Music Picks: Robben Ford, Hard L.A., Adams Conducts Adams, the Polyphonic Spree
Also, Mindless Self Indulgence, the Pierces, Heartless Bastards, Darasuum and others
Daniel Rosenboom Septet
OPEN GATE THEATRE
Location Info
Map
The Redwood Bar & Grill
316 W. Second St.
Los Angeles, CA 90012
Category: Bars/Clubs
Region: Downtown
|
4 user reviews
|
Write A Review |
| Save to foursquare |
|
El Rey Theatre
5515 Wilshire Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90036
Category: Bars/Clubs
Region: Mid-Wilshire/ Hancock Park
The Troubadour
9081 Santa Monica Blvd.
West Hollywood, CA 90069
Category: Bars/Clubs
Region: West Hollywood
Related Content
More About
Young, gifted trumpeter Daniel Rosenboom has been on a roll, showcasing his classical chops with the L.A. Philharmonic and on a world tour with Josh Groban, but all that glitz and glamour can't eradicate his dogged dedication to composing music that would send those Groban fans running out of the room holding their ears. Now that they are gone, the rest of us can dig on his vibe, which is about achieving a heavy rock sound with all acoustic instruments, done with ascendant splendor on his 2011 album, Fallen Angeles. This shit rocks harder than those bands you hear through the walls in rehearsal studios around town, and Rosenboom leads the charge with his supermanly trumpet blasting. One of the most original, exciting, adventurous groups in L.A. right now. —Gary Fukushima
Darasuum
COBALT CAFÉ
These Riverside ranters' unusually articulate hardcore stands out in a tsunami of numb suburban rage. The metallic guitars and boot-camp barking of songs like "A Place Called Home" suddenly give way to refrains oozing early 2000's Warped Tour "everyone-come-together" optimism. They aren't shy about shifting groove gears, either, flitting between flat-out pit pummeling and almost dissonant, sludgier passages with an irreverence apt for the genre. With their propensity for singing in unison and even some sensitive acoustic guitars ("This Was Never Meant to Last"), Darasuum's bravely nuanced punk is as much about held hands as slit wrists. —Paul Rogers
BOOTLEG THEATER
Charlotte Martin's piano melodies may seem a little treacly at first, but if you dig deeper, you'll find intriguingly arty twists within her mainstream pop. The former 1994 Miss Illinois Teen USA layers songs like "The Dance," "Veins" and "Keep Me in Your Pocket" with sophisticated harmonies and occasional funky cul-de-sacs of digression, where everything drops out except sparse percussion and her hushed, hymnlike entreaties. Martin was endearingly desperate ("I'm normal/Please date me") on her sarcastic 2008 anthem "The Stalker Song," but she was more serious on her 2011 album, Dancing on Needles, which was affected by her struggle with the nerve disorder intercostal neuralgia. Her upcoming DVD/CD, Hiding Places, features new tracks like "Mission Control," which is a little slick but still has a certain glittery electronic sparkle. —Falling James
Also playing:
PROTEST THE HERO at Key Club; TYGA, YG at Club Nokia.
mon 4/2
EL REY THEATRE
It says much about the maudlin mood of most indie shows that the Polyphonic Spree's onstage euphoria has been declared cult- or even substance-fueled. But what if the 20-something (in number; not age) uniformed members of this symphonic Dallas troupe just really fucking love making and sharing music together, and aren't afraid to show it? With 2007's The Fragile Army (their most recent full-length), the Spree's songwriting finally made up some qualitative ground on their live performance, Tim DeLaughter's distinctively tremulous timbre wending its way through robustly retro horn- and flute-flavored reflections on nostalgia and human nature. But the truth is that you don't need to dig their tunes to get blissfully lost in the Polyphonic Spree's oh-so-welcome, wide-eyed return to joy in rock & roll. —Paul Rogers
tue 4/3
Heartless Bastards
THE ECHOPLEX
Given all of the thunderous hard rock and bluesy sounds that have emanated from Erika Wennerstrom's mighty ax over the past decade, it might seem surprising that Heartless Bastards' fourth and latest album, Arrow, starts off with a gentle ballad. "Oh, I ventured so far that I've forgotten what I was running from," she confides on "Marathon," as her candied guitar tones rain down lightly over Dave Colvin's slowly rolling tom-toms. But Wennerstrom has always scattered pure pop songs among her heavier workouts. She explores the vagaries of love and longing on such bittersweet tracks as "Parted Ways" and "Only for You," which have an undercurrent of rootsy country-rock restlessness. Still, the Cincinnati native and Austin transplant is at her most exhilarating when she unfurls her majestic voice on explosive rockers like "Simple Feeling," which sounds like a cross between The Who and Backbiter. —Falling James
Also playing:
KYLE EASTWOOD at Catalina's; CHAIN AND THE GANG at Satellite; KELLY CLARKSON at Nokia Theatre.
wed 4/4
Jonwayne, Juakali
THE AIRLINER
La Habra's Jonwayne may identify himself as a "basement-dwelling virgin" for his guest verse on the just-out, Portishead-related beat project Quakers, but the 22-year-old rapper/producer is set up to get a whole lot of play in 2012. For the past year, he's been a fixture at Low End Theory, either catching inspiration from the floor or wowing crowds with his unique brand of glitch-addled, piano-fueled instrumentals. Last year's Bowser collected those dark, heaving bangers, while an upcoming Stones Throw album (not to mention the freshly dropped, highly essential This Is Fake mixtape) will showcase the man's vocal abilities, which bear more than just an aural resemblance to those of the late, great Biggie Smalls. In from Trinidad is dubstep singer/MC Juakali, whose blackened chanting sounds like a doomsday portent set to a soundtrack of brutal bass compositions. —Chris Martins
Sleigh Bells
FOX THEATER (POMONA)
Like all the great duos (Sonny & Cher, Serge Gainsbourg & Jane Birkin, Laurel & Hardy), Sleigh Bells are a classic collision of opposites. Where would Derek Miller and his massive slabs of hard dance-punk guitar be without the crowning grace of Alexis Krauss's ultrapoppy melodies, and vice versa? Miller has always been the bedrock of Sleigh Bells' musical attack, but Krauss was more fully involved in the songwriting on the Brooklyn duo's second album, Reign of Terror, which is simultaneously harder and sweeter than their 2010 debut, Treats. What's amazing is the pair's newfound mastery of disparate styles, from the surging pop-fuzz euphoria of "Comeback Kid" and the breathy interstellar waves of "End of the Line" to the pulverizing density of "Born to Lose" and "Leader of the Pack." —Falling James
Now Trending
-
Voice Places
Find everything you're looking for in your city
-
Happy Hour App
Find the best happy hour deals in your city
-
Daily Deals
Get today's exclusive deals at savings of anywhere from 50-90%
-
Best Of...
Check out the hottest list of places and things to do around your city
- Profile
- Newsletters
- Mobile
- Logout
-
Publishing:
ONOFF
