Friends,

As you may or may not know, I edit a monthly music paper called The Rockit. You can see it online at www.therockitnews.com and find it in most L.A. record stores, nightclubs, etc. It's cool and all, but we really need more writers. Below please find the limits of my search:

1. Record store writer. This person would be responsible for one 350-500 word piece per month about a local record store. Applicant needs to be exceptionally skilled in the art of record shopping. You should be able to go into a store, chat up the sales people and sift through the stacks with ease. You should be able to spot bargains (i.e. you know that the 12" for Marc and the Mambas "Black Heart" single is really worth more than the $3 marked price). You should also be well-versed in local under-the-radar haunts and able to suggest stores for each issue, as opposed to having me assign everything.

2. Radio writer. This person is responsible for one 350-500 word piece per month on a radio show. The show can be broadcast on terrestrial stations in L.A., Internet or satellite stations. You should be an avid radio listener and should be able to suggest shows for coverage; able to discuss the quality of the music played on the show, the presence of the on-air personalities, etc; and open to various types of music. This person should also be able to keep tabs on radio issues for future articles.

3. Music store writer. This person is responsible for one 350-500 word piece per month on an L.A.-area music store. You should be either a musician, gearhead or both. You should be able to go into a music equipment store and identify the items within the store and capable of asking hard questions to the staff. You should know pricing of music equipment and what makes a store special. You should be able to suggest stores for coverage to the editor.

4. Reviewers (CDs). As a music reviewer, you should be able to write concise 150 word reviews of current albums. In most cases, CDs will be assigned, but you will be free to make suggestions as well. Your writing should be witty and insightful. Your job is not to describe the CD, but to point out its strengths and faults in a way that is both informative and entertaining. You should be knowledgeable about various different styles of music.

5. Reviewers (Live Shows). As a live reviewer, you should be able to write brief (200-250 words) critiques of shows across Los Angeles. Live reviews are generally assigned, but you are more than welcome to suggest shows coverage. As with CD reviews, your pieces should skillfully examine what did and didn't work about the performance. Your tone should be relaxed yet demonstrative of a firm grasp of the band or style of music you are covering.

6. News Writers. News writers should be keenly aware of what is going inside the Los Angeles music scene and able to suggest interesting and brief (100 words) tidbits related to this city and the bands that inhabit it. These include: breakups; club openings/closures; etc. You should have your own, reliable sources for information.

7. Feature writers. The most obvious form of feature writing is the band interview. These are generally assigned, but you can make suggestions. In this instance, you will be responsible for maintaining contact with the band and/or its people to set up the interview, conducting the interview and turning it into a high-quality story ranging from 750-950 words in length. As a feature writer, you must demonstrate above-average writing skills and a clear and engaging voice.
We are also looking for feature writers who are capable of going past the basic 20 minute interview session. If you are interested in investigating any other aspect of music in Los Angeles (specific scenes, political issues, etc.), we are interested in hearing from you.


Now that you have gone this far, you might as well keep going.

Before contacting us, you should know that this is a completely volunteer endeavor. In other words, you won't get paid. However, you should also know that I do my best to make sure that you cover what you want. That said, if you're an Arcade Fire fan, I won't make you interview My Chemical Romance instead.

Also, you should note that even though this is a Los Angeles-area paper, you don't have to live in Los Angeles to be a contributor. Certain stories require people to live in the area (show reviews and in–person interviews), but this isn't always the case.

If you got through this email and you're interested, contact me at editor@therockitnews.com

Please include published clips (text only) in the body of your email. If the clips are online, please send a link. If you don't have published clips, send a link to your blog. Lacking all of the above, send me a few mock record reviews as a writing sample.


Thanks.

Liz

Oh, I love K-BIG. Where else can you hear exactly two Debbie Deb songs per day sandwiched somewhere between the Bee Gees and Nelly Furtado? Oh, but it's not just a sadly predictable yet highly danceable mix that keeps me tuned into the station for at least a little bit every day. You see, through K-BIG we get to see the bigger picture.
Every day, K-BIG does this trivia contest, where the DJ asks a caller a series of questions and a prize goes to the person who can get through the whole set. Yesterday, this girl calls in and she seems to have her game on. She's shouting out the name of that girl with the weird voice on Will and Grace and other answers that might be known to those with a television set. Then the DJ gets to the third or fourth question and asks which of the seven continents is also the only one that is its own country.
"Um," she pauses like she's about to snap her gum. "North America."

FLOSSTRADAMUS are the only DJ group (yes, GROUP) that can successfully create dance mash-ups combining Sigur Ros and Twista. RSVP now!

All of five minutes ago, I received a MySpace friend request from this band called Longstay. I clicked on the profile and noticed that the band has a cover of "This Place is a Prison," which is a Postal Service song.

Hmmm, band covering The Postal Service. Intriguing.

The cover is depressing in that late-1990s college kid sitting around drinking Natty Light out of a can in listening to Silver Jews sort of way. Nice.

I couldn't get the other songs on the MySpace profile to load, so I have nothing else to add except that I know a certain former roommate of mine who reads this blog often will really dig Longstay. Oh, and the band is from San Diego and it looks like the closest they will get to L.A. is Fullerton on 2/06/07.

Longstay on MySpace.

Joey from The Tender Box is raffling off his guitar. Details are here.

Club NME @ Spaceland is free tomorrow night. The Clean Prophets and The Switch are playing live. Dia is DJing with Kevin Bronson (Little Radio) and Solid Todd (Sea Level Records).

And speaking of free, Dia and Clifton have their Sonic party going on tonight at The Beauty Bar.

My plan was to spend the whole weekend in party mode, but then I just started to feel sluggish, which was perhaps the remnants of a sucky 2006. By New Year's Eve, though, I felt reinvigorated, so I headed down to Chinatown with Carlos and my brother for the Underground/Transistor/Atomic party at the Grandstar Jazz Club.

I don't know why this never dawned on me before, but Ketel One and tonic is only $6 at the Grandstar. In most L.A. clubs, we pay between $6 and $10 for watered down yet still hangover-inducing Popov and tonic. Gentle Readers, please remember that there are good deals to be had at the Grandstar.

We hung around mostly in the Underground-helmed second floor of the club and ran into a bunch of cool folks. Larry played some choice tracks from the Cafe Bleu and early-Bang! school of indie madness early in the evening. Think Cardigans tunes that aren't "Lovefool," Monaco, James, etc. Later on, we danced to Peter, Bjorn and John's hit "Young Folks," James Brown (naturally) and a bunch of other fine tracks that I can't remember at the moment.

At one point, we walked down to the Moutain Bar to see what was going on there, but it looked like a beer garden packed with bros. We retreated back to the Grandstar, where more fun was to be had.

What we thought, though, is that Chinatown is the perfect setting for New Year's Eve. It's small, easy to navigate and not nearly as touristy as most other clubbing destinations in L.A. Chinatown isn't living up to its potential. Imagine if all of the establishments were functioning all night on New Year's Eve with DJs and champagne. You could dance in a bar, hang around the galleries, get some food, shop, etc. Then, in the middle of the quad, there could be a stage hosting live bands. That would be an ideal set up for New Year's Eve. Maybe someone will make it happen. If they do, though, they should credit Carlos and Liz with the idea.