Australia’s brother-sister duo Angus and Julia Stone have crossed all oceans after several EPs and three albums together, but every once in a while they take time apart. Angus released a solo album in 2009, and Julia released “The Memory Machine” in 2010. This time, Julia’s record “By the Horns” (out May 29 on Nettwerk) […]
Maria Lindén and Fredrik Balck of Sweden’s I Break Horses may or may not be fans of Smog, but either way, the sonic offerings on their debut album “Hearts” is far from anything one would liken to Bill Callahan. Their shoegaze influences are obvious (My Bloody Valentine, Slowdive, Jesus & Mary Chain), but the electronic […]
Nikki Lane’s album “Walk of Shame” (released last fall on IAMSOUND) is Americana that’s all full of spit and vinegar, stuff that will remind you of a dozen twangy songstresses you love. The video for “Lies,” on the other hand, reminds me of something else. I. Want. That. Car. ||| Live: Nikki Lane opens for […]
Around 2007, the Deadly Syndrome were among the brightest lights on L.A.’s indie-rock horizon, four scruffy dudes who performed sweat-soaked shows with cardboard cutouts of ghosts onstage – a reference to one of their best songs and also symbolic of the quartet’s unspoken maxim that what they were doing (and probably whatever we were, too) […]
Haroula Rose‘s latest record “These Open Roads” offers many of the songstress’ graceful ballads and soothing folk, but she’s been writing with brighter color and faster tempos on her way to her forthcoming album, which is set for a release later this year. Her follow-up “So Easy” (out June 4) foreshadows a sunny retro-pop sound, […]
Decisions, decisions, decisions … your Friday night is full of ’em: ‣ Best Coast kicks off a three-month tour by headlining the Wiltern behind its new album “The Only Place.” Jeff The Brotherhood and Abe Vigoda set the table. ‣ Dum Dum Girls launch a busy L.A. weekend (they’re at the Getty on Saturday) with […]
It’s Thursday, already: ‣ The Dandy Warhols, back with their eighth album “This Machine” (out in April), headline the Wiltern. Sleepy Sun and 1776 support. ‣ South African rockers the Parlotones [see Tuesday’s post] visit the Roxy behind their new album “Journey Through the Shadows,” supported by Queen Caveat, Ryan Star and From Indian Lakes. […]
Quirky pop comes and goes, but it’s refreshing for a band to make you actually feel the sugary onomatopoeia the genre gets its name from. If you’re looking for a Shins-lite kind of band with a Paul Simon twist, Cambridge, Mass.,-based duo You Won’t are available to provide your next summer soundtrack. Josh Arnoudse and […]
First they were Natalie Portman’s Shaved Head. Then Natalie Portman, the actress herself, got it into her head that having an electro-pop band named in her honor wasn’t such a good idea, so they became Brite Futures. And now Brite Futures have decided to call it quits. The Seattle-based party animals made the announcement on […]
