Thursday Night Live Music Options 1/25/07

I made it out for my friend’s birthday party at the El Rey last night. I got there in time to see Busdriver take the stage. He’s getting a lot of positive buzz right now with a new album out next Tuesday on Epitaph and a scheduled appearance at Coachella. He’s a hip-hop guy with an interesting flow and a great sense of humor. I recommend checking him out either at Amoeba on 2/1 or the Airliner Club on 2/7. You can stream his new album on Myspace. Give that track “Kill Your Employer” a listen. Next up was Hella. I was looking forward to seeing them mostly because I think their drummer’s pretty interesting. For about ten minutes I was on board and really enjoying it. And then my head started pounding. They really bring the headache to headache rock. Sticking it out for one of their shows is an endurance test. They drove me out before Deerhoof took the stage; mostly because I wanted to check out the Perry Farrell spectacle at Spaceland. Even though I haven’t been excited about anything Farrell’s done since 1990, I was still curious. Unfortunately Farrell was walking out the front door at literally the same moment I was walking in. He looks his age too. The people I talked to weren’t exactly buzzing about the performance. You can read a review of the show over at Kevin Bronson’s Buzz Band blog. Just for the record, Nuno Bettencourt was the “mastermind” behind the band Extreme.

Tonight's Pick:
The Clean Prophets / The Colour @ Spaceland – You already know I’m a big Clean Prophets fan. Their record was #3 on my top 10 LA albums last year. Come check them out tonight before they take their songs out on the road for the next month. If you’re one of my friends/readers in San Francisco, Seattle, Portland, Minneapolis, New York, Boston, Atlanta, Denver or Austin give them some love on the road (I don’t think I have any friends in Sacramento, Boise, Provo or Cleveland – do I have any readers?). Download “Praise is Poison”

Support local music:
Lavender Diamond / Winter Flowers @ Safari Sam’s ($8) – Have you ever been mellow? This is a warm up gig for Lavender Diamond who recently signed to Matador. They’re heading to Europe for a tour with the Decemberists in February. Matador reissues their debut EP next Tuesday. Download “You Broke My Heart” I read something recently where one of the Wolfmother fros said Winter Flowers are his favorite band. They
Kind Hearts and Coronets / Ariel Pink / Bodies of Water @ the Echo ($8) – The Kind Hearts and Coronets are doing a Love tribute at the Echo and a Kinks tribute at Safari Sam’s next month. That makes them alright in my book. I’m not super familiar with their music, but this is their record release party.

Or Perhaps:
The Softlightes @ Silverlake Lounge ($8) – As I’ve said, their music is pleasant.
Los Abandoned @ Troubadour ($12) – Local bi-lingual pop-punk.
Avail @ Knitting Factory ($10)