Oh My Rockness

We have a pair of tickets to give away to see LOCAL NATIVES with WILD NOTHING at The Greek Theatre on Friday, September 13th!

For show information and tickets, click here.

Enter your name and email address below for a chance to win. Only one entry per email address will be accepted. Winner will be randomly selected on 6/13! Good luck!

San Francisco’s Shannon and the Clams are vocalist/bassist Shannon Shaw (she was one of Hunx’s punks) and vocalist/bassist Cody Blanchard and drummer/bassist Ian Amberson (ok, he’s not a bassist too - just drums, man - just drums). Together, the trio make something like surf-soul-doo-wop-garage-punk.

Don’t roll your eyes at me. Chill. I didn’t say this WAS surf-soul-doo-wop-garage-punk. Obviously that would be a ridiculous made-up musical genre...and an abuse of hyphens...and would be like throwing a bunch of historical sound descriptors against the wall and hoping one of them sticks...before slowly sliding down to rest in a pile of its own filth. I would never resort to such tricks. That’s why I said it was LIKE surf-soul-doo-wop-garage-punk. What it IS is pop music.

I’ll tell you what else this is. Shannon and the Clams is a good time. This is like a sloppy 1960s sock hop - the kind crammed with slipshod punks and pranksters - who could be menacing - but could also dance like a dream. Wait. Maybe I’m just thinking of “Grease.” No. Wait. Maybe I’m thinking of “Grease 2.” Man, I always do that. Maybe it’s because it’s the exact same rags-to-coolness story except the genders are reversed. Cool times, producer bros.

Shannon and the Clams have a new album coming out on Hardly Art (Black Marble + Seapony + Woven Bones + lots more good bands). It’ll be good. They’re also currently touring with Ty Segall’s bb, Mikal Cronin. He’s good too. So I guess the action is hot hot HOT for these guys. It was only a matter of time before a surf-soul-doo-wop-garage-punk craze swept the nation. I’ve been predicting it for years.



Shannon and the Clams play The Glass House, on Thursday, May 30th, and The Echo, on Saturday, June 1st, and The Observatory, on Sunday, June 2nd.

San Francisco’s Tony Molina plays (and played) in a bunch of hardcore bands (Melters, Caged Animals, Ovens, Lifetime Problems and some more, I suppose). But that’s not the Tony Molina we’re here to talk about today. We shall perhaps discuss his screams another day.

We’re here to talk about Tony Molina - the power indiepop extraordinaire. Under his own name (once again, that’s Tony. Molina.) he crafts short, super singable songs that sound a little like Matthew Sweet meets Weezer meets The Lemonheads meets Dinosaur Jr. meets the occasional melodic metal riff (anyone remember The Fucking Champs?).

Now when I say Molina’s songs are short - I mean they are SHORT. Molina’s best song (his “jam,” if you will) is “Don’t Come Back” - conveniently embedded for you below (aww, I’m always doing sweet things like that) - is 1:32. That’s one minute and thirty-two seconds. And that’s a song on the longer side of things. Molina has a 42 second song. He has a 45 second song. And yes, he even has a 25 second (!) song. When is a song a snippet? When is a snippet a song? Is this the result of the Twitter generation? I don’t know. I just (sorta) work here.

I do know the feeling of wanting more is often a very good thing. And sure, a 25 second song may be pushing that theory to the limit (by the way, Molina’s twelve track 12” album is roughly ten minutes in length). But whether a song or album is “concise” or simply just “unfinished” is an discussion for another time - another place. Next Friday over soup, salad, and breadsticks, perhaps? (I love the OG.) Or, maybe we can have that chat when some band is up there on stage thinking we actually want to stand through their two-and-a-half hour set? You better be playing in a stadium if you’re going to try that on us, bub. And even then.....even then....

The mighty Slumberland record label is putting out some stuff by Tony Molina soon. Slumberland knows good pop. And if you check this guy out, you’ll know good pop too. So go ahead. Give it a stream. And when you do - don’t blink. Because just as quickly as this goodness comes....POOF....it’s gone. Erased.....from...existence.



Tony Molina doesn't have any shows scheduled....yet....but save them using your MY ROCKNESS ACCOUNT and we'll let YOU know when they're playing Los Angeles... as soon as WE know. Cool? Cool.

We have five pairs of tickets to give away to see SMITH WESTERNS at El Rey Theatre on Saturday, August 10th, presented by OH MY ROCKNESS!

For show information and tickets, click here.

Enter your name and email address below for a chance to win. Only one entry per email address will be accepted. Winner will be randomly selected on 8/1. Good luck!

We have a pair of tickets to give away to see THE BOXER REBELLION with FOSSIL COLLECTIVE at Avalon Hollywood on Friday, June 7th!

For show information and tickets, click here.

Enter your name and email address below for a chance to win. Only one entry per email address will be accepted. Winner will be randomly selected on 6/5. Good luck!

Click here to view all the new FREE SUMMER SHOWS >>

SELECT SHOWS ADDED TO THE SITE THIS WEEK

5/23 The Presets (DJ Set) @ The Observatory (Constellation Room)
5/23 Queens of the Stone Age @ The Wiltern
6/06 South of France @ Detroit Bar
6/12 The Donkeys @ The Echo
6/16 Indian Jewelry, Deathday @ The Echo (Part Time Punks 8th Anniversary)
6/17 Indian Jewelry, Black Bananas @ The Observatory (Constellation Room)
6/25 Bosnian Rainbows @ First Unitarian Church
6/26 Mavis Staples @ The Fonda Theatre
6/26 Bosnian Rainbows @ The Observatory
7/13 Olafur Arnalds @ The Glass House
7/13 Dessa @ Troubadour
7/15 Dessa @ Detroit Bar
7/21 Shooter Jennings @ The Echo (Echoplex)
7/23 The Futurebirds, Diarrhea Planet @ The Echo
7/23 Papa @ The Observatory (Constellation Room)
7/27 Courtney Love @ Grove of Anaheim
7/27 Allah-Las, Mrs. Magician, Sea Lions and so many more @ The Glass House (Viva! Pomona)
7/28 Weekend, Tennis System @ The Echo
8/09 Grizzly Bear @ Hollywood Forever Cemetery
8/17 X @ Pershing Square
8/22 Pinback @ The Observatory
8/24 Yeah Yeah Yeahs, TV on the Radio, Deerhunter, Devendra Banhart, Toro y Moi, Simian Mobile Disco, Thee Oh Sees, Ty Segall, Dan Deacon, Delorean, Foxygen, METZ, Crystal Antlers, Waxahatchee and more @ Los Angeles State Historic Park (FYF Fest)
8/25 My Bloody Valentine, MGMT, Beach House, Solange, Yo La Tengo, Washed Out, Holy Ghost!, Melvins, Kurt Vile, Les Savy Fav, !!!, Poolside, Mac DeMarco, How To Dress Well, The Orwells, Classixx, Mikal Cronin, Fear Of Men @ Los Angeles State Historic Park (FYF Fest)
8/28 Icona Pop @ The Observatory
8/29 Icona Pop @ The Fonda Theatre
9/04 Superchunk @ El Rey Theatre
9/07 & 9/08 Black Hippy, Danny Brown, Flatbush Zombies, Earl Sweatshirt, Ratking, Talib Kweli, Wu Tang Clan and more @ San Manuel Amphitheatre (Rock The Bells)
9/07 The Cult @ The Wiltern
9/13 Local Natives, Wild Nothing @ The Greek Theatre
9/19 FIDLAR @ The Observatory
9/21 Peter Hook @ The Fonda Theatre
AND MORE...

FIND ALL JUST ANNOUNCED SHOWS HERE >>

Peals is a new duo from Baltimore. Their names are William Cashion - he’s in Future Islands - and Bruce Willen - he was in Double Dagger (RIP - may you be still playing as Double Dagger in Heaven - or something). Two fine Baltimore bands right there.

Actually, you might as well not even click on those two links up there and read more about Future Islands or Double Dagger. It’ll just throw you off the scent. Because this isn’t punk, you see. This is Walden Pond. And it’s easy. It’s easy like a Sunday morning (unless you work in retail or in the food or hotel industry or you’re a cop etc. - for you guys and gals, this is easy like a Tuesday morning...or whenever your day off is - perhaps you would’ve figured out what i meant regardless - but really, i just wanted to include you weekend heroes in this space here).

Using mostly quiet guitars (they explode sometimes like Mogwai - but very rarely), warm sounding keyboards, and various stringed things (that’s the classically trained technical term) Peals will set you adrift on memory bliss with their tranquil homemade instrumental soundscapes. And what is a soundscape exactly? I don’t know. It’s a word used to describe pretty stuff, I think.

But I do know this. Peals’ music is minimal. It’s peaceful. It feels like field recordings (I don’t know if they actually went to any fields to record - I wasn’t there - the wind chimes suggest someone’s super chill backyard). AND...wait for it...this band’s music is interesting. I bet you thought this was going to be boring, what, with the fields and the wind chimes and all that. Let me tell you what. Boring, this is not.

Peals’ debut album “Walking Field” is set to come out on Thrill Jockey because of course it is. That’s the perfect label for this sublime, soundscapable* journey (*well it’s a word now).

Listening to this band makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside. And right now, I’m just high on life...............and on Peals too.



Peals don't have any shows scheduled....yet....but save them using your MY ROCKNESS ACCOUNT and we'll let YOU know when they're playing Los Angeles... as soon as WE know. Cool? Cool.

Ariel Pink is playing at a cemetery. What more do you need to know?



Ariel Pink plays Hollywood Forever Cemetery, on Friday, May 17th.