[Photos] Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks Live on KCRW

Written by
by Larry Hirshowitz

Stephen Malkmus is a rock god to many of my friends and fellow music lovers – mostly for his work as the frontman of Pavement – and many were anxiously awaiting today’s performance. They were not disappointed, as he played a set of songs from his new album with the Jicks, “Mirror Traffic”.

Since KCRW’s Social Media Manager Betsy Moyer is a huge fan, I asked her to share her thoughts on the live session:

“I realized today that I’ve grown up with Stephen Malkmus… that the cheeky sh*t-talking has progressed right along in time. I find myself appreciating the tongue-in-cheek witticisms as much now as I did when I was cruising around in my 1990’s model Dodge Neon. The chatter between Stephen & the Jicks was quite fun and really made me appreciate what we have that is really special in the live performances on MBE.”

Recently we hosted a solo performance from Thurston Moore (temporarily stepping away from his post as Sonic Youth frontman) and what they both have in common, is fellow musician and longtime friend Beck produced their most recent work.

He seems to be a go-to these days and Stephen explained why, saying he instills a “quiet west coast confidence” in their work, a positivity they “don’t really have in Portland” (he added that “it’s all passive aggressive and rough out there.”) In addition to the vibe, he complimented Beck’s incredible collection of recording gear.

Check out the full session here and some incredible photos from photographer Larry Hirshowitz.

RR

Fun fact: did you know Malkmus was born in Santa Monica? Thanks Wikipedia!

By Larry Hirshowitz (The original image is no longer available, please contact KCRW if you need access to the original image.)
By Larry Hirshowitz (The original image is no longer available, please contact KCRW if you need access to the original image.)
By Larry Hirshowitz (The original image is no longer available, please contact KCRW if you need access to the original image.)