GREG LASWELL

It seems as almost every other week we have a review of a Greg Laswell show or an update, as he is a resident artist of Musicbleep and we frequent his shows as much as we possibly can. However, last Saturday's show, a last before he hits a summer long tour, my close friends all gathered at the Hotel Cafe to not only check out his performance, but to celebrate my date of birth. So I would like to thank my friends, AJC, NMIT (ILYG), and to Greg himself (thank you for the dedication).

The show was sold out, per usual, and packed in my favorite venue. He had all of his "teammates" on stage to perform with him, which created a familiar, yet rare dynamic (he played solo the previous night). As you all know from previous posts we have seen Greg at various venues, playing with varies acts, and on the Hotel Cafe tour; it never gets old. I would also like to congratulate him on the single that he wrote especially for the season finale of Grey's Anatomy, 'Off I Go'. If you knew what was best for you, after reading this blog, go to iTunes and download this song, it's amazing! Check him out... www.myspace.com/greglaswell.com and www.greglaswell.com

ANYA MARINA - TONIGHT AT THE HOTEL CAFE

If you have nothing to do tonight, head over to the Hotel Cafe in Hollywood to catch singer/songwriter Anya Marina. I had the chance to see her at an event for Rockville, CA a few months back, and she left me speechless. So come out and see her tonight!! If you can't make it tonight, you have a few more chances as she's heading out again for a Spring tour.

Anya Marina is reuniting with her tour buddies, The Virgins, for a Spring jaunt. Hitting up a couple cities they missed on their first go-round with Lissy Trullie, the tour will take them from Denver to Orlando. But after a great week in Austin, Anya couldn’t stay away from the road and her fans for too long, so she decided to kick off the tour a little early, prefacing with a handful of dates beginning on the West Coast.

Anya’s live shows have quickly become a staple among music tastemakers with her witty banter and clever covers (she does an acoustic version of T.I.’s “Whatever You Like”), so don’t miss her this time around!

TONIGHT!!!

If you are in the L.A. area tonight, you must check out this upcoming artist Asa! She is in town after her recent appearance at SXSW, and you can catch her at 8pm at the Hotel Cafe!

The Paris-born, Nigerian raised artist Asa has had a lot of love coming from
KCRW on her debut release Asa (Mercer Street Records). She was in Austin for
SXSW performing as part of number of shows including Marco Wermans
showcase.

If Bob Marley and India Arie had a daughter and raised her in Nigeria, she
would probably look and sound like Asa² Afrobeat

Her debut went gold in France only 3 months after its release and won her
the Prix Constantin for Best New French Artist of 2008. Her US release
debuted at #1 on the iTunes world chart. The sounds of the R&B records of
her childhood, as well socially-conscious music like Fela Kuti and Bob
Marley, inform the lyrics and sounds of her first album.

Tour Dates For Asa
03/23 - Los Angeles, CA - Hotel Café
03/24 - San Francisco, CA - Yoshi's
03/25 - San Francisco, CA - Yoshi's
03/27 - New York, NY- Le Poisson Rouge

www.myspace.com/asaofficial

HELLO L.A.

A couple weeks ago I was invited to see an up and coming band at the Hotel Cafe, Green River Ordinance. They are on a massive tour right now promoting their new album, Out of My Hands which comes out TODAY! They put on an amazing set, full of emotional energy that filled one of my favorite venues. They performed songs from their album like 'Catch Me on Your Way Back Down', 'Everything you are', and 'Come On' from their 2007 EP. If you have not had the chance to hear this Texan band, check them out at www.myspace.com/gro, /www.facebook.compages/Green-River-Ordinance/8118454726
Go to iTunes TODAY and purchase their new album, or better yet, head down to your local record store, old school style, and buy a CD!

KATY UNPLUGGED

Credit: Adrian Varnedoe/Pacific Coast News

Katy Perry arrives at her acoustic performance at the Hotel Cafe in Hollywood on Monday night. She spoke to the crowd between songs and even opened up about her recent breakup with Travis McCoy. Katy begins her tour at the end of the month.

IN CASE YOU MISSED EM...

Sara Bareilles and Ingrid Michaelson were on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno to perform their duet 'Winter Song.' These two are HOT and make beautiful music together.

You can pick up this song on the Hotel Cafe winter compilation that is out now!

WE BID ROBYN A FINAL FARWELL FOR NOW @ THE HOTEL CAFE

After last weeks acoustic performance at Spaceland, and spending our Saturday evening with her at Indie 103.1, she finished off her visit to L.A. at the Hotel Cafe. With another intimate acoustic performance, she proved herself again that she can be a pop sensation as well as a melancholic singer/songwriter type. Singing 'With Every Heartbeat', 'Be Mine' and her ever so popular 'Show Me Love', it was truly a performance of grandeur.

I look forward to new music from this lovely Swede and seeing her again next time she visits Los Angeles. She just proves my point once again, that music from Sweden rocks, and this is definitely their time to shine!






PHOTOS AND STORY: CORY RADKE

WORLD PREMIERE VIDEO - MEIKO

Boys With Girlfriends - Music Video


The brand new video for "Boys With Girlfriends" from Meiko. Did you know that she was once a waitress/bartress at the Hotel Cafe? Now, she is one of the leading acts on the Hotel Cafe tour. Go Meiko!

NO MORE CANDY FOR MANDY

So, most of my weekend consisted of nights at the Hotel Cafe. Saturday night I hit the Hotel Cafe, this time to see Mandy Moore perform. She was there to perform songs from her upcoming album that she has been recently working on. She sang a few older tunes off her most recent record, but most of the night consisted of tracks that she finished weeks, even days before Saturday night.

I mean, I didn't really know what to expect and I kind of felt a little silly admitting that I was taking in a Mandy Moore show, but whatever! Okay, Ill admit it...I'm a closeted Mandy Moore fan. Don't judge...there is just something about her that I dig. She's had a pretty decent career that has spanned over the years, and I have seen her grow from her "Candy" years, to her stint as an MTV VJ to her budding acting career. Nonetheless it was pretty cool to see her perform and to see the passion she has for her new found singer songwriter status. Gone are the days of that pop tween who was made famous by that song "Candy" and in is a girl who can stand proud amongst her Hotel Cafe peers.

This girl has a ton of talent and genuinely seems like a super sweet, passionate girl with the most amazing energy. She got up on stage, giggled, interacted with the audience and told stories about the conception of her new songs...it was great! She is doing one more show next Saturday at the Hotel Cafe, so if you're in the neighborhood I definitely would recommend checking her out.

GREG JUST WANTS TO HAVE FUN

I took in a couple of shows this weekend. One being Greg Laswell at the Hotel Cafe in Hollywood. Greg is an amazing singer songwriter for those of you who don't know much about him. His latest album was released last month and he performed a bunch of new stuff from it.

You can still catch Greg at the Hotel next Friday and he has a few other gigs around town coming up. Here are a few pix from the show of Greg and then me & my friends posing.

A NIGHT TO REMEMBER

Mandy Moore is doing a gig at the Hotel Cafe tonight! I'm kind of excited to see her tonight - she worked with some of my favorite songwriters on her most recent album, so I'm interested to see how's she's gonnna do.

Last night I was able to catch Greg Laswell at the Hotel Cafe, which was a one time bf of Mandy. He has such an amazing voice - I'll have a few pix up soon.

Hotel Cafe
1623 N. Cahuenga Blvd.
Hollywood, CA

9PM TONIGHT
$10

UPDATE: MANDY LEFT THIS MESSAGE ON HER MYSPACE regarding tonight.

So, I'm back from a week and half of not just being ON the East Coast but AWAY from Joni.... It was a good time in Upstate New York with some great friends and my brother, Kyle. Just got back to LA and am going to work out a bunch of new material for the Hotel Cafe show this coming Saturday... wait...THIS Saturday???!!! Yikes! Actually, Mike Viola and I have such a good thing going, it's gonna be a blast regardless of how new and rough some stuff may be. I'm really hoping you all can come out and be the first to hear some new material. We are really in a groove and this is still such a work in progress. But nonetheless, the live thing is still so important and I can't wait any longer to gig - especially at such a great, warm and musical place as Hotel Cafe. Really hoping to see some familiar faces.

Best to you all...hope the Summer has been a good one and that you are enjoying the remains of it...

xo

MM

A NIGHT IN THE HOTEL

Tonight at the Hotel Cafe in Hollywood, one of my favorite singer/songwriter will be performing.

He has a new album and here is the latest video for "How The Day Sounds" off FLIGHTS FROM ALTO NIDO.

The video also features an appearance by Elijah Wood.

Head out to the Hotel Cafe if you have nothing to do tonight and want to catch a great show!

HOTEL CAFE TONIGHT

I know it's Monday, and you're probably still recovering from the weekend, but I really think you should come out to the Hotel Cafe tonight. I'm picking up one of my friends and we are off to check out Keaton Simons. I'll have a full report tomorrow!

www.myspace.com/keatonsimons
www.hotelcafe.com