L.A. RECORD » james cartwright

DAMIAN JURADO @ SPACELAND

lar_import — Tue, 06 Jul 2010 20:16:59 +0000

In the circles I travel around in, Damien Jurado is somewhat of a legend. It feels like the dude’s been around forever, and he’s been doing it his own way. Going into his show at Spaceland, the new record, Saint Bartlett, was still fresh to my ears and my friends and I were excited for a followup to Damien’s 2008 Spaceland show. The wonderful Tenlon’s Fort started the night off sounding better than ever. This fuller lineup really suits Jack Gibson’s songs and I’m sad to hear that he’s moving back to Texas to pursue film. Next up was the pacific Northwest’s Kay Kay and The Weathered Underground. These guys performed a set of their own and then stuck around to back up Damien. Though neat as a nine piece, I preferred their more subdued lineup as “The Saint Bartlett Band” later in the evening. Damien took the stage with a disclaimer: he was under the weather and was going to try his best to push through. Although I didn’t detect any hoarseness, his stamina was definitely lacking. They played an abbreviated set through some of the new record and only did a couple old ones, including fan favorite “Abilene” off of 2003′s Where Shall You Take Me? Skipping an encore, it was apparent that the poor guy needed some rest. We left happy to have been there but disappointed overall that we caught one of our favorites on an off night.

—James Cartwright

VETIVER @ SPACELAND

lar_import — Mon, 21 Jun 2010 22:52:28 +0000

Vetiver brought their jangly-roots act to Spaceland, and the folksters of Silver Lake came out to enjoy. It was nice to see such a great and receptive crowd on a Sunday night. Hailing from San Francisco, Vetiver has been touring up and down the coast with this show acting as the book end. Andy Cabic and company both rocked and soothed Spaceland for the better part of an hour, lightly bouncing this way and that—alternating between breaths into the harmonica and words into the microphone. The subtly mixed piano adds a lot to the arrangements and the playing was on point. In fact, these guys (and gal) are all such notably wonderful players that the songs seem to emanate with a warm effortlessness. Fans were showered with some old songs as well as new—and the new material sounded especially sharp. Cabic sings and performs with such conviction that it is hard to not get swept up in the song. I would recommend not missing this band when they come through later this summer—they’re playing FYF Fest on September 4th.

—James Cartwright

DEVON WILLIAMS: SUFFERER

lar_import — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 22:27:30 +0000

Download: Devon Williams “Sufferer”

(from the “Sufferer” 7″ out Sept. 22 on Slumberland)

An extension of last year’s Carefree LP, the “Sufferer” EP contains two songs—the bouncy title track and a slow-builder B-side called “Who Cares About Forever?” Williams plays a brand of pop music that is hard to categorize—his melodies are the crux of the songs, but the subtle augmented instrumentation and the soaring guitars are what sets him apart from contemporaries. The pop comparisons to Nilsson and Clifford Ward can definitely be heard in Williams’ songwriting and it excites me that Los Angeles has someone that is playing a modern twist on these kinds of tunes on a regular basis. On “Sufferer,” Williams turns up the intensity on his tremolo and plays along to a chugging drum pattern. This is my preference of the two and would have fit right in on the Carefree full length—one of my favorite LPs of 2008. The breakdown/chorus that Williams often employs is perfect to showcase the vocals and melody on this gem. “Who Cares About Forever?” contains another carefully plotted melody with sparse instrumental flourishes. The song has a timeless, familiar feel—like it could have been released in any of the last three or four decades. And actually, that’s a good way to sum up Devon himself.

—James Cartwright

JOHN VANDERSLICE + TALLEST MAN ON EARTH @ TROUBADOUR

lar_import — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 18:21:03 +0000

I know Monday nights are pretty action packed with residencies around Los Angeles, but to see John Vanderslice playing to a 1/3 filled Troubadour was pretty surprising. I feel like JV is still one of those heartbreakingly underrated pre-internet indie rockers who (hopefully) one day will have a documentary or book about him and get his just desserts. Watching John on stage is something else—he’s been at it at this level for so long that he exudes a certain air of quiet confidence, yet still retains the excitement of playing live for the first time.

Swedish folkster Tallest Man on Earth opened the show (to a fuller bar than the later JV) and played a rousing set of fingerpicking tunes. If JV exuded a quiet confidence, Tallest Man on Earth’s was deafening. In this case, the hyperbolic nature of his name is quite literal. I was disappointed that he doesn’t play the banjo live, but his live fingerpicked guitar work is just as impressive as it is on the record.

JV started the night off with a cut from 2007’s Emerald City, “Tablespoon of Codeine,” and played a varied set of new and old. I was eager to see how much old stuff would be represented since he’s touring for the recently released Romanian Names (Dead Oceans). There’s always something different about a Vanderslice melody, and this night was full of them. He ended the set by moving his band out on the floor and playing an unplugged version of “Keep the Dream Alive” from 2001’s Time Travel is Lonely (my favorite of his records). When it was over he looked truly pleased with how the night turned out, thanked everyone for coming and walked around and hugged anyone who would hug him back.

—James Cartwright

THE VALLEY ARENA: WE DIED

lar_import — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 15:34:24 +0000

Download: The Valley Arena “Grayscale”

(from We Died out now on JAXART)

Long Beach’s Valley Arena deliver a dynamic, well-crafted modern rock album—I guess you could say that their sound has evolved and grown up, but they bring enough of their old building blocks to the studio to have assemble something mostly new, yet hazily familiar. They’re able to strike that delicate balance of their noisier/more frenetic elements with newly focused song structure that lends itself well to their individual playing styles. The real brilliance on this record is found in the guitar/bass tones—ranging from the shimmery effects of “The Dig” to the proto-punk trebly distortion on “Bait and Switch.” This record is full of creative, expressive guitar work and it’s reassuring to see a three-piece able to fill out their sound without any gimmicks. A lot of the creativity here manifests in the effortless way the guitar and bass are able to play off one another. Some of the most moving moments of the album are when the bass can take the lead and allow room for Chris Stevens’ guitar to meander through the rhythms. With tight songwriting and decisive vision on both the musical and tonal aspects of their sound, the Valley Arena are just getting started.

—James Cartwright

THE VALLEY ARENA: "WE DIED" 7"

lar_import — Sat, 30 May 2009 17:16:39 +0000

Download: The Valley Arena “Grayscale”

(from “We Died” out now on JAXART)

Without employing tired band comparisons to the Valley Arena’s angular modern rock sound, it’s hard to put a finger on exactly what makes this band interesting. It might be the calculated bass and guitar composition, or it might be the varied song structure; it’s most likely that they are talented song writers. In an A.D.D.-addled music scene where every band around town has to have a gimmick—which isn’t always a bad thing—it’s still somehow refreshing to hear a three-piece that just writes high-quality, straight-forward rock songs. On their upcoming 7”, the Valley Arena gives us two barn burners in “Bait and Switch” and “Gray Scale” with a bonus Ikey Owens remix of “SOS4XOX.” The two originals on the A-side offer a peak into the brand new LP. Both songs function independently of one another, but are great counterparts and I hope that the full length can show the same cohesion. The B-side remix takes a third track off the LP and reconfigures it. I wish some more of the original guitars could have been incorporated into the remix, but it’s still worth a few spins. Since the full length download is offered with a purchase of the 7’’ you really can’t go wrong!

—James Cartwright