D GENERATION Generate No Way Out For The Gobstopper Generation

I'm South Central. He's high wire...

i got nothing. i got nothing. i got something. i got nothing

We all got something for nothing...especially when it was spewed forth during the 77 face-ripping seconds of "Scorch" by NYC's D GENERATION.

Coinciding with a 20-year milestone since their inception as a band, original members Jesse Malin (vocals), Howie Pyro (bass), Richard "The Atomic Elf" Bacchus (guitar, vocals), Danny Sage (guitar, vocals) and drummer Michael Wildwood have re-instigated their glam punk ways and means for a special spate of shows in London, New York, L.A, San Diego and Oakland with festival appearances in Spain, Seattle and Austin.

Malin descibes his bandmates as "family," so much like the picture-perfect pagans of the CW's Chance Harbor, there is no way out.

Sooner or later, the secret circle was bound to re-bind itself. In this case, a vanishing spell of about 4300 days had rescinded.

Fifteen years ago, I was one of the relative few that saw the band during their initial heyday upon the release of their 2nd album No Lunch which was produced by Ric Ocasek of The Cars.

While they would later hit the road with heavies such as Green Day, Social Distortion, Ramones, The Offspring, The Living End and even KISS, I caught their sweaty-packed-to-the-gills show at Lounge Ax in Chicago in 1996.

A few things have stuck with me from that show. The crowd was amped up beyond belief. The band was amped up beyond belief. The ceiling at Lounge Ax was so low that when they were jumped up and down with their spiked up, glammed out hair, it literally looked like they were going to bust through the roof of the place.

And finally, their blistering set was only about 45 minutes long...yeah, they still played a shit-ton of 1-2 minute songs but, deliberately, or perhaps arrogantly, left the crowd horny for more.

Meshing the ferocity of their live show and their guilt-inducing pleasure of constructing hook-laden songs, D Gen is like a punk rock doppelganger of the cheapest trick in the book.

Being proximate to Rockford, IL at the time, it crossed my mind, that D Gen was possibly degenerated in an alternate universe whereby Iggy Pop beat the crap out of Robin Zander in an alley with a can of Alberto VO5 hairspray before a Cheap Trick show in 1974 and assumed the controls of the Nielsen Bun E hop spawning a generation of punk-pop offspring that assumed the mainstream controls forevermore leaving no way out. But I digress.

Arriving to the Troubadour at 10:45PM, I stood in line behind one Ms. Lucinda Williams, whom I had coincidentally seen twice the week before at both Paul Kelly A-Z shows at Hotel Café.

She, of course, was there to see Jesse, whom is highly regarded within the songwriter community for his critically acclaimed solo albums (they shared a hug and a chat after the show).

Within minutes, the band sauntered on stage and "Degenerated" blasted through the speakers and for the next hour, I was reminded not of how the band still packed a wallop but how good the songs are and how well they've aged.



And I was also reminded that when "attitude" ages, it often becomes less blunt and more subversive. Towards the later part of the set, the band opened up bags and bags and bags of shredded up L.A. Weeklys and tossed the paper carnage around the room to uproarious bemusement.

While it wasn't quite as mind-BLOWing as a cannon full of "BoneR" dollars festooned with GlitteR in the gutter (yes, a blatant cross-pollination of my articles and "their" ideologies), it was still a non-linear statement about corporate media and capitalism.

A capital offender.

When it was all said and done and the "news" was being swept away in neat little rows, I was once again left wanting more.

With a new D Generation album on the horizon and future adrenaline expunging shows to satiate the femoral glands of the new gobstopper generation, Vampire Nation is clandestinely waiting for the next big scorching parade to show us the way out.

D GENERATION
Troubadour
W. Hollywood, CA
9-24-11 | Set list

1. Degenerated
2. She Stands There
3. Feel Like A Suicide
4. Guitar Mafia
5. Capital Offender
6. Cornered
7. Major
8. Working On The Avenue
9. Helpless
10. Scorch
11. Stealing Time
12. Vampire Nation
13. Frankie
ENCORE
14. Waiting For The Next Big Parade
15. Wasted Years
16. No Way Out

(Special thanks: James Zahn @ Kik Axe Music™, Jerry Graham @ The Syndicate and photographer Jeff Fasano)

CADY GROVES This Little Girl Video (With Blake Shelton)

CADY GROVES has released THIS LITTLE GIRL, the first video from her forthcoming RCA Records debut.

TLG stars fellow Oklahoman BLAKE SHELTON (whom Groves recently befriended during a series of hilarious exchanges on Twitter) as a paternal tow-truck driver and features tantalizing use of pink feathered ticklers amidst cocoons of strategically affixed duct tape.

Mixing Cady's pistols-drawn pirate panache with her countrified sass and a slick cheerleader claptrack during the breakdown (ala Avril Lavigne's "Girlfriend" and "What The Hell'), This Little Girl is first degree melodious murder. In fact, this little okie girl may be a bona fide serial repeat offender at contemporary hit radio.

WATCH 'THIS LITTLE GIRL' BEHIND-THE-SCENES VIDEO

CADY GROVES - THIS LITTLE GIRL
You got your keys, but where you going?
The third degree just isn't working
Because you walked out without asking me come
And if I followed you home, would you be alone?

I checked your phone, 'coz it was beeping
Are you alone?
I know you're creepin'
But if I followed you home, I hope you're alone

Bridge:
I'm three steps from the edge
Oh-woah
Don't push me over it
Don't you know, don't you know

Chorus:
Every girl is capable of murder if you hurt her
Watch out you, don't push me any further, any further
You're not the only one walkin' 'round with a loaded gun
This little girl is capable of murder 'coz you hurt her

My hands are clean, not yet a killer
Ain't I your queen
And did you tell her?
'Coz you broke down all my shoulda known betters
And then I followed you home, throwing sticks and stones

Bridge:
I'm two steps from the edge
Oh-woah
Don't push me over it
Don't you know, don't you know

Chorus:
Every girl is capable of murder if you hurt her
Watch out you, don't push me any further, any further
You're not the only one walkin' 'round with a loaded gun
This little girl is capable of murder 'coz you hurt her

Don't you know you should never treat a girl like that?
Got a good alibi, and my bag's all packed
Don't you know you should never treat a girl like that?
'Coz the next one's gonna have the hammer pulled back

Chorus:
Every girl is capable of murder if you hurt her
Watch out you, don't push me any further, any further

Every girl is capable of murder if you hurt her
Watch out you, don't push me any further, any further
You're not the only one walkin' 'round with a loaded gun
This little girl is capable of murder 'coz you hurt her!

DOWNLOAD THIS LITTLE GIRL FOR FREE

BUY THIS LITTLE GIRL @ ITUNES

KE$HA Get Sleazy Show; A Faustian Bargain For Boner Dollar Babies

Kesha - Blow

Back door cracked. This review about to BLOW...

It's not entirely my fault. I, actually, have Hayley Williams (of Paramore), Van's Warped Tour founder Kevin Lyman, Dave Gahan (of Depeche Mode) and Perry Farrell & Dave Navarro (of Jane's Addiction) to blame. But mostly Hayley and her boys. Ok, sort of, but not really...but maybe.

Being a big Paramore fan, I bought tickets (earlier this year) to attend the annual MusiCares MAP Benefit at Club Nokia in downtown L.A. It was the first time Ms. Williams and the remaining boys were going to perform live since the departure of the Farro Brothers at the end of last year. Hayley (aka Paramore) was showing support to Mr. Lyman whom was instrumental in helping to break the band with slots on multiple Warped tours.

What's this have to do with getting $leazy?!?

Well, on that very same night (May 6), Ke$ha was playing a sold-out show at the Palladium in Hollywood. In fact, during his speech to the MusiCares audience, Lyman mentioned that if it wasn't for Hayley being present, his teenage daughter would have much rather been at the Ke$ha show across town. My point exactly!

The Palladium show was (at the time) the 2nd to last show of her Sleazy tour with a final sold-out BLOW-out the next night at the Palms Casino in Las Vegas. Being highly susceptible to impulsive behavior, I woke up the next morning and decided...I'm going to drive to Vegas today and hope to scavenge a ticket for the sold-out show at the Pearl Theater.

I had been driving in excess of triple digits for a few consecutive hours...I hope one of my tires doesn't Blow...

4 hours and 5 minutes later, I find myself in a bathroom stall at the Palms Casino where I'm more than likely not doing Blow...

But I am in need of a ticket. Yes, it's still sold out. I go up to the box office and, for grins, I ask if they will be releasing any tickets. "No" is the answer but the girl said she would sell me her comp ticket since she would be stuck working the box office all night...she also said she'd throw in a bracelet to go into the VIP section on the floor. All for face value.

That's a deal that does not totally Blow...

But this review still does.

The energy from the stage that night reached another level but, as is often the case with transient travelers and often partied-out vacationers, the energy from the crowd was average. When Ke$ha finished up with a raucous rendition of Beastie Boys "Fight For Your Right" with her entire road crew dressed in drag and outlandish costumes, it was one of the greatest encores I had ever seen.

Having to be back in LA, I immediately turned around and drove back. I had been in Vegas a total of 180 minutes.

9 hours and 600 miles for a 75-minute show punctuated by a styrofoam plate of lukewarm orange chicken from Panda Express.

I have to say it...

My impulsive behavior can Blow me!

So, of course, the wily managers and promoters that play on our collective worry with advance promotion that an artist is not going to tour again for awhile so "you better get your tickets now" were busy all along maneuvering the next cog in the pinwheel.

It wasn't a month later and here comes more chances to get Sleazy, this time with LMFAO and Spank Rock in tow. I was reticent. Whateva. Already been there and done that.

Impulses.

Three days (purposeful Jane's Addiction nod) before the Ke$ha Gibson Amphitheatre show and my curiosity kicks in. I think I'll check Ticketmaster. And I do a double take. A front row ticket for, ostensibly, a sold-out show?!?! Here I go again (a begrudging Whitesnake nod).

Ticketmaster, some times, does not Blow...ditto por blanca serpiente.

So, it's Saturday night in Los Angeles, much like it was Saturday night in Las Vegas the first go round. Ascending the long walkway to get to Gibson, the mood was festive with girls decked out as if they were going to a nightclub in Vegas; Glitter in their hair, Glitter everywhere.

Upon entering the venue, it was electric like I've never encountered before. Was it Carnaval? Mardi Gras? Prom night?

Bob Sinclar "Rock This Party" was blasting and the entire middle walkway that stretches the length of the theatre was packed with revelers that had their hands in the air and their bootys on a tear.

Lady Sovereign's "Love Me Or Hate Me" closed out the party rock interlude and now it was time to Get $leazy.

This was the crowd I had wanted in Vegas...they were here on this September eve.

YOUR LOVE (for Kesha) IS MY DRUG
It makes my heart beat like an 808 drum

Go insane, Go insane
Throw some glitter, make it rain on 'em
Let me see them hands, let me, let me see them hands

This place about to BLOW...

While keeping to a fairly regimented set list to allow for a full-BLOWn production, the thing I like about Ke$ha and the reason I recommend to naysayers to go see her show, is it's a really loose script with having nothin' but a good time (look what the cat dragged in) at it's core...much like an episode of Curb Your Enthusiasm, go with the FLOW.

At any moment, you feel like the calculated train wreck could veer off the track into the sleazy abyss and you're secretly hoping it does...if only to punctuate the "moment" with an unencumbered exclamation point...like the one I experienced at the end of "Cannibal".

During the song, a guy is strapped to a giant "X" before a simulation ensues whereby Ke$ha rips his heart out and drinks its blood as it runs down her chin.

After slurping the last drops from the ventricle vestibule, Ke$ha threw the "heart" towards the side of the stage though it hit one of the PA monitors and fell at my feet. Surreal. Before I could pick it up to behold its faux wonder and snap a picture, a young girl came racing over and heisted it. A stage hand soon retrieved the prop to stow within its proper owner.

It was a moment etched in time...and, curiously, one that made me instantly consider that Ash Costello and her merry band of boyz that inhabit the rock band New Years Day should augment their Warped Tour appearances with an opening slot on the next Ke$ha tour.

Having written a song called "Grow A Pear" about one of her previous man toys that wanted to talk rather than enter her "Bone Zone," a willing 19-year old named Edward was pulled up on stage, wrapped in plastic and serenaded by Ke$ha to grow a "pair".

Enter stage right, a guy dressed as a giant penis with big floppy testicles who proceeds to start hitting Team Edward in the face with 'em.



Might have looked a little out of place on the U2 360 tour or at the Taylor Swift arena shows but it was a perfect condiment to the evening's sassy solicitation. As the opening act acronym would suggest, I was LMFAO!

And how might one top a public flogging by a six-foot dick...well...with Ms. Ke$ha proclaiming she needs more "glitter on her titties" which was then copiously applied to the strains of her band riffing AC/DC's "TNT" before a AC/DC style set of cannons jizzed a giant load of BONER dollars.

Tick, tick, tiK, ToK, this place is gonna Blow...

And with that, hundreds of IN KE$HA WE TRUST dollars got BLOWn all over the first ten rows. There was a mad scramble for mad money (hey Jim Cramer) and even one of the security guards picked one up before realizing he had been played. Sucka.

It's Bona Dolla bill y'all!

After the roof-raisin' encore of "We Are Who We R," I was hoping for an appearance by Alice Cooper during the final song of the night, another detonation of the Beastie Boys classic Party track.

Alice had played a rare club show at The Whisley a few nights prior with Ms. Cannibal making a special appearance whereby she poured Jack Daniels upon the thirsty close to the stage before donning an "Alice Cooper" mask and joining Mr. "Billion Dollar Baby" for a rousing version of their duet "What Baby Wants" from his new Welcome 2 My Nightmares album.

But not only was there no rendition of Boner Dollar Babies or Alice impersonating Ad-Rock but the cover was ditched all together (it is shown on the set list pic below).

However, Ke$ha did say that the show was one of the best of her nearly 400 shows over the past two years and concluded the thrill ride with the credo, "It's Saturday night. go get Laid". A fitting salute that embodied the evening's full frontal fun!

And unlike this review, looking a-head to yet another future night of getting $leazy does not BLOW!

KESHA
GET SLEAZY
Los Angeles, CA
Sept 17, 2011
Set List

1. Sleazy
2. Take iT Off
3. Fuck Him He's A DJ
4. Blow
5. Blah Blah Blah
6. Party At A Rich Dude's House
7. Backstabber
8. Cannibal
9. The Harold Song
10. Animal
11. Your Love Is My Drug
12. D.I.N.O.S.A.U.R.
13. Grow A Pear
14. TiK ToK
15. We R Who We R

I need some rehab, Or maybe just need some sleep...

JASON CORCORAN Shines A Gaston Light On American Rock 'N Roll

“Your French tongue in our Southern town.
Your scarlet lips and eyes of brown.
I saw your silhouette in my gold headlights…”

And so the layers of colour begin to reveal themselves on Peel, the remarkable debut album by Gaston Light, the musical alias for 22-year old Dallas-based songsmith JASON CORCORAN.

Like the varying landscapes of Western America, Peel explores the trek of trials, tribulations and revelations bestowed upon this native Texan while navigating the peaks and valleys of three years spent in Los Angeles from 2008-2010.

Rooted in the blood, sweat and tears of heartland Americana, the ten-song opus conjures a warm feeling of familiarity while forging an evolutionary path. Jason surmises, “Peel is intended to portray the melting pot that comprises the heart and soul of American Rock & Roll.”

From the very first listen, songs such as “In A Casket,” “Radio King” and “Xanax Blues” evoke a feeling of a freewheeling road trip along Highway 66 to the classic FM strains of Bruce Springsteen, Bob Dylan, Tom Petty, Dire Straits, Tom Waits, David Gilmour, Warren Zevon and The Eagles while repeated listens reveal flourishes of folk, blues, soul, gospel, rockabilly, honky-tonk and Western.



Much akin to the sojourner of the 60’s, Jason vulnerably explores his personal journey, for better or worse. Plagued with economic hurdles and addiction, songs such as “Half Awake” and “Kiss the Hive” explore the darker side of his excursion while “Close Your Good Eye” and “Crown” offer moral glimpses into the harsh, unalterable reality that “coming of age” presents when facing the varying tones of life.

Written and recorded on a limited budget in a mere two weeks in a converted garage in Venice, CA, the nature of the situation added a punk rock ethos to the aural proceedings and, ultimately, required several “first takes” to be used on the Master recording.

This underlying sense of urgency recalls the lightning-in-a-bottle nature of The John Peel Sessions, whereby four tracks were recorded and mixed in a single day for later broadcast on the iconic BBC Radio show. As such, both Peel and The Peel Sessions share a common lineage, that of a rough and ready, demo-like feel, somewhere between an impassioned live performance and a finished recording.

In April of last year, the realization that one’s roots often represent a foundation that no assemblage of isolated experiences can replace led Corcoran back to the doorstep of Dallas, TX where he played his first shows at clubs in Deep Ellum as a wide-eyed 13-year old musical progeny.

The moniker Gaston Light bore itself out of Corcoran’s tumultuous and, ultimately, redemptive journey. It’s a nod to Gaston Avenue in east Dallas, which, coincidentally, is home to his label Idol Records and serves as a written commandment for his enlightened spiritual passage.

Jason recalls, “When I returned from Los Angeles, after a brief stint in Idaho, I was living with a couple of buddies because I was really struggling with my addiction."

"Gaston became this house/street where the fog started to lift and I felt hopeful for the first time in years. It became the place where I was able to redefine myself. It may not last or continue forever, but it was, and still remains, a powerful time in my life. I found a new home in my hometown.”

With a reconstituted appreciation for his Texas roots, Jason will continue to peel back the ever-morphing layers of life as a Gaston Light illuminates the next chapter of his discovery.

GASTON LIGHT
PEEL
1. Athens, TX
2. Radio King
3. Morning Fog
4. Kiss The Hive
5. In A Casket
6. Half Awake
7. Close Your Good Eye
8. Xanax Blues
9. Crown
10. I’ll Wait For You (Please Wait For Me)

All songs Written & Arranged by Jason Corcoran
Produced by Nathan Blumenfeld-James
Recorded at Baby Bird Studios in Venice, CA

Jason Corcoran - Guitar and Vocal
Daryle Goldfarb – Guitar
David Jones – Bass
Nick Adams – Drums
Mark Nilan Jr. - Keys
Bob “Boo” Bernstein – Pedal Steel
Nathan Blumenfeld-James – Backing Vocal
Elliott Deutsch – Trumpet
Aniela Marie – Cello
Monica Olive – Backing Vocal



PEEL Quotes
“A melodic traipse through folk and Americana with undertones of sadness and hope.” LIT Monthly

‎“Jason’s got the hard-lived, gruff delivery of Jay Farrar, combined with the occasionally off-the-rails screaminess of Conor Oberst." D Magazine

“The breadth of Jason Corcoran’s creative muse on Peel is nothing less than transfixing. You won’t soon forget his voice, or his songs.” Dallas Morning News

"Gaston Light goes from that traditional sonic point and speeds towards a garage-rock rowdiness that never detracts from his sharp writing and keen sense for what just sounds good." Twangville

Tour Dates:
Sep 21 - Dallas, TX - Good Records In-store
Sep 22 - Dallas, TX - Sons of Hermann Hall (CD Release Party)
Sep 23 - College Station, TX - Schotzi's
Sep 24 - College Station, TX - Zapatos Cantina
Oct 07 - Dallas, TX - Lakewood Bar and Grill
Oct 08 - Norman, OK - Michelangelo's
Oct 09 - Tulsa, OK - Soundpony Lounge
Oct 10 - Norman, OK - House Concert
Oct 11 - Tulsa, OK - The Hunt
Oct 12 - Wichita, KS - Kirby's Beer Store
Oct 13 - Lawrence, KS - Eighth Street Tavern
Oct 14 - Kansas City, MO - Davey's Uptown Rambler Club
Oct 15 - Hays, KS - Coffee Rules
Oct 16 - Omaha, NE - Barley Street Tavern
Oct 17 - Omaha, NE - Louis Bar
Oct 18 - Minneapolis, MN - Lee's Liquor Lounge
Oct 19 - St. Paul, MN - Auld Tymes
Oct 21 - Minneapolis, MN - Acadia Cafe
Oct 23 - Milwaukee, WI - Bremen Cafe
Oct 27 - Chicago, IL - The Horseshoe
Nov 03 - Kearney, NE - Cunningham’s Journal
Nov 04 - Dallas, TX - The Stoneleigh (Housing Crisis Fundraiser)

FACEBOOK.COM/GASTONLIGHTMUSIC

Wynton Marsalis And Eric Clapton Play The Blues (Full Album Stream)

New York City’s premier jazz venue got the blues last April when Wynton Marsalis and Eric Clapton performed together in Rose Theater at Frederick P. Rose Hall, home of Jazz at Lincoln Center for two sold-out shows dedicated to vintage blues.

The extraordinary collaboration, billed as WYNTON MARSALIS & ERIC CLAPTON PLAY THE BLUES, paired these musical virtuosos with members of the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra as they brought to life a repertoire of songs selected by Clapton and arranged by Marsalis.

To help them achieve that level of devotion, Marsalis and Clapton were joined on stage by Dan Nimmer (piano), Carlos Henriquez (bass), Ali Jackson (drums), Marcus Printup (trumpet), Victor Goines (clarinet), Chris Crenshaw (trombone, vocals), Don Vappie (banjo) and Clapton’s longtime keyboardist/sideman Chris Stainton.

Marsalis says the group combined the sound of an early blues jump-band with the sound of New Orleans jazz to accommodate the integration of guitar/trumpet lead, a combination that gave the musicians the latitude to play different grooves, from the Delta to the Caribbean and beyond.

The band nimbly navigated a diverse set list that touched on different styles, from the four-on-the-floor swing of Louis Armstrong’s “Ice Cream” and the southern slow-drag of W.C. Handy’s “Joe Turner’s Blues” to the traveling blues of “Joliet Bound” and the boogie-woogie jump of “Kidman Blues.”

After opening the shows with his solo set, Taj Mahal returned to join the band on “Corrine, Corrina” and the New Orleans funeral standard “Just A Closer Walk With Thee.”

Listen to a stream of the entire album (click the link below):

WYNTON MARSALIS & ERIC CLAPTON PLAY THE BLUES
LIVE FROM JAZZ AT LINCOLN CENTER
1. “Ice Cream” (Louis Armstrong)
2. “Forty-Four” (Howlin’ Wolf)
3. “Joe Turner’s Blues” (W.C. Handy)
4. “The Last Time” (Louis Armstrong)
5. “Careless Love” (Bessie Smith)
6. “Kidman Blues” (“Big Maceo” Merriweather)
7. “Layla” (Eric Clapton)
8. “Joliet Bound” (“Kansas Joe” McCoy/”Memphis Minnie” McCoy)
9. “Just A Closer Walk With Thee” (ft. Taj Mahal) [Traditional]
10. “Corrine, Corrina” (ft. Taj Mahal) [Bo Chatmon/Mitchell Parish]

Bonus Track on DVD-only: "Stagger Lee" by Taj Mahal

Musicians:
Wynton Marsalis - Trumpet
Eric Clapton - Guitar, Vocals
Dan Nimmer - Piano
Carlos Henriquez - Bass
Ali Jackson - Drums
Marcus Printup - Trumpet
Victor Goines - Clarinet
Chris Crenshaw - Trombone, Vocals
Don Vappie - Banjo
Chris Stainton – Keyboards

Produced by Eric Clapton, Wynton Marsalis and Ashley Schiff Ramos

AMAZON
ITUNES

MAUREEN TOTH Lets It Shine (RIYL Beth Orton, Dido, Beth Gibbons)

Illuminating from the inside is Shine, the breezy sophomore album by Los Angeles singer-songwriter MAUREEN TOTH.

Produced by guitarist Bernie Larsen (Lucinda Williams, Melissa Etheridge, Rickie Lee Jones, Jackson Browne, El Rayo-X), Shine is a ten-track excursion down the highway of love, loss and edification in which Maureen’s ruminations enlighten subtle signposts of the universal human condition.

Painting a delicate mood with a perpetually swaying ambiance brushing your face on a magnificent autumn day, Toth’s timbre echoes the soothing vocalizations of artists such as Beth Orton, Dido, Suzanne Vega and Beth Gibbons of Portishead.

Maureen Toth Shine

Set against the cozy waft of lazy-day Americana wandering amidst lilting down tempo soundscapes, tracks such as “Boy & Girl,” “Jane’s Song” and “Love Me Still” unfold with a slow elegant amble that comforts one’s consciousness. It’s a leisurely gait that deftly permeates throughout to the final Caribbean-infused riddims of “Lonely Shoes”.

“Let It Shine,” is the album’s first single/video and the defacto title track. It’s a joyous celebration that Maureen originally anointed as “Song To The Children” as it is “a gentle guide to embracing the beauty in each of us”. Its chorus of “Who you are, Is divine, Who you are, Let It Shine” bustles with a foot stompin’ Hammond B3-driven undertow reminiscent of a Sunday morning Gospel revue.

Shine is dedicated to Patricia Toth, Maureen’s dearly beloved mother who passed away in 2008. She lovingly pays tribute to her “beautiful angel” in the mystically genteel “Mom’s Song” as her remembrance glistens and glows “Forever”.

Born and raised in Huntington Long Island, Toth attended Boston University where she studied voice and began to develop her range. After getting her degree, she relocated to the Bay Area, where she continued to pursue her musical interests for a few years, before transplanting to Los Angeles in 2000.

Once in L.A., she ingratiated herself into the city’s vibrant singer-songwriter scene and met Larsen, whom in addition to being a renowned touring guitarist and accomplished producer, is also a record label owner.

The two began collaborating and in 2004, Larsen’s Spinout Records released Maureen’s debut album Deven Kay, an introspective journey with vocal accompaniment and songwriting contributions by fellow musician, Lora Kay Ball (the album’s title is a union of their two middle names and a respectful acknowledgement of their longtime friendship).

The collaboration continues to Shine as Larsen plays all of the instruments on the new album while adding background vocals. Additionally, they continually perform together at select venues and house concerts around the country with Maureen also contributing background vocals for Larsen’s reggae outfit Cry On Cue.

Aside from her songwriters endeavors, Toth runs Eastern Talent, a successful talent agency in downtown L.A. that reps Editors, Directors of Photography, 1st Assistant Directors, Production Designers, Costume Designers and Composers whom have worked on full-length feature films including The Hangover Part II, Win Win, The Descendants, Final Destination 5 and Alice In Wonderland as well as TV shows such as Breaking Bad, CSI, Mad Men, Dexter and MTV’s Teen Wolf.

MAUREEN TOTH
SHINE
1. Boy & Girl
2. Let It Shine
3. Jane's Song
4. Just Like You
5. Mom's Song
6. Dog
7. Light of the Morning
8. Love Me Still
9. Lonely Shoes

MAUREEN TOTH.COM

EASTERN TALENT.COM

FACEBOOK

Jim McGorman: From Rock Star To Black Star; He's A Rising Star

As a multi-instrumentalist/singer/songwriter/music producer/recording artist JIM MCGORMAN has performed or recorded with some of the most successful artists in the world; Shakira, Cher, Aaron Neville, The Corrs, Poison, Bret Michaels, Dave Navarro, Michelle Branch (musical director), Paul Stanley (musical director), Weezer (musical director), New Radicals (band member), Tal Bachman, Marc Broussard and Goo Goo Dolls.

Jim is also the musical director for Avril Lavigne and has been globetrotting throughout 2011 on her Black Star tour.

In addition to touring with pop music icons and rock 'n roll gods, Jim has played on numerous recordings and appeared on hundreds of television shows including Saturday Night Live, The Tonight Show, The Today Show, David Letterman, Conan O'Brien, Jimmy Kimmel, American Music Awards, Much Music Awards, Regis and Kelly, The View, MTV's TRL, BBC's Top of The Pops, Britain's Got Talent, America's Got Talent, Schlag den Raab, Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve and the Closing Ceremonies of the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver.

McGorman has definitely been a man on the move for the past seven years. This current chapter in his illustrious career started in 2005 when he was chosen to be a guitarist for the celebrated House Band on the CBS hit TV show Rock Star:INXS. He reprised his role for Rock Star:Supernova which featured co-hosts Brooke Burke and Dave Navarro.

McGorman also performed with Michelle Branch on the TV series Buffy the Vampire Slayer (episode: Tabula Rasa) and with Dilana Robichaux (the runner-up from Rock Star:Supernova) on Ellen DeGeneres.

When not jetsetting voraciously through a myriad of time zones, Jim calls Los Angeles his home where he's making his mark as an in-demand producer for artists such as Ryan Lutz, Kropp Circle, Bek Phillips and Laura Michelle. He also co-wrote the song "It's Only Life" for Kate Voegele's Don't Look Away album.

Jim also finds time to compose his own original material like the song HERE which is featured in the movie White Irish Drinkers starring Karen Allen (Raiders of the Lost Ark, Animal House) and his new single GIRLS (which is influenced by a healthy dose of the soulful sensibility of Michael Jackson):

"As this country and world collectively dodged an ecological disaster in the Gulf of Mexico, Jim McGorman is the musical enema that so many artists need now." C.C. DeVille (Poison)

“It was great having Jimmy in my band. He's solid guitarist, great on keyboards and a really terrific singer. A real triple threat and triple pleasure." Paul Stanley (KISS)

“Jim’s been with me for years. He’s a really talented musician and singer.
I love working with him.“ Avril Lavigne

Jim McGorman - The Black Star Tour With Avril Lavigne
09.04.11 Moscow, Russia - Arena Moscow
09.05.11 St. Petersburg, Russia - Yubileiny Concert Palace
09.08.11 Turin, Italy - PalaOlimpico (Isozaki)
09.10.11 Rome, Italy - Palalottomatic
09.11.11 Milan, Italy - Mideolanum Forum
09.13.11 Amsterdam, Netherlands - Heineken Music Hall
09.14.11 Brussels, Belgium - Forest National
09.16.11 Paris, France - Le Zénith
09.17.11 Paris, France - Le Zénith
09.19.11 Cologne, Germany - Palladium
09.21.11 London, UK - Hammersmith Apollo
09.22.11 London, UK - Hammersmith Apollo
09.23.11 Manchester, UK - O2 Apollo Manchester
10.01.11 Victoria, BC - Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre
10.03.11 Vancouver, BC - Rogers Arena
10.05.11 Prince George, BC - CN Centre
10.06.11 Kamloops, BC - Interior Savings Centre
10.08.11 Kelowna, BC - Prospera Place
10.10.11 Edmonton, AB - Rexall Place
10.11.11 Calgary, AB - ScotiaBank Saddledome
10.13.11 Regina, SK - Brandt Centre
10.14.11 Winnipeg, MD - MTS Centre
10.16.11 Sudbury, ON - Sudbury Arena
10.17.11 Ottawa, ON - ScotiaBank Place
10.19.11 Moncton, NB - Moncton Coliseum
10.20.11 Halifax, NS - Metro Centre
10.22.11 London, ON - John Labatt Centre
10.24.11 Toronto, ON - Air Canada Centre
10.25.11 Montreal, QC - Centre Bell
02.04.12 Saitama, Japan - Saitama Sūpā Arīna
02.05.12 Saitama, Japan - Saitama Sūpā Arīna
02.06.12 Nagoya, Japan - Ri-Ben-Gaisihoru

JIM MCGORMAN.COM