I have seen many bad shows at this location, and a few OK ones, but in general I am always disappointed. Last month Meiway set a new low for my expectations by delivering the worst event I have ever seen. It's not his fault, but the fault of the greedy promoters who charged $30 and didn't make proper arrangements. Meiway took the stage at 1:30AM -- all by himself. He proceeded to lip synch to his songs played by DJ Clement. Shameful. As at every HPC event, there was no real stage and the audience fought each other to catch a glimpse of him by pushing others out of the way.

I hereby declare that I will never again list or mention any show that takes place at the Hollywood Park Casino. Promoters, beware. Book your events elsewhere.

On a separate issue, I will no longer be able to provide dates for events at Temple Bar. They have "upgraded" their website so that it is now only available in a Flash format. I have no ability to read any of their website, so I will not be able to provide any information about them. If you are from Temple Bar, please do not try to send me email or any other matter on your shows. If you cannot make a website that is readable by all, I do not want to hear about your events. It is a shame because the majority of the African events in Los Angeles now are hosted at the Temple Bar.

One of LA's own local Nigerian bands comes out from the shadows this month. Jerri has been here for quite a while, and has had a couple albums produced while in Los Angeles. He doesn't play live performances very often, though. In the past, the easiest way to see him was to look for a bass player in the back of an AfroBeat or jazz band. This month he has two gigs to showcase his own brand of Highlife Reggae. It is an upbeat poppish sound suffused with energy and celebration.

http://www.afropulse.com/music/concerts/2004-09-w2.html

The strong AfroBeat sound of a 14-piece band is something to be experienced in person rather than absorbed from a CD. Antibalas is on a tour of America to spread the word of their latest CD, "Who is this America?". The Conga Room's dance floor gives you room to work out, but also lets you get arm's length away so you can feel the rumble of their bass saxophones.

http://www.afropulse.com/music/concerts/2004-09-w5.html

South African Playwright and Actor John Kani stars in his own production at Mark Taper Forum from Sept 18 to Nov 7. This show studies the complexities that arise when blacks returning from abroad to post-apartheid Africa meet up with their countrymen who stayed home and risked their lives to change the country. He is a winner of a Tony Award for Best Actor. Discount tickets are available through Oct 3 with information from our website.

http://www.afropulse.com/music/concerts/2004-09-recur.html

I try not to be too commercial with the website, mainly focusing on bringing the concert calendar. To help pay for my internet connection, I do run ads. I can get higher paying ads if the readers answer anonymous survey questions to help advertisers understand the type of audience that visits AfroPulse. I am asking for just 200 readers to visit our online survey. It will only take a couple minutes to answer the 12 questions, none of the information will be traceable back to you individually, and you may skip any of the questions that you don't want to answer. This would help me greatly in offsetting some of the costs of running this website. Some of you have answered the survey before, but the advertisers like to have information that is current so feel free to participate once again. Thanks for the support!

http://www.afropulse.com/survey.html

Things are getting quiet around town after the summer concert surge. Relax and check out some of the local talent that LA is blessed to host.

jay