SAINT MOTEL @ POPSCENE - SAN FRANCISCO, CA - 07.12.12

Guess who has a new album out and kicked off their month long tour across the states last night?  Yes, my little darlings Saint Motel!  I have watched this LA band come into their own, and I can see great things happening in their future.   ​

Lucky for me, ​​​my pals played at Popscene last night and I was able to catch a ride home to Los Angeles with them - I love the bay but it was time to get back down south!  Saint Motel always puts on a great live show!  I offered my services to do their merch, and the fans bought up all the copies of the new debut record Voyeur - they went like hot cakes!  Their popular single at the moment "Benny Goodman" got a huge reaction from the crowd - people were even singing along.  I loved "At Least I Have Nothing" and still my all time favorite Saint Motel song "Butch".

It was amazing to see a band I have been friends with for a number of years now start gaining momentum out of town!  Good night, good friends, good times!

GEMINI CLUB @ POPSCENE - SAN FRANCISCO, CA - 06.21.12

I have been looking forward to seeing this band for quite some time now.  A friend of mine from Chicago suggested I check out Gemini Club, and I am so glad I did, and I am really glad I saw them in San Francisco @ Popscene over the LA show - which was at Club Moscow (Boardners) in Hollywood....and I can't stand that place!  ​

As one would say in the bay area - it was hella packed!  Really, I have not seen Popscene that full in quite a while.  I had trouble making my way through the crowd to try to get a closer look at the band, and decided that hanging out in the back by the merch table with my friends was a much better option!  ​

The show was amazing, just like I had been told.  After I was able to chat with Tom, Gordon & Daniel - and what a bunch of sweet hearts!  We started off with an argument about LA being a crappy city.....I had to stick up for my home town - and then moved into shows and SXSW plans, etc.  Gordon pretty much had a broken arm / open wound from being hit by a car while on his bicycle in Chicago just a few days before - which was sucking because he is the drummer.  This did not effect the show​ - they played all their songs from 2012 release Here We Sit with my favorite being "Sparklers"!  Gemini Club ..... it was one hell of a time! 

PHANTOM PLANET @ TROUBADOUR - LOS ANGELES, CA - 06.13/14.12

I knew that one of my highlights of this year was going to be the reunion shows of Phantom Planet, and I was right!  I have a real soft spot for this band - when I worked for Sony Music in the midwest,  I worked the Phantom Planet 2004 release​ (which Alex talks about int the video above), and when the band would come through town on tour....we would have ourselves one hell of a party!

Guitarist Darren Robinson is a dear friend, and he told me about this reunion months ago!  So when tickets went on sale for the first night, I bought them because there was no way I was going to miss out on this!  First night sold out in like a day, so a second night was added and I bought tickets for that as well.  Both night sold out and I was holding tickets...I was a happy girl. ​

What a great live band - they really know how to put on a show, and both nights were equally amazing.  When they played "Knowitall" I almost died!  So great to hear the hits as well, like "California" and "Big Brat" ...... I was overcome with joy!  Night one - HAIM opened and also joined the band on stage - so much fun!  I hope we see more from Phantom Planet in the future......like a tour or even a new record?  Fingers crossed! ​