Wendy Gilmartin

It's Not a Space Shuttle or a Giant Rock, But Chevron's 100-Foot Coke Drums Shut Down the PCH Yesterday

See also: *20 Ways to Pose for Photos at the LACMA Rock *LACMA Rock Finally Opens. Does It Live Up to Expectations? Last night, Chevron began moving two of six 500,000-pound coke drums -- that's oil industry lingo for processing units -- up from the Port of Los Angeles in San Pedro to its refinery ... More >>

El Segundo Museum of Art Opens, Bringing Smartphones Into the Gallery Experience

The new home for the El Segundo Museum of Art -- which isn't a public museum, but technically a private collection open to the public -- infills a tiny slice of downtown El Segundo's Main Street, right next to a former post office storefront, in a skinny slot that used to be a drive-through alley. T ... More >>

9 Silicon Beach Office Buildings and What They Say About Their Companies

See also: *More tech stories from L.A. Weekly *Fugly Buildings: Our Series on the Most Hideous Buildings in L.A. Since the arrival of Google in Venice last year, westside beach communities like Santa Monica, Playa Vista and others have seen an influx of tech companies, startups, investors and soft ... More >>

The Fugly Brown Wall Off the 405 Freeway at the 90 Freeway, in Westchester

We can thank the developers and architects who built the Alessio apartments on Centinela Avenue in Westchester for this one. To all those visitors to L.A. who emerge from LAX's arrival terminal and head north up the 405, this is what greets them: A seven-story-tall, poo-brown colored wall -- which a ... More >>

Target's New 'City' Stores in Downtown and Westwood Preserve the Outsides But Whitewash the Insides: Our Review

See also: *Fugly Buildings: Our Series on the Most Hideous Buildings in L.A. *5 Artsy Things to Do in L.A. This Week *Our Best of L.A. issue and our Best of L.A. app Target's new "City" store opened this week in the the sunken shopping center at the corner of 7th and Figueroa downtown. The multi-l ... More >>

Artist Chris Burden's Quasi-Legal Skyscraper Rises Again

In 1991, Los Angeles-based artist Chris Burden decided to add a studio structure on his own property, but he wanted to make it as big as he could without a building permit. After pouring over the building code, he found he could build a detached structure as long as it was under 400 square feet and ... More >>

Frogtown Artwalk Turns Shipping Containers Into Art Galleries

At its 7th annual art walk Saturday, Frogtown and the Elysian Valley Arts Collective invited groups of artists, designers and vendors to re-imagine and re-engineer 8 pre-fabricated storage "PODs" as exhibition spaces intermixed within the warehouses, riverfront, tight-knit single family homes, commu ... More >>

Fugly Landscaping: The Hedge That Looks Like an Afro

Early on in architecture school, a professor advised me against filling in a half-baked drawing with a row of sycamore trees. Admittedly, I was trying to cover up the unresolved aspects of the design. "Ah trees," he sighed gently, raising one eyebrow, "the architect's eraser."

'April Fools,' Says L.A. Weekly

If you visited L.A. Weekly's home page yesterday, you might have noticed a few stories that seemed a little off -- our contribution to April Fool's Day. For those of you who want to relive the moment, click on the image above to see it bigger, and links to all the stories are here:

749 S. Broadway, Downtown: Blue Jeans Blues

Wendy Gilmartin​ Thanks to Metro's online archive of WWII-era downtown photos, at least we know what the building at 749 South Broadway used to look like, if only from a very skewed angle (it's the second lot up from 8th street in the linked photo under the "Tokyo Next" banner).

3748 Baldwin Avenue, El Monte: The Sad Gray Box

Wendy Gilmartin​ This poor excuse for a building has no balconies, no overhangs, no awnings, no shrubs, no front windows, no shade, no hue, no nothing but a big square box of fugly.

El Bordello Alexandra: How a Venice Goth House Came to Be

Wendy GilmartinEl Bordello Alexandra​When Tony and Brittany Stevenson bought the apartment at 20 Westminster Ave. in Venice ten years ago, the place was a heroin den with a slumlord owner who never fixed things. The front was covered with decaying wood shingles, grimy linoleum hid the historic ... More >>

Abbot Kinney Festival - Venice - September 25, 2011

Wendy GilmartinFamily of the Year​Seasons, Thundercat, Dumbfounded, Kris Mars, Family of the Year, Hanni el Khatib and Mia Doi Todd Abbot Kinney Festival Venice 9/25/11 Better than . . . Sunset Junction. After all of the Sunset Junction drama this summer, it turns out that for a fun outdoor ... More >>

Live Review: The Growlers at the Troubadour

photo by Wendy Gilmartinstage rush at the Growlers​ WHO: The Growlers WHERE: Troubadour WHEN: 7/1/11 It was a spazzed-out, hopped-up, sweaty set of pure fun at Friday night's holiday weekend kick-off with the Growlers and their devoted, drunken fans. Partly made up of beach-bums with some ... More >>

Kid Cudi brings The Cud Life to Nokia Theater, Britney Fans Swarm Next Door at Staples

photo by Wendy GilmartinKid Cudi​ L.A. Live played host to a hip hop-meets-dance pop mash-up Monday night, with Britney Spears on one side of the street and Kid Cudi on the other.

Ropes, Booze, Sex, Wrestling (and Music) with Hunx & His Punx, La Sera at NOMAD Gallery

boozy in Frogtown​ Dudes with perms, Ziggy look-alikes, scensters jumping rope, surfers, hippies in long silk dresses, local vatos, black girls, queer kids, old guys, potheads, metal heads, art fags and moms and dads with kids in tow came out to get down and liquored-up in Frogtown Saturday n ... More >>

Coachella Festival Sees Only 49 Arrests, 48 Medical Transports Over Three Days

Wendy GilmartinNo emergencies here.​Updated after the jump with the promoter's official crowd estimate. See the rest of our Coachella coverage, including eye-opening photos, here. Supporters of ecstasy-fueled mega-raves at publicly owned venues in L.A. have used comparisons to other mainstrea ... More >>

Day 2: Coachella's GOODs, BADs and UGLYs (feat. The Kills, Animal Collective, Paul Van Dyk, Arcade Fire and Mariachi El Bronx)

Without road trips lingering or looming, and with just the right amount of hangover, the Coachella crowd attacked the grounds on Saturday, and the bands fought along heroically. The only real loser was the grass, which is starting to get sticky, but more on that in a little bit. Let's take a look a ... More >>

Coachella Heat: The Temps Go Up, the Clothes Come Off (Part Deux)

photo by Wendy GilmartinLove the kilt​ Yesterday the LAWeekly ran a blog about the crazy hot temps and the sexy skin being revealed as such. What you saw was a predominant display of boobs, butts and bikinis. So today, we decided to give readers a little peep into the wild world of sweaty du ... More >>

Coachella 2011: Same Festival, Polar Opposite Crowds

photo by Wendy GilmartinThis guys wasn't at Duran Duran​ Coachella is all about variety and sure there are those fleeting chocolate-in-my-peanut butter moments when scenesters, hippies and douchebags all get down together (see Animal Collective, Saturday night). But right now we're talking ab ... More >>

Day 1: Coachella's GOODs, BADs and UGLYs (featuring Paul McCartney, Black Keys, Chemical Brothers and Craigslist)

Colin Young-Wolff​ Compared to last year's problems with wristbands and overcrowding, the first day of Coachella 2011 was smooth sailing. Greasy even. Let's take a look at yesterday's GOODs, BADs and UGLYs.

Coachella 2011: This Year's Fashion on the Field

photo by Wendy Gilmartin​ Last year it was the dainty white fedoras with black bands and 80s Ray Ban knock-offs. In 2004 it was peacock feather earrings, and then there was that other year everyone had those lace-up moccasin boots. This year's fads are sure to blaze out fast too, check em ou ... More >>

Coachella: Desperate SWF Seeks Wristband

There is still time to get your ass to Indio, but you'll need a wristband to get anywhere near the field, let alone inside the festival. We've been trolling Craigslist to get an idea just how desperate buyers and sellers are getting as the final minutes tick down to showtime in the desert.

Coachella 2011: Paul McCartney Spins with Afrojack. Usher Too.

Coachella 2011 now officially has its first mash-up. Our own Wendy Gilmartin just saw Sir Paul McCartney spinning with Afrojack. Usher was up there too. ​ We'd just been joking about guest appearances, so we actually thought it was a prank at first. But no, let it be known. Paul McCartney i ... More >>

Like SXSW, but Gayer: Gay Bi Gay Gay Fest (Plus Saturday Chill Out with REM's Peter Buck and Steve Wynn, Meat Puppets and Roky Erickson and JEFF The Brotherhood)

photo by J. HettwerGayBiGayGay​ One last post about the 2011 edition of SXSW: In its 6th year, the SXSW spin-off Gay Bi Gay Gay Fest packs in enough merrymaking and debauchery to hold everyone over until Gay Pride in June.

SXSW: The Strokes Sellout with Twin Shadow and St. Paddy's Day Air Guitar Contest

photo by Wendy GilmartinSmile! It's a Strokes sellout​ Didn't think it was possible to sellout a free show? Here's how to do it: Invite The Strokes to play after five long years on hiatus, make the weather a perfectly warm for a spring afternoon and, oh yeah, schedule it on the one day of the ... More >>

SXSW: Day 2 Round-up with Budweiser Tall Boys, Wu-Tang and a Totally Tricked-out Hipster Playground

photo by Wendy GilmartinTall Boys O'Plenty​ Any normal SXSW day is spent guzzling back brews, taking in the sunshine and partying in general, so when the festival lands on St. Patrick's day, the only logical solution to upping the ante is - yes, you guessed it - to make the dang beer can tall ... More >>

Psychic TV Live at SXSW: The Godfather/mother of Industrial Rock Rides Again

photo by Wendy GilmartinPsychic TV​ What: Psychic TV Where: Elysium, Austin TX When: March 15, 2011 Psychic TV and their outer-planetary transport trip blasted off Tuesday night with the gloriously pandrogynous Genesis P-Orridge back at the helm after years of professed retirement and perso ... More >>

Live at SXSW: Gary Lucas Scores Dracula, the Lusty Latin Version

Wendy Gilmartin​What: Gary Lucas Plays Spanish Dracula Where: Central Presbyterian Church, Austin, TX When: March 15 Escucha a ellos. Los hijos de la noche. What better place to watch a movie about a blood-sucking vampiro and his howling children of the night than on holy ground? With its re ... More >>

SXSW Day 1: Surprise! Its' Jack White (Again) also Daxx Riggs, Tahiti 80, Free Beer and More

Video by: moreinthemonitor On the first (official) day of SXSW, hipsters awoke to news that Jack White had sprung from a moving truck around noon and played a solo set to a shocked crowd of onlookers, which coincidentally also included celebrities like Aziz Ansari and Alison Mosshart from the Ki ... More >>

Rock Picks: Daedelus, Beth Thornley, Yeasayer

Also, Ohioan, Hepcat, Vivian Girls and others

Rock Picks: Al Kooper, Year Long Disaster, Steven Severin, the Phenomenal Handclap Band

Also, Kimya Dawson, the Cigarette Bums, Willi Williams and others

Rock Picks: Gabriel Andruzzi, DANNY B. HARVEY, RIOT GRRL XMAS CARNIVAL

Also, Boogie Nazis, the Growlers, Good Old War and others

Rock Picks: J. Tillman, Peaches, Japandroid

Also, Franklin Bruno, the Vic Chesnutt Band, the Moore Brothers and others

Rock Picks: THE JOE KROWN TRIO, THE FIERY FURNACES, THE LILYS, MR. GNOME

Also, Simian Mobile Disco, Wolfmother, El Perro del Mar and others

Rock Picks: Grizzly Bear, Michigan and Smiley, Meshell Ndegeocello, Aztlan Underground

Also, Ghostface Killah, Pi, Brother Ali and others

Best of L.A.: Nightlife

Rock Picks: Amadou & Mariam, Manimal Festival, Marianne Faithfull, Gil Scott-Heron

Also, Kylie Minogue, the Joe Perry Project, Teenage Jesus & the Jerks and others

Rock Picks: Rain Machine, Pearl Jam, Wallpaper, Bon Iver, Dodos

Also, Seasons, Brodinski, Autolux and others

Rock Picks: Pink, the Grates, Doug Paisley, Ooh La L.A. Festival

Also, Slavic Soul Party, Pet Shop Boys, the Humpers and others

Rock Picks: Broken Nobles, Anny Celsi, Seu Jorge, the Killers

Rock Picks: Broken Nobles, Anny Celsi, Seu Jorge, the Killers

Also, Destroy L.A., Sunset Strip Music Festival, the Drones and others

Rock Picks: Quantic and his Combo Bárbaro, Elvis Costello, Rock & Roll Summer Circus

Also, Flaming Lips, Clipse, Silk Flowers, the Muffs and others

ROCK PICKS: Black Francis, Bob Dylan, Caroline Weeks, Casiokids

Also, Omar Faruk Tekbilek, The Dodos, Buddy Guy and others

Rock Picks: Future of the Left, Deerhoof, Ronnie Mack's Barndance, The Urinals

Also, Torche, Alejandro Escovedo, Quintron & Miss Pussycat, and others

Music Picks: Sky Saxon Tribute, Daddy Kev, Grace Jones, The Mekons

Also, Jarvis Cocker, Regina Spektor, Ida Maria, Themselves and others.

Rock Picks: Jon Brion, Andrew Bird, Tortoise, Vice Squad

Also, Beyonce, the Datsuns, the Veils, the Germs and others

Rock Picks: Riot Girl Carnival, Miniature Tigers, Death Cab for Cutie, Deer Tick

Also, Vieux Farka Touré, John Fogerty, Stacey Q, Watts Ensemble and others

Rock Picks: Erykah Badu, Peaches, The Church, Camera Obscura

Also, Au Revoir Simone, Patrick Wolf, The Field, Fortress of Amplitude and others

Rock Picks: Mulatu Astatke, The Soft Pack, Katy Perry, Merle Haggard

Also, Cut Chemist, NOFX, Hal Blaine’s 80th bash and more