Concert review- Old 97's at the El Rey

his is the first time in the last several years that I have only been able to attend one concert on the Old 97's tour stop. Usually, they play more than one local show and I attend them all. I don't mind driving all over Southern California to catch them. Sadly, my new job prevented me from attending the Friday night show ( One that included special guest Exene Cervenka). I also nearly missed part of Rhett's opening set as we were running late to the show on Saturday night. Luckily we walked in about a minute before he took stage and managed to get drinks and a great spot. The curse was lifted!

Rhett played a short opening set, maybe six or seven songs. He started the set with a song that I absolutely love, Lost Without You, off of his latest album, The Dreamer. I loved the last show with Rhett and the Serial Lady Killers, but it was nice just to have him and the guitar up for a few songs. He also played a song that I have never heard and had been pitched to be part of the Too Far To Care album. I wish that I could remember the name of it and will need to do some research to figure it out.

After Rhett's set, we had a longer opening set by a Nashville band called Those Darlins. They frequently tour with the Old 97's, but this was the first time that I had seen them perform. I have been introduced to many fantastic bands via Old 97's shows and was very excited to see Those Darlins. I listened to some of their songs on Youtube prior to the show and had a mixed reaction. Some of their songs have great nuanced lyrics and are catchy. In particular, I liked Screws Get Loose and Be Your Bro. Be Your Bro is an especially great song, a hilarious/edgy take on why men and women sometimes can't just be friends. I liked the studio versions of the songs, but I didn't care for the band live. It was just loud and difficult to discern the clever lyrics. I felt like this band was potentially better than what I saw at the El Rey. If my only exposure to them had been at this show, I wouldn't have been interested in them. They had a really long opening set that felt like it would never end. It only built the anticipation for the Old 97's!

Waiting...

Old 97's are my favorite band, so this is going to be a glowing review. I love them and they never put on a bad show. The first half of the concert was the Too Far to Care album in its entirety, which means kicking off the concert with Timebomb. Timebomb is traditionally the song that they use to close the show, last song of the encore. Myself and I am sure, every hard core fan in the audience was wondering what on earth they play to close the show. Well, they did Timebomb, again. Timebomb twice in the same night = awesome! The Too Far To Care album is one of my favorites and it really makes for a great set. It was the first time I've heard Salome done live, great stuff. They also played maybe an additional fifteen songs that are fan favorites. I know it's popular and that they often play it, but I was happy to hear Doreen, which is my go to song for singing along as loud as I can when driving on the freeway.

Here is a shot of the band courtesy of Dan. I was so engrossed in the show, that I couldn't be bothered to take pictures.

A few thoughts on the venue. This was the first time that I had visited the El Rey for a concert. Many years ago, I used to attend the monthly Club Make-up at the El Rey, which was a lot of fun and much missed. I think that this venue works well for concerts. The parking was easy, ten dollars in a structure about a block away. When I used to come for the club, we would always have to hunt for street parking. The structure makes it easy. The venue is clean and well managed. Nice bar staff with average prices for drinks. I like that it's standing room, we had a great vantage point and security was everywhere, not that I noticed any problems. Fans were dancing, singing along and respectful to one another, just as any great concert should be!

Movie Review- Brave at the El Capitan

On Saturday night, I went to the El Capitan Theater in Hollywood for the late showing of Brave. I went with three El Capitan virgins and we decided to splurge on the VIP Seats. I've go to the El Cap several times and am still awed by the level of spectacle. This awe is amplified when surrounded by first timers. I had open jaws on either side of me.

I need to explain this for those who may have not had the experience of visiting Disney's theater, especially with the VIP Experience. Having done this theater so many times, going VIP is the only way to do it for one major reason- you have reserved seating. If you decided not to go with the VIP seats, there is often then need to queue up outside for an hour prior to the show time to ensure decent seats. Of course, the reserved section is comprised of all of the best seats. We were about five rows back in the Orchestra, dead center.

The VIP section enters the theater first and is directed to the concessions stand to pick up a souvenir bucket of popcorn and a drink. I have quite the bucket collection from my outings to the El Cap and they really come in handy. Off the topic, I even buried my pet rat in one!

The first big spectacle is when you enter the theater...on the stage is a giant organ and the organist is playing a medley of Disney songs. The second spectacle is the layers of curtains and lights that peel away in layers prior to the previews. The real spectacle comes after the previews with the stage show.

Now, the stage show is definitely aimed at kids, there is a high level of cheese involved with the entire production. Big Ben Union Jack likened it to a high school show choir competition and he doesn't even watch Glee. I think what gives it the "wow" factor is that it just never seems to end. It's one number bleeding into the next with various costume changes and Disney characters popping out all over the place. There was an enormous American flag and confetti cannons. It may be showy and silly, but you are getting a load of entertainment for your money and it makes it hard to see movies at another venue.

On to the main feature, as with most PIxar movies, Bravewas a cut above the average animated feature. It's not in the same league as Up or the Toy Story trilogy, but it has a solid story, strong characters and is visually stunning.

I thought that it was a bit ruined by trailers that gave away too much. Although enjoyable, the plot was fairly predictable and the trailers really compounded the problem. I probably would have rated it higher had I not gone in knowing so much about the movie.

Another problem that I had with movie was it had way too much slapstick comedy. It was a touch painful to watch and really not funny at all. A majority of the comedic elements of the movie didn't work for me.

The pacing was uneven and the ending was rushed. It felt like everything tied up too neatly and easily at the end.

What I really loved about the movie was the moral lesson and the parent/child bonds. I loved that the main character didn't have a dead or otherwise absent parent. I also liked that the movie didn't really have a villain. The story may have been predictable, but many elements of it were a departure from a lot of the other Disney movies. The hero of the story is a strong female who has to figure out a solution to her own problems. The only rescuing she gets is from another strong female, her mother. The movie is flawed, but I think that it's worth seeing and definitely a good movie for children, one that could be a step stone for good discussion topics.

Los Angeles Live Steamers

I'm a Los Angeles native and growing up, I have fond memories of the Griffith Park train, located next to the pony rides. Earlier this year, Dan introduced me to a much cooler train depot, also located in Griffith Park. The Los Angeles Live Steamers Railroad Museum is a club comprised of train enthusiast, who open their doors to the public for rides every Sunday (weather permitting) 10:45am-3pm.

This is the front of the newly remodeled train depot from our visit on November 25, 2012. They still had a lot of their decorations from their Halloween themed train rides, that they uses a fundraiser for this non-profit club.

The live steamers is the best deal in town. A train ride, lasting about fifteen minutes, is only three dollars a person. The child and adult prices are the same. The first time I visited the steamers was last February and I went in with fairly low expectations. The other Griffith Park train is dinky, completely geared towards kids. I was blown away by the elaborate set up at the Live Steamers. The club has quite a bit of land for the tracks in Griffith Park and the entire experience is far superior to the old Griffith Park trains. I feel like if people knew that this is down the road, that they wouldn't bother with the other train, as this one is really fun for both kids and adults.

On our February visit, we unwittingly visited on the third Sunday of the month and experience an extra surprise, Walt Disney's Carolwood Barn.

Here is my Dan in front of the Carolwood Barn.

The barn is located on the property of the Live Steamers and is only open for tours on the third Sunday of every month. I probably have to relinquish my Disney Fan Card, as I had no idea that this was even here.

Walt Disney was a train enthusiast and had his own live-steamer miniature in the backyard of his Holmby Hills estate located on Carolwood Drive. The Barn was originally located on the property and served as his workshop. It has been dubbed "The Birthplace of imagineering" as it was Walt's tinkering and thinking spot.

The barn was moved to Griffith park and is now filled with train and Disneyana memorabilia. There were plenty of enthusiastic volunteers on hand to answer all manner of Disney and train questions. The members of the club are one of the key components in making the visit to the Steamers special as they are so nice and welcoming. The suggested donation to visit the barn was five dollars and well-worth every penny.

We were given stickers for our donation!

Conductor Dan, standing in front of a car from the Disneyland Railroad.

I cannot say enough wonderful things about the Los Angeles Live Steamers. It's a great place for all ages and a bargain. It's definitely a hidden gem in Southern California.