Fleetwood Mac rock The Forum like it's 1979

Fleetwood Mac rock The Forum like it's 1979
Mark E. Ortega
GrimyGoods.com
November 29, 2014

In order to see Fleetwood Mac at The Forum on Friday night, I had to give up my New Year’s Eve so that someone else would cover my shift on short notice at my full-time job. After seeing them play nearly three hours on the first of two nights at The Forum, I can say that I made the right choice and that I have zero regrets.

This was the first time since the original lineup played in Los Angeles together in years. Mick Fleetwood (drums), John McVie (bass), Stevie Nicks (vocals), Lindsey Buckingham (lead guitar), and — for the first time since 1998, Christine McVie on the keyboards. They had some help by a talented group of backup musicians, but this was who everyone came to see and they didn’t fail to deliver.

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The Nine II Five: Volume One

The Nine II Five: Volume One
TheAudiologist.net
November 26, 2014


Remember mixed tapes? Mixed CDs? Recording songs off the radio? Nowadays, it’s too easy to try and make a playlist on subscription-based streaming sites that spiral out of control.

Every playlist I’ve made climbs to crazy numbers, sometimes into the hundreds. This can be nice, for many reasons. But there was a certain difficulty and passion that came all my life with making mixed CDs. There’s an art to it — being able to move from track to track without something feeling far too out of place.

925… It’s the area code where I grew up in northern California’s Bay Area. It also works as “nine-to-five”, commonly known as the working person’s grind Monday-through-Friday. I’m taking that number and using it as the formula for a mix I hope to continue creating every week.

The Formula:

1. NINE - Nine songs from acts that are either a) unknown b) currently breaking out or c) about to break out. My main hope is that people will discover some music that they otherwise weren’t aware of.

2. TWO - Two specialty songs. This could be covers, live versions, unreleased tracks, remixes, acoustic versions, etc.

3. FIVE - Five songs from established and well-known acts. Doesn’t necessarily have to be well-known songs by those acts, however. Just named that people will know. There is no set order to the playlist. The track listing will be based on how well each song transitions into the next. Usually, I’ll try and keep a central theme to each playlist.

Justin Timberlake provides a cure for the Mondays with exhilarating performance at The Forum

Justin Timberlake provides a cure for the Mondays with exhilarating performance at The Forum
Mark E. Ortega
GrimyGoods.com
November 25, 2014


The last week of November is one that is usually looked forward to by a large majority of Americans. Thanksgiving is just a few days away, which means for most students, a full week off from school and for most adults, a shortened work week. For anyone that was still not satisfied, Justin Timberlake’s performance at The Forum in Inglewood took care of their case of the Mondays.

Let me preface this show review by saying Timberlake isn’t my usual cup of tea. I’ve had the good fortune of seeing a large volume of live music this year. Most fall into the “shows” category. Some are large enough to be considered “concerts”, but Monday night, Timberlake showed me what it was like to turn a night of live music into an “event”.

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Tegan and Sara share unreleased "When I Get Up" from 10th anniv. of So Jealous

Tegan and Sara share unreleased "When I Get Up" from 10th anniv. of So Jealous
Mark E. Ortega
November 25, 2014
GrimyGoods.com


It’s quite hard to believe when you realize Tegan and Sara‘s “So Jealous” album is nearly 10 years old. The indie rock done good sisters are commemorating it with a 10th anniversary deluxe edition of the album to be released on Dec. 23, called So Jealous X.

The deluxe album will include additional material like remixes, demos, and covers, like The White Stripes doing a version of one of Tegan and Sara’s early breakout hits “Walking With a Ghost”. It’s been a crazy year for the two as they opened up for Katy Perry on her stadium tour (including dates at STAPLES Center) and played the Hollywood Palladium just recently.

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Justin Blackmon pleads no contest to misdemeanor

Justin Blackmon pleads no contest to misdemeanor
Mark E. Ortega
NFL.com
November 21, 2014

Suspended Jacksonville Jaguars wideout Justin Blackmon pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor count of marijuana possession on Thursday, according to The Oklahoman.

Blackmon was arrested July 23 when police pulled over the troubled receiver for a traffic violation and found an odor of marijuana emanating from his vehicle. Blackmon admitted to smoking in the vehicle while driving.

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Listen to Henry Wolfe's new EP "Encino" - smooth and easy listening

Listen to Henry Wolfe's new EP "Encino" - smooth and easy listening
Mark E. Ortega
GrimyGoods.com
November 18, 2014


In a 2012 interview with Metro, Los Angeles-based singer-songwriter Henry Wolfe noted that modern music plays a very limited role in his life.

When listening to his new EP Encino, his first release in three years, it is obvious he draws influence from music of yesteryear. From the opening moments of the title track, I can’t help but think this is something Brian Wilson would have really dug.

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Tame Impala don't let Shrine technical difficulties deconstruct their set

Tame Impala don't let Shrine technical difficulties deconstruct their set

Mark E. Ortega

GrimyGoods.com

November 14, 2014

Australia’s Tame Impala are so psychedelic that when you see them live, you feel as though you’re on drugs — even when you’re not.

Wednesday night at The Shrine Auditorium, they showed that the jammy and acidy sounds of Cream and other super bands of the ’70’s are still much sought after. Except for the very top, The Shrine was packed tight with a crowd that was mostly twentysomething or younger.

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The Black Keys at The Forum: Living up to being one of America's biggest rock bands

The Black Keys at The Forum: Living up to being one of America's biggest rock bands
Mark E. Ortega
GrimyGoods.com
November 7, 2014

If there is one major realization I made Thursday night at The Forum in Inglewood, it’s that The Black Keys are in the running for America’s most popular rock band.

As Thursday was an important day politically, it felt as though these Akron, Ohio-bred rockers were on the campaign trail themselves. After seeing them blow through an impressive sold-out set at one of Southern California’s larger indoor venues, one could certainly make the case that they are in the hunt. In fact, outside of the Foo Fighters, I can’t think of a single American rock band that is as wide appealing as Dan Auerbach and Patrick Carney.

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Between two show reviewers: Courtney Barnett at Red Bull Sound Select #30DaysinLA

Between two show reviewers: Courtney Barnett at Red Bull Sound Select #30DaysinLA
Ziv Biton and Mark E. Ortega
GrimyGoods.com
November 6, 2014


Courtney Barnett played the El Rey for the 4th night of Red Bull’s Sound Select #30DaysInLA series. After getting loads of Red Bull swag, munching on empanadas, and getting strung out on vodka Red Bulls (THERE WAS SO MUCH RED BULL) I bumped into fellow Grimy Goods contributor Mark Ortega. Below we discuss the shows highlights, varying giveaways, openers, closers and Courtney Barnett’s performer resemblance to Girl Cobain.

Feature by Ziv Biton & Mark Ortega / Photography by Misha Vladimirskiy (Red Bull Sound Select)

ZB: I only bumped into you a bit later in the night. How was it your first half? Did you get there in time to swag a screen-printed Courtney Barnett poster?

MO: No! I thought those were just for people that won them via the scratchers? I got one of the #30DaysInLA posters though — No. 2 in my collection.

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Ben Howard spreads magic at sold-out El Rey Theatre performance

Ben Howard spreads magic at sold-out El Rey Theatre performance
Mark E. Ortega
GrimyGoods.com
November 6, 2014


I didn’t know very much about Ben Howard going into his show last Monday at the El Rey Theatre. I’d taken a quick listen to his latest album I Forget Where We Were and saw how quickly tickets were gobbled up to his one of two U.S. shows this month and was very intrigued.

What I didn’t expect was to hear just how full Howard and his band sounded. What I experienced was the kind of emotion that Damien Rice was able conjure out of me earlier that month.

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Foo Fighters close final day of Life is Beautiful on an ultimate high

Foo Fighters close final day of Life is Beautiful on an ultimate high
Mark E. Ortega
GrimyGoods.com
October 30, 2014


“We haven’t played here in a long f*cking time,” Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl said early on in the final performance of Life is Beautiful’s three-day festival in downtown Las Vegas. “So you know what that means? We are about to play a bunch of songs we normally don’t get to play. And we’re going to play as many songs as we can until they shut us down.”

Grohl made good on those words, as the band played beyond when the posted set times said they’d finish up. He was also right – it had been six years since the Foo Fighters played Las Vegas – at the Hard Rock’s awesome in-door venue The Joint.

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Life is Beautiful day two ruled by rap, balanced by Lionel Richie, and blown away by Flaming Lips

Life is Beautiful day two ruled by rap, balanced by Lionel Richie, and blown away by Flaming Lips
Mark E. Ortega
GrimyGoods.com
October 26, 2014


Outkast hadn’t played Las Vegas in more than a decade when they headlined Saturday’s Life is Beautiful smorgasbord on the second day of the downtown Las Vegas festival.

Outkast had made the festival rounds on their reunion this year, to mixed results. Their week one Coachella set was knocked for being a bit shaky, but their Saturday set in Las Vegas showed them at their best. The Atlanta duo went through their large array of hits without breaking off time for the weird Andre 3000 solo stuff that stunted their Coachella set.

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Life is Beautiful day one capped by -- what else -- a Kanye rant

Life is Beautiful day one capped by -- what else -- a Kanye rant
Mark E. Ortega
GrimyGoods.com
October 25, 2014


Downtown Las Vegas’ second-year music festival Life is Beautiful kicked off Friday capped by a typically awesome and rant-filled Kanye West set.

Now three days after being just two in its inaugural year, the festival has grown in more than just length of time. The festival grounds felt like they have doubled in size and there was a much larger international contingency than last year as well. Two British gals from London told me they came out to Vegas specifically to see Kanye.

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Trindon Holliday signs with Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Trindon Holliday signs with Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Mark E. Ortega
NFL.com
October 21, 2014

Return specialist Trindon Holliday has signed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, according to NFL Media Insider Ian Rapoport, per a source informed of the deal. Holliday was previously with the New York Giants this season, who released him on Oct. 6 without him appearing in a game.

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An interview with Broods: Their meteoric rise will continue with release of new album Evergreen

An interview with Broods: Their meteoric rise will continue with release of new album Evergreen
Mark E. Ortega
GrimyGoods.com
October 20, 2014

Just eight months ago, the New Zealand sibling synth-pop duo Broods was making their U.S. debut at Bardot’s It’s A School Night. This past Tuesday, they headlined the El Rey Theatre in front of a sold-out crowd to celebrate the U.S. release of their first full-length album Evergreen, which came out on these shores on Oct. 7.

Prior to their sound check, I caught up with Broods, whom I had seen twice and had previously reviewed for Grimy Goods at The Observatory in Santa Ana. The way they finish each other’s sentences is no surprise given their chemistry both on stage and in the studio.

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