Having been a linchpin in the dirty-glam outfit Louis XIV, Brian Karscig knows a thing or two about swagger. The San Diego-bred singer-guitarist-producer, now fronting the Nervous Wreckords with Lindsay Matheson and Daniel Schraer, also seems acutely aware that his brand of Mick Jagger/Marc Bolan/Bon Scott gamesmanship has its detractors. At whom he fondly thumbs […]
Happy Wednesday: ‣ Veteran hitmakers the Goo Goo Dolls have a new album on the way, their 10th. “Magnetic” comes out May 7, and the band revs up for the release by playing the Troubadour tonight. The Skatalites at the Echoplex ‣ Vacationer, impressive in October when they opened for Bombay Bicycle Club, returns to […]
Nashville’s Kopecky Family Band aren’t comprised of blood-related members, but their name does come from Kelly Kopecky, who leads the sextet with Gabe Simon. Their video for “Heartbeat” – a track off of their debut “Kids Raising Kids” – also presents that playful family vibe as the band attempts to play a tennis match only […]
Low may disapprove of the term “slowcore,” but no one can deny that they’ve been writing songs to move the soul. With their lush, country-tinged harmonies, the trio from Duluth, Minn., celebrates 20 years as a band with their tenth album “The Invisible Way” (out now on Sub Pop). The piano almost becomes a 4th […]
The winds of revivalism show no signs of abating. In fact, in the case of Michigan-bred, L.A.-based Mayer Hawthorne, they keep pickup up steam. The singer-songwriter-producer (and recently Bearded One) announced this week that he has a new album on this summer. It’s titled “Tropical Storm Hawthorne,” and the first single “Designer Drug” is a […]
Your stellar show selection for Tuesday: ‣Â DWNTWN, the electro-pop duo who won our hearts last year with “See My Eyes” and followed it up with their “Red Room” EP, kicks off a residency at the Central SAPC. Get there early for a new outfit (with at least one familiar face) called the Mercy Beat. Blackbear […]
The legacy of Medicine has been referenced increasingly in recent years – main man Brad Laner’s continued explorations is experimental psychedelia is one reason, but another is the current wave of nu-gazers who have made the one-forgotten Los Angeles band influential. Probably best known outside cult circles for crashing the Cure/STP/Rage/NIN party on the soundtrack […]
The fusion of Motown and dub-step don’t initially sound appealing, but L.A.’s Caught a Ghost has made “soul-step” a steppingstone for its sound. Along the way, we realized that we like what Jesse Nolan and his crew were doing, and they not only kept churning out the tunes but have also continued to put out […]
Broken Anchor’s debut album is like a five-course meal for the melody-starved. The release, “Fresh Lemonade” (due in July), follows a trio of 2012 EPs that thrust singer-songwriter (and Hotel Café regular) Austin Hartley-Leonard into the full-band realm, as he teamed up first with producer Brad Gordon and then drummer Mike Duffy to fashion a […]
Tonight’s shows, no fooling: ‣ Rhye, the L.A.-based duo of Canadian Mike Milosh and the Danish Robin Hanniba, plays its highly anticipated show at the Masonic Lodge at Hollywood Forever Cemetery. Their debut album “Woman” came out in March. ‣ Hands kicks off a residency at the Echo – the L.A. quartet’s debut comes out […]
