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

Phantom Planet perform Big Brat during their first of two reunion shows, at The Troubadour in Los Angeles, on June 13, 2012 Ex Phantom Planet guitarist, Jacques Brautbar, Sam's brother Max, and opening band HAIM, guest

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! ​