Friday 06.19.09: MERE MORTALS / LOWER HEAVEN / CHIEF NOWHERE / BLACK KITES

Mere Mortals || Watch

SPACEGUNS DON”T KILL YOU

Mere Mortals have evolved from their Brit-pop comparisons into a mix of spaced-out-psychedelic songs that mix structure with mind-bending freak-outs. They effortlessly move between moods and there isn’t a fill-in-the blank band to compare their music to. (LA Record).
Combining the tunefulness of the Brits + the fuzzbox euphony of the Scots + the psych rock-repurposing smarts of the Americans.
(Las Vegas City Life), Mere Mortals create psychedelic rock reminiscent of Primal Scream or The Jesus And Mary Chain, earning them ‘best unsigned band’ accolades left and right (NME).
As a matter of fact Mere Mortals are not so unsigned any more. The all-wheat, no-chaff (LA Times) “Rebel Radio” EP, expanded to a full-length album, will see a Japanese release later this summer.

With:
Lower Heaven || Listen
Chief Nowhere
Black Kites
DJ set by Big Sonic Heaven’s Darren Revell

8:30pm / $8 / 21+

Thursday 06.11.09: CHILDREN COLLIDE / BLOODCAT LOVE / THE CAPTAINS

Children Collide || Listen || Watch

The Long Now is nothing less than a super solid album. It has all the makings of a stand-out debut. There is a strong pop/rock sensibility, encased in a consistent edge. Embracing space, whilst keeping an organic view of Earth and its people seems to be the reoccuring theme, and one delivered with alot of passion and poetry. Musically there is an overall darker sound that creeps about in many shades. Driven by the watery nature of reverbious guitars that build and crash with waves of heavy distortion, Children Collide can set the mood for both a heart-pumping, white water rafting trip or a pleasant gondola ride.

This is a band that have obviously tested these tracks out in the real world of gigging and trying to burst the seam. After hearing once, I feel that I would like to see them perform live. I only hope that the constant, unfading energy that inhabits Children Collide’s first album will continue to grow true to seeds that have been sown for their future endeavors. Too many bands these days are losing their raw power by their second album. I don’t think that will be the case for this band! – The Independent Weekly

with:
Bloodcat Love || Listen
The Captains

8:30pm / $8 adv, $10 at the door / 21+

Friday 07.31.09: FUTURE OF THE LEFT / JAPANDROIDS / DEAD PONIES

Future of the Left || Listen || Watch

I’d like to humbly ask my peers to stop using “ex-Mclusky” tag with these guys, because with Travels With Myself and Another, they’re done fucking around. Every seemingly strange left turn from their debut, Curses, is stranger, carried further, and more focused and much catchier here. The band still starts and stops on a dime, the vocals are still layered and ambitious even when seething, the song titles still raise a challenging bar for the music to live up to (“Yin/Post -Yin”, “You Need Satan More Than He Needs You”), and the low-end on the guitars still sound like angry bears. Granted, this is how both Mclusky and FOTL built the niche that drew in a loyal, fervent audience, but Travels is the sound of band who still have a lot they want to prove.

With a few striking exceptions, most of the keyboards from the band’s debut have been ditched in favor of searing guitar tones (see “Chin Music” or “Land of My Formers”). Many of the albums’ hooks come from strident, almost militaristic melodies– I doubt that “Arming Eritrea” is too concerned with real geography, but damned if I wouldn’t help fund the revolt now after the record’s screaming, indelible opening track. The woozy march of “The Hope That House Built” is an existentialist call-to-arms, while the mid-tempo chug of “I Am Civil Service” floats up a few melodic, playful bars just to shoot down with its blistering chorus. Straightforward and snarling, these tracks suggest the band still thinks modern rock might be a genre worth infiltrating and upending. – Pitchfork

With:
Japandroids || Listen
Dead Ponies

8:30pm / $12 / 21+

Thursday 07.30.09: CASTANETS / WARMER MILKS / TYLER BATES & LISA PAPINEAU (OF PET)

Castanets || Listen || Watch

Ray Raposa’s collaborative effort, Castanets, commences its 5th studio album Texas Rose, The Thaw, & The Beasts with “Rose”; starting with just an acoustic guitar over Raposa’s raspy Dylan-esque voice, the track builds with blues piano, flutes, and back-up soul singers until the song ends with Raposa echoing, “Singing for you in the distances alone” in an attempt to reconcile a long-lost love.

“Thaw and the Beasts” begins as a melancholy country track until after the first chorus, when the track breaks down into noises that are similar to what a creaky door sounds like when it is slowly opening or closing. Thankfully, the tune digresses into a pleasant piano solo, accompanied by a person speaking the lyrics to the song as Raposa blissfully sings them. – Filter

With:
Warmer Milks || Listen
Tyler Bates & Lisa Papineau (of Pet) || Listen

8:30pm / $8 advance, $10 at the door / 21+

Wednesday 07.29.09: Club NME with THEMSELVES / POST FOETUS / EMILY WELLS

Themselves || Listen || Watch

When it comes to art-rap, the pair that make up Oakland’s Themselves—Adam “Doseone” Drucker and Jeffrey “Jel” Logan—are some of the biggest innovators in the game. In their first two years of working together (’97 through ’98), they contributed to three classic albums via the hallowed cult names Deep Puddle Dynamics, cLOUDDEAD, and Themselves. They also co-founded the Anticon collective/label, which has just celebrated its 10th year of turning hip-hop on its head. In honor of this milestone, Themselves have returned from a six-year absence to release two albums this year—a surprise considering how busy Drucker and Logan have been in the interim. Of their numerous sidelines, including a collaboration with The Notwist called 13 And God, the Subtle sextet has been their most widely toured and well-loved, but last year, the band declared a hiatus after releasing its third highly musical, imaginative album.

Now, it seems the duo at that band’s core is ready for something a bit simpler. Themselves’ first release for 2009 is theFREEhoudini, a free digital mix-tape that wrangles all Anticon’s founding artists, along with familiar names like Buck 65, Atmosphere’s Slug, Busdriver, and Aesop Rock, for a fierce showing of rap might. The mix-tape is interspersed with freestyles culled from a rap class that Drucker teaches in Oakland (he first made his name on the battle circuit), and with moments that tease the August release of Themselves’ forthcoming LP, CrownsDown. – AV Club

With:
Post Foetus
Emily Wells

8:30pm / $10 advance, $12 day of show / 21+

Saturday 07.18.09: SO MANY DYNAMOS / CAST SPELLS (DAVE DAVISON from MAPS & ATLASES) / KINCH

So Many Dynamos || Listen || Watch

So Many Dynamos represents the ever more beautiful evolution of common music into something inherently interesting and cool. Unlike other bands that are attempting the same metamorphosis, SMD succeeds in bridging the gap, maintaining singable and danceable material, while bringing so much more intelligent interplay to the table. They lie somewhere between Weezer and Q And Not U; using radio friendly rhythms that change in the moment and widen the songs into multiple layers, while the vocals dance around, crisp and meaningful.

Almost everything is done correctly on this album, from the asynchronous guitars to the steadfast drums and subtle use of electronica. All are well executed showing precise breaks and changes that pull the listener in the desired direction. Vocals ably meet the feel of each song, harsher here, and softer there, with the correct amount of pathos. Backing vocals are used smartly; barely audible on certain songs, a main force in others, and not at all in the rest, illustrating one of my favorite points of music: its not what you have, its how you use it. And this band uses it perfectly, knowing when to use all players or only a handful at moments to get the right message across. – Hybrid Magazine

With:
Cast Spells
Kinch || Listen

8:30pm / $8 adv, $10 at the door / 21+

Tuesday 06.23.09: GEORGE ELLIAS / PAIGE STARK / SHAKEY GRAVES

George Ellias || Watch

Deep in the murky reveres of dimly lit pubs and musty, minute venues or Los Angeles, lays a young singer/storyteller by the name of George Ellias. What the kids are calling folk now is a sub-genre called ‘freak folk’ with artists like Devendra Banhart and Joanna Newsom as the poster children; but we old folks know that when discussing folk and blues, names like Dylan, Guthrie, Baez, Waters, Williams and Leadbelly pop up. George Ellias fully and acutely embraces and pays homage through his art to the latter group mentioned. With nothing more than a guitar, harmonica and a voice as his band, Ellias gives us a peak into his life with all them no-good gals breakin’ his poor aching heart and how his bucket’s got a hole in it. Blending traditional folk, blues, country and psychedelia (as displayed in the dozy “Donna, Donna”), George Ellias’ raw undertaking on the world around him will leave anyone thinking they have just left Newport Festival. – Loudvine

With:
Paige Stark
Shakey Graves

8:30pm / $8 / 21+

Friday 06.05.09: THE FUXEDOS (CD Release Party) / KILLSONIC / QUAZAR AND THE BAMBOOZLED / MOXY PHINX

The Fuxedos || Listen || Watch

THE FUXEDOS are America’s favorite apocalyptic comedy-lounge-punk-jazz-storytelling-cinematic-what-the-hell?-art rock band, complete with costumes, props, and bizarrely humorous theatrics.

Members’ touring credits include such bands and acts as Les Claypool, Stolen Babies, Faun Fables, Coheed & Cambria, Idiot Flesh, and Cirque du Soleil. They’ve also individually recorded or performed with everyone from Erykah Badu to Eric Clapton and from the Silversun Pickups to The Game, and have appeared not only on the “Guitar Hero” and “Rock Band” game series, but also on Hans Zimmer’s score to “The Dark Knight.”

Their eponymous debut CD (available June 2009) features mixing by Steve “Steve B” Baughman, whose credits include 50 Cent, Michael Jackson, and Eminem; and mastering by Dylan “3-D” Dresdow, who’s worked with everyone from the Black Eyed Peas to U2 to the Wu-Tang Clan.

Meanwhile, The Fuxedos have been gaining notice and blowing minds through the power of their unusual live performances. The band’s sound and stage show are unique and defy easy categorization, but the result is an innovative, high-energy, theatrical, and hilarious show, underscored by creative, eclectic, and freakishly tight musicianship.

with:
Killsonic
Quazar and the Bamboozled
moxy phinx

8:30pm / $8 / 21+

Tuesday 05.19.09: Otik Records presents READY THE JET / JACK WILSON JR / WET CASSETTE / JR JUGGERNAUT

Ready The Jet

“If a band that has one foot in ’80s Minneapolis and the other in Nova Scotia, Canada circa 1993 sounds appealing to you, then by golly, L.A.’s Ready the Jet fit the bill, dead-on. If anything, RTJ will make you a little wistful for the time when Hüsker Dü and Dino Jr. ruled college airwaves. Leave it to front man Matt Brooks to make certain that the precise amount of crunch, feedback, and sweet melodicism courses through the vein of every inspired track that lends itself to this excellent 38 minutes.” – The Big Takeover

with:
Jack Wilson Jr.
Wet Cassette
Jr. Juggernaut

8:30pm / FREE / 21+

Wednesday 07.15.09: Club NME with THE VEILS / LUKE TOP / OTHER GIRLS

The Veils || Listen || Watch

The previous Veils album, Nux Vomica, was a grower. Andrews’ approach is so mannered, songs like “Jesus for the Jugular” hit me first as entertaining, superficial blasphemy. The pretty songs were so pretty I wasn’t sure there was any depth to them. Was he was more than the sum of his parts – parts assembled mostly from black-clad artists of decades past? But the best material on Nux Vomica feels even stronger given a few years to steep. As Sun Gangs sinks in, his skills are thrown into relief. He assembles a Brill Building melody for “The House She Lived In,” and the sweetly nostalgic mood doesn’t break when lines like “you’re lawn ablaze and your razor blade drawn” roll by. Andrews is subtle and sufficiently smug, enough of a showman to stage grand gestures, and enough of an imp to keep us guessing as to what they could possibly mean. – Dusted

With:
Luke Top
Other Girls

8:30pm / $12 adv, $14 at the door / 21+

Thursday 06.25.09: DEASTRO / TELEPHONE JIM JESUS / HEALAMONSTER & TARSIER

Deastro || Listen || Watch

Deastro is the new kid on the electro-pop block. Pigeonholed as having a sound akin to indie-mainstreamers Death Cab For Cutie and hushed electronic darlings M83, in truth Randolph Chabot is a 22-year-old synth master who has created his own separate musical world — a world where crushing, noisy dance parties live amongst simpler arrangements and an impending, desperate sense of isolation.

Chabot has been recording since the age of 12 — and as someone used to the independence of his music — he self-released three albums and was a regular performer in many of Detroit’s DIY venues before eMusic signed him to their Selects label to release Keeper’s, a sort of “Best Of” compilation of his work thus far. Quickly becoming one of the site’s fastest-selling artists, Ghostly International soon picked up Chabot and re-released the album. Keeper’s is complicated. Complicated like the three-eyed cat-wolf thing adorning the intergalactic album cover. And intergalactic is a good word to describe the album as well, with its soaring electronic instruments and wide open musical spaces that sometimes fuzz over lyrics on the vocal tracks. – Venus Zine

With:
Telephone Jim Jesus
Healamonster & Tarsier || Listen

8:30pm / $8 adv, $10 at the door / 21+

Wednesday 06.10.09: Club NME with RAINBOW ARABIA / SPIRIT VINE / VOICES VOICES

Rainbow Arabia || Listen || Watch

With feral vocals, shattering guitar riffs, and a collection of microtonal keyboards ordered off of a Lebanese Web site, Rainbow Arabia combines Middle Eastern beats and modes with the vibrant energy of Los Angeles’ experimental punk/dance scene. The result is a hypnotic neo-tribal, hipster-dub sound that falls somewhere in the vicinity of post-punk spiritualists Gang Gang Dance and These Are Powers. The band is composed of Danny and Tiffany Preston, both 36. The husband and wife duo were married for more than three years before they started playing music together and recording in their basement in early 2008. Before Rainbow Arabia, Danny played in punk-dub outfit Future Pigeon and Tiffany in Licorice Piglet. – SFBG

With:
Spirit Vine || Listen
Voices Voices

8:30pm / $8 / 21+

Tuesday 06.02.09: THE MINOR CANON / SING ORPHEUS / MATT DWYER / DNTEL

The Minor Canon || Watch

There’s no shortage of musicians who toot their horns in Silver Lake. Ah, but those who play horns — they’re noticeable. Take the Minor Canon, a six- or seven-piece (depending on the night) that have been crowding onto club stages to dispense a brassy orchestral pop that, while no threat to make the Top 40 charts, ought to find its way into the hands of an indie filmmaker in need of a soundtrack. Singer-songwriter Paul Larson has roots in the indie scene that date back to the ’90s, when he was a member of Strictly Ballroom with Chris Gunst (Beachwood Sparks) and Jimmy Tamborello (the Postal Service, Dntel). In fact, Larson contributes guitar work to the forthcoming Dntel album “Dumb Luck,” which was out in April. “No Good Deed Goes Unpunished,” the Minor Canon’s initial foray into the shadows of pop melancholy, was self-released on Feb. 20, and even at its birth the debut album has a history, since it was recorded at the Silver Lake house where the Postal Service’s “Give Up” took shape (and, Larson points out, where the movie “Heathers” was written. – Buzzbands LA

with:
Sing Orpheus

Plus Comedian:
Matt Dwyer

and DJ
Dntel

8:30pm / $5 / 21+

Sunday 05.17.09: HellYa! Night with SCARLET SYMPHONY / THE JERXS / DR. SEAHORSE / OONA / PILOT TOUHILL

Scarlet Symphony || Listen || Watch

With the exception of their personal career choices, as musicians I don’t think that Scarlet Symphony makes many mistakes. That’s a large statement, but listen to “Perfect Cover Up.” It’s a perfect rock and roll song, a real driver with manic vocals and a flat-out nasty guitar line. I once witnessed Scarlet Symphony give a Street Scene performance that I would call feral; they were loutish and excessive on stage, and that day the members were like rock gods culled from the legendary acts of the ’70s. They seemed a genetic fit with the stage and the whole scene unfolding around them. Perfect! So why, all these years later, are they still an unsigned band, self-releasing their own CDs and touring under their own steam?

Scarlet Symphony is a San Diego quartet. They are currently gigging up and down the West Coast in support of their recent EP At the Base of the Metropolis. The band broke up right after they formed in 2000. Later, after regrouping, there was word of interest from a couple of major labels. Scarlet Symphony is said to have turned them down in favor of retaining their creative freedom.

At least that’s the story. Less a commercial group and more a remembrance of rock-and-roll past, Scarlet Symphony is in opposition to the current spate of health-food rockers that blend scratching DJs and neutered rock guitar with rants about bad parenting. The Symphony have a gritty Brit-rock edge that, when they get it together with the various punk/funk/pop images that inform most of their music, showcases what it is about them as a band and lands them on festival stages with the majors. Their business heads may collectively be in the wrong place, but their hearts are right on the money. – San Diego Reader

With:
The Jerxs
Dr. Seahorse
OONA
Pilot Touhill

8:30pm / $5 / 21+

Wednesday 05.27.09: Club NME with LOVE GRENADES / ROY G & THE BIV / BIG MOVES

Love Grenades || Watch

Love Grenades‘ Tigers in the Fire is an audible precursor to a summertime spent in the car en route to the club, the beach, or perhaps even to and from work. Its consistent balance of italo disco and Top 40 pop-goodness is an easy draw-in for all sorts of listeners, but especially those who just want to dance.

The title track gets the three-way Euro-remix-treatment from Wayfarer, Martin Peter, and Disco Damage, while Julian Brody lends his electro-pop skills to a digi-percussion-infused “Off to Sea”, and therefore to singer Liz Wight. Ah, Wight. Her vocals static-cling to a seductive Annie Lennox sensibility while exuding a style her own through original lyrics on unoriginal topics – all-encompassing love, relationship politics, and sexual freedom. The resulting output is a fun, groovy delight worthy of ‘the essential’ music collection, whether diverse or inflexible. – Beat Crave

With:
Roy G. & The Biv || Listen
Big Moves

8:30pm / $8 / 21+

Monday 07.13.09: ANDY CLOCKWISE / NATALIE PORTMAN’S SHAVED HEAD / BROKEN METERS / HEY CHAMP

Andy Clockwise || Listen || Watch

Andy Clockwise might not be a household name where you live, but for me, he might as well be Bruce Springsteen. I’ve seen many incarnations of the Andy Band, as we call it, but his newest, tightest and most mature version is the finest. Andy is hard to describe. He’s a singer-songwriter from Australia with the musical ear and skill of Jeff Lynne and the heart and soul of the Boss himself. He’s a soft-spoken intellectual that puts everything he has into his music and his performance. The audience gets it, feels it and always responds.

There is nothing manufactured about Andy. You never ask yourself if you buy it because there’s nothing to buy; he’s not selling. He’s giving himself to the audience and the rest of his band mates. Local “hired-gun” and guitar maven Joshua Norton backs him well on the bass and keys while also serving as the glue that holds the many pieces together. – Lumino Magazine

With:
Natalie Portman’s Shaved Head || Listen || Watch
Hey Champ || Listen
Broken Meters

8:30pm / FREE / 21+

Sunday 05.24.09: BARRIO TIGER / DEAD PONIES / DOWNTOWN UNION

Barrio Tiger || Watch

Barrio Tiger is an LA 4 piece whose gimmick is Rock and Roll. Their lineup on any given night may include former or current members of Qui, The Hangmen, The Starvations, or even Guzzard and Helmet. Formerly known as Thee L.A. Gentlemen Callers, Barrio Tiger recalls the song craft of Paul Weller, Robert Pollard, and Uncle Tupelo and filters it through the bombast of bands like Dead Boys, Jawbreaker, and Dinosaur Jr. – Hum City Blogger

With:
Dead Ponies
Downtown Union

8:30pm / FREE / 21+

Wednesday 05.13.09: Club NME with SHILOE / FUTURE GHOST / ATLANTIC LINE

Shiloe || Listen ||Watch

A buzzy, grinding mass of sinewy L.A. shoegaze, Shiloe’s …And Now the Screaming Starts EP manages, in five ominous and hard-edged paeans to grindhouse guitars, noise-rock nebulae and the history of Creation Records, to both offer a handful of tributes to their influences and their own inheritance of them. Songs like the spiraling postpunk livewire of “Alarms” and the slow-motion thunderclouds of “Gone” prove that, had Kevin Shields decided to stay home last year, the genre he wrenched from obscurity to greatness would be in good — if white-knuckled and intense — hands. – Prefix Magazine

with:
Future Ghost
Atlantic Line || Listen

8:30pm / $5 / 21+

Tuesday 05.05.09: BARRIO TIGER / WILDLIFE / THE NEUROTICS

Barrio Tiger

Barrio Tiger is an LA 4 piece whose gimmick is Rock and Roll. Their lineup on any given night may include former or current members of Qui, The Hangmen, The Starvations, or even Guzzard and Helmet. Formerly known as Thee L.A. Gentlemen Callers, Barrio Tiger recalls the song craft of Paul Weller, Robert Pollard, and Uncle Tupelo and filters it through the bombast of bands like Dead Boys, Jawbreaker, and Dinosaur Jr. – Hum City Blogger

with:
Wildlife
The Neurotics

8:30pm / FREE / 21+

Saturday 06.27.09: HALLOWEEN JACK / ROCKET / THE DAMN SONS

Halloween Jack

Gilby Clarke is the legendary guitar-slinger from Guns N’ Roses. Stephen Perkins is the thunderous heartbeat of Jane’s Addiction. John Dolmayan is the raging rhythm of System of a Down (John is taking over while Stephen tours with Jane’s Addiction). Daniel Shulman is the pulsating bass of Garbage and Run DMC. Eric Dover is the prince of wails for Slash’s Snakepit, Imperial Drag and the guitarist for notorious band Jelly Fish. Together as Halloween Jack, they are laying down an old school glitter party that will cook your eardrums, blow your mind, and rock your world.

With:
Rocket
The Damn Sons
DJs Jim Freek and Crystal Ann spinning

8:30pm / $10 adv, $12 dos / 21+

Saturday 06.20.09: HALLOWEEN JACK / SABROSA PURR

Halloween Jack

Gilby Clarke is the legendary guitar-slinger from Guns N’ Roses. Stephen Perkins is the thunderous heartbeat of Jane’s Addiction. John Dolmayan is the raging rhythm of System of a Down (John is taking over while Stephen tours with Jane’s Addiction). Daniel Shulman is the pulsating bass of Garbage and Run DMC. Eric Dover is the prince of wails for Slash’s Snakepit, Imperial Drag and the guitarist for notorious band Jelly Fish. Together as Halloween Jack, they are laying down an old school glitter party that will cook your eardrums, blow your mind, and rock your world.

With:
Sabrosa Purr || Listen
DJs Jim Freek and Crystal Ann spinning

8:30pm / $10 adv, $12 dos / 21+

Saturday 06.13.09: HALLOWEEN JACK / THE SWEET KILL

Halloween Jack

Gilby Clarke is the legendary guitar-slinger from Guns N’ Roses. Stephen Perkins is the thunderous heartbeat of Jane’s Addiction. John Dolmayan is the raging rhythm of System of a Down (John is taking over while Stephen tours with Jane’s Addiction). Daniel Shulman is the pulsating bass of Garbage and Run DMC. Eric Dover is the prince of wails for Slash’s Snakepit, Imperial Drag and the guitarist for notorious band Jelly Fish. Together as Halloween Jack, they are laying down an old school glitter party that will cook your eardrums, blow your mind, and rock your world.

With:
The Sweet Kill || Listen
DJs Jim Freek & Crystal Ann spinning

8:30pm / $10 adv, $12 dos / 21+

Saturday 06.06.09: HALLOWEEN JACK / THE RINGERS

Halloween Jack
featuring Gilby Clarke (Guns N Roses), Eric Dover (Jellyfish / Imperial Drag / Alice Cooper), Daniel Shulman (Garbage), Muck (Buckcherry)

Glam Rock is back, jack. Bowie. Kiss. Alice Cooper. Queen. Elton. Sweet. Iggy and the Stooges. The New York Dolls. Lou Reed. Mott the Hoople… And Halloween Jack. 4 rock and roll heavies ready to party all night long. Gilby Clarke is the legendary guitar-slinger from Guns N’ Roses.Stephen Perkins is the thunderous heartbeat of Jane’s Addiction. Muck (Buckcherry) will be taking over while Perkins tours with Jane’s. Daniel Shulman is the pulsating bass of Garbage and Run DMC. Eric Dover is the prince of wails for Slash’s Snakepit, Imperial Drag and the guitarist for notorious band Jellyfish. Together as Halloween Jack, they are laying down an old school glitter party that will cook your eardrums, blow your mind, and rock your world.

With:
The Ringers || Listen

8:30pm / $10 adv, $12 dos / 21+

Thursday 05.28.09: THE WOODEN BIRDS / THE NEW TRUST / HIS ORCHESTRA

The Wooden Birds || Listen || Watch || MP3

As the leader of Austin’s indie sensation American Analog Set, Kenny built a devoted underground following with his soft-spoken, rustling anthems.

And as fans learned at Saturday’s Barsuk/Merge Records showcase at the Parish, he’s picking up right where he left off with the aptly named Wooden Birds. Much like the songs of the Analog Set’s “Know By Heart,” the new tunes are delicate and organic, with a keen attention paid to intricate detail. Backed by brushed drums and a second percussionist who mostly shakes maracas and tambourines, the songs drift through smooth clean guitar and Kenny’s near-whispered vocals, creating a dreamlike atmosphere.

The simple yet sharp observational nature of the lyrics matched the powerfully understated music, as entire stories were often brewing beneath single stanzas. In set opener “Sugar,” Kenny noted, “Your little brother is a little shy/He keeps a Bible by his bedside/Under a bottle and some dim lamplight.” And in the more upbeat “Seven Seventeen,” he realized, “She was seven when I was seventeen.” – Sights and Sounds

with:
The New Trust || Listen
His Orchestra

8:30pm / $10 adv, $12 dos / 21+

Saturday 06.20.09: Saturdays Off The 405 – CHAIRLIFT / DJ FROSTY @ Getty

Chairlift || Listen || Watch

Plus:
DJ Frosty (Dub Lab)

Fridays Off the 405 are now Saturdays Off the 405! The free outdoor performance series is back on Saturday nights this summer with a lively mix of today’s most exciting emerging bands and DJ sets to open and close the night. And starting this summer, parking is free at the Getty Center on Saturdays after 5pm.

Starting off the new series in June is Brooklyn-based trio Chairlift. They are best known for their hit single “Bruises,” which was featured in the latest iPod Nano commercial. Band members Aaron Pfenning, Caroline Polachek, and Patrick Wimberly perform a unique blend of synth-pop that weaves together keyboards, guitar, bass, drums, and tambourines. The night includes sets from Dublab DJs Frosty and Ale.

Getty Center Courtyard
1200 Getty Drive
Los Angeles, CA 90049

6pm / FREE / all ages

Sunday 06.28.09: NEIL HAMBURGER / IMAGINE THE BAND / DJ DOUGGPOUND

Neil Hamburger

If Neil Hamburger wasn’t the Funniest Man in America, why would the record company keep letting him make so many albums? Can’t answer that question, can you? No, it’s beyond dispute, he is the funniest. End of debate. Don’t even mention Jack Kevorkian, Neil is waaaaay, waaaaaaaay more side-splittingly hilarious, and he’s a much bigger bummer. And he’s got a million of ‘em – why, if one of his jokes falls flat or makes you groan or feel like gagging, or say the next 80 or 90 “gags” don’t exactly make you howl with uproarious laughter, just wait, because Neil will pounce with just a killer, killer line that will make you pee in your pants and nudge the guy next to you so he spills his drink (and when he hits you, that’ll be funny too). You’ll be glad you shelled out your money and chose to spend your time, on a Sunday night, no less, with America’s funny man, Neil Hamburger. – LA Weekly

With:
Imagine The Band || Listen
DJ Douggpound

8:30pm / $8 / 21+

Saturday 05.02.09: PRINCETON / DIVISIBLE / WRITER

Princeton || Listen

They may have an Ivy-bred name, but Eagle Rock, CA’s Princeton are more concerned with chamber-pop than condescension. Comprised of brothers Jesse and Matt Kivel, plus longtime pal Ben Usen, Princeton combine the Glaswegian gloom of Tigermilk-era Belle and Sebastian with sublime orchestration and Vampire Weekend’s bouncy, lilting rhythmic structures to formulate a sound that will send listeners off to a regal pop Valhalla. Check out the fluttering woodwinds and galloping melody of “Ms. Bentwich.” – Spin.com

with:
Divisible
Writer || Listen

8:30pm / $5 / 21+

Thursday 05.07.09: THE SILENT YEARS / HELLO VEGAS / ROUGHED UP FOLK / THE BELLE BRIGADE

The Silent Years || Listen || Watch

“The rock sextet, The Silent Years take audiences on a magic carpet ride through lush soft-pop atmospherics and glittering rock landscapes on the band’s latest release, The Globe.  Produced by The Silent Years, the music has avant-pop intonations relatable to The Arcade Fire, a chamber-rock bounce liken to The Polyphonic Spree, and folk rock inflections with the sensibilities of Ben’s Brother. The music is designed to be savored as the songs penetrate deeper into the listener’s mind with each take. The band’s emotional esthetics comes through in each track with meaningful chord changes and tempo shifts that go in rhythm with the story being told in each song.” – Absolute Punk

with:
Hello Vegas
Roughed Up Folk
The Belle Brigade

8:30pm / $8 adv, $10 doors / 21+

Wednesday 05.06.09: CLUB NME with DANIELSON / MARVELOUS TOY / SOUL JUNK

Danielson || Listen

Utilizing carpenter metaphors, coordinated costumes, childlike glee, Boy Scout ethics, and the his constant familial unit, Dan Smith tackles sex, potty mouths, television, death, and judgment over the course of Trying Hartz’s two discs. Noted underground engineers Steve Albini and Kramer assist, ensuring the sonics are always as interesting as Smith’s detailed missives. Without the musical ingenuity of the band, it’s doubtful that we’d be discussing much. We’re talking about a band that’s tied together loose strings from all over the weirdo pop world, uniting Anticon dudes, Soul-Junk, Stevens, and Deerhoof, and serving as a centerpiece for the Sounds Familyre label, which releases much of the most far-out and creative Christian music available.

Ships, Danielson’s 2006 album, reconciled all of the previous Danielson projects into one unified whole and stood as an art-prog juggernaut. Trying Hartz proves that, while the preceding years may not have been as coherent, the basis for all of that album’s success have always been present in his work. While “greatest hits” and the like are often useless pieces of memorabilia, Trying Hartz works as either an excellent starting point for Danielson or the perfectly paced next step for someone getting acquainted with the work of Daniel Smith and his musical family. – Tiny Mix Tapes

with:
Marvelous Toy || Listen
Soul Junk || Listen

8:30pm / $10 Advance, $12 Day of show / 21+

Friday 05.01.09: KROQ Locals Only presents USELESS KEYS / WINTER GLOVES / EAGLE WINGED PALACE / HELLO FROM RENO

Useless Keys || Listen || Watch

With a name like Useless Keys, one might be tempted to dismiss them as another one of those bands that isn’t opening any new doors. This is not the case with Useless Keys, the new project of former Front frontman Michael Bauer with Rory Modica, Guylaine Vivarat (ex-Molecules) and Michael Regilio (ex-Green and Yellow TV). Discovering this upstart quartet is like discovering one of those really cool old-timey keys- you know, the really long ones with the two teeth-that you might hold on to because of a weird feeling that maybe it someday might unlock something mysterious. In just three songs, Useless Keys’ self-titled debut EP showcases a short but sweet mish-mosh of sixties melodies and modern rhythms, droney guitars and sweet vocals and delivers a few unexpected surprises. The disc starts strong with a disturbed Ray Davies-style melody on “Down Threw” and “White Noise” manages to resurrect the power of 90’s-style climbing guitar riffs in a way that actually works when mixed up with dark undercurrents that seem to be the band’s signature. And–and this is something I hadn’t thought possible– the Floydian guitar solo in “It’s All Made Up” actually doesn’t sound cheesy. From the looks of things, Useless Keys are worth keeping around. – LA Record

with:
Winter Gloves || Listen
Eagle Winged Palace
Hello From Reno

8:30pm / $8 / 21+

Monday 05.25.09: LA Record and KXLU present Monday Night Residency – GANGI / WARPAINT / LOCAL NATIVES / ALEXANDRA HOPE

Gangi

Welcome to Matt Gangi’s extremely stylized yet vaguely recognizable world. Gangi’s debut, A, acquires strength from not only the exemplary songwriting, but the vast array of musical personalities that the band displays. In a span of minutes, they could turn from Neil Young to Jethro Tull. And to that end, Gangi certainly shows signs of musical schizophrenia—juxtaposing various elements that shouldn’t mesh, and yet somehow they do. But, ultimately, what great artist doesn’t suffer from some sort of acute sensitivity to their surroundings?

Whether it be a consequence of listening to too much Young (pre-Harvest days) or not, Gangi’s high-pitched crooning effectively captures his signature nasal tenor. A’s opening track “Commonplace Feathers” definitively delineates the distinctive inner workings of the aforementioned folk-rock wizard. Even the ragged claw-hammer style of acoustic guitar, which often makes its way to the foreground, is worthy of comparison. – LAist

with:
Warpaint
Local Natives || Listen
Alexandra Hope

8:30pm / FREE / 21+

Tuesday 05.26.09: THE SADIES / OLD CALIFORNIO / THE HORSETHIEVES

The Sadies || Listen || Watch

Since their 1998 Steve Albini-produced debut EP and full-lenth, The Sadies have not only managed to develop a distinct personality; they’ve found endless subtle variations on a formula that could’ve easily grown tiresome by now, seven studio records and a double-live album down the roots-music road. The basic ingredients in this heaping plate of Spaghetti Western have always been moody Morricone themes, desolate Cash-esque vocals and even more desolate red-dust-choked Mars-rock-field soundscapes. All this, alternately seasoned with soul-searching Byrds-circa-Easy Rider psychedelicism, post-apocalyptic folk, Pulp Fiction-soundtrack-ready surf workouts and creek-drunk Appalachian idioms. Slather this mixture in a classic Sun Records slapback echo and serve atop the lonesome, desperate rumble of a distant blue roan’s hoofbeats, and you may just find yourself at a Toronto dinner table with these ably talented musicians.

The Sadies are also one of those notorious live powerhouses—famously backing Neko Case on the tour that spawned The Tigers Have Spoken, and earning a reputation for both their epic performances and A-list guests. But coming off of last year’s energetic double-disc, In Concert Vol. 1, The Sadies’ latest finds the band getting back to doing what—despite expert live chops—it does best: loosely conceptual studio records that maintain strong musical moods throughout. Yes, New Seasons is more of the almost-same—a new season not so much in the sense of a completely fresh beginning, but rather the same old season coming ’round again, bringing familiar feelings, but offering new possibilities. – Paste Magazine

with:
Old Californio
The Horsethieves

8:30pm / $10 adv, $12 dos / 21+

Wednesday 05.20.09: Club NME with USELESS KEYS / BM LINX

Useless Keys || Listen || Watch

With a name like Useless Keys, one might be tempted to dismiss them as another one of those bands that isn’t opening any new doors. This is not the case with Useless Keys, the new project of former Front frontman Michael Bauer with Rory Modica, Guylaine Vivarat (ex-Molecules) and Michael Regilio (ex-Green and Yellow TV). Discovering this upstart quartet is like discovering one of those really cool old-timey keys- you know, the really long ones with the two teeth-that you might hold on to because of a weird feeling that maybe it someday might unlock something mysterious. In just three songs, Useless Keys’ self-titled debut EP showcases a short but sweet mish-mosh of sixties melodies and modern rhythms, droney guitars and sweet vocals and delivers a few unexpected surprises. The disc starts strong with a disturbed Ray Davies-style melody on “Down Threw” and “White Noise” manages to resurrect the power of 90’s-style climbing guitar riffs in a way that actually works when mixed up with dark undercurrents that seem to be the band’s signature. And–and this is something I hadn’t thought possible– the Floydian guitar solo in “It’s All Made Up” actually doesn’t sound cheesy. From the looks of things, Useless Keys are worth keeping around. – LA Record

BM Linx || Listen || Watch

The members of BM LINX clearly do not wish to tie themselves down and label themselves as a genre band. Their classic rock vocals and feel good vibe are proof of this. If I had to describe their sound, I would say it’s kind of like the Rolling Stones catapulted into the electronica age – driving beats and guitar riffs peppered with synthesizers, buzzing basslines, and the occasional programmed drum loop.

Of course everyone needs a name for something once it’s even slightly distinguished itself, and so the band’s style was dubbed electro-rock. But the sound that boosted BM LINX to underground stardom and turned the head of UK super producer Alan Moulder is one that these three New York boys are constantly trying to squirm away from. There are portions of the album that take on a bluesy, down-home type feel, and then there are portions where they delve off into alternative 90s melancholia. The fascinating thing is that it seems like a natural progression – an exploration of influences tied together by electronic undertones. A post-modern stew, Black Entertainment plays like an alternation between head-banging rock and moody electronic meditations. Alan Moulder’s task of mixing such an ambitious project made up of theoretically clashing sounds was a thankless one. He cannot get enough credit for massaging BM LINX’s schizophrenic style into something cohesive and complete. This makes for an enjoyable listen. – URB Magazine

8:30pm / $8 adv, $10 dos / 21+

Friday 05.15.09: AMATEURS / THE WORLD RECORD / NEVER AT NIGHT / DEATH TO ANDERS

Amateurs || Listen || Watch

Speak Easy begins with the twangy “Omaha Nights,” one of the poppier moments on the album. The bass gives off that ’70s vibe, bringing Fleetwood Mac instantly to mind. It is easy to find yourself nodding along to this one, which easily flows into “Atlantis.” The country subtlety gets pushed aside by just a bit of T Rex, especially in the vocals of Waggoner. The music holds back for most of this track, only kicking in with a steady thumping beat towards the end. What keeps it interesting is the soaring strings of Jong, adding just enough color to keep my ears intrigued.

“Cigarettes” is one of the standouts on the album, allowing Jong’s strings to take center stage. The layered violins are surrounded by the steady pulse of sleigh bells and a kick drum, weaving in and out of the plucking of an acoustic guitar. It is a really lush instrumental, making for a nice segue into “Spectacular Fall.” The tempo stays the same going from the cinematic instrumental to this sprawling track, up until the halfway point when the beat kicks in.

Amateurs are much more about creating soundscapes than many of their indie-folk peers. They offer a nice balance of accessible ’70s countrified a.m. radio rock with their other more sonically ambitious tracks. With a debut LP this strong, I don’t expect to see them unsigned for much longer. – The Tripwire

with:
The World Record || Listen
Never At Night
Death to Anders

8:30pm / $8 / 21+

Friday 05.29.09: RIVERBOAT GAMBLERS / MISS DERRINGER / UNDERGROUND RAILROAD TO CANDYLAND

Riverboat Gamblers || Listen|| Watch

Armed with an increasingly long list of accolades for their energetic live show, Underneath the Owl is ostensibly an excuse for Denton, Texas, five-piece the Riverboat Gamblers to hit the road with some fresh material, but damned if these guys haven’t started to learn the pleasures of studio rattery. Owl splits the difference neatly, keeping the fanbase happy while still pushing the ball forward. Side A is all the big, obvious, high-sheen rock, meant to be heard blasting out of speakers in a sweaty dive bar, but it’s stuff that tends to mash together in the haze of a few PBRs. Side B, tho, while hardly a sea change, shows a willingness to grow and experiment. “Robots May Break Your Heart” sounds like a rejected Flaming Lips or Grandaddy EP title, but the band’s fearless enough to go ahead with the song anyway, and toss in some xylophone and a robotic guitar riff over lyrics like “flesh is flawed, you know it’s true”. Hey, at least it’s different, as is the steel guitar that anchors the relationship-as-film metaphor “The Tearjerker”. The breakneck “Keep Me From Drinking” boasts a Guitar Hero-worthy solo from lead guitarist Fadi Eli-Assad, and closer “Victory Lap” plays like a post-millennial “Danny Says” and captures the blur of life on tour better than any ode-to-the-road tune these ears have heard lately. Until the Gamblers blow into your town, stick with Side B. – Popmatters

With
Miss Derringer || Listen
Underground Railroad to Candyland

8:30pm / $10 adv, $12 dos / 21+

Saturday 05.23.09: LA Record presents NOMO / THOSE DANCING DAYS / VAUDEVILLE

NOMO || Listen || Watch

With its third album, Ghost Rock, Detroit, Mich. band Nomo sets itself apart from the Afrobeat masses. For much of this decade, dozens of austere instrumental bands have copied scratchy ’70s funk styles, often demonstrating a high degree of respect to their homage but, unfortunately, little real imagination. So it’s nice to hear that after two nominal albums, Detroit, Mich.’s Nomo has separated itself from the revivalist pack with a few remarkable tricks, incorporating flickers of Krautrock (on the Can-influenced “Ghost Rock”) and Chicago post-rock (as on the seemingly Tortoise-inspired “Brainwave”) into its usual Afrobeat mix.

Such eclecticism draws more attention to the moments when Nomo indulges its Fela Kuti jones, as with the rousing saxophone funk of “Last Beat” and “Three Shades,” or the atmospheric horn choruses of “All the Stars.” And even then, Erik Hall’s fine guitar tones and bandleader Elliot Bergman’s mbira plucking give those tracks a distinctively light and eerie tone. (That is, when the latter’s not wailing on saxophone; most of the nine members play more than one instrument.) However, when Bergman engages in an intriguingly ambient exchange with Hall and percussionists Justin Walter, Dan Bennett and Dan Piccolo on “Nova,” the members of Nomo prove that they not only know Afrobeat, but also how to rock. – Paste Magazine

with:
Those Dancing Days || Listen
Vaudeville

8:30pm / $8 adv, $10 dos / 21+

Sunday 05.10.09: EL VEZ / THE HITZ / WE SHOULD BE DEAD

El Vez || Listen || Watch

Because Elvis has become an international institution who can communicate across national and cultural boundaries, it comes as no surprise that El Vez — the self-proclaimed “Mexican Elvis” — has come along. El Vez, aka Robert Lopez, has been kicking around the L.A. underground music scene for nearly 20 years. He first appeared in the early San Diego/L.A. punk band the Zeros and then played in Catholic Discipline (which also spawned lesbian folk singer Phranc).

While his records are excellent documents of the El Vez phenomenon, the only way to get the full El Vez experience is to see his live shows, which feature his band the Spiders from Memphis and the lovely El Vettes, cleverly named Priscilita, Gladysita, Lisa Maria, and Que Linda Thompson. Listening to El Vez is akin to hearing the live-band equivalent of sampling. An audience on any given night can be treated to half a dozen costume changes and might hear bits and pieces of at least 200 songs, not all of them Elvis recordings. -San Diego Reader

with:
The Hitz
We Should Be Dead

8:30pm / $12 advance; $14 day of show / 21+

Thursday 05.14.09: SCOUT NIBLETT / THE LOVETONES / THE STEREO WORKERS UNION / CHIEF NOWHERE

Scout Niblett || Listen

Like heat rushing in the door, Scout Niblett is suddenly in the room again. Her familiar keening moan opines, “It’s time I danced again,” and the pressure intensifies. “It’s Time” unfolds slowly, doing the grind, working her body and yours. It’s better than Bikram yoga, and twice as hot. Flip the platter and you get “My Beloved,” a grooving, stop-start hip-bumper, with the drums break-beating forward in sway with Scout’s wall of burning guitars. As always, Scout’s the player behind all the sounds on the record. This one was done at home while a foot of snow crept around outside her front door, providing the isolation required to do all the playing and recording and not go completely mad. Just slightly mad will get the job done every time.

With:
The Lovetones || Listen
The Stereo Workers Union
Chief Nowhere

8:30pm / $8 advance; $10 day of show / 21+

Sunday 05.31.09: NEIL HAMBURGER / PLEASEEASAUR / JAMES QUALL / DAVID LEIBE HART / TWO BROTHERS ONE MIND

Neil Hamburger

If Neil Hamburger wasn’t the Funniest Man in America, why would the record company keep letting him make so many albums? Can’t answer that question, can you? No, it’s beyond dispute, he is the funniest. End of debate. Don’t even mention Jack Kevorkian, Neil is waaaaay, waaaaaaaay more side-splittingly hilarious, and he’s a much bigger bummer. And he’s got a million of ‘em – why, if one of his jokes falls flat or makes you groan or feel like gagging, or say the next 80 or 90 “gags” don’t exactly make you howl with uproarious laughter, just wait, because Neil will pounce with just a killer, killer line that will make you pee in your pants and nudge the guy next to you so he spills his drink (and when he hits you, that’ll be funny too). You’ll be glad you shelled out your money and chose to spend your time, on a Sunday night, no less, with America’s funny man, Neil Hamburger. – LA Weekly

With:
Pleaseeasaur || Listen
James Quall (Tim and Eric Awesome Show)
David Liebe Hart (Tim and Eric Awesome Show)
Two Brothers One Mind || Myspace

8:30pm / $8 / 21+

Thursday 05.21.09: GHOST (from Japan) / GLASSER / LICHENS

Ghost || Watch

Throughout their mystery-steeped, two decade-plus career, the members of Ghost have steadfastly refused to acknowledge divisions between their seemingly incompatible styles of psych-folk, Krautrock, free jazz, and a limitless variety of indigenous Japanese and world musics. On their latest tablet from the mount, Batoh and a core sextet that includes veteran psych guitarist Michio Kurihara, multi-instrumentalist Kazuo Ogino, and percussionist Junzo Tateiwa have again decided to move their sound outward in all directions at once. In Stormy Night progresses with a solemn yet utterly savage authority, with its turbulent mixture of organic stoner-folk, cumbrous experimentation and near-martial rhythms sounding like an invocation to counteract the government-led turmoil of its times. – Pitchfork

With:
Glasser || Listen
Lichens

8:30pm / $12 advance; $14 day of show / 21+

Saturday 05.09.09: NOUS NON PLUS / LE CORPS MINCE DE FRANCOISE / THE BREAKUPS

Nous Non Plus || Listen

The Francophile New Yorkers of Nous Non Plus have given us American indie rock sung almost exclusively in French. Many hip musicians have long been obsessed with the nation that gave us both the pencil and duck-vomit cracker spread.

On its second album, Menagerie, the six-piece Nous Non Plus expresses a desire to “imagine Gainsbourg and Bardot as indie rockers in 2008.”

The French lyrics and boy/girl vocal interplay between singers Jean-Luc Retard and Céline Dijon (sardonically assumed names, of course) helps boost this gutsy comparison. But outside of the ye-ye vocals and French lyrics, the band doesn’t much resemble swingin’ ’60s Paris as much as your average indie pop group, which works to the band’s benefit.

The album’s highlight, “Thief Like Me” (one of just three songs on the album with an English title), is a rush of vintage synth-pop a la Ultravox, or, more contemporarily, Cut Copy or Chromeo — all analog blips and skittering disco drums over a gut-hitting descending chord pattern. – Alarm Magazine

With:
Le Corps Mince De Francoise || Listen
The Breakups

8:30pm / $10 advance; $12 day of show / 21+

Monday 05.18.09: La Record and KXLU present Monday Night Residency – GANGI / THE LIFE AND TIMES / LANDY

Gangi

Welcome to Matt Gangi’s extremely stylized yet vaguely recognizable world. Gangi’s debut, A, acquires strength from not only the exemplary songwriting, but the vast array of musical personalities that the band displays. In a span of minutes, they could turn from Neil Young to Jethro Tull. And to that end, Gangi certainly shows signs of musical schizophrenia—juxtaposing various elements that shouldn’t mesh, and yet somehow they do. But, ultimately, what great artist doesn’t suffer from some sort of acute sensitivity to their surroundings?

Whether it be a consequence of listening to too much Young (pre-Harvest days) or not, Gangi’s high-pitched crooning effectively captures his signature nasal tenor. A’s opening track “Commonplace Feathers” definitively delineates the distinctive inner workings of the aforementioned folk-rock wizard. Even the ragged claw-hammer style of acoustic guitar, which often makes its way to the foreground, is worthy of comparison. – LAist

with:
The Life and Times || Listen
LANDy || Listen

8:30pm / FREE / 21+

Monday 05.11.09: La Record and KXLU present Monday Night Residency – GANGI / SAINT MOTEL / FREE MORAL AGENTS / CROOKED COWBOY

Gangi

Welcome to Matt Gangi’s extremely stylized yet vaguely recognizable world. Gangi’s debut, A, acquires strength from not only the exemplary songwriting, but the vast array of musical personalities that the band displays. In a span of minutes, they could turn from Neil Young to Jethro Tull. And to that end, Gangi certainly shows signs of musical schizophrenia—juxtaposing various elements that shouldn’t mesh, and yet somehow they do. But, ultimately, what great artist doesn’t suffer from some sort of acute sensitivity to their surroundings?

Whether it be a consequence of listening to too much Young (pre-Harvest days) or not, Gangi’s high-pitched crooning effectively captures his signature nasal tenor. A’s opening track “Commonplace Feathers” definitively delineates the distinctive inner workings of the aforementioned folk-rock wizard. Even the ragged claw-hammer style of acoustic guitar, which often makes its way to the foreground, is worthy of comparison. – LAist

With:
Saint Motel
Free Moral Agents
Crooked Cowboy

8:30pm / FREE / 21+

Friday 05.08.09: VOXHAUL BROADCAST / LOCAL NATIVES / AUSHUA / RUMSPRINGA

Voxhaul Broadcast

Outta the OC, Voxhaul Broadcast, flavored a whole lot like Cold War Kids and Kings of Leon, already moves with the poise of a well-embraced band, apparently settled comfortably in a working groove and enjoying their gig of life as successful rockers. Maybe they’ve had a look in a crystal ball. Let’s hope that forecast is accurate. The band’s general sound is psychedelic haze, heavy on sedative properties of dope or Robitussin, pavement inside your shoes when the wind’s gusting, or suspension in a vat of sticky warm molasses with your very special someone. I personally vote for the last of the three…an interesting dilemma that would take time to navigate. But I digress. Voxhaul Broadcast comes across wavy. Listening is satisfying at all levels of effort. From a nonchalant low-scale effort, the vibe is fuzzy with enough variation and effects to maintain the awareness of an interesting flow of appeasing music in the background. At a more engaged level, the song construction is far from lazy – each tune is spackled with hooks from great to small and doused with memorable, effective repetition. Lyrically, Voxhaul Broadcast’s songs call for an active stretch of the imagination: rather than feeding you the story, they ask you to make the story your own by connecting the dots and coloring in the background. – Luxury Wafers

With:
Local Natives || Listen
Aushua || Listen
Rumspringa || Listen

8:30pm / $8 advance; $10 day of show / 21+

Monday 05.04.09: La Record and KXLU present Monday Night Residency – GANGI / HEAD LIKE A KITE / DADDY KEV / BLANK BLUE

Gangi

Welcome to Matt Gangi’s extremely stylized yet vaguely recognizable world. Gangi’s debut, A, acquires strength from not only the exemplary songwriting, but the vast array of musical personalities that the band displays. In a span of minutes, they could turn from Neil Young to Jethro Tull. And to that end, Gangi certainly shows signs of musical schizophrenia—juxtaposing various elements that shouldn’t mesh, and yet somehow they do. But, ultimately, what great artist doesn’t suffer from some sort of acute sensitivity to their surroundings?

Whether it be a consequence of listening to too much Young (pre-Harvest days) or not, Gangi’s high-pitched crooning effectively captures his signature nasal tenor. A’s opening track “Commonplace Feathers” definitively delineates the distinctive inner workings of the aforementioned folk-rock wizard. Even the ragged claw-hammer style of acoustic guitar, which often makes its way to the foreground, is worthy of comparison. – LAist

With:
Daddy Kev || Listen
Head Like A Kite || Listen
Blank Blue

8:30pm / FREE / 21+

Saturday 05.16.09: 89.9 KCRW presents LONEY, DEAR / LIGHTS ON / AM

Loney, Dear || Listen

With Loney, Dear, you get the deeply personal songs, you get the rawness, but you also get a production masterclass and a gift for arrangement to make Brian Wilson smile. Never more so than on Dear John, which adds a new fondness for synths and electronic beeps and blips to Loney, Dear’s armoury. Naturally, such sounds are incorporated subtly into the trademark sound of Loney, Dear, aka Emil Svanangen; delicate beginnings, cyclical structures and lovingly layered build-ups that threaten to overpower Svanangen’s quiet, high-pitched voice, but somehow never quite do. The only time you wonder whether Svanangen hasn’t gone too far into electro noise is on Under a Silent Sea, when a synthesized simulation of the Psycho strings rends the air. It shouldn’t work, but somehow Svanangen makes it fit. It’s always the sign of an artist on top form that they have the confidence to sequence an album so the best tracks come at the end, and the final run here — the bouncy Summers; the wistful, voice-stretching Distant; the ominous Harm/Slow; the powerful Violent; the gorgeous Dear John — is really something special. – Times Online

With:
Lights On
AM

8:30pm / $10 Advance, $12 Day Of show / 21+

Saturday 05.30.09: LANGHORNE SLIM / SAMANTHA CRAIN / THE 1921A / SAM LOWRY

Langhorne Slim || Watch

An unconventional folk and blues singer from Brooklyn (by way of Pennsylvania), Langhorne Slim skillfully infuses his rootsy songs with elements of bluegrass, rock, and country music.

Once known as Sean Scolnick, Slim has got his start touring as a popular opener for the Trachtenburg Family Slideshow Players. A handful of independent releases followed, but Slim’s ascent has begun in earnest with the release of a new, self-titled CD. The disc nicely blends simplicity and eccentricity, reflecting his live-wire stage act. – NPR

With:
Samantha Crain || Listen
Sam Lowry
The 1921A

8:30pm / $12 advance; $14 day of show / 21+

Sunday 05.03.09: DAMIEN JURADO / LAURA GIBSON / THE CORAL SEA / REY VILLALOBOS

Damien Jurado || Listen

Jurado’s way with words, the manner in which he wraps his tales so magnificently around barely-there music that touches you – me – in such a strong way that it’s impossible to feel anything but moved by the experience, is exquisite. His cadence is perfect, his tone a perfect conductor of feeling regardless of the precise words that swim within it. His not-so-bothered singing voice, which can be mistaken for deliberate deadpan on occasions, belies the true soul within these compositions, within the man behind the microphone. – Drowned in Sound

with:
Laura Gibson
The Coral Sea || Listen
Rey Villalobos

8:30 pm / $10 advance; $12 day of show / 21+

Friday 05.22.09: Filter presents OBITS / THE LIGHTS / TIJUANA PANTHERS

Obits || Listen

It’s post post-Hot Snakes mania these days! Fresh on the heels of John Reis’ (guitar genius of Hot Snakes) new band, The Night Marchers, comes Rick Froberg (singer/guitar genius of Hot Snakes) back into the fray. Obits is Froberg’s “new” band, but they’re not really new considering they’ve been practicing in secret since Hot Snakes’ 2005 demise.

Obits just played their first ever show at The Cake Shop in NYC in January of 2008. They were the openers and packed out the venue like no other opener could. It was a hot and steamy mess as the fans clamored for more of Froberg’s (and his three cohorts, including one from Edsel) famously tight punk anthems of rhythm. The show is already somewhat legendary and you can find a bootleg recording of it with just a little help from Google.

So what does Obits sound like? Kind of like Hot Snakes meets Drive Like Jehu meets Pitchfork meets some classic rock and blues. Phew! – Oh My Rockness

with:
The Lights
Tijuana Panthers

8:30pm / $10 advance, $12 day of show / 21+