For an unsigned, independent artist, singer-guitarist Axel Steuerwald has always been able to coax a big, radio-ready sound out of his bands’ recordings, first with Mere Mortals and now with the new quartet United Ghosts. So it goes with the new single “Holes Into the Night,” a dreamy, driving slice of neo-shoegaze rock made in […]
When he fronted the lamentably overlooked Mere Mortals, Axel Steuerwald fashioned tunes that seemed beamed across the Atlantic from Manchester and sprinkled with garage-rock fairy dust. His new quartet United Ghosts, founded with Sha Sabi, build on that approach – driving Euro dance rhythms, hazy guitar and synth textures and boy/girl vocals straight out of […]
Mere Mortals seemed destined to be one of those bands Los Angeles overlooks – purveyors of rock-solid rock that a) isn’t made by 21-year-olds, b) isn’t fashionably disheveled or gimmicky, and c) doesn’t require an instruction manual to like. After a handful of releases and a memorable tour or two – including playing to some […]
Three decades of music in one night – that’s what the Church has in store for fans tonight at the Roxy Theatre. The Australian veterans are on a 30th anniversary North American tour that will see the band perform one song from each each of their releases in reverse chronological order. Fans who attend the […]
[Happy 30th birthday today to Sara Bareilles. Here’s how to get your week started …] The headliners at month’s free residencies should be familiar faces to Buzz Bands readers. Here’s a refresher course: Mere Mortals, freshly returned from a successful tour of Japan, bring their gritty Britpop to at Spaceland, where I hear that the […]
[Apologies for the server problems that befuddled Buzz Bands all morning. Back to disseminating:] Big doings all over town – under the stars, there is Jackson Browne at the Greek Theatre; Buddy Guy, Dr. John and the Lower 911 and James Cotton at the Hollywood Bowl; and, on a smaller scale but no less enjoyable, […]
[Andy Bell of Oasis, and Ride before that, turns 39 today. Cheers, mate. And in L.A. environs …] Black Francis hits town for a pair of solo acoustic dates at the Mint, with Mere Mortals [whose new music I previewed a couple of weeks ago] opening. … Let’s see: A 60-foot giantess, a discredited scientist […]
Over the course of three-plus years and three releases (two EPs and a single), Mere Mortals have cultivated a gritty-but-pretty take on Britpop, one that in another city and perhaps another era might earn them the keys to Madchester. Alas, L.A. tends to take bands like the Mortals for granted, seeing as they’re not chasing […]
[Let’s start Thursday by wishing Kate Bush a happy birthday …] And let’s continue it with with a song off the Sounds’ new album, “Crossing the Rubicon”: ||| Download: “Dorchester Hotel” The Swedish quintet’s Blondie-indebted rock has cast quite a spell on SoCal audiences the past couple of years. Their new album, recorded in L.A., […]
[Marky Ramone celebrates a birthday with his blitzkrieg today.] UPDATED: The Veils finish their West Coast run at Club NME at Spaceland, with Luke Top and Other Girls supporting. … At Pershing Square in downtown, Fol Chen and 60 Watt Kid play an evening show. … Jonneine Zapata [pictured] performs at 3 Clubs along with […]
