Behold the Psychic TV Rosary

Posted on February 28, 2012 by lizo

Psychic TV Merch Booth (Photo: Liz O.)

Sunday night, I went to see Psychic TV at the Echoplex. It’s the second time I’ve seen the band and, as expected, it was an amazing show.

One of the highlights of the night was the band’s merch booth, or, specifically, the Psychic TV rosary at the merch booth. My partner in all that is awesome saw the rosary first. He said I had to have it. I knew I had to have it too. After all, I’ve had a thing for rosaries since I was a kid (not sure if that’s because of Catholic school or Madonna fanaticism, probably both). He got it for me. I ripped open the package and put it on immediately.
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My Isabel Toledo Shoes Are Awesome, Too Bad I Can’t Walk in Them

Posted on February 26, 2012 by lizo

Isabel Toledo for Payless shoes (Instagram Photo: Liz O.)

Behold my favorite pair of shoes. They’re from Isabel Toledo’s Payless line and, aside from sporting a fierce, bright yellow heel and sole, they are pretty comfortable. The problem isn’t with the shoes. It’s with me. I’m a mess in high heels.
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Set List: Underground 2/24/12

Posted on February 25, 2012 by lizo

Hey, that's me! Photo: Tommy Pedrini

That’s me on the decks at Underground. The photo was taken with Instagram by my friend Tommy Pedrini. Tommy has a great band called Cats on Mars. I went to their debut gig back in November and was impressed. Check them out on Facebook.

I’ve been getting a ridiculous amount of compliments lately on the denim jacket I’m wearing in the photo. It’s old, but not vintage. I bought it new at Old Navy about ten years ago. I love that Tommy was able to get my wrist full of bangles in the photo. Those are all from my boyfriend, because he’s awesome.

But onto the set list.
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Mega Post: 12th Planet, Scotland Night at Underground and More

Posted on February 23, 2012 by lizo

Updates here have been sporadic, but there’s a good reason for it. I’ve spent the past month working on “12th Planet is the Johnny Appleseed of Dubstep,” this week’s music feature for L.A. Weekly. As the title might indicate, it’s a profile of 12th Planet, probably one of the most important DJs to come out of this city in years. Profiles can be rough. They require hours of interviews, more hours of transcribing interviews and then multiple revisions before I turn it into my editor and the revision process continues. They are laborious, but, ultimately worth the effort, especially when you know that the subject of the story is doing amazing things.

At the same time, I did a shorter, less labor intensive piece for Vegas Seven on Bassnectar. I think I actually turned these in to my respective editors on the same day. So, yeah, busy.

But that’s not all. Last weekend, I headed to Gallifrey One, the annual Doctor Who convention, with my buddy Shannon. While we there, we met some fans who restored the TARDIS console from the 1996 movie. It was amazing, so I wrote about it. Also, Shannon took some lovely photos. I really want to make myself a Dalek miniskirt. Or a TARDIS minidress. Or both.

And I went to the Edwardian Ball too.
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Say Hi to Manda

Posted on February 15, 2012 by lizo

Image: Jeaux Janovsky

This is Manda. She’s more or less the central character in the comic that Jeaux Janovsky and I are busy drawing/writing. Manda is a DJ and record store employee. She’s smart-mouthed, but also very sensitive.

Anyhow, Jeaux just did this test sketch of Manda. He told me to let everyone know that she’s “way off model.” Still we wanted to give you a sneak peek of what’s to come. I like the pink hair on her.

Set List: Underground’s New Romantic Nite

Posted on February 11, 2012 by lizo

Getting New Romantic with Japan (Photo: Liz O.)

We celebrated Valentine’s Day early at Underground last night with a New Romantic-themed party. People (i.e., my boyfriend) thought I was kidding when I said would wear a pirate skirt. Ha! I never kid about fashion. Actually, I do, but this time I didn’t. Whatever. As proof, here’s a particularly crappy Instagram photo. It’s a pretty amazing skirt, a layered, lacy h. NAOTO that I purchased from a friend thanks to one of Pacific Media Expo’s fashion swap meets.

Ooh pirate-y. (Instagram photo: Liz O.)

Anyhow, whilst channeling the ’80s in a pirate skirt and striped top, I think I was able to do a pretty decent job of mixing New Romantic stuff and things that go along with it. I was really happy to have the chance to play Ultravox, OMD and a lot of other old favorites. My personal highlight, though, was “Shout!” by Depeche Mode. That’s a b-side for “New Life,” written by Vince Clarke. I adore playing Depeche Mode B-sides, so if you ever want to hear one, let me know and, if I have it, I’ll bring it with me.

I played the Rio Mix last night, but I’ve included a live version after the jump.
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Crate Packing: Is It Time to ‘Emerge’ Again?

Posted on February 8, 2012 by lizo

Fischerspooner "Emerge" single (Photo: Liz O.)

I’ve been trying to think of bands that go really well with the New Romantic stuff that we’ll be playing at Underground. I think some newer artists, like Cold Cave, Crystal Castles and Hot Chip will work really well. But, the best bet is probably the electro/electroclash/whatever stuff that came out in the ’00s. The pop-oriented tracks, and even a lot of the purely club-oriented numbers, were obviously influenced by bands like Visage, Soft Cell and Japan.

While I was going through the electro/synthpop section of my collection (yes, I organize the vinyl by theme, kind of, but I also kind of suck at it), I found this. It’s the single for “Emerge” by Fischerspooner, released on International Deejay Gigolo Records and with an ADULT. remix on the B-side.
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Crate Packing: Stephen ‘TinTin’ Duffy and OMD

Posted on February 7, 2012 by lizo

"Kiss Me" by Stephen "TinTin" Duffy (Photo: Liz O.)

Found this when I was going through my records for Underground today. Stephen “TinTin” Duffy was the original vocalist for Duran Duran. He went on to do a bunch of other stuff, my favorite of which is this single. This specific single only features the “mixe plural” version of “Kiss Me,” which is actually the version I prefer playing at clubs. It’s also a gatefold with a cool booklet that features a Q/A and some really awesome photos by Neil Kirk. Take a peek at the booklet after the jump.
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Get New Romantic at Underground on Friday

Posted on February 6, 2012 by lizo

Perhaps you heard Larry G.’s announcement on Moheak last Saturday. If not, mark your calendars, we’re celebrating Valentine’s Day early with New Romantic Nite on Friday. Can I tell you how excited I am about this? That was rhetorical, I’ll tell you whether or not you care.

New Romantic Nite means I can play this:

Photo: Liz O.

I get a little swoony when I hear Ultravox. I won’t tell you which track I want to play off this album, though. Something has to be a surprise.
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Last Night’s Instagrams: Underground vs. International Beat Club

Posted on February 4, 2012 by lizo

Wam Bam Ashleyanne (Photo: Liz O.)

The lovely lady in the above photo is Wam Bam Ashleyanne. She’s a DJ for KALX in Berkeley. Last night, she stopped by Underground to drop some great soul 45s. Check out some of her vinyl below.

Classic tracks on 45. (Photo: Liz O.)

I danced my ass off during Ashleyanne’s set. You can catch her show on KALX Friday nights from 9-11:59 p.m.
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Beatique

Liz O. writes stories, plays music and gets sunburn at comic book conventions.

Monthly Archives: February 2012