Together, the two albums being released this year by L.A. quartet Dot Hacker would comprise an opus – they’ve created 68 sonically expansive minutes of music all told, experimenting in painterly guitar textures, deep grooves and seemingly capricious rhythmic shifts. The band is guitarist Josh Klinghoffer and three fellow sophisticates with whom he started collaborating […]
In July, Freedom Fry released its new single “Home,” a gorgeous paean to Los Angeles that balances the beauty and the melancholy of the city itself. It’s easy for transplants to get doe-eyed, after all, but the L.A. duo of Bruce Driscoll and Marie Seyrat – he from Michigan by way of New York and […]
Casey Dienel has always marched to the beat of her own drum (she can even make a Justin Timberlake song haunting), but her third studio album under the moniker White Hinterland perhaps reveals her lush, out-of-the-box songwriting at its best. The Massachusetts singer-songwriter excels with rich, dark R&B tunes sheathed in yearning yet trembling vocals […]
Devon, England’s indie-folk songsmith and surf-enthusiast Ben Howard is due to release his sophomore album titled “I Forget Where We Were†on Oct. 20 via Island Records. Since the release of Howard’s 2011 debut “Every Kingdom,†he has performed at Glastonbury, has won two Brit Awards, has been nominated for the Mercury Prize and has […]
After teasing its release last week, Kendrick Lamar finally dropped the first single from his forthcoming sophomore album. It’s entitled “i,” and was produced by L.A.’s Rahki. The new song samples the Isley Brothers’ classic “Who’s That Lady,” heavy on the cowbell, drum machine and psychedelia, and it’s a step in a different direction from […]
Gary Calamar is best known as an amiable KCRW DJ whose Sunday evening show connects the dots between past and present, and, frequently, the serious and whimsical. In the industry he’s known as a music supervisor with credits on shows such as “True Blood,” “Dexter” and “Six Feet Under,” and he often hosts the Mimosa […]
There are many sides to rock ’n’ roll, and not only does L.A. duo Street Joy (and producer Michael Coleman) seem to know how to touch all the bases, but each single (there are six altogether now) they pump out stay with you long after the last note, no matter how different they are from one […]
Meshell Ndegeocello may have been credited for having sparked the neo-soul movement, but her impressive career has gained critical acclaim because of her ability to break boundaries in music. Having dabbled successfully in funk, soul, R&B, hip hop, reggae, rock and jazz, the singer-songwriter, rappper and bassist has now released her 11th studio album “Comet, Come […]
When Alice Boman released “EPII,” a special bonus edition of her stunning EP “Skisser,” fans got to step further into the Swedish singer-songwriter’s mind. The intimacy Boman revealed in previous songs like “Waiting” is ratcheted up even further in new tunes such as “Be Mine” and “Over;” they become such personal experiences that listeners almost feel […]
The first single from the duo GNTLMN sounds like every regret we had in the 1980s. And we had a few. It’s gorgeous, slow-motion melancholy that the new duo is calling “manic depressive dream-pop.” GNTLMN is the nom de tune of Natalia Rogovin (of Social Studies) in alliance with Nima Kazerouni (of So Many Wizards/Crown […]
