the mint la

A Homegrown Venue: The Mint LA

Los Angeles. The name itself screams success. City of Angels. City of angelic singers is more like it. LA is one of the greatest hubs in the world for newfound talent. It’s not a surprise that the city is home to some very historic venues that have hosted some of the best names in music. Let’s take a closet look at one of those venues. It’s been in operation since 1937, known for its low ceilings but high esteem: The Mint LA

the mint

History & Ambiance

Not only is this spot frequented by the greats, but it also boasts a marvelous social atmosphere. A tapas-style menu that features Asian, American and Southwestern-inspired cuisine offers a tasty experience. Couple this with the ambiance and they have themselves quite a mood. The red velvet curtains, disco ball, wooden walls and cushy booths take customers back to the decade when The Mint was opened. It’s easy to let oneself be transported back to a time when prohibition ended and people were letting loose to new and exciting sounds. Watch a video of Darren Criss covering Katy Perry’s “Teenage Dream” there. Let this candid smartphone video convey a sense of what the experience is like.

The venue might house some famous artifacts – Johnny Cash paintings, glass display cases full of souvenirs, and old vinyl on the ceiling – but the place itself radiates a historic feeling. Perhaps the most special thing about the place is its history. Every time an artist sets foot on that stage, they are standing where many before them made history. Performers carry with them the weight of LA’s music history as they perform, and the significance of the venue resonates with each note. The Mint is special because it is quintessentially “LA” – its character stems from its city; it has grown with the city and the city has grown with it. Both have experienced the city’s music scene since the 1930s, and they’ve been through a lot together.

(Above) Band Nice Enough People performing.

Today at The Mint LA

Owner Todd Christiansen feels connected to the venue in his heart and by virtue of his location.

“Established in 1937, The Mint is one of the oldest clubs in LA.  We are there for the long term, do not change our character to fit the moment,” Christiansen said. “If you like good music, tasty food and drink, excellence in sound quality in a smaller, intimate setting then The Mint is your place. To our patrons, my hope is that they feel they can leave their troubles behind, come to the club, take in some great song, food and beverage, lose themselves in the moment a bit and leave with a smile on their face.”

Look at their page on Gigmor to get a better sense of their booking schedule, and try to drop by! If not for the music, stop in for a quick bite and a social, musical experience unique to this special LA locale.

An Interview with Shana Halligan, an electronic and soulful singer

 

Gigmor sat down with up-and-coming electronic/R&B artist Shana Halligan to discuss the trajectory of her career, her writing process, her inspirations, and what’s new in the studio. Shana is an independent, electronic/R&B artist based in Los Angeles, CA. Read up on what is new with her below:

 

So, first things first, how did you learn about Gigmor. What has your experience with it been like?  

My manager turned me onto it. I was originally working with an agent who was laid off from his agency, so I had to go and look for alternatives in the meantime. Gigmor was a great way to do that, to fill extra space in my schedule with gigs nearby. I also had a publicist who recommended Gigmor. It has a good name around town, too, so I just got going on using it.

 

How did you get started in the music industry? Where did it all begin for you?

I was raised by wolves! I kid – I grew up in a family of musicians. I have been exposed to it since I could talk. I have been singing on commercials and all kinds of things like that since I was a kid, which eventually morphed into songwriting. I tried to go another route for a little while and took a detour from the music; I started working at banks or restaurants or on the music production side of things. But I eventually accepted my fate and went back to music.

What is your songwriting process like?

When I was going in-and-out of record deals, I didn’t write on my own too much. A lot of the time I was singing what others were writing for me, or songs that had already been written. But around the age of 19 things started to change for me. I started sitting down at the piano and writing on my own, and it all took off from there. I started to fall more in love with the music that I could create on my own. That’s where I started to build the craft, and get closer to the sound I wanted.  I take a lot of influence from soul and R&B, and I grew up listening to the classics like Sarah Vaughn, Billie Holiday and Grace Jones. I work to focus my music so that it does have a raw sound of something from the past with electronic undertones. I see a lot of artists doing this together: the mixing of the new and old like that. It makes it more about the vocal and the sultriness less than a huge production style.

What artists have been inspiring you recently?

Like I said, I’ve always been touched by artists like Sarah Vaughn and Billie Holiday, but more current artists that I love right now are Flume, James Blake and AlunaGeorge.  I also really look up to Marian Hill, or I love their music rather. I was touring with a French band, Morgan Kate, for a while and that was a huge inspiration for me because I tapped into the power of being a strong and sensual woman without comprising your integrity.

You can find Shana Halligan’s newest album, Back to Me, can be found here and is also available on iTunes, Spotify, Amazon, and Google Play. Don’t forget to check out Shana’s profile on Gigmor, here!

 

Spotlight on Alex Bloom: The College-Grad Among Us With An Album

It typically takes people a long time, or a while, or a lifetime to figure out what they want to do (in your career, in your life). And it usually takes even longer for most of us to figure out what we are good at (in our careers, and in our lives). Through the rose-colored frames that artistry brings, it’s easy to imagine that the creative types have it all mapped out in front of them. From the outside looking it, the artists seem cosmically preordained.

Gigmor sat down with Alex Bloom, a recent graduate of USC’s Thorton School of Music. A couple of months after graduation, he released his first solo project, Blue Room. Lyrically and musically, the album is touching. It’s only noticeable similarity to music today is in how original it is. Blue Room has complex simplicity —á la the Beatles—with nuances of Fleet Foxes folk and something similar to Elliot Smith. It’s a first album to be proud of. Alex spoke with us about his college experience, his non-cosmic ordination, and how he wrote the album.

Gigmor: So, you did it!  You made an album!

Alex: May 6th it was finished. And then I finished up a short film that will be coming out to soon for the album. feels like something coming to a close. I’ve been getting a lot of really great feedback, and it’s opening a lot of doors to writing with other artists or producing with them.

It’s like updating your LinkedIn profile after you getting a job, isn’t it? The second you get a job, the Internet starts e-mailing you.

Yes it’s like that. When I put out the album I started getting contacted by more musicians and artists being like, “Oh, you make music, too? Great, yes let’s collaborate.” And it’s really nice to feel some sort of validation for all that I’ve been working on for so long. In the meantime, when all things aren’t focused on writing and music, I’ve been working in a studio. I help with production and other little odd jobs around the studio. So that’s been cool. I don’t know, life is in a little bit of weird place right now.

Preach, same.

I spend a majority of my time writing demos and working on music.

I have another age-related question for you. I think that a lot of kids our age (the recent college grads and 20-somethings) are going through the motions of what they think they should be doing right now. They aren’t sure how happy it will make them in the long-term or even sometimes in the short-term, but they are doing it anyways. Do you feel that way ever about music? I’m trying to imagine what these feelings would be like for a young musician or artist or anyone that has started in on some specific, more creative path.

I’ve been working on music since I was about fourteen or fifteen years old. I’ve always had that to fall back on no matter what happens. Going to music school was kind of a consequence of that. I wanted to make music and become a better musician in whatever capacity I could. I still have this thing, writing songs and doing music in general. I guess the difference between me coming home from music school and someone like you coming back from Michigan — they have a job that they go to from 9 to 5. There is more structure there. I do all my ‘work’ on my own time. Or all the time. I don’t know, it sounds cliché.

No, no it doesn’t, it makes sense. You’ve figured it all out then, no more struggle.

(laughing) Yes, yes I’m set. No more struggle. Life is perfect.

Great, excellent. Interview over.

No, honestly it feels more like a constant struggle. I worked with a producer once who asked me about my highest aspiration for my music career and where I see it going. And I couldn’t really answer him, because I haven’t really thought that far ahead. So it’s pretty scary because I don’t know what lies ahead, and I don’t know what will be required from me moving forward in this career path. I just have to keep doing what I’ve been always doing since I was a kid. I’m lucky that I get to do what I love, but it’s still pretty scary. So I combat that fear with low expectations.

Makes sense. Let’s get into the making of the album. How was the writing process for you?

I decided last summer that I wanted to record. I was making demos in a studio in my backyard. I watched a bunch of YouTube videos to teach myself different instruments, like learning how to play the drums and tune them, too. I loved doing it, and I learned how to arrange music in the process. A lot of these songs were from that. Three or four are just from me in my backyard. There are a couple others that will never see the light of day.

In terms of when and how I wrote them, it was a gradual thing that happened over the past year. I wrote “One More Shot” in November of this year. It really all came together at the end of the year — I was taking too many credits at school and things got busy. So I’m glad I eventually got myself to complete it.

How did your music school education play into the making of this album? I don’t imagine that you sat down and wrote charts out for it. It was probably more organic than that, like you just messing around in your backyard.

Yeah, yeah that’s interesting. Writing and composing music for class is so much different for a class. I took a music arranging class and learned a bunch of things that nobody really needs to know about. Or with music theory classes, I would look at the mathematics of music. But when I’m arranging and writing my own music it’s all just by ear. I’m not bogged down by the logistics of it all, of all those things I learned in school, and I think I’m lucky to still have that. That was one of my biggest fears when I got to college, especially since when I got there I didn’t know how to read music.

You listen to the Beatles. You can just tell from listening to your album that you listen to a lot of the Beatles.

Oh yeah. They are the band that I always go back to. They’re probably my favorite band.

It’s that developed pop song vibe you’ve got going that made me think that. The pop song that sounds simple but is highly developed. Kudos to you there.

Listen to Alex Bloom’s album, Blue Room, on Spotify, iTunes, and Apple Music, and make sure to check out his profile on Gigmor.

Photo by Halle Pelfrey