Guitarist and vocalist Robert Kolar frowned and shook his head when his sister and band mate, Rachel, who is He's My Brother She's My Sister's other lead vocalist, said into the microphone that he’d played something in the wrong key, but she was smiling when she said it, accusing him like only a sister can. more ›

An origin story is particularly likable. Especially when it's about music that so deeply speaks to the American acoustic sensibility. Especially when it's about Los Angeles. Especially when it's at Sundance. Born of the Carole King / James Taylor reunion shows at the Troubadour in West Hollywood in 2007, Morgan Neville's documentary "Troubadours," is a long-haired dive into the the long-running relationship between two of music's most prolific and influential singer/songwriters and the genre they helped shape. more ›

Badly Drawn Boy behaved very badly on Thursday night at the Troubadour. "Fuck off you LA twats," was the nicest thing he had to say during an outburst that started four songs into his set. more ›

Wondering where Moving Units have been since the release of 2007's Hexes for Exes? Rather busy, it appears, between touring and brainstorming new material in preparation for a forthcoming EP. You'll be happy to know the boys haven't missed a beat in the past few years, their new songs reminiscent of the much beloved and highly danceable Dangerous Dreams, albiet a bit edgier. more ›

Two years ago Max Lugavere decided to combine two of his passions -- world-changing and music -- to create an event called Rockdrive. Two years later, the event has grown into an entire night of music and fundraising at Troubadour on December 11. With an expanded team of co-producers and advisors, Lugavere has big ambitions for Rockdrive and envisions it turning into a broadly distributed DIY-style event in the coming year. We caught up with him to learn more about Rockdrive 2010. more ›

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One of my favorite LA venues, The Troubadour, has been killing it with booking excellent bands as of late. First we were treated to Stars doing all of The Five Ghosts a few weeks ago, and then Beach Fossils and Here We Go Magic as a double bill? Great summer line-ups for lazy days. more ›

London-based Marina Diamandis of Marina and the Diamonds is a pop artist with presence. The songs on her just-released album, The Family Jewels, are both sonically and lyrically intriguing. From her deft combination of Kipling and cutlery on "Mowgli's Road" to the fun-yet-vulnerable "I Am Not a Robot," 24-year-old Marina has proven she's in it for the long run. more ›

Wouldn't it be wonderful if they handed out a program with the lyrics of every song to concert goers in a band's hometown? That way you wouldn't be the fool who looked around and realized that everyone in the place knew the words except you. Such was the case inside the Troubadour last Friday night which was stuffed to the gills for the homecoming Local Natives. Before every song came screams of delight and the behind the guy's lovely harmonies was the full weight of the crowd singing along. Crowd participation night wasn't just limited to singing either. The drum laden tunes were backed up by hundreds of hands and feet keeping time along with the drummers. From the very first notes of "Camera Talk" the enthusiasm built with each song, so by the time "Sun Hands" came on, the entire place erupted in a frenzy with people singing and stomping in time to the music. more ›

To say that it's been a good year for Avi Buffalo would be an understatement. They've managed to pull off what most teenagers only fantasize about it. Graduate high school? Check. Sign to Sub Pop? Check. Tour the country? Check. Sellout the Troubadour for their record release party? Check and check. more ›

Last year was a rough one for Ted Leo and The Pharmacists. Their label dissolved and the album that they were working on was scrapped. Undeterred they set about writing new material and self produced a new album in Brooklyn which was released a couple weeks ago on Matador Records. We caught up with Leo a few weeks ago to talk about these crazy transitions, the health of punk music, and Malibu rum. Here is some of what was said. more ›

In an effort to get the 2009 shows on the 2009 books, we're having a bit of a yard sale on post-show galleries. It's a mixed bag, but all the more fun! The English Beat, for example, were in town at the end of November at the Troubadour, cranking out an impressive and beloved catalog. It's great when a band can tear through a Greatest Hits list and still make you feel like you're hearing it all for the first time. And if you've never experienced the live versions of "I Confess" or Smokey Robinson's "Tears of a Clown", you really haven't enjoyed the 80s. more ›

The Morning Benders are one of those bands who's promise is achingly painful to watch. They've got pretty piano melodies, poppy guitars, and sweetly high pitched harmonies: all of the ingredients for an infectious pop album, and somehow they fall a little bit short. It's like when you try and bake a cake without the baking powder. All of the parts are there, but the damn thing won't rise. more ›

Local gothic dance rockers Io Echo look unfazed as they performed before a sold out crowd at the Troubadour. They were ready for their moment in the spotlight and looked the part. IO Echo vocalist, IO (a.k.a. Joanna Gikas) looked stunning in a white dress with black crosses circling her waist and long flowing hair. Her band manifested themselves in various states of black punk attire which looked terrific through the clouds of white smoke that swirled around the stage. If they had sounded half as good as they looked, we would have been in business. But like a lot of bands, they were mostly packaging and very little substance. more ›

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The sound of Melody Gardot's voice feels like a swath of dramatic black and white, evoking images of film noir and mint juleps. In describing her demeanor and jazz-tinged music, words such as vamp, moxie, sass, and verve can't help but emerge. However, Gardot's easy delivery has been hard won. Six years ago, when her involvement with music was more of a flirtation, she was struck by a Jeep Cherokee while riding her bike. more ›

Elvis Perkins is back with a brand new sophomore album, Elvis Perkins in Dearland and this time he's ditching the solo act and bringing his band with him. The result is this delightfully eloquent collection of songs about live, love, and death is inspired by the New Orleans tradition of having a raucous band follow a funeral march. We sat down with Perkins before his show at the Troubadour and asked him a few questions about his new EP Doomsday and the end of the world. more ›

I feel like I can't help but use a phrase from the lyrics to Brooklyn-based Chairlift's most well-known song to describe how I feel in putting together a write-up of their show this Wednesday night at the Troubadour: "I tried to do handstands for you." more ›

You know that giant, gaping hole in your heart where the new Arcade Fire album should be? Might I suggest filling some of it with Fanfarlo's debut disk Reservoirs. The British six piece outfit stuffs their tunes to the brim with horns, glockenspiels, chimes, violins, guitars, bass, drums, and Balthazar's lovely, haunting vocals. Lyrically the album is all about mysterious misfortunes inspired by ghosts, Howard Hughes, and UFOs, weaving stories that are as intricate as the melodies behind them. We chatted with Simon Balthazar last weekend about the new disk. Here is some of what was said. more ›

The deaths of James Brown or the Wicked Wilson Pickett left a huge gaping hole in the soul universe, but all is not lost Black Joe Lewis is picking up where they left off. Bursting out of Austin with a eight piece set up, Black Joe Lewis and his Honeybears have been drawing fans like flies to a honey jar with their saucy dirty, blues. The songs of their debut album,Tell 'Em What Your Name Is! get to the meat of what life is all about when you're young: being broke ("I'm Broke"), one night stands ("Sugarfoot"), amour ("Bitch, I Love You") and getting down ("Boogie"). Black Joe Lewis was kind enough to talk with us before his show at the Troubadour. Here is some of what was said. more ›

The Thermals fit into this bizarre nebulous world that exists between rock and punk. They're a little too brash and uncut for rock and a little too soft for punk . I mean they've got a swan on their drum set for Pete's sake. (On their website their music is described as post-pop-punk, but God knows what that even means.) I would describe it as punk that people can get excited about without fear of a mosh pit or being clocked on the back of the head by a crowd surfer's shoe. Or alternatively, punk that parents would approve of. Sure their lyrics are dark and nihilistic , but hot dang those hooks are catchy. more ›

Holy Jesus and the Mary Chain, Batman! Crocodiles are coming to the Troubadour tonight supporting their two month old, brand spanking new, debut disk, Summer of Hate(Fat Possum). Toting loud fuzzed out guitars, electric drums, and sneering lyrics that knock you breath back, Crocodiles have created a pulsing spaced out noise that will vibrate through your skull for days...in a good way. Brandon Welchez was kind enough to speak with us yesterday by phone. Here is some of what was said. more ›

Calling me from an In n' Out Burger somewhere in Northern California, Lexy Benaim is happy. He's on tour with fellow Brooklynite up and comers Passion Pit, his band has been listed as one of the bands to watch by Paste magazine, and most importantly he's got his hands on some animal fries. Life is pretty good. Harlem Shakes' debut disk, Technicolor Health, is brimming with sunshine and catchy pop hooks without being overly sweet. It's the kind of album you would want on a bike ride along Venice Beach or on a picnic in Griffith Park. Between mouthfuls of fries, Lexy was kind enough to answer some of our probing questions. Harlem Shakes - Sunlight more ›

Earlier this month, LA-Underground co-presented a showcase, with KXLU and Manimal Vinyl, at The Smell in Downtown LA, featuring Alexandra Hope, VOICEsVOICEs, EXITMUSIC, and Warpaint. more ›

If you were on an adventure with Indiana Jones, and were in desperate need of a sunny, happy pop album that discusses the dangers of cannibals, dinosaurs, octopi, and volcanoes, the Miniature Tigers' new album might be the one to choose. (Obviously this would be in your down time. It's not the soundtrack you would want for when you were fighting Nazis or sneaking around in tombs.) However, Tell It To The Volcano which was released on Modern Art Records in February might just do the trick for when you were having lunch or getting from one cave to another. Which is not surprising considering the founding members, Charlie Brand and Rick Schaier, cite the jungle imagery in Lost and Indiana Jones as some of their influences when writing this record. Honestly it is surprising there aren't more cannibal ditties out there considering the popularity of both of these cultural icons. Or maybe a few mysterious pop songs about "others"? Just a thought. more ›

Several months ago, rock 'n' roll photographer, Christopher Wray-McCann, had an idea. What would happen if he got some of his musician friends to drop their cell phones, their laptops, and their lives and hole up in Maui in tree houses for a month to record an album? Taking all the equipment they could carry, various members of Maroon 5, Gomez, Phantom Planet and a few other bands agreed and descended upon their new jungle home. Fourteen members of what was now known as, Operation Aloha, created a light, breezy tropical album, which was created captured the spirit of Hawaii without the usual constraints of songwriting and recording. more ›

Full disclosure: when I was twelve, I was a hardcore, die-hard Hanson fan. I knew all the lyrics to their debut album, Middle of Nowhere, and so did millions and millions of other prepubescent girls around the nation. Hanson was perfect for twelve year olds. They were young, cute, never sung about anything offensive, and most important of all they wrote and played their own instruments. Unlike the other schlock that was being marketed towards my undeveloped brain like Britney Spears, the Backstreet Boys, and NSYNC, these kids actually had some modicum of authenticity. more ›

Looking like a rockabilly dandy with James Dean hair and a Clark Gable mustache, The Tallest Man on Earth otherwise known as Kristian Matsson took the stage last Thursday night looking like the most American Swede I had ever seen. With his neatly rolled up sleeves, tight jeans, and old fashioned shoes, Matsson dressed the part of a troubadour from the early 1960s reminiscent of a young Johnny Cash. So much so that at one point someone yelled out Cash's name for no apparent reason to which Matsson smiled and said, "I think he's dead, sir." more ›

Walking in at the Troubadour that night was like walking into a magic forest glade. I half expected to see sparkling nymphs in gauzy outfits leaping around from behind the concert goers, cackling merrily as they played tag. Perhaps if there had been any absinthe in the place that would be exactly what I saw. Brooklyn's electro pop piece Bell was on stage spreading their musical glitter all over the Troubadour making it sparkle and shine. more ›