The Extended Mix of Toto Coelo “Milk from the Coconut” Is New Wave Heat

Toto Coelo "Milk from the Coconut" extended dance mix 12" single on vinyl (Photo: Liz Ohanesian)
Toto Coelo 12″ single with the extended dance mix of “Milk from the Coconut.” (Pic: Liz O.)

On a Sunday afternoon, I flipped through a bin of new wave records at Sonido del Valle in Boyle Heights. At this point in the dig, I had already found a 12” of Bananarama’s cover of “He Was Really Saying Something” for 99 cents that was dusty, but definitely playable. I was starting to feel lucky. Not lottery ticket lucky, but lucky enough to take a chance on a Toto Coelo 12” single called “Milk from the Coconut.” 

Continue reading The Extended Mix of Toto Coelo “Milk from the Coconut” Is New Wave Heat

Night Shift Returns to Bar Franca on April 4

Night Shift at Bar Franca with DJ Liz O. playing post-punk, synthpop, darkwave, shoegaze on Thursday, April 4, 2024

Thanks to everyone who made it out to Bar Franca on March 7 for the first installment of Night Shift. We’ll be doing it again on Thursday, April 4, so join me from 9 p.m. until last call for a night of post-punk, synthpop, darkwave and shoegaze.

If you want to see what I played for the first Night Shift, check out my playlist. And if you want to RSVP for the next event, head over to Restless Nites.

Bar Franca is located at 438 S. Main Street in Downtown Los Angeles. Look for the neon cherries above the door. There’s no cover and it’s 21+.

See you on April 4 for Night Shift.

Here’s What I Played at Razorcake Hearts… on March 9, 2024

Gucci Crew II vinyl 12" for "Sally That Girl"

Something that happens when I play all-vinyl sets is that I decide on a personal theme that should, theoretically, make it easier for me to narrow down what I pull from my stacks. Take, for example, Saturday night’s Razorcake party at Footsies. My theme for the night was dubby ‘80s, a mishmash of the dub mixes found on 12” singles during that decade and post-punk tunes that are clearly influenced by dub.

But, now matter how often I say to myself, “Liz, stick to theme,” I just can’t do it. In this case, I started out pulling essentials like The Flying Lizards, Tom Tom Club, The League Unlimited Orchestra, Bauhaus and The Clash. Then I came across a copy of Outkast’s album Speakerboxx/The Love Below and was like, ‘when was the last time I listened to this?’ And then I find my copy of “Sally That Girl” and start thinking about how there will totally be people in the bar who haven’t heard that song since a middle school dance in 1990. But, if I’m going to play that, then I really need to bring Cybotron because that might be the only way I can mix out of Gucci Crew, and then I should probably bring Patrick Cowley too, just because I forgot to bring it to Disco Matinee last week. 

Long story short, that’s how you end up with set lists like the ones listed below. If this is your jam, you should probably pick up tickets for Disco Matinee: Punk ’n’ Funk Edition on April 7 because it will also be all-vinyl and I know a few of these tracks will end up in my crate for that party as well. 

Continue reading Here’s What I Played at Razorcake Hearts… on March 9, 2024

Disco Matinee: Punk ‘n’ Funk Edition Is Sunday, April 7

Flyer for Disco Matinee: Punk 'n' Funk edition at Grand Star Jazz Club on Sunday, April 7 at 3 p.m. with DJs Televandalist, Liz O. and Jus' B

On Sunday, April 7, head to Grand Star Jazz Club for the Punk ’n’ Funk Edition of Disco Matinee. Guest DJ Televandalist will join residents Liz O. and Jus’ B for an afternoon dive into the intersection between punk, funk and disco.

Advance tickets are available now via Restless Nites for $6.50, which includes ticket fees. The cover will be $8 at the door on the day of the event. Disco Matinee is the first Sunday of the month from 3 p.m. until 7 p.m. at Grand Star Jazz Club. This is a 21+ event. 

The Grand Star is located at 943 N. Broadway, inside Chinatown’s Central Plaza, right next to the Bruce Lee statue. There is both street and lot parking in the neighborhood. The venue is also located across Broadway from Metro’s A line stop in Chinatown.

Purchase advance tickets for Disco Matinee: Punk ’n’ Funk Edition on Restless Nites

Check out my set list for Disco Matinee: Freestyle & hi-NRG Edition

Here’s What I Played at Underground on March 8, 2024

Club Underground Grand Star Jazz Club March 8, 2024 (Photo: Liz Ohanesian)
When everyone is vibing to Animal Collective and they realize I’ve turned my camera on the crowd.

It was so good to be back at Underground last night. Both floors of the Grand Star were open on Friday night, with Larry playing Depeche Mode and New Order jams upstairs and Scarlett Casanova and I playing everything else downstairs. The crowd was a lot of fun. I was happy to see “Loneliness,” the latest Pet Shop Boys single, do well on the dancer floor. What did even better though was TR/ST’s cover of the PSB classic “Being Boring,” which is one of my current favorites. The most successful of the new tunes, though, was “Sangre de Oro,” from Twin Tribes’ latest album, Pendulum. The song also did extremely well at Nocturno’s party in Phoenix last month. Anyhow, thank you for dancing. Here’s the set list. 

Set 1:

ABC “Be Near Me” 

Kylie Minogue “Cupid Boy”

Saint Etienne “We’re in the City”

Royksopp “Ice Machine (Ewan Pearson Remix)”

Sally Shapiro “Rent”

Human League “Seconds”

Echo and the Bunnymen “In Bluer Skies”

Chromatics “Ceremony”

Chameleons “Reptile” 

The Cure “Primary”

Set 2: 

Ladytron “Playgirl”

Gorillaz “Dare (DFA Remix)”

Pet Shop Boys “West End Girls”

TR/ST, Jake Shears “Being Boring”

Boy Harsher, Ms. Boan “Machina”

Yaz “Situation”

Talking Heads “Girlfriend Is Better” (request)

Sophie Ellis Bextor “Murder on the Dancefloor” (request)

The Bucketheads “The Bomb! (These Sounds Fall Into My Mind) (Armand Van Helden Re-edit)”

The Rapture “House of Jealous Lovers”

Confidence Man “Angry Girl”

Le Tigre “Deceptacon”

Wet Leg “Chaise Longue”

Set 3: 

Donna Summer “Our Love”

New Order “Blue Monday”

Trans X “Living on Video”

Vitalic “La Rock 01”

Crystal Castles, Robert Smith “Not in Love”

Soft Cell “Tainted Love”

Bloc Party “Banquet”

Molchat Doma “sudno (Boris Ryzhy)”

Twin Tribes “Sangre de Oro”

Los Prisioneros “Tren al Sur (Basic Remix)”

Nine Inch Nails “Closer”

Tom Tom Club “Genius of Love”

Daft Punk “Da Funk”

Chumbawamba “Tubthumping”

Set 4: 

Pet Shop Boys “Loneliness”

Hercules & Love Affair “Blind”

Animal Collective “My Girls”

Tame Impala “Is It True”

Mr. Flagio “Take a Chance”

My Mine “Hypnotic Tango”

Righeira “Vamos a la Playa” 

Desireless “Voyage Voyage”

Q Lazarus “Goodbye Horses”

Depeche Mode “Nodisco”

New Order “Sub-Culture”

If you’re around Cypress Park today, catch me playing records at Footsie’s for Razorcake’s party, which is from 5-10 p.m. and keep checking back here or follow me on Instagram because I have a bunch of stuff to announce in the next day or so. 

Liz O. is an L.A.-based writer and DJ. Read her recently published work and check out her upcoming gigs.

Related: 

FUTURE ISLANDS, TR/ST AND MORE JANUARY 2024 MUSIC

HERE ARE MY TOP 10 ALBUMS OF 2023

Here’s What I Played for Night Shift at Bar Franca on March 7, 2024

Bar Franca DTLA Exterior March 7, 2024 (Photo: Liz Ohanesian)

Thank you to everyone who came out to Bar Franca for Night Shift last night. It was so much fun to play post-punk, synthpop, darkwave and shoegaze for you all night. Plus, as always, it was great to catch up with some pals and meeting some lovely new people. Anyhow, I’ve posted the set list below. See you tonight at Underground’s Depeche Mode x New Order party. 

Continue reading Here’s What I Played for Night Shift at Bar Franca on March 7, 2024

Here’s What I Played at Dolce Vita on March 5, 2024

Jalapeño and pineapple wontons at The Mermaid in Little Tokyo Los Angeles (Photo: Liz Ohanesian)
Jalapeño and pineapple wontons at The Mermaid. (Pic: Liz O.)

It was a little unexpected, but I did turn up at The Mermaid on Tuesday night to provide the music for the first half of Dolce Vita. I also didn’t have a chance to eat dinner beforehand, which led to another unexpected delight. The jalapeño and pineapple wontons at The Mermaid are amazing. I hadn’t had them before last night and loved them. Even with the chili sauce, they won’t set your mouth on fire. It’s more of a subtle sweet-and-spicy hybrid. Plus, they are shaped like starfish, which I find endearing. 

Anyhow, here’s what you may have heard if you were at The Mermaid between 8 p.m. and 10:30 p.m. on Tuesday night. 

Continue reading Here’s What I Played at Dolce Vita on March 5, 2024

L.A. Music Events: Thursday, March 7 – Wednesday, March 13

Flyer for Depech Mode x New Order night at Club Underground in Los Angeles on March 8, 2024 with DJ Larry G, DJ Liz O. DJ Scarlett Casanova

It’s the rare week when I’m playing three nights in a row, so if you want to follow along for the ride, here are the details. On Thursday, March 7, Night Shift launches at Bar Franca, where I’ll be playing post-punk, synthpop, darkwave and shoegaze from 9 p.m. until close. You’ll find Bar Franca downtown at 438 S. Main Street. There’s no cover and it’s 21+

The following night, Friday, March 8, is Depeche Mode x New Order night at Club Underground. Larry G., Scarlett Casanova and I will be playing your favorites from both bands as well the best in new wave, post-punk, indie and more. Underground is at Grand Star Jazz Club in Chinatown’s Central Plaza (943 N. Broadway 90012) and it’s 21+. Tickets are available via Dice and Eventbrite

This Saturday, March 9, is Razorcake Hearts Drinking Beer & Listening to Records at Footsie’s. This is an early, all-vinyl party with no cover. I’ll be playing alongside Nikki Nothing and Samantha Beerhouse between 5 p.m. and 10 p.m. As for what I’m bringing, that’s still up for debate, but I’m in a dubby ‘80s mood, so we’ll see where that goes. Footsie’s is located at 2640 N. Figueroa St. in Cypress Park and it’s 21+. Since we’re done at 10 p.m., there will be more than enough time to check out other happenings in L.A., so that’s where this list of music events begins. Also, there are a few super cool movies screening this week, so I’ve added those to the list as well. 

Continue reading L.A. Music Events: Thursday, March 7 – Wednesday, March 13

Here’s What I Played at Disco Matinee on March 3, 2024

Intro "Lost Without Your Love" vinyl 12" single (Photo: Liz Ohanesian)
Intro “Lost Without Your Love” isn’t on Spotify, but it is in my record collection, so you’ll hear it in my vinyl sets.

Thank you to everyone who came out to Disco Matinee at Grand Star Jazz Club on Sunday, March 3 for our freestyle and hi-NRG party. Jus’ B and Gustavisimo played some jams for the crowd. I think I did too. At least, I got to play the Intro 12” for “Lost Without Your Love,” which I posted about on Instagram the other day. 

The next Disco Matinee is Sunday, April 7. Check back here or follow me on Instagram for details, including our guest DJ and theme, because we’ll be announcing all that later this week. In the meantime, here’s my set list. 

Continue reading Here’s What I Played at Disco Matinee on March 3, 2024