...has been canceled. Sorry.

Begun as an avenue for Ikey Owens to fill his free time while on a break from touring with Mars Volta, FMA quickly moved from Ikey and hired guns to a full-on project. The band has settled into a groove, the songs have developed into a heady mix of post-punk angularity, worldly rhythms, and a fire that comes from the heart - it runs from quietly trippy to raging full-on, often within the confines of the same song. Free Moral Agents release their new album on Sept 28th, just in time for our little event.

Click over to their myspace page and sample their soul.

Matt Costa has a new album coming and we couldn't be happier that he's decided to kick things off here on this ever-so-humble little stage.

Matt's new, self-produced, album is called Mobile Chateau and for someone who's watched his musical evolution as a customer, Matt's new-found (or at least much more apparent) love of that old psyche sound isn't a huge surprise. It still sounds like Matt, in fact he debuted a few of these songs at his Record Store Day in-store a bit over a year ago. The finished versions however have a very cool vintage sound (that sound like they would be a good fit if anyone ever does a Nuggets-style boxset for Long Beach.)

The guest list is curently open for those who pre-order Mobile Chateau on CD or LP. The pre-order includes an event poster and priority entry to the event. If space allows we will open first come, first served when we get closer, but it seems likely that this one will close out on pre-orders, though.

Click here to download a free track that you can live with for a bit - it's a smoker.

LESLIE STEVENS & THE BADGERS
Los Angeles-based artist whose new album Roomful Of Smoke is garnering rave reviews, and we've snuck them on the bill as a surprise opener. Produced by David Bianco (Tom Petty, Bob Dylan), Roomful, was released by Nashville's Thirty Tigers (Justin Townes Earle, Those Darlins) last month. Leslie and her ferociously named backing band, The Badgers, have already toured with Rhett Miller and Roky Erickson with Okkervil River. Upcoming tours include Martin Sexton and Laura Veirs. The LA Times said, "Canyon Country Bands are as common as brush fires in LA but the thing that separates this combo apart is the voice of the titular Leslie...a rounded shining thing that evokes Patsy Cline's sass and sorrow in one swoop."

The guest list is currently open - first come, first served, but a pre-order will get you a spiffy poster, priority entry, and the feel good hit that comes from supporting Matt (or Leslie) and Fingerprints.

Combining the energy of an Ike & Tina- type revue and a very cool retro feel that rivals Sharron Jones and the Daptones, Fitz and the Tantrums are doing their best to bring that sweet soul music back to the masses. We are very happy and proud to help them in this endeavor. If you love vintage organs sounds, sultry sax, shiny suits, and a set of pipes that would have fit nicely in the Motown catalog, this is one for you.

You should click here to see their incredibly hot video for "MoneyGrabber", that little repeat button at the end got me through a rough half hour on the computer the other day.

The guest list has just opened up, first come, first served, so if you'd like to join us, give a ring and we'll get you all sorted out (no purchase necessary, and our number is 562.433.4996). Buying a copy of Pickin' Up the Pieces gets you priority entry and a nifty poster that's suitable for signing and hanging.

Here's some gushing press:
"Dear Mr. President," (is) a political song reminiscent of Edwin Starr with its pronounced keys and guttural "hey, wooo" chorus backing. This song swaggers while it delivers its message. "MoneyGrabber," which floats in with a short intro then bursts out with chorus union. A message to gold diggers everywhere, this song oozes funk. Its compressed breakdown alone is beyond compare... Fitz & The Tantrums has sold me on their retro-soul tone, wet with organ and dripping with soul, and Pickin' Up the Pieces is a must buy. - LA Music Blog

** POSTPONED **

Please check back for rescheduling details.

Leslie Stevens is the latest roots-rocks sensation from the good folks at 30 Tigers Records (Avett Brothers, to name just one of their associations). Leslie and the Badgers, to their old fans, combine the right elements of retro country, California Canyons, and jangly jamboree (more street-party than the country bear variety). It's powerful, sultry, and just enough fun at the right time to make classic influences seem fresh and fun.

Here's a juicy quote from the Portland Tribune:
"Americana country-pop quintet Leslie and The Badgers hail from Los Angeles, but sound like they'd be just as comfortable, even more so, jamming on a back porch in Appalachia as a hip club on the Sunset Strip. Frontwoman Leslie Stevens is gifted with a lovely soprano voice."

Sample yourself silly at her myspace page. Leslie Stevens & the Badgers debut release, Roomful of Smoke, is out this coming Tuesday. Pre-ordr in advance, or purchase in front of the in-store gets you priority entry and a poster from the event.

I can hardly believe we're on the verge of Buskerfest, last year's fest was one of my favorite nights ever, so this year has a high mark to hit... and I'm not even worried about it. This year is feeling so spectacularly good already that it's like there is no pressure at all.

All we need for it to succeed is you, so please round up your friends and let's call it a date. This year's buskers are off the hook! How about Michael Silversmith, Korey Dane, Boris Smile, OO Soul, So Many Wizards, Sam Outlaw, 60 Watt Kid, New Fidelity, Chicano Batman, Fort Wife, We Barbarians, Jenny Stockdale, and Alicia Murphy? How about we add in a main stage featuring Jay Buchanan, Crystal Antlers, and a very triumphant return by Delta Spirit, who tore up the waterfront a few weeks ago?

It's like a sampler platter of all the sounds that make Long Beach great.

Buskerfest is another, and actually it's the final, free show of Summer and Music 2010.

We will begin distributing wooden nickels to attendees at 4:30 and the band who receives the most this year will receive a 5 day recording session at Long Beach's own Compound Recording Studio, which is something like a $5000 value. If they play their cards right, it's also enough time that we could be seeing a new album from any one of these bands in the very near-future.

If you're on facebook check out our event page for more info (and to let us know you're coming, which isn't required, but would be nice).

It's awfully tough to imagine a better way to spend a day than rocking ourselves silly with the canyon meets cosmic goodness of Everest. You may have caught them last year when they took the country by storm as Neil Young's opening band on his US tour (with Death Cab on the West Coast and Wilco on the East Coast). It was magical, and as good as this band has been for their run so far, playing big rooms and having to win them over every night has really brought it all together. This past week, the boys released their new album, On Approach, and the flurry of adjectives includes: bold, stratospheric, gorgeous, thumping, haunting, spacious, and rustic - and all of them are apparent on the first listen.

Currently on tour with Minus the Bear, Everest has generously agreed to come in for round two on our humble little stage. We've opened the guest list first come, first served. Purchase of On Approach gets you a poster and priority entry, but if you RSVP, we'll make sure you get into the event.

Please call or visit to RSVP - 562-433-4996

You can check out some samples at their myspace page.

Are you ready for the return of Summer and Music? We're prepping our media kick-off at Gladstones for this coming Thursday (5/27) beginning at 4:00pm. It's going to be an early-evening version of Derek Brown's Light Bulb Mouth Radio Hour starring last year's Buskerfest participant, Marika Dahlin and our latest local find, Korey Dane (see last week's emailer for a feature). Derek Brown will be the MC and Eitan Kadosh will be the Author/Poet (that's just changed). It's gonna be a swift kick of a cool party and we'd love to see you there. Space is limited, so if you'd like to join us please click over to SAM2010's facebook event page to RSVP.

Besides the great free entertainment, one of the things you'll hear about at this kick-off is our first event - Future Heroes. It hasn't been announced yet, but we'll tell you, because we know you'll help us get the word out. On Saturday, June 12, we (SAM) are super excited to report that we're going to officially kick-off the year with a show we're calling "Future Heroes" and it's gonna focus on a heaping helping of Local greatness. The bands for this little shindig are Deep Sea Diver (aka Jessica Dobson who plays with Beck, The Mystic Valley Band, and Yeah, Yeah, Yeahs), Jay Buchanan (of the honeyed pipes and aching soul, and the band Rival Sons), Korey Dane (who is an amazing local find), So Many Wizards (who've just release a stunning bound book of an ep, which is currently only available here at Fingerprints), and finally Boris Smile (featuring Avi Zahner-Isenberg of Avi Buffalo).

Both of these events are going to be fun (and free) evenings of music happening right here in our little corner of the Southern Cali landscape and they will both be better if you're there with us.

There is still a bit of room left for this event, but with their scheduled appearance on KCRW Monday morning we are expecting it to go up and over on the demand-o-meter. If you're thinking about it, you'll want to decide soon.

Coming out of Australia, Angus & Julia Stone have a warm and intimate folk sound; it's a bit of an off-season beach thing, mixed with a cabin thing, and maybe a bit of rain. KCRW has embraced them, as has Fran Healey of Travis, who let them record their second ep in his living room. Their music is straight forward, sturdy, calming, and exactly what you want when the lights go out or when the neighbors drop by unannounced. Their second full-length was released a couple of weeks ago and the early press has been great.

For example:
"She sounds edgy, all heartstrings; he's chilled, all ennui. Hung across minimal, beautiful songs, it's a powerful mix of gentle angst. " - BBC Music

Recommended for fans of Travis, Jose Gonzales, She & Him, & Al Stewart.

Samples available at their Myspace page.

Owen Pallett freaked the radar watchers when he lit the screen with his string arrangements on Arcade Fire's Funeral release (and Neon Bible, also Beirut, Last shadow Pupets, and F***ed Up). His solo work, until now released under the name Final Fantasy, finds him looping and weaving up a storm. Heartland, his latest, is an orchestral monster, designed to be played as one continuous 45 minute orchestral piece, or to be stripped down and looped for violin and voice, is a rare piece of music that works forward and backwards.

Owen is in the process of changing all his Final Fantasy stuff over to his own name and kicking this chrysalis off here at Fingerprints sounded like a good idea to everyone involved and we couldn't agree more. We're going to tell everyone who already loves Owen, and everyone who loves strings ala Funeral, to run to the phone and tell us you're coming. 562-433-4996

The rest of you; click here then run to the phone and tell us you're coming.

You've probably already run to the phone, but when you get back check out this Take Away Show from La Bogotheque for a little taste.

Fresh off an appearance at Coachella, this will be Owen's only LA area performance this time out.

Here's a little bit of press coverage:
"Hints of Kurt Weill. This stuff is rich with ideas, and they're offered in the kind of rich, warm sound that should be accessible to more fans than ever before. Those of you with the inclination to pick them up will find a lot to reward you." -Pitchfork

"Impressive in both scale and execution, Heartland succeeds not just due to Pallett's sizable talents, but his belief in his even larger ambition." - XLR8r

If you ask the folks at Sub Pop about Avi Buffalo, they start getting all giddy and excited. You see Avi is more than just a local kid done good, he's on the verge of becoming a phenomenon; he's already done sessions at Daytrotter and numerous radio stations, the blogs seem to be suitably excited, and the word we're hearing is they've got a Greek Theatre show this summer (we can't say who they're supporting, because it's not announced yet - but it's cool). Anyway, we are also very excited about Avi, so it is with great pleasure that we announce this Release Day Eve Party.

Musically, Avi Buffalo's influences run deep, somewhere in Avi's 18-year old head is an old guy that spent his whole youth listening to albums by mid-period Beach Boys and The Kinks, yet on a more visceral level it feels like he's digging Grizzly Bear and even some of the more experimental side of Nels Cline, and it's where those two parts meet that the mixture makes magic.

I believe the band all graduated from Millikan High, so the local connection is strong. You might have seen them playing The East Village on New Year's Eve, at Buskerfest last year, or sneaking in for a short set here at the shop prior to this year's Soft Pack in-store.

If none of those ring any bells, click over to the Myspace listening post or the Youtube virtual VCR and expose yourself.

The full album is also streaming here.
**Please note; through the generosity of our pals at Sub Pop, we will have the same bonus disc of extra tracks when you purchase Avi Buffalo here at the in-store, as well as a spiffy poster.

Call us to be added to the guest list at 562-433-4996. No purchase required.

RSD kicked off with Josh Ritter and a bunch of our closest friends coming together for RSD Eve to celebrate why the music industry is like no other; music as religion, music as celebration, and music as community. After a 75-minute set and a three-hour signing, we jumped into merchandising for 150+ new releases. After a couple of hours sleep we opened at 7am, reportedly the earliest on the West Coast and the word definitely got out. We had a line the length of the building (70-100 people) waiting when we opened the doors. Records that we thought would last into the mid-afternoon were gone by 7:30am. It was crazy.
One of the coolest things I heard all day was tsomeone who'd bought his goodies, then called his friend in NY who was still waiting in line for his local store to open, and he was over the moon that he was able to beat the time difference and claim bragging rights. It almost made 7:00am seem sensible.
Overall, it was an amazing example of people coming together to celebrate their love of music. It was great to see folks helping each other find stuff, chatting about what they were excited about, and planning the next stop on their quest for that elusive Flaming Lips playing Dark Side LP, which was our first sell out item.
We were fortunate enough to have several of our friends stop in, including Keith Morris of The Circle Jerks and Black Flag, who spent about 4 hours chatting about music and making recommendations to fans. Then Gary Calamar and Phil Gallo stopped by to sign their new book, Record Store Days, which is hands-down the finest book about record stores that I've ever seen. The last of our events was an in-store by Dios (formerly Dios Malos) that was fantastic. Their new album, a special Record Store Day release, is We Are Dios and it's a heady blend of Zappa, The Beach Boys, and the Band.
RSD10 was our biggest day ever and it was a true pleasure to see all of you who stopped by, to meet those of you who came by for the first time, and to be able to host such an amazing slate of talented friends for this special event.
I would be missing a huge opportunity if I didn't take a second to thank the staff for getting up early and working so hard to make sure everything went without a hitch - it did, and we are very lucky to have such an amazing crew - so big thanks to all.

If you missed it this year, scribble a little note about next April and stick it on your fridge.

Special RSD Hours:
Saturday, April 17th
7:00am - 11:00pm

This year we are buzzing about the fact that there are over 150 exclusive releases for Record Store Day. We've ordered all of them, but due to crazy demand and limited availability, we won't know in most cases what we're getting until the boxes hit the floor. If there is something you're determined to add to your collection, you're gonna want to get here early - so we're gonna open early. We'll brew up a little coffee and meet you at the very un-rock and roll hour of 7:00am. The thinking was if you've got the super elusive stuff on your list, and for some reason you get shut out here, you'll still have time to buzz over to either Rhino in Claremont, Freakbeat in the Valley, or Amoeba in Hollywood - all of them are also participants. Feel the indie spirit!

Below is our schedule of events and a mostly complete list of exclusives. We'll be back with our regular emailer next week, and there are some great shows in the works, so be sure to check in then.

Josh Ritter is coming back! We're working on some crazy ideas to make what will surely be an amazing night into something for the history books, so check your calendar. Josh's new release So Runs the World Away will be coming out May 4th, but as a special Record Store Day Eve treat we will have vinyl copies available at the in-store and they will include a full CD copy of the album! This will be your chance to get Josh's album over 2 weeks early.

If you are unfamiliar with Josh's music you should click over to his myspace page for a sample - Go ahead, we'll wait.

From a pure song-craft standpoint, there is no one currently working that does it better. Josh stands in my collection next to artists like Leonard Cohen, Bob Dylan, and Johnny Cash and he doesn't flinch. Sadly, the world (except for the savvy Irish) has yet to fully appreciate Josh. Happily, it allows us the opportunity to offer up nights like this.

We've opened the guest list for this event to those who pre-order the CD/LP combination of So Runs the World Away and it's getting dangerously close to full, but if space allows, we will open it first come, first served when we get closer, but if you want to be sure you're here when it happens, a pre-order gets you guaranteed priority entry, a copy of our poster from the event, and the chance to support a great artist.

Josh was Tuesday's featured artist on Daytrotter, so click over and make your ears feel like your headphones are the best friend they ever had.

Click to buy/sample So Runs the World Away

Courtney Love has resurrected Hole and it looks like she waited just long enough to catch everyone feeling a bit deficient in big riff rock. They were the talk of SXSW, Their shows here in LA and in NY have already sold out clean, and she's about to hit the Outdoor Stage on the Jimmy Kimmel Show.

Nobody's Daughter is coming out April 27 and to celebrate we've talked the good folks at Island Records into giving us a big pile of tickets to be in the crowd for this momentous TV moment.

There are a couple of qualifiers:

First, you'll need to either buy the 10" vinyl for Skinny Little Bitch (an RSD exclusive) or pre-order Nobody's Daughter to get a ticket.
Secondly, you'll need to have a government or School issued ID, and it needs to clearly show that you're over 16 years old.
Third you need to be able to be in Hollywood by 6:45 on Wednesday, April 21st.
There are a few other details, but it's mostly don't wear stuff that looks bad on TV and things like that. We'll print some out and have them ready for you on RSD.

Ticket distribution for this event will begin at 11:00am on Saturday and you'll have to be here if you want to go (no holds, phone or internet orders, sorry.)
Spread the word.

Before the days of digital downloads, there was THE RECORD STORE: a place where music lovers could go to indulge their passion, where friendships and romances began, where bands formed, and where information was shared. The history of the record store-whether a hot jazz emporium selling 78s or a psychedelic underground shop or a punk rock haven-parallels the history of recorded music itself. Record Store Days (Sterling Publishing; Hardcover;$19.95) traces the growth of an industry that became inextricably entwined in the fabric of American life in the twentieth century.

We are happy to bring our pals Gary Calamar (old pal) and Phil Gallo (new pal) in to sign copies of their new book Record Store Days. Way back in the days before Fingerprints, a couple of us worked at Moby Disc and Gary was a co-worker and a friend. Now days he's a KCRW personality and a Grammy Nominated Music Supervisor for the TV Shows Dexter, True Blood, House, and Six Feet Under.

Phil Gallo is a music journalist and entertainment editor who's worked for Billboard magazine and been a music industry authority for CNN and BBC. Currently the two of them are basking in the glow of their first book; Record Store Days, a photo rich story of the development of the Record Store in America (and I've heard we're in it!). Peter Buck from REM did the forward, however we've not heard he'll be here to sign (I'm thinking not).