Austin – Reaching the end of Fun Fun Fun Fest was downright depressing. It was a bummer saying goodbye to festival friends after three short days, and remembering that 1) you don’t do something enviably cool every night and 2) your body exists, and needs a lot more sleep than you’ve been giving it. The
Los Angeles – Cult of Youth have just released their third full-length release for Sacred Bones this week. Ominously titled Final Days, the record sees the five-piece band from Brooklyn reaching a full-realization of their evolving blend of post-punk and neo-folk. Though the band’s rough-around-the-edges 2008 debut drew comparisons to genre-luminaries like Current 93, the band
Austin – By Saturday morning Fun Fun Fun Fest had gotten the gates under control, by which I mean it was elbow-to-elbow in the festival grounds. I can only assume things got weird in the designated make out area. Very few people seemed to mind. Saturday featured some great sets, including Twin Peaks’ daytime set.
Austin – Fun Fun Fun Fest definitely front-loaded its lineup. The five bands I wrote about played on Friday, along with Alt-J (who Best New Bands reviewed earlier this month), 2 Chainz, Dinosaur Jr., Death From Above 1979, Judas Priest, and lots of others. The festival got swamped on Day 1, and the line to
Chicago – On Friday night, Capital Cities started a massive dance party inside The Riviera that lasted well into the night. The LA electro-pop band has been performing with CHERUB and Night Terrors of 1927 on an epic North American tour sponsored by Xbox One and Forza Horizon 2. All three bands had Chicago jumping, singing, and dancing
Los Angeles – On a warm, peaceful Wednesday evening at the El Rey Theater in Los Angeles’ Miracle Mile district, Tijuana Panthers were anything but quiet as they revved up the large, buzzing crowd with their surprisingly unique brand of saccharine-laced surf punk. Opening for Mariachi El Bronx, the Long Beach-based band put on a performance that
Chicago – Despite the snow, rain, and hail, the line grew and grew outside The Vic on Halloween night. Chicagoans didn’t let the crazy weather ruin their evening with Junior Prom, Hunter Hunted, and Andrew McMahon. Once inside, concertgoers shed their coats, gloves, and scarves to reveal costumes, anticipation, and excitement. LA duo Hunter Hunted
Chicago – English experimental rock band alt-J has come along way since its formation in 2007 in a Leeds University dorm room. With a new member and new album, the band has been selling out show after show, including two sold-out dates at Chicago’s Riviera. Joe Newman (singer & guitarist), Thom Green (drummer), Gus Unger-Hamilton (keyboardist), and
New York – Alt rockers Kongos will embark on a North American headline tour this coming January. Following up highly successful stints on the road in the U.S. with Kings of Leon, Young The Giant and Alice In Chains and in Europe with OneRepublic, this is the platinum-selling quartet’s very first country-wide headline run of
Austin – Everyone recovered from ACL? Cool. It’s time for Fun Fun Fun Fest. Austin’s third-favorite festival starts this Friday, November 7, and while the name is trying a little hard, the lineup is enticing. The headliners are a mix of old favorites and new bands. Modest Mouse, Nas, Neutral Milk Hotel, and—big “Oh My