Category: unsorted

Review: Neon Indian, ‘Psychic Chasms’

Also part of The A.V. Club’s “stuff we missed” roundup of 2009:

Neon Indian, Psychic Chasms (Lefse)

Neon Indian, 'Psychic Chasms'

While bloggers raced to name the sound of Neon Indian’s Alan Palomo—“hypnagogic pop,” “chillwave,” and “glo-fi” being some of the more creative labels—he was probably resting easy, confident not only because he was being heralded as the tip of a rapidly expanding stylistic iceberg, but because he’d done a far better job at naming his own songs than any critic could ever hope to…

Grade: A (via The Onion / A.V. Club)

Review: Fuck Buttons, ‘Tarot Sport’

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As part of The A.V. Club’s annual “stuff we missed” roundup:

Fuck Buttons, Tarot Sport (ATP)

Fuck Buttons, 'Tarot Sport'

If the duo’s 2008 debut, Street Horrrsing, represents the uncontainable results of the group’s exploratory atom- smashing, the follow-up, Tarot Sport, is an attempt to capture that unwieldy energy and bend it into recognizable shapes.

Grade: A- (via The Onion / A.V. Club)

If the duo’s 2008 debut, Street Horrrsing, represents the uncontainable results of the group’s exploratory atom-smashing, the follow-up, Tarot Sport, is an attempt to capture that unwieldy energy and bend it into recognizable shapes.

All Things Considered: Best L.A. Music with Foreign Born, Nosaj Thing and Nite Jewel

Care to hear  the best songs from the L.A. underground in 2009? Click on over to KPCC, where I visited last week in order to talk to All Things Considered host Alex Cohen about three of my favorites. Discussed: Foreign Born’s “Vacationing People,” Nosaj Thing’s “Coat Of Arms,” and Nite Jewel’s “Artificial Intellience,” as well as the scenes/movements each artist represents. Listen to the audio by clicking the little play button at the top of the article, and feel free to download each song via the side panel.

Foreign Born take a victory lap.

Further reading:

– An interview with Foreign Born’s Matt Popieluch (via The A.V. Club)

– A feature on Nosaj Thing (via LA Weekly)

– Various items about Nite Jewel (mostly via LA Weekly)

Recommended Rocking: David Scott Stone + Ariana Delawari, Twilight Sleep + Kissing Cousins (ON ICE!)

A short list of recommended L.A.-area shows for the coming week (plus videos for instant gratification). Click “details” for descriptions.

  • Region: Echo Park
    Music: David Scott Stone, Ariana Delawari
    Vitals:     Echo Curio on Monday, January 4
    (details at LA Weekly)
  • Region: Downtown
    Music: Twilight Sleep, Kissing Cousins
    Vitals:     Pershing Square on Wednesday, January 6
    (details at LA Weekly)

LA Weekly’s 10 Best L.A. Albums Of The ’00s

Sure to ruffle a few feathers, LA Weekly‘s “10 Best L.A. Albums Of The ’00s” feature hit the web (and newsstands) today and the list is about as eclectic as the city itself. Alongside solid entries by solid homies like Drew Tewksbury and Jeff Weiss, not to mention music ed Randall Roberts, you’ll find two write-ups by yours truly — on Flying Lotus’ Los Angeles, and Rabbit Fur Coat, by Jenny Lewis And The Watson Twins.

Flying Lotus throws up his city.

Jenny Lewis throws up dessert (later).

Listen: Brand New Madvillain Track Leaked!

Leaked!

DOOM… the notorious hip-hop villain pulled another bait-and-switch in late November, sending his goons to lip-sync in his stead for an advertised appearance at the Grand Star in Chinatown. But Stones Throw… may be making attempts at amends. In a recent DJ set for BBC 1Xtra, J.Rocc leaked a brand new song from the unreleased second Madvillain album.

Recommended Rocking: DJ Quik + Bizzy Bone, Mystery Lights, Mayfly Dance + Doug Lee

A short list of recommended L.A.-area shows for the coming week (plus videos for instant gratification). Click “details” for descriptions.

  • Region: Hollywood
    Music: DJ Quik, Bizzy Bone
    Vitals:     The Key Club on New Year’s Eve (TONIGHT)
    (details at LA Weekly)
  • Region: Echo Park
    Music: The Mystery Lights, Seasons, The Ignorant, Asa Random, Andy Clockwise
    Vitals:     Echo Curio on Friday, January 1
    (details at LA Weekly)

Continue reading →

News Roundup: Beck + Feist + Jamie Lidell, Flying Lotus, Snoop, Atlas Sound + No Age + Jim Jarmusch, Rage, and Madvillain

Quick bloggy bits* from around the L.A. underground (and up).

  1. Rage Against The Machine Wins UK Chart Upset, Issues Statement, Plans Free ‘Thank You’ Concert
  2. Watch: Indie Luminaries Covering Skip Spence and Neil Young
  3. Download: ‘A Decade Of Flying Lotus,’ Blended by Gaslamp Killer
  4. Snoop to Lead the 2010 Countdown at YOUR New Year’s Party

    5. (all stories via West Coast Sound, via LA Weekly)

*If you like it, then you better put a tweet on it.

INCHES reviews Best Coast, Omar Rodriguez Lopez Group, Lustmord, Bipolar Bear [MP3s]

Apologies for the lack of updates. Perhaps you’ve made a New Year’s resolution to read a wee bit more in 2010? Well, why not get a jump on it now, here, for free. Check out the second latest edition of INCHES, here. As is my weekly wont, you’ll find four fresh slabs of L.A.-relevant vinyl reviewed, photographed* and MP3’d for your audio-visual pleasure.

My pick of the litter?

Best Coast, 'When I'm With You'