I popped into The Mermaid at the last minute on Tuesday to play about 90 minutes of music for Dolce Vita. I knew that there was a screening of Dave Attell’s Netflix special happening beforehand. What I didn’t know, however, was that Dave Attell was actually going to make an appearance. We didn’t meet, but it was wild to be in the same room as him because I loved Insomniac.
Continue reading Here’s What I Played at Dolce Vita on March 26, 2024
It was a little unexpected, but I did turn up at The Mermaid on Tuesday night to provide the music for the first half of Dolce Vita. I also didn’t have a chance to eat dinner beforehand, which led to another unexpected delight. The jalapeño and pineapple wontons at The Mermaid are amazing. I hadn’t had them before last night and loved them. Even with the chili sauce, they won’t set your mouth on fire. It’s more of a subtle sweet-and-spicy hybrid. Plus, they are shaped like starfish, which I find endearing.
Anyhow, here’s what you may have heard if you were at The Mermaid between 8 p.m. and 10:30 p.m. on Tuesday night.
Continue reading Here’s What I Played at Dolce Vita on March 5, 2024
I popped into The Mermaid on Tuesday night to play the opening set for Dolce Vita. The party starts at 8 p.m. now and there was already a good crowd at the bar by then, so I dropped more familiar tunes than I normally would for the early portion of the night. Also got to work in some themed portions of the set. I won’t disclose the themes right now, but if you look through the playlist below, you might be able to figure out what they are.
Next up is Disco Matinee on Sunday, March 3, at Grand Star Jazz Club. The theme is freestyle and hi-NRG and I’ll be playing it all on vinyl. Anyhow, keep reading to see what I played at Dolce Vita on February 27, between (roughly) 8 p.m. and 10:30 p.m.
Continue reading Here’s What I Played at Dolce Vita at The Mermaid on February 27, 2024
For as long as I’ve been DJing, I’ve been keeping track of my set lists. Somewhere in my, er, archives (really, boxes of folders that I haven’t gone through since college), there are probably old playlists of my KXLU shows and crumpled bits of paper from my early club sets. I started sharing the set lists online before social media mostly so that people who went to the clubs could familiarize themselves with the new music and people who weren’t in L.A. knew where they could dance to Ladytron or Miss Kittin or whoever when they visited our fine city. (And, that actually worked, I did meet people from as far as London and Berlin who saw my set list in some electro-indie-whatever forum.)
Continue reading Here’s What I Played for Dolce Vita at The Mermaid on January 16, 2024
You have two chances to catch me in the DJ booth this week. First up is Club Underground’s Bowie Nite this Friday, January 12, at Grand Star Jazz Club in Chinatown. Underground is taking over both floors of the Grand Star this week, with Larry G. playing open to close on the main floor and me, Liz O., doing the same on the second floor. Discounted tickets are available now via either Dice and Eventbrite.
The Grand Star is located at 943 N. Broadway, Los Angeles 90012. It’s inside Chinatown’s Central Plaza, right next to the Bruce Lee statue. Both street and lot parking is available in the neighborhood. The venue is also right across Broadway from Metro’s A Line station in Chinatown. Party starts at 9:30 p.m. and it is a 21+ event.
On Tuesday, January 16, you’ll find me at The Mermaid loaded up with Italo disco jams for L.A. Industrial’s weekly party, Dolce Vita. There’s no cover and it’s 21+, so stop by with your pals for some tasty cocktails and a soundtrack filled with tunes by the likes of Fancy, Fun Fun, Ken Laszlo, Sabrina and more.
The Mermaid is located at 428 E. 2nd Street in Little Tokyo. There’s typically loads of free parking available after 9 p.m., which is the same time that Dolce Vita starts. The bar is also a (very) short walk from Metro’s A/E line stop in Little Tokyo.
As for the rest of the week, here are my picks.
Continue reading L.A. Music Events: January 11 – January 17, 2024
A few years ago, I finally got over my fear of tequila (we’ll save that story for another day) and realized that I love margaritas. They’re tart and salty with just a hint of sweetness underneath, all qualities I appreciate in everything. The Mermaid, where I play (more or less) monthly as part of L.A. Industrial’s party Dolce Vita, is home to a very good margarita. In fact, I would say, no matter who is bartending on any given night, it’s consistently the best classic margarita I’ve had. I don’t know the secret. I just know that it’s so good that I keep going for the margarita instead of working my way through The Mermaid’s ample menu of cocktails, even though I know from experience that their specialty drinks are delicious.
So, that’s my tip for you today. Get yourself a margarita next time you’re at The Mermaid. Here’s my set list from Dolce Vita. Catch me next week at the Grand Star on Sunday, December 3 for Disco Matinee and on Friday, December 8 for Depeche Mode Night/My birthday at Underground.
Continue reading Here’s What I Played for Dolce Vita at The Mermaid on November 28, 2023
I’ll be back at The Mermaid this coming Tuesday, November 28, for weekly Italo disco Dolce Vita. Join David Christian of L.A. Industrial and me, Liz O., for a night filled with Fun Fun and Fancy as we dive into our collections of ’80s dance classics.
Dolce Vita starts at 9 p.m. and goes until last call. There’s no cover and it’s 21+. The Mermaid is located at 428 E. 2nd Street, about a block or so away from Little Tokyo’s A/E Metro stop. There also tends to be lots of available street parking on Tuesday nights. For a taste of what you might here, check out my playlists or listen to my set from Dolce Vita, recorded live on February 7, 2023, right here:
Hope to catch you at The Mermaid on November 28.
Liz O. is an L.A.-based writer and DJ. Read her recently published work and check out her upcoming gigs.
Related:
HERE’S WHAT I PLAYED AT THE MERMAID FOR ITALO HORROR DISCO ON OCTOBER 24, 2023
HERE’S WHAT I PLAYED AT THE MERMAID FOR DOLCE VITA ON SEPTEMBER 26
October might have been stressing me out this year, but I felt an instant sense of relief inside The Mermaid last night. I was there to DJ another week of Dolce Vita’s Italo Horror Disco, this time with DJ Alex Arias. The first thing I noticed is that the Halloween display in the bar has grown larger and more detailed since I last played there earlier this month. The centerpiece is a mermaid skeleton, who is surrounded by a bounty of odds and ends, from crystal balls to eyeballs to skeleton hands. The glow-in-the-dark paints and swaths of fabric help give the impression that you stumbled upon this altar while underwater. It’s super cool. Stop by The Mermaid and check it out this week if you have a chance.
Other than that, it was great to play with Alex for the first time. I loved his set. Plus, some friends stopped by, which made the night all the better. Here’s what I played in my sets last night. Also, a reminder that I’ll be playing Underground’s Halloween party on Friday, October 27 and there’s a low ticket alert for the party, so get yours as soon as possible.
Continue reading Here’s What I Played at The Mermaid for Italo Horror Disco on October 24, 2023
This week, you can catch me playing a few records at Vidéothèque’s Opening Party on Saturday evening, sometime between 7 p.m. and 10 p.m. Plus, I’ll be at The Mermaid on Tuesday, October 24 to drop an even spookier Italo Horror Disco set than the one I played earlier this month. But, there’s still a lot more than that happening in the next handful of days. Keep reading to see what my L.A. music event recommendations are for this week.
Continue reading L.A. Music Events: Friday, October 20 through Thursday, October 26
I wasn’t planning to DJ this week, but a last minute opportunity came up to play at The Mermaid for Dolce Vita on Tuesday night. I really enjoy playing at The Mermaid, especially for Dolce Vita, so I dropped whatever Italo disco and Italo-adjacent folders I had on my hard drive into Rekordbox and played from 9 p.m. until around 11:15 or so. Here’s what you heard. I used the file names for artist and song title, just so you can find the tracks if you want. In the case of some of the edits, it’s definitely not the actual name of the artist or title, but you can probably figure that out.
Continue reading Here’s What I Played at The Mermaid for Dolce Vita on September 26