Austin – Three years ago I watched Lindsay Troy and Julie Edwards Pirrone take the stage for their first time as Deap Vally. Both had other projects, for Pirrone the most notable was The Pity Party and for Troy it was her sister act, The Troys. As They strummed, drummed, and belted the first note,
Austin – Following the success of 2012’s “True Romance,” British pop singer Charli XCX is showcasing selections from her soon to be released album at SXSW. While “Romance” had a dark, gothic pop sound, her new music is pure bubblegum rock n’ roll. Though she was losing her voice during our interview, when I caught
Austin – When a band’s sound is difficult to pin down, as is the case with Houston quartet, The Tontons, you know they’re doing something right. As their Facebook bio states, “The Tontons simply sound like The Tontons.” Since 2008, The Tontons have been crafting elegant indie tracks using no guidelines but their own taste.
Chicago – Ryan Graveface created The Casket Girls with Phaedra and Elsa Greene in 2012 after fantastically stumbling upon the sisters, who were singing beneath a tree in Savannah, Georgia. The three would release their first collaboration, Sleepwalking, under Ryan’s label Graveface Records. After getting in a little touring and conquering the fear of performing,
Chicago - One foggy afternoon, I found myself standing in the rain, wishing I’d worn a thicker jacket, patiently waiting for the California rockers NeW bEAt FUNd. This was no big thing; pretty much everyone runs late in Chicago either because traffic is jammed or public trans is a mess. (There’s no better welcome to
Nashville – When I asked The Heavy Heavy Hearts to meet in person for an interview, it was both as a fan and a journalist that I sat down with three of the four band members: Beau James, Ralph Alexander and Anthony Mancini. The Heavy Heavy Hearts have only been in Nashville for a few
Seattle – Noah Gundersen has a lot to be happy about. Not only is he about to kick off his tour in his Pacific Northwest hometown, the singer-songwriter’s debut full-length album Ledges, which came out Tuesday, hit #1 on iTunes’ singer-songwriter chart. The 24-year-old took the time to speak with BestNewBands.com about recording his new
Brooklyn – Hiding out in the eye of NYC’s polar vortex early Saturday night, I phoned fellow Brooklyn-dwellers Blue & Gold for an interview. In the conversation that followed, band mates Chloe Raynes (guitar, vocals), Alex Kapelman (guitar, vocals), GG Gonzalez (drums) and Derek Cabrera (bass) spoke graciously with me about their foray into NY’s
New York – Last time I spoke with Total Slacker for BNB, The whole Occupy movement was in full swing, and we were talking about inspiration taken from public assembly, corporate weirdness, and cultural development. That was a little over two years ago, and since then the Brooklyn-based “slimegaze” band has challenged Olive Garden, been
Los Angeles – Fifteen miles off of a dirt road in the dusty nowheres of Walker County, Texas Jonathan Clay and Zach Chance found their calling. Jamestown Revival was born on a back porch and bred in Austin before relocating to Los Angeles. Their heartfelt Southern style and hints of Longhorn twang harkens to sounds