At its best, these 80s imitators sounded like Bryan Ferry singing “More than This,” except with all the charm and twinkle sucked out, leaving a residue that stunk of congealed Spandau Ballet, When in Rome, Haircut 100—and before you start to think “Wow, I love those bands, and that sounds awesome,” remember that the best singles by those bands were great because they had such strong personality! Drain the personality, and you’ll have Wild Beasts. Henri Matisse wants to paint their noses red… with blood.

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Though singer Glenn Tilbrook had grown General Custer’s beard (which also dangled a bit like Col. Sander’s bowtie), and I wished they could have talked Paul Carrack into reprising his vocal on “Tempted,” these guys sounded exactly the same as I imagine they would have in 1982. The timeslot was perfectly 80s, too, as the sun had just set, and the polo field palm trees behind them were lit up in neon colors that matched their evening jackets, like in a Miami Vice nightclub scene. There was a little weirdness here and there from keyboards that didn’t quite fit, but if awkward keyboards aren’t the Squeeze sound, I don’t know what is.

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Mike Watt somehow knew that Thundercat was coming. When he said people thought the Minutemen were Martians from planet Jazz, well … that is pretty much exactly what we get with Thundercat’s The Golden Age of Apocalypse, made by a kid who played bass for Stanley Clarke and Suicidal Tendencies both. Thundercat speaks now about the sublime and the ridiculous, but not in that order. This interview by Chris Ziegler.

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Thundercat Thundercat, Mia Doi Todd, Hanni El Khatib, Swahili Blonde, Tom Brosseau, the Club Pacific Band, and DJs Dan Collins, Tom Child, and Andres Renteria at the L.A. RECORD x dublab stage at Abbot Kinney Festival on September 24, 2011. Photos by Lainna Fader.

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Unlike the Thom Yorke DJ set at Low End in March, Erykah Badu’s seemed to be a secret well-kept until the few hours right before her performance. The first lady of neo-soul finally took the stage at around midnight, after sets by Nocando and Co.fee. The dance floor was packed and steamy as she played a mix of 90s hip hop and old-school R&B–Rick James’ “I Love You Mary Jane” drew a particularly good response—and contemporary hip-hop, like Dilla’s “Workingonit.”

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Download: “Happy Birthday, Flying Lotus!” Jam Session [Audio clip: view full post to listen] L.A. visionary Flying Lotus just had a birthday, and in the true spirit of birthdays, ArtDontSleep delivers a gift in his honor to the world: the “Happy Birthday Flying Lotus!” jam session featuring Lotus, Exile, Shafiq Husayn, Computer Jay and many [...]

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