Lost Souls Kill Radio

Tonight I was at Lost Souls Cafe for five hours.

Why?

I'd wandered over for coffee and writing, and ended up talking to Nicanor, a musician who told me that he would be performing that night. (He also happens to work there.) I hadn't planned on staying long but after two hours of writing, it was too close to showtime for me to justify leaving.

I'm extremely glad I didn't rank out--the event tonight was hosted by Kill Radio's Marc and Jon of Hear Here and featured some excellent bands from the LA area. The lineup consisted of four very different performances which each brought a unique energy to the stage:

Daniel Spree | His manipulation of vocals and acoustic guitar captured me from the start, and he manages to hit a falsetto without turning it into a whine. He endeared himself to me with the very sweet "Thanks" he gave after each song before going on to the next.

The Redd Sea | Nicanor played electric guitar and provided vocals while acoustic guitarist and percussionist Richard provided the backup. The spiritual energy of their instrument-focused songs (dedicated to Dreams, Sound, and Mother Earth) combined with my caffeine haze and put me into a wonderful trance-like state.

Temple | Sharon Temple and Mark The Bassist switched up the feel of the show with their electro-dance sound and made it difficult not to make a spectacle of myself by getting up and dancing. The confidence of their shiny blue tights and tight red pants (try to guess who was wearing which) showed in their performance and was hardly shaken by a computer error (accursed technology!) during their set. Analog forever.

Confessions of a Corn Silo | Daniel Spree made a repeat appearance on bass along with the band's frontman Matt Reischling, percussionist Richard Pacheco, and a guitarist I deduce to be Mike Locke from their MySpace (forgive me if I'm wrong). They closed out the show on a strong note with nostalgic yet sardonic songs. I think I was initially won over by their song "Cow Town," which included a lyric about fertilizer that made me smile and reminded me of UC Davis.

This was only my second encounter with Lost Souls Cafe and my first encounter with Kill Radio and I am impressed. It was fantastic to experience the quality of these local bands; Lost Souls is definitely doing something right with their space. With their packed calendar, it takes effort to find a night where something isn't happening.

Kill Radio: support music. Or as Marc called it: the non-sucking solution.

Lost Souls Cafe
Old Bank District - Harlem Place Alley
124 W. 4th Street
90013

Route:
My path meandered too much to record-- Take Metro if you can!

Cost Summary:
Soul Drip over Ice: $2.85
Donation to Hear Here: the last $1.00 in my wallet
Total: $3.85

Stern note to self: never leave the camera at home again.