It’s been three years since Local Natives released their acclaimed debut album, Gorilla Manor, and in that time, the indie rock quartet honed in on their sound. As a result, the Los Angeles-based outfit’s sophomore effort, Hummingbird, comprises a collection of matured, complex tracks. Upon first listen, Hummingbird may be a little underwhelming for fans that fell in love with Local Natives for the upbeat, afro-pop influenced sing-along tunes that made up their first album. This effort is a large…

Anacortes, Wash. band BellaMaine released its new EP An Anxious Mind on January 15th and I imagine the band must be pretty jazzed about the attention it’s been getting. University of Washington radio station KEXP has since dubbed the band one of the top local acts to watch in 2013 and the Puget Sound’s City Arts Magazinealmost immediately wanted to chat with the band in a Q&A feature. As locals everywhere tend to love the local stuff, they can get…

As we highlighted last week in our Artist of the Week section, Long Beach, Calif.-natives Rival Sons are on the cusp of something big. Granted, they already are big internationally in Europe and even Canada, which is what makes their latest album, Head Down, so important to their career Stateside. Needless to say, after giving this a couple of listens, it’s hard not to like what these rising stars’ output, especially if you’re a fan of bands like Led Zeppelin…

A$AP Rocky may be one of the most publicized upstarts of last year’s new crop of hip-hop blogstars, but listening to his first legitimate LP after signing to RCA Records imprint Polo Grounds Music, you might not know it. Wielding a roster of taste-making producers and artists, Long. Live. A$AP. could easily be mistaken for the release of an emcee that is already few albums deep with some top-tier industry friends in his pocket. But before Rocky (aka Rakim Mayers—yes,…