Have a post turkey parade with the boys of OK Go, catch the late (5pm, kidtime) show of Yo Gabba Gabba, get downright vintage with the Bruce-loving Brits of Herman's Hermits at the Canyon Club, take a Hellride with Mike Watt in Santa Monica, and head out across the sea for a Weezer performance of 'Pinkerton.' more ›

Destroy All Movies!!! - Zack Carlson and Bryan Connolly will be signing copies of their new book, “Destroy All Movies!!!” The Complete Guide To Punks On Film, Sunday evening at La Luz de Jesus. The book features new interviews with “music/big screen luminaries” such as Ian MacKaye, Richard Hell, Penelope Spheeris, Nick Zedd, John Doe & Exene Cervenka, Alex Cox, Martha Coolidge, Lee Ving, Keith Morris, Mary Woronov, and others. Boasting “A-to-Z coverage of over 1100 feature films”, the tome is surely as entertaining as it is comprehensive. more ›

Tonight NY-bred indie pop outfit Vampire Weekend (LAist Review, #2, #3, #4) will be performing to a sold-out crowd at yet another unlikely venue, the Art Theater in Long Beach. Japanese all-female pop punk trio Shonen Knife are poised to headline the Echo with none other than Mike Watt & the Secondmen in tow. And, lastly, local indie rockers the Happy Hollows (LAist Review, #2, #3) will be kicking off a month-long residency at Spaceland with Dirt Dress and Pepper Rabbit. But we strongly suggest heading over to the El Rey Theatre to catch LAist favorites Local Natives (LAist Interview). NYC-based indie rock sextet White Rabbits are slated to headline. more ›

As part of the opening weekend festivities for the Robert Berman Gallery’s Rock, Paper, Scissor exhibit, Bergamot Station hosted a benefit for the Santa Monica Museum of Art on Sunday, March 1. Where the exhibit focused on visual art by famous musicians (Daniel Johnston, the Butthole Surfers’ Gibby Haynes and most of Sonic Youth are among the contributors), the benefit turned the tables, featuring musical performances by some famous artists: Ron English and Raymond Pettibon, along with Pettibon’s pal and collaborator Mike Watt with his all-Pedro trio the Secondmen. more ›

Last Wednesday Zune Space LA in partnership with Sony Music's Icon Collectibles presented "The Genius of Miles Davis - the Columbia Years". The photography exhibit contained works by Don Hunstein, Bob Cato, Sandy Speisner, Charles Reilly and Urve Kuusik. more ›

Last night Zume hosted the opening of a photographic exhibit celebrating "The Genius of Miles Davis...The Columbia Years". Musicians from all genres packed the club, a testament to the wide-ranging influence of Miles Davis. Stay tuned for our upcoming photo essay. For now, listen in as LAist contributors Bobzilla and Mike Watt discuss the photography, the music, and especially the musicians. more ›

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Tonight Radio Free Silver Lake will be presenting a CD release party at Boardner's for not one, but two great local bands. Tigers Can Bite You and Light FM will be celebrating and the French Semester will be opening. Whispertown 2000 (LAist Review) will be playing at Amoeba early on. And, lastly, Mike Watt We wouldn't usually recommend going to see Conor Oberst at the Henry Fonda Music Box, but LA-based folk rockers the Like will be opening. And we must admit that this band of ladies is a rather prepossessing sight. more ›

There is a plethora of shows tonight in LA. But none of them really spark our interest. Tucson-based indie rockers Giant Sand will be headlining the Echo. Our good friend Mike Watt is scheduled to perform at Harold's Place in San Pedro. And to top the night off, we've got Dub Club at the Echoplex and Club NME at Spaceland. However, we suggest heading over to Tangier to watch Guy Fantastico's debut performance. The twenty-something singer-songwriter, who once fronted the LA-based alt-rock band Acute, will be testing out songs from his forthcoming solo record, Nesting, which was produced and recorded by none other than Bobby Birdman. more ›

In Montreal this morning, some time between 6:30 and 7:30 am, the legendary Iggy and the Stooges had their rented truck with tons of equipment inside stolen from outside the Embassy Suites hotel. Current Stooge, local hero, and occasional LAist photo contributor, Mike Watt, forwarded an email late this afternoon urging anybody with any information to contact Eric Fischer via cell phone - (646) 932-1907, or via email at nycentral13@gmail.com. more ›

San Pedro (or as he would say, "Pedro") local Mike Watt kayaks just about every morning and always takes beautiful beautiful beautiful sunrise photos. Here's one recent morning over at the Harbor. more ›

To celebrate the life and music of Richie Hass, a local musician who passed away in March from Myeloma, his friends have organized a marathon benefit concert tomorrow at the Echoplex. Many of the bands Richie once played with will be performing, and include some of the best punk, jazz, and experimental bands in LA. more ›

This last Tuesday at the crack of dawn, famous San Pedro local Mike Watt snapped this shot. "I'm paddling my kayak down in the harbor here in Pedro and I saw the Angels Gate Lighthouse being reflected down onto the water and took a shot of it as I was about to pass her and head out into the open sea. I flipped the picture 180 degrees to give it a trippy perspective. It is NOT photoshopped!" more ›

Last night Madonna was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame by none other than Justin Timberlake. In another unusual spin, she chose The Stooges, fronted by Iggy Pop to perform two of her hits, "Burning Up" and "Ray of Light.". Stooges bass player and occasional LAist contributor Mike Watt rocks out in the above clip. Stay tuned at the end of the video for some backstage scenes from last night's induction, which was televised live on VH1 Classics. more ›

I love Watt's photo of sunrise over this mast. The lines look like spiderwebs. more ›

"The Pelican" (1910) by Dixon Lanire Merrith, often misattributed to Ogden Nash more ›

Now that the rain has gone away, Spaceland on Ice can continue this week with The Chapin Sisters and their folk/pop. more ›

Here is a self-portrait of Watt braving the frigid January waters off of San Pedro in the 37th annual Cabrillo Beach Polar Bears Plunge on New Year's day. more ›

Mars Volta - L'Via L'Viaquez more ›

LAist has polled a number of our favorite LA locals to find out their New Year's Resolutions! In the spirit of fairness, here is mine: I'm cutting up the credit cards! Let's see what everyone else has to say: more ›

At the end of each month LAist attempts to review some of the music and musicians that were covered over that four week period. Below is a mix of just some of the month's musical moments: more ›

One of the great things about Pedro are the cliffs, which provide beautiful views of the harbor. At the same time, the harbor is getting some beautiful views of the cliffs ( and the Point Fermin building). Here is a sea-lion's-eye view from Watt's kayak. A Watt's-eye-view. more ›

Happy 50th to our weekly photo contributor Mike Watt! This is a self-portrait taken this morning, kayaking around Angel's Gate in the rain at dawn. He'll also be marking the occasion tonight by rocking DiPiazza's in Long Beach. Watt will be joining Nels Cline and Steve Perkins in Banyan, Perkins' experimental, mostly instrumental project. Opening bands are Alfajerk and Horrors of Toledo. Banyan goes on at 11pm, so you can still catch them if you head on down to the LBC. more ›

This Saturday Dec. 22nd @ the Key Club there's going to be a Joe Strummer Tribute thing-thang honoring the late rock legend, by not only performing many of the songs he wrote but also putting all the money raised towards Strummerville (the charity set up in his name) more ›

As a send off to photographer, Ann Summa's Los Angelesshow, bands/performers from the bad old days of early L.A. punk played in the gallery. Dude, it was both awesome and bitchin. more ›

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This photograph is somehow both beautiful and sad. Broken, abandoned things can be just as meaningful, sometimes even more meaningful, than natural beauty. It is just one more thing for the sea to claim and make its own. Photo by Mike Watt... more ›

Sometimes Watt sends out pictures of found objects that he comes across while pedaling around Pedro. My favorite thing about this photo is Watt's DIY self-painted helmet on the ground. True, he probably took it off to look through the viewfinder of the camera. But it also makes me wonder just a little bit whether he was going to try on the hat.... more ›

Mike Watt & The Missingmen @ Westside Eclectic Johnette Napolitano @ Roxy José González, Cass McCombs @ El Rey Jill Sobule @ Largo Honeycut, The Library @ Knitting Factory Gym Class Heroes, Plain White T's @ Long Beach Arena The Color Fred, Dear & the Headlights @ El Rey The Dirges, Disk Jockey Full of Bourbon @ Safari Sam's Head of Destiny, Killing Jonis, Killing Bees @ The Scene So So Glos, The Black... more ›

This weekend I thought we'd take a break from the sea and the red thing to check out the animal kingdom version of Thanksgiving. Are these not the fattest racoons you have ever seen? It's as if they are a new species. Don't mess with Pedro racoons, man. - Elise The Raccoon (Procyon lotor), also known as the Northern Raccoon, Common Raccoon, Washer Bear or Coon, is a widespread, medium-sized, omnivorous mammal native to... more ›