Wolf Alice @ The Cornerstone Berkeley 3/16/2018

British four-piece alt rockers from North London, Wolf Alice kicked off their 2018 US Tour at Cornerstone Berkeley on March 16th. 

Wolf Alice @ Cornerstone Berkeley 3/16/2018
photo by Marc Fong 

Wolf Alice @ Cornerstone Berkeley 3/16/2018
photo by Marc Fong 

Soon after tickets went on-sale a second, late night show, was added by popular demand. It was a Friday night and the brewery was busy with hungry, thirsty patrons some of whom were waiting to be let in to the concert venue. With a tight turn around after the sold-out early show, it didn't take long for doors to re-open for the 10pm show.  

Wolf Alice @ Cornerstone Berkeley 3/16/2018
photo by Marc Fong 

The venue was pretty full despite the second show not being sold-out and the thirty-something and up crowd were mellow. Wolf Alice hit the stage around 10:15 with the first track off of Visions of a Life, "Heavanward". Cheers and applause lingered as Ellie Rowsell greeted fans, acknowledging that they had just played their first show of their US tour and this was their second show there that night.  The picturesque cool girl was almost giddy about this as they went on to play "Yuk Foo" and "You're a Germ".  

Wolf Alice @ Cornerstone Berkeley 3/16/2018
photo by Marc Fong

Wolf Alice @ Cornerstone Berkeley 3/16/2018
photo by Marc Fong 

Catching a band at the first show of their tour is always great because the road hasn't taken it's toll yet. Everyone looks and plays fresh. Nothing is phoned in. Their nineties induced indie-grunge sounded great with Ellie embodying the epitome of a rock goddess. With short blonde locks barely brushing her shoulders, black pants and soft gold blouse she was a striking resemblance of the late, great Kurt Cobain, only (more) polished. Her androgynous vocals steadily carried the show as they played tracks from their albums and EPs. 

Wolf Alice @ Cornerstone Berkeley 3/16/2018
photo by Marc Fong 

They're not an energetic band performance wise but their energy was high as they kept excitedly pointing out that it was their second show on the first night of the tour. The Wolf Alice US Tour ends in Saint Petersberg Florida with Queens of The Stone Age and tickets to their shows go quick, so act fast! 

Wolf Alice @ Cornerstone Berkeley 3/16/2018
photo by Marc Fong 

Wolf Alice set-list 3/16/2018 

1. Heavanward 

2. Yuk Foo 

3. You're a Germ 

4. Your Loves Whore

5. Saint Purple & Green 

6. Don't Delete The Kisses 

7. Planet Hunter 

8. Bros

9. Lisbon 

10. Silk 

11. Beautifully Unconventional 

12. Formidable Cool 

13. Sadboy 

14. Space & Time 

15. Moaning Lisa Smile 

16. Visions of a Life 

17. Fluffy 

en-core 

1. Blush 

2. Giant Peach 

Hudson Taylor release new EP, Feel It Again on March 23rd

The new EP from Brothers Harry and Alfie Hudson-Taylor of the Irish Americana-pop brother duo Hudson Taylor (not to be confused with the British Protestant Christian missionary) officially drops this Friday. 

Hudson Taylor Feel It Again EP cover 

Feel It Again is a fresh five track EP of fresh, folky pop songs. Produced by Ryan Hadlock (The Lumineers & Vance Joy) Feel It Again definitely has some Lumineers undertones with their jamboree style array of instrumentation, while the more up tempo tracks remind me of the fun loving Mowgli's. The Brother's ability to harmonize is pristine and shines through out the EP. Ears will perk as different instruments are featured in every song, like the piano and harmonica on "Travellin" and horns on title track "Feel It Again". You can enjoy the first single, "Run With Me", in it's original version and acoustic version on Spotify today and in two days you can enjoy Feel It Again in full! 

Hudson Taylor was just played at Slim's opening for Gabrielle Aplin on March 11th. The Irish Brothers are headlining a tour through out Ireland and the UK in support of their newest release now but they'll be back on tour in the states late spring/summer 2018! 

Guiness & Baileys Irish Cream cupcake

Guinness & Baileys Irish Cream cupcake
photo by Nikki DeMartini

The Facebook campus is pretty nuts as you might imagine. Like other big name techie workplaces that you've heard about, every amenity any worker might need is there for them, for free. 

They really never have to leave or stop working. That's the idea. 

It's great having a friend who works there who invites you to lunch because: 

1. you get to have lunch with your friend and eating food with friends is one of the best things to do. 2. you get to be onsite at Facebook. 

3. lunch is free and nobody is above a free lunch. 

My friend and I both have busy schedules but luckily this week our schedules allowed for a lunch visit. It was delicious. 

After lunch we decided to get dessert and I decided to get a cupcake. There were two to choose from: Vanilla Coconut or Guinness and Baileys. Both had festive green frosting for St Patrick's Day and I went the more festive route choosing the Guinness and Bailey's cupcake. 

Facebook kept it work appropriate by not calling it an Irish car bomb cupcake (a drink that includes both Guinness and Bailey's) which actually made it more appealing. 

Guinness & Baileys Irish Cream cupcakes
photo by Nikki DeMartini

Guinness & Baileys Irish Cream cupcake 
photo by Nikki DeMartini

It was a little smaller than most cupcakes you'd buy in the store, like a cupcake you'd bake at home. The smooth, round dollop of Bailey's frosting was covered in emerald green sugar crystals and the Guinness cake was a deep brown. Underneath the all of the pretty green sprinkles the plain looking tan frosting was sweet and decadent. It didn't taste much like Baileys but it was smooth and creamy like it. The cake was definitely a chocolate Guinness cake and though I couldn't taste the Guinness, I could taste the chocolate. Surprisingly, that isn't always the case with chocolate cupcakes. Maybe the stout brought the chocolate flavor out? There wasn't a kick to this Guinness and Baileys cupcake at Facebook but it was really really good. 

As I ate it I couldn't help think of Daft Punk's "Get Lucky". So, if you've ever wanted a cupcake and music pairing I found a perfect match: a Guinness and Baileys cupcake while listening to "Get Lucky" just in time for St. Patricks Day.
Happy St. Patricks Day! Be safe out there! 

ZZ Ward @ The Regency Ballroom 3/7/2018

ZZ Ward @ The Regency Ballroom 3/7/2018
photo by Marc Fong 

With 5 or so stops left to go, ZZ Ward played at The Regency Ballroom last week on the tail end of The Storm Tour. The 31 year old singer/songwriter released her second album, The Storm last Summer and it would appear that she's been touring in support of it ever since. 

ZZ Ward @ The Regency Ballroom 3/7/2018
photo by Marc Fong 

Just last June, before The Storm hit, she played an intimate show at The Independent in SF. That venue is less kid friendly than The Regency Ballroom, so it made sense why there were so many families at the show last Wednesday night. 

In an all black get-up made up of a shiny leather skirt, a long sleeved lace top and that signature wide brim hat of hers, ZZ hit the stage with a flirty air about her. Within the first three songs, "Let It Burn", "Ghost", and "Put The Gun Down"she got on guitar and harmonica with the same up-beat energy behind  both. 

ZZ Ward @ The Regency Ballroom 3/7/2018
photo by Marc Fong 

ZZ Ward @ The Regency Ballroom 3/7/2018
photo by Marc Fong 

The rustic quality of her velvety vocals made the bluesy tunes she sang sultry, even in the moments when her voice sounded slightly strained. Her music is catchy, it is pop music but as she played songs from her two albums there's no denying that ZZ Ward is a unique blend of new age blues. 

She was very charismatic with the crowd and her lighthearted energy was uplifting as fans mouthed the words to her songs as she sang them. Her biggest hits, "Let It Burn", "Put The Gun Down", "Til The Casket Drops", and "Ride" drew the biggest reactions before calling it a night with a two song en core, her latest single "Domino" followed by "365 Days". 

ZZ Ward @ The Regency Ballroom 3/7/2018
photo by Marc Fong 

The Storm Tour is over but ZZ Ward will be back on the road soon for the 2018 festival season! You can catch her act at: The Peach Festival, The Wichita River Festival, The Ride Festival, Floyd Fest and The Mammoth Festival of Beers and Bluesapalooza. 

ZZ Ward @ The Regency Ballroom 3/7/2018
photo by Marc Fong 

ZZ Ward set-list 3/7/2018 

1. Let It Burn 

2. Ghost 

3. Put the Gun Down 

4. Til the Casket Drops 

5. Hold On 

6. Ride 

7. Save My Life 

8. The Storm 

9. Home 

10. OVERdue/Cinnamon Stix 

11. Last Love Song 

12. Waiting For Charlie 

13. Grinnin' In Your Face 

14. Bag Of Bones 

15. Cannonball 

16. Lil' Darlin 

17. Marry Well 

18. She Ain't Me 

19. Blue Eyes Blind 

en core

1. Domino 

2. 365 Days

Never too late for love

It took me six years to get to a Sprinkles Cupcake ATM, but last month thanks to some help from my Dad I made it to the one on Santa Monica Blvd in Beverly Hills. The infamous pink ATM looked like it was closed when we first drove by and I was crushed. Upon further inspection (standing in line behind other patrons buying cupcakes from it) I was happy to realize it was open. 

Sprinkles ATM Cupcake in Beverly Hills February 2018
photo by Curtis DeMartini

photo by Nikki DeMartini

I stepped up and moved the paper shielding the sun from the screen (which I thought was a closed sign when driving by) and was faced with about 10 different flavors to choose from. My natural reaction was to go for Red Velvet: it's (now) a classic and it was a close friend's Sprinkles fave. At the last second I impulsively ordered two Red Hot Velvet Cupcakes. It's Sprinkles latest spin on classic Red Velvet with a little added bite by way of smashed up Red Hot candies mixed into the flavor's signature cream cheese frosting. Out just in time for Valentines Day and fitting for it being the week before said Holiday. 

photo by Nikki DeMartini

It was about $9.00 for the two cupcakes which is kinda pricey for cupcakes but not that pricey fro Sprinkles Cupcakes. My Dad and I pulled up a seat outside the store front and divulged in our afternoon treat. It had been a long time since I had a Sprinkles Cupcake and I was pretty excited to not only be having one, but having one from their Cupcake ATM and trying one of their new flavors! The top umbrellas the skinny cupcake bottom just like I remember, which seemed to surprise my Dad (the small cupcake part, not me remembering that). Sprinkles Cupcake founder Candace Nelson developed the southern light style chocolate cake recipe with callebaut chocolate to calm the color's rouge to a sophisticated crimson. 

The cake's color is as rich as the cake itself is, moist from the fresh butteriness, melting as it meets your taste buds with each bite. The frosting was rich too, and thick just like I remember it. The subtleness of the cream cheese was turned up thanks to the addition of the red hot candies. Not too much, but just enough. 

photo by Nikki DeMartini

photo by Nikki DeMartini

I think that red velvet with cream cheese frosting is pretty subtle all around: when kept simple and done right it's a very warm cupcake (no pun intended), it's soul food. If more red hots were added to the cupcake it-self or if more of the candies were added into the off-white colored frosting turning it pink, it would have been over kill. Disgarding almost all of the frosting from his cupcake, my Dad finished his cupcake before I finished mine claiming that it was too rich. He isn't as big on sweets as I am and he's never had a Sprinkles Cupcake before so he'd probably disagree but I think that Sprinkles found the right balance of spicy and sweet.  This special limited flavor was only on the menu for the month of February but Spinkles does ohave sugar free, gluten free and vegan Red Velvet options. Hopefully  Red Hot Velvet will be at a Sprinkles ATM near you next Valentines Day!