I went to see Toy Robot’s gig at Crane’s on October 7th and it rocked!  I could definitely hear every one of TR’s songs on the radio and the band has SERIOUS potential.  Here is a iPhone photo of me and my friend Loren, lead singer and guitarist of TR:

Loren and I are also working on getting the band’s songs cleared for airplay on Electric Effect, so I hope to be playing them soon!

Toy Robot also has a gig tomorrow night, November 14th at The Bootleg Theatre (2220 Beverly Blvd), 9:30 PM, 18+, $5 with the flyer below ($10 without the flyer - so save some money and print the flyer!)

I look forward to hearing your thoughts after the show!

Rock on,

~D*J*E

Tweet This Post  Plurk This Post  Buzz This Post  Delicious This Post  Digg This Post  Ping This Post  Reddit This Post  Stumble This Post 

Will this happen at the gig? Show up to find out!

Tweet This Post  Plurk This Post  Buzz This Post  Delicious This Post  Digg This Post  Ping This Post  Reddit This Post  Stumble This Post 

Yogi and I go back several years and I always look forward to hearing music from his solo career and other musical endeavors. My anticipation to hear his latest band, Run Through the Desert, was no exception. The band features Yogi (Buckcherry/Wallflowers/Chris Cornell) on vocals and guitar, Corey McCormick (Chris Cornell) on bass/background vocals and Jason Sutter (American Hi-Fi/Smashmouth/Chris Cornell) on drums.

Run Through the Desert (RTTD) is straight ahead rock ‘n’ roll with heavy psychedelic influences. The band started its set with very high energy and the song “Disintegration.” From the opening chords, Yogi wailed on the guitar and got the audience excited about the music. The band’s tight playing was apparent during RTTD’s second song, “Buried Alive,” which was impressive due to the song’s fast tempo. Corey seemed a bit more serious in his demeanor, reminding me of The Who’s John Entwistle. In addition, Jason showed off his serious chops as a drummer and I happily caught the broken drumstick that Jason threw into the audience. The drumstick’s mutilation is a prime example of the force with which Jason plays, as seen in the photos below. Yogi and Corey also effectively used the stage space by moving around, and playing off each other and Jason. The band interacted with the audience, engaging members in conversation and encouraging them to get close to the stage.

After several rock numbers, RTTD mellowed the set with “Grecian Moon,” a pensive song that reminded me we are “so blessed to be here.” The band then rocked it out again for its last song, “Thrown to the Wolves.” Some artists lose momentum when they change to slower songs mid-set, however neither RTTD nor the audience lost energy while the band transitioned between faster and slower songs.

RTTD has just released its debut album Break the Silence, which is available on the band’s website, or on iTunes and CDBaby. Visit RTTD at www.runthroughthedesert.com and www.myspace.com/runthroughthedesert. I also definitely recommend seeing RTTD live at an upcoming gig and keep listening to Electric Effect to hear RTTD’s music.

My favorite shot from the night

(c) Erin “D*J*E” Jacobson 2009. All Rights Reserved. www.dje-entertainment.com

Tweet This Post  Plurk This Post  Buzz This Post  Delicious This Post  Digg This Post  Ping This Post  Reddit This Post  Stumble This Post 

1.  Tonight is Scott Goldman’s set and record release, as well as a set by Toy Robot at the Knitting Factory’s alterknit lounge.

2.  I don’t care what anyone says, radio still has the power to break records and expose people to new music.  See the article here:  Rock Radio In “‘Love’ With Incubus Album Track” by:  Jonathan Cohen from Billboard.

3.  Glenn Hughes just did a great interview and live set on Rockline.  Listen to the replay at Rockline’s website.

Rock it,

~D*J*E

Tweet This Post  Plurk This Post  Buzz This Post  Delicious This Post  Digg This Post  Ping This Post  Reddit This Post  Stumble This Post 

Check out the latest tour diary from The Abdomen.  Hotel Cafe footage by yours truly.

~D*J*E

Tweet This Post  Plurk This Post  Buzz This Post  Delicious This Post  Digg This Post  Ping This Post  Reddit This Post  Stumble This Post