One of the nice things about LA is that, as one of the largest cities in the US, we’re often able to get in on the ground floor of various types of cultural happenings. One example of that is the series of concerts put together in recent years by International Secret Agents, who describe themselves as “a concert events company which aims to showcase the brightest and most talented rising artists of this Internet Generation to a diverse, international audience.” Their LA festival this year is taking place in Long Beach, and here’s some of the information from the press release:

YouTube sensations Ryan Higa (aka NigaHiga), behind the 2nd most subscribed YouTube channel of all time, along with the 9th most subscribed YouTube comedian Kevin Wu (aka Kev Jumba) and singer Cathy Nguyen will host the event that aims to inspire and empower both performers and spectators.

The show will include performances from America’s Best Dance Crew 2011 champions I.aM.mE, Sundance and Cannes filmmakers Wong Fu Productions, 7th most subscribed musician on YouTube, David Choi, and rising musical stars Kina Grannis and New Heights.

Far East Movement and Wong Fu Productions set out to make this grassroots movement not only an active participant in the international entertainment landscape, but also a helping hand for non-profits and community-based organizations. 4C the Power is one of those organizations, providing professional training to youth in the arts to increase academic engagement and high school graduation rates. ISA gives spectators a chance to engage with the arts and their community.

So there you have it: an exciting lineup of creative youth coming together to share in the arts and give back to the community. Who wouldn’t want to support that? Now’s your chance: there are still some tickets available for purchase through the ISA website. VIP tickets and backstage passes are already sold out, so don’t delay.

We here at Blogging.LA have one pair of tickets to give away to a lucky commenter. Simply chime in below by 11:59pm on Thursday the 29th and the winner will be chosen at random. Good luck!

"The Smell of Autumn" by Albert Canon Photography via the Blogging LA Flickr pool.

This weekend: a good number of artwalks, plus tar.

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It’s time to strap up, square off, and challenge yourself and your friends in an epic obstacle/adventure run experience! Dan Clark aka Nitro, from the original American Gladiators, is putting on the Gladiator Rock’n Run one-day challenge in Pasadena’s world famous Rose Bowl on October 1st.  Gladiator Rock’ n Run is a muddy, gritty, ultimate-test-of-wills event!  At the end of the run is the “Rock’n Rumble Pit” where you can square off against your friends and others, in Pugil Mayhem, Mud Tug-O-War, and other battle-hardened games, just like the old-school. Ages 14-and-up can participate, and racers are encouraged to form teams, wear over-the-top costumes, and get down and dirty! Plenty of freebies for finishers, including t-shirts from Affliction, and prizes for the top 3.

After the games are done, there’s 3 kickin’ bands ready to turn it up for the party,with food and free beer for race challenge participants (21+). Enjoy the event knowing that proceeds will go to benefit the charity TACA: (Talk About Curing Autism) Bring friends, family, and gawkers; it’ll be a muddy, wild, and awesome time, all for a good cause!More details can be found at their Web Site.  Contest info deets after the jump.

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The Shelby Car Show last Saturday on the Santa Monica Pier was just about the greatest thing ever. But instead of gushing about it in words, I’ll show you more photos after the jump.

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Don’t get me wrong the other stuff one expects at the LA County Fair is a lot of fun, but there’s other stuff too one doesn’t really expect to find that turns out to be quite entertaining.  People watching during the week is interesting and different than weekends.  Yesterday it was hordes of school children being shepherded by harried teachers and chaperones along with quite a large contingent of Seniors.

One of the big finds that I found to be a lot of fun was over in the Home and Garden center.  There’s a wine, beer and olive oil tasting room!  Of the hundreds of wines submitted for judging in the LA County Fair 436 are available for tasting.  Tasting fee for a flight?  A very reasonable $11 for 5 tastings.  They have a list sorted by suggested tasting order and number your glass to match what you select which also happens to be the order you taste.  Loved it.

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LAST MINUTE TICKET GIVEAWAY!

You have a  chance to win 2 tickets to a rare screening tomorrow, September 18th, of Cane Toads: The Conquest, a 3-D documentary by Mark Lewis. The director, whose previous works include Cane Toads: An Unnatural History and The Natural History of the Chicken, is known for his irreverence and humor. Not only is this film highly entertaining, but it is also Australia’s first digital 3D feature film.

Leave a comment by midnight tonight if you would to win tickets. Winner will be notified by email early Sunday morning. Click here for more information about the screening.

LA3DClub presents Cane Toads: The Conquest
Sunday, September 18th, 2011 at 2pm
Downtown Independent Theater
251 S. Main St., Los Angeles, CA 90012

Shelby on the Pier, 2008

Car nuts will have a treat this Saturday, as the Seventh Annual Los Angeles Shelby American Automobile Club Car Show arrives at the Santa Monica Pier.

The history of Carroll Shelby is too lengthy to recite here, but suffice it to say he’s the man behind the development and/or perfection of some of the most famous cars in performance and racing car history, including the AC Cobra, the Shelby Mustang GT 350, and the Ford GT40, as well as the Sunbeam Tiger. Moreover, Shelby worked much of his magic within a short tire-screeching drive of the Pier. Plenty of examples of these cars, as well as newer models given the Shelby treatment, will be on hand Saturday, along with their owners. It’s one of the largest collections of Shelbys you’ll see anywhere, and it’s free!

The Shelby show runs from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., with numerous awards to be given, including Best of Show, starting at 2. I’ll be the one holding a camera and drooling.

Many of us abandoned Sunset Junction long before they were forced to cancel this year because of a dispute over city fees. Don’t get me wrong: I’ve had a good time there in the past and they do get hella good bands to play. But there are so many freaking people there that–for me–the event is on the ever-increasing list of places I personally consider a victim of their own success. I’m just too much of a misanthrope to enjoy downtown art walk, Dia de los Muertos in Hollywood Forever, Electric Daisy Carnival, and Sunset Junction as much as I might were I not forced to share space with a teaming mass of humanity. I don’t want to have to brush up against a bunch of sweaty arms even if they are all sporting amazing sleeves. I don’t know if Sunset Junction is “the largest celebration of diversity in Los Angeles and in California” as they bill themselves on their website (in fact, I find that hard to believe), but I do know there are too many damn people there for my tastes.

Enter the Eagle Rock Music Festival. I went two years ago because I wanted to see No Age and Peanut Butter Wolf. It was free then–now they’re asking for a $5 donation–and it was just crowded enough but not too crowded. I admit I don’t know most of the bands listed this year (not that that’s any indicator–most of my favorite albums were released between 1977 and 1983), but in 2009 two of my favorites were bands I’d never heard before: Nico Stai and The Mormons. The latter cycled up, handed out pamphlets, and did a renegade performance on instruments they had ported on their bikes including a strap-on drum set and an amp with a shoulder strap–tres punk rock. Kudos, Mormons. This year, I’m sure there will be other musical surprises. It’s easy enough to stroll Colorado Boulevard from one end of the festival to the other and stop when you hear something interesting. Really, how can you go wrong in a festival where the line-up at the family stage concludes with The Ukulele Orchestra of the Western Hemisphere followed by a Neil Diamond Tribute Band? Anyway, I’m super sad I’ll be out of town and will miss it this year, but you b.la readers should go and let me know how it is.

[An aside: Please someone over at the Sunset Junction website learn the difference between "it's" and "its." Thank you.]

Chris Yarzab's photo used through Creative Commons license

What do you do to promote an album called Valleyheart? You play a free show in the Juniors department of Macy’s at Northridge Mall, that’s what. According to Racked (to whom my metaphorical cliched hat is tipped), She Wants Revenge is playing the Northridge Macy’s this Saturday at 2:00 and Skylar Gray will be opening. To the parents brave enough to take their tweens, I salute you. You are good people. The first 300 people to buy at least $35 of select merchandise will get a free autographed picture. The rest will just get the memories.

Photo courtesy Chris Yarzab via the Blogging LA Flickr pool.

This weekend: Baja Night 3.0; paranormal activity; and it’s, already, been ten years.

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When shaved-headed synthesized symphonist Moby released a book of photographs to accompany his album “destroyed“ last May, a number of the photos were sent on a worldwide yet very limited tour of art galleries. Moby’s photo tour hits Culver City’s Kopeikin Gallery this Saturday, September 10, through October 22.

Sayeth Moby’s website:

Destroyed introduces us to a side of touring that is often unexposed; secluded time spent in artificial spaces like hotel rooms and backstage waiting areas. The combined album and photo book provides an intimate look at Moby’s world and his creative process as an artist, both the music and photos were created in the same period and draw inspiration from the strange and sublime world of touring.

So … Linda McCartney meets Lost In Translation? Could be very interesting.

I love businesses that support the art. I even like them better when they give up space to showcase new and emerging artists.  That is exactly what South Bay Lexus in Torrance has done.  They have donated space on their lot for a bunch of pods to be set up as pop up gallery spaces.  There are over 50 pods, over 400 artists, curators, museums, galleries and fun, one-stop shopping for art.

More information on the art and artists can be found on Fine Art Trekkin’ Torrance and Fine Art Trekkin’ South Bay.

Deets: 9/3 & 9/4/11Saturday and Sunday Sept 3, 4 noon-6pm. South Bay Lexus.24777 Crenshaw Blvd. Torrance, California 90505

This is a trivia teaser for the LA County Fair tickets that I have to give away.  You don’t expect to get a 4 pack of general admission tickets and parking by just being the first to answer do you?  The first person to get me the correct answer to the trivia question will win the pack of tickets and the parking pass.  When answering your trivia question please make sure you have a real email addy that I can use to contact you to have the tickets sent to you.  Now for the question:

How many animatronic dinosaurs are on display in Jurassic Planet?

If you don’t wanna take a guess at the trivia answer you can always just purchase your tickets HERE.

Courtesy East of West LA via the Blogging LA Flickr pool.

GTD this weekend: a protest maybe?  Or, fine, food festivals for those who can, a quiz about LA’s progressive history for those who have forgotten, and beer and BBQ for those who are traditional.

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Photo courtesy of KCRW

If you draw a Venn diagram between donut lovers and pie lovers among blogging.la readers, I suspect that the overlap would be considerable. That’s why I’m excited that KCRW’s 3rd Annual Good Food Pie Contest will be held at LACMA on Sunday, September 18.

The Pie Contest will take place from 2-4 p.m. on the lawns behind the museum, and will be judged by notable Los Angeles area chefs and food writers, including LA Weekly‘s Jonathan Gold and Zoe Nathan, chef/owner of Huckleberry Cafe.  KCRW’s “Good Food” program host Evan Kleiman will emcee, which is appropriate since Kleiman’s blog about baking a pie a day was the inspiration for the contest. Additionally, LACMA’s Family Days in September will be dedicated to the theme of pie.

KCRW is also holding an essay contest in connection with the event: “Tell us the story of the pie that changed your life, in 500 words or less”. The winner gets to be a judge in the pie contest. But hurry, just two more days to submit your essay.

To enter a pie in the contest, click on the second link above. The entry cost is $10. For non-contestants, admission is free, including a taste once the judging is complete. And this year,  to tie in with LACMA’s Tim Burton exhibition, the contest will include a category for “Tim Burton-inspired pie”. Now that’s something a Donut Summiteer could love.