New Weekly Shows in Los Angeles Every Thursday Night Starting January 9th 2020

I would say that one of goals this year is to play as many shows featuring my own music as possible. I have already been doing this—but a key ingredient in the continued success of such is finding a room where people will listen.

So, I created an event called “Listening Room Presents.”

I figure that I and many others, are trying their best to propagate some positive vibes on this planet, so why not try to do it every week! Every Thursday to be exact—right down the street from where I live. For free. No cover.

I’ve been very fortunate to meet a lot of talented folk in this area, and I wish to share all the wonderful music I have been running across, with my neighbors as well as any and all lovely people who are willing to listen.

The event is taking places at Talon Tap and Wine. A very warm thank you to Tom, the owner, for providing a space for us to share our original music.

The event runs from 8pm to 10pm, every Thursday, featuring two special guest singer-songwriters that I admire, as well as myself and my friend Tom Bremer, playing an acoustic duo set of songs I wrote at around 9pmish.

It is open to the public, and we would love to have you there to listen.

Talon Tap and Wine has one of the largest selections of Craft Beer and Wine in Eagle Rock! It is also an affordable location to have a few drink. They have one of the largest selections of high quality craft beer in my neighborhood, hands down, that can be purchased for as little as $2.50, and can be enjoyed right on the premises for an additional $2 taping fee. There’s not many places around town to enjoy such fine quality libations for $4.50. They also have a fine selection of craft beer on tap, and a selection of wines to enjoy on the premises as well.

January 9th is the first of many shows, and we would be honored to have you there to listen, and even more honored if you spread the word and brought a friend along with you.

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GOOD MUSIC: BENJAMIN JAFFE | Oh Wild Ocean of Love

I first heard Benjamin Jaffe many years ago in a band called Honey Honey. I was competing against them in a radio station competition. I gave them a listen and thought they sounded great! They ended up winning that competition and getting a record deal with Jude Cole and Keifer Sutherland’s record label, which I think was very well deserved. I didn’t keep contact with their music though. I forgot about them. There’s a lot of really great music going on around us; it wasn’t intentional by any means… it just sort of happened.

Fast forward a decade or so, and I’m at Hotel Cafe for one of the Hootenanny nights they do on the last Monday of every month. It was a fantastic night of music. Everyone was excellent—but for whatever reason, this dude stood out to me in a way that was unforgettable. His songs were mesmerizing… and interesting—unique—I think that’s the right word. He has a beautiful voice. He’s an excellent guitar player—a studied guitar player. I’m watching him play chord inversions and utilizing a lot of the chord vocabulary that I’ve been studying myself for years, so I can see it. I can hear it. On these Hootenanny nights, the artists only play three songs, but that was all it took for me to dig what he was doing. I was hooked. I talked to him afterwards, we exchanged numbers and email. I joined his email list. He told me he was working on a new album. He sent a free download from that album to everyone on his mailing list. It was a song called “Dominator”. This one:

I listened to the hell out of that song. This was all probably in the later portion of 2017. “Dominator” kept me satiated while I waited for that full length. At any rate, he finally released said album. It’s called “Oh Wild Ocean of Love.” It was my favorite album of 2018. Heads and tails above the rest. It’s curious, and fun, and serious, and deep—like a Kurt Vonnegut novel. He’ll make me laugh in the middle of a serious song. I can relate to him. Did I mention he’s an excellent lyricist as well? He is.

I could sit here a wax poetic about his music—but instead I just urge you to pop this album on while you’re driving your car by yourself. I sat in traffic for hours on end listening to this beautiful piece of work. My desire is that you will get nearly as much joy from it as I did. It’s an album. It’s not a single. It’s not two tracks you love—and skip, skip, skip. It’s good art. It’s good music.

You can find WILD OCEAN OF LOVE everywhere where streaming music is available. You can also purchase his album if you fancy.

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DUSTIN LOVELIS | Dimensions | "Idiot"

After having written that last entry Tao Te Ching and sharing Madison Cunningham with you in previous weeks, I got to thinking: I don't talk enough about all of the local music around me I admire and love. I think I will continue to write these and share, and just coin them GOOD MUSIC.

There is so much excellent art happening on the local level. There is too much—too much that goes unnoticed. It's criminal.

We all know this in our bones. We are avid supporters of local art that resonates with us.

As some of you know, I spent 5 years living in Long Beach, and I found several wonderful acts there that I cherish (and I will be sharing all of them with you): Dustin Lovelis is one of them.

He is such a unique amalgamation of influences. There is this inescapable retro quality to his music that I admire as well—you feel comfortable in it, like your favorite t-shirt, a t-shirt that is new to you, but you just bought it from a curated second hand store for $67 and you're completely comfortable with that decision because it was love at first sight—and remember? It's comfortable as all fuck.

Most of all, I resonate with the deep honesty of his music.

However you want to describe it, there is a gravity that carries the will to bring one to tears given the right opportunity: such as someone just breaking your heart, or you yourself making a mistake you regret. Dustin is providing the soundtrack for you in those times by sharing his own personal experiences—perhaps—at least in my own imagination, that is the way I interpret it.

You can find Dustin and his music on all of the streaming services, but naturally, you can truly support his work by making a purchase, like I did, here:

https://porchpartyrecords.bandcamp.com/album/dimensions

If you are interested in finding him online you may do so here:

Facebook

Instagram

I hope you enjoy the song I posted of his, up yonder. It is entitled "Idiot."

You can also learn more about him through the all powerful Google Search Engine. If you are local to southern California, catch a show of his soon. He would be full of gratitude, and you yourself will be floored by his sheer talent.

- Mike

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