J.ROCC, THE THRONES, BAND OF SKULLS, THE SLITS AND BRETT DENNEN
Also Grace Potter & the Nocturnals, Espers, a Nicollete Larson Tribute, and others.
THRONES, EVANGELISTA AT THE ECHOPLEX
If you’re looking for peppy, cheery, Monkees-style melodies that will put a smile on your face, keep looking. If, however, you need massive chunks of atonal noise and jaggedly beautiful, terrifying soundscapes that will leave you with an unsettling feeling of anxiety and dread in the pit of your stomach, then you’ve come to the right place. Joe Preston’s Oregon project Thrones churn out lumbering, ominous riffs that are full of doom and gloom, like the heaviest of metals, as gruff vocals bellow like awakened monsters. But amid all of that slow carnage come moments of unexpected loveliness, such as the way the sunlight will reflect off the face of a calving iceberg — just as it’s about to collapse on top of you. Don’t hope for any respite or sympathy from Evangelista. Although leader Carla Bozulich sang real purty-like in her country-rock band the Geraldine Fibbers, she’s much less sonically polite amid the soul-twisting chaos of Evangelista, where she veers from breathy, hushed confessions to harrowingly feverish wailing. “I can’t remember anything,” Bozulich cries, a welcome confession during this era of seemingly permanent nostalgia, as rusty satellites collide and fall out of orbit, landing and melting down in ever-expanding pools of malevolent lava. (Falling James)
THE SLITS AT THE ECHO
The maternal priestesses of British punk and dub are tired of being men’s servants and maids. “To pick up shit after men, repeatedly time and time again/I refuse/They’re not helpless,” singer Ari Up declares on “Ask Ma,” the opening track on Trapped Animal (Narnack Records), the Slits’ first full-length album in more than a quarter century. Although Ari Up and bassist Tessa Pollitt are the only remaining members from the classic Slits lineup that released the sublime dub-pop 1979 album Cut (which featured a daft, arty remake of “I Heard It Through the Grapevine” and such proto-riot-grrl originals as “Typical Girls”), the current incarnation works up a cheekily subversive funky reggae party on Trapped Animal. Keeping it all in the family, the new lineup includes keyboardist Hollie Cook, the daughter of Sex Pistols drummer Paul Cook, who guest-starred on the Slits’ 2006 three-song comeback EP, Revenge of the Killer Slits. (The Pistols’ Johnny Rotten, meanwhile, is married to Ari Up’s mother, Nora Forster.) Apart from the frantic punk track “Reject,” much of Trapped Animal sways with dreamily lilting reggae interludes like “Partner From Hell” and “Babylon.” (Falling James)
TUESDAY, DECEMBER 15
THE RURAL ALBERTA ADVANTAGE AT THE BOOTLEG THEATRE
In Nils Edenloff’s voice, there’s a longing that makes you hope he finds his way back to his hometown in Alberta, Canada, even if it’s only in the romantic yet disturbed memory of his old haunts. But the singer of The Rural Alberta Advantage also knew the locale’s disadvantages, like not having much of an indie-rock scene. So he went to Toronto, where Paul Banwatt and Amy Cole not only joined his trio but also agreed to be in one of those bands whose name comes with a geography lesson. They also bought into his Cinemascope-like vision and ability to write songs that sprawl beyond emotions and places (even Canada). In fact, Hometowns (the debut album they initially put out themselves but have just rereleased on Saddle Creek) could very well be Main Street U.S.A., Denton U.S.A., Centerville, or even Lidsville, because in the end, Edenloff isn’t just singing of days gone by, he’s singing about any place that has a bar, an ATM and a broken heart. (Daniel Siwek)
WEDNESDAY DECEMBER 16
ZERO 7 AT THE ORPHEUM
Given the departure of onetime front woman Sia to a successful solo career — not to mention the overall atomization of the once-sprawling chill-out scene that birthed them — you can’t really blame the electro-soul knob-twiddlers of Zero 7 for upping the tempo on Yeah Ghost, their surprisingly spirited fourth full-length. After all, slow-and-low no longer guarantees the sort of shoe-store ubiquity it once did — and shoe-store ubiquity, of course, no longer guarantees much of a living. The group’s shift from after-hours atmosphere to prime-time pulse isn’t always successful; occasionally, in their haste to get where they’re going, they forget to pack a memorable melody. At its best, though — as in “Mr. McGee,” a Basement Jaxx–ish disco-funk jam — Yeah Ghost suggests that Zero 7’s creative palette might extend in more directions than once appeared. (Mikael Wood)
THURSDAY DECEMBER 17
MIA DOI TODD AT THE HAMMER MUSEUM
The quarterly Flux Screening Series at the Hammer is only in its second year, but already it’s racked up an impressive array of music video–centered events, from a 3-D premiere of Björk’s “Wanderlust” short to directorial chats and DJed mixers. For its final installment of 2009, Flux is treating Angelenos to an evening of particular local significance. The Hammer courtyard will debut Mia Doi Todd’s new Michel Gondry–directed video (which is news in and of itself) for the as-yet unreleased song “Open Your Heart.” We’re told the clip was shot at various recognizable locations around the city (and that Dublab founder Frosty makes an appearance), and if the still photo on the museum’s site is any indication, expect lots and lots of color. For those unfamiliar with cult folky Todd, she has 13 years of music and nine albums under her belt. She’ll perform after the screening, offering latecomers the opportunity to bask in her autumnal poetry and dulcet, ’60s-inspired acoustic tunes. (Chris Martins)
Mitchell Brown, Lucky Dragons, Daedalus at Mountain Bar
In 1998, a few local artist and musicians got together at Angel’s Gate gallery to just hang out, show some projections and make music. Players as diverse as Mike Watt, Jim Shaw, Liz Larner and Marina Rosenfeld brought in keyboards, Theremins, and half-working amplifiers in what they called “forced improvisation”: musicians producing the way artists do — curated like an art show. The Society for the Activation of Social Space through Art and Sound (SASSAS) began soon after, as an offshoot from that evening. Now, SASSAS is celebrating a decade of experimental music in unconventional locations with a 10th anniversary fund-raiser party. The lineup features Mitchell Brown and his sonic formulas (created from magnetic tape loops, amplified objects and percussion), the consistently stellar turntablism of Daedalus, the group-participatory love-in noise of Lucky Dragons and loads of others who’re guaranteed to serve up sick, ass-moving grooves and complex musical fun for a very good local cause. (Wendy Gilmartin)
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