Catching Up with Califaudio

It's been a bit quieter than usual here on Califaudio over the past few weeks, but I haven't turned down the volume of my adventures in music - sound + noise. Here's some of what I've been up to, and I'll update with more details when I can.

The best concerts of September 2009 had to be the Nine Inch Nails farewell shows in LA. Lots of surprise guests and marathon set lists. It was a great way to Wave Goodbye to an amazing live band.

Opening band HEALTH was awesome too.

The following week I saw Sequenox play a cool hardware set with a MOTM modular at Partikel 3 at the Goethe Institut.

Then we switched gears and headed over to the Viper Room to see Kings of Spade bring their bluesy funk rock from Honolulu.

Last week I visited the Museum of Making Music in Carlsbad. The Legacy of Moog exhibition is great!

The next night I saw Telefon Tel Aviv at Spaceland. The show was pretty spacey and really good. The empty center instrument console was a touching nod to fallen band member Charlie Cooper.

A couple days later, the Revolting Cocks concert at the House of Blues on Sunset Blvd was disappointing. Apparently the group is touring without Al Jourgensen or any of the original RevCo members. I get that it's one of those bands with a revolving lineup, but without Al, it's just not right. It feels like you're watching a cover band.

Al Jourgensen did come out for the encore, which saved the show. He was super trashed and could barely play the guitar. It looks like he's only making it to a couple shows on this tour. Jim Rose opened up, and it was good to see him live again.

The next day, last Monday, I met up with Joe Satriani and Red Hot Chili Pepper drummer Chad Smith at a photo shoot in Hollywood. I picked up a prototype of the new Zoom Q3 and took it to the Playboy Mansion to film a video interview with Hugh Hefner and his Playmate girlfriends. (The Mansion really is one of greatest places on Earth.) Then back to Hollywood, where I got to chat with Led Zeppelin's John Paul Jones about his new band, Them Crooked Vultures, before they left for Austin to start their US tour. Can't wait to see him live with Dave Grohl and Josh Homme and Alain Johannes from Queens of the Stone Age.

On Wednesday, Peter Grenader invited me over to listen to "The Secret Life of Semiconductors," an epic sonic journey off of his upcoming Secret Life album.

What else... oh yeah, Friday night I went to Radiohead frontman Thom Yorke's surprise show at the Echoplex. I never thought I'd see Flea and Thom Yorke share the same stage, especially at a small venue like the Echoplex. Great show. I'll upload some video soon.