Some may recognize Matthew “Cornbread” Compton as one-half of Electric Guest. Some may know him as the drummer from Engine Down while others may know his work as a film composer. Whatever his name may be attached to, Compton has a great resumé so far. His latest project goes by the moniker Realities, a venture […]
Did we mention how much fun Lobsterfest was? The three-day frolic at the Port of Los Angeles on Sept. 13-15 was typically festive, satisfying crustacean cravings and rock ’n’ roll hunger, with Big Black Delta, Dead Sara and the English Beat headlining their respective days and surprises like preteen sensations Pretty Little Demons and string-wielders […]
It’s becoming a familiar storyline. Boy meets girl. Boy and girl meet synth. Indie-pop duo is formed. Bouncy songs ensue. Because public’s appetite for bouncy indie-pop songs is insatiable, blogs go crazy. Duo hailed as creators of “the song of the summer.” Long career of Instagrams of donuts with rainbow-colored sprinkles, pink hats and three-scoop […]
We consider ourselves indie-pop devotees at Buzz Bands LA, but on most matters involving blissful, jangling guitars we defer to Marion Hodges, the KCRW DJ, show promoter, dance-night host, record-spinner and fellow Pastels fans whom we met once upon a time over a Tullycraft song at Pehrspace. Hodges, who’s been known to keep us sane […]
There’s an endearing, shambolic quality to the folk music of John Isaac Watters – it’s as if his songs are just happening, complete with their vivid imagery, weeping dobro and pedal steel and wheezing organs. Watters, who’s also been a part of the band Coyol, is set to release his third solo album next month. […]
When Sophie Stern and David Greenbaum surfaced in January as the duo Bom Bom, their undeniably catchy pop single “Woman” was on repeat here at BBLA HQ. Now Stern and Greenbaum have finally announced a self-titled EP that includes new songs “Pray” and “Bad Man.” Although “Woman” is still the standout track and production has […]
If a human being could Make Things Better just through the sheer force of his voice, Touché Amoré vocalist Jeremy Bohm is that guy. The L.A. quintet’s third album “Is Survived By” (out this week via Deathwish Inc., home to Cold Cave, Converge and Deafheaven, among others) turns the darkness and rage usually associated with […]
Can music be intimate and expansive at the same time? Washington, D.C., ex-pat Matthew Hemerlein, now doing business as Lo-Fang, seems to have arrived at the formula. Hemerlein, a singer and multi-instrumentalist who is classically trained in violin, cello, bass, piano and guitar, debuted his first pop mini-symphony, “#88,” back in August. His signing to […]
Kan Wakan debuted its symphonic rock a year ago, when the L.A. septet was calling itself Oren Lyons. That first single, the R&B-flavored “Forever Found,” and the band’s ensuing residency at the Echo, marked them as sonic sophisticates working from a palette of classical music, Americana, soul, psychedelia and electronica to create compositions with broad […]
Twenty-three-year-old L.A. songstress Lucy Schwartz has a fine new album, “Timekeeper” (out last month), a list of TV and movie song credits a mile long and, as it turns out, an adorable hound named Banjo. The pooch is the star of the video for the single “Boomerang,” a song made in collaboration with Matt Hale […]
