Oh, the algorithms' mysterious ways... Well, sometimes there's a Hallelujah when you find new music that seemed was tailored for you. That's happened to me when I crossed paths with Giant Killer Bats on Spotify. I used to feel I was stuck in my musical bubble, Spotify feeding me with the same music I've been listening to since 2003. But ever since we started this podcast and were forced away from our comfort zone to look for new acts, Spotify seemly understood I was in for discovering new musical territories and it has sent my way a couple of treasures. One of my favorites this year is McCoy's solo project and particularly his eponymous EP. It reminds me of a time (around 2003... don't laugh) when pop melodies, grunge and, DIY gave birth to a new wave of fragile yet shinny songwriters. Giant Killer Bats is out on Terrible Records, and we can't wait for you to discover it. 

Together, we're starting a conversation about saving Rock N' Roll in the City of Angels. Casually talking from the Sunset Strip, we are launching a movement with our collective called Team Nowhere and we are calling artists & fans to unite. If you are in a band, or if you're a photographer, a developer, a hairstylist, whatever your craft... In other words, if you really want to help to put Rock music back on the map for the ten upcoming years... well let's build a community together, and let's plan concrete actions to make a positive shift in our industry. Rock isn't dead, the Sunset strip isn't dead. But only if we want it! #Teamnowhere #Hangingonsunset @team_nowhere @hangingonsunset @nowhere_team_us

Cody went to high school with The Strokes. You can say he was at the right place at the right time. Well, that's probably true but if you don't have the talent, you won't get much of it. And The Strokes were fortunate enough to get that one friend who could document their teenage years and their rise to stardom. Cody learned his craft from his parents. His mom was a photographer and she got her share of rock royalty snapping too. She used to work with iconic New York legends like Lou Reed or Johnny Thunders. Young Cody was already well versed in the art of taking pictures when he got to befriend the boys who were gonna form the band that took the new millennium by storm. He was there when they played their first shows and he witnessed how quickly they became rockstars. Their career skyrocketed and so Cody's one. One day, he's at School talking to Nick Valensi, and the next thing you know he's working with THE legendary music photographer Mick Rock, shooting Iggy Pop. Cody has been working now for 20 + years and he tells us how he's approaching his art, with a lot of passion and tons of humility. If your friends are forming a band and you just found your parents' old camera, well you know what to do...

Together, we're starting a conversation about saving Rock N' Roll in the City of Angels. Casually talking from the Sunset Strip, we are launching a movement with our collective called Team Nowhere and we are calling artists & fans to unite. If you are in a band, or if you're a photographer, a developer, a hairstylist, whatever your craft... In other words, if you really want to help to put Rock music back on the map for the ten upcoming years... well let's build a community together, and let's plan concrete actions to make a positive shift in our industry. Rock isn't dead, the Sunset strip isn't dead. But only if we want it! #Teamnowhere #Hangingonsunset @team_nowhere @hangingonsunset @nowhere_team_us

A few months ago we fell in love with Giant Killer Bats' music. Under this moniker, we discover a talented young man called McCoy. We invited him on the podcast and we had a blast. During our conversation, he mentioned he got his stage name from a tour with Teenage Wrist, for which he was hired to play guitar. Fernanda and I just discovered Teenage Wrist with their new record "Earth is a black hole" (Epitaph) so we asked McCoy if he could put us in touch with the band. A few weeks after, we were on Zoom with Marshall and Anthony, and we had a great time uncovering the making of their new record. We went beyond the usual interview and talked a lot about the local LA scene and the emerging bands around them: Milly, Talker, Starcrwaler, Rollerbladers, Iron point (Anthony's other band where he sings) and, of course, Giant Killer Bats; they're all proving that rock is living his best life in the city of angels. Marshall thinks it just comes out of fashion sometimes but rock music will always eventually reemerge in the mainstream. Maybe it's that time again, maybe not but what is certain is that Teenage Wrist is leading a new scene of talented musicians. Last but not least, they're about to go on tour with Dead Poet Society, another band we had the pleasure to interview on our podcast. Those bands are the future of rock. Mark our words. Vincent

Fernanda and Vincent have been around the LA alternative music scene for almost a decade yet they never felt it was a real community. They came to the US with the same dream of joining a vibrant community of artists but they soon realized the Laurel Canyon, Sunset Strip, and Fairfax High School days were long gone. Because talent is still brewing and because L.A. deserves another chapter in the music history books, we decided to help by giving a voice to a new generation of rock bands and connect them to the many fans & professionals that are hoping to see a new scene arise. Join the movement!

I landed in the US in august 2010 and one of the first friends I have made were Jeremy and Robert. I first met Jeremy at Pappy and Harriet's, a wonderful restaurant and concert venue lost in the desert, 2 hours away from Los Angeles. With Yard Of Blondes, my band, we looked around and see where we could crash some Open Mics and booked our first DIY tour around some desert towns. Teddy Quinn, the open mic host, and legend on his own let us perform that night and he actually let us perform more than the usual 2 or 3 songs! I think we ended playing our whole set, which was not very long anyway at this point! We met so many friends that night and created souvenirs for life. Soon after we came back from that memorable trip, Jeremy invited us to a BBQ at his place in Picfair Village. That's where we met Robert. He's an amazing violin player and, for a little while, he played with Yard Of Blondes. We also had the pleasure to work with Jeremy as he arranged strings for some alternate acoustic versions of our debut album Feed The Moon. They're still to be released and I hope you're going to listen to them soon! Well, enough of me, what matters is we got to talk for about an hour and a half to some of the most educated men we know when it comes to music. I love the way they analyze music and put it in perspective. Whether they talk about classical music or rock n roll, it's always with passion but also through their experience as all-time Angelinos and classically-trained professionals. Check their new podcast Mind Over Music. Vincent

Fernanda and Vincent have been around the LA alternative music scene for almost a decade yet they never felt it was a real community. They came to the US with the same dream of joining a vibrant community of artists but they soon realized the Laurel Canyon, Sunset Strip, and Fairfax High School days were long gone. Because talent is still brewing and because L.A. deserves another chapter in the music history books, we decided to help by giving a voice to a new generation of rock bands and connect them to the many fans & professionals that are hoping to see a new scene arise. Join the movement!

If anyone knows something about hanging on the Sunset strip it's her! Jes Fama is an indie journalist and she's been hosting and covering many musical events around LA for many years now, which makes her a key witness of a scene with many talents, yet still struggling to join forces and overcome the fierce competition that is happening between bands. She advocates for building something together, more authenticity, and more professionalism and she promises she will be there for anyone playing with their heart and demonstrating talent and goodwill. Say no more, we're on board!

Check her world and her interviews here: 

https://www.youtube.com/c/JesFama/about

https://www.instagram.com/jesfama/

https://www.almostfama.com/

Together, we're starting a conversation about saving Rock N' Roll in the City of Angels. Casually talking from the Sunset Strip, we are launching a movement with our collective called Team Nowhere and we are calling artists & fans to unite. If you are in a band, or if you're a photographer, a developer, a hairstylist, whatever your craft... In other words, if you really want to help to put Rock music back on the map for the ten upcoming years... well let's build a community together, and let's plan concrete actions to make a positive shift in our industry. Rock isn't dead, the Sunset strip isn't dead. But only if we want it! #Teamnowhere #Hangingonsunset @team_nowhere @hangingonsunset @nowhere_team_us 

I heard about Never Loved through Kenton Remmey, the singer from the OC band Silence of you. They got a tour coming up together supporting Armor for Sleep (as of today, it's still happening!). Well, I'm glad he did because Camm's journey is pretty inspiring for new bands. After a few years of playing just for fun in the Florida scene, he craved for more. He wanted to show up with a professional project and start a real career. His talent convinced Matt Squire (Underoath, Panic! at the Disco, Sum 41, Simple Plan, All Time Low, Good Charlotte, The Used, Taking Back Sunday, and many more) to help him materialize his vision. A few tracks later, Camm formed the band around his project and they soon signed with the great label Equal Vision. Sounds like a fairy tale? I bet it's more the result of being smart, hardworking, and talented! We talk about all that, the Florida scene, and the LA mythical venues in this episode. 

Together, we're starting a conversation about saving Rock N' Roll in the City of Angels. Casually talking from the Sunset Strip, we are launching a movement with our collective called Team Nowhere and we are calling artists & fans to unite. If you are in a band, or if you're a photographer, a developer, a hairstylist, whatever your craft... In other words, if you really want to help to put Rock music back on the map for the ten upcoming years... well let's build a community together, and let's plan concrete actions to make a positive shift in our industry. Rock isn't dead, the Sunset strip isn't dead. But only if we want it! #Teamnowhere #Hangingonsunset @team_nowhere @hangingonsunset

I read somewhere that Bruce Springsteen and Jack White are fans of Pete Molinari. I’m not surprised he would seduce such seasoned songwriters because Pete is accomplishing kind of a magic trick with his music. With his songs and words, he transports his listeners to another era where songwriters were also poets and where a good song would stick in your head for days. That’s what « I don’t like the man I am » did to me. I’m still humming it at the moment. One of our common friends, the very talented photographer Victoria Smith first heard him on Spotify. I guess her algorithm found it appropriate to play Pete Molinari between the Beatles and Bob Dylan. As a result, she thought he was a dead legend until one day, she stumbled upon his Instagram and discovered that he was alive but also living in the same city, Los Angeles. She messaged him and they became friends and then I became friends with Victoria through Burak, my guitar player, and, long story short, we all met and got along. As soon as I met Pete, I wanted to have him on the show. He explained to me his new adventure involving Mila Spigolon, his girlfriend but, most of all, an amazing burlesque Brazilian dancer. If he looks straight out of the ’60s, she must have taken a time machine a little further because she’s channeling some Parisian roaring twenties vibes.

They have teamed up during the pandemic and prepared a Livestreamed Variety show which will be released on March 24th. I encouraged you all to check it, it's called the Limelight Show. But I’m sure that when you will have listened to this hour and a half of music history, fun and when you will have heard the two beautiful live songs that they offered us, you will be buying your tickets. I have mine already! Vincent

Together, we're starting a conversation about saving Rock N' Roll in the City of Angels. Casually talking from the Sunset Strip, we are launching a movement with our collective called Team Nowhere and we are calling artists & fans to unite. If you are in a band, or if you're a photographer, a developer, a hairstylist, whatever your craft... In other words, if you really want to help to put Rock music back on the map for the ten upcoming years... well let's build a community together, and let's plan concrete actions to make a positive shift in our industry. Rock isn't dead, the Sunset strip isn't dead. But only if we want it! #Teamnowhere #Hangingonsunset @team_nowhere @hangingonsunset

Today Jack and Dylan from Dead Poet Society are joining us. It's very special for me because Dylan used to play in my band Yard Of Blondes for about a year. I'm very proud of his journey and I'm glad he's now playing with a great band with friends he met back in 2013 when they were all studying at Berklee Music School in Boston. I remember seeing them a few years ago at the Viper Room and they were already a very energetic band. I saw their music evolve over the years and they gradually became masters of catchiness while delivering powerful music in the same vein as Highly Suspect, Nothing But Thieves, Royal Blood, or Cleopatrick. That's the scene they want to belong to and with the help of their mentors "Badflower", they are now equipped to play in the same category. They signed recently with Spinefarm records and they now have all the tools to become the next alternative sensation. Treat yourself, listen to their new record, and check their live-streamed concert on March 13th.

Together, we're starting a conversation about saving Rock N' Roll in the City of Angels. Casually talking from the Sunset Strip, we are launching a movement with our collective called Team Nowhere and we are calling artists & fans to unite. If you are in a band, or if you're a photographer, a developer, a hairstylist, whatever your craft... In other words, if you really want to help to put Rock music back on the map for the ten upcoming years... well let's build a community together, and let's plan concrete actions to make a positive shift in our industry. Rock isn't dead, the Sunset strip isn't dead. But only if we want it! #Teamnowhere #Hangingonsunset @team_nowhere @hangingonsunset

Brian O'Connor is at the center of our local LA community. He's the initiator of Bands in a Barbershop, a really cool alternative space that got the attention of Echo Park Rising last year as he ended up curating a live-streamed edition of the festival.  It was featuring a band we love and know well at Hanging On Sunset, I'm talking about Speed Of Light, which Brian manages too.

But ss one of our favorite local clubs, The Satellite, is being turned into a weed shop and a restaurant, he's not giving up on rock n' roll and joining up forces with Mackey, the ex-booker of the now-defunct club and they are launching Satellite TV in March. They want to create a virtual hub for the community on Instagram. The goal is to keep the music community connected with content created directly by the artists and musicians.  Every month, they will establish a schedule and different actors of the music scene will take control of the Insta page for their own live programs. When we heard about that, we knew we needed to talk to Brian because that's exactly the kind of action we want for our music community. It's all about teaming up and helping each other and giving a spotlight to those who create around us. The Satellite is dead, long live Satellite TV!

Together, we're starting a conversation about saving Rock N' Roll in the City of Angels. Casually talking from the Sunset Strip, we are launching a movement with our collective called Team Nowhere and we are calling artists & fans to unite. If you are in a band, or if you're a photographer, a developer, a hairstylist, whatever your craft... In other words, if you really want to help to put Rock music back on the map for the ten upcoming years... well let's build a community together, and let's plan concrete actions to make a positive shift in our industry. Rock isn't dead, the Sunset strip isn't dead. But only if we want it! #Teamnowhere #Hangingonsunset @team_nowhere @hangingonsunset

When we asked Machinekit what they did to save rock n' roll, they couldn't care less because, at the end of the day, they're really trying to save Techno. Joke aside, it says a lot about them. I had the feeling that "Rock" is a label that scares them. What really matters for them is the DIY community, people who make music for the sake of it, not to become famous. They're not afraid the rock scene might be dying because the underground always finds a way to resurrect. They have witnessed the rise and fall of local scenes many times and a new scene will eventually emerge when people find the passion and motivation. Machinekit doesn't lack any of these. They use every resource they have to make their music unique. Now they are even producing their music themselves. The pandemic forced them home and they took the time they had to learn more about production and control their sound even more. What we loved about them is that they have a big sense of community. John Montoya, the singer is also contributing to the San Diego Webzine "Tour Worthy" (check it!) and he's trying to give a voice to the indie bands he thinks deserve attention, just like us! I'm guessing Tour Worthy, Machinekit, and Hanging on Sunset will meet again when the concerts start again. Can't wait!

Together, we're starting a conversation about saving Rock N' Roll in the City of Angels. Casually talking from the Sunset Strip, we are launching a movement with our collective called Team Nowhere and we are calling artists & fans to unite. If you are in a band, or if you're a photographer, a developer, a hairstylist, whatever your craft... In other words, if you really want to help to put Rock music back on the map for the ten upcoming years... well let's build a community together, and let's plan concrete actions to make a positive shift in our industry. Rock isn't dead, the Sunset strip isn't dead. But only if we want it! #Teamnowhere #Hangingonsunset @team_nowhere @hangingonsunset