West Indian Girl

Fran’s Got A LoJack

F10 — Wed, 24 Dec 2008 12:24:08 +0000

yup - tweet tweet - fran’s got a twitter account now. if for some reason you want to know when im in a car with a transvestite, at a show, at our rehearsal, walking my dog, posting a blog or sitting on the can taking a twit you’ve now got the direct link. so do what my mom wished she could have done when i was in high school…add me. see you on the grid - i’m now an official microblogger. mom, my twitter name is FrancisTen.

Every year

Amy White — Mon, 22 Dec 2008 23:58:08 +0000

je t'aime!

I inevitably become obsessed with one -or if lucky, two - albums that I keep on repeat for months in my car, soothing those long traffic-infested hours that make up 18% of my day. I usually don’t coincide with what popular culture deems to be the best album of the year, but this year, I am happy to admit that one of my obsessed albums coincides with the tastes of Jon Pareles (NY Times), Rolling Stone, Pitchfork, & Spin (to name a few): Dear Science,

The production (the talent of band member extraordinaire, David Sitek) is a perfectly crafted explosion of styles that still manages to reveal TVOTR’s unique essence. Any outside producer would have misinterpreted the sound that so genuinely seeps through every note and lyric. Sometimes outside producers are essential to help a band release and own their musical style, but these kids have the talent, focus and style embedded in their bones…

Another album that’s received some heavy petting from my cd player (and will probably stay in my car forever) is Saturdays = Youth. Can I just say that I’m totally in love with both Anthony Gonzalez and Morgan Kibby (the voice with the haunting resemblance to Kate Bush)?! This album kinda permeates me right in the gut, driving me into a nostalgic haze of wanting to be in love and living in Europe again.

Oh to be living in Paris…merci m83!

happy holidays.

amy

Our #1 Fan (under the age of 4)

F10 — Mon, 22 Dec 2008 01:37:16 +0000

I got this video emailed to me the other day. “Here’s a video of my three-year-old son Max singing and dancing to your song Miles from Monterey. He’s been a fan of yours since he was two, and has been singing this song almost since he began talking! He actually used to know it better, but he’s a little rusty in this performance. Enjoy! -Ollie in San Diego”

How can you not love this?

Nynex Remix Coming Up Big

F10 — Thu, 18 Dec 2008 11:34:51 +0000

Yesterday KCRW named Nynex’s remix of “To Die In LA” their top tune of the day. This is more great news concerning our volume 2 remix project which is going to be released on itunes on the 23rd. Click on the picture below to check out the link - I believe this track is now a free download for a limited time.

i dont trust sites with the word “twit” in it.

Sun, 14 Dec 2008 02:28:53 +0000

but somehow, i got convinced to start a twitter account.

uh ohhhh…

On The Bus

F10 — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 08:06:15 +0000

Got a funny call from my friend Grant “Monster” Gordon today. Grant never really calls me so when I saw his name on my cell I figured it must be important. Turns out he was in Santa Monica driving behind a bus that happened to have my face on it. HAHAHAHA - he was laughing so hard and all I kept saying was “take a picture of it monster and send it to me”. He got close enough to the bus to take these fine shots that I present here for your approval. These are part of the KCRW ad campaign - they were nice enough to have Q and I on some of their ads.

Words can’t really describe the feeling of seeing your face on the back of a bus. Below is the actual ad.

Side note - writing this post reminded me of The Replacements’ song Kiss Me On The Bus which I have been listening to this whole time.

Spaceland, We’ll Miss You

F10 — Tue, 25 Nov 2008 23:16:58 +0000

how we draw em up in the locker room

oh what a sad farewell it is. our third and final night of the residency went down last thursday. this night was probably the most fun of them all…but only by inches though. i was really impressed with tremblexy and loved the polyamorous affair. that’s them in the pic (below) with me after the show. nynex who remixed the first track on our vol. 2 remix record was spinning throughout the night. it was a great time, probably because we got to play our newest, coolest and freshest material. these new songs are more of a singular collective mind space and feel great when we play them. the next cd is gonna be hot, dark and dirty. once again, i want to thank all of the bands that played with us during our residency as well as all the fans that came out. it was a very special set of shows that probably won’t ever happen again. im very glad we did this because it made us a better band and actually brought us all closer together. holy shit im gonna cry

eddie and sissy of the polyamorous affair

josh - aka nynex with q

I’m Sorry Nathan Van Hala

F10 — Sat, 22 Nov 2008 02:46:31 +0000

So the advance copies of new remix cd’s arrived yesterday and as it turns out I messed something up that deserves a public apology. Strangely enough when I cracked open one of those puppies and looked at the credits I was joking with our drummer Mark that they spelled his name with a “c”. He didn’t fall for it but seconds later Nathan looked at it and said that they had in fact spelled his name wrong. DOHHH! His last name is Van Hala, not Val Hala as it was printed. Val Hala happens to be a word in Norse mythology that literally means “hall of the slain” but more commonly refers to the viking heaven. HAHA…um…shit…sorry Nathan, i feel terrible. I mean it could be worse though…at least they spelled 2 words in your name right…you’re the only one with three….and it’s only one letter. Plus, Val Hala is kinda cool. Maybe it’s a sign it’s time for a name change….or not…or maybe it’s time for a public apology from the guy that should have caught the mistake. Me so sorry, Nathon.

bummer

Spaceland Residency Show 2

F10 — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 00:50:15 +0000

The show last night was good, strange, sad and ugly at times. Good because there was once again a room filled beyond capacity to see the bands. Strange because we have never played that selection of songs all together without ever incorporating our signature material. Sad because we dedicated a song to my friend Brett - i guess emotional would be more apt than sad….but it was almost overwhelming. Ugly because we weren’t exactly as transitionally smooth as we would have liked..ie starting to play song 5 instead of song 4. No matter how you look at it though, in retrospect it was a success. The songs came across and the exit polls supported that this show did in fact kick ass. check out the photo gallery for pics from the show.

I would like to thank Mere Mortals, Mondo Domingo, Klum and DJ Pants Off for bringin’ it. They were a big part of why the evening was so successful. Looking back on it, the one thing that bothered me about the set was the lighting. I hate playing in red light. Not sure if it’s a vision problem I have but when I’m in red light I can’t see the fretboard on my guitars and it really fucks with the ease and naturalness of my playing. My eyes have always been like that. It’s almost like playing blind, and unfortunately I’m no Stevie Wonder.

set list for show 2

As u can see from the list we did play 2 new songs, honey money and shangri la, from the next cd. I think this next show will consist of the first 5 songs as brand new ones and the next 4 as “hits”. The evening should be intense. We’re playing a song called dirge which happens to be one of my favorites.

RIP Brett Smith

F10 — Mon, 10 Nov 2008 23:17:39 +0000

I just found out one of my old friends died in a motorcycle crash the other day. brett smith was one of a kind - he was one of the most charismatic people i have ever known. he moved to florida around the time i moved to california. even though we havent talked much over the past few years our friendship was the kind that would shift back into it’s natural place when we saw each other. brett and i had history. plain and simple…we were both from the same town in mi, were roommates in ann arbor, and we were also both bass players. we were great friends thru some some pretty crazy times there. brett was a tough dude…he lived on the edge. brett was one of those people that i really didnt have to say a word to - it was understood that we would always be friends. he was the kind of guy that had your back. seems like those people are few and far between. i wish i had a chance to talk to you again brett.

Spaceland Residency Packs The House

F10 — Sat, 08 Nov 2008 12:19:37 +0000

The first night of our residency at Spaceland was a complete success! I would like to thank all the bands that played with us…Roll The Tanks, Casxio and Hearts of Palm (UK) - they were all great. In case you missed this show our set consisted solely of songs off our first record: 1. Visions 2. Miles From Monterey 3. Trip 4. Dream 5. Hollywood 6. Still Lost 7. Northern Sky 8. What Are You Afraid Of? 9. Encore: Honey Money (new song). Thanx again to all of our friends that showed up, it was great sharing this special evening with you. Be sure to check out the pictures up now in the photo gallery. I would also like to remind everyone that next Thurs the 13th we will be playing songs just off of our second record “4th & Wall.” Again, if you along with any of your friends would like to go, just email info@westindiangirl.com to get on our guest list. These shows are a way of giving back to our fans in Los Angeles who have supported the band for the past couple years. Please spread the word and join our party…it’s on us.

Our Filter Spaceland Residency

F10 — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 23:23:11 +0000

i’m very happy to announce that filter magazine will be presenting our upcoming residency at spaceland for the first 3 thursdays in november. what’s special about this residency is the fact that each show will be entirely different from the other. on nov. 6th we will only be playing songs off of our first record. on nov. 13th our set will consist only of songs off of 4th & wall, and on nov. 20th we’re only palying brand new material from our third record due out in ‘09. how about this- a special gift for west indian girl fans: if you’re on our guest list you get in for free! yup, you heard right. if you want to go and get in for free email info@westindiangirl.com and put the date of the show(s) you want to attend in the subject heading. links: spaceland and filter magazine

Dont Tell Anyone About This Show

westindiangirl — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 06:47:46 +0000

Saturday June 14th - we’re gonna make our first ever appearance at the scene bar in glendale. we’ve neglected you for 5 years glendale and we’re sorry. hopefully this show will patch things up. it’s pretty last minute and it’s pretty random but come on - it’s summer and we’re trying to hash out new songs that we are in the midst of writing and recording. imagine us playing in your living room….that’s what this show is gonna be like - like the good ol days when a show was just a show. we play at 11:30.

The Scene Bar
806 E. Colorado St.
Glendale, CA 91205
818.241.7029
http://www.thescenebar.com
http://myspace.com/thescenebar

Meet Your Muse Party - Downtown LA Artwalk

F10 — Mon, 09 Jun 2008 06:58:30 +0000

This thursday june 12th - art and music collide for a special event in downtown los angeles. we will be playing a show right after (and above) the la artwalk. this party is gonna go off….bands, art, djs, beer…all for a 5$ donation. how can you possibly go wrong at that price? you cant. please check out the 533 studo site and downtown artwalk site and make plans on making this bash. special note for all you chess junkies out there - the indie rock chess federation is also gonna have a table set up for exhibition blitz try outs.

special thanx to kampy for kicking out this event poster.

the 4S tour

F10 — Sun, 08 Jun 2008 12:01:08 +0000

we’re gonna be playing san fran, sacramento, santa barbara, and solana beach this june. details about each show can be found on our tour page. ashkahn rolled out the poster for the sf show and drew newbold took care of business with the sacto poster. thanx guys…great work. both of these shows are headline shows. in santa barbara we will be playing with los amigos invisibles and in solana beach with bebel gilberto.