Rock Stop # 9: Barney's Beanery - West Hollywood, CA

It sounds like a coffee shop run by a big dancing purple dinosaur, but it couldn't be further from that. Thank God.

(image courtesy of barneysbeanery.com)

Barney's Beanery is a rocking, kickass bar with a few locations in the LA area. The coolest (and most historic) is the first location, located on Rt 66 in fabulous West Hollywood.

Everyone from rockers to movie stars to vagabonds (and Arbz!) would make Barney's a destination. Opened in 1920 by John "Barney" Anthony, the Beanery has always been a go to spot for an unpretentious good time. Prohibition had nothing on Barney's! They even offered travelers a free pint in exchange for their license plate!

With that being said, the booze list (and menu in general) is extensive! Be prepared to give your beer taste buds a treat. Why drink common domestic beers at Barney's when you have craft brews from all over the world? My first Barney's trip would not have been complete without trying some Strawberry Blonde ale...my hair color may have influenced me to make that purchase, but that's not the point. It was definitely a great choice!

The atmosphere at Barney's in West Hollywood is what makes it truly awesome. It's as if your biker uncle set up a bar in his garage, but eliminated the smell of exhaust. It's comfortable and laid back - but not too laid back that some rowdiness would cause a commotion.

If you find yourself in the Los Angeles area, make a point to stop at one of the Barney's locations. The Santa Monica promenade location has fantastic outdoor seating, but make sure you peek inside for the vintage throwback decor. Take in all the history and atmosphere at the original Route 66 stop - you will not regret making Barney's your choice for a killer night out! Horns up!

Barney's Beanery has several locations in Los Angeles. Stop by the original at 8447 Santa Monica Boulevard, West Hollywood, CA 90069.

Need to kill some time?

Stumbled across a rather fun twitter feed (thread/page/whatever...I don't do twitter) today and thought I should share it with our like-minded rock fans!

@rockfacts is devoted entirely to little known rock trivia tidbits - such as, "Kiss & their management company bought over 190 acres in ’79 to build a Kiss amusement park but the park was never built." If only. Enjoy moshing through em all!

http://twitter.com/rockfacts

Rock Stop #8: Amoeba Music - Hollywood, CA

I have previously written a post extolling the virtues of New England's Newbury Comics. I'm here now sharing a West Coast version, albeit more independently run - Amoeba Music.

I finally visited this huge record store while hanging out on the Sunset Strip in Hollywood and loved it. This store is the largest store in the "chain" - it takes up a whole block! - though the original location is in Berkeley and you can also get your fix in San Francisco. I was amazed at the size and layout upon walking in. There is just so much to look at...it is definitely a music lovers dream.

Rows upon rows of CDs occupy the large downstairs floor, housing lots of rock and pop, among other genres. There is also a whole separate room full of jazz and classical music! What I'm getting at is that Amoeba truly does have a great variety of music, including many new and used CDs, imports and compilations, and hard-to-find live recordings. In the market for some vinyl? Amoeba's got ya covered. Really jonesin' for some cassettes? Believe it or not, there's a large wall display full! I bet if you dug around hard enough, you might even turn up some 8-tracks. ;)

Want to take a more literary approach to music? A side bookshelf holds many different titles for the musically inclined. There are biographies and "learn to plays" and older, out of print books. I even found a 1980s era Def Leppard photo book while browsing!

Upstairs, you can find boatloads of more fun stuff. [Truthfully, not entirely sure what's up there because we didn't have time to investigate as the downstairs took long enough to explore!] In a corner there, you can find reproductions of old concert flyers and posters. Right over here, a small live venue holds regular live bands, DJs, release parties, and who knows what else. Up front, the store is staffed by musically smart associates and you can sell your collections here and make a few bucks. There is truly something for everyone...definitely make this musical institution a stop on your rock adventures!

Amoeba Records is located at 6400 Sunset Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90028.

Happy New Year Metalheads!

Happy 2011 - here's to hoping this year will bring you all some rockin’ concerts, great traveling, and everything in between!

It certainly has been quiet here on WRD as The Arbz have both been busy with all that extraneous fun stuff, a.k.a life. Anyway, we're turning it up to 11 with new content and features coming soon so....stay hungry! (Twisted Sister anyone?)

(Photo courtesy of Euclidlibrary.org)