American Apparel sample sale ‘08: come for the unitards, stay for “Secret French musical guest”

As anyone who attended last year's American Apparel sample-sale blowout at their downtown factory (guilty!) knows, few things will pry pan-ethnic art school dropouts from their weekend hangovers like the promise of $1 terrycloth headbands. This year's installment on July 27 is upping the ante with the promise of a "Secret French musical guest," and the obvious list of suspects -- Justice, Yelle, the Ed Banger crew, heck, maybe Daft Punk -- is making the feverish speculative rounds.

Silly hipsters. Of course the correct answer is Sebastien Tellier, who not only has the sample sale date blocked off on his tour schedule as "AA Show" in Los Angeles, but Tellier debuted his new album "Sexuality" on American Apparel shelves before it ever hit music stores. Expect deep, deep discounts on Sexual Sportswear of all stripes at the sale, that is, if any of you kids even wear clothes these days.

--August Brown

Dov Charney photo by Jennifer S. Altman/For The Times

Steve Aoki or N.E.R.D.? DJ A-Trak or MSTRKRFT? Kid Sister or Danny Masterson?

Those and other weighty questions (OK, so two of them were difficult, anyway) face attendees at the inaugural Hard Summer Music Festival, scheduled for July 19. An exclusive preview of the event's two-stage lineup reveals some interesting head-to-head match-ups. One stage will be erected outside the Shrine Auditorium in downtown L.A.; the other will be indoors. The all-ages event -- staged by the same folks who put on the Hard New Year's Eve fest in downtown L.A. -- will feature ambitious visuals and demonstrations from street skater Terry Kennedy and friends.

Capacity is 7,500 and ticket sales are said to be brisk.

After the jump, the schedule for Hard:

So, how many dance music fans, exactly, descended upon downtown Los Angeles Saturday night for the Electric Daisy Carnival?

That all depends on whom you ask. Several local media reports estimated that the crowd of rave-happy teenagers was between 15,000 to 20,000 at L.A. Memorial Coliseum and the surrounding area, who were there to take in acts like Moby and Paul van Dyk.

But promoters for the event told Soundboard that the actual numbers were closer to 60,000. Take a look for yourself at this photo gallery.

Last night the Sunset Strip Music Festival started off with a bang as Everclear, L.A. Guns, Soul Asylum and several other bands including Camper Van Beethoven rocked the House of Blues and the Whisky.

Tribune Co. sister Metromix was the co-sponsor of the brand-new three-night fest that continues tonight with the likes of Juliette Lewis, Hot Hot Heat, Slash and others playing at historic West Hollywood venues like the Roxy and the Viper Room, to name a few.

The second annual Reggae Rising Music Festival is giving away $100 gas cards, in hopes of luring reggae fans to the festival grounds in remote Piercy, Calif., a town about 200 miles north of San Francisco. Performers include Sizzla, Cham, Junior Reid, Julian Marley and UB40. "Let reggae pick up your gasoline," its website explains. What a brilliant idea! Now, if only rock could pay for my hotel and hip-hop for my food.

Exclusive: Hard Festival lineup to make for some hard choices

Steve Aoki or N.E.R.D.? DJ A-Trak or MSTRKRFT? Kid Sister or Danny Masterson?

Those and other weighty questions (OK, so two of them were difficult, anyway) face attendees at the inaugural Hard Summer Music Festival, scheduled for July 19. An exclusive preview of the event's two-stage lineup reveals some interesting head-to-head match-ups. One stage will be erected outside the Shrine Auditorium in downtown L.A.; the other will be indoors. The all-ages event -- staged by the same folks who put on the Hard New Year's Eve fest in downtown L.A. -- will feature ambitious visuals and demonstrations from street skater Terry Kennedy and friends.

Capacity is 7,500 and ticket sales are said to be brisk.

After the jump, the schedule for Hard:

So, how many dance music fans, exactly, descended upon downtown Los Angeles Saturday night for the Electric Daisy Carnival?

That all depends on whom you ask. Several local media reports estimated that the crowd of rave-happy teenagers was between 15,000 to 20,000 at L.A. Memorial Coliseum and the surrounding area, who were there to take in acts like Moby and Paul van Dyk.

But promoters for the event told Soundboard that the actual numbers were closer to 60,000. Take a look for yourself at this photo gallery.

Last night the Sunset Strip Music Festival started off with a bang as Everclear, L.A. Guns, Soul Asylum and several other bands including Camper Van Beethoven rocked the House of Blues and the Whisky.

Tribune Co. sister Metromix was the co-sponsor of the brand-new three-night fest that continues tonight with the likes of Juliette Lewis, Hot Hot Heat, Slash and others playing at historic West Hollywood venues like the Roxy and the Viper Room, to name a few.

The second annual Reggae Rising Music Festival is giving away $100 gas cards, in hopes of luring reggae fans to the festival grounds in remote Piercy, Calif., a town about 200 miles north of San Francisco. Performers include Sizzla, Cham, Junior Reid, Julian Marley and UB40. "Let reggae pick up your gasoline," its website explains. What a brilliant idea! Now, if only rock could pay for my hotel and hip-hop for my food.

Coachella in the City: Electric Daisy Carnival’s huge crowd Saturday stuns even promoters

So, how many dance music fans, exactly, descended upon downtown Los Angeles Saturday night for the Electric Daisy Carnival?

That all depends on whom you ask. Several local media reports estimated that the crowd of rave-happy teenagers was between 15,000 to 20,000 at L.A. Memorial Coliseum and the surrounding area, who were there to take in acts like Moby and Paul van Dyk.

But promoters for the event told Soundboard that the actual numbers were closer to 60,000. Take a look for yourself at this photo gallery.

Last night the Sunset Strip Music Festival started off with a bang as Everclear, L.A. Guns, Soul Asylum and several other bands including Camper Van Beethoven rocked the House of Blues and the Whisky.

Tribune Co. sister Metromix was the co-sponsor of the brand-new three-night fest that continues tonight with the likes of Juliette Lewis, Hot Hot Heat, Slash and others playing at historic West Hollywood venues like the Roxy and the Viper Room, to name a few.

The second annual Reggae Rising Music Festival is giving away $100 gas cards, in hopes of luring reggae fans to the festival grounds in remote Piercy, Calif., a town about 200 miles north of San Francisco. Performers include Sizzla, Cham, Junior Reid, Julian Marley and UB40. "Let reggae pick up your gasoline," its website explains. What a brilliant idea! Now, if only rock could pay for my hotel and hip-hop for my food.

Image, attitude and snarl at the Sunset Strip Music Fest

Last night the Sunset Strip Music Festival started off with a bang as Everclear, L.A. Guns, Soul Asylum and several other bands including Camper Van Beethoven rocked the House of Blues and the Whisky.

Tribune Co. sister Metromix was the co-sponsor of the brand-new three-night fest that continues tonight with the likes of Juliette Lewis, Hot Hot Heat, Slash and others playing at historic West Hollywood venues like the Roxy and the Viper Room, to name a few.

The second annual Reggae Rising Music Festival is giving away $100 gas cards, in hopes of luring reggae fans to the festival grounds in remote Piercy, Calif., a town about 200 miles north of San Francisco. Performers include Sizzla, Cham, Junior Reid, Julian Marley and UB40. "Let reggae pick up your gasoline," its website explains. What a brilliant idea! Now, if only rock could pay for my hotel and hip-hop for my food.

Gas prices, Jamaican me crazy!

The second annual Reggae Rising Music Festival is giving away $100 gas cards, in hopes of luring reggae fans to the festival grounds in remote Piercy, Calif., a town about 200 miles north of San Francisco. Performers include Sizzla, Cham, Junior Reid, Julian Marley and UB40. "Let reggae pick up your gasoline," its website explains. What a brilliant idea! Now, if only rock could pay for my hotel and hip-hop for my food.