Signal Hill opened the show with an impassioned instrumental set. Lush layering of clean plucking driven by busy bass lines and punchy drums comprise Signal Hill's sound. Crowd pleasers like 'This New Year's Absence' exuded unbearable pangs of passion. I haven't felt this moved by an instrumental band since Explosions In The Sky and the mere comparison speaks volumes about their worthiness. Signal Hill performs remarkably poignant instrumental rock that grasps your attention and never ceases to let go. more ›

What's life like when you guys are touring?


life is good on the road. it is generally exciting and it beats working bars in victoria. my only complaint is that there is often very little time to see the city we are playing in by day. night is for working and day is for sleeping in a van when touring.

When can Los Angeles expect a show from you guys?


2007 is the year for joh to take it south goddammit! nothing official to report though. we played LA twice in support of our debut EP, but we've yet to play it on this first full-length (Bridges). hopefully that'll change soon.

Your album Bridges is hot, tell us about it?


hot...like "oooo that's hot, too hot for the hot tub....yeooooow." may he rest in peace. or was that only from eddie murphy's spoof as the godfather of soul? not sure. in all seriousness, it's an album we're proud of...it's about movement and journeying, and we tried to infuse it with an hypnotic quality like taking a roadtrip. But we also honor the great songwriting traditions, hence a memorable melody is always at the base of everything we do (or at least we hope).

How did you dudes hook up with Neil Osborne?


We did some touring with neil's band 54/40 when we were younger. we played in a different incarnation of joh. he was always very friendly and supportive of the young up and comers. when it came time to choose a producer for the first full length jets record we new we wanted someone with a songwriting background and someone who new what they liked. someone who was ready to voice their opinion - good or bad. plus he wrote 'ocean pearl'...one of my personal faves.

What artists has influenced the bands sound?


the doves, radiohead, simon and garfunkel, oasis. just to name a few.
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We'd like to congratulate Neil for winning The Stills contest. The Stills play tonight at the Henry Fonda with The Land of Talk. If you didn't win, stay tuned, LAist has contests every week for your ass. Here are some other options tonight, a night full of killer live music. Rocket (pictured) @ Spaceland (free) Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Blood Brothers @ Hollywood Palladium Band of Horses @ Avalon Andrew's Bad Stuff, Fluffer, Rick Surveuor... more ›

The Stills (above) and Land of Talk are going to be playing the Henry Fonda Theater on Hollywood Blvd. this upcoming Monday and we think you should go. more ›

Beirut Gulag Orkestar (Bada Bing) – Beirut is a 19 year-old kid from Albuquerque who has the full attention of the blogosphere and other tastemakers. He worked with Jeremy Barnes from Neutral Milk Hotel so the comparisons to that band are prevalent but ultimately unfair. There aren’t any guitars on the record but there are glockenspiels, ukuleles and clarinets. Download “from Italy” more ›

Houstonist reports on cross-dressing thieves and undressing educators this week. A Peeping Tom defends himself with a papaya and an outraged onlooker asks Ken Lay, "TATER TOTS OR FRIES?" Also, FEMA wants it's money back. more ›