Best Bites & Bars by the SAN DIEGO CONVENTION CENTER (DOWNTOWN SAN DIEGO)

So I made this guide last year for all the COMIC CON festivities but we’ve decided to give our original guide, a nice reflip, incorporating more foodie goodness within just a hop and skip (and mere blocks away) from the Convention Center to satisfy all those cravings…

SO love Comic Con, but hate waiting in enormous lines and spending wayyyy too much money on mediocre food inside the Convention Center? Of course you do: We do too.
SO here’s a little treat that may be right up your alley: Leave the convention center, and go explore, without having to stray too far from the geek-o-sphere or having to move your car out of that nice and expensive premium parking spot you paid good money for: Our favorite spots are literally a hop and a skip away from Twlight wonderland!

Quick Service + Casual Dining
Quick, Easy, Great Places to kick up your tired feet, put down your heavy goodie bags and masks and reeeelaxxxx.

BASIC urban kitchen & bar (By Petco Park: Approx 5 blks Southeast from Convention Center)
410 10th Ave.
(619) 531-8869

Website & Full Menu || TheMixster.com Review
Features:
Open: Mon-Sat 10:30am-2am; Sun 11:30am-2am
- Pizza, Full Bar, Late night menu, Pool Tables, Happy Hour 4-7pm, Live DJs nightly
The best place to hang out between panels hands down. BASIC’s relaxing, cool, urban atmosphere makes it the perfectly comfortable and lovable neighborhood hang. Stick around for a bit to enjoy their thin crust brick oven pizzas, where you can pick and choose your favorite toppings: Ranging from the “basic” to anything but. Definitely a must-visit spot in San Diego… FULL REVIEW.
Tips:
-Get the BASIC salad. It’s AWESOME
- White Pie with Clams is the house specialty.
- STRONG drinks, great prices.

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The Corner (By Petco Park: Approx 5 blks Southeast from Convention Center)
369 10th Avenue
(619) 531-8804

Website + Full Menu || TheMixster.com Review
Features:
Open: Mon-Sun 11:30am-2am
- Gourmet Burgers, Full Bar, Happy Hour Specials, Neighborhood Bar Vibe, Live DJs on weekends
Head upstairs and gather your party in any of the comfortably furnished nooks and crannies of The Corner’s open space — that oozes East Village“chill”. Their gourmet burger selection offers a wide range of options, including a veggie friendly “Hippie Burger” with all the yummy fixings, such as caramelized onions. All burgers are served with Sweet potato or regular skinny fries, along with their addictive Wasabi Aioli. Their happy hour is from 4pm-7pm with specials on food and drinks varying daily; call ahead or check the chalkboard out front for details… FULL REVIEW
Tips:
-Great after Con spot for a more “out of the scene” friendly nightlife/bar experience.
- Board games keep the young, and the slightly older & buzzed ones, equally entertained.

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NEW 2011 ADDITION:
The Dragon’s Den (By Petco Park: Approx 4 blks Southeast from Convention Center – Easiest path: go across bridge by Hilton)
315 10th Avenue
(619) 358-9332

Website + Full Menu || TheMixster.com Review
Features:
Open: Daily 11am-1am
- Late Night Sushi Dining, Lunch Specials, Happy hour (Food & Drink Specials 5-7pm M-Fri), Pet-Friendly Outdoor Seating
The Dragon’s Den, a relatively new establishment fixated in the heart of East Village across from Petco Park, has quickly become the hip new haunt for locals. Catering to all patrons across the board, The Dragon’s Den features an extensive menu, with small bites, a fresh selection of well-stocked items from the sushi bar & specialty rolls, family-sized portions, and a full bar served in either the more nightlife-savvy, plasma-TV plastered lounge/bar area, pet-friendly outdoor heated patio, or in the family dining room. Happy hour is served weekdays Monday to Friday 5pm-7pm, however Thursday nights see the most action as happy hour lasts all night long: allowing patrons “ballin on a budget” to nibble on finely-crafted sushi combinations or Salt & Pepper Calamari and indulge in sinful cocktail concoctions around the bar, while DJs spin deep house/lounge set the social vibe.
Tips:
-Don’t miss the Spicy Scallop handroll. Soooooo deeee vineeee.
- Feeling muy espicy? Ask for the Pork-Stuffed Jalapeños – The Den’s über secret about them because they’re unbelievably uhhhmazing.

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New 2011 Addition:
SMASHBURGER (On Market Street: Approx 5 blocks Southwest from Convention Center)
801 Market Street, San Diego
(619) 241-2207

Website + Full Menu || TheMixster.com Review
Features:
Open: 10am-10pm Daily
Breakfast sandwiches, Huge Menu, Healthy Options, Kid-friendly, Pet-friendly Outdoor Seating.
What isn’t there to love about Smashburger? Choose from either their 1/2 or 1/3 lb. 100% Angus Beef patties or a Smashchicken  sandwich and go wild with their extensive menu featuring all kinds of everything-you’d-want-between-a-bun delights and delish add-ons! A healthy selection of salads also help make choosing healthy options a breeze! Sides like the Smashfries – tossed in rosemary, olive oil and garlic – or the Haystack Onions or the Fried Pickles with buttermilk ranch dressing, make great accompaniments to any Smash-selection. And their Downtown location is the only one to serve breakfast so rev up in the morning and get your day smashing!
Tips:
- The Baja Smashburger or Smashchicken pack some hot hot heat and come with guacamole. Win.
- Häagen-Dazs Milkshakes are top notch indulgences.
- Their morning coffee from Cafe Virtuoso is absolutely smashing.

More of our favorite Bars & Restaurants after the jump!!!
Read the full article…

[Video] Goth-Trad – Air Breaker

Straight off of Goth-Trad‘s forthcoming “New Epoch” LP for Mala‘s Deep Medi imprint & P-Vine Records, the video for “Air Breaker” presents a bit of deja vú for me, and perhaps maybe anyone else who attended SMOG Sundays last weekend… Goth-Trad’s latest video is eerily similar to SMOG/Media Contender’s quietly situated yet looming walls of various stacked junkyard televisions projecting distorted pictures and pixelated noise.. The video, directed by DBKN is a corrupted series of complex images and perhaps subliminal messages that in conjunction with the tracks’ own anxiety-evoking machine-teeth stabs and irrepressible high-pitched rapid-fire pings, hypnotically sucks you into its world of chaos – willing, or not.

By: TD

L-Vis 1990: Essential Mix

UK-based, Night Slugs label head L-Vis 1990 is a bright-minded British gem recognized for his eclectic blend of UK Funky, dubby grime, Chicago house & bouncy basslines, that never fails to consume his out of body listeners in a thick layer of deep gutter bass. L-Vis 1990′s BBC Radio 1 Essential Mix debut presents a sonically vivid demonstration of eloquent style & impeccable track selection rooted in absolutely sinister intentions and grab ass on the dance floor.

Download | Listen: L-Vis 1990 – Essential Mix

Tracklist

Feel The Void (L-Vis 1990 Street Reprise) [Island]
L-Vis 1990 — Timeless (Intro) (feat. Corey Black)
Tom Trago — Dubtopia [Rush Hour Recordings]
Cajmere — Percolator [Cajual Recordings]
Marcel Dettmann – Planning (Original mix)[Ostgut]
DVA — Step 2 Funk VIP
Lando Kal — Communication [Rush Hour Recordings]
Egyptrixx – Liberation Front[Night Slugs]
Optimum — Ghost House
Alfabet — Hell Of Samba [Rush Hour Recordings]
Theo Parrish — Falling Up (Carl Craig Remix) [Syncrophone]
L-Vis 1990 — Our Groove [Night Slugs]
Patrice Bäumel — Roar [Get Physical]
Jam City – Countess [Night Slugs]
Kingdom – SFX [Dirty Bird]
Lil Silva- Pulse vs. Flex[Night Slugs]
Mike Q. – Let It All Out Ft. Miss Jay[Fade 2 Mind]
Jam City — Ecstasy Refix [Night Slugs]
L-Vis 1990 — VHS Crash [Night Slugs]
Untold — Little Things Like That [Clone Basement Series]
L-Vis 1990 — Feel The Void (Paul Woolford After-Hours Mix) [PMR Records]
Helix — Drum Track [Night Slugs]
Bok Bok — MJT [Night Slugs]
DJ Fresh — Night Off
DJ Pierre — Hit Da Handclap 2011
Girl Unit — Club Rez [Night Slugs]
Mike Q. — Ha Dub Reworqed [Fade 2 Mind]
DJ Cease — Super Crash [Rush Hour Recordings]
Paul Woolford — Erotic Discourse [2020 Vision]
L-Vis 1990 — Tonight (Kink Remix) (feat. Samantha Lim) [PMR Records]
Grand High Priest ft. Dajae — Mary Mary (Bok Bok Reconstruction)
TWR72 — 13 Tunnel
Boddika & Joy O — Swims (No Chords VIP) [Swamp 81]
Maurice Donovan — Bebeh [SSSSSS]
Laurent Garnier — Man With The Red Face (Club Mix) [F Communications]
L-Vis 1990 — Tonight (L-Vis 1990 & Simbad’s 3am Mix) (feat. Samantha Lim) [PMR Records]
L-Vis 1990 — Lost In Love (Night Slugs Allstars Mix) (feat. Jaevon McCarthy) [PMR Records]

Follow the shit outta L-Vis 1990:
L-Vis 1990 Website | L-Vis 1990 Facebook | L-Vis 1990 Youtube

BY: TD

[New Album] Big Gigantic – “Nocturnal”

Look I know everyone else in the blogosphere is totally blogging this into the ground, but it’s all for good reason: Big Gigantic gave away their full LP, Nocturnal, FOR FREE less than 48 hours ago, and every single track off the release, is, remarkably, downright incredible. To the point where you feel bad for not paying for such a well-crafted work of sonic art.

Coloradian two-piece, Big Gigantic, are not a new name, at least to their bass-music-makin peers. As a matter of fact, nearly every notable artist I’ve personally interviewed in the past six months has not only mentioned, but has whole-heartedly praised Big Gigantic as being currently the single most compelling emerging act in the underground EDM realm. For the short & sweet of it, Big Gigantic make inspiring bass music that bursts with infinite layers of undiluted soulfulness. And during their live performances, with the use of live productions, saxophone, and percussion, they successfully bring the beating heart of their enthralling sound to life.

With no California shows scheduled as of yet, and an even more devastating absence from the Coachella line-up, we sunshine state kids have only this LP to clutch onto, as the closest gateway to experiencing Big Gigantic’s unique and eloquent approach to sound. And be forewarned: if you are listening to this release on your computer speakers, you are depriving yourself of the very grip of total-body resonance that makes their music so incredibly exhilarating.

Download the entire release for FREE here, and listen to the whole release in numerical order, from start to finish. Don’t feel obligated to move to this music; just relax and allow it to move you.

Follow the shit outta Big Gigantic -
Big Gigantic Website | Big Gigantic Facebook | Big Gigantic Twitter

Big Gigantic – Nocturnal

Big Gigantic – Rise And Shine

Big Gigantic – Beginning Of The End

By: TD

The Loft x TheMixster.com Presents: NADASTROM + Colour Vision at The Loft (at UCSD) – January 14th

And just when we thought all things were slowing down and turning into a wasteland of music, SD is getting a wildly emphatic wake up call!!

With past events like Yacht, Poolside, and Them Jeans being hosted at this venue, it comes to no surprise that we would once again join forces with The Loft to bring only *the best* of top tier entertainment to those who reside in the underground of EDM!  Consistently rising in our electrifying and bass driven sphere, Nadastrom is without a doubt one of most influencial duos to be found not only in the moombah realm, but in the electro scene as a whole.

With their latest and rather recent release, El Baile Diabluma EP, little question should have been left in anyone’s mind as to why seeing the moombah godfather himself, Dave Nada, and his better half Matt Nordstrom, would be anything short of a body-perplexing and rousing experience!  Using this EP to vocalize loud and clear their progressive view on moombahton and the various embodiments it can, and will take, they’ve managed to move us one step closer to the future with their revolutionary musical views.  Not being the only ones to acknowledge their monumental and apex stand point in the future of EDM, Nadastrom has been avidly supported by elite producers such as Skrillex, Diplo, Drop The Lime, A-trak, Tittsworth and more. (Read the full EP review HERE.)

Whether it’s booty banging bass, heavily saturated in tropical Latin grime, big room driven, or lustrous moombahsoul, anything these two dudes rip, layer, and bump through the speakers will indubiously have you bouncing and shaking like and 808 rumble!  Only performing with the highest level of energy, the trails of strewed out rambunctious, sweaty, and riotous crowds that Nadastrom leave behind only further capitalizes on how elating and infectious their brand of sound truly is!

Familiarize yourself with the newest EP, which they so generously put out for free (!!! WTF?!?!), as well as some additional oldies but goodies that compelled us down this path!

NADASTROM – Pussy (Original Mix)

PUGA – Sabina (Four Four Bass Rmx – Nadastrom Moombahton Edit)

NADASTROM & HEARTBREAK – Church

NADASTROM WEBSITE // NADASTROM TWITTER // NADASTROM FACEBOOK

Make sure you RSVP for this event, as well as purchase your ridiculously cheap tickets ahead of time!

Le Deets:

Saturday, January 14th
The Loft @ UCSD
Doors 8 pm/Show 9 pm
18+
RSVP HERE.
PURCHASE TICKETS HERE.

BY: KismyShades

[Majestic Sounds] ELK BEATS 003 :: EshOne – Chale :: EshOne – Strain

It’s been a hellish week in music. The digital audio landscape these last two weeks have been alarmingly barren. Like the way your tongue feels after a bong-rip of $5 mixed bag barren. A dry lick on porcelain feeling.

In an attempt to sonically oil up the ol’ blogging steam engine (and to prevent completely boring the fuck out of you guys) I decided to rant to my manically impulsive friend and forward-bass music producer EshOne. As expected he swiftly determined it was time to unleash a majestical beast, Elk Beats 003, off his self-distributed dual digital & vinyl label, Elk Beats.

First up is Chale: combine stretchy synths, a bad experience you had in Rosarito at a tequila bar, percolating Maracas, and a syncopated off-snare thing, and the result is a doomsy Barrio Bass track that sounds fun… But confronted by a thrashy distorted saw lead atop an eerie bathroom flute melody and an uncomfortable track-long anticipation for a breakdown that’s never delivered, it’s clear this was all just a front; and there’s for some shady shit about to go down.

On the same tip of almost Latin yet stuck in a ghetto groove, comes a disco tom-laden pacifier-gnawing track that met up with Mr Oizo at the breakdown for an afternoon cup of… Jameson. In a demitasse. (NO spoons, pinkies out.) Strain’s “FUCK are there BEES INSIDE THE CLUB?!”/lead is cleverly matched-up with a sinister low 808 rumble that’s way past kick drum frequency. Fuck bees. Pump up those fire-engine red Nike air pumps, drop some ecstasy, and hit up the nearest swap meet for the full STRAIN effect.

Elk Beats 003 is available EXCLUSIVELY on Elk Beats’ site, in both .WAV & .MP3 forms – for the same price. It doesn’t get more mothafucking whimsical than that.

BONUS: Sign-up for their newsletter in the next 24 hours and get a surprise bonus track for FREE. Sign-up here.

You want to make bang boom? Buy it here.

By: TD

Codes – Codes House Remix EP

I cannot believe we slept on this one for a month or so, but thanks to Torro Torro‘s remix, which is apparently a ginormous hit right now across the pond in Japan (!!!), we have finally stumbled across this sparkling find of an EP!  Better late than never…!

Almost a year ago Codes unleashed his funky, reminiscent of the fine tuned disco era, house EP that sent funky and libidinous vibes from coast to coast.  With the help of some top-notch producers, Codes has given his soulful tracks a new rage face in anticipation of the intense year that is to come.

Turning up the intenso-meter on the funky yet smooth original God Bless, Torro Torro‘s remix has blasted the shit out of this track with bouncy synths and a whirlwind of lazers fit for any massive rager. Definitely going on my “party your face off” playlist for any given night full of debaucherous choices.

CODES – God Bless (Torro Torro Remix)

Keeping it funky with Ready Aim Fire in a less disco, more tribal & spice combo that makes that booty go pow, JWLS never lets us down, whether it’s moombahton, electro, or his capricious blend of house and hip hop.

CODES – Ready Aim Fire (JWLS Remix)

Bringing us down a few pegs, Flinch has kept the rising disco builds in What You Gonna Do, and cut them with chilled out dubstep that’ll give us a little room to breathe from all the high rise action on this EP.

CODES – What You Gonna Do (Flinch Remix)

Get some free goodies here, as well as support the full EP HERE, and the tracks original mixes HERE.

Codes Facebook
Codes Twitter
Codes Soundcloud

BY: KismyShades

[NEW] Sticky K – Persian Algebra

BONER ALERT!!!!!!!!

Exploding into the moombahsphere via Mad Decent this morning and setting off massive orgasmic bells, Sticky K‘s newest ass banger release is nothing short of staggering and invasive; and by invasive I mean it’s a serious FUCK JAM and it will get inside you!!!

Having originally been blasted by Diplo himself a few months back on his 4th installment of Blow Your Head mix, this track speaks volumes of Sticky K‘s pedigree, with its heavily seductive and intoxicating rhythms.  Melding Persian melodies and shattering robotic builds, the commanding synth lead in this choon have mastered the ability to charm any crowd, anywhere in de world, into a rhythmic sea of cobras!  Move you body like a snake mami, cause we’re shifting the mattress to the dance floor!!

If you’re still not convinced, maybe you need to “have sex to this on repeat” to fully grasp the magnitude of it’s enormity, as TD so bluntly stated upon hearing it earlier today!  Oh yesss, get it gurl!!

STICKY K – Persian Algebra

BY: KismyShades

[TONIGHT!!!!] BAJATON Presents: LOCAL-TON w/ Don Valdez +babySTEPS + NOLD + more at El Dorado! (1.4.2012)

☛ ¡¡ BAJATON !! ☚ is a night that’s all about keepin’ it tropical even after the sun goes down. Frosty craft drinks, spicy beats, and a vacation-state of mind that keeps the vibe cool while letting ya unleash yo inner bad gal side.

SAN DIEGO PARTY GUIDE – January 2012 :: 21+ 18+ Parties & More!

So it *may* have taken us a day or so to recover from the big bang of a New Years Eve our team had this year, but now we have shaken off the post-party blues and now we are MORE THAN AMPED for all the 2012 *newness* and parties that will be coming our way! For all of you who didn’t make the silly mistake of vowing to “ease up” on your wild ways this new year (let’s just see how long that will last…) there’s heaps of opportunities this brand new year to get down to killa beats and all up to no good…

This month we’re also including a new section on our party guide titled **WEEKLIES** filling you in on regular shindigs around town we super dig and are, more times than not, free to enjoy and even easier to love…

Shout to my fellow Aquariuses – this is our month water baybays. Let’s get super weird.

Full list of events, guest lists, secret deals, and more after the jump!

Read the full article…