3/20/15

Source: janm.org

    

    The Japanese American national museum located at 100 N Central Ave in Los Angeles has been hosting a Hello Kitty exhibit since October 11 and will continue it until May 31. The exhibition was organized in celebration of Hello Kitty's 40th anniversary. The event will explore Hello Kitty's influences on pop culture throughout the years. Along with Hello Kitty, other unique items by Santio will be on display. 

    My friend, Niki introduced the exhibit to me yesterday and now we are thinking about going for a visit before it ends. I can honestly say that I've been a Hello Kitty enthusiast since I was little. Not to suggest that I'm a huge fan, but I do have Hello Kitty stationary, stuffed animals, erasers, perfumes and a book. I've always found it cute, I guess. It would be a fun day out to see the exhibit. It's only $10 for youth so the trek out there would be our only obstacle. 

3/19/15

Source: thekingbulletin.com

    I recently watched the film "The Virgin Suicides", based on the book. A friend of mine recommended it to me, and I noticed it was available to stream on Netflix so I went ahead and watched it. The movie is about five sisters who each end up committing suicide at some point throughout the movie. I truly enjoyed this film. Something that really stood out to me was its way of incorporating songs into the film perfectly. Well, I thought they were incorporated well, at least.
    I liked how the movie was narrated from the perspective of the neighborhood boys, watching the girls closely. The boys closely analyze the sisters' moves throughout the years. The movie leaves a bit of mystery as it is never totally explained why the sisters were depressed enough to kill themselves. The curiosity the film leaves the viewers with makes it all more intriguing.

3/18/15

Source: Facebook

    The Avalon Hollywood will be hosting the 2015 Smiths/Morrissey Convention presented by KROQ. It's an all ages event that is to take place form 6pm-2am on Sunday, April 26th. The event costs $25 and it will offer foods including vegetarian and vegan options, seeming as a sign of respect to Morrissey's strong personal beliefs...
    Tickets to the event will be sold at the following stores. 
BLACK HOLE - FULLERTON (714) 449-1788
AMOEBA MUSIC - HOLLYWOOD (323) 245-6400
MAD PLATTER - RIVERSIDE (951) 328-1600
KAOS RECORDS - COVINA (626) 914-5267
FREAKBEAT RECORDS - SHERMAN OAKS (818) 995-7603
FINGERPRINTS - LONG BEACH (562) 433-4996
RHINO RECORDS - CLAREMONT (909) 626-7774
RESISTOR RECORDS - MONROVIA (626) 303-5623
POOBAH RECORDS - PASADENA (626) 449-3359
REDZONE - PANORAMA CITY MALL (818) 891-1446
REDZONE - BURBANK (818) 842-1150
PIN UP BOOTIQUE - MONTEBELLO MALL (323) 727-7976
HEADLINE RECORDS - HOLLYWOOD (323) 655-2125
SPITFIRE INTERIORS - UPTOWN WHITTIER (562) 945-8970

3/17/15

Source: laweekly 

    LA Weekly is presenting Artopia, an exhibition of local art. The event will be held at the Container Yard in Downtown LA on Thursday, April 30th. The event will have art, music and food. I love the idea of this exhibit because it sounds like a fun way to share the work of LA's artists. 

    Unfortunately, the event is only open to those who are at least 21 years old. I would definitely try and attend the event if it was more convenient. If I was 21 and if the event took place on the weekend rather than a Thursday. Although the event is inconvenient for me and everybody else at my school, it should be a fun event for those of age...

3/13/15

Source: thescenestar.typepad.com

    Goldenvoice, the promotors of Coachella will also present Localchella. Localchella is an array of Los Angeles concerts throughout the month of April by the performers to be at Cochella. Some acts included are Toro Y Moi, The Orwells, Milky Chance, and Mac Demarco. 

    I think Localchella is a great idea by Goldenvoice. Since Coachella is expensive and inconvenient for many Los Angeles music fans, Localchella is a clever alternative. Instead of spending hundreds of dollars on the weekend to see only a few acts of choice, people acan save money and time by seeing some of their favorite acts at a regular concert. I even plan on going to a few of these shows.. 

3/12/15

Photo courtesy: Robert Landau

    Los Angeles's no longer existing Tower Records will be the focus of a new documentary. The iconic record store that used to be Sunset Blvd's social hub for both locals and rock stars will finally be explored in a film. Supposedly, the shop used to be crawling with some of the biggest music stars, including Robert Plant, David Bowie and Stevie Wonder. The excited energy at this location would even cause fights for a spot in their parking lot.

    I'm really looking forward to the release of this documentary since I've been hearing about Tower Records since I was a little kid. From the sound of things I've heard, Tower Records was one of LA's greatest musical highlights, and one of many music fans favorite pieces of LA. It sounds like an amazing place, everyone went there for a common reason which is simply to enjoy music.. I'm excited to watch the film. 

3/11/15

Source: IMDB

    Another film I've recently watched is James Franco's Palto Alto, starring himself along with Emma Roberts. The film is based on his book of the same title that contains a series of short stories  inspired by teenage life in Franco's hometown. I watched the movie last week and I enjoyed it so much I went and got myself a copy of the book. 

    Both the movie and the book honestly portray the stress and confusion of being a teenager anywhere. Franco's writing is raw and true, making the book seem more realistic. The stories are written in first person, from the point of view of the teenager. This quality make the stories that much more interesting. 

3/10/15

    Photo source: IMDB

    I just recently watched Vince Vaughn's breakout film, Swingers, from 1996. The film stars Vince Vaughn along with Jon Favreau, who also wrote it. The movie is about a couple of aspiring actors who move to Los Angeles in hopes of success. The movie has tons of references to Los Angeles stereotypes, which I found very funny as most of them were pretty accurate. 

    I would watch the film again because it's humor is witty and entertaining. I watched the movie with my mom so I'd like to show it to my friends now. It was fun to see Vince Vaughn at the beginning of his career since I've seen his more recent comedies since I was little. 

3/9/15

    Fullerton based independent record label, Burger Records presents its fourth annual music festival, Burgerama which is to take place on March 28 and 29th at the Orange County Observatory in Santa Ana. This year's lineup consists mainly of rock bands associated with Burger Records, along with more popular headliners like Weezer, Fidlar, Ty Segall and the Black Lips. Some up and coming artists to be performing at this year's Burgerama include Cherry Glazerr, The Garden, Twin Peaks, etc. Two-day general admission passes cost only $90 while two-day VIP passes sell for $120.

    I've seen both acts, Cherry Glazerr and the Aquadolls perform live before. I saw the Aquadolls open up for Kate Nash back in November of 2013 at the Fonda Theatre and again in July of 2014  at the Echo. The show at the Echo was presented by Burger Records and that was the first time I was introduced to the label. The creator of the label sold pins and records at the show and I was pleasantly surprised to see that he was very friendly, unlike most people I've met from corporate labels. This was one of the reasons I gained interest in this independent label. I saw Cherry Glazerr when they opened up for Sky Ferreira at the Belasco Theatre in November of 2014.