Record Fair Find: Quando Quango Produced by Bernard Sumner with Johnny Marr on Guitar

Quando Quango "2 From Quando" 12" produced by Bernard Sumner Johnny Marr on guitar
Quando Quango “Two From Quando” 12″

Last Sunday, at the same record fair booth where I found Marc Almond’s fantastic “Melancholy Rose” 12” single, I came across an Italian copy of Quando Quango’s 12” “Two From Quando,” featuring the song “Atom Rock,” released on a Bologna label called Base Record, although it’s still marked with the Factory Records catalog number FAC 102. Sweet! There was no way I was leaving the record fair without this record, even if I *technically* already have the song on vinyl. 

Quando Quango first came into my orbit thanks to a compilation called Cool As Ice: The Be Music Productions. Released in 2003, it’s a collection of music produced by members of New Order as Be Music between 1983 and 1985. There are two tracks from Quando Quango on there, “Love Tempo” and “Atom Rock,” both of which were produced by the dream team of Bernard Sumner, using the name Be Music, and A Certain Ratio’s Donald Johnson, under the name DoJo. At the time that copies of Cool As Ice landed in the bins at Amoeba, I was promoting and DJing a Wednesday night party at a now long-gone West Hollywood bar called The Parlour called Transmission. If the name weren’t a total giveaway, I was pretty obsessed with everything related to Joy Division and New Order, as were a lot of the regulars, so I played both those songs often. And, since one of the few constants in this world is that I’m still a little on the Joy Division/New Order obsessive side and still play for people who are riding the same wave, “Love Tempo” and “Atom Rock” still turn up in my sets. All of this a super tl;dr way of justifying my purchase, btw. 

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Splash! at The Mermaid Is Sunday + More Clubs, Concerts and Movie Screenings Happening in L.A. 2/20/25 – 2/26/25

Splash at The Mermaid DJ Liz O. February 23, 2025

This Sunday, February 23, I’m back at The Mermaid in Little Tokyo for Splash! Catch me in the DJ booth from 8 p.m. until close, playing a little bit of everything. Seriously. Check out my previous playlists to see what has made it into my sets for this night without genres.  The Mermaid is located at 428 E. 2nd Street in Little Tokyo. There’s street and lot parking, plus the venue is just a block or so away from Metro’s A/E station in Little Tokyo. There’s no cover, but The Mermaid is 21+. 

As for the rest of this week, and early next week, some highlights include Kool Keith at The Paramount on Thursday, David Longstreth and Dirty Projectors on Friday and Saturday, DIIV in Ventura on Monday and Bon Entendeur at The Fonda next Wednesday. 

Not surprisingly, there are loads of great movies back in the theaters this week, including screenings of Chungking Express at multiple theaters, The Juniper Tree at Philosophical Research Society on Saturday night and much more, so keep scrolling to get the list. 

Continue reading Splash! at The Mermaid Is Sunday + More Clubs, Concerts and Movie Screenings Happening in L.A. 2/20/25 – 2/26/25

The Juniper Tree: Ingmar Bergman meets Brothers Grimm in this 1990 Movie Starring Björk

Screenshot from The Juniper Tree (1990) starring Björk
The Juniper Tree (1990)

The Juniper Tree is one of those movies that’s been kicking around on my “To Watch” list for ages, but it wasn’t until last weekend that I finally saw it on Kanopy. The film, made in Iceland by American director Nietzchka Keene, was released in 1990 and is probably best known as “Björk’s first movie.” Several years ago, The Juniper Tree was restored and re-released. Since then, it’s been making the rounds on the repertory cinema circuit. In fact, if you’re in L.A. and want to see it in a theater, you can catch it at Philosophical Research Society on Saturday, February 22

While Björk is clearly the movie’s selling point now, she’s not the only reason you should check out The Juniper Tree. It’s a stunning movie that makes good use of the landscape to tell a modern-medieval fairy tale with a Seventh Seal feel. 

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Found at the Record Fair: Marc Almond “Melancholy Rose” 12″ Single

Marc Almond "Melancholy Rose" 12" single on vinyl
Marc Almond “Melancholy Rose” vinyl 12″ single

At Sunday’s Lovers Market at Homage Brewing in Chinatown, I stopped by the one record vendor who I try to always visit. I don’t think I’ve ever walked away from this booth empty-handed because there’s usually at least one crate loaded with legit cool ‘80s club 12” singles, a mix of everything from post-punk to Italo disco to hiNRG that’s geared towards DJs rather than collectors. While I was digging, I came across a Marc Almond single that I instantly wanted to buy. 

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Valley Girl Is the Best ’80s Teen Movie

Julie (Deborah Foreman) and Randy (Nicolas Cage) in Valley Girl.
Julie (Deborah Foreman) and Randy (Nicolas Cage) in Valley Girl.

Television and film is loaded with heart-to-hearts between kids and parents where young people learn that you shouldn’t judge someone by how they look or what they have, but by who they are. The conversation in Valley Girl, though, hits a little differently than the rest. Julie, the lead Val in the 1983 film, is torn between the Hollywood punk she likes and the preppy dumbass that her friends want her to date. Julie’s dad adds that it’s not just what’s inside a person that counts, but “what they stand for.” Then he reminds her that not everyone will be okay with her choice because, “There are lots of people out there who just ain’t happy unless you live and think the way they do.”

The answer should be simple, but it isn’t. It never is. 

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Wild at Heart Movie Screenings and More Happening in L.A., 2/13/25 – 2/19/25

Sheryl Lee in Wild at Heart Screenshot
Sheryl Lee in Wild at Heart

If you’ve been making your way through David Lynch’s oeuvre these past few weeks, you’ve probably noticed that Wild at Heart isn’t streaming. And that might be bugging you because perhaps you (like me) haven’t seen it in so long that you practically forgot half of the killer cast. Or, maybe you haven’t seen it at all and you want to know what’s so special about the 1990 film. Regardless, your best bet is to catch a screening in an actual movie theater this week in the L.A. area. At the time of writing this, there were still tickets available for showings at the Academy Museum, The Frida and NoHo 7.

If you need more Lynch this weekend, Fire Walk with Me is also playing at The Frida, which, btw, is a great theater and totally worth the trip from L.A. to Santa Ana if you can bypass traffic. (It’s almost exactly one hour from downtown if you ride Metrolink.) And, on Saturday, Vidiots is screening David Lynch’s short films. 

In case you were wondering, I’m not DJing this weekend, but there’s a ton happening in L.A. Like, too much happening, actually. This list just scratches the surface. I intentionally left out some of the weekend’s biggest events because if it’s a concert at Crypto where the resale tix for nosebleed seats are nearly $300 or a festival, you probably already know about it. I also made an effort to include shows at various price points, so some of these are definitely a Valentine’s Day splurge, but there are also a good amount of low cover shows and DJ events listed, as well as some free events. As of the time I wrote this (Tuesday night), everything listed here had tickets available. 

Continue reading Wild at Heart Movie Screenings and More Happening in L.A., 2/13/25 – 2/19/25

Whammy! Analog Media Celebrates Third Anniversary with Day of Live Music

Chaki performs live at Whammy! Analog Media's third anniversary party in Echo Park on Sunday, February 9, 2025 (Photo: Liz Ohanesian)
Chaki reppin’ Zankou Chicken on stage at Whammy! Analog Media’s third anniversary party. (Photo: Liz O.)

Whammy! Analog Media, the VHS shop and microcinema in Echo Park, celebrated its third anniversary on Sunday, February 10, with a day of live music.  While bands were scheduled to play from noon until 8 p.m., I was only able to check out the 4 – 7 p.m. stretch, which included performances from Chaki, Major Entertainer and Pride Month Barbie

A theme running throughout the afternoon was how special Whammy! is and that’s true. It’s actually one of the few places in L.A. that legit lives up to the overused descriptive “hidden gem.” Although the shop’s address is on Sunset Blvd., you won’t notice it from the street, you have to walk down Rampart and enter through the alley. Once you step inside, you’ll feel like you’ve been transported to another past that’s cooler than the one that actually existed. Trust me, you would not be able to find many of the movies here at the corporate video stores that now stoke nostalgia in people. And you certainly wouldn’t be bobbing your head to “Mesopotamia,” the funkiest of the B-52s’ jams, while you browse. 

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Taleen Kali Covers Smashing Pumpkins and My Bloody Valentine at EP Release Show in L.A.

(left to right) Genevieve, Taleen Kali and Josephine playing Covered EP release party at Love Song Bar DTLA on February 8, 2025
(left to right) Genevieve, Miles (back of pic on drums) Taleen Kali and Josephine playing Covered EP release party at Love Song Bar DTLA on February 8, 2025 (Pic: Liz O.)

Taleen Kali has a new EP out on Valentine’s Day. Covered features the band’s versions of songs by Smashing Pumpkins, My Bloody Valentine, The Supremes, Garbage and Depeche Mode. Last night, at the appropriately-named Love Song in downtown Los Angeles, was the listening party, which included a live performance. This isn’t a review, which would be unfair on account of the fact that I was the DJ for the event. It’s more of a recap. 

The Love Song is a tiny bar— like, really tiny— at the front of The Regent, a 110-year-old former movie theater-turned-concert venue. Bands typically play in a patch of open space right next to the bar’s entrance, in front a window that faces Main Street and that was the setup last night. All this makes for a very intimate performance. If you’re up at the front, which I was on account of the CDJs being set up right next to the band, you’re really face-to-face with the performers. 

Continue reading Taleen Kali Covers Smashing Pumpkins and My Bloody Valentine at EP Release Show in L.A.

Drop Nineteens’ New-Old Album, 1991, Is Essential Shoegaze

Drop Nineteens 1991 album cover
Cover of 1991 by Drop Nineteens

As the story goes, in the early years of the 1990s, the buzz on Drop Nineteens began with two demo sessions that landed them gigs, ink in the U.K. press and, ultimately, a record deal with Caroline. The songs on the demo, though, weren’t what made it onto the band’s debut album, Delaware. In fact they hadn’t been officially released until now. Called 1991, the remastered collection of songs recorded mostly in a dorm room on an 8-track reel-to-reel is out now via Wharf Cat Records. 

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French Police Has a New EP, Espera, Out Now

French Police Espera EP cover
Cover of French Police’s new EP, Espera

French Police released a new EP, Espera, last week. If you haven’t already added the four-song release to your listening queue, get on that asap because this is a good one. 

Based in Chicago, French Police is a trio on the post-punk/darkwave tip who have been steadily gaining popularity over the past few years. Anecdotally, I can tell you that their songs were requested at virtually every party I played with Klub Nocturno this past year. Frequently, their songs were requested more than once during the course of one night. Outside of the clubs, you have probably heard them in the ether somewhere in L.A. Recently, when I was at Alamo Drafthouse to see Pump Up the Volume, there was a French Police playlist on in the bar. 

Continue reading French Police Has a New EP, Espera, Out Now

Indie music and alt culture blog from Los Angeles. By Liz O.