Castledoor frontman Nate Cole says the remaining members of the L.A. pop band need to time to figure out what’s next in the wake of the departure of Gabe and Coury Combs. “We’re working out the next steps and considering the options,” he says. At the band’s final show as a six-piece Monday at Spaceland, […]
It was only a matter of time, I suppose, before I started running across bands who are getting compared to Silversun Pickups. Twin Tigers are one of those – not that anything the Athens, Ga., quartet does constitutes Xeroxing. But like SSPU – and Sonic Youth, Primal Scream and assorted popgazers before them – Twin […]
The Morales brothers could feel resentful. The core members of the rock quintet Astra Heights moved to L.A. over five years ago and quickly got signed to Universal Records, only to have the release of their debut album bog down in a major-label quagmire. For two years they spun their wheels, the album “Good Problems” […]
[Buzz Bands LA welcomes new contributor Keith Shackleton, this blog’s special correspondent in the Southern Hemisphere, who will help with occasional track reviews:] What could be more appropriate than the patchwork art on the album cover of “Weathervanes?” New York City-based quintet Freelance Whales stitch together a variety of textures from an array of acoustic […]
Nico Vega’s “Gravity” seems to be defying the forces of old age. The L.A. trio’s body-blasting rocker first appeared on 2007’s “No Child Left Behind” EP, then got a slight makeover for the band’s 2009 full-length on MySpace Records. Now, in the hands of director Marcus Dunstan – the man behind three of the movies […]
[It’s “Wear Black for Johnny” day in honor of Johnny Cash’s 78th birthday. Hell, I might just keep the black on wall weekend …] Tonight: Swedish classic rockers the Soundtrack of Our Lives [pictured], who just released a digital EP that quickly followed last year’s double-disc album, hit town to play the El Rey Theater, […]
Brothers at Sea could hardly have titled their debut EP more appropriately – “This Is a Redemption Melody” offers five songs of buoyant melodies, surging guitars and amped-up earnestness that recalls Jimmy Eat World’s “Gravity.” The Orange County quintet, all in their late teens, are making music around their collegiate studies at USC, Biola and […]
A packed house at the Echo on Tuesday witnessed a night of exuberant pop-rock headlined by Glacier Hiking and hosted by Buzz Bands LA. Kitten kicked off the evening, with 15-year-old frontwoman Chloe Chaidez affirming her band as a contender; Haim rocked the room with its outsized classic rock songs and rocker-girl attitude; Glacier Hiking’s […]
[Birthday greetings today go out to Corinne Bailey Rae … Here’s your menu for tonight’s musical feast, with a couple of mp3s at the end as an appetizer:] Visqueen’s album “Message to Garcia” is getting a lot of attention for what it isn’t – tricked up or gimmicky. The Seattle quartet [pictured] fronted by guitarist […]
The Icarus Line hasn’t made much noise since 2007’s “Black Lives on the Golden Coast” blared into my headphones and, I thought at the time, positioned them as hard-rock contenders. Now Joey Cardamone and his quintet are back, ever playing the bad boys, with a new single on iTunes, “We Sick” b/w “Holy Man.” The […]
