See Slo Blog

Comfort Food

Every now and then someone will ask me to list my comfort foods.  For some reason, I'm always hard-pressed to come up with a good answer right on the spot.  I know that the first food items that pop into mind are usually mashed potatoes, mac & cheese, grilled cheeses and tomato soup, maybe some fried chicken, the list goes on.  Comfort food to me definitely encompasses many of those dishes, but one of my favorite comfort foods that I, for some reason, always forget to mention is rice porridge or "xi fan". 

My sister once commented that having porridge reminds her of our grandma, and I wholeheartedly agree.  Having porridge now doesn't just remind me of how my grandma used to always cook it, it reminds me of her voice -- "nini, xi fan hao le! (steph, porridge is ready!), and of her smile and her laugh.  And that, I think, is the essence of what comfort food really is.  It's food that reminds you of family and home.

Now, the Lo household took your typical porridge dinner up a notch tonight.  Normally we just have the porridge and your go-to canned fixings -- spicy fermented tofu (dou fu ru), soy gluten with peanuts (mian jing), pickles, maybe some canned sardines in spicy tomato sauce, and of course pork sung (rou song) and fish floss (yu song).  We definitely had ourselves some rou song and yu song tonight, but we also whipped up some other tasty delights to go with our meal.

Millet porridge (xiao mi xi fan)

Taiwanese pork sausage (xiang chang) with garlic

Firm tofu (dou gan) with some green onions and sesame oil

"Scrambled" eggs with scallions

And some cold tofu with "thousand year old egg", chopped green onions, soy sauce, and sesame oil on top

WTF, it's only Wednesday? Edition 5. ZOMG, Zombies Invade Japan!

Instead of a music video and some tunes for this week's edition of WTF, it's only Wednesday?, I have the perfect video that will bring at least five minutes of utter joy into your Wednesday. 

I got this from my friend, Jess (who has some pretty excellent taste in YouTube videos -- she also showed me this a while back), yesterday and have watched it three times since then.  The first time I saw it I actually laughed so hard that I was crying.  Like most great YouTube videos, this one's another one of those Japanese game show/prank videos -- it centers around a reporter playing a nasty nasty trick on a few unsuspecting Japanese kids.  Basically the reporter gets these kids to believe that zombies have invaded their town, and that one particular zombie has got it in really bad for them and is set on inviting himself over into their apartment space; if you know anything about apartment living in Japan, you'll know that there's really little room to work with, especially when a flipping flesh-eating zombie is lumbering it's way into your front door and you're (probably) shatting your pants.  The entire video is basically footage of these kids setting up traps to foil the zombie with bits of golden comments scattered throughout.  It's completely ridiculous, hilarious, and heartwarming all at the same time. 

I myself have both an immense fear and infatuation of/with zombies and cannibals.  They scare the complete bejesus out of me, but I am a complete House of the Dead (all versions) fiend, and more than often, I walk around town and think about places I would run, get weapons & supplies, and set up post, if zombies were at some point to invade my city.  What? It's always best to be prepared.

Happy Wednesday, mis amigos.

PS, while we're on the topic... check out this trailer for Zombieland.

Excerpt from Shockhound's interview w/ Hayley Williams

I don't normally re-post interviews, articles, or blog posts, but occasionally if something hits me hard enough, I will.  This recent Shockhound interview with Hayley touches a lot upon Paramore's former issues and how they dealt with them before/while writing "Brand New Eyes".  I've taken out an excerpt that I re-read a few times to share with you all, because it 1) sheds some serious light on the story behind/significance of their new single, "Ignorance", and 2) is one of the first interviews I've read that actually put some knots in chest.

SHOCKHOUND: Was there a single breakthrough moment, where you learned to see each other with “brand new eyes”?

WILLIAMS: Yes. That’s what the whole album is, really. This album is us coming to that conclusion, and I can’t put into words what that feeling was, or what it meant at the exact moment. But I guess it was when I was writing “Ignorance,” our new single. When we went into the studio, after being on tour for a year after the cancellation of the European tour, we were still not on the same page. There was still tension, and I just felt like “Really? When is it going to be over?” And it just kinda came to us at practice one day when we were trying to write for the new record. It was one of the first days, and Josh was frustrated because he didn’t feel like he would ever write anything like “Misery Business” again. And I was frustrated because I didn’t like that attitude. And we just weren’t feeling it this particular day.
     And I swear, it was the weirdest thing — it was like the clouds just parted. Josh was like, “I’ll never write a riff like ‘Misery Business’ again, guys  — I’m sorry, I just can’t do it.” There was a lot of pressure on him. But then he starts playing this riff, and it’s “Ignorance.” And we were like “Well, what is that? Because that’s good enough!” And we recorded it immediately, and everyone just came up with their parts on the spot. And I took it home in my car and was listening to it, and I just started singing along to it in my car. In fact, that’s how a lot of these songs came together. And when all these words were sorta pouring out and it was almost effortless, I was like,“Wow! I feel these things, still. This is a real situation that we have to deal with.”
     And I brought [the lyrics for “Ignorance”] back to the band when I finished it, and everyone was like “Ouch! This sucks! Will we have to play this every night?” And I was like “Look — I know this sucks. But this is how I feel, though, and that can’t be discounted.” And it forced us to lay everything out on the table, and that’s when the idea of “brand new eyes” started. We were like “Okay, if I can’t see you how I want to see you, how would you have me see you? How would you have me look at you and understand you?” And it was just really good for us. It sounds like group therapy, although it didn’t feel like that at the time. But looking back, writing this record was a better counselor than we ever could’ve had.

Full interview can be found [here].

The Sounds, Paramore, & No Doubt at Gibson - Part 2

Read Part 1 [here]

I can't think of a better time to be writing Part II of this post because as I type this, No Doubt is probably making their way back onto the stage at the Gibson Ampitheatre to recommence their long string of Los Angeles/Orange County shows.  Most of you know that I was fortunate enough to attend the New Pornographers/Tegan & Sara/Death Cab for Cutie w/ LA Philharmonic extravaganza at the Hollywood Bowl a month ago.  When I wrote that post, I really believed that I had attended one of the best concerts this entire summer.  As blasphemous as this may sound to any Death Cab fan who witnessed that epic show, I'm going to have to say that I was even more impressed with what I saw last week at the No Doubt concert.  And I'll be completely honest -- I've always appreciated what No Doubt's music has done for the industry (and what Gwen Stefani has done for females in the industry), and I am more than completely familiar with all of the band's hits and singles...but, I don't own No Doubt's entire discography; I haven't been a die-hard fan since I was in elementary school; and I've never once been "that girl" who's listed Gwen Stefani as her idol.  Well, this concert may have changed all of that. 

I was so blown away by the show and how amazing both the s ongs I knew and didn't know (New, End it On This, Different People) sounded, that I will now be doing my best to purchase and work my way through No Doubt's entire collection.  I was so freaking amazed by Gwen Stefani's limber, energetic, toned, muscular, pop-lock-and-droppin'-push-up-pumping-self at the show that I will be getting back onto a steady work out regime.  And while I don't think I'll ever become a No Doubt superfan, my respect and adoration for them has increased ten fold after watching them perform.  I've never seen a band move non-stop, command an audience, or shred 110% like I did that night.  I've never seen a band completely hold their own with a jam session while their lead singer leaves for a wardrobe change.  And, I've certainly never seen a lead singer get an entire ampitheatre to jump to the beat of the music.  In fact, I've always been against bands asking for too much of their crowds -- you shouldn't have to consistently ask for your audience to engage in some rhythmic clapping (Kele from Bloc Party, Headlining show at the Greek in 2006) or shout expletives at your audience members to get up on their feet (Wayne from the Flaming Lips, Sasquatch 2008 @ the Gorge); your fans should want to do that stuff on their own.  But, if Gwen Stefani asks you to jump -- you flipping jump.  In fact, you may as well ask "how high?".

Beyond just seeing No Doubt absolutely beast their live performance, their stage set was one of the most incredible things I have ever seen.  From the second the curtain fell, I felt like I had been transported onto some futuristic No Doubt spaceship and left Los Angeles eons behind.  It wasn't until the band left after their "last song" and the crowd screamed and cheered so loudly for an encore that the sounds pounded in my chest and resonated in my freaking brain, that I snapped back into reality -- I was in the Gibson Ampitheatre at Universal City.  And the video display setting the backdrop to the entire performance?  Probably some of the baddest-ass video work I've seen at a concert, right next to Daft Punk's.  On what felt like a mammoth LCD screen spanning the entirety of stage right to left, different videos and shorts of No Doubt that were perfectly filmed/cued to match/change with each song in the setlist played.  I think many will agree that one of the coolest (and most emotional) was a collection of home video footage shot back when No Doubt was just starting out as a band, tracked to Running.  I had great seats for the show, but I think I would have even been pleased in the nosebleeds, because I would have still had amazing visuals to look at the entire night.

And I think that's where the kicker comes in.  I am confident in saying that this was one of the greatest shows I've ever been to, because that feeling of excitement, awe, inspiration, and happiness I felt in the 8th or so row in the Orchestra section probably also hit another No Doubt fan sitting in row Z of the Mezzanine.  When a band's live music has the power to touch every single fan in an audience like that, they've done something right.

And with that said, I'm out!

Thanks for reading, if you made it this far.  I promise the concert reviews to come will be significantly less text-heavy. <3

The Sounds, Paramore, & No Doubt at Gibson - Part 1

This is going to be a long one, folks.  Even long for me.  So long that I'm breaking this entry up into two separate parts.  And in case you're only here to check out my review of No Doubt, that's coming in part 2.  If I haven't scared you away yet, hello and thanks for sticking around!  I hope I don't lose you somewhere in the middle of this post, haha.  (But, if you are pressed for time, the actual meat of the review comes in at paragraphs four and six [marked with a *]).

The Sounds, Paramore, & No Doubt - Part 1

It started with Twitter.

I was driving home from the Jay Brannan show and checking my Twitter account last night when I saw that Hayley [from Paramore] had posted:

KROQ at 8:45am tomorrow morning. We're gonna be on the Kevin and Bean show.

I had known since tour dates were announced months back that Paramore would be rolling through LA with No Doubt and the Sounds on ND's epic summer tour, but I had completely forgotten when, until I saw that tweet.  Long story short, when the tour was announced I was amped about the bill, but couldn't justify paying $90 (not incl. those awful service fees) to see Paramore in a seated venue.  And as bad as this sounds to all you hardcore No Doubt fans (shout out to my boss), I was happy to see No Doubt hitting the road again after their long hiatus, but I wasn't stoked.

It wasn't until I was on a plane from Los Angeles to Seattle for Memorial Weekend reading the No Doubt feature article in May's issue of Spin that I realized I had made a huge mistake in passing up both Paramore and No Doubt pre-sale ticket offers when they had come.  Before the plane landed, I knew the first thing I was going to do when I got hold of a computer was to check for tickets.  I didn't even care if I was paying for lawn tickets, I just wanted to go to the show -- to be a part of what I knew would be one of the most monumental tours of 2009.  By that point, the tickets for shows in LA/OC billed with Paramore and the Sounds had completely sold out.  I could have purchased lawn tickets for the shows with Katy Perry, but for some reason it just didn't feel right.  I knew that the tickets I wanted to buy were specifically for the Sounds, Paramore, and No Doubt -- that was the show I wanted to see.  So, I dropped it -- I wasn't going to be attending the tour this summer.

Now let's flash forward to today, July 22nd.  I left for work a little earlier with the intention of listening to Paramore on the Kevin and Bean show.  Not surprisingly, I somehow ended up getting in my car, listening to my iPod the entire way, and completely forgetting to turn on the radio.  By the time I got out of my car and was at work, I had missed the morning show.  I silently muttered to myself, "You're a total idiot, dude", but shrugged my shoulders and walked into work.  Around 1 PM I decided to put on some Paramore to somehow make-up for having missed them on K&B.  As I found myself jamming at the desk I thought to myself, "Oh, what the hell.  Why not check Ticketmaster.  Maybe some seats opened up after they finished setting up the stage this morning."  Unfortunately, all tickets were still sold out.  "One last shot", I told myself.  45 minutes, a few clicks through Craigslist, and a long phone call with a ticket broker later, I had 3 tickets for tonight's show at the Gibson Ampitheatre (for, what I would find out later, at least $40 less than face value -- each).

*We got there basically right as the Sounds started their set, which was great.  I've been a fan of the Sounds for a while but have just never gotten around to seeing them tour, so tonight was my first (but certainly not the last) time watching them hit the stage.  The band was as fun, energetic, and loud tonight as they are on their recorded stuff, and were thus a perfect way to start off the night.  They even inspired a few standing ovations from a completely seated audience by the end of their set.

When Paramore came on and I saw that a large portion of orchestra seats were still empty I suggested that we go stand up in that section to get a better view.  [And here's where the slight tangent comes in] Guys and girls, if you know me, you know that Paramore has been one of my favorite bands since high school.  I've seen them play probably over ten times now, once to a tiny room full of people where it seemed like only ten people, myself included, sang their songs at the top of their lungs, once at a stint at Bamboozle where they played to a SEA of people and everyone's fists flew into the air for "Whoa".  Each time I've seen Paramore has been close to perfect, ...except for perhaps the last show I saw them play on their RIOT! tour in NYC.

For some reason, the crowd was just terrible there -- a mix of really tall people who stood with their arms crossed and wouldn't let you squeeze by in front of them, and some crazy beezys in high heels standing around smacking their gum and asking obnoxiously, "I wonder when they're going to play Misery Business.  It's the best song, ever!"  Suffice to say, it was a good show because it was one of my favorite bands playing live, but it was still disappointing.  It was this show that had me thinking that maybe it was time to a little break from Paramore.  That maybe I had exhausted my attendance at their shows.  Not long after, shit hit the fan for the band -- tour dates were getting cancelled, strange ominous lj postings were popping up from Hayley about how the band needed to take some time off to regroup, and Perez Hilton (of all people) was blogging about how they were on the verge of breaking up.  I was concerned, but I knew that they would bounce back from whatever was going on.  And sure enough, they did.  Decode completely killed it and opened up the band to a legion of new fans, and band members and bloggers alike were posting some really positive things regarding the new album -- all of a sudden, Paramore was ready and back for some serious action.

*And tonight's set, well it was nothing short of absolutely spectacular.  For the first time ever, I watched Paramore from outside of the pit and got to see how the band interacts and works as a whole when they're on stage -- it was, as cheesy as this may sound, beautiful.  I don't know what happened back to the band when things went south, and I don't even want to know, but whatever they did to fix it made them into something so much bigger and better than the old Paramore I knew.  They just looked and sounded so good together on stage tonight that it sent chills down my spine more than once during their performance.  I don't want to spoil the show for anyone else who still has yet to see them on this tour by giving you a rundown of the setlist, but I will say to expect a lot of stuff off of RIOT! (Crushcrushcrush packed a seriously powerful punch and Let The Flames Begin was epic beyond words), some new material (Ignorance sounded great), and an older goodie (fans of the Josh and Jeremy flip, you won't be let down).  My ultimate setlist would have also included Miracle, maybe Decoy,  and maybe a few more songs off of AWKIF (especially My Heart), but I think tonight's setlist made sense for the crowd and it still sounded and flowed amazingly.

Besides a really well performed set, though, the one part of the performance that put a huge grin on my face was during That's What You Get, when Hayley officially introduced Taylor as the newest member of Paramore.  I haven't been keeping up with "Paramore news" via livejournal or on their website for a long time, so I don't know when (or if) they made the official announcement, but I'm so happy for them.  I've seen Paramore go through a few band member changes in their career, and God knows I loved Hunter on rhythm guitar, but I have a feeling that this roster right now with Josh, Zac, Jeremy, (officially) Taylor, and Hayley, is the one.  The chemistry on that stage tonight was hugely overwhelming.  I was already amped about Brand New Eyes to begin with, but seeing the five of them perform tonight (and how well they performed together), brought my excitement about the album to an entirely new level.  Without having even heard the entire album yet, I'm already allotting a spot for Brand New Eyes on my Top 10 2009 list.  That is how incredibly confident I am about this new material.

And with that said, I'm off to bed.  Part 2 to come with my review of No Doubt's [super spectacular] set.

WTF, it's only Wednesday? Edition 4. Datarock and the Rifles.

I'd like to preface this week's edition of WTF, it's only Wednesday by saying that this post (or any post I've made or will make) is in no way biased by the fact that I intern at Nettwerk.  I really can't help it if the artists and bands we represent are the bomb (like tick tick).

Anyway, if you're familiar with Datarock's music videos, you know that they are always super fun to watch and make you want to get up and do a little jig (maybe even two).  Well, their new video for "True Stories" is no exception.  Actually, I think it might be my favorite video of theirs so far because it's a total freaking feast for the eyes -- an eyegasm, if you will.  I'll let you make the call for yourself. 

As for this week's mp3, I come bearing the Rifles track for "the Great Escape".  These dudes hail from the UK and represent everything that is so right about that "Britpop / Britrock " sound that's so popular nowadays -- think : Maximo Park, Arctic Monkeys, the Cribs, the [insert Noun]s, etc.  Clean electric guitars, feel-good beats that induce the happy headnod (yeah, you know what headnod I'm talking about), lyrics that, if you're not from the UK, you can reiterate (maybe with a little help from the internets) but not fully understand the meaning of (Hi, I'm talking about you, Parklife [Blur]), sealed with a super catchy chorus perfect for a sing-a-long (Again, I'm talking about you, Parklife).  Anyway, The Great Escape embodies all of those characteristics in some way, so I thought I would share it with you.  Definitely pick yourself up a copy of their latest EP July 28th if you like what you hear.

Huzzah! Happy Wednesday.

Big Things Poppin' -- PSC will be at NIGHT LIGHTS

What's up party people,

Just wanted to let you know that I will be posted Downtown with Pencil Sketch this Saturday, July 25th, at the TIWWI event NIGHT LIGHTS!  We'll be selling your favorite shirts and donating all of the proceeds to an awesome organization called 826 LA -- They're a non-profit whose mission is to help 6 to 18 year old students cultivate their creative & expository writing skills and support teachers in their endeavors to inspire students to write.  It's going to be an amazing night filled with good times, so definitely check out all the goodies below for more details. <3

Links:

Pencil Sketch Clothing - www.pencilsketchclothing.com
This Is What We Imagine (TIWWI) - www.thisiswhatweimagine.com
NIGHT LIGHTS event info - www.tiwwi.com/nightlights.html
826 LA - www.826la.org

Miike Snow - Burial: the music video & a remix

I have so many good things to say about Miike Snow's self-titled debut, but this post is just about one of my favorite tracks off of the album, Burial.  I can't really articulate why I love this song so much, because quite frankly it makes me a little sad when I hear it.  But sad in a good way, if that makes any sense; the entire song just feels so damn bittersweet, and that's what I love about it. 

I've listened to it over and over again, and still don't really understand what it's about.  Maybe it has something to do with confronting both regret and resilience in the face of death.  Or maybe it's not really supposed to mean anything at all.  Regardless, this one's a keeper.

Anyway, Downtown just posted the music video for Burial two days ago and I am super pleased with how it turned out, so here it is:

As an added bonus, here's my favorite Burial remix (thus far) by DJ Mehdi:

WTF, it's only Wednesday? Edition 3. Jailbait Pu$$ylicker.

On this week's edition of WTF, it's only Wednesday?, I bring you...jailbait. Wait, I mean. Erm. Here's Justin Bieber's music video for his R&B/Pop single One Time.  "WhoTF is Justin Bieber", you ask?  Well, he's Usher's fifteen year old protege who's now signed to Island Def Jam and whose major label debut album, "My World", drops later this year. 

It's funny how in elementary/middle school we all swooned over Justin Timberlake and his, in retrospect, terrifying bleach blonde curly tips, and still swooned over him even when his choice in fashion became quite questionable (how could you forget this denim ensemble?).  And now, the new generation of pop star heartthrob is presumably Bieber, who looks like a cross between a watered down hype beast and Ryan Sheckler -- he has long hair and side swept bangs (covered oh-so-perfectly by his hooded zip-up or his fitted new era), rocks the raw denim, and sports a watch bigger than his face.  Aside from his fresh-to-death appearance, though, this kid's really got a voice (we'll see what happens after he hits puberty) and some impressive talent (apparently he plays a couple of intsruments, guitar included).  Now, I want you to think back to what you were doing when you were fifteen and then watch this video.  I don't know about you, but I sure as hell wasn't throwing fictional house parties at Ursher's house.

As for the mp3, this one's pretty old (really old -- hit its height in blogosphere buzz in 2007).  But I, behind on the times, didn't hear about it until recently, and am hoping there are a few of you out there who haven't heard it either.  It's Dopplebanger's "Pussylicker", which is a mix of M83 vs Aphex Twin vs Khia -- and yes, of course the Khia track is My Neck, My Back.  Sometimes I feel awkward when I'm stopped at a red light and the end of this song is blasting out of my car.  I even feel kind of awkward having to say "pussylicker" to myself in my head as I type this.   In fact, I hope I don't get thrown in jail for putting a 15 year old and the word "pussylicker" on the same page.  Even after all of this, though, I really have to share this track with you all.  So, at the expense of my feeling slightly awkward and feeling the need to take a shower, here it is.

Happy Wednesday, amigos!

Quick! Do yourself a favor and pick up Discovery's LP

After stumbling upon a couple of positive posts in the blogosphere about Discovery's debut drop (one from fellow music aficionado Beckie), I finally got my hands on the album to hear it for myself.  And honestly, guys, LP is made of total Win.

Add it to your ever-growing Top Albums list of 2009, right next to Bitte Orca, Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix, Manners, Miike Snow, It's Blitz!, Transmitter Failure, and whatever else you have on there.  Or whoops, maybe I was just listing albums off of my list.  It doesn't matter; what matters is that you buy yourself a copy of this CD if you like 1) dance parties 2) synth 3) Vampire Weekend or Ra Ra Riot (Discovery = side project from Rostam of Vampire Weekend + Wes of Ra Ra Riot) 4) indie electro pop and/or 5) the word "discotheque". 

With just 10 tracks (11 on the the iTunes Bonus Track version) replete with electronics mastery, feel-good lyrics, and HUGE promise for rhythmic hand clapping, it's hard to not fall in love with LP.  The entire album is golden, but my favorites are So Insane (a song about finding love on the dance floor), I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend (which features the lovely vocals of Angel Deradoorian of the Dirty Projectors), Carby (which sounds like indie pop getting hit with the hip hop truck -- think heavy beats, phat ass bass, and T-Pain [erm, I mean Ezra's Koenig's voice on auto-tune -- in a good way, though]), I Want You Back (an infectious and synth-heavy cover of the J5 hit), and Osaka Loop Line (which, I think, is the first track you should listen to if you're going to listen to any, because it just about sums up the awesomeness of the album -- I also think it would be perfect for a mashup with Miike Snow's Animal, but that's slightly off topic).  With that said, go pick yourself up a copy of Discovery's LP and get to shakin' what your mama gave ya'.

Osaka Loop Line

So Insane

Carby (feat. Ezra Koenig)