Erica E. Phillips

Belanova The Conga Room 9/22/11 Better than ... anything without keytars and handclaps. Belanova plays that perfect kind of bouncy, synthy pop -- the kind you might get ready to before hitting downtown in a new pair of heels, or the kind you might find yourself shamelessly howling in the......

It's surely not their city's architectural beauty that keeps a firm grip on Tijuana-based folk-tronic duo Bostich + Fussible. But the city's well-guarded Bohemian underpinnings -- independent art galleries, all-hours clubs, and bars where you can order the beer-and-a-joint special for a buck -- have supplied Ramón Amezcua (Bostich) and......

Ana Tijoux with Zuzuka Poderosa Levitt Pavilion at MacArthur Park 8/11/11 Better than ...the ol' boys club The lady rappers who owned MacArthur Park's outdoor stage last night popped thick, multilingual rhymes at the mic -- all the while, we must point out, rocking some impressively rad leggings. In back-to-back......

Two years ago I assembled a crappy little birthday video montage for my friend, using a combination of Flip clips and ultra-lo-res digi-pics. My masterpiece was set to the tune of the Flight of the Conchords' "Foux Du Fafa" -- with iMovie's Ken Burns effect applied, of course. "This is......

WHO: Zoé WHERE: Club Nokia WHEN: 7/30/11 Better than ... a posse of 'stachioed hipsters loitering on a street corner, though Zoé could likely disguise themselves as such. As the lights went down for Zoé Saturday night, there was a restless electricity in the crowd. Cloaked in faint clouds of......

WHO: Ximena Sariñana WHERE: The Echoplex WHEN: 7/16/11 Better than... the movies. Cut from a similar dainty-floral-patterned cloth as Zooey Deschanel and Jenny Lewis, child actress turned cheerful indie darling Ximena Sariñana has led an equally charmed life. The daughter of a prominent writer-director pair from Guadalajara, Sariñana landed her first silver screen role......

Review by Erica E. Phillips WHO: Aterciopelados WHERE: The Conga Room WHEN: 7/14/11 Better than ... the real thing? Maaaaybe not. But maybe. Tal vez. If you were expecting Colombian fusion feminist rocktress Andrea Echeverri to open the night with a roof-raiser, well, you may need a little lesson in......

Review by Erica E. Phillips For more photos, see "Maná @ Staples Center." WHO: Maná WHERE: Staples Center WHEN: 6/23/11 The long-haired, tattooed, tight-pants-and-open-black-leather-vested members of Mexican pop rock group, Maná, are as legendary as their music. Flip a radio dial in any major U.S. city and you'll hear lead......