The dreams of every Nightmare Before Christmas fan came true last weekend at the Hollywood Bowl when, for the first time ever, the movie was shown with the original singers performing live and accompanied by the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra. When we bought the tickets, I wasn't sure what to expect. I was just excited to hear the Danny Elfman (hello every amazing Tim Burton movie soundtrack!) sing the NBC songs live. So, it was a treat to see and hear special guests like Paul Ruebens, Catherine O'Hara, and Ken Page (who sounds even better live, belting out Oogie Boogie's Song). Everyone sounded great, especially Danny Elfman, and it was fun to see how expressive they were on stage while performing during the movie. It was like getting a behind-the-scenes look at how the soundtrack was created.
Elfman must have been on a high from all the singing and audience cheering because he ended the night with the Oingo Boingo song, Dead Man's Party, which sounded unplanned, but was a wonderful surprise.
Another surprise was Sandy Cameron, who played violin during the intermission and was an absolute badass.
The Hollywood Bowl also made that Halloween Day extra fun with candy stations for kids, and adults, to trick-or-treat their way up to their seats and a costume contest before show. I loved seeing all the Tim Burton and Nightmare Before Christmas themed costumes.
More:
Thursday, November 5, 2015
Wednesday, September 30, 2015
Glass Animals @ The Wiltern
Favorite moments from Glass Animals show at The Wiltern, first night:
More Reviews:
- Loved the palm trees and vertical lights on stage. It was like a luau at a rave.
- Seeing Wing's reaction when she heard singer Dave Bayley's speaking voice for the first time. I guess it's hard to imagine such chocolatey vocals coming out of him.
- The only white people I've ever seen dance like Bayley are ravers and DJs. It took some getting used to, but he was good and his moves were mesmerizing.
- Their cover of Kanye's Love Lockdown is infinitely better than the original. Although, it did get me interested in Kanye's 808's & Heartbreak album. People complain about his voice on the album and all the auto-tuning, but it takes balls to sing on an album when you know your voice isn't great. I really like the concept, and you can't deny the songs are damn catchy.
- I don't usually like the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, but Glass Animals' cover / mashup, Gold Lime, actually made them sound appealing.
More Reviews:
Friday, September 4, 2015
FYF Fest 2015
- The New Walkway really cut down on the time it took to get from Main Stage to The Trees. This took about 7 minutes of walk time for me.
- The Lines to get in were constantly moving, although a bit long on Day 1. Day 2 was much better. Still, getting in was a vast improvement over Day 1 last year.
- It was a bit sad that FYF didn't sell out all their tickets, but I was glad it wasn't as packed as last year. Guess the previous year's logistics really did a number on this year's attendance.
- ID Check was conveniently located right after security.
- Perrier Greenhouse offered nice cold cans of sparkling water...and free bubbles.
- BADBADNOTGOOD was an interesting choice for The Arena, but they sounded great live. I enjoyed their modern jazz version of hip hop.
- Caught a few of Goldroom's songs at The Trees. Wish I had stayed for the entire set because he got me dancing even though I was sitting on the grass in the back. Till Sunrise was the perfect song to hear at sunset.
- The Trees stage was fancier this year, which was really noticeable once the sun set.
- On the way to the Flying Lotus DJ set, I got distracted by the lights and music of Shlohmo. His music paired really well with my tasty lavender and orange blossom donut (aka Joyce Lavender from Donut Friend. Love their punny band names btw).
- The twice fried Korean chicken wings from Status Kuo were probably the messiest things you could eat at FYF, but they were also some of the tastiest. Note to SK: add moist towelettes to every order. We went through several napkins and a few moist towelettes that I luckily had.
- Chet Faker's live show was much more energetic than his sometimes mellow songs on his albums. No Diggity attracted people to the stage and the rest of his set kept them there.
- As a last minute replacement, Kanye West only had bright lights and smoke as his stage setup, but he still had the crowd going wild over every song. It was fun to see him try to do 10 hit songs in the last 10 minutes of his show. Surprise guest Rihanna sang with him from the pit and then later on stage.
- Flume turned the Main Stage into a giant dance club. Did anyone find it strange that Lorde came up on stage to dance with him, but didn't actually sing? I was surprised that he was actually kind of polite and undouchey for a DJ. He kept thanking everyone after his songs and seemed genuinely excited about performing there.
- It was my second time seeing Belle & Sebastian, but my first time actually being close enough to see them on stage (the last time I saw them was at Hollywood Bowl forever ago). I can't believe that even after 9 studio albums, they're still considered indie. Singer Stuart Murdoch was wearing a nautical shirt and a hat, which I feel like is the exact same thing he wore at Hollywood Bowl. I like to imagine he has a closet full of striped shirts. During The Stars of Track and Field, they showed this amazing old footage of the opening ceremony for the 1984 Summer Olympics that took place in the Coliseum at Exposition Park. Jetpack = epic.
- D'Angelo & the Vanguard were having a sexy dance party at The Lawn stage. We could feel his James Brown-like energy all the way from the beer garden. He put on a great show including costume changes and him playing multiple instruments.
- Morrissey sounded good live and I even got to hear a Smith's song, but I pretty much lost interest in the rest of his set after he launched into the preachy Meat is Murder and played the accompanying bloody animal slaughtering video. I do admire him for playing past his set time for his fans. And I hope people listened to him when he urged them not to vote for Trump.
More Reviews:
- From Worst to Best - Consequence of Sound
- Day 1 - LA Music Blog
- Day 2 - mxdwn
- Every band on Saturday - LA Weekly
- Food - LA Weekly
- D'Angelo - USA Today
- Kanye West - LA Times
- Morrissey - Music Times
Pictures:
Friday, July 10, 2015
Sound Bites 20.0: Northern California
I'm A few weeks ago, HC and I drove up to San Francisco and "wined and dined" (ok, not always wine) our way around northern California. Here are some of our favorite places from our road trip.
San Francisco
If you like cheese...
Sonoma
If you want to pack a picnic...
Carmel Valley
If you have a special event...
More about Holman Ranch:
Song Pairing:
Gooey by Glass Animals
* Holman Ranch was a media sponsored trip.
San Francisco
If you like cheese...
- Cowgirl Creamery Sidekick Cafe & Milk Bar serves breakfast until 10:30am. We ate these very filling breakfast items:
Baked Egg Sandwich / Cheese Toasties - Baked Egg Sandwich with sauteed mushrooms, Gruyere & herbs. Added pancetta bacon
I had to get this because I love mushrooms. I almost questioned adding pancetta, but everyone thought I was crazy not to, so I did it and I definitely don't regret it. - Cheese Toasties - open-faced grilled cheese made with Calbot Clothbound Cheddar with caramelized onions & maple mustard
Not as small as the name implies. - Poached Egg on cheese grits
I thought this was a side item, but it was filling enough to be a meal. - Ferry Plaza Farmers Market takes place at the Ferry Building every Saturday (8am - 2pm) and Tuesday & Thursday (10am - 2pm). I wish we hadn't eaten so much for breakfast because some of the cheese stands were generous with their samples.
- Hog Island Oyster Co. actually has a stand at the Ferry Plaza Farmers Market. You can order from their Raw Bar or even take some home!
- ABV has a standout food menu. What we ate:
Goose Salame / Kimchee Fritter - Goose Salame
I've never tried goose in the form of salami before and it was great. Glad it wasn't just the meat alone. - Kimchee Fritter
I thought this would be in the form of several small fritters, but I guess it was listed as a singular fritter, and it was...one big fritter. - Falafel Lamb Dog
So, I thought this was going to be a hot dog of some sort. I have to admit that I was disappointed when I saw it arrive in the form of two corn dogs because I dislike corn dogs, but to my surprise, it was delicious. Using falafel to replace the corn bread (which is what I hate about corn dogs) was genius. This was one of my favorite dishes here. I was actually craving it the rest of the night.
 |
| Gran Cobbler / Cool Runnings / Coffee Cup / El Vampiro / Spanish Negroni |
- Forgery has been open for almost two months now. It's not really close to much, but don't let that deter you because the drinks are great and so are the bartenders. We drank:
- Gran Cobbler - Gran Lusso Vermouth, raspberries, absinthe
- Cool Runnings - Appleton VX Rum, Byrrh, grapefruit, nutmeg
- Coffee Cup - Coffee-infused Bombay Gin, Pimm's, Thai chile, ginger ale
- El Vampiro - Fidencio Unico Mezcal, Manzanilla Sherry, Creme de Cassis, salt
It was my cousin's birthday, so the bartender surprised him with his name in his cocktail! - Forged & Bound - Wild Turkey 101 Rye, Montenegro, Galliano Ristretto, green chartreuse, bitters
Yes, there was a snake in HC's drink.
- Trouble Coffee has a damn good cinnamon toast...and coffee, grapefruit juice, coconuts, and a small assortment of pastries. Hear the fascinating story behind the shop on This American Life.
Sonoma
If you want to pack a picnic...
- Lazzini's Market has a great selection of made-to-order sandwiches, local wine and beer, and the kind of snacks that would make any Whole Foods customer happy. We got this to munch on with our wine later in the day:
- The Godfather sandwich - hot BBQ tri-tip, pepper jack (HC swapped out the cheddar cheese), pepperoncini, red onions, BBQ sauce and mayonnaise on a soft French roll
The amazing smells coming from the BBQ grill outside may have been a factor in us ordering this sandwich, but I'm glad we did because the tri-tip was SO good. Definitely want to try their other BBQ items next time.
- Iron Horse Vineyards has a great collection of sparkling wines that you can enjoy while taking in their gorgeous view. My favorites wines were:
- 2010 Ocean Reserve - 100% Chardonnay
I usually hate Chardonnays on account of their butteriness (One time I had a Chardonnay that was so buttery it tasted like popcorn. Gross). I didn't even notice a hint of butter in this wine. $4 from the sale of each bottle goes to National Geographic's Ocean Initiative. I love Nat Geo photos and ocean photography, so this bottle was practically begging me to buy it. - 2010 Rainbow Cuvée - 69% Pinot Noir, 31% Chardonnay
Its release celebrates diversity.
- Arista Winery has a peaceful Japanese garden along with other spaces where you can relax with your wine. We enjoyed their:
- 2014 Ferrington Vineyard Gewurztraminer, Anderson Valley
- 2013 Smokey Ridge Vineyard Zinfandel
- Gary Farrell Winery's Terrace Tasting allows you to enjoy a stunning view of the Russian River Valley from their terrace with a wine flight and cheese pairing. If you can't get a reservation, the view from the tasting room is still impressive.
- Russian River Brewing Co. has pretty much the biggest beer sampler I've ever seen in my life.
Carmel Valley
If you have a special event...
- Holman Ranch* is popular for weddings, but they're also equipped to handle events like corporate retreats and relaxing getaways. We:
- explored the wine cave and got to try some wines from the barrels. The cave naturally provides cool temperatures, which are effective for storing and aging wines.
- toured the vineyards and the lovely property.
- dined at the restaurant they own, Will's Fargo Steakhouse. It reminded me of The Hitching Post II. Will's Fargo doesn't just serve steak, they also have:
- French Onion Soup
In the past I've found this type of soup to be overly heavy on the cheese and extremely salty, but I really liked this version. Not too salty and the cheese was good. I actually wish I had more soup when I finished it. - Goat Cheese Ravioli, garlic, tomato, Parmesan cream sauce
- Roasted Free Range Chicken, "Sauce Marchand de Vin", potato gratin, mixed salad
I wouldn't normally order chicken at a restaurant, but this one was actually pretty tasty and I liked having a break from the meat with some salad and potato. - Warm Truffle Cake, Holman Ranch olive oil ice cream
I overheard a guest raving about the ice cream on the way to the restaurant. - went to the game room and joined some other guests playing pool and throwing darts to the soundtrack of a jukebox. I can see why this room is known as the groom's favorite room.
- slept in charming, western-themed guest rooms. The tranquility of the ranch reminded me of camping...but with the comforts of a hotel.
- ended our stay with a morning hike.
More about Holman Ranch:
Song Pairing:
Gooey by Glass Animals
* Holman Ranch was a media sponsored trip.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)