December is list-making season. And for us music journalists, it is a time to look back on scores of albums, reflect upon the music and recapitulate our favorites. But this year, just like the last, we took this opportunity to flip that tradition upside down, asking the artists that influenced us what influenced them. The prompt was not limited to albums that came out in 2008. more ›

December is list-making season. And for us music journalists, it is a time to look back on scores of albums, reflect upon the music and recapitulate our favorites. But this year, just like the last, we took this opportunity to flip that tradition upside down, asking the artists that influenced us what influenced them. The prompt was not limited to albums that came out in 2008. more ›

Of Montreal - "Gronlandic Edit" Of Montreal, Grand Buffet, MGMT @ Avalon Phantom Planet, The Hives @ Staples Ween @ The Wiltern David Allan Coe, Dos @ Knitting Factory Gram Parsons @ Amoeba Valient Thorr @ Spaceland Ben Harper @ Orpheum Great Northern, Robbers on High Street @ Echoplex Peanut Butter Wolf @ El Rey Ima Robot, The Airborne Toxic Event @ The Roxy Hello Stranger @ The Viper Room Mason Jennings @ Troubadour... more ›

The Pogues @ The Wiltern - Tonight ...And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of The Dead, Dethklok @ UCLA - Tonight Redd Kross @ Echoplex - Tomorrow The Polyphonic Spree, Rooney @ Henry Fonda - Tomorrow Yo La Tengo @ The Ivar - Tomorrow Low Versus Diamond @ Viper Room - Tomorrow The Bronx, The Mercy Killers @ Safari Sam's - Tomorrow Rodrigo Y Gabriela @ Henry Fonda, 11/3 Yo La Tengo... more ›

Catching Brandi Shearer's sultry voice live would be a great way to enjoy your holiday weekend. LAist caught her last show at Hotel Cafe and was humming her tunes and listening to her album for days. This time around, LAist had the opportunity to catch up with Brandi and get to know a little bit more about what makes her sounds so unique, what it's like being signed to Amoeba Records and how living in... more ›

What better way is there really to start off your week than a trip to the Hotel Cafe? Tonight's offerings are very sweet indeed with Brandi Shearer taking the stage at 8pm. Her record, Close To Dark, will be released on August 28th through Amoeba Records. Brandi's croonings are soft and sweet and won't disappoint. more ›

Gram Parsons left us for a better place 23 years ago. If he were still alive, he would be coming up on celebrating his 59th birthday. Gram is often referred to as the worlds first Country/Rock Star. He has maintained an incredible cult following through the years - how could he not being one of the first to discover Emmylou Harris, he played shortly with the Birds and had the ultimate rock-star notch in... more ›

Fri 6/2 - Mike Stinson / Flash Express / Stax of Women @ El Cid ($7) – Mike Stinson is one of LA’s finest practitioners of honky tonk music. He’s obviously a huge Gram Parsons fan, but also pays tribute to Parsons’ heroes like Merle Haggard and Buck Owens. Dwight Yoakam opened his Population Me album with Stinson’s “The Late Great Golden State.” His extremely talented guitarist, Tony Gilkyson (X, Lone Justice) has an effortless style that’s absorbing live. If you like Jon Spencer’s high energy garage-blues, then check out The Flash Express. Download “The Beat That Kills” Stax of Women is a talented cover band that keeps changing their name. The members have big record collections, so they’ll pleasantly surprise you. Or if you’re a Journey fan, check out Infinity at Spaceland. more ›