Kevin Bronson on October 24th, 2018

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Like many a Midwestern transplant, Vug Arakas did not find the Los Angeles he expected when he moved here from Columbus, Ohio, five years ago. He landed in downtown L.A., “the neon canyon, the beginning of Skid Row, the abandoned Broadway theaters, the empty Art Deco buildings, standing like tired, stone giants, the after-hours warehouse parties, the early morning drug binges.” Far from the West Coast romanticized in the media, it was at least a place that captured his imagination as a songwriter aiming to transcend the superficial.

It’s the backdrop for his new single “The Crowd,” the follow-up to the EP he released earlier this year, “Restless.” Like that vibrant four-song release, “The Crowd” — produced by Ryan Nasci (who has worked on recent records by the likes of Young the Giant, Lykke Li and Katy Perry) — is exemplary of Arakas’ storytelling. It’s blue-collar rock ’n’ roll that’s been likened to Bruce Springsteen and Paul Westerberg, two songwriters with a keen eye for the desperation that comes with human contradictions. And the way Arakas is doing it, he stands out in a crowd.

||| Stream: “The Crowd”

||| Live: Vug Arakas plays a free show Harvard & Stone on Thursday, along with Alain Johannes and Blackbird Days.