Spencer Patterson

Contact Spencer via e-mail

Story Archive

Three hours with Leonard Cohen at the Colosseum
Wednesday, Nov. 18, 2009
Few convergences along this city’s strange, 65-year musical odyssey have been quite as peculiar as last Thursday’s pairing of reclusive folk-rock legend and center-Strip casino venue.
What is Surfer Blood?
Wednesday, Nov. 18, 2009
Kooky kids who recorded their debut album in a university dorm room? Five non-surfing Floridians? Something else?
The man comes around
An interview with Beauty Bar owner Paul Devitt
Wednesday, Nov. 11, 2009
An interview with Beauty Bar owner (and new manager) Paul Devitt.
Loving Leonard: The Cohen songs we’ll never get enough of
Wednesday, Nov. 4, 2009
Weekly editors weigh in on the Leonard Cohen selections we'd gladly keep on repeat.
Death don’t have no mercy for musicians
Thursday, Oct. 29, 2009
Consider taking out life insurance before listening to these songs recorded just before their creators’ deaths.
Count on Dusty to reel ’em in
Wednesday, Oct. 21, 2009
Less than a week after the first Las Vegas Rumble barely drew 30 bodies to the Aruba Showroom, a crowd of some 120 has flocked to the same room.
Built to Spill
There Is No Enemy
Wednesday, Oct. 21, 2009
Doug Martsch sounds tired.
Mission of Burma
The Sound the Speed the Light
Wednesday, Oct. 14, 2009
It’s time someone said it: Mission of Burma’s reunion phase has eclipsed the band’s original era.
Vegas' own Willy Wonka
Wednesday, Oct. 7, 2009
Growing up in France, Lionel Clement created elaborate desserts with his mother, and dreamt of doing so on a larger stage. This weekend, the Wynn Hotel’s chief chocolatier will do just that at the prestigious World Chocolate Masters competition.
Rumble, young bands, rumble!
A "mobile monthly party" is rolling on Vegas, and it's free
Wednesday, Oct. 7, 2009
A self-described “mobile, monthly party” traveling from Seattle and Portland down through San Francisco to Los Angeles and San Diego, the Rumble makes its first Vegas visit on October 11. And here's the best part, it's free!
The Lazystars
Light of Day EP
Wednesday, Oct. 7, 2009
The Lazystars must get laid a lot. Now, they have new bait that will likely net them female and male fans.
Van Morrison at the Joint: A few dry observations
Wednesday, Sept. 30, 2009
Alcohol was not served during Van Morrison's concert. Really.
The Twilight Sad
Forget the Night Ahead
Wednesday, Sept. 30, 2009
Not all U.K. bands suck.
Save this concert! (redux)
Wednesday, Sept. 30, 2009
We still don't expect to see Leonard Cohen here, but we're praying!
Hey, No Age, stop following me around!
Wednesday, Sept. 23, 2009
Why is an LA noise-pop duo stalking a Weekly editor?
A night with Karen O seven years in the making
Yeah Yeah Yeahs at The Pearl, September 19
Wednesday, Sept. 23, 2009
Seven years after an intoxicating first experience with the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Spencer Patterson finds a band that's not truly there.
Neon Reverb beefs up the bottom line
Third edition of the music festival succeeds in drawing crowds, spotlighting local scene
Wednesday, Sept. 23, 2009
After losing some $5,000 in the spring, Neon Reverb came out almost even this time, in spite of our weak-ass economy.
Circulatory System
Signal Morning
Thursday, Sept. 17, 2009
Okay, let’s get it out of the way: Jeff Mangum plays on this record, "plays" being the operative word here.
The Weekly playlist: Say Yeah!
Get psyched for the Yeah Yeah Yeahs’ first Vegas show in seven years with these tunes
Thursday, Sept. 17, 2009
Get psyched for the Yeah Yeah Yeahs’ first Vegas show in seven years with these tunes.
What to see at Neon Reverb?
Breaking down the lineup, one night at a time
Thursday, Sept. 17, 2009
A night-by-night festival study guide, so you can catch the best the lineup has to offer.
Further Reverberations
Downtown-based music fest looks to expand its sphere of influence
Thursday, Sept. 17, 2009
The fall version of Neon Reverb was designed to be far smaller than its spring counterpart, but there are more than 100 acts listed for this weekend's festival. Hmmmm.
Polvo
In Prism
Thursday, Sept. 10, 2009
For the past decade, Polvo has chiefly existed as one of those quintessential indie bands most regular folks have never actually heard.
B.B., meet The Beatles
Thursday, Sept. 10, 2009
The Beatles Revolution Lounge won't be the only club at the Mirage dedicated to a musical legend for much longer. Soon to open: B.B. King’s Blues Club.
Vivian Girls
Everything Goes Wrong
Thursday, Sept. 3, 2009
Virtually every Vivian Girls song unfolds the same way. And you know what? It’s a fun freaking formula. No matter how many times I hear it, I want to hear it again. And again. And again.
Sleepy scene
Sleep Sun rocks for almost no one at the Bunkhouse
Saturday, Aug. 29, 2009
Seriously, Sleepy Sun sounded so righteous, it could have eaten Wolfmother for breakfast and left room for a few more Blue Cheer riffs at lunchtime.
Depeche Mode
The Pearl, August 22
Thursday, Aug. 27, 2009
Depeche Mode ended up opening for itself, playing three songs off their flat new disc before unleashing a string of grade-A catalog cuts that showed why it can charge $200 a head 15 years after most of America stopped paying attention.
Three questions with Sleepy Sun
Thursday, Aug. 27, 2009
Guitarist Matt Holliman chats about how moving from Santa Cruz to San Francisco, psychedelic rock, and the interesting roster of acts on the ATP record label.
Kings of Leon
The Joint, August 19
Thursday, Aug. 27, 2009
Alternating between somewhat gritty Southern garage-rock and more M.O.R. arena cuts, Kings of Leon did nothing to embarrass (unless you count those distracting and unnecessary video screens), but did little to stand out, either.
Green for a Day
Thursday, Aug. 20, 2009
Dreamt of being the fourth member of Green Day? (And really, who hasn’t?) You could actually get your chance on Friday.
Worth getting there early
Thursday, Aug. 13, 2009
A quality support act can make for a cool surprise, but it’s even better showing up for a show knowing the opener will start the night off right. On August 19—a Wednesday, of all things—you can do just that, times two.
Our own private (Under)World
Thursday, Aug. 13, 2009
In case we needed confirmation, we got it last Thursday: Las Vegans are officially lame. So Underworld crossed the Atlantic to open its first U.S. tour in who-knows-how-long at the Joint, and a few hundred people bothered to check it out.
Numbers Like Pi
Conversations as Currency EP
Thursday, Aug. 13, 2009
Who knew the studio could be such a band-killer? Already this year, Vegas rockers Cherry Hill and Skorchamenza released new discs and called it quits, and now local group Numbers Like Pi has done likewise.
Japandroids
Post-Nothing
Thursday, Aug. 13, 2009
More than anything, Post-Nothing makes one yearn to witness Japandroids’ electricity live, preferably in a small, dark space with stuff falling off the walls.
And who said you could nick our name?
Thursday, Aug. 6, 2009
If Glasvegas expects to be taken the least bit seriously, the band needs to recruit a real drummer. Or, perhaps, encourage current drummer Caroline McKay to get a real drum kit.
Save This Concert!
Thursday, July 30, 2009
We never expected to see Leonard Cohen here, and we’re afraid we still might not.
Magnolia Electric Co.
Josephine
Thursday, July 30, 2009
Josephine is Magnolia Electric Co.’s darkest hour yet—a collection of sparse, down-tempo material that pays tribute to the group’s fallen comrade, in spirit if not in exact substance.
The warehouse, revisited
Vegas’ underground music scene comes full storage, er, cycle
Thursday, July 23, 2009
Vegas’ underground music scene comes full cycle as Kid Meets Cougar, Pan de Sal and Ex Dinosaur pack fans into a storage unit.
Happy birthday, Kid Meets Cougar
Thursday, July 16, 2009
A chat with the local indie couple/band on the occasion of this week’s debut CD release show.
The Dead Weather
Horehound
Thursday, July 16, 2009
Quick survey: who wants to hear Chuck Berry shake maracas? Or Tom Morello blow a trombone? How about Eddie Van Halen at the xylophone? Great guitarists are best left … how best to say it … PLAYING THE FREAKING GUITAR!
Man vs. live sushi
Lunch, still twitching
Thursday, July 16, 2009
"The thought of biting into “live” sushi as it thrashed about thrilled me far more than it terrified" A reporter takes on the freshest of the fresh at Wazuzu and chef Jet Tila shares his recipe for garlic crusted lobster.
The Soviet & The Onset
Thursday, July 9, 2009
Two of three members are brothers to Caravels bassist Cory Van Cleef, and Caravels guitarist Dillon Shines co-produced this debut disc, but don’t go thinking the two bands sound alike.
Caravels
Thursday, July 9, 2009
The full-on gut-wallop comes with live proximity, but these six home recordings summon up a healthy kinetic blast all the same.
Sunset Rubdown
Thursday, July 9, 2009
As the project for which Krug composes almost single-handedly, Sunset Rubdown offers the truest barometer of his powers.
Hoop dreaming
Thursday, July 9, 2009
Las Vegas might never be home to an NBA team, but how many cities can say they’ve got their own NBA league—even if it is for just 10 days in July?
Interview Issue: James Woodbridge
Thursday, July 2, 2009
The music promoter/philosophy professor theorizes about the local scene, venues and Neon Reverb.
The Lurks
Thursday, July 2, 2009
Rough as the low-bit-rate, MySpace-ripped, live version of “Dinner for a Dog” I’ve had on my iPod for the past year sounds, it was with some trepidation that I cued up the studio version that leads off The Lurks’ new debut disc.
The Mars Volta
Octahedron
Thursday, July 2, 2009
The first time i placed Octahedron into my computer, it was met with a metal-on-metal grinding sound. I barely looked up from my reading. I mean, we are talking about The Mars Volta.
Tortoise
Beacon of Ancestorship
Thursday, June 25, 2009
At a Will Oldham show years ago, I met a music fan with the e-mail address tortoisesucks@somesuchdomain.com.
60-second video critic
Thursday, June 25, 2009
Move over Toni Basil and Ryan Pardey’s murderous Santa Claus; there’s a new contender for Vegas’ best-ever music video.
Box Elders
Thursday, June 25, 2009
Mother’s Little Helpers would have been a more fitting band name, as this 14-track/30-minute fuzzy-pop barrage worships at the feet of the early Stones and Kinks.