Think there's no good local independent So Cal bands? Well guess again, they are right under your nose! So don't miss the boat, and don’t be left hearing about them first from some out of touch New York website claiming to have discovered them. On October 11, Santa Monica's premier live music watering hole, '14 Below' presents two dueling power rock trios - back by popular demand.

Long Beach local James Sudakow the jamming hard rock violinist with his slammin power trio hit the stage hard. Silverlakes's own Hurt Model power math metal rock (now a power of three trio) tear it up with the show rounded out by The Dedication, some grrrl power punk reminiscent of LA's first all girl rock band, The Runaways...with a guy thrown in for good measure.

Why is it in power trios, like The Jimi Hendrix Experience, Cream, The Jam, Goo Goo Dolls...they are tighter, stronger, like each member of the band has to take it to the wall to carry their weight? These guys deliver, carrying on the tradition.

I asked James Sudakow, how does playing live in a trio differ for you from doing the recording solo?

He explained, "Although I really enjoy the writing and recording process, nothing really compares to playing that music live! Every show is different because we allow ourselves to take liberties and really get into the moment of what we are doing. The solos are always different, and we get to modify intros and outros of songs every time we play live. There's just a really cool energy about playing live that you don't get in a recording session, especially when I get to play live with a drummer and bass player who are so good at their instruments!"

I asked Trevor Vento of Hurt Model, how has having a third member added to your duo enhance your show?

He answered, “I think having a third member has really filled out our live sound a lot! The songs feel more complete with another instrument and they've also become more complex. I think the extra energy of a third person on stage adds to the intensity of our performance. It's also a lot easier to play with three people, or at least it seems our sound is tighter... it's like driving down a road and having more landmarks to orient yourself by!”

I had to ask him, what is the meaning of the bizarre and twisted name, Hurt Model?

He explained rather ominously, “I've always thought of our name as being another way to say 'bad example', which is partly a joke and partly kind of dark. I tend to write songs with heavy, dark parts as well as catchy, melodic parts in them so perhaps that's why!”

October 11, “14 Below”, $5, Doors open at 8 pm. For more info: www.14below.com.

 

June Caldwell lives amidst drawers stuffed with an array of earplugs, clipped wristbands, and notes scrawled on ticket stubs… splitting her time between concert reviews, and doing radio airplay promotions for Indie bands at Bryan Farrish Radio Promotions. She covers the LA music scene for artrocker.com, the largest bi-weekly new music publication in the UK, and www.fly.co.uk with her shutterbug hubby Roger.

June’s always interested in Indie bands looking for promotion, and can be contacted at: junejer@gmail.com.