Images from Left Coast Live 2010

Many thanks to our volunteer photographers – Christina Guzman, Alexandre Chung and Mike Tkacheff. More pictures from other photogs on their way! If you have any you’d like to share with us, please send us a link or email them to info@leftcoastlive.com.

Posted on July 6 2010 | Comments (No Comments)

Exploring Aspects of DJ Culture

Over a hundred people came through to last night’s panel discussion about the DJ culture.  Many topics came up within the discussion revolving around the impact of technology, the responsibilities of a DJ, and what makes a DJ “real.”

So, what makes a DJ, you ask? According to Melanie “That Girl” Panergo and Paolo “Cutso” Bello of the Bangerz, a real DJ is someone that knows and breathes music and of course has a strong foundation when it comes to their skills. It is their responsibility to keep their audiences up to date with new music and of course keep their body moving throughout the night.  Sake One from Local 1200 mentioned that it is also their responsibility to uplift their communities when help is needed.

From this, many of our audience members learned a great deal about the power a DJ possesses when it comes to shaping culture and educating their communities.

We definitely plan on having more panels like this in the future. Thank you to all the participated and came through to this event.

-Grammer

Posted on June 25 2010 | Comments (No Comments)

Win a Cell Phone from Left Coast Live and Motorola!

Can’t get enough of OK Go, Yo La Tengo, The Mumlers, Good Hustle, J*DaVey, or The Park? Left Coast Live and Motorola are giving one lucky winner a cell phone that will allow you to upload all of your favorite LCL music so you’ll never miss a beat.

You can also record a clip of your favorite LCL artist as they perform at the festival or tweet about our Life Size Mousetrap with a phone from Motorola! Not only will you be able to hold your favorite moments of the festival in your new phone, but win an autographed poster by our Friday headliner, OK Go, to hang in your room!

You have until Friday, June 25th at 5 p.m. to upload a picture on our twitter or Facebook page with you and a Left Coast Live 2010 poster or banner. You can upload the picture on our Facebook page with the title “Left Coast Live and Motorola Contest” OR tweet using the twitter tag #LCL2010.

The Left Coast Live staff will pick one (1) winner who will win a poster autographed by OK Go and a cell phone sponsored by Motorola and Left Coast Live.

Posted on June 24 2010 | Comments (No Comments)

Hype!

Grunge; it’s the music scene that got coverage throughout the world for its sound, slang, appearance and way of life. The documentary Hype! was played in front of a packed room at Gordon Biersch on Tuesday night, followed by a panel discussion moderated by Cinequest’s Halfdan Hussey.

Hype! delved into the Seattle music scene with interviews from those that were at the forefront of the movement, including Sub Pop Records, the label that gained the most attention during that time for signing Nirvana, Soundgarden, and Mudhoney. I was impressed with how the movie used rare concert footage to trace the steps of grunge, from its subversive inception in neighborhood basements, to its explosion as a pop culture phenomenon. My favorite quote from the film was “every community has a pool of talented people that can come together to make things happen,” which is how Left Coast Live came about! }} More

Posted on June 24 2010 | Comments (No Comments)

Rock the Block: The Story of the Cactus Club

The Cactus Club was always just a story I heard from folks in San Jose. It always started off with “It was the place to go see live music…” or “If only you were around to catch it…” Although the Cactus Club had already been shut down for about 5 years when I came to San Jose, it’s character was still alive in every music lover here in San Jose that I met.

Although the doors didn’t open until 6:30pm, we had a line of more than a hundred folks ready to catch the world premiere of Rock the Block a few minutes before. In the end we had two sold out shows with every seat taken and people sitting on the sidelines to catch a documentary that summed up one of the best moments of the San Jose music scene.

With a theatre packed with folks who were part of the Cactus Club, there was laughter as comments were made on the food served there, the bar and the amazing restrooms (sarcastic tone) they provided for the attendees. Although there were many positive things about the Cactus Club, the atmosphere changed once the documentary started to talk about the demise of their favorite venue and the change of South First Street. And in the words of one of our panelists and co-owner of the Cactus Club, Stikmon, “All good things must come to an end, so good things could start again.”

Yes, the Cactus Club did end, but there are a still a bunch of folks who are keeping the music scene alive in San Jose. And with Left Coast Live this week, they are just one of many examples of a group of people who are out there promoting the vibrant SJ music scene, like the Cactus Club once did.

Here are photos from the night.

-Amalia Renteria

Posted on June 23 2010 | Comments (No Comments)