FILTER YACHT CLUB COACHELLA PARTY

So great news everyone. I will be spinning at this year’s Filter Yacht Club Coachella party. I’m on Weekend 2, you can see my name “Keyvon Pierre” in beautiful teal. Hard work pays off. So below are a couple tracks I’ve been digging that will undoubtedly make it into my set.

The first is from blossoming UK siren Jessie Ware. Every time I hear her voice I am blown away by how much she sounds like Goapele. And I have yet another remix from MyKill. A few months ago I posted MyKill’s remix of fun.’s super poppy popular track “We Are Young”. I dug around his soundcloud and found this beautiful gem. Enjoy and get your lazy ass down to Indio on April 18th.

SXSW RECAP

It was a long journey getting to Austin for SXSW last weekend but it was well worth the trip. It was one of the most interesting festivals I’ve ever seen. I wouldn’t really call it a festival, more like a city-wide music celebration. It’s how I imagine New Orleans during Mardi Gras. Every shoe store, coffee shop, clothier, or bar rooftop becomes a venue. It was pretty amazing. There were secret shows from Prince w/ A Tribe Called Quest and Justin Timberlake w/ Questlove and RJD2. I couldn’t talk my way into either of those, but there was tons of free music, so definitely no need to buy a badge for $600+. I got to check out Flaming Lips and Jim James for free, and afterwards a guy begged me to come to the rooftop of the W for a free Green Day show, but I fucking hate Green Day. Other super notables include Toro y Moi and St. Lucia. But I was pretty blown away by 17 year old XXYYXX (pictured above). I loved his trap heavy electronica he was dropping all night. He really got the crowd on his side. I see big things for this dude. Maybe a collaboration with the likes of an A$ap or Kendrick in the near future.

CLICK HERE FOR PICS OF DAY 1 / DAY 2

TEGAN & SARA AT CLUB NOKIA

I love Tegan & Sara. I’ve seen them almost 10 times over the last 10 years. I love their bickering on stage and how they finish each others sentences like the musical version of the Sklar Brothers. Their new album “Heartthrob”, like all their other albums, is a fun collection of girl pop. They never change up their style too much. With T&S you know what you’re going to get, 10 or 12 three-minute perfect pop songs. But they have matured on stage. Their set was way more dancey than any performance I’ve seen from them. And of course their fanbase of frantic female fans who know all the words continues to grow. If you missed them at Club Nokia last Friday, make sure you catch them at Coachella in April.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE CONCERT PHOTOS

AZARI & III AT DRAI’S

It’s good to see real house music taking over again. The Sahara Tent at Coachella this year was like EDC Lite. I miss the good ol’ days of Masters at Work, Felix the Housecat and Daft Punk throwing down in the dance tent. Thanks to acts like Disclosure, Soul Clap, and Azari & III, real house music is making a comeback.

Azari & III (pronounced “third”, not ill or three) stopped thru Drai’s in Hollywood for a DJ set this past weekend and brought me back to the late 90s when I heard house for the first time. The Canadian collective has a very interesting roster or producers and performers. I’m guessing their DJ set doesn’t fully match how wild their live show is going to be at Dim Mak Studios tonight, but the music was on point all night none-the-less. The huge pool, rooftop view overlooking Hollywood Blvd., and constant string of top notch DJs make Drai’s the sexiest and most scenic club in the Los Angeles.

CLICK HERE FOR PARTY PICS

BEACH HOUSE @ THE WILTERN

The hottest indie band on the planet right now, Beach House, performed 2 sold out shows at the Wiltern this past week. The Baltimore-based duo of Victoria Legrand and Alex Scally (accompanied by a sick drummer) threw down the most perfectly performed haunting dream pop you may ever hear. Their sound lives somewhere in the world of Blonde Redhead, Mazzy Star and to some extent even Radiohead. Not quite electronic, not quite rock, but undeniably infectious. Honestly I can’t even make out Victoria’s words (or her face) most of the time, but the emotion she evokes with her beautiful voice is unparalleled.

The majority of the show seemed to be sprinkled with tracks from their 4 albums, but towards the end of the set was when the fireworks really started. Their penultimate song “Myth” from the new album Bloom, has my vote for best song of the year so far. They ended the show with what I consider to be their best and most popular track, the legendary “10 Mile Stereo”. The crowd was floored. Their exit was heart-breaking, but short lived. For their encore and true conclusion Victoria violently whipped her wild hair back and forth sending everyone into a fine frenzy before abruptly exiting for good. Whether it’s called shoegaze or dream pop or some 2013 phrase no one has coined yet, this band Beach House is one of my picks for best band out right now. No one is touching them. Great fucking show!

CLICK HERE FOR PICTURES

Beach House – 10 Mile Stereo (right-click to download)

PORTISHEAD IN L.A.

Portishead, one of my favorite bands of all time, and let me repeat that – ALL TIME, was in Los Angeles this week for two sold out shows at The Shrine. In 1997 they released their self-titled sophomore album and my life would be forever changed. The lead single “Only You” perfectly encapsulated their sound of dark, moody melodies alongside amazing DJ scratching (it samples The Pharcyde’s “She Said), and was accompanied by a mind-bending video directed by Chris Cunningham. I owe a big credit to Portishead for my DJ career, they were the first non Hip-Hop group I ever saw with a DJ – before Linkin Park and all those terrible bands of the late 90s made it lame – and it really opened my eyes to exploring the technique further.

In their live show their DJ was really ripping it up, but if you’re a fan of Portishead, it’s most likely because you’ve fallen under the trance of Beth Gibbons’ unmatchable pipes. Her voice is unmistakable and inconceivable. In 2009 Golden Bloggen posted a list of our Top Current Female Singers and Beth Gibbons came in at #3.  One of the things that landed her so high on the list is her ability to perfectly duplicate that album sound in her live performances. There are no studio tricks with Portishead. The band, DJ, and singer are all top notch and when they perform it all comes together like a well-oiled musical family who has been playing together for almost 20 years. This trip to the Shrine marks Portishead’s first trip to LA in I believe 13 years. They came to Coachella 3 years ago, and yes I was there, but as far as touring it has been over a dozen years. If you have to drive several hours to attend their show, do it! You may not get another chance to see one of the most influential and musically groundbreaking bands of our time ever again.

NOTE: They must have very strict non-smoking rules at the Shrine because Beth Gibbons did not smoke a cigarette during her entire performance. It was like seeing a unicorn. I’ve never seen her without a cigarette in her hand.

YOU CAN CLICK HERE FOR CONCERT PHOTOS

Portishead – Sour Times

Portishead – Only You

Portishead – Machine Gun

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

LOOKOUT WEEKEND!

Cuz here we come. This weekend is fueled with some pretty heavy dance shows. Tonight (Thursday) will see LA’s own Dillon Francis at the Key Club tonight. Danceism will be sponsoring this one, so show some support to those who show us support. For tickets and more info CLICK HERE.

Friday night shows the required annual performance from Italian duo Crookers. They really only show up in LA about once a year, so make sure you catch them tomorrow night at Avalon, or who knows when you will be able to see them again. As you may know, if you read a lot of Golden Bloggen, the Crookers are one of our favorite dance acts. Their sound, live shows, and downright genius is something to marvel. So if you’re free tomorrow night, there is no other place you should be. Show is only 19+, so all you underage kiddies are OK. CLICK HERE for tix and more info.

And check out their video above. A little reminiscent of “Electrofied!” if you ask me.