Free Blood and DJ Spun
Friday, November 16, 6-9 p.m., Free
Getty Center Museum Courtyard, 1200 Getty Center Drive, LA, 310.440.7300
Like contemporaries the Rapture, Brooklyn-based Free Blood plays the sort of funky punk that harks back to the early ’80s, when bands like Gang of Four were fusing genres without a second thought. With fierce beats and pulsating basslines, this is music better suited for rump-shaking than moshing. DJ Spun of Rong Music (the label that has released Free Blood’s work) will be dropping house tunes alongside an eclectic mix of dance floor goodies.
Red Elvises
Friday, November 16, 10 p.m., $15
Rusty’s Surf Ranch, 236 Santa Monica Pier, 310.393.pier
Not many bands can claim that they were asked to leave a standing gig at the Third Street Promenade because they were too popular. Then again, not many bands would take the chance to combine all-American rock and roll and surf music with influences stemming from the members’ homelands in the former Soviet states. For over a decade, Red Elvises have been doing just this and, in the process, have become something of a Westside staple (check Gary Gordon’s book Travel Smart: Southern California for proof). The group, who recently released a greatest hits compilation, will embark on a West Coast tour in December, so this might be your last chance to catch Red Elvises at Rusty’s Surf Ranch for some time.
