Music

Sacramento psychedelic lo-fi group Ganglians are wrapping up their yet-to-be-titled new full-length record with local producer Raleigh Moncrief. “It’s pretty different than any of the old shit,” Moncrief told Submerge of the band’s new material. “This record is borderline hi-fi and more deeply tailored for headphone listeners, you know, more…

Sister Crayon Steps It Up Further on Debut LP It was a gray and windy afternoon on the beaches of Malibu. A tidal wave warning was in effect, but there local band Sister Crayon stood, fully-clothed, sharp shoreline rock at their ankles, as photographer Eliot Lee Hazel barked orders to…

A Lot Like Birds, Not to Reason Why, Early States, The Dreaded Diamond, Cryptics Friday, Jan. 21, 2011 – The Refuge – Sacramento Words by Bobby S. Gulshan – Photo by Cait Loper The Refuge played host to an eclectic bill of hard-hitting bands from around Northern California. The Cryptics,…

Typhoon continues to build momentum after a yearlong hiatus Bands have a hard enough time staying together with just a regular roster of three to five members. Heck, even The White Stripes have been on a lengthy break, and there are only two of them. Taking that into consideration, you…

Pets Return to “Kill The Boredom” For Second Album Most people watch TV and play video games in their living room, but Allison Jones and Derek Fieth of the rock band Pets use their house space a little differently. For the past few years, the rock couple has used their…

Brooklynati Natives Stay On Their Mark Since their debut full-length Moonlighting was released in 2006, Tanya Morgan has been like the long-distance relay team of underground rap. Individually, Von Pea and Donwill have shown to be more than qualified to run things, releasing a handful of solo projects and providing…

Seminal San Franciscan Crew Fights Evil on New Album It takes a band with the proper levels of collective ambiguousness to ascend the rickety ladders of the DIY underground. With the release of their 10th full-length studio album–and first for Chicago-based Polyvinyl Records after serving their formative years on seminal…

The King’s Speech In the days before radio (or wireless as it’s referred to in The King’s Speech), leaders really only had to look the part. Their words may have been read or simply handed down from some appointed underling. As technology became more prevalent in the day-to-day lives of…

Sacramento super-producer Lee Bannon takes us through a day at the office It was a dreary day to spend in Rocklin, the rain accentuating the isolation of the terrain, but such weather is great for the hermetic producer types. The assignment was to learn the work regimen of Sacramento hip-hop…

Who Cares Teenage Ego Trip (Independent release) When I was introduced to Who Cares, I heard a group with the purest of intentions struggling to craft music beyond the traditional hip-hop realm, while not betraying its beloved culture. I’ve always admired the courage in a group that was willing to…