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View Winners → Archive Jul 01, 2013
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FIGat7th is going through a massive facelift. Not only does it now house a Target and a gourmet food-court called Taste, it will soon have a Zara (like we needed more excuses to go shopping on our lunch breaks). Even though those projects are set in the future, it hasn’t stopped downtown’s newest shopping center from celebrating early. Each Friday this summer they’re providing the city with a free summer festival that includes music, film, art, and theater.
This past Friday they set up a stage in their Plaza area, which if you haven’t already been, is located above the commercial hub, allowing a beautiful pink and purple gradient sunset to be the backdrop for three of LA’s buzz-bands to perform in front of.
First up was Gothic Tropic. The LA trio played dreamy pop-infused summer tunes that quickly gave the indie-kids a reason to get off the lawn and head to the front of the stage where they proceeded to dance, as in slowly swaying side to side, because, you know, they’re cool like that.
Gothic Tropic provided the perfect soundtrack for the sun to set to and for the skyscrapers that surround FIGat7th to drape the night sky with their office lights. The band’s performance was well received and would set the mood for a fun night to be had.
Next was perhaps the most entertaining band to watch, Prince Rama. They made a grand entrance to the stage as they sat on the shoulders of men. The audience quickly got to their feet, some with expectant anticipation, some with intrigue.
For a band consisting of only two ladies, their colorful sound and wild stage performance was at times difficult to follow. At one point the girls got off the stage and into the crowd, getting lost amid the audience only to re-appear “dancing,” making swimming motions with their arms. Was this a band or a performance art group? Either way, they were a lot of fun to witness.
Headlining the night was Allah-Las, a three piece rock band that was formed in 2008 by a group of employees from Amoeba Music. The band jumped right into their first song, kicking off a set consisting of psychedelic garage rock. Stoked fans of theirs followed each song with loud cheers, at times shouting the name of songs they wanted to hear.
They closed off their set just as loudly as they had made their entrance. The event was then moved to the after-party location, at the basin floor of FIGat7th – two stories below street level but with a wide open sky as a backdrop.
Deejaying the after-party was the adorable outfit-matching duo, Honey Power. It was an all-vinyl set consisting of awesome vintage rock. Every one was casually hanging out, listening to music and ordering drinks from the bar set up by Sapporo . The night was still young, and as the event winded down, most of the attendees ventured off, energized and ready to explore more of downtown.
