Category Archives: music news

listen, music news, san diego, video

The Dodos Go Monochrome

Leave a comment

MP3: The Dodos – “Don’t Stop”

San Francisco indie darlings The Dodos just released their fourth album, No Color, and they’ll make their way southward to the Casbah on April 9.

The San Diego stop is part of a whirlwind tour that will send them throughout the United States and Europe. Philadelphia’s Reading Rainbow will support the band’s appearance on the Casbah stage.

With the release of No Color, The Dodos seem to have hit their musical stride. The band’s return to their classic duo formula has produced their most melodic, cohesive effort yet, with a dreamy blend of noisy and energetic tracks. The Dodos are also hoping to hook up some lucky fans with a pair of free tickets by running ticket giveaways in each city via Facebook. All fans need to do is comment on the date of the show they would like to attend (excluding festival dates), and a winner will be selected at random — an easy way to win some tickets, especially for Facebook commenters of the world.

The band also released a new video for their No Colors song “Black Night.” Check it out above. Full list of Dodos tour dates is below.

music news, san diego, video

Smith Westerns Announce Massive Tour, Yeasayer Date at Belly Up

Leave a comment



After a whirlwind week at SXSW and the recent release of their O&B-anticipated sophomore record Dye it Blonde, Smith Westerns are hitting the road again. This time, the band has planned a massive world tour, including a stop with Yeasayer at the Belly Up on May 21. In addition to its California dates, the group will swing by Europe and Canada, and play a slew of Southern shows with a little band named Wilco.

Smith Westerns also recently recorded a live in-studio session for Pitchfork TV (see above). In the video, the band sets up shop in a foggy studio to perform Dye it Blonde songs “Weekend,” “Imagine Pt. 3,” and “Dye the World.” Two more videos and the full list of Smith Westerns tour dates are below. Continue reading…

art/books/film, music news, san diego

Little White Teeth to Perform Live Film Score 3/20

Leave a comment

San Diego’s Little White Teeth will perform a live score alongside a screening of the film Tijuaneados Anonymous: a Teardrop and a Smile at this year’s San Diego Latin Film Festival.

The band’s melancholy sound fits well with the film, which “addresses the crisis of unprecedented violence and ungovernability of the border city of Tijuana, Mexico and how this situation affects the daily lives of its inhabitants.” Little White Teeth’s March 20 performance will mark the band’s second time contributing a live score to Tijuaneados Anonymous; they first screened the film in Tijuana as part of the Ambulante Documentary Film Festival. Cellist Kate MacWilliamson will join the band in bringing the film’s soundtrack to life.

Tijuaneados Anonymous: a Teardrop and a Smile will screen on Sunday, March 20, 2011 at 3:30 PM at UltraStar Mission Valley Cinemas Hazard Center.

music news, video

Radiohead – “Lotus Flower” (Video)

1 Comment

By now the internet is ablaze with excitement about Radiohead‘s The King of Limbs. The album was just announced on Tuesday and set for a digital release tomorrow, but in a surprise move, the band went ahead and made it available for download today. Those of you who purchased the album can now log in to your tracking page and start your voracious downloading.

For everyone else, Radiohead just released the video for “Lotus Flower,” the first single from The King of Limbs. The black and white clip — reminiscent of the classic one for Tom Waits’ “It’s Alright With Me” — features Thom Yorke in a bowler hat executing a fascinating array of herky-jerky dance moves, air humping, and general gyrations. Your move, Napoleon Dynamite.

listen, music news, san diego

Rafter Releases Surprise New Album

Leave a comment
Photo credit: Lizeth Santos

San Diego’s musical mad scientist Rafter is releasing his newest LP, Quiet Storm, as a pay-what-you-want download. The album comes hot on the heels of last year’s critically acclaimed, booty-shaking Animal Feelings. Whereas that album’s aesthetic was firmly rooted in pop — filtered, as always, through Rafter’s trademark gonzo sensibilities — Quiet Storm‘s genesis can be traced to an altogether different genre: metal.

“When [drummer Nathan Hubbard] and I were touring around the US after Animal Feelings came out, we listened to a lot of black metal demo tapes in the car,” Rafter explains on his website. “It was really inspiring, extreme, blown out, ridiculous but heartfelt… I made [Quiet Storm], fed by those inspirations and a wave of existential freakout, human mind explosion. In my fantasy, it’s like Darkthrone meets The Kinks meets Lee Perry…”

For a taste of Quiet Storm, check out the hard-hitting “Oh No” (MP3), then head over to his Bandcamp page to download the whole album. Be sure to show your appreciation by paying generously.

Or if you prefer music of the live variety, head on down to the Tin Can tonight for Rafter’s impromptu record release show. He’ll be joined by the equally dancey Jamuel Saxon, who just released the 3-song Time Is Money EP for streaming and download on his own Bandcamp page.