Win Tickets to Detour Festival on October 4th

My fav band in this years line up is def Cut Copy. Although there are some stronger more well known bands headlining, its hard to not enjoy a band that combines the entertaining aspect of rock with the irresistible music of dance. Although my hip friends would think i'm crazy for only having recently discovered Cut Copy i feel as if i've been listening to their familiar and mesmerizing sound for years. I've been aware of the band since my days back east going to parties and embracing the electronic scene but now i'm getting to actually experience seeing them live!

I have seen Cut Copy once at the Echoplex but i picture their performance at a larger outdoor event like this to be a whole other experience! i cant explain the initial excitement of hearing the band i want take stage in front of (what will be) such a large audience. I also feel like there soft melodies and driving beats will echo through the steel buildings of downtown in a rather exciting way! It's something i've dreamed about experiencing and i hope i get my chance. I will be happy to also write 3 paragraphs about the experience if i get to go.

I love The Mars Volta because they sound like the pool of bad thoughts in my head that drown the worms of my best intentions. I love them because they give my journey a soundtrack. When i close my eyes in the dark, i can see snakes writhing. The Mars Volta can tame these snakes. Rarely does a band come along with the power to tame the snakes in my eyes.

How many nights did i spend stumbling around the streets of downtown....climbing the giant sculptures in the corporate art parks....befriending crackheads and homeless schizophrenics. With nothing but my trusty ghettoblaster to keep me company. Back then, it was the only way i could experience the majesty of the skyline with the power of music blasting in my ears. But no longer, now the Detour festival is actually bringing live music to the streets of downtown los angeles. At Night! Needless to say....this is really something. Catching the Mars Volta on these wild streets would be beyond surreal, and that, of course, is EXACTLY what i'm after.

Although I am a fan and frequent listener of almost every band in the line-up, I’d have to say I’d be most excited about seeing Gogol Bordello perform live at the Detour Festival. Maybe it’s because I’ve never seen them perform live before, or maybe it’s because I haven’t heard a professional rock out on an accordion in a minute (the bum who lives on my corner doesn’t count). Although they don’t quite get me pumped up for treating little boys like little toys, out of the line up, Gogol Bordello has some of the more optimistically profound lyrics that are great for late night bike rides to the Downtown Library. I would love to see them rock out in an outdoor venue, because what could be better than being in a park in Los Angeles listening to gypsy’s from New York sing songs about immigration?

I live (Spring & 6th), work (Los Angeles Times in advertising by day & La Cita as “beer wench” by night), and blog in Downtown Los Angeles and would be the perfect spokesperson for the event. I am an inspiring writer with an English B.A. who promises- if given the free tickets- to spend much longer on the final three paragraphs for the article than I have on these two.

Even though Hercules and Love Affair are not exactly my favorite band in the world they are my favorite act to see at Detour. Their self titled March 2008 release on DFA has rekindled my love affair with disco. Not to say it had ever really disappeared but Hercules and Love Affair didn't conjure up an old sound, they created a new one. Plus Andrew Butler used to work in a leather bar in Denver. How can they go wrong? I admit, I was a dance junkie whore in the early 80s, that is exactly what makes experiencing these guys live seem worthy of a paragraph or two.

I totally remember dancing to The Sparks "Cool Places" in the mid 80s on the exact same streets during the LA Street Scene and to bring it all the way back around to a new and improved Downtown tickles me. I attended the first Detour Fest because I believe in bringing life through music to the streets of Downtown. I didn't go last year because I was unemployed and couldn't afford a ticket. I still believe music is an important part of Downtown L.A.'s history (can I say Al's Bar?) and what better place to celebrate than to dance in the streets of my neighborhood. I will happily dance, photograph and write a review for blogdowntown if I'm selected.

I forgot to mention that i would gladly agree to write 3 fun-filled paragraphs of my detour experience, should i be, by some dark miracle, blessed with tickets.

Would die to write a nice 3 paragraph review of the fest! The music will definitely be inspiration enough for me to pick up the pen ;-)

It's tough to choose a favorite this year- I really think Goldenvoice and LA Weekly outdid themselves with the lineup this time around. But as I'm being forced to play favorites, I am going to go with The Presets. I first discovered them a couple of years ago at a small show Spaceland and was instantly a fan- those catchy hooks, those pounding rhythms- I simply could not believe that two people were capable of producing all of that amazing sound. Julian and Kim are just incredible with what they can do, and I've been a fan ever since. With the release of "Apocalypso" earlier this year, my devotion was sealed- The Presets are unique, fresh, and totally rad.

The Detour Festival, in my opinion, is an ideal venue for the duo to bring their beats to L.A. I did have the good fortune to attend last year, and the idea of seeing The Presets with thousands of people, frantically dancing around in the streets of downtown Los Angeles (the city I truly love) just makes me giddy. The write-up and pictures I would give you guys would be special becuase they would be coming of a true fan- of downwown Los Angeles, of The Presets, and of just good music in general, which is why this year's lineup is so appealing to me. I just hope I'm lucky enough to be able to enjoy it! :)

Sally

My favorite “band” in the Detour lineup is Adam Freeland. He’s been a breaks pioneer since the mid-90’s, but doesn’t let his history hold him back. His more recent trajectory has forged new ground in the dance music world, bringing that rock edge I’ve missed from my early 90’s grunge music youth. But it’s something new, beyond just a distorted guitar riff over the same old beats. “I've always said I'm a rocker trapped in a DJ's body,” he says in his new interview posted at his MySpace page. What he’s doing with his label, Marine Parade, and the artists on it with him is fantastic for dance music and music in general. And he’s really creative in his performances, doing unexpected things like stage diving at Coachella this year or sampling an 80’s speak-&-spell toy over Daft Punk, really energizing the crowd.

I just can’t wait to see what will happen as Adam Freeland takes the decks on stage at Detour, amidst a lineup of stellar rock bands, and fans the flames already burning and sparks new ones. Now that he’s based in LA (in my neighborhood!), the center of the music industry and a rock stronghold, it’s a really exciting time for him and his brand of music. Selfishly for me, this means I get to see him more, like at this festival if I win tickets! Did I mention that I recognized and met him at a bar near me?! He’s a great guy as well as an artist.

I’ll be more than happy to write the 3 paragraphs for blogdowntown if I’m lucky enough to win a pair of tickets.