Sarah Tomlinson: Blog

3.3 Sonny Von Bulow @ Show Pony

There’s a cute little strip of Echo Park Blvd. (not far off Sunset) that has a happening block party the first Saturday of each month. (Now that I’ve given you the tip, please don’t buy that green silk blouse I have my eye on at Show Pony. Come on, be a pal). The shops and galleries are open late. A pack of stylish art enthusiasts turn out to drink wine, flirt, catch up with acquaintances and dodge the lovely little girl navigating the good times on her tricycle. Among the night’s best destinations was Show Pony (at 1543 Echo Park), which featured a striking art show, “10 Thousand Million Nerve Cells” by Rolin T. Colburn. His intricate drawings and collages were composed of doodles, nerved up line drawings and retro flavored found art, all rendered in sly offbeat ways (on envelopes and sheets of notebook paper) that made them feel like fragile secrets. The store also featured a sweet show by Sonny Von Bulow (i.e. Lincoln Madley from Venice), who whipped up a velvety ‘80s sound (a la lo-fi Roxy Music) with simple, Casio-style samples, a little guitar, and an eccentric stage persona that included sometimes singing with a quilt and (appropriately) a vintage Louis Vuitton scarf over his head. He opened with a spot-on cover of the gorgeous Nick Cave classic “Shivers” (anyone else remember the “Dogs in Space” soundtrack as fondly as I do?), and then made his way through a short set of moody pop ballads, with a few cracked vocals and his overall intensity adding charm.

After that, it was on to the MOCA Members’ Opening of the new exhibition “WACK! Art and the Feminist Revolution” at the MOCA, which featured Le Tigre’s JD Samson and Johanna Fateman on the decks. They kept the crowd moving (in spite of the awkwardness of trying to dance on asphalt in heels) with their own high spirited dance moves and a playful set of classics and newbies (from “Like a Prayer” to “My Neck, My Back.”) The night also featured some truly fantastic people watching – who was that art house Heidi in the strange homemade ensemble, and how about that woman in the black square pasties and white lipstick? Amazing!

And from there, on to the Happy Hour party at the Museum of Natural History, which was not exactly happening by midnight (maybe due to the lack of parking because of the next day’s LA Marathon). But it was a truly inspired party location. You can’t beat dancing to Peter Bjorn and John amid taxidermied rhinos and giraffes while a person in a full body ape costume strolls by.

P.S. A shout out to my friend Steffie, who was my tour guide for the night: check out her LA Weekly's Style Council blog, including her write-up of my T. Rex-themed birthday show.

3.4 Fuckwolf // Dani Wind @ The Echo

So, normally experimental noise and avant garde indie rock shows aren’t necessarily my jam. I can intellectually understand why the music is interesting and novel and good, but I just don’t feel it. I’m a wuss. I like lyrics. I like sexy little bump and grinds. I like big meaty riffs. I like maraca. But I’m also as susceptible to peer pressure as the next wuss, and I’d heard that San Francisco’s Fuckwolf were cool (plus, it must be said, I love the name – who can argue with Fuckwolf? Where do you even go from there?) and Montreal’s Dani Wind is gaining buzz as a loveable eccentric with a fresh new (and yes, loveably weird) sound. And so I found myself at Part Time Punks, the Echo’s regular Sunday night hang, to check out the fuss. And Fuckwolf were great. Their set had a loose swing. And while they unleashed a sonic maelstrom that drew on the likes of sock hop guitar sounds, jazzy bass lines and swirls of space aged sound effects, the band was tight enough to make it all coalesce into riveting, melodically engaging soundscapes that, yes, you could dance to.

Dani Wind has definitely earned her stripes as a one-of-a-kind performer, with wild, arty costumes and a sugar rush stage presence that makes Karen O look like Celine Dion. For my real deal -- cross your Ts and dot your Is -- review, check out this week’s LA Record.

3.12 El Perro del Mar @ ExPlex

How lovely and rare. It’s not until you hear a talent like El Perro del Mar perform live that accolades like chanteuse and songbird are actually imbued with meaning. She made the cavernous (and super sexy) new ExPlex space under The Echo feel intimate and continental as she unleashed her beautiful, soulful voice on the room with about as much seeming effort as the rest of us were exerting while breathing. El Perro del Mar is actually lone (Swedish) singer/songwriter Sarah Assbring, who looked pretty and retro, in the loveliest, most Euro way, in a girlish dress and black leggings. During the show, she was backed by three well dressed lads in black suits and skinny ties, complete with white flowers in their button holes, on guitar bass and organ (and sweet backing harmonies on the gorgeous celebration “I Found a Reason.”) She can make mournful swing, and even render heartache as hopeful. But while the slightly mod arrangements were delicate and lovely, she was never more moving than when singing with just her guitar, as she tackled Gordon Lightfoot’s “I’m Not Sayin." Her version clearly paid homage to Nico, who previously covered the song. And yet, hers was rendered without any tragedy or weight, leaving just the purity and loveliness, which was apt, as that was the overwhelming mood of her entire set.