Our friends at Jam In The Van + SUPERGOODMUSIC are heady dudes who record hi-quality jam sessions with select, up-and-coming bands in their technicolor RV and throw pretty #turntup parties every once in awhile in LA. Straight up, every time they throw together a backyard shindig or transform a shady parking lot into a pop-up single-day festival, a cool scene sprouts up out of nowhere. I’m not sure of the origins behind Sunday’s El Dia De La Heady party, but I’m guessing it involved some sort of psychedelic VisionQuest similar to what transpired in Ray Kinsella’s head in the 1989 baseball flick Field of Dreams** — (see below for unnecessary addendum to further explain the reference). This was one of the most fun days of 2013.
We rolled into flashed back into the wonderland that is the Venice Love Shack midway through the party at around 3:45 and immediately were pretty blown away by the great scene that had been created, just off a main drag in Venice. Tapestries were everywhere, the grounds were strewn with bean bags and handmade chairs, the area was filled with random heady n00ks, a massive record collection, there was a taco truck, a school bus, the Jam Van, heady tour dogs, free Lagunitas and Sailor Jerry and babely lookin’ female servers force-feeding Tequila to anyone who so much as darted in eye in their general direction. A nice little Sunday.
After grabbing a Lagunitas Little Sumpin’ Sumpin’, we staked out a spot near the stage just in time to see some guy puke (first out of his nose and then on the ground) right in front of The Dustbowl Revival only seconds before they kicked into a festive Mexican-flavored tune to start their set. Luckily, the cameras from AXS.TV weren’t on, saving this guy from undoubtedly being the 534th person to be featured vomiting on an episode of Tosh.0. Being the consummate and polished professionals they are, the band didn’t bat an eye, kicking right into things. The Dustbowl Revival, like the aforementioned Jam In The Van + Supergoodmusic parties, always bring out a sizeable, dapper and swingin’ following with them wherever they go. Most importantly, they always put on an energetic, musically on-point and well-rehearsed show. Nothing but respect as always to The Dustbowl and once again on Sunday, they delivered the goods. People in LA can see them every Wednesday this month at their Residency at The Mint in Mid-City.
Up next was Ivory Deville, a new band formed by a few members of The Muddy Reds who struck me as having a rare-found total package thing going for them. They’ve got a good look, a hard-driving sound and tons of gusto to turn any gathering upside down. Definitely looking forward to seeing these guys once again. Check out “Drainpipe” below and “Abyssinia” here.
Finally, there was The Record Company, another local band of freewheelers I “discovered” only recently. The first time I heard The Record Company was back at The Ranch Party. Even though I never made it anywhere close to the stage during their set, the effects of this experience stick with me even as I type two months later. That afternoon, while the band was playing a killer version of “Cortez The Killer,” my mind was taken out of zen-like focus so much that I slipped and fractured my elbow. I wish I made that up. It was not heady.
Anyways, by this time in the afternoon, the party was totally roaring on all cylinders, the tequila pushers were beginning to gain an aggressive level of persistence towards emptying the remainder of their supply (who’s gonna say no to that?) and The Record Company blew the gaskets off The Love Shack, even covering a Dead tune. It doesn’t get any headier than that. Check out a clip from their set below.
The party pushed on past the scheduled closing time at 7, and the sets we saw by The Dustbowl Revival, Ivory Deville, and The Record Company were all totally top-notch. It was a great perfect hang, the sneakiest Sunday I’ve had since the 2000’s, there was righteous music delivered by talented musicians with actual, real enthusiasm and we met a bunch of good people. Thanks again to Jam In the Van and Supergoodmusic for having us. Heady stuff. Let’s do it again?
* Unnecessary Reference: I bet you’ve never thought of Field of Dreams in a similar, heady vein with movies like Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas or Easy Rider. Just think about it: a farmer ex-hippie dude is out caring for his cornfields in Iowa, starts hearing voices, talking to ghosts and sees an imaginary baseball field off in the distance. He then blows his family’s life savings building the Field of Dreams and then goes on tour, driving across the country in a VW Bus to talk to more ghosts. He clearly was hanging out with Owsley beforehand (perhaps at this ’82 Dead show?) or something.
Field of Dreams = Damn heady film
