Koga

Nobody better covers the LA indie music scene than the local blogs, which include LA-Underground, Radio Free Silver Lake, Rock Insider, You Set The Scene, Squaregirls, Aquarium Drunkard, Classical Geek Theatre, Amateur Chemist, and the now-defunct Buzz Bands. Besides spotlighting up-and-coming artists and posting concert photos, many of those blogs regularly present shows -- Radio Free Silverlake's Let's Independent! have included The Happy Hollows (MySpace), The Deadly Syndrome (MySpace), Castledoor (MySpace), and Everest (MySpace)....

Last Friday, LA-Underground presented a showcase with Shiloe (MySpace), El Olio Wolof (MySpace), Rademacher (MySpace), and The Monolators (MySpace), at Mr. T's Bowl (MySpace) in Highland Park. El Olio Wolof and Rademacher also performed on Sunday at Spaceland (MySpace) in Silver Lake as part of Classical Geek Theatre's show. LA-Underground will be busy this week, (co-)presenting shows tonight with boxViolet (MySpace), Looner (MySpace), Odd Modern (MySpace), and weyou. (MySpace) at The Scene (MySpace) in...

Last Thursday, San Diego-based singer-songwriter (and avid surfer) Tristan Prettyman (MySpace) returned to Los Angeles, headlining at The Roxy (MySpace) in West Hollywood. Australian Whitley (MySpace) was the opener. A self-confessed tabloid junkie, Prettyman performed her signature acoustic cover of Britney Spears' "Toxic," lamenting afterward that she's never around town where the celebrities are. And If there was a theme for (what she repeatedly referred to as) the "spicy" night, it was audience participation, whether...

Last Tuesday, director Carlos Batts (MySpace) celebrated the release of his new adult film, Young Hollywood, with a party at Safari Sam's (MySpace). Described as "...a kaleidoscope of all things cool in popular culture," Young Hollywood "...brings the adult business into the 21st Century with the real life sexual adventures of celebrity porn stars, hipster models and video vixens living in Hollywood." It's being released by Adam and Eve through its Independent Adult Cinema division....

Last Tuesday, singer-songwriter Rachael Yamagata (MySpace) performed two sold-out shows at the Hotel Cafe in Hollywood. A former Hotel Cafe Tour alumnus, Yamagata's appearance there two years ago drew fans from all over Southern California, and these shows were no different, with fans lining up hours in advance for her 8:30 PM and 10:30 PM shows. And since her upcoming two week tour in mid-April takes her to the Midwest and East Coast as well...

Part of an ongoing series. On Sunday evening, local band Midnight Movies (MySpace) performed on Part Time Punks (MySpace) at The Echo (MySpace), opening for Spectrum. Also on the bill was Chicago's Grimble Grumble (MySpace). Midnight Movies also sold at the show advance copies of their new Nights EP (which streets on iTunes next Tuesday), which includes two versions of the title track "Nights In White Satin" as well as "Should Have Known," "Stormy...

Part of an ongoing series. On Saturday evening, local green-minded band (and Go Magazine covergirls) The Ditty Bops (MySpace), with Jesca Hoop (MySpace), John Reynolds, and Kaveh Rastegar (MySpace), performed at McCabe's Guitar Shop in Santa Monica. The shows also celebrated the release of The Ditty Bops' third full-length album, Summer Rains, with Hoop singing backup on three tracks: "Skinny Bones," "What Happened To The Radio," and "Feel From The Outside In." The Ditty...

Last Thursday evening, photographer/director Octavio "Winkytiki" Arizala (MySpace) celebrated the release of his Vivid-Alt (MySpace) movie The Bad Luck Betties at the Redwood Bar & Grill in Downtown LA. Also in attendance, besides Bad Luck Betties' "Smoking" Mary Jane (MySpace) and Mika Tan (MySpace) and newcomers Sochee and Mika, were Vivid-Alt head Eon McKai (MySpace), photographer/director Dave Naz (MySpace) and his girlfriend Ashley Blue, and director Vena Virago (MySpace). The party was presented in...

Part of an ongoing series. Last Tuesday, local singer/songwriter Jesca Hoop (MySpace), whose album Kismet was number one on Nic Harcourt's Top Ten Albums of 2007, performed a solo acoustic show at Temple Bar (MySpace) in Santa Monica, opening for Van Hunt (MySpace). Hoop's next local show will be with the Hotel Cafe Tour (MySpace) on April 12th at the Henry Fonda Theatre in Hollywood, alongside Meiko (MySpace) who was mentioned by LAist last...

Earlier this month, San Diego-based singer/songwriter Tristan Prettyman (MySpace) and G. Love & Special Sauce (MySpace) performed a two-night stint at the House of Blues in West Hollywood as part of their current tour. The duo collaborated on the song "Beautiful", from G. Love's album Lemonade, which was performed last year on Late Night With Conan O'Brien. Prettyman, who has been referred to as "the female Jack Johnson," also collaborated on the Lindsay Lohan-themed...