Kevin Bronson on March 17th, 2011

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[No, no, no, the headline is an itemization, not a commentary on James Blake. After the Buzz Bands LA day party, I was drawn as if by magic to the Time Out showcase – or maybe it wasn’t magic, it was the smell of BBQ.]

Yuck (at Stubb’s) – The last time we wrote “shoegaze” and “Sonic Youth” in the same sentence, it was in reference to Silversun Pickups’ first EP. The multinational coalition Yuck, fronted by singer-guitarist Daniel Blumberg, have a lot in common with the Angelenos – loud/soft, pretty/messy, urgent/spacey, Yuck plays all the dynamics well, if a little less caffeinated. At their most lush and melodic, you’d swear they were beamed here from the ’90s when Dinosaur Jr. spawned a whole passel of Jr. Jrs. Their silly band name aside, they hit paydirt with “Holing Out” and “Suicide Policeman,” and closed with the rather sprawling “Rubber,” which slung sheets of distortion across the amphitheater, leaving noise hanging in the air long after the quartet had left the stage.

James Blake (at Stubb’s) – At times the evening air and the restless crowd threatened to swallow the 23-year-old’s minimalist meanderings, but then something interesting would happen: The bass would boom; his innocent croon would be strangely shapeshifted; some icy electronic beat would clatter across the landscape. It’s the juxtaposition of robotic noises and soulful melodies that make Blake’s late-night confessionals compelling. That they seemed to unfold in slow-motion into the Texas night made his set a challenge. The amphitheatre felt like one big bedroom during his single “The Wilhelm Scream,” as well as the Feist cover “Limit to Your Love,” but other tunes lost the battle for intimacy, much like the music of ballyhooed Brits The xx did in these same environs a year ago.

Twitter: @krbronson