Tuesday, January 12, 2016

Sights and Sounds: Off Center Festival, Lord of the Strings, Lee Rocker & Little River Band, Twisted Sister

With the death of David Bowie over the weekend, I decided not to post any of the media releases unrelated to that until today. So there is quite of news to catch up on...


Allah-Las / Photo by Robbie Simon
If you live here in Orange County, CA, make sure to catch up with what's happening with Off Center Festival 2016.

The Segerstrom Center for the Arts' fifth annual Off Center Festival kicks off on Friday, Jan. 15, 2016 and will run through Jan. 30, 2016. The festival will feature an all-new line-up of creative, contemporary and sometimes controversial artists and shows. 

There will be two free events on the Arts Plaza including West Coast garage rock by Allah-Las on Jan. 16, and a performance by "cinematic-pop" troupe Milo Greene on Jan. 23. Both of those will offer live music, dancing and food truck cuisine. For more information, visit the Off Center Festival Web site: http://www.scfta.org/offcenter



Peppino D'Agostino will perform three shows
this month as part of Lord Of The Strings.
Speaking of excellent Orange County music events, fingerstyle guitar great Peppino D'Agostino will perform as part of the Lord of the Strings concert series on Jan. 22, 23 and 24, 2016. He will perform at Dana Point Community House, 24642 San Juan Ave., Dana Point, at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 22; he will perform at Mission Viejo Civic Center, 200 Civic Center Ave., Mission Viejo, at 7 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 23; he will perform a special matinee performance in Costa Mesa at 3 p.m. on Sunday, Jan. 24. Information: LordOfTheStringsConcerts.com


Also on the concert front, I just got word today that acclaimed singer-songwriter-bassist Lee Rocker (of Stray Cats fame) and Australia-spawned hitmakers Little River Band will perform at the Cerritos Center for the Performing Arts, 12700 Center Court Drive, Cerritos, CA, at 8 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 27, 2016. Tickets, which start at $50, are available at the CCPA Ticket Office and at cerritoscenter.com, or by calling 562-467-8818.




GET TO KNOW THE IRON MEN OF ROCK AND ROLL…
WE ARE TWISTED F***ING SISTER!
~A FILM BY ANDREW HORN~
IN SELECTED THEATERS NATIONWIDE
PRESENTED BY MUSIC BOX FILMS BEGINNING FEBRUARY 19, 2016

DVD / BLU-RAY / VOD / DIGITAL RELEASE FEBRUARY 23, 2016

The setting is mid-1970s New York City: five rockers decked in platform boots and dramatic make-up embarked on a heavy metal journey. Little did they know the impact they would make, and that, forty years later, they would still be renowned for their songs, one-of-a-kind live shows, and take-no-prisoners attitude.


We Are Twisted F***ing Sister! – a new 134-minute documentary film by Andrew Horn capturing that expedition from bar band to international stardom – will be presented in theaters via Music Box Films in February 2016. The first ever documentary of the band that defined an early MTV with their no-holds-barred music videos opens in New York and Los Angeles on February 19 with a one-night-only event at Chicago’s Music Box Theatre on February 22. On February 23, the film will be released on DVD, Blu-ray, VOD, and digital formats, with an included 2 hours of bonus material and director commentary.


Charging out of the gate with a lethal combination of grit and glitter, Twisted Sister (Jay Jay FrenchDee SniderEddie OjedaMark “The Animal” Mendoza, and the late A.J. Pero) established themselves as one of the staple acts of Glam Rock and Heavy Metal with anthems “We’re Not Gonna Take It” and “I Wanna Rock.” However, “the band that killed disco” was no overnight success.


Director Andrew Horn, who is known for his films East Side Story (named one of the 10 best films of the year by Time Magazine), The Nomi Song, Doomed Love, and The Big Blue, said of the film:


“I realized as I was working on the film, that it was really very much a story of how a band becomes a band. They are truly unique in that their overnight success actually took 10 years, so you really get to experience everything Twisted Sister went through to do it. I have to say, I don’t think I’ve ever experienced any group of musicians as ferocious...or as funny.”


We Are Twisted F***ing Sister! puts the fan in the trenches with the band from their early, hungry days in New York City onward through their legendary career. Recounted directly from the band themselves, their managers, and biggest fans, We Are Twisted F***ing Sister! is the mesmerizing, never-before-told story of the ten grueling years leading up to the band’s break out success.


Are you ready to really get to know Twisted F***ing Sister?


For more information on theatrical screenings, please visit: www.musicboxfilms.com/twistedsister (check on “Theaters”)


Official trailer: http://bit.ly/WATFSTrailer

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