The Naked and Famous’ album title “Passive Me, Aggressive You” certainly applied Tuesday night the at the Music Box. The New Zealand popsters surveyed their candy-coated electro to a sold-out crowd of aggressively adoring fans who’ve found a place for the Kiwis’ confections alongside their MGMT and Passion Pit records. L.A.’s White Sea, the solo […]
[Happy birthday to Mettalica’s James Hetfield – here’s your midweek show menu:] ‣ Lykke Li, with her sophomore album “Wounded Rhymes” winning new fans and with gigs on “The Tonight Show” (Thursday) and Lollapalooza (Saturday) on the horizon, headlines the Greek Theater tonight, topping a bill that includes L.A.’s Best Coast and Fool’s Gold. ‣ […]
Musicians are showered with accolades when they reinvent the wheel, but sometimes the mere basics can provide the firmest of foundations for songwriting. Athens, Ala.-based band the Shakes has provided wonderful proof of this by stirring things up with only a handful of demos. Fronted by the remarkable Brittany Howard, whose soulful vocals express a […]
There is no doubt that the Mountain Goats‘ John Darnielle is an impressive wordsmith. Autobiographical tales or not, the musician has now released 14 studio albums in addition to several EPs and cassettes that showcase exquisite storytelling, and the band’s latest record, “All Eternals Deck” contains lyrics that have not backed down. Darnielle’s daunting layers […]
With last spring’s “To the Alps” and this week’s digital single “Clamoring for Your Heart,” Santa Monica-bred indie-pop quartet Princeton continues to evolve toward a sleeker, Euro sound that’s not far from Jesse Kivel’s side project Kisses. The spare, brooding new song sounds like something Stephin Merritt would’ve done on the classic “69 Love Songs,” […]
It’s hard for me to even type David Kilgour’s name without getting a warm-and-fuzzy. The music of the iconic (and I don’t think it’s stretch to use that word here) New Zealand indie-rocker first flew onto my shelves via early-’90s mixtapes traded with friends from far-off lands – packed as they were with artists from […]
Tuesday’s offerings: ‣ New Zealand quintet the Naked and Famous bring their “Young Blood” to the Music Box, where White Sea – the solo venture of Morgan Kibby of M83, who did this cool remix of the hit – opens. ‣ Mariachi El Bronx, the alter ego of punk-rockers the Bronx, release their second album […]
They should have called it “L.A. Raging.” Rage Against the Machine punctuated L.A. Rising on Saturday a the L.A. Memorial Coliseum with renewed battle cries and thundering rock, providing a big finish to nine hours of music. Muse, Rise Against, Lauryn Hill, El Gran Silencio and Immortal Technique also delivered the goods. Check out Steve […]
Early in their L.A. infancy, White Arrows were slapped with the “electro Strokes” tag, not an entirely inaccurate shorthand for their wiry, synth-addled garage rock. But judging from their new single “Get Gone,” they’re evolving toward something distinctly their own. Here, White Arrows let the synths and beats (rather than the guitars) scratch the itch, […]
Stone Darling were just acquiring their L.A. darling status when we last checked in with them. Fast forward four months, and their hook-laden folk tunes have landed them a residency where they are set to play songs they’ve primped and polished in their short time together. Their finesse in crafting flowing harmonies is no secret, […]