She was tiny. One girl in the audience motioned of picking her up like a snack and popping Roza in her mouth. Cute, a bit hunched over, messy black hair, she bellowed and swooned between crouching at her sampler to cue beats for the next song.

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Nika Roza and Freddy Ruppert must have met on some dark wave in the post-goth apocalypse. She lends her howling to his Former Ghosts, but as Zola Jesus, she lays down her own chilly rhythms and haunts their lattices with operatic breath. Darkness spreads its surreal shadows. This interview by Daiana Feuer.

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Not too long ago there was an article about the state of music videos in some relevant culture magazine. The alt suits were basically saying at print time (last year) that it was the best time to make music videos because of no budgets. That was the dumbest shit I have ever heard.

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Thank technology for letting three musicians in three different parts of the country be a band together. Former Ghosts is Freddy Ruppert (This Song Is A Mess But So Am I), Jamie Stewart (Xiu Xiu), and Nika Roza (Zola Jesus). Make their L.A. show your Halloween destination. This interview by Daiana Feuer.

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The set starts with a diminutive twentysomething, dressed crisply in a black pullover and white button-down, sitting in a chair with his head slightly bowed. Newcomers probably don’t know what to expect, but Nhat fans can bank on a saucy, effervescent performance. They are not let down. Anywhere Michael Nhat plays is a party, and Friday night, in the echoey back room of The Smell with an audience of about fifteen, is no exception.

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post-party
Upset the Rhythm is the independent London label that’s always taken good care of Los Angeles—they were one of the labels participating in that first burst of No Age vinyl in 2007 and also put out releases for L.A. bands like Soft Boiled Eggies and BARR and now Foot Village, who will be releasing their [...]

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