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  • Beatique Mix April 2025 feat. Mark Lane, Model/Actriz, Joy Division and More

    Photo of cars whizzing down 110 freeway in Los Angeles. (Photo: Liz Ohanesian)
    The 110 freeway in L.A. as seen from a Metro J Line stop (Pic: Liz O.)

    It’s time for another Beatique Mix. The April 2025 edition of this mix series includes new music from Mark Lane, Night Ritualz, Marie Davidson, Model/Actriz, The Horrors, French Police and more. It also includes a few classic cuts from the likes of Kittin and the Hacker, Joy Division and others. 

    One thing that I want to stress is that these aren’t club mixes, even if they partially sound very clubby. The Beatique Mix series is a reflection of the music that’s been in my head for the past month, regardless of genre or vibe or whatever. For the April mix, specifically, I had transportation in mind, which explains the first three songs, as well as the last one. The photo for this mix is of the 110 freeway as seen from an L.A. Metro J Line stop. 

    If you want to hear my club sets, then you have to go to the gigs. Click this link to see where I’m playing next. 

    A Number of Names – Shari Vari

    Night Ritualz – Take Me 2 the Crib

    Mark Lane – Yelling at Cars

    Marie Davidson – Y.A.A.M. 

    Model/Actriz – Cinderella

    The Rapture – House of Jealous Lovers

    Fcukers – Bon Bon

    Big Black Delta – Pik Pok

    Kittin and the Hacker – 1982

    The Horrors – L.A. Runaway

    Fontaines D.C. – It’s Amazing to Be Young

    Joy Division – Digital

    French Police – Venado

    Kneecap – H.O.O.D. (2025 Mix)

    Berlin – The Metro

    Liz O. is an L.A.-based writer and DJ. Read her recently published work and check out her upcoming gigs or listen to the latest Beatique Mix. Follow on Instagram  or Bluesky for more updates.

    Keep Reading:

    “You could pop on the internet right this second and find people road-raging”: Mark Lane on New EP, Yelling at Cars

    The Horrors Bring Melancholy to Night Life

    French Police Has a New EP, Espera, Out Now

    It’s Marie Davidson vs. Big Tech on City of Clowns

  • Franz Ferdinand Live, Mulholland Drive Screenings and More Happening in L.A. 3/27-4/02/25

    Photo of Agender by Lindsey Byrnes
    Agender (Photo: Lindsey Byrnes) plays a free show to celebrate new album, Berserk, at Zebulon on 3/28/25

    I made an executive decision to scale back on the event listings here, just to save myself some time. Going forward, I’ll post these on Thursdays and the list will include my top five recommendations for events happening in L.A. through Wednesday of the following week. 

    The top 5 will be in addition to my DJ gigs. (I’m not playing anywhere this week.) If an event is going on multiple days, like a week-long movie run, it will be listed at the top. After that, everything is listed chronologically. 

    This week’s recommendations include David Lynch movies screening in L.A. and Orange County. Lost Highway, Mulholland Drive, Inland Empire or David Lynch: The Art Life? Take your pick. There’s also animation studio Titmouse’s annual 5 Second Day shorts fest over Vidiots on Friday night. For shows, Agender’s free, album release gig at Zebulon will be a blast on Friday. On Saturday, consider Franz Ferdinand at The Wiltern or Vague Lanes and Darkswoon at The Goldfish. All the details are listed below. 

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  • Record Fair Find: Quando Quango Produced by Bernard Sumner with Johnny Marr on Guitar

    Quando Quango "2 From Quando" 12" produced by Bernard Sumner Johnny Marr on guitar
    Quando Quango “Two From Quando” 12″

    Last Sunday, at the same record fair booth where I found Marc Almond’s fantastic “Melancholy Rose” 12” single, I came across an Italian copy of Quando Quango’s 12” “Two From Quando,” featuring the song “Atom Rock,” released on a Bologna label called Base Record, although it’s still marked with the Factory Records catalog number FAC 102. Sweet! There was no way I was leaving the record fair without this record, even if I *technically* already have the song on vinyl. 

    Quando Quango first came into my orbit thanks to a compilation called Cool As Ice: The Be Music Productions. Released in 2003, it’s a collection of music produced by members of New Order as Be Music between 1983 and 1985. There are two tracks from Quando Quango on there, “Love Tempo” and “Atom Rock,” both of which were produced by the dream team of Bernard Sumner, using the name Be Music, and A Certain Ratio’s Donald Johnson, under the name DoJo. At the time that copies of Cool As Ice landed in the bins at Amoeba, I was promoting and DJing a Wednesday night party at a now long-gone West Hollywood bar called The Parlour called Transmission. If the name weren’t a total giveaway, I was pretty obsessed with everything related to Joy Division and New Order, as were a lot of the regulars, so I played both those songs often. And, since one of the few constants in this world is that I’m still a little on the Joy Division/New Order obsessive side and still play for people who are riding the same wave, “Love Tempo” and “Atom Rock” still turn up in my sets. All of this a super tl;dr way of justifying my purchase, btw. 

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  • French Police Has a New EP, Espera, Out Now

    French Police Espera EP cover
    Cover of French Police’s new EP, Espera

    French Police released a new EP, Espera, last week. If you haven’t already added the four-song release to your listening queue, get on that asap because this is a good one. 

    Based in Chicago, French Police is a trio on the post-punk/darkwave tip who have been steadily gaining popularity over the past few years. Anecdotally, I can tell you that their songs were requested at virtually every party I played with Klub Nocturno this past year. Frequently, their songs were requested more than once during the course of one night. Outside of the clubs, you have probably heard them in the ether somewhere in L.A. Recently, when I was at Alamo Drafthouse to see Pump Up the Volume, there was a French Police playlist on in the bar. 

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  • The 2024 Year End Mix Is Online Now

    The Beatique 2024 Year End Mix is here. I recorded a live set at home featuring songs from all of the albums featured on my Best Albums of 2024 list, plus a few of the bangers that made their way into my DJ sets this year. I didn’t want to rank club hits this year, but there are four songs that really stood out for the crowd reaction that they get. Those are: French Police “Her”; Twin Tribes “Sangre de Oro”; Blood Club “No Quiero Bailar”; Glass Spells “Hechizos.” All four songs are on this mix. There are also a couple songs that actually came out in 2023, but turned up in my sets this year, so I figured those were worth including as well.

    But, this isn’t a club mix. Think of it more like a college radio show without the mumbly airbreaks. There are some more ambient tracks, rock songs, etc. in here as well. The mix is a little over an hour-and-a-half, so put it on whenever you have time to listen and, if you like it, share it. Thanks for listening and, for those of you in L.A., I hope to see you at Underground’s New Year’s Eve party on Tuesday night. Scroll down for the set list. 

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  • Here’s What I Played at Klub Nocturno Presents Darkwave Night @ Alex’s Bar on October 17, 2024

    Beetlejuice full-size Halloween decoration at Alex's Bar in Long Beach, California (Photo: Liz Ohanesian October 17, 2024)
    Beetlejuice hanging at Alex’s Bar, October 17, 2024 (Pic: Liz Ohanesian)

    I think I have a backlog of playlists that haven’t been posted, but this one is from last night at Alex’s Bar in Long Beach for Klub Nocturno presents Darkwave Night. Thanks to everyone who was there. The energy was fantastic. I’d write more, but I’m still half-asleep, so peep the playlist below and I’ll see you on the dance floor soon. Click on this link to see what gigs I have on the calendar for the rest of the month and follow along on Instagram. 

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  • Future Islands at The Shrine, September 18, 2024

    Future Islands live at The Shrine in Los Angeles on Wednesday, September 18, 2024 (photo: Liz Ohanesian)
    Future Islands live at The Shrine on September 18, 2024 (pic: Liz O.)

    I saw the first Future Islands fan rush the stage at the end of “Corner of My Eye,” which closed out the band’s main set at The Shrine on Wednesday night. The way I remember it, which may or may not be 100% accurate, Samuel T. Herring was singing “thank you, thank you.” Someone in a plaid shirt ran up from audience’s right hand side and embraced the singer. Security appeared. Herring said something along the lines of, it’s okay. Later on, when Future Islands and openers Oh, Rose were in the midst of a “Vireo’s Eye” dance party during the encore, I saw two more people hop on to the stage, where they were promptly chased off by security. It was a déjà vu-inducing scene for me, and maybe for anyone else in the crowd who has been to a Morrissey show. 

    It was a fitting end to the night because, nearly two hours earlier, when Future Islands kicked off the show with “King of Sweden,” I thought, this vibe is so Morrissey. Herring has a different style of performance than Moz— there’s a good amount of HIIT-level cardio happening during a Future Islands show— but he also taps into a similar level of intensity that is infectious. The teenage girls in front of me bopped up and down excitedly. The totally ordinary looking dudes a few rows in front morphed into dancing machines. I wondered if anyone would rush the stage. It took a while, but they did. 

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  • Here’s What I Played at Decadanse x Underground on July 5, 2024

    Photo of full dance floor at Club Underground at Grand Star Jazz Club in Chinatown, Los Angeles on July 5, 2024
    The scene at Grand Star Jazz Club for Decadanse x Underground on July 5, 2024

    Decadanse x Underground was such a great time and I’m happy to have been a part of it. DJs Pierrot and Fifi LaRoux played French pop on vinyl downstairs. Larry G. and I brought the indie vibes upstairs. We switched off on the controllers about every half hour or so. 

    “Amour Ex Machina,” from L’Impratrice’s new album, Pulsar, did pretty well for my first time playing it out. “Digitalism in Cairo,” the Digitalism track that samples “Fire in Cairo” by the Cure, made a reappearance after many years. People probably don’t recall it was a big track back in the ‘00s. 

    Anyhow, I’ll be back at Underground next Friday, July 12, for Siouxsie x Yeah Yeah Yeahs Nite. Tickets are already available on Restless Nites, Dice and Eventbrite. 

    Check out my set list from Decadanse x Underground at Grand Star Jazz Club on July 5, 2024.

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  • Here’s What I Played at Disco Matinee on April 7, 2024

    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.)

    Thanks so much to everyone who came out to the Grand Star on Sunday for Disco Matinee. It was so much fun to dig through my vinyl crates for this one and even more fun to play alongside Jus’ B and Televandalist. 

    Details for the next Disco Matinee are coming soon. In the meantime, get your tickets for The Strokes Nite at Club Underground, which is happening at Grand Star Jazz Club this Friday, April 12. 

    Here are my set lists from Disco Matinee on April 7, 2024. 

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  • 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. 

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