music, maestro

I mentioned our "wedding band" in my Playlist from Hell post a few days ago, but I didn't say much about them. It turns out they have a website ... well, a MySpace page, actually (and did you know that MySpace started as a networking site specialized to bands, before it became a way to get famous by being a giant whore?) so I can tell you more about them.

Meet Sensei John Kreese & the Cobra Kai Dojo:
Perhaps you can see why I put "wedding band" in quotes. Russ, aka the Guy in the Red Bandana (and yes, you can call him Sensei) is one of our groomsmen. We went to see his band play a gig recently, and it was beyond fantastic. (How fantastic? We drove to f**king Fullerton.) In the midst of dancing like very silly white people, recently arrived from 1984, Mr. UB blurted out "Will you guys play at our wedding?"

Now, lest you think he lacks manners, I need you to understand that my fiance does not normally ask his friends to perform their professional services at his random bequest. But he was in a rare state of Sustained Bon Jovi Exposure, and it went to his head. Lucky for us, they said yes!

They wear ghees. They play covers (from Zepplin through the John Hughes movie soundtrack era). They're loud & funny & better musicians than their gimmick would indicate. (In fact, they're all music conservatory graduate students.) They're unbelievably fun. And I can't wait to dance all night at my wedding.


** If you have no idea who Sensei John Kreese is, click here. Or here. And stop reminding me that I was born before you.

wildly inappropriate

One of the tasks I've yet to begin, but I expect I'll enjoy, is choosing music for our non-reception dance party. Our friend (& groomsman) Russ and his band are going to play live music for us, but in between sets we'll be all about the iPod.

I'm thinking about this today because I was listening to my iPod at my new gig this morning (filling merchandise orders from my company's website that came in over the weekend). I was in the middle of one of my regular class playlists, when it occurred to me that many of the songs I like are Wildly Inappropriate for Weddings:

"Wake Up Call" by Maroon 5
"Man of Constant Sorrow" remixed by Skeewiff
"Fastlove" by George Michael
"Grounds for Divorce" by Elbow
"Another Way to Die" by Jack White + Alicia Keys
"Missed Me" by Dresden Dolls
"Never Is a Promise" by Fiona Apple
"Not Ready To Make Nice" by The Dixie Chicks
"Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" by U2
"Psychotic Girl" by The Black Keys

... I could go on for quite a while here. I think I'm in the market for some "happy music."


***edit: I've decided to keep adding to this, as I think of more songs. It could become the Ultimate Wedding Playlist From Hell.

the "IT" in L.A.

Mr. UB & I made a jaunt out to Malibu on Saturday, to check out a lead on a possible venue for our big non-reception party in L.A. Unfortunately, it was the 1st sunny Saturday of the year (please don't hate us if you live in colder climes -- it's really the only thing we have going for us) and it took twice as long as planned to get there. Fortunately, the lovely Ms. M. who manages the venue was as laid-back as can be.

It's waaay out in the far end of Malibu, which is a city that's 27 miles long and 10 feet wide. So it really does feel like a "destination" setting, without leaving the city. I forget sometimes that L.A. is hiding gems like this. See, we (especially me) live on the east side of town, where we specialize in making grungy look "hip". East Side Bride does this far better than I could ever hope to ... but at any rate, I sometimes forget how much prettiness lies to our immediate west.

So this is what greeted us upon arrival. A great big room, complete with dance floor, paper lanterns & drapey fabric stuff. We (especially me) are happy. (It turns out you have to arrange the decor-y stuff with a decor vendor lady. But her site gives us hope that she's not out of our price range. We're calling her first thing in the a.m.)
This is the alcove off the main room. Table spill-over & buffet stuff could go back here.

Mr. UB wisely thought to test out the dance floor before we signed anything. Also, I need to officially admit that, even in light of the evidence above, I am the goofy one in this relationship. The man has the patience of Job, really.

(I'm going to marry him. /giggle)

Outside, there's a great big patio. They do ceremonies here at sunset, and/or set up an outside bar. Oh, and the view doesn't suck:
The best part is that this place includes tables, chairs, the dance floor and clean-up in its rental fee. It's also zoned for live music until midnight. Oh, and if you rent it on a weeknight (Mon. - Thurs.) you get it for 50%. Which could be quite easy to pull off in mid-August.

No, I'm not telling you where it is until we book it, so no one snakes our date. Then I promise to sing its praises to the moon.

Also, in the course of composing this entry, I think I've decided that our 1st dance together needs to be to something by Ray LaMontagne. Which doesn't narrow it down, really, since I love everything by him. Please go to iTunes immediately if you don't know his stuff.