The Joy Formidable inspire complete strangers to make out at The Roxy

The Joy Formidable inspire complete strangers to make out at The Roxy
Mark E. Ortega
Grimygoods.com
March 30, 2016

After seeing them destroy at the first of two sold-out nights at famed venue The Roxy, we might have to amend our list of Top 20 Badass Frontwomen in Indie and Underground Music to include Rhiannon Bryan of The Joy Formidable.

Along with bandmates Rhydian Dafydd and Matthew James Thomas, the Welsh trio made the intimate Hollywood space sound like an arena. The depth of their tunes are surprising when you realize there’s only three of them on stage — there could easily be five or six with the amount of noise emanating from the stage.

Hot New (To L.A.) Band Alert: The Soft White Sixties Bring Their Vintage Rock n’ Soul Sound to Los Angeles

Hot New (To L.A.) Band Alert: The Soft White Sixties Bring Their Vintage Rock n’ Soul Sound to Los Angeles
Mark E. Ortega
Grimygoods.com
March 29, 2016

For the second year in a row, rock n’ soul band The Soft White Sixties sold out a gig during San Francisco’s Noise Pop Festival last month. Over the years, the four-piece had gained a big following in the Bay Area city that they made their home. But just a few months ago, they decided to pick up and move to Los Angeles for a fresh start.

“We were doing what we were doing in SF and it felt really good,” frontman Octavio Genera told Grimy Goods after playing one of many shows at this year’s SXSW. “But I’m very much in that psyche that when something becomes too comfortable, I get kind of nervous and have to shake it. And the band just said, yeah let’s do it. And it’s been nice for us to be able to do all that together.”

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Top 10 Most Booked U.S. Festival Acts of 2016

Top 10 Most Booked U.S. Festival Acts of 2016
Mark E. Ortega
Grimygoods.com
March 28, 2016

There is basically a major music festival in the United States once a weekend once festival season “officially” kicks off with Coachella in mid-April. While most of these festivals do a great job of curating unique lineups tailored to their usual base of patrons, there’s a handful of acts that you’ll see on more than their fair share of bills.

We’ve done some research using a spreadsheet that covers Coachella, Levitation, Shaky Knees, Shaky Beats, Hangout, Boston Calling, Sasquatch!, BottleRock, Governors Ball, Bunbury, Bonnaroo, Firefly, Forecastle, Pitchfork, and Panorama’s lineups to nail down the top 10 most booked acts on the U.S. festival circuit this spring and summer. Take a look at who you might get to see multiple times if you’re lucky enough to be hitting more than one festival this year.

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Top 20 Badass Frontwomen in Indie/Underground Music

Top 20 Badass Frontwomen in Indie/Underground Music
Mark E. Ortega
Grimygoods.com
March 24, 2016

There’s an almost infinite amount of killer women fronting bands these days. We’ve done our best to put together our list of our 20 favorite bad asses that currently front their own bands, while also including some of our favorite lesser-known acts that have the potential to grow into being some of the better known ones. We got some good insight from our readers via social media, as well as from our own staff. Here’s our list in no particular order.

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Catfish and The Bottlemen release new video for “Soundcheck,” new album due in May

Catfish and The Bottlemen release new video for “Soundcheck,” new album due in May
Mark E. Ortega
Grimygoods.com
March 24, 2016

With elements of The Strokes meets Kings of Leon meets The Killers, UK rockers Catfish and The Bottlemen are seemingly destined to play arena shows across the globe. Their debut full-length album The Balcony was met with critical acclaim and they’ve been playing massive crowds at home. Now they look to conquer America with their upcoming album The Ride, due out May 27 via Capitol Records.

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Must-See Coachella Undercard: Anderson .Paak

Must-See Coachella Undercard: Anderson .Paak
Mark E. Ortega
Grimygoods.com
March 23, 2016

Oxnard rapper Anderson .Paak is poised to have a monster 2016 — and it couldn’t be happening to a harder-working guy.

Paak is part black and part Korean, giving him a different viewpoint from many within his genre. His 2016 album Malibu is one of the year’s best so far and much of the lyrical content of it deals with his upbringing and how difficult of a road it’s been to his current stature.

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Interview with POLIÇA: An in-depth discussion of their new politically charged album “United Crushers”

Interview with POLIÇA: An in-depth discussion of their new politically charged album “United Crushers”
Mark E. Ortega
Grimygoods.com
March 22, 2016

On Friday, March 25, Minneapolis synthpop band POLIÇA returns to Los Angeles for a date at the Fonda Theatre. They had a busy week during SXSW in Austin, playing upwards of a half-dozen shows during that stretch. Their new album United Crushers dropped a few weeks ago via Mom + Pop Records and it is a very brilliant and politically-charged record. We talked with singer Channy Leaneagh about the album and some of the messages behind it, check out what she had to say in our interview below!

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Music Festival-ization: Which spring festival is right for you?

Music Festival-ization: Which spring festival is right for you?
Mark E. Ortega
Grimygoods.com
March 22, 2016

Coachella takes place a little less than a month from now, which means festival season is nearly underway. There are now more music festivals taking place in the United States than ever before. Thievery Corporation’s Rob Garza told us last year that there’s a huge festival-ization going on right now, and he isn’t wrong. Here at Grimy Goods we’ve compiled a comprehensive guide based on the spring festivals we’ve covered over the past few years. Take a look to find out what festival is right for you.

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SXSW 2016 (Saturday): HINDS, Diet Cig, Formation make up for line-wasting time

SXSW 2016 (Saturday): HINDS, Diet Cig, Formation make up for line-wasting time
Mark E. Ortega
Grimygoods.com
March 20, 2016

The one big drawback of SXSW is that you could potentially wait in a line for three or more hours for a really hyped event, think you’re going to get in, and then get royally effed over and left in the cold.

This is what happened to me on my last day of SXSW 2016 as I got to the Bud Light Factory at Brazo’s extremely early in an effort to see The Roots and Big Grams at their famed Jam Sessions. Security told people doors would open at 8 PM. I was in the first 75 people in the wristband line, there wasn’t a long line of badge holders or VIPs but 8 PM came and went. Then 9 PM came and went and the VIP and badge holder lines were massive. I ended up waiting and waiting just to not make it in. It was the one mistake I made all week and it ended up costing me the chance to see some dope bands during that time. Luckily, SXSW always allows you a chance to redeem yourself and I ended up seeing some dope bands anyways.

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SXSW 2016 (Friday): Willie Nelson’s party weathers the storm; CHVRCHES, Deftones rock SPIN showcase

SXSW 2016 (Friday): Willie Nelson’s party weathers the storm; CHVRCHES, Deftones rock SPIN showcase
Mark E. Ortega
Grimygoods.com
March 19, 2016

Friday was a wild day for SXSW goers everywhere. The afternoon came and went without issue, but when the evening started rolling in, a nasty storm came along with it. All outdoor showcases were postponed and later shut down due to the weather. I myself was nowhere near Austin at the time, instead an hour west at Willie Nelson‘s ranch for their annual Luck Reunion, itself delayed by the inclement weather. Check out the recap of Friday, which features performances from Willie Nelson, Jenny Lewis, CHVRCHES, Deftones, and Lucius.

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SXSW 2016 (Thursday): John Legend, Loretta Lynn, Gallant, DMA’S sparkle

SXSW 2016 (Thursday): John Legend, Loretta Lynn, Gallant, DMA’s sparkle
Mark E. Ortega
Grimygoods.com
March 18, 2016

Thursday at South by Southwest, we got to take in a diverse range of acts spanning a multitude of genres, including acts ranging from heavyweights like John Legend, Loretta Lynn and The Kills to up-and-comers like Gallant, Vince Staples and DMA’s.

John Legend not only topped a SXSW showcase this year, but he showcased some buzzy artists like Jack Freeman, IAM Action, Korbyn Rachel and Tim Jack Wilkins. I didn’t make it in time to see these acts but what an honor it must have been for them to be featured on the same bill as the hit-making Legend.

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SXSW 2016 (Wednesday): Kacey Musgraves, Charles Bradley, Julien Baker bring variety and good feels

SXSW 2016 (Wednesday): Kacey Musgraves, Charles Bradley, Julien Baker bring variety and good feels
Mark E. Ortega
Grimygoods.com
March 17, 2016

Wednesday at SXSW we covered quite a bit of ground, hitting showcases all over downtown Austin featuring acts like Kacey Musgraves, Charles Bradley, BORNS, HAELOS, Anderson .Paak and a slew of other awesome acts. Check out our full coverage of the day!

Things got started over at the Waterloo Records’ first showcase. There were some issues, as in the fire marshall was late in showing up and letting people in, so sets got pushed back an hour from their scheduled start times. By the time LA-based indie pop group PHASES went on, it was 1 PM, but they were well worth the wait.

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SXSW 2016 (Tuesday): Big Boi, St. Lucia, Kacy Hill, Jack Garratt leave lasting impressions

SXSW 2016 (Tuesday): Big Boi, St. Lucia, Kacy Hill, Jack Garratt leave lasting impressions
Mark E. Ortega
Grimygoods.com
March 16, 2016

Ah, Austin. It’s good to be back inside your town for South by Southwest (SXSW), and you really knew how to officially kick off the music portion of your epic city-wide festival, didn’t you? We got around quite a bit, and it’s only the beginning. Be sure to check in on our daily coverage if you want to get some insight into what you’re missing, or if you just want to relive some of the key moments.

First, things got started at Spotify House, which is pretty far tucked away from where most of the action is downtown. I checked it out the day before and caught impressive sets from Miguel and Lucius (please check out their new album Good Grief that just dropped March 11), getting a bit sunburnt in the process.

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Fonda Theatre crowd gets ‘physical’ for St. Lucia

Fonda Theatre crowd gets ‘physical’ for St. Lucia
Mark E. Ortega
Grimygoods.com
March 14, 2016

“I know it’s Thursday but really, this is like Friday night!” St. Lucia leader Jean-Philip Grobler yelled to the crowd at the sold-out Fonda Theatre midway through their energetic set. The crowd needed no prodding from Grobler as they would dance all night to their tropical tunes over the course of more than an hour.

Fresh off the release of their second full-length album Matter, Grobler and his band took the stage to raucous applause and anticipation a little after 10 PM. They kicked things off with “Rescue Me” and “Do You Remember?” — two cuts from the new album — before turning it back with fan-favorite “Closer Than This.” One thing that was clear right away was that St. Lucia’s new album is a hit with their fans, who seemed to know all the words to those songs already.

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Chet Faker misses mark at CRSSD Fest; Gorgon City, Tycho bring the fire

Chet Faker misses mark at CRSSD Fest; Gorgon City, Tycho bring the fire
Mark E. Ortega
Grimygoods.com
March 9, 2016

Sunday night, it was up to Aussie electronic artist Chet Faker to close the second spring edition of San Diego’s CRSSD Fest. ODESZA had set the bar high the night before with a rousing headline performance. Could Chet Faker aka Nicholas Murphy match the Seattle duo’s intensity the following night?

Unfortunately for those who stayed, Chet Faker fell short — though not all at a fault of his own. Sound issues plagued his entire set and there were many moments where you struggled to hear Murphy’s vocals.

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ODESZA proves headliner-worthy at San Diego’s CRSSD Spring Fest

ODESZA proves headliner-worthy at San Diego’s CRSSD Spring Fest
Mark E. Ortega
Grimygoods.com
March 8, 2016

Now in its second year, San Diego’s CRSSD Fest at Waterfront Park made the jump this weekend from being one of the best-kept secrets to being a legitimate powerhouse of a second-tier music festival.

The twice-a-year fest — which takes place in both March and October — was a sell-out and tickets on the secondary market were going for a pretty high price. With just two full-length records to their name, Seattle electronic duo ODESZA went from being a second-line act at last year’s March edition to the Saturday headliner this year.

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