Evan Voytas’ sound – fizzy bursts of R&B and funk beneath a keening falsetto – has been a long time in the making. In the four-plus years since he moved to L.A., the multi-instrumentalist has performed with rising stars from both the indie and mainstream realm. But if you were go to back in time […]
By Drew Fortune Jonathan Wilson may be the coolest guy in L.A., which would place him pretty high in the running for coolest worldwide. From his press photos, he’s usually clad in a denim work shirt, with shades, long hair and beard obscuring his disarmingly handsome face. Yet, none of it feels like an affectation, […]
Gorgeous and gentle atmospheric pop music is always a guarantee from L.A. artist Michael Orendy, aka Frankel. He’s intoxicated us with sweetly swelling orchestrations on his two previous albums “Lullabys for the Passersby” and “Anonymity Is the New Fame,” and he’s preparing to offer his latest collection of gems in form of “Sugar Twists Like […]
Story and photos by Matt Draper In 1983, after his fanzine and club night had culminated, a Scot named Alan McGee formed an imprint he called Creation to release records from like-minded friends. “73 in 83”, a single from art-rock band The Legend! became the label’s first release after McGee secured a £1,000 loan. Though […]
“These days my friends don’t seem to know me without my suitcase in my hand.” As Taylor Goldsmith of Dawes sings these opening lines of “Nothing Is Wrong” (out this week via ATO Records), the reflection of the band’s growth in just two short years can be heard in his tone. Transformed into seasoned musicians […]
Aberdeen holds a special place in the cult of indie-pop. The quartet was the only Los Angeles band to release music on the legendary London label Sarah Records. Their gorgeous, shoegazey twee-pop belied the band’s tumultuous existence (and breakup) in the 1990s, but principals John Girgus and Beth Arzy got their heads together with bandmates […]
Voxhaul Broadcast frontman David Dennis describes his band’s music as being “a lot about searching and even more about finding,” but it’s also about getting it right. When the L.A. quartet with the quirky, Morrissey-referencing name first emerged from Orange County four years ago with an EP on the incubator label Retone Records, they were […]
Despite growing up in New York and graduating from the prestigious Purchase Conservatory of Music for Recording and Composition, Jenny O packed her gear up and planted herself in sunny Los Angeles three years ago before completing her solo debut “Home.” Leaving one conglomerate music scene for another has its pros and cons – but […]
The Duke Spirit’s scorching soul-rock has always been good for a knockout punch (or three). But just because the London quintet’s new album is titled “Bruiser,” don’t think it’s a facsimile of their first two albums, “Cuts Across the Land” (2005) and “Neptune” (2008.) “Bruiser,” recorded in L.A. with Andrew Scheps, is a more raw-boned […]
John Carpenter is not a cinematic figure, although you could make a case for his arrestingly scuzzy blues-rock being the stuff of film noir. But because of his famous name (and because of the sudden preponderance of bands like Abe Vigoda, Philip Symour Hoffman and Nicole Kidman nicking names from A- and B-listers), you weren’t […]
