LA WeeklyMonday, November 12
In The Valley Below
Looking like Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman walk-ons, and with an eye-contact connection to rival Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham in their good times, Echo Park hubby-and-wife Angela Gail and Jeffrey Jacob patchwork together love-in-ready bluesy rock, '80s synth 'n' beatbox pop, and aughties folk revivalism without showing the stitching. Mellow, dramatic and Manson Family-mesmerized, they spread word of their brave new world through singable storytelling that bares their souls while hinting at hidden meanings. “Palm Tree Fire,” from their just-released namesake debut, is like the best of Phil Collins recorded against a Mojave sunrise, while coed timbres aid, abet and pirouette with gospel-tinted Laurel Canyon-scene nostalgia on “Take Me Back.” Accessible yet arcane, and almost worryingly sincere. Also 11/19 and 11/26. –Paul Rogers
See also: In the Valley Below Is Dreamy
Tuesday, November 13
Gary Clark Jr.
“You're going to know my name by the end of the night,” Gary Clark Jr. insists on his new album, Blak and Blu. The warning is far more than just an idle boast, as the Austin singer underscores his bluesy declaration with sizzling guitar riffs that literally embody the classic Jimmy Reed song title “Bright Lights.” Plenty of other blues experts already know his name, including B.B. King, Buddy Guy, Jeff Beck and Mick Jagger, who jammed with the 28-year-old upstart at the White House earlier this year. Unlike so many blues revivalists, Clark doesn't play guitar with a timidly retro reverence; instead, he attacks his ax with a bloody, messy and loudly fuzzed-out fervor that's closer to Jimi Hendrix in spirit than to, say, Robert Cray. Also Wed. and Thurs. –Falling James
Wiz Khalifa & The Taylor Gang
Rhyming since elementary school age, the triple Grammy Award-nominated Wiz Khalifa first registered on the national hip-hop radar in 2005 with the release of his memorable mixtape Prince of the City: Welcome to Pistolvania. One year later, his major label debut, Show and Prove, was considered “one of the best albums of the year” by OKAYPLAYER.COM. Several mixtapes and label migrations later, the world was forced to take notice in 2010, when infectious anthem “Black and Yellow” peaked at No. 1 on Billboard's Hot 100. Khalifa is promoting the April release of his latest effort, O.N.I.F.C. This show features his posse of longtime collaborators, The Taylor Gang. –Jacqueline Michael Whatley
Wednesday, November 14
Fashawn & Strong Arm Steady
This show has been moved to November 30 at Key Club
Thursday, November 15
Funkmosphere East
Culver City's Funkmosphere is one of L.A.'s iconic club nights, thanks, in part to its founder, international sensation Dam-Funk, whose unflagging devotion not just to funk as music but funk as a way of life helped haul '70s and '80s funk and boogie from the fringe (where it was hiding) to the dance floor (where it deserved to be). After six years, the original Funkmosphere could no longer be contained by a single night on the Westside, so Dam and his unparalleled squad of residents — Billy Goods, Laroj, Matt Respect, Eddy Funkster and Randy Watson — set up the brand-new Funkmosphere East every Thursday at the recently redone Virgil. (They're perpetually filming a sequel to their famously cable-access-a-rific Funkmosphere commercial, available online to dazzle you.) If you ever need a reminder of why you're living in this city, glide on out to this. –Chris Ziegler
For details about these shows and more live music happening in the city this week, check out our Concert Calendar.
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