Had the Trashcan Sinatras emerged in the middle of this decade instead of the mid-’80s, I suspect they’d be festival-playing, Pitchfork-approved indie-pop heroes. As it is, the Scottish sextet has had an up-and-down ride – three brilliant albums in the ’90s (and some MTV buzz) followed by record-label woes that caused the band to declare […]
[Happy birthday, Juliana Hatfield, and thanks for songs.] July goes out with a bang this week, starting with some enticing shows tonight: Jarvis Cocker headlines the Wiltern behind his recent release “Further Complications,” an album that, owing to the strength of its storytelling, keeps on giving. [Cocker is giving away a remix of “You’re in […]
Details on funeral arrangements and a memorial service for Pablo Castelaz, the 6-year-old son of Dangerbird Records co-founder Jeff Castelaz who died of cancer on Saturday, have been posted on the PABLOg! website. In addition, it was announced today that the concert Wednesday night at the Echo featuring Dangerbird bands Eulogies and Bad Veins, along […]
Big night at the Hollywood Bowl, where Eric Clapton and Steve Winwood team up. … There’s really not too much strange about the Strange Boys [pictured] – except maybe that their take on “Nuggets”-era garage rock sounds so fresh. Touring behind their debut “The Strange Boys … And Girls Club,” the young Austin quartet hits […]
[Why, it’s Paula Abdul’s birthday today. Isn’t that nice …] Today: A seriously busy weekend gets started with the seriously beautiful orchestral maneuvers of Grizzly Bear, who are joined by Here We Go Magic to play a (very) sold-out show at the Wiltern. … It’s also opening night at the Hollywood Bowl, where the Bowl […]
No Buzz Bands show on Little Radio this morning, but tune in at noon for Sinking Radio with Sylvia and Matt and sometimes Todd.
Oh, you say, another actor’s musical tangent. Indeed, on the surface that’s what actor-director-producer Adam Goldberg’s debut as LANDy is – even if, as he points out, he is merely an “occasionally famous actor.” I interviewed Goldberg for a piece in the Los Angeles Times, and, not to steal from that piece, suffice to say […]
[Happy 40th to Flaming Lips drummer Steven Drozd. Now keep the beat while I run through tonight’s exhausting list of shows:] Give the Church credit – most bands who are still going concerns at the end of their third decade are just playing greatest-hits sets. The Australian quartet, touring behind a new album, “Untitled #23,” […]
The tightly wound, overcaffeinated electro-pop on the Handsome Furs’ second album, “Face Control” (released in March), seems almost too agitated to be Canadian in origin. Are nerves really that frayed in Montreal? Apparently (and thankfully) so, in the world of Dan Boeckner (Wolf Parade) and Alexei Perry. Boasting sizzling electric guitars and outsized dance beats, […]
[Big shows, little shows, possibly illicit shows, festivals – this weekend has a little bit of everything. Now if I only knew where Prince’s birthday party was Sunday …] Today: I seriously don’t know where to start. The Offspring are sure to bring back their heyday at the Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre, and Joe Cocker his […]
