been a bit MIA due to travels to LA for Coachella and a side trip back to San Francisco. as a Coachella newbie, it far exceeded expectations. the festival was phenomenal as were all the bands. it wasn't easy multi-tasking but i did manage to check out quite a few bands. so since everyone has asked, here's who i saw (faves are bolded):

friday
the breeders
vampire weekend
mum
the national
goldfrapp
santogold
the raconteurs
the swell season
aphex twin
spank rock
fatboy slim

saturday
erol alka
cafe tacuba
hot chip
death cab for cutie
rilo kiley
kraftwerk
m.i.a
mark ronson
portishead
prince

sunday
gogol bordello
metric
my morning jacket
sia
modeselektor
simian mobile disco
chromeo
justice

with the summer outdoor concert season starting in good 'ole nyc, the timing is great! so many bands to check out. here's a great show list if you still need to fill your social calendars.

as for the bay area, caught the SF International Film Festival which is featuring some great films this year. Valse Sentimentale from Greece was just ok but Umbrella was a really interesting documentary coming out of China about the gentrification of rural and urban life...check it out.

also caught The Breeders again at Slim's...good times!

the action packed week wrapped with a fun techno dance party at Mighty with Ellen Alien and Sascha Funke. they're coming to Studio B this sat. for all of us lucky new yorkers.

and just when i thought i over-music'd out, got back into the nyc game with a party @ sullivan room where KBOT's new album was released.

managed to catch the tail end of the tribeca film festival with Fighter...sort of a karate kid/monsoon wedding mash-up.

ah if only every week could be like this :)

French Kicks

Saw the French Kicks last night at the Mercury Lounge, my latest in whiny boy bands. Was surprised to see so many girls out. My friend's explanation was that it's a band of 5 guys, what can you expect?! I guess guys are not fans of hearing other guys sing about their whiny lives when they have their own whiny lives to live. And if they didn't have whiny lives, the music wouldn't be as good (ahem, post-Paltrow Coldplay). And for all you fans out there (who might seriously be reading this?), please don't take "whiny" as a criticism - this is merely an unschooled description of what the kids these days call Emo.


As for the music, it was damn good.

The scene at Hot Chip on Saturday was quite the opposite. Also a group of 5 nerdish guys (nothing whiny about them!) playing to a packed house at Terminal 5. Most people seemed to be in their 20s and the guy checking my ID didn't look old enough to even check IDs! The show was great although a bit too short. Got our dance on afterwards at Studio B with Gui Boratto.

Safe seafood

When I was first handed this seafood watch card at the Monterey Bay Aquarium a few years ago it read more like a menu than guidelines for what-not-to-eat. What with all the environmental issues around sustainability, global warming, and other scaryisms I saw this again recently and am now thinking, hmm, maybe it's worth a look again. Unfortunately many yummy creatures are on the "avoid" list but then again, the "best choices" will should keep us all full and happy for quite some time.

Snowboarding

Just got back from a trip to Whistler where the snow lives on. Great snowboarding over there especially the Blackcomb national park glacier. Sadly, global warming has hit Whistler and melted a very cool blue ice cave that used to be on the glacier. If you haven't been, go now before it melts away!

Getting there isn't the easiest from the east coast as my 22 hour journey will show. No, it's not 22 hours of fly time, just a whole lot of waiting & sleeping at airports. If only I could realize my bi-coastal dream and keep a hub in San Francisco.

Hakata Ton Ton & Ida

went out to my first Eating Club event last night at Hakata Ton Ton. a restaurant in my hood that only serves pig's feet. ew, you may say...even if i love pig's feet, there's only so much I can eat. well, wait until you've tried this place! every dish was a delight in texture & flavor and no two tasted the same. the silky steamed goodness came out in a saikyo miso marinated dish (the group's fave!) while the trotters were braised to stewy perfection in a vinegar soy dish, not unlike a chicken adobo. the steamed bun sandwiches (in a chinese mantou-like bread) were a lovely starter as were the marinated pig's ears in a light vinegary sauce. more trotters made their way in the table in a gyoza dish with some of the best broth i've ever tasted. Ton Ton is truly a wonderful find!

at the very last minute, i found out about Ida's performance at the Cake Shop last night. while I haven't heard of the band before, their history with Lisa Loeb completely grabbed me. who doesn't love the ever cute Lisa Loeb and her fabulous glasses? they were still working through a couple kinks in organizing the performance but the music was overall very good. super mellow & folksy with an upbeat vibe to it.

Asian Art Week & A Fine Frenzy

it's been a whirlwind week of culture. last week was nyc's asian contemporary art week which featured a number of great exhibitions. Tomie Arai's screenprints were the highlight for me although Hyunkoo Lee's Animatus exhibit was also quite a spectacle.

as if all the culture wasn't enough, i was lucky to catch the first solo gig by indie pop band, A Fine Frenzy. yes, another dreamy girl vocal band...just can't get enough of 'em. great voice!

Graphic Design

i have a pile of industry pubs sitting on my desk which i rarely get around to reading. most of the time i save them for a cross-country flight where i will be bored enough to work through the pile. however, this month's creativity magazine really caught my eye with their retro geek chic cover. for those un-indoctrinated, creativity is part of the Ad Age family of advertising news.

the find of the week was ffffound, a site which allows the creative community to collect & save images from the web. really amazing design work! while you can view it, partakers are by invite only :( alas, if some kind ffffounder out there will invite me, i will be ever so happy. and why wouldn't you want to make a complete stranger happy?

Halou & Bob Mould

Saw Halou last night at Irving Plaza and they were great! Lovely band from San Francisco - goooo SF! The vocals were right up my alley in the oh-so-official dreamy girl genre of music. I'm not sure if there is an official term for this but if you know of one, shoot me a note. Both delicate and strong, I am loving them.

Sadly, they were just the opening band for Bob Mould, who even more sadly, I had never listened to before. Props for Bob Mould though - they too were pretty good.

When did Irving Plaza become The Fillmore East btw? Maybe I've been away from NY too long...

Chinese take-out

I've always wondered where the so called "Chinese" dishes on many take-out manus came from. This was certainly not the food my parents cooked growing up and it's not something I've bothered to venture into as I moved towards foodie uppityness.

It was with fascination and gratefulness that this curiosity was satisfied by this latest article by Jennifer 8. Lee in the NY Times which chronicles the origins of #56, #42 or #33 on your favorite take-out menu.