Nightbeat: The Ocean
Hailing from Berlin, Germany, the Ocean is a heavy and thunderous musical collective like few others before or since. Last year, with the help of the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, the art-metal crew created and released Precambrian, a double-disc soundtrack of evolution itself, divided into two distinct geological eons – (“Hadean/Archean” and “Proterozoic”) – with the actual song titles describing tectonic movements and atmospheric chemical changes. It’s not easy to describe the music’s mix of jagged elements, but it ranges from screamed to sung vocals layered over alternately raging and serene guitars. Calling the set a “magnum opus” doesn’t quite capture the sheer scale and creativity involved in this successful project.
Tues. at The Knitting Factory, 7021 Hollywood Blvd., Hollywood, (323) 463-0204, knittingfactory.com. With Intronaut, Lair of the Minotaur, Ancestors, and Black Math Horseman.
This Week’s Highlights
Thursday, June 12
Angus Khan. Angus Young of AC/DC meets Genghis Khan? Sign me up! With Superbees, Cockpit, and the Killdevils. Safari Sam’s, Hollywood. safari-sams.com.
Erykah Badu, The Roots. The soulful bebop singer from Dallas joins the Philly rappers-with-soul. Greek Theatre, Hollywood. greektheatrela.com.
The Detroit Cobras. Full-throttle rock from the garage to your cranium. The Troubadour, West Hollywood. troubadour.com.
The Helio Sequence, Talkdemonic. Art-rockers Helio Sequence meld folk, rock and electronica into an epic sound. Fellow Oregonians Talkdemonic are equally artful and jarringly eclectic. The Echoplex, Echo Park. attheecho.com.
The Matches. Oakland pop-punk crew returns with its third, and best effort to date with A Band in Hope. Knitting Factory, Hollywood. knittingfactory.com.
Nellie McKay. The witty lyricist and singer returns to her familiar surroundings. Largo, Los Angeles.largo-la.com.
Dax Riggs. The Deadboy & the Elephantmen frontman goes it alone. Spaceland, Silver Lake.clubspaceland.com.
Steel Pulse. Thirty years in the reggae game, and still no salt on their tails. Malibu Inn, Malibu. malibu-inn.com. Also Sun. at Vault 350, Long Beach.
Sweet. “Wig-Wam Bam”? “Little Willy”? “Ballroom Blitz”? Will this really be as good as glitter rock gets? The Whisky, West Hollywood. whiskyagogo.com.
Friday, June 13
Faun Fables. Experimental/performance art duo Dawn McCarthy and Nils Frykdahl call what they do “songtelling.” Knitting Factory.
Haunted Garage. Long-missing horror-rockers return from beyond the grave. With Six. Safari Sam’s.
The Submarines. L.A. indie duo features singer Blake Hazard and her light, attractive vocals. The Echo, attheecho.com.
Tea Leaf Green, Hot Buttered Rum. Tea Leaf Green creates Grateful Dead-style jams; Hot Buttered Rum is more bluegrass and country-flavored. El Rey Theatre, Miracle Mile. theelrey.com.
The Ting Tings. See page 33. The Troubadour.
Venetian Snares. Aaron Funk’s laptop electronica chaos is unveiled. Knitting Factory.
Saturday, June 14
Crosby Stills & Nash. “We have all been here before.” Indeed. Greek Theatre.
Earthless, Ancestors, Tweakbird. Get your stoner-rock swerve on. The Smell, Downtown L.A.
thesmell.org.
The Mad Caddies. Santa Barbara ska-punkers are back to skank again. The Troubadour.
Panic at the Disco, Motion City Soundtrack, The Hush Sound, Phantom Planet. Those KROQ kiddies are mad for this one. Honda Center, Anaheim. hondacenter.com.
Sevendust. Nu-metal also-rans, or criminally underrated and soulful? Sevendust, the floor is yours. With Soulidium, Neverset, and Anew Revolution. House of Blues, Sunset Strip, West Hollywood. hob.com.
3rd Strike. The gangsta-rockers are back from hiatus. The Whisky.
Tyrone Wells. Local folkie made good, Wells is promoting major-label debut Hold On. El Rey Theatre.
Sunday, June 15
The Fratellis. Those lovable lads from Glasgow are back with a new album, Here We Stand (and sounding just as bouncy as ever). Key Club, West Hollywood. keyclub.com.
Notes From the Edge. Classical-pop concert of arrangements for string quartet and vocals including Radiohead, Pink Floyd, David Bowie, Elvis Costello, Joni Mitchell, the Killers, and many more. John Anson Ford Amphitheatre, Hollywood. fordamphitheatre.org.
Ted Nugent. Endless guitar soloing, and right wing blathering. Fun! House of Blues, Sunset Strip.
Russian Circles. Acclaimed, fast-rising, art metal crew from Chicago. With Daughters, and Young Widows. The Troubadour.
Times New Viking. Raw, raucous, keyboard/shout indie punks from the lo-fi end of Columbus, Ohio. The Echo. Also Mon. at The Smell.
Monday, June 16
Everest. These local country-alt-rockers are basking the reviews for debut disc Ghost Notes. Great ’70s-styled tunes … and the show’s free! Spaceland.
Golden Animals. Gal-guy/drum-guitar duo rocks with neo-psychedelic brio. Like the White Stripes, less bluesy. The Echo.
Tuesday, June 17
Islands. Montreal-based indie-rockers charm with second album, Arm’s Way. El Rey Theatre.
Warbringer. These Ventura, California, kids are helping bring back the thrash attack. Knitting Factory.
Wednesday, June 18
Midnight Movies. Last year’s Lion the Girl saw MM creating their best garage-pop to date. Spaceland.
Rilo Kiley. The great L.A. band’s last album, Under the Blacklight, found vocalist Jenny Lewis singing angelically about all things seedy. Greek Theatre.
Secret Machines. Spacey rock in the vein of Pink Floyd and the Verve. Viper Room, West Hollywood.
Published: 06/11/2008
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