punks, Buzzcocks and The Damned.

Sunday, Musink reached its boiling point. Skate punk, which surfaced in the ’90s and ironically now seems old-school, ruled the day as anticipation for NOFX and Face to Face began to build. However, hometown heroes Longway stole the show with their brand of rockabilly punk.

Trevor Jackson (guitar) of Longway. Photo by Shruti Patel/For the Daily Titan

“For us, we play these things because every time you go out and play it’s an opportunity to pull new fans,” said guitarist Trevor Jackson in their mislabeled trailer. “The Longways,” read the paper taped to the door.

There’s something to be said for a band when a guy with an eye-patch reading “Out of Order” scales the speaker stacks bookending the stage mid-song before descending into the maelstrom of the circle-pit whilst playing.

“There’s a bunch of people there that never would’ve saw us before, and they may never see us again, but at least we had a shot to go out there and play,” Jackson said. “And we’re lucky to be here,” sarcastic frontman Brian Longway added in a rare, humble moment amidst a steady stream of wisecracks, including that anyone who doesn’t like their music can, “take off their tattoos.”

Face to Face frontman Trever Keith had his share of quips.

“Hey, did you see that ONE GUY, with the black shirt and tattoos?” Keith questioned from onstage.

“This is rad and I was blown away when I walked in that room and saw a million tattoo artists,” bassist Scott Shiflett later admitted aboard their trailer. “But as far as bringing counterculture to the mainstream, it’s just been going on as long as there’s been admin mining the cool.”

Keith countered.

“I think it’s still counterculture. I mean, it’s bigger than it once was, but you couldn’t probably have Musink in many other places besides a place like Orange County and have this kind of a turnout. California’s the kind of place that you can go get a job … if you are sleeved. There’s a much more open-minded culture at large in California. It allows something like tattooing to be more accepted in popular culture.”

“There’s a guy that works at my bank that’s covered in tattoos, so all that stuff my mom was saying about, ‘You’ll never get a job at the bank,’ is just not true!” Shiflett added.

After being back on stage together only a short while since their five-year hiatus, and taunting the crowd in jest with new material (to surprising boos), Keith confirmed the rumors.

“We have about 14 or 15 songs kind of trumped up right now that are in various stages of completion,” Keith said. “We’re hoping to get into the studio in May and make an album out of it, see if we can make some chicken salad out of some chicken shit.”

After NOFX’s set added an amplified exclamation point to the evening – a sea of bodies bandaged in plastic and masking tape, dripping blood and ink, slamming in the circle pit – it was clear that while this may still be a counterculture of sorts, Shiflett’s mom seems more wrong now than ever.

“Tattoos:” Johnny 2/3 explained, “not just for sailors and fallen women anymore.”

Girls frontman Christopher Owens (right) performed on Jan. 25 at Detroit Bar in Costa Mesa. Photo courtesy of Monti Smith/For the Daily Titan

Daily Titan Staff Writer

For fans of: Elvis Costello, Real Estate, Atlas Sound

It was only 8 p.m. on Monday, Jan. 25, but Detroit Bar in Costa Mesa was already filled near capacity.  Fans made their way to the concert room, trying to get as close to the stage as possible.  The audience’s anticipation grew more and more over the next two-and-a half-hours until Girls, the retro-pop rock duo from San Francisco, finally hit the stage.

Fans were more than forgiving for Girls’ late start time, as they cheered loudly over the opening lyrics to “Ghost Train.” A mellowed hush flowed through the intimately small venue as front-man Christopher Owens, 30, captivated the audience with his cheerful, yet distressed vocals, similar to Elvis Costello.

Concert-goer Nate Cole, 28, of Silver Lake, who heard of Girls via Internet music blogs, said he likes the duo because they sound fresh, but are also  reminiscent of ’50s and ’60s pop rock bands.  But while Girls emulate the simple pop sound of the Beach Boys, their lyrics are often sad, like in “Laura.” Owens sang, “We used to be friends / Now when I run into you I pretend I don’t see you / I know that you hate me.”

Owens peered at the audience through his long, wavy dirty blond hair during his harmonica solo before playing Girls’ first single, “Hellhole Ratrace,” the final song played before the band’s two-song encore.  For almost ten minutes the audience cheered and danced, swaying back and forth to the seven-minute song.

“I like Girls because they’re not trite.  They don’t try too hard and get right to the point without using metaphors,”  Phil Neujahr, 27, of Santa Ana said.

Girls’ lyrics certainly are straightforward and raw. Owens wrote most of the songs on their debut album, Album, released last September, while high on methamphetamine.

“I would stay up all night on speed and do nothing but write,” Owens said in a recent interview with Rolling Stone. “If a song’s three minutes long, it took three minutes to write.”

After Girls’ set, Owens said that while he no longer uses speed, he still writes with the same quick style because that’s what he’s used to.  His writing style might be one of the only things in his life that hasn’t changed over the years.  Owens grew up fatherless, constantly moving around the world with his mother and the cult they belonged to, the Children of God.  At 16, he left the cult and moved to San Francisco in his twenties where he met bassist Chet “JR” White, 30, and formed Girls.

You can get wrapped up in the full Girls experience of psychedelic, careless fun and torment at the Coachella Valley Music Festival on April 17.

“I always wanted to go to Coachella but I never had the money or time,” Owens said. “So it’s crazy that we’ll be performing for my first time being there.”

Retribution Gospel Choir – '2' is out now on Sub Pop Records

Daily Titan Staff Writer

For fans of: Low, Neil Young

The beginning of the album is a wake-up call to the listener. If you were sleeping when you pushed play, you won’t be 30 seconds into “Your Bird,” the album’s second track. The song – and album for that matter – starts off slowly but epically, as if Retribution Gospel Choir is preparing for battle.

The group is not heavy on vocals, which is a shame because singer Alan Sparhawk has a really nice voice. It’s a little rough around the edges, but I think that’s why I like it.

Oddly enough, my favorite track, “’68 Comeback,” is a 43-second song without vocals. It has so much heart, soul and rock and roll that I can’t help but nod my head and play some air guitar. I really wish they had made this song into a two minute track. It was stuck in my head for two days, and 43 seconds just doesn’t cut it.

“Poor Man’s Daughter,” the fifth track on the album, that will probably be a single, is a slow but passionate song about a man’s inner struggles.

The only problem I had with 2 was that it switched back and forth from the upbeat “White Wolf,” to the odd and uncomfortable “Something’s Gonna Break.” Most of the songs ended just as I started to like them. I would still recommend this album to anyone who wants to listen to something new, or anyone who likes the band Low, since two members from Low, including Sparhawk, are in Retribution Gospel Choir.

Do you spend three hours a night browsing YouTube for music videos and little hidden bootleg recordings of your favorite artists? Do you relish those little DVD extras on concert movies that show the band doing an intimate backstage performance? Well, here is a Web site meant for you.

Blogotheque.net is a french music blog focusing on much of the world’s indie scene. Once google has finished translating the page for you, there are several well-written articles about some bigger-name bands, some indie bands and several French bands you may not have heard of at your disposal. While all of that is great, it isn’t the best part of the site.

La Blogotheque’s most popular feature is a sub section called “Concerts A Emporter” or “Take-Away Shows.” It’s essentially a collection of videos of bands performing in non-traditional venues. From the rooftops of Paris to crowded trollies in San Fransisco, La Blogotheque has some of modern musics’ best up-and-coming stars performing their favorite songs in a way that only a small camera and an embedded video could create.

The great thing about “Take-Away Shows” is that each video has a blog accompanying it, describing how the band found the location and how the blogger convinced the band to perform. It also includes any potential run-ins with the law or other fun anecdotes and facts that the band might have. These bits of storytelling add a depth to each video that lets you in on that band’s life for a brief moment.

Even big names like Sigur Ros and Cold War Kids have graced the camera and revealed a bit of their own personality.

Although I could write an entire page describing my favorite videos and highlight their best moments, I think you would tire of my fan-boy rantings, so here are just a few of my favorites:

For an introduction to what “Take-Away Shows” is all about, I love showing people video number 10. It features now immensely popular and beloved band Grizzly Bear, but back in 2006, when they made videos but almost no one had heard of them. The first video is of them performing their song “Shift” in a small bathroom in France, with only the most basic of instruments at their disposal, and with lead singer Ed Droste crouched in a bathtub singing to only a cameraman and a mostly-empty apartment.

The second video is an amazing a cappella version of “Knife” from their second album Yellow House, as they walk down a busy sidewalk dodging lamp posts, mailboxes, fire hydrants and pedestrians.

Another great concert is by the band Cold War Kids. Highlights from their video include a bare-bones performance of “St.John” as they are wheeled on large loading crate through a warehouse. They later perform their song “God, Make up Your Mind” to a bus full of students in a dark parking lot.

Some of my other favorites are: Beirut preforming “Nantes” with his full band next to a café in France; Delta Spirit performing “Strange Vine” in a carpet shop where they purchased a harmonium from the owner; Seasick Steve wandering the streets of France telling stories from when he was a homeless; and The Tallest Man on the Earth performing a cover of the Nico song “These Days.”

So if you’re alone in your room at 10 p.m. and have the concert video bug, or even if you’ve got a half an hour to kill with your laptop between classes, head over to blogotheque.net and enjoy hundreds of fantastic videos of some artists you have heard of and possibly discover a new favorite band.

Daily Titan Design Editor

Walk the Rio is (from left to right): Shawn Walker, Justin Vidal, Dustin Russell, Eric Rios, Christina Mansour and Marty Cole. Photo by Eric Silva/For the Daily Titan

When Shawn Walker began writing music for his grandfather’s hypnotherapy-for-children project a year and a half ago, he couldn’t have foreseen that it would be the key that would open the door to his future, or that it would bring six gifted people together to fuse their unique musical talents into one unifying sound.

Sensing that his hypnotherapy music had some serious potential, Walker set out on an ambitious quest to gather his army. He began with Eric Rios on the guitar. When trying to dub their new band with a name, Walker and Rios jokingly suggested combining both of their last names. When they found it more intriguing than humorous, they knew that they had found their name. Next, Walker added Justin Vidal, Cal Sate Fullerton kinesiology major and old ballet buddy (yes, ballet – tights and all), on the drums. He was originally rejected by keyboardist and CSUF illustration major Christina Mansour, but changed her mind with the influence of his song, “One More Song.” He added Marty Cole, bass guitarist and Dustin Russell, lead guitarist, around the same time. According to Vidal, Cole and Russell were the last pieces of the puzzle. And with that, Walk the Rio was born.

After playing world-famous venues like Whisky A-Go-Go, Knitting Factory, Chain Reaction and the Viper Room, not to mention playing at the 2009 Warped Tour after winning the Ernie Ball Battle of the Bands, it seemed like they are well on their way to success.

It’s a common assumption that, when you put six artists together, the results typically won’t be a happy union of coinciding ideas. Walk the Rio seems to break that barrier. Combining multiple genres of sound, including rock and dance, Walk the Rio creates a marriage of heavy guitars, ultramodern beats and killer vocals. The result? An insane, rocker love-child, catchy enough to implant itself permanently into anyone’s brain, regardless of what type of music you think you love.

When speaking with Walk the Rio, it was immediately apparent that there is certainly no shortage of passion in this group. This was especially clear when hearing Mansour recollect her favorite performance. According to Mansour, she will never forget playing at Eastmont Intermediate School. Located in a less-than-thriving neighborhood, the students of Eastmont don’t always get the chance to experience live performances. Even after getting a ticket on the way to the show, and showing up two songs into the set, the energy and appreciation of the students made it one of her best memories to this day. She recalls, “They don’t get to go to concerts, but they got to experience this. I think I smiled for three days afterwards.”

Besides the expected challenges facing an up-and-coming band, Vidal has been facing his own challenge since May 2009. May 16 at around 8 o’clock in the morning, Vidal was hit by a car in front of CSUF while riding his bike home from a friend’s house. After receiving multiple spinal and collarbone surgeries, he is still not finished healing. Needless to say, the accident had tremendous effects on Vidal’s ability to dedicate himself to the band. He has not, however, let his injury hinder him. Instead, he played shows in his wheelchair and fought through the pain. According to Vidal, “No matter what the obstacle is, do it. There’s always going to be another test. Christina said it best – I have a really hard obstacle to get to a really big goal.”

Walk the Rio has released two EP’s so far, and is currently working on a new one to be released by the end of this year. As for the future, we can expect to see a lot of evolution in the sound. The newer music is “untouchable,” according to Mansour, and implements a heavier guitar sound as well as a more computerized and modern beat. They will also be back on tour and performing once Vidal is completely healed. Russell, lead guitarist, also emphasized a desire to connect people to each other through music. He summed it up by saying, “The future is a bright one. We are making music that allows us to play … with passion and total disregard for how cool we look. We hope to inspire people, because we inspire each other.”

Walk the Rio’s music can be found on iTunes or by visiting www.walktherio.com. For more information on the band, upcoming events, or individual members, visit the Web site. Also, look for Vidal or Mansour around campus for a free CD.

Daily Titan Staff Writer

In an era where digital downloads dominate, plastic still proves popular. Photo by Christa Connelly/Daily Titan Photo Editor

Music industry insiders made a prediction in 1989 that vinyl records would soon be extinct.

The foresight was partially true because record companies stopped producing 45s (vinyl singles) in early 1990. The reason: buying behavior of music patrons had changed. Cassettes and compact discs proved far more appealing than the flat, black circles with only two songs on them.

As it turned out, LPs (long players in industry jargon) maintained appeal with DJs throughout the decade of cassettes and compact discs.

With the emergence of DJ software like Serato in 2001, another prediction was made – LPs would soon be extinct because digital vinyl could be used to play MP3s. Furthermore, turntables were going to be tossed to the wayside because digital turntables, allowing DJs to scratch and back cue CDs, were underway.

Music industry specialists were wrong again. Vinyl LPs survived the digital era and are still being produced by record companies and sold around the world.

Chris Cervantes, 28, of Fat Beats Records in LA, a music retail store that caters to consumers of vinyl records, says that music industry insiders three times announced predictions that vinyl would become extinct. However, according to Cervantes, no other media can compare to vinyl. When you buy an album or single, for example, the record’s jacket is like a poster. Plus, listeners can manipulate vinyl in ways they can’t with a CD or any other media.

“Nobody’s going to give that up,” he said.

There are three reasons why LPs have managed to survive the past 20 years: some people prefer the warm analog sound of vinyl, some DJs haven’t crossed over to digital DJing because they are intimidated by the technology; either it’s too expensive, or they prefer to “dig in the crates” so to preserve that element of DJ culture, and some people simply own only analog turntables.

People like listening to music as it is being distorted. For some, the smooth, silky and noisy sound of vinyl is preferred over the shiny, bright and detailed sound of CDs and other digital media.

John Robinson, 55, who works in Mr. C’s Records in Downtown Orange said he has customers ranging from ages 9 to 30 who buy vinyl regularly. He said they like the clicks, pops and hisses.

“Vinyl has a wider dynamic range than, let say CDs,” Cervantes says. “If you looked at a CD’s sound-waves on paper, they would all be the same size, the same range, and that makes up this compressed sound. But if you look at a sheet of paper with vinyl’s sound-waves, they would be up and down, all over the place, different ranges, giving you a fatter sound.”

No digital media, including digital vinyl, comes close to reproducing the warm, full and airy sound of vinyl. Accordingly, vinyl will be around for many more years.

DJ Lime Green from Orange County is a professional DJ who continues to buy vinyl. He admits to crossing over to digital DJing, but he prefers to “dig in the crates” for the perfect song to cue up. According to DJ Lime Green, digging in the crates is the essence of being a DJ and one reason DJs continue buying vinyl.

“I still rock vinyl at hip-hop shows in conjunction with Serato,” he said.

And then there are the DJs who just aren’t Internet savvy.

Depending solely on a computer to store and playback music is risky because hard drives crash. DJs buy vinyl these days to back up their MP3 playlists in case something goes wrong with their hard drives.

In addition to backing up hard drives, some DJs purchase vinyl because they don’t want to pay for, or can’t afford, digital DJ software which ranges in price from $299.99 to $699.99.

Cervantes said one reason why people are sticking with vinyl records over digital vinyl is because there is latency from where the needle is on the digital vinyl and the playback of the MP3. The latency can throw a DJ offbeat, especially when he or she is scratching.

Although there is latency involved when playing vinyl records, everything is still in real time.

Lastly, there are people in this world who own turntables and enjoy playing back vinyl records. Companies such as Sony and Vestax still produce record players. Vestax record players have a built in speaker, eliminating the need for an amplifier.

Cervantes says there is still a market for vinyl records, as long as they are packaged properly and come out on time.

Sales of vinyl records comprise 80 percent of gross sales in Fat Beats Records.

DJ Lime Green said major labels are only pressing vinyl records that are guaranteed to sell, and most singles come out on vinyl after the single is played-out. Lime Green said “Swagga Like Us” by rappers T.I. and Jay-Z came out on vinyl six month late.

“Vinyl will never die 100 percent,” He says. “All the wax that comes out in super low quantities over the next few years will become collector items.”

According to Cervantes, there are enough die-hard vinyl users to keep vinyl records alive. He also predicts a backlash effect in the realm of digital DJing. Newer DJs are going to look at other DJs and wonder why they are using digital vinyl when regular vinyl is better for mixing. And then new-school DJs are going to stick with vinyl records to out-due the digital DJs.

DJ Lime Green has a similar prediction.

“I think in a few years people are going to wake up, or there’s going to be a whole new generation that is going to see all the old-school stuff and be like ‘forget these new school cats playing music off their laptops. We need to take it back,’” he said. “And I think it will be considered cool to play records again.”

Photo by Skylar Smith/Daily Titan Staff Writer

By Skylar Smith
Daily Titan Staff Writer

Last Friday, the Anaheim House of Blues in Downtown Disney showed off Southern California’s rising indie stars. The bands in attendance were The Union Line, The Living Suns, Moostache, The Rye Douglas Band and The Steelwells.

The audience was mostly made up of friends, fans and family of members of each of the bands, leading to an incredibly friendly atmosphere. Most of the people at the show knew the bands in some way or another, and several of the band members were on the main floor watching other bands with their friends.

At most concerts there is a tension in the air between sets as everyone waits for the headliner to come on. However, between sets at this show everyone was content to to grab a drink or meet with the band members at the merchandise booth.

People went in and out throughout the night, and moments before the band they were waiting for took stage, friends and family lined up at the front to support the band.

Some of the audience stayed through the night and some band members even sneaked friends back stage to hang out.

The highlights of the show for me were The Union Line, The Steelwells and, surprisingly, Moostache. To be honest, when Moostache took the stage, I thought they were a bunch of high school kids, but as soon as the lead singer, Patrick Wardell, started singing, I was taken aback by the amount of soul and maturity his voice had. Every one of their songs was catchy and they looked extremely comfortable on stage. Wardell even hopped around on stage without any socks.

The next band was the Rye Douglas Band that filled the venue with noise and reverb. The most impressive song on their set was a pitch-perfect cover of “Paranoid Android” by Radiohead. Although it wasn’t their own song, they got a lot of attention and several audience members were singing along.

After that was Fullerton native The Steelwells, who must have had lots of fans because once they took the stage, the venue began to fill up quickly. Several girls in the front row were singing along to nearly every song.

The best things about The Steelwells were their songwriting and professional attitude. If there was any band there that night that had the audience transfixed it was The Steelwells.

Lead singer Joey Winter jokingly expressed the stress of being a modern indie band. “You’ve got to keep up with Twitter. You’ve got to keep up with Facebook and MySpace,” said Winter.

With catchy songs like “El Capitan,” “Bones” and my personal favorite, “Big Yellow Sky,” The Steelwells are a band to keep your eye on and could easily become a local favorite.

The most exciting act there that night was The Union Line. Many of their members come from Saddleback College and the surrounding area, and brothers Adam Sabolick and Jordan Sabolick used to be members of a band called Spacepilot, which was made up of mostly Starbucks employees.

The Union Line had most of the audience bobbing their heads from the beginning. Midway through the set, several audience members were shouting for them to play their hit “Pearls,” and they obliged. “What was that? Pearl?” said Adam Sabolick smirking at the audience. “Well, you’re in luck cause that’s next on the list.” Jordan and Adam were great at chatting up the audience, causing many laughs between songs, as the band members tuned their instruments and talked to the sound booth.

The most interesting thing about The Union Line was how often several of their members traded instruments. Throughout the show, three of their five members played the bass, guitar, keyboard and the giant bass drum on stage at least once in the set.

Once The Living Suns took stage, everyone was already in a great mood and several band members came out from backstage to check them out. All in all, it was a great night for getting to know Southern California’s local music scene.

As the show ended, family, friends and fans of all the bands walked into a rain swept Downtown Disney. It was a perfect picture of a very important part of the Orange County lifestyle.

Photo By Skylar Smith/Daily Titan Staff Writer

By Skylar Smith
Daily Titan Staff Writer

Local Fullerton Indie-Rock band discusses life as an indie band and what inspires them to make music.

The Steelwells are:

Joey Winter – vocals and acoustic guitar
Andrew Eapen – lead guitar
Robbie Gullage – bass
Brian Manchester – drums and percussion
Billy Kim – keys, guitar, etc.

Daily Titan: What do you think of the current Southern California music scene?

Andrew Eapen: Well, the Southern California music scene is pretty good. Fullerton has us and The Living Suns.

Joey Winter: I feel like Fullerton has a lot underneath that could be really good but no one’s really going for it.

AE: Or has actually heard of it, at least.

JW: There’s tons of stuff happening.

AE: A lot of smaller bands are coming out right now and with the help of the Internet, it makes (getting noticed) a lot easier.

DT: What are your inspirations and what artists do you like?

AE: The Beach Boys was a big influence on our last record Shallow on the Draft. I would say, for me personally, The Smiths, The Beatles. The Abbey Road record was great. The Flaming Lips and Wilco. Anyone else?

Billy Kim: It’s hard to say really. Anyone that’s just talented.

JW: I’m right with Andrew on Wilco and The Beatles. Abbey Road, I feel like, is a record that seeped into our consciousness. There are a lot of things on (our) album that remind me of Abbey Road and also Pet Sounds by The Beach Boys. Barry, our producer is listening to Brian Eno quite a bit, so we used a lot of his tricks and gadgets. Singer songwriting stuff.

DT: How is touring life as a modern indie band?

AE: Our whole thing is we want to do it on our own, just because it will be our thing. We are not closed to something like a record deal, but we aren’t really looking to get signed.

JW: Financially, it would be easy to sign to a label. We know people in bands who have been signed, (but) we feel like you lose something, a little bit, in that process. I think if you can make it on your own and you can do it on your own then that’s the way to go. Try and get signed and see what happens. For now, we are going to make this our business and see what happens.

DT: Do you guys have your record label?

JW: We actually work with a label that does all that work for us. Obviously, starting our own thing in the future is not out of the picture either. For now we are going to focus on the music, the band and promoting ourselves.

DT: What influences do you have from your past life and others’ lives that help you write songs?

JW: I’m getting older now and I’ve experienced a few things in my life. I’ve definitely been through a number of experiences that have caused me to be introspective. I do my best to interpret what I’ve experienced and put that through into the music. It’s important to me that the music and the lyrics compliment each other and make sense with each other; that they communicate to each other in a way. I write so that it has a lot to do with how the music feels, and how the music feels dictates how I write. It’s a symbiotic thing.

One of our songs is about the band and it has to do with us moving forward and making it on our own. Another song has to do with a failed marriage of mine. Everything from failed relationships and even politics, not so much but a little bit here and there.

DT: What’s your favorite venue in Fullerton to play at?

JW: Definitely Continental Room. Every single time we play at the Continental Room it feels like we are playing in front of our family; everybody gets involved and it’s just a huge party every single time we play there.

DT: What suggestions do you have for any local indie artists to be successful?

JW: From stand point if you’re going to be a song writer, don’t waste your time making songs to make other people happy, make sure you’re making songs to make you happy. Be honest and make what you feel. Don’t try to make a scene or be hip. You don’t have to wear the leather boots just because everyone else is.

AE: It’s also really hard, don’t think it’s easy. It’s a lot of work we put in a lot of hours.

JW: We walked into this thinking that it was going to be easier than it is now. We’ve had to step back, reassess and say, “All right well, let’s put our heads down and make this happen.” I think a lot of bands will get to that point and say, “forget it, it’s too much work.”

Brian Manchester: I’d also say, whether you have high-caliber musicianship or not, set up a practice schedule and actually practice. We have done that from the beginning which is good. I know of friends who try to start up bands and they are not very proactive about their schedule and actually practicing. They are happy about it but after a few months it fizzles out. So that it doesn’t fizz out, make a schedule and stick to it.

JW: Even if you aren’t good. I’ve always taken the punk rock approach to music where you do what you can and make it work. Do the best with what you got and keep trying to get by.

DT: What should be the first Steelwells’ song that readers should check out?

AE: I think “Boxes” and “El Capitan” are very nice tracks.

JW: Honestly, I’m going to say “El Capitan.” Really encompasses in different places in the song what this is about, both musically and lyrically.

This band is on this journey and that song takes you on a journey. It’s about leading the ship to failure. Lyrically, it’s a warning sign for us, and that this band is about being honest and true to ourselves, or else you sink the ship by filling it up with too much bullshit.

The Steelwells will have a residency at Silverlake Lounge in Los Angeles. They will be playing every Monday night in January.

Photo By Ron Fu/Daily Titan Staff Photographer

By Krystle Uy
For the Daily Titan

Last Saturday, under the dim lights of Pomona’s Glass House, fans of all ages were eager to let loose, dance and sing along to their favorite Florida punk band, Less Than Jake.

Less Than Jake, blends pop-punk, ska and rock into their high-energy albums, and sound every bit as good live as they do on their records. The band’s members include: Chris Demakes, vocalist and guitarist; Roger Manganelli, bassist, guitarist and vocalist; Peter “JR” Wasilewski, saxophonist; Buddy Schaub, trombonist; and Vinnie Fiorello, drummer.

The band has been busy, touring the last 15 of the 17 years they’ve been together. Less Than Jake have released seven studio albums, including 2008’s GNV FLA, pronounced Gainesville, Fla., as an ode to their hometown. GNV FLA was released off the band’s new label, Sleep It Off Records, that they use to release and distribute their music. Sleep It Off is re-releasing their entire catalog and have already re-released three albums with new art work and a bonus DVD.

Demakes set aside time to talk about the history of Less Than Jake and where the band is headed.

“We’re going to start writing next year. I don’t know what we’re going to release in what capacity. I don’t think we’re ever going to make a CD again. Going to a store and finding a new Less Than Jake CD is probably never going to happen again. There’s just no a reason for it. Of course we’ll do vinyl and collectable stuff, but we want to come up with something that’s going to be interesting and it’d be digital downloads; but we’re trying to figure maybe something past that. We’re trying to figure out how to get our music out there in a cool way,” he said.

Demakes said that they’ve probably done the annual Vans Warped Tour more than any other band.

“It’s a good way, the only way, for our band to get up in front of a younger audience. We’re not on the radio, we’re not on MTV, and we’re not in the press besides the Internet. The only way for younger kids to know about our band besides word of mouth is to come see us at Warped Tour,” Demakes said.

Indeed, there were younger fans at the show. A mother was seen buying a ticket for her adolescent son as she happily accompanied him in line. Even older fans were seen at the show. Demakes asked Pomona natives, Dwayn Kaiser, 62, and his wife, Joanne, 74, to come up on stage.

“I feel like they’re not supposed to be here. They might have read the flyer wrong,” he joked.

Less Than Jake were always quick with their wits, bantering with each other as well as making sure to interact with the audience as much as possible. Demakes was annoyed at a fan and he mimicked her by pretending to be bored, drooled and made motions as if he were texting on a cell phone. The audience all shifted their gaze to the girl.

“Thanks for texting through our first three songs,” Demakes said sarcastically.

Often the band would make fun of themselves or their surroundings by saying things like “Thank you, we are Reel Big Fish from Orange County!” or “Thank you, San Dimas!”

Other notable antics include Schaub taking off a fan’s glasses, putting them on, and walking around as if he couldn’t see.

Demakes invited another fan on stage, Lake Forrest native, Marilyn Blank, 50, to “dance like it’s 1979” with a male fan of the band’s choice.

Blank was enthusiastic to comment on the show. “It’s great because it was kind of small, a more intimate show than normally. Was I embarrassed? Yeah,” she said chuckling. “I’ve seen them a bunch of times. My daughter is one of their biggest fans.”

Her daughter, Brittany, 21, confirmed, “They’ve been my favorite band for the last 10 years. I’ve been to 15 to 20 of their shows.”

When asked about the future of Less Than Jake, Demakes confirmed that they are just as loyal to their fans as their fans are to them.

“I didn’t think I’d be doing it at 21, past 23, past 25 and somehow, someway still going. I know our band will never break up. We’ve been together for too long. When a band says they’ve broken up, you alienate and hurt a lot of people. Our band means too much to too many people,” Chris said.

Less Than Jake is an infectious, energetic and fun band whether you’re seeing them at a small club show or at Warped Tour. Their music brings together people of all ages, including a new fan like myself.

Musicians have been known to branch out into other art forms with various amounts of success. Anthrax guitarist and co-founder Scott Ian decided it was time to put down the guitar and get his hands on a computer keyboard to scribe DC Comics’ newest mini-series, Lobo: Highway to Hell. Ian recently sat down with fans at one of Los Angeles’ Meltdown Comics for an intimate Q&A and autograph session.

Lobo: Highway to Hell is a two-issue prestige format series chronicling DC Comics’ favorite alien bounty hunter as he goes fist-to-face with the Prince of Darkness himself, Satan, to seek vengeance for the innocent dolphins that Lucifer killed to send Lobo a message. The series is penciled by legendary comic book artist Sam Keith, creator of The Maxx, and clocks in at a whopping 64 pages per issue with a price tag of $6.99. Both issues are currently out at comic book stores everywhere. At this time, there are no plans to collect the two issues into one volume.

Fans seemed to be pretty excited for the new series. “I’m a huge Anthrax fan. I play guitar and look up to him. I really like comic books. He wrote a book and combined a lot of my interests, so I thought I’d check it out,” said Dean Karasinksi.

“It was kind of funny when I heard that Scott Ian was writing a comic. As a fan of Anthrax, I’ve been listening to his music for a long time, and he’s always had a kind of nerdy, geeky side to things. So when I heard that he was going to write a comic, I said, ‘Hey, that’s going to be fun,’ and the thing about Lobo, he’s pretty much the most metal character in all of DC (Comics). It’s a match made in Hell,” said Brett Parmenter, an avid comic book reader. “It’s really hilarious. And then Sam Keith, the artist, mixes it up right there. It’s a great book, and I’m glad he’s doing it.”

During the Q&A session, Ian touched on a number of topics. “Writing comics is something I could see myself doing longer than being in a band. I did learn one thing though: comic signings have way less people than band signings. But I don’t care, I wrote a comic, and I’m happy to be here,” Ian said.

Ian switched gears a bit to talk about music and the song writing process. “I feel like every song started about zombies. At one point, I thought this could be the soundtrack for World War Z or something. Our music sounds the way it sounds and inspires a certain way, and it usually inspires me to think of really violent stuff. I would say nine times out of 10, the songs come from fiction or fantasy thing(s).”

When looking for inspiration on writing, Ian said he looks up to “(Frank) Miller and (Alan) Moore. Being a kid in the ’70s, I grew up on Stan Lee writing comic books. For me, he’s probably one of the biggest influences on me as a person. More recently, I think (Robert) Kirkman is doing some of the best work. The Walking Dead is my favorite book.”

Not one to be considered a one-hit wonder, Ian is already planning his next project with DC Comics. “They already gave me the go ahead on my second project. I just can’t say who it is yet because they don’t want to announce it until after New Years. But it’s pretty much right up my alley. Although, it’s going to be way more difficult. There’s way more plot than the Lobo book. There’s going to be a lot more characters in it, at least 10 characters in the DC Universe.” When asked who he would like to collaborate with on a future comic book project, Ian said that he would love to work with painter Alex Ross. However, he is unsure if he’ll ever get the chance due to the artist’s incredibly busy schedule.

It’s difficult not to think that you are listening to a Queens of the Stone Age album when you hear Them Crooked Vultures and their self-titled debut album. Josh Homme, the lead singer for both bands, doesn’t stray too far from what he knows. If you are a fan of QOTSA this is a good thing.

What sets this album apart from Homme’s previous work is the inclusion of Dave Grohl (drums) of Nirvana and Foo Fighters, and John Paul Jones (bass) of Led Zeppelin.

Avoiding comparison is impossible, especially since Grohl played drums for one of QOTSA’s albums. Grohl’s drumming is tight, meshing well with the bass work of Jones as a driving force, especially for songs like “No One Loves Me & Neither Do I” and “Warsaw or The First Breath You Take After You Give Up.”

Being a primarily three-piece band, Jones’ bass playing is distinguishable amongst the sounds, but for the most part, it only supports the guitar, as most bass playing does in current music. Jones truly breaks through using distorted bass as the dominant sound in “Gunman,” making it one of TCV’s funk influenced tracks when it is mixed with the keytar.

TCV takes a different direction with two of its songs. “Elephants” starts like a Van Halen anthem but reverts back to a style similar to the rest of the album. “Interlude with Ludes” takes a trip through a field of strange, indistinguishable sounds, hollow drums and echoing vocals. The lyrics are difficult to discern but add to the mysterious nature of the song: “On the good ship lollygag / LSD and a bloody pile of rags / I hate to be the bearer of bad news / but I am.”

Them Crooked Vultures is a solid album all the way around. For fans of QOTSA there will be a lot to enjoy, but anyone looking to hear something completely original will be sorely disappointed. Homme, Grohl and Jones take what they do best and continue on. And there is nothing wrong with that.

Photo by Susan Smith/For the Daily Titan

It was about halfway through the concert when Markéta Irglová, pianist and a singer/songwriter of indie-sweetheart band, Swell Season, came on stage to talk about the Velvet Revolution. “Twenty years ago thousands of students and protesters marched on Prague to peacefully protest and sing music,” said Irglová, “eventually the communist Czechoslovakia was brought down.”

“If it wasn’t for the Velvet Revolution,” said Irglová, “I would not be on this stage today.”

She then invited a family friend on stage to help her sing one of those protest songs.

It was moments like these that made the Swell Season at the Wiltern, what I thought was going to be your typical concert, into so much more.

The band originally formed in Ireland under the name The Frames and was hugely successful, in Ireland anyway, with hits like “Headlong” and “Santa Maria.” The lead singer and songwriter Glen Hansard started making music with family friend Markéta Irglová for the movie Once, which they both were the main characters of. This Irish indie film was a big hit in the States and the song “Falling Slowly” from the soundtrack netted them an Oscar.

Over the course of two years, Hansard’s and Irglová’s popularity exploded, leaving The Frames in the dust. So, to bring both Hansard and Irglová back down to earth, The Swell Season was created. Now, with two amazing albums out, the band has proven themselves to be a rising tide in the music industry.

The concert at the Wiltern was a first for some, but most in attendance were long-time fans of either Once or The Frames.

“I saw the movie Once and then I fell in love with them afterward,” said Bryan Crawford.

Opener Josh Ritter surprised many with his quality heartfelt songwriting and Bruce Springsteen-meets-Glen Hansard sound. This may be because Ritter was invited to Dublin by Hansard himself.

“I met Glen in 2001 at an open mike gig,” said Ritter. “He then invited me to go hang out in Ireland, so I flew to Dublin for $93 and it was great. He’s the reason I’m playing today.”

Josh Ritter performed his entire set with a huge grin on his face, and his band members, all dressed in vests or suits, were clearly delighted to be there as well.

Then for the first time in a while, I witnessed something I never thought I would see. The opening band got a standing ovation. Not just a measly 10 percent of the audience, but a good three quarters of the Wiltern were on their feet clapping. Already the show was shaping up to be a great experience.

Finally, as the lights flashed in the lobby and attendees found their seats the lights went down. Hansard and Irglová both walked on stage and knelt down next to the lead microphone and opened with “You Must Have Fallen From The Sky.”

They were clearly in a good mood already as the rest of the band walked on and they immediately began performing songs from their new album such as “The Rain” and “Feeling The Pull”.

One thing any Swell Season fan can tell you is that Hansard has a knack for telling stories and loves to do that between songs. Every song performed is forwarded by an explanation of its meaning with a heartfelt story or an anecdote.

They range from funny little side comments such as, “Here is something you all (in LA) know very little about,” before singing “The Rain,” to stories of his band.

A very memorable story he told was about an elderly woman from New York whom he met on an elevator in Chicago a few years ago. He commented on how lovely her coat was and she was surprisingly grateful for the comment. “She said, ‘When I bought this coat I decided I was going to live my life’,” said Hansard, quoting the woman.

The woman had apparently spent two years in her pajamas eating cereal and didn’t leave the house, depressed and doing nothing, until she bought that coat. “She said, ‘I don’t know why I’m telling you this, but my son was in that fucking building,” said Hansard, still quoting the woman. “‘He quit his job on Sept. 10 and he went back into the building to get his stuff.’” Although he didn’t say it, everyone in the audience knew the woman had lost her son on 9/11.

There were several people tearing up at this point when Hansard began an amazing performance of “Say it to Me Now,” telling the audience not to keep things bottled up, because it’s so freeing to let it go.

As if all this emotion and musical beauty wasn’t enough, Hansard brought comedy into the equation when he welcomed Jason Segel, popular comedy actor from How I Met Your Mother and Freaks and Geeks fame, to perform his own song.

“I went and I asked these guys how to write a beautiful song and I think it was Markéta who said just write from the heart, and you know just include as much personal information as possible,” said Segel. He then proceeded to sing a song in which he gave away his phone number to any Swell Season fans who would like to make love to him.

This concert was the most complete, entertaining, meaningful and joyful experience I have had in a long time. The night was brought to a close on a solemn but optimistic note when Hansard had everyone sing a farewell to the last of the Irish folk legends, The Clancy Brothers, Liam Clancy. The song was a medley of “Red Chord,” a Frames song, and “The Parting Glass,” a Clancy Brothers song. As the night came to a close Hansard had everyone singing this one last line into the night, “Goodnight and joy be with you all.”