[Are actors being phased out of music videos? Somebody start an in-depth probe:] Sack puppets are the stars of Sara Radle’s self-directed video for her song “Stars,” off her new album “Four.” And it’s marionettes who string you along through the Jess Bressler-directed video for “Bloody Bells” [downloadable for free], off the “Santa Fe” EP […]
There’s plenty of the familiar in the music of U.S. Royalty, and not just because the co-founders of the Washington, D.C., quartet are named John and Paul. That pair – the Thornley brothers – along with Jacob Michael and Luke Adams are readying their debut album “Mirrors” for winter release, and from their early recordings, […]
A while back I discovered a nice series of online music downloads from Levi’s – now I get marketed some footwear to go with my jeans. A series of 10 songs (and videos) sponsored by Dr. Martens (happy 50th birthday) includes some pretty cool covers, including this one by the Raveonettes (even if the video […]
In April we told you about So Many Wizards’ “Love Songs for When You Leave Me” EP. Songwriter Nima Kazerouni has already moved on – he’s finishing up two songs for a 7-inch single the indie-pop trio hopes to have released in November. But the video for the “Love Songs” EP was just finished – […]
The new album by Los Angeles quartet the 88 – the band’s fifth – is titled, simply “The 88.” No gimmicks, nothing fancy, and entirely appropriate for four guys who the past eight years have been clawing their way toward the power-pop pantheon with timeless songwriting, deliriously catchy melodies and crackling arrangements. “As you get […]
Clinic hail from the Super Furry Animal-school of oddball indie rock, and like the quirky Welsh troupe, this Liverpudlian quartet could never be accused of taking themselves too seriously. Still, the foursome’s light-hearted nature – they routinely take the stage wearing surgical masks and scrubs – never detracts from the very serious business of crafting […]
Click here to watch the film “White Horse,” with music by Shadow Shadow Shade. To say that the debut album by L.A.’s Shadow Shadow Shade is epic is … well, to use the word “epic” once too often. Let’s call it “poperatic.” The septet – born from the ashes of indie-rock quintet Irving and formerly […]
Buzz Bands LA is pleased to host a live webcast of the Decemberists (tonight) and the National (Sunday) from MusicfestNW in Portland. Tune in at 7:30 p.m. today and tomorrow.
[Notes from here, there and everywhere …] ‣ Stand up: Fitz & the Tantrums will be part of the Stand Up 2 Cancer benefit tonight – you can catch their performance online right here, after the network television of the telethon is over. And you can watch it above. ‣ Bargain: Dungen with the Entrance […]
Back in April, we told you about “Shapes and Variations,” the covers EP by L.A.’s Robotanists that takes material by the likes of Joe Jackson, the Black Keys and Lykke Li and treats it like silly putty. Included there was “Exiled State of Mind” – a rather shapely variation of Jay-Z’s “Empire State of Mind” […]
