[Write On] This Coming March, Say Sayonara to San Francisco’s Bay Bridge Lights

February 24, 2015February 26, 2015Leave a comment

Over the last few years, The Bay Lights have become a shining staple of my visits home; the sea and sky, both ablaze in sweet synchronicity. The brainchild of the Illuminate the Arts group and Tisch trained artist Leo Villareal, The Bay Lights started sparkling almost two years ago on March 5, 2013 much to the delight of San Francisco Residents. From dusk until dawn, 250,000 LED lights sprawl the length of the Westbound bridge in seemingly haphazard patterns, ebbing and flowing with electric current to an unspoken but innately understood rhythm. In the beautiful words of ItA themselves –

“Our highly aspirational mission of changing humanity’s future for the better via public art—some would call it impossible—is a reflection of our core beliefs. The best of our projects will always be radically accessible, free to experience and widely viewable.”

Standing 500 feet high and almost 2 miles wide, the Bay Lights currently stands as the world’s largest LED Light Sculpture. Oh, and then there’s there’s that whole fact she’s a stunning, fully functional bridge bound by a singular cable woven through the breadth of the structure. Crafted in honor of the bridge’s 75th anniversary, the reign of the Bay Lights unfortunately draws to a momentary close this coming March. As the two year art permit expires,Caltrans will begin simultaneous maintenance on the bridge’s cables which are purported to be suffering from both corrosion and cracking. There will be not just one, but two public ceremonies cementing the end of an enchanted era down on Embarcadero near Waterbar. Join in the fun on March 5th at 8pm or March 6th at Sunrise – and if you’re one of the first 1000 people, you’ll end up with a free snazzy LED candle!

If you’re like me and a tad uber sad about the Never fear, because Illuminate the Arts is in cahoots with the State of California on a long term proposal that brings the installation back, brighter and better than ever in 2016 to. So go now, frolic to San Francisco and get your fill before the lovely Bay Lights go off in March. And while you’re at it, pay some tribute to Illuminate the Arts and the Bay Bridge Lights Project by visiting their socials –

Illuminate the Arts: Website | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram

[Oh, Snap!] Exploring The Eagle Rock / Glenoaks Canyon Trail

February 15, 2015February 15, 20151 Comment

In my never ending quest to take in all the nature I possibly can in Los Angeles, the idea of finding lush, green pastures and wind swept trees locally has more often than not escaped me. When I was living in Korea Town and West Hollywood, I was easily and habitually reminded of the close proximity of the heart of the city. I could feel the pulse of the streets and yearned to be closer to nature. So, thank goodness I moved out to Eagle Rock – there’s all the amenities of West Side living but paired with the lackadaisical but passionate work ethic of the modern Renaissance person, advocating equal time for work and play. Instead of being engulfed by the traffic and smog of the city, I’m constantly in awe of the natural beauty that surrounds this area.

For Valentine’s Day weekend, Danny and I had a few friends stay with us and we got to explore a whole new side of the neighborhood. Just over the freeway, where the 2 and 134 meet, there’s a wonderful little trail right on Sleepy Hollow Lane, oh and also – most adorable street name ever. We walked a few miles while the blazing succulent sun-rays rained down on us and I couldn’t think of a more beautiful way to spend my Friday afternoon. What’s even better, is this is just 5 minutes away and boasts a view of Big Bear, Orange County’s Saddleback Mountain, Downtown LA, Santa Monica and the Pacific Ocean.

[The Audiofiles] Consciousness and Creativity Collide as The Gem & Jam Festival PreParty Descends on Los Angeles

January 26, 2015January 28, 2015Leave a comment

– Photos by Daniel Leist Photography –

Through times of greatness and times of strife, moments of genius and seconds of insanity – the most bonding force we have is music. Sound, purported by old Native American tribes is the glue truly holds the universe together on vibratory strings, sonic spiderwebs and fractaling frequencies – and modern day scientists now understand it, the universe was propelled apart in an equidistant motion by intense vibratory sound waves after the Big Bang. As socio-economic boundaries are broken down while far reaching forms of social media are on the rise, it makes all too much sense that music has become the bonding factor of my generation. Humans are a tribal bunch, we naturally congregate around those who share similar values, morals, senses of humor – and what better litmus test of a personable friendship than full immersion into festival culture? Festival Culture. It’s where people hug instead of shake hands, strangers are simply friends whom you haven’t met, clothing more resembles costumes and the community itself is a giant support system and music is our religion.

Just the other weekend, some of Southern California’s biggest fans in Bass Music – including my group of pretty party personalities – descended upon The Fonda Theater for a night where consciousness and creativity collided in a spectacle of audio-visual delight. The evening featured a wonderful cross section of community, music, culture and art sponsored by Euphonic Conceptions, In The Loop and The Do Lab as the upstairs area manifested into a Burning Man-esque vendor bazaar, hosted by Los Angeles’ own Grateful Generation. The night featuring booths from local vendors of permaculture, art, essential oils, IMG_8948_new_new gems, jewlery and costumes like K’ulu Misk’i, Lunavore Designs, Mostly Minerals, vibrant long exposure photography by Harmonic Light so much more entrenched in momentary lush surroundings.

With Jonathan Singer setting a vibrantly trippy visual mood, Soulular set the tone for the evening with a stellar opening set as live visual artists Sam Flores, Amanda Sage, and Alex + Allyson Grey got down on live paintings much to the crowd’s delight. Desert Dwellers followed with a downtempo ‘World Bass’ set, followed by the convoluted, glitchy dubstep sounds of Thriftworks, who got the crowd in a frenzy; the cherry on top of the ice cream sundae being an unexpected appearance by Russ Liquid on the Trumpet, eventually ebbing into Russ Liquid‘s flow. My first Random Rab experience was last Summer for a sunrise set at Lightning in a Bottle, so I had little to no idea of the musical prowess he had in store for the evening. For almost two hours, the entire arena was transfixed to the sounds and visuals stemming from the Entheon Stage as we were swept down a rabbit hole of music and wonder.

From start to finish, the evening was swimming with fantastic company, boasting the best of their personalities while getting down in their most exuberant, colorful and quirky duds. It was beautiful to watch the paintings manifest as each musician, one by one graced the epic Entheon Altar DJ Booth, a 3D printout of the official Entheon structure modeled by digital sculptor Ryan Tottle, who made an appearance for the evening. Crowdfunded through Kickstarter and lovely backers of the arts, the official Entheon building will play host to Alex Grey’s incredible, immersive art at the Chapel of Sacred Mirrors in New York, known to most as CoSM. And the stage is most certainly set for the official Gem & Jam Festival, happening in Tucson, Arizona from February 6-9

As the Official Gem and Jam Festival Gets Closer, the Pre Parties continue heating up across the West Coast. This coming Friday, Gem & Jam will be getting groovy with Vibesquad in Albuquerque, New Mexico, as well as Flagstaff, Arizona with Kaminanda, and Safi’s Lab. On Saturday. Pumpkin and Late Night Radio bring the funk to Austin for the official Texas PreParty. Last but definitely not least, don’t forget about the grand finale – the Gem & Jam Festival itself! Thrown in conjunction with Infinite Music, Euphonic Conceptions, New Earth MuZiQ and Challenger – the Gem and Jam Festival is reaching a historic 9th year and can’t wait to celebrate with you.

Set in conjunction with one of the world’s best gem shows, for three days and nights, the air of Tucson will be vibrant with Glitchy, Dubby, Wobbly and downright Trippy West Coast Bass and Jam Music sounds of renowned producers and astounding musicians like Random Rab, Desert Dwellers, Pumpkin, Late Night Radio, Emancipator Ensemble and Thriftworks. With hip-hop influenced acts like Ill-esha and Amp Live from Zion I, there’s a bit of something for everyone in your crew. While they’ve got your feet moving and your soul grooving, let your mind wander and eyes roam the grounds with astounding live art to match from the likes of Amanda Sage, Xavi, the Welch Brothers, Benedigital and of course – Alex
and Allyson Grey, founders of the fabled Chapel of Sacred Mirrors. Come and witness the influence the cross section of artistic prowess and musical genius, as performance art of all shapes and sizes influences each other over the weekend. With a healthy dose of intelligent dance music and mindboggling artwork, the weekend will truly appeal to all of the senses, maybe even your 6th.

Our entire photo gallery can be found here on The DJ List.

For more details on the festival itself, read on after the event photos

Website | Facebook | Twitter

gemjamupdatedflyer

[Oh, Snap!] Ringing In 2015 at The University of California’s Botanical Garden in Berkeley

January 11, 2015January 11, 2015Leave a comment

After crushing it into the New Years at Sea of Dreams for the second time running, the New Years Day was spent marinating in the good tidings of the past year, and the first half of Friday was devoted to work. But, as noon settled in – I got the call from my boss that everyone wishes they had: If you have your work in, you’re dismissed. All week, I’d made it a mission to get ahead of myself so I could coast into the New Year; it was totally working. My parents were poised to pounce with a bevvy of beautiful options for the afternoon – we could go to Land’s End and enjoy the roar of the Pacific, or they could whisk us over the Bay Bridge and into one of two Botanical Gardens manned by the University of California School System, the other located at UCLA . As Ursula from The Little Mermaid taunted, ‘Life is full of tough choices‘; but when one of them happened to be a place I’d already been, and the later a place my family had never spent time, I knew exactly where we should be.

The sun just reached it’s pinnacle and we were off, galloping across the glistening San Francisco Bay into new territory, Oakland’s Strawberry Canyon. Within seconds we were lost in the wilderness, whimsically in wanderlust. Tucked away in the hillside, high above the city and it’s highest skyscrapers – the UC Botanical Garden at Berkeley is one of the Bay Area’s best kept secrets. Boasting over 12,000 rare and unusual plants selectively segmented across 34 acres and multiple greenhouses, these botanical gardens are among the most populated and diverse in the entire United States.

For you number nerds like me – according to their site, this is the breakdown in numbers:

300+ families
- 2,710 genera
  - 9,670 species
    - 12,800 taxa
      - 19,300 accessions (each accession represents one or more plants in the Garden).

The five best-represented families are:

Cactus family (2,029 accessions; 1,198 taxa)
Sunflower family (1,002 accessions; 771 taxa)
Orchid family (1,030 accessions; 711 taxa)
Lily family (1,097 accessions; 675 taxa)
Heath family (979 accessions; 614 taxa).

From Cactus Gardens to Herb Gardens, Medicinal Chinese Gardens and massive plots of native Californian, South American, African, Mediterranean and Asian plants – the botanical gardens represents the entire globe, with an emphasis on plants from Mediterranean Climates. Not to mention, there’s an amazing arena for succulents.

The gardens are open daily from 9 to 5PM and tickets typically run at $10 a head – but, know before you go: there’s free admission the first Wednesday of every month!

For more about the UC Botanical Garden at Berkeley, visit their various socials:

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram

[Eagle Walkin’ and Eagle Rockin’ v5]

October 24, 2014October 24, 2014Leave a comment

Leaves are changing, seasons are rearranging – and I’m falling in love with this town all over again…

[Oh, Snap!] Eagle Rockin’ and Eagle Walkin’ v3

August 28, 2014August 28, 2014Leave a comment

All sorts of reasons to love my neighborhood =)

[Traveling Tales] The Journey to Shambhala

August 12, 2014February 22, 2016Leave a comment

Not even a few weeks after we arrived back in Los Angeles from our epic journeys to Red Rocks and Zion, Danny and I were feverishly packing our car and getting ready for what turned out to be the best weekend of our young lives so far. Blessed with amazing connections and peers within the dance music scene, Danny and I were both asked by The Confluence to cruise up to Canada for their famed Shambhala Music Festival out at Salmo River Ranch in British Columbia, Canada – and you all know how I am when threatened with a good time, so when they asked I immediately and obviously jumped on this amazing opportunity with pep in my step and more bounce in my boogie.

Once the car was packed to the brim with camping supplies – tents, tarps, blankets, pillows and a cooler – we were off to the races! What originally was a 23 hour drive got broken up into three simpler sections: a 6 hour drive from LA to SF to visit my father, a 9 hour drive from SF to Corvallis to visit my Step-Mom and then another 9 hours until we found ourselves across the border and at Salmo River Ranch in Canada. What started as an unassuming adventure to both a new country, and new music culture, culminated in a warrior-esque journey to a new mindset, absolutely engulfed by the serenity of nature and enthralled by the beautiful expressions of humanity that surrounded us from every angle. There was never a dull moment, and at each and every turn there was someone or something to interact, connect, dance or laugh with and for every stranger we met – we walked away with two new friends. The Shambhala story – and trust me, it’s an EPIC one -won’t be coming later this week; so, until then, enjoy some of these pics from our roadtrip and Shamble-on!