Yesterday, Little Radio's Summer Camp series Downtown continued with performances by New York-based Paul Dillon (MySpace) from Silver Rockets (MySpace), as well as local bands The Damselles and The TC4 (MySpace), Speedbuggy (MySpace), and The Happy Hollows (MySpace). more ›

Here in LA, we’ve seen record store closures from the behemoth Tower chain to the local gem Sea Level Records as of late – a clear sign that the record business is edging closer to extinction with each new year. We are most likely heading towards a world where music is primarily consumed digitally, with physical product existing only for the die-hards who feel that they need to own something tangible along with their music. Would a plastic card emblazoned with album artwork or a band photo do the trick? That’s what Starbucks and now Sony are betting on. more ›

Friday night's "celebration" at Safari Sam's was testimony to the tremendous impact Sea Level Records has had upon the local Los Angeles music scene. As reported previously, the foremost indie record store decided to throw in the towel after their influential 5 1/2 year reign. So, party, celebration--any word used to connote remote contentment would simply be a misnomer. As friends of Sea Level sporadically graced the stage to eulogize, it became harder to... more ›

AM, Justin Hopkins, Population Game, Green Car Motel, Shotgun Honeymoon @ The Hotel Cafe more ›

One of the more interesting bands to come out over the last few years is the British group Art Brut whose college radio hit "Moving to LA" is reason enough love this band. In a few months the group, pictured, above, at Sea Level Records, will come out with their sophomore album. But before they do we have some autographed posters to give away and some cd samplers of the new album, It's a... more ›

-- Bug Music takes a bite of Windswept... -- Sony/ATV gets Famous... -- CBS buys Last.fm... -- iTunes burns its bra. As promised, DRM-free is here. Download version 7.2 and cozy up with the EMI catalog... -- Sea level records will have its goodbye party at Safari Sam’s on June 22nd. Wear black. And don’t you think some last-ditch, Goonies-esque plan needs to go into effect right about now? Let’s gather Data, Chunk and Sam... more ›

The Wherehouse, Licorice Pizza, Rhino, Tower, Moby Disc, Aron's, Penny Lane, db Coopers... and now you can add Echo Park's Sea Level to the list of once-essential local record stores that have thrown in the towel. The LA Times Buzz Bands blog has the scoop: the independent outlet that in 5 1/2 years had become a locus for Los Angeles' Eastside music scene, will close June 30, owner Todd Clifford said. "It's not so... more ›

Joe Fielder's Radio Free Silverlake, with support from KXLU and Sea Level Records, has been presenting a monthly, indie music night called Let's Independent at the lovely and historic Boardner’s in Hollywood. Last Tuesday’s unwashed-hair trifecta included local acts, Tigers Can Bite You, The Black Pine and Let’s Go Sailing. TCBY (heh) went on first and went on loud, but did not actually come to life until halfway through the set when they energized... more ›

The Mere Mortals, who LAist has written about before, continues to climb up the charts despite being unsigned. Their self-made "Rebel Radio" EP continues to rise on the FMQB album chart , one that tracks national airplay on new music radio shows. Currently the Mere Mortals are #3, just behind And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead 's "So Divided" (Interscope), and The Kooks' "Inside In/Inside Out (Astralwerks). They're outpacing such... more ›

We love Echo Park's Sea Level Records for many reasons. It's easy to find parking near the historic Jensen Recreation Center Building in which it's housed, it's small enough so we don't get that overwhelmed "oh shit, what did I come in here to get?" brain erase that happens to us at Amoeba, and they regularly have great in-store performances. more ›

The Bellrays Have a Little Faith (Cheap Lullaby) – Local rock band with a powerful female soul singer. Catch them live at Sea Level Records on 5/2 at 7:00 PM and Safari Sam’s on 5/12. Listen to some tracks on their Myspace page. more ›

We hope everybody had a great time at Coachella. Really. Secret Machines is the pick of the week....... more ›

Fri 4/14 – The Greenhornes @ Troubadour ($12) – This Cincinnati three-piece plays quality retro rock’n’roll that’s heavily influenced by The Yardbirds. The band includes the rhythm section that played on Loretta Lynn’s great album, Van Lear Rose, and they're also members of the Raconteurs (along with Brendan Benson and Jack White). Download Pattern Skies more ›

The Beatles The Capitol Albums Vol. 2 (Capitol) – Four disc collection of the American versions of the early albums (The Early Beatles, Beatles VI, Help and Rubber Soul) in both stereo and mono. A tempting purchase, but unless you’re a completist it’s tough to justify. more ›

With all the hand-wringing over the closures of Aron's and Rhino Records, you might think any non-Amoeba record store in Los Angeles is doomed. But that would mean you've never visited Sea Level Records in Echo Park. Dedicated music fanatic Todd Clifford opened the store in December 2001, and it's survived ever since selling CDs, vinyl and the occasional art piece. Sea Level's speciality is indie rock and local music; it's got listening stations stocked with new CDs and frequent in-store performances (Hudson Bell and The Glass Family are next, on March 4 and 5). Of course, Sea Level is on MySpace; it also has a plain old website. In the offline world, it can be found at 1716 W. Sunset Blvd. in Echo Park. more ›

TUESDAY more ›

TUESDAY more ›

• At Largo, legendary LA punk John Doe will be performing with his band. Doors open at 8 PM. more ›

Tonight at The Echo, show up at 8:00 PM for an Extreme Wine Tasting, "The Hypothetical Curries of Vagina Tandoori: The Wines of Château Julien of Carmel." This event matches six hypothetical curries to six wines from Château Julien of Carmel; to counter the hypothetical curry, there will be "pertinent fromage from the Cheese Store of Silver Lake" and a DJ spinning wine-drinking music. There is only room for 60, so buy your tickets early. Tickets are $18.00, and can be purchased at Sea Level Records. (21+) more ›

Today in the Daily Trojan there appeared the article "Record Penny-pinching," a profile of the best record stores in Los Angeles. While LAist can't fault the need for such a list—and the conclusion that Amoeba Music is the best in LA—there are some fairly notable omissions. more ›