Los Angeles

Painting the Soundscape

by Charlie Wright

Charlie Wright - Painting the Soundscape


There is often an expectation that great work comes only from deep intention. That it is birthed from the mind of the artist, fully formed. Picture the romantic image of Mozart, writing out his scores fully formed with no eraser marks. I find this to be a harmful narrative that can hinder creatives.

Just think of how many great improvisers we can look to and see their apparent musical genius. For example, just about every great jazz musician. The point that I am getting to, albeit in a roundabout way, is that it is okay not to know the end result when you start something creative. And it’s even better if you can begin to without expectation.

Continue reading →

Easy Listening for Difficult People

by Ancient Champion

Ancient Champion


It all began with a 30-year hiatus. In 1993, I was living in Los Angeles. My band had broken up, and I was an acclaimed songwriter. I was sharing a house with my regular studio engineer, a house protected by an adherence to some Wild West frontier law — a legal loophole, really, that kept us temporarily in bank-repossessed homes before the hammer fell, and we moved on to another bank-repossessed home in limbo.

Diametrically opposed to the musical situation we’d left, which was a type of pastiche Jon Spencer Blues Explosion – abrasive, dynamic, feedback and polyester-driven mayhem, we were recording and beginning to assemble what we considered could be the quietest band in the world. Maybe you recall this was right in the middle of the Seattle grunge era. Those were terrible times for music. We were in the opposition. You’d maybe hear what we were aiming for these days in the likes of Timbre Timbre, but back then, in that environment, it seemed dissolute and unwarranted. And most likely unwanted.

Continue reading →

Vita=Life, Beats=Music – The whole story of the Vitabeats 1980-2023

by Andrew Barnum

Andrew Barnum with Lissa, aka Vitrabeats


Lissa and I began performing and recording together in Los Angeles in 1980. Our first band was called ‘Live Nude Girl’ formed during the post-punk era. Angular, with arcane drum-machines, synths, guitars, and theatrical graphic visuals. I am an American-born Australian, who grew up in Sydney, went to design school in Melbourne, then after starting my career in visual communication design, relocated to the USA to freelance in design and get serious about song writing. To find collaborators, starting bands, and doing solo singer-songwriter spots around LA, while designing in the daytime.

Continue reading →

Remastering the Sound of Goth

by Matt Vowles

Black Angel: Remastering the Sound of Goth by Matt Vowles
We are the goth rockers, Black Angel, from Los Angeles (even though I hail from 80’s England) and have just released an extended version of our debut album “The Widow.” Initially released in October 2019, some may think this is a little quick for an extended version. But while the first version was awesome, something wasn’t quite right.

It was mastered for the “headphone and streaming” generation, and it just didn’t have the bollocks it needed for a Goth/Post-punk album – not the ones I grew up listening to. I should have gone with my gut, I shouldn’t have catered to this popular way of mastering songs, should have stuck to my guns. So now I’m doing it again. And I couldn’t just re-release it, so we thought let’s just make it longer and more impressive, so fans have a reason to want it.

Continue reading →

Bringing Futuristic Pop Music to Los Angeles

by Nes Croft

Nes Croft Brings Futuristic Pop Music to Los Angeles
Originally from Great Falls, Montana, I became involved with music at a young age and was writing songs by age 13. In highschool my bedroom was set up like a recording studio with an old Tascam 24 track recorder and various instruments.

“I slept in my closet! So I had room for the studio.”

At that time, I was making music under the moniker Wayyyne with a sound similar to Animal Collective and experimental pop from 2011. After graduating highschool, I moved to Portland, OR to pursue music further.

Continue reading →

KC to LA: A Westward Pilgrimage

by Heads or Heads

KC to LA: A Westward Pilgrimage by Heads or Heads

When I stepped out of LAX and into the warm evening air I suppose I fell in love.

Kansas City, as much as I adore it and feel proud to represent, will never be as warm as Los Angeles was that night in mid-December, nor will it evoke the feelings of excitement and hope that still exist within. So when you grow up in a rural place it’s not uncommon to dream of bigger things – in the back of my mind LA was always the destination.

Continue reading →

Tuesday Atlas: The Ghost in Your Attic

by Tuesday Atlas

Tuesday Atlas: The Ghost in Your Attic


What do you get when you combine the funky bass lines of the Chili Peppers, the haunting vocals of Nirvana, the screeching leads of Buckethead, the beefy guitars of Basement, and the powerful rumble of Balance and Composure drumming? A cacophony of styles and tastes blend into a unique representation of alternative rock music in the form of Tuesday Atlas. We just like to make songs that get stuck in your head, like a ghost in your attic.

Listen to the album while reading the text.

Continue reading →