Reports from the scene

Locals Only

Grand Ole Party has officially split, according to a source who’s worked closely with the band. Although their management has maintained that the band is still together and GOP have remained mum, the source, who prefers not to be identified, says the band decided to split shortly after returning from Atlanta, where they were working with producer Ben Allen on what would have been their second album. The source cited intra-band squabbles and singer Kristin Gundred’s desire to focus on her new project, Dum Dum Girls, as the reason for the split.

Greg Laswell will release a new EP, Covers, in October. True to the title, the five-song EP will feature Laswell’s takes on songs by Echo & The Bunnymen, Morphine, Mazzy Star, Kate Bush and Kristin Hersh.

Another fall release will come courtesy of Austrian Death Machine, the Arnold Schwarzenegger-inspired side project from As I Lay Dying frontman Tim Lambesis. The album, Double Brutal, is a two-disc follow-up to the group’s 2008 debut, with one disc of original songs and one with all covers. The music is farcical death metal with vocals supplied by Schwarzenegger movie lines (one song is called, “I Need Your Clothes, Your Boots, and Your Motorcycle”) spoken by an impersonator.

Brian Karscig of Louis XIV has started a new project with Cambridge, Mass.-based producer and musician Anthony Saffery (Cornershop) called The Nervous Wreckords. The band has already released an EP, Nailbighter, full of Louis-esque glam rock and pop and is currently in the studio working on a full-length album.

“I really want to make a record that I want to listen to every day, have fun and invite as many friends as I can to contribute to the songs,” said Karscig on the band’s MySpace blog. “The album and the EP are a dying art… and I plan to do my part to keep making them and keeping them alive.”

Although Karscig says Louis XIV hasn’t split up and that the band has about half of a new album finished, he is unsure about his future.

“The answer is not so simple,” he says on the blog. “I did leave the band before The Killers tour we just did through the UK/EU/OZ, but decided to stay on for the tour. I never say I won’t do another LXIV record. I still love Jason, Mark, Jimmy, Andy, and Shaun and am proud of everything the band I am a part of has achieved. I did, however, feel like business started coming before music, and the pressure to compromise and over think the music was also increasing to me.” www.myspace.com/thenervouswreckords.

The Enrique Experience

There are three iconic things in Lemon Grove: the historic neon drum-majorette sign, the 10-foot-wide fiberglass lemon that rests by the Main Street trolley station and Dirk’s Niteclub (7662 Broadway). Founded in 1986 by Dutch ex-pat Dirk Westerhout—who renews his vows with wife of 19 years Terry at the bar, every year—this East County locale is a must for lovers of darts, karaoke and giant papier-mâché trees. The latter is courtesy of Terry, the dive’s resident decorator, who’s also responsible for hanging beach balls from the ceiling, as well as neon poster-board stars and planets, which along with the space-age carpet add to the country-luau-by-way-of-Star Trek motif.

“This place sucks you in, man. I came in here 17 years ago, when my hair was long and black, and never left,” bouncer and occasional bartender Eddie, who could easily pass for Steve Wozniak’s doppelganger, told me as he made his selection on a jukebox that boasts an impressive 120,000 songs. The dive also has a pool-table doublet and an outdoor grill where a BYOSTB code (Bring Your Own Shit To BBQ) is strictly enforced. The real piece de resistance, however, is the Kraft Carry-Out Café, an automated vending machine that, for a mere three bucks, dispenses chicken strips, popcorn chicken bites and Tombstone pizza.

Regular theme nights abound, and I was lucky enough to be there for the monthly Lotto Party, an evening during which patrons get a chance to win California Lottery schwag including T-shirts, scratchers and Quick Picks. The ambience, although reminiscent of the “Come on down!” part of The Price is Right, had yet to supply me with an “Experience” star. Then it happened.

As I waited for my hot slice of supreme pizza, a boozed-up lady in her 60s wearing a T-shirt that read “Goonies never say die,” came up to me and slurred: “You know? I gotta stop going out. I woke up today and my litter box was a mess. Crazy thing is, I don’t even own a cat.”

Jackpot.

The next Lotto Party will be Sept. 12. To check out a three-minute video of Dirk and Terry’s last reception, check out www.dirksniteclub.com

Sweet Beats

Our semi-regular look at the local DJ and electronic scene

Artist: Erick Diaz

Sound: Everything is bigger in Texas, including talent. Just ask Dallas-born DJ Diaz. A purist at heart, the 30-year-old likes to keep things simple, starting with avoiding a faux moniker. “I was working at California Sound & Lighting record store in Clairemont when I started, so most of the people that asked me to play already knew me by name,” he recalls. “I didn’t want it to be, like, ‘Hey, look at me, I’m this show,’ you know? ’Cause I’m not. I just come up with playlists at the top of my head and play music for people that hopefully enjoy it.”

He was heavily influenced in the ’90s by the blending style of San Diego’s “second generation DJs,” namely Joey Jimenez, John Bishop and Alien Nation, and since then, has come up with a groove all his own, with sets that include the likes of U.K. underground sensation Alex Metric and Swedish indie-pop trio Miike Snow.

“I really like softer stuff, with vocals, melodies and harmonies—full songs, not just beats and rhythms and loud noises,” the Golden Hill resident says. It seems to be paying off, as Diaz is now part of what can only be described as the North Park DJ Rat Pack, along with Gabe Vega, Corey Biggs and Saul Q.

Philosophy: Know your origins. “The French sound is really huge right now,” he says. “They’re calling it ‘dream wave,’ but 10 years ago, the exact same music was just called ‘house.’” As for the local scene, he’s noted an interesting shift. “Back then, a DJ was a rare thing,” he recalls. “Now, you just turn a corner and everybody is a DJ. ’Cause you just pick up a computer, put some music in it and press play.”

Stats: An avid record collector, he formed “The Analog Show” side project four years ago with long-time bud Adam Salter. Thursdays you can find him at Voyeur for Nite Vision, and every other Saturday, Boys & Girls at El Dorado. He’s looking to start doing vocals, à la Mark Ronson, as early as the end of this year, though don’t expect him to try out for American Idol anytime soon.

“Definitely not,” he says with a laugh. My voice is more Ian Curtis from Joy Division or Wayne Coyne from The Flaming Lips.”