ALWAYS A PLEASURE, MR. LASWELL

Once again, an impressive performance from one of my all time favorites, Greg Laswell. Last Friday, the Troubadour could not have had a better lineup: Greg Laswell followed by the incredible Rachael Yamagata! It was almost sensory overload. I have seen Greg about 8 or 9 times by now, mostly at the Hotel Cafe, and it just never gets old.

This night in particularly, he had a different demeanor. He is always charming, yet always a bit shy, but not this night. He was full of jokes and stories and anecdotes that was a nice change. He performed all my favorites, including 'Sing, Theresa Says', 'Through Toledo', and his cover of 'Girls Just Wanna Have Fun', which he then transitioned into my ultimate favorite Laswell classic 'High and Low', all of which were from his first album "Through Toledo". And from his most current record, "Three Flights from Alto Nido", he played 'The One I Love', 'How the Day Sounds', and my favorite off of this album, 'Comes and Goes (In Waves).

If you missed this performance, shame on you...just kidding, but if you did, you have two more chances this month to check him out and I do recommend that you do. He will be playing Thursday, April 23rd at Largo with Lenka and Saturday, April 25th, he will be returning to his home, the Hotel Cafe. So if you are looking for an enjoyable evening performance from one of LA's best singer/songwriters out there, GO!


www.myspace.com/greglaswell and www.greglaswell.com

ANYA MARINA @ HOTEL CAFE

"I get weird songs in my head and putting pen to paper is kind of like a diuretic," Anya Marina says about why she writes songs. "If I didn't get them out, they would probably make my mind feel very bloated. And no girl likes to be bloated." Anya Marina

"All the way from Rossmore and Beverly..." is how the adorable Anya Marina opened her show last Thursday at the Hotel Cafe. It was a packed event, as her US tour is about to hit the rest of the US, promoting her latest album "Slow & Steady Seduction: Phase II", which dropped last November. You may not be so familiar with her name, but her music you might be, especially if you watch 'Grey's Anatomy', as she has been featured on the show several times. Hailing from the Bay Area, Marina's cute singer/songwriter sound is one all her own, oddly gaining influences from LCD Soundsystem, Peaches, and even Public Enemy. I never would have guessed, but that's what she says.

She had an amazing stage presence and really put on a fantastic, flawless show; not only musically, but she definitely has a very dry comedic side to her that she was not afraid to let out. Between each song she had a story or joke, that would make you belly laugh, and she was so endearing. She performed a good number of songs off of her latest, as well as gracing us with some of her "classics"; however, I was sad that she did not perform her cover of the Three's Company Theme Song, which is off of her "Live at The Casbah" album, but I was content with a hilariously cute rendition of "Whatever You Like" by T.I. If you have yet to have heard this lovely beauty do so at www.myspace.com/anyamarina or go to her page, www.anyamarina.com