Blog

The Boxer Rebellion wraps up tour at Detroit Bar

http://detroitbar.com/wp-content/uploads/Augustines1.jpg
We Are Augustines
http://detroitbar.com/wp-content/uploads/Boxer1.jpg
The Boxer Rebellion

The Boxer Rebellion wrapped up their tour with We Are Augustines on Sunday night at Detroit Bar. Local boys Polaris at Noon kicked off the night followed by We Are Augustines who put on one of the better shows we’ve seen in a long time. With their stage energy and rocking riffs these guys killed it and proved to be a tough act to follow. Their rendition of Tom Petty’s “Even the Losers” was better than the original. This is definitely a band to keep on your radar.
When The Boxer Rebellion hit the stage we went from a stimulant to a depressant in a good way. Their reverb vocals and polished musical presence kept the packed house happy. Although the lead singer was fighting a cold the vocals still sounded strong. The london based band’s obvious passion for their music was good to see and while their older songs remain more popular than their latest album we’re confident The Cold Still will top the charts. The last song of the night, “The Gospel of Goro Adachi” with its perfectly woven keyboard was the ideal ending to a great night.

Memphis’ soul was always there

Here’s lil snippet from an article written in the Daily Pilot
By Joanna Clay, joanna.clay@latimes.com

“Detroit Bar has always been in my list of places I wanted to open, even when we opened Memphis,” he said. “For me, music is kind of the driving force.”

The Detroit Bar opened on 19th Street in Costa Mesa in 2001, quickly becoming a hotspot for indie artists making a name for themselves. Musicians such as Stereolab, Matt Costa, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs and Modest Mouse have performed on their stage. Elliott Smith performed at Detroit Bar a month before his 2003 suicide.

Bradley credits his team for attracting names to the small, two-room bar and venue, which resembles a comfortable nightclub.

Continue to the full article here:

James Fletcher a must see Detroit Bar Resident



James Fletcher has spent the last few handfuls of years drumming for a number of great bands and songwriters (SMILE, MATT COSTA, SCOTT WEILAND, SATISFACTION, MPHASE, ZEE AVI).

After moving from the English countryside to southern California as a young boy, he was drawn to the drum kit after his father told him that foreign-born immigrants could not become President.

In early 2010, after 4 years touring/recording with Matt Costa, he began piecing together ideas for a record of his own. Fletcher then convinced engineer, Ryan Mall to set aside a month at his studio, Lillian Sounds so the two could get to work. The result, ‘The Booze & Clocks’ is an impressive first move from atop the drummer’s throne and into the captain’s chair. Memorable, meandering melodies, lush harmonies and cleverly pieced lyrical maps lead to a splendid musical kick.

“I hadn’t necessarily planned to make a record of my own. The last ten years have kept me relatively busy behind the drums: touring, recording, and performing with various bands/songwriters. After returning home from a long spell of touring last year, I got settled in a great old house in Santa Ana with my girlfriend. The driveway led to a quiet garage next to our garden. It was the perfect spot to start hashing out some rough song ideas I’d had kicking around on old cassette tapes. For the next few weeks, our two dogs watched in confusion from beside the piano, the cat took cover up in the rafters and the songs slowly began to take shape.
I set aside a small window of time and an even smaller sum of cash to go into Lillian Sounds, a small, but efficient studio in Costa Mesa. My friend/engineer, Ryan Mall and I locked ourselves in the studio and started tracking on April 20th. Ryan had mentioned he’d be leaving town to start another project (one that actually paid him what he was worth!!) on May 21st. That gave us a month and 1 day to start and finish the record.

By May 15th, after many late nights, lots of laughs, a box of empty wine bottles and pages of torn lyrics sheets, we were beginning the final mixes of the record. The Booze & Clocks was completed on May 21st.”

James Fletcher
Check out James Fletcher’s website here!
and
His Facebook here!

A Week at Detroit

DBAR

A Week at Detroit
by Kim Conlan (aka The Indie Peddler)

Every night there is something to do at Detroit Bar, the music venue hiding in the corner of the Vista Center located in Eastside Costa Mesa. Drive on 19th street past Placentia Ave., past the old eVocal, past Avalon, turn left at the brightly lit marquee, and in towards the corner of the parking lot. There, you will find one of the most vital contributing venues in the underground Orange County music and art scene.
Throughout the venue, the reoccurring theme is an aged, yet chic style of Mod. Knitted pieces of tangerine-colored pillow art litter the walls of the dance floor, bar area, and pool hall; buffering the music that spews from speakers. Every piece of interior has rounded corners, whether it is the stools, tables, or booths. The establishment is split into three tiers; the first being the open concert hall, the second the bar, booths, and DJ arena, and the last being the pool room that possesses a digital jukebox, a classic joystick Pacman arcade game, and more lounge seating.
For nine years, the stage has featured thousands of bands; some good, some great, and some to forget. But each performance always shines in it’s own distinct way. From a wooden beam above and away from the stage hangs the modest light system and fog machine. To the right and left, suspended with a tilt towards the audience, are two substantial house speakers. Monitors litter the extension of the platform that was built into the existing frame of the stage just a few weeks ago, providing a little extra space for the performers. Surrounding the musicians are three walls of orange-painted concrete hidden behind a perimeter of deep red curtains. In the back, centered in the drapery, is an oversized smooth metal replica of the Detroit Bar logo, always beaming in the glow of shifting red, blue, green, and yellow beams of stage light. For those who see the merit in discovering new and upcoming musical acts to add to their life playlist, it is the perfect place to reside every night of the week…

Continue reading here!

Top 10 Venues of the 21st Century… and Detroit is one of them!


From flavorwire.com’s article “The 10 Greatest New Music Venues of the 21st Century”

“It may sound like a clusterfuck of odd ideas — a sleek, modern bar named for gritty Motor City and located in a freaking strip mall in Orange freaking County — but Detroit Bar is far cooler than the sum of its parts. Opened in 2001, in the space that used to house punk venue Club Mesa, the place is actually be worth traveling to the ‘burbs for. Patrons praise Detroit Bar’s strong drinks and weekly karaoke nights, and upcoming bookings feature Margot & the Nuclear So and So’s, The Legendary Pink Dots, and even RRIICCEE — the bizarre collaboration between Vincent Gallo and former Hole guitarist Eric Erlandson.”

Page 8 of 9« First...56789