Before her career as a dancer, actress and spokesmodel (but probably not before that huge mane of curls), Gavin Turek experimented with writing beats in her college dorm room. An online post here, a producer connection there, and a few years later Turek the singer was guesting on TOKiMONSTA’s “Creature Dreams” EP and working on […]
Doing business as the Ruby Suns, Ryan McPhun’s gorgeous variations on psych-pop have progressed, incrementally, from his Beach Boys homage some seven years ago to two world music-informed albums for Sub Pop, 2008’s “Sea Lions” and 2010’s “Fight Softly.” McPhun first appeared on our radar in 2008, a Ventura-reared kid who used his dual citizenship […]
Somewhere between the very precise surf-pop of Allah-Las and outrageous skate-punk of FIDLAR lies the appropriately named Beach Party, whose lo-fi clamor makes me long for that Nehru shirt I wore in the 7th grade. Beach Party is the brainchild of Rob Banks and James Hurst, who began collaborating only a few months ago. They […]
You couldn’t blame Ryan Daly and Anthony Improgo for feeling as if they’ve driven in a big circle the past few years. The principals behind Parade of Lights first collaborated in the band Polus oh-so-many years ago (actually, 2006, which now seems like a distant time). Parade of Lights released an EP in 2009, although […]
It’s been almost a year since In the Valley Below crept onto the radar with a self-released EP of moody, brooding electro-pop. The L.A. duo, who are going by the names Angela Gail and Jeffrey Jacob, have since wheeled that EP back into the shop for some re-tooling, and this month they unveiled a self-titled […]
The drugs … and all the neuroses. They are conveyed vividly in the video for “The Drugs,” the first song from Landon Marcus’ forthcoming EP. The video is the work of Mareesa Stertz, the filmmaker and former member of Black Flamingo who has helmed videos for that band, Family of the Year, Persephone’s Bees and […]
Sibling sparks fly in the music of Birds of a Black Feather, the new Los Angeles quintet built around the sweet/tart vocals of sisters Katie and Sarah Virden. The sisters, along with guitarist Murray Foretich and bassist Adam Arcos, deal in indie blues that ranges from teeth-rattling (“Turn Me On” and “Say What You Mean”) […]
The legend of Haim is growing far faster than their catalog. Sisters Este, Danielle and Alana (and their “mister,” Dash Hutton) have released but one three-song EP (surely you’ve heard “Forever” by now), and some remixers have gotten their mitts on it too, but the L.A. quartet is already signed to the Polydor label in […]
With his band the Santa Fe Seven, Maxim Ludwig embraced an intelligent, fun and unironic take on classic rock. His new project Drive He Said is similarly grounded in the classic too – the quintet that features Ben Reddell, Jorge Balbi, Will Walden and John Gilbertson sounds a little bit like the Boss if he […]
Dekades like things dark and delicious. The new band led by guitarist Arden Fisher (who plays in Omniflux) does more to soundtrack the spooky season on its first single “Dark Horse” than all the kitschy Halloween songs we’ve heard in the past week. Layers of guitars, dirty electronics and feverish vocals almost make you feel […]
