Our music picks for 2015

Here are the top picks–at least from some members of the Inland Valley Daily Bulletin publication–for 2015 albums. Any questions, comments or hate please respond in the comment section.

David Allen (columnist):

1. Kamasi Washington: The Epic (Brainfeeder)

2. Courtney Barnett: Sometimes I Sit and Think, and Sometimes I Just Sit (Mom + Pop)

3. Iris DeMent: The Trackless Woods (Flariella)

4. Jeffrey Lewis and Los Volts: Manhattan (Rough Trade)

5. Adele: 25 (Columbia)

6. Sleater-Kinney: No Cities to Love (Sub Pop)

7. Beach House: Depression Cherry (Sub Pop)

8. Yo La Tengo: Stuff Like That There (Matador)

9. Alabama Shakes: Sound & Color (ATO)

10. Donnie Trumpet and the Social Experiment: Surf (free download)

Runners-up: Nellie McKay: My Weekly Reader (429), The Bird and the Bee: Recreational Love (Rostrum), Boz Scaggs: A Fool to Care (429), Joan Shelley: Over and Even (No Quarter), Cecile McLorin Salvant: For One to Love (Mack Avenue)

Liset Marquez (Rancho Cucamonga, Claremont and Upland reporter):

1. Jamie xx: In Colour (Young Turks)

2. Adele: 25 (Columbia)

3. Leon Bridges: Coming Home (Columbia)

4. Florence and the Machine: How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful (Island)

5. Odesza: In Return (Counter)

6. Tame Impala: Currents (Interscope)

7. Beach House: Depression Cherry (Sub Pop)

8. Alabama Shakes: Sound & Color (ATO)

9. Other Lives: Rituals (PIAS)

10. Boxed In: Boxed In (Nettwerk)

Wes Woods II (Culture/entertainment reporter):

1. Future: DS2: (A1 Recordings, Freebandz and Epic Records)

2. Kamasi Washington: The Epic (Brainfeeder)

3. FKA Twigs: M3LL155X (Young Turks)

4. Vince Staples: Summertime 06 (Def Jam Records and ARTium Recordings)

5. Oddisee: The Good Fight (Mello Music Group)

6. Alabama Shakes: Sound & Color (ATO)

7. Courtney Barnett: Sometimes I Sit and Think, and Sometimes I Just Sit (Mom + Pop)

8. Tame Impala: Currents (Interscope)

9. Ty Dolla $ign: Free TC (Taylor Gang Records, Pu$haz Ink and Atlantic Records)

10. Jamie xx: In Colour (Young Turks)

Runners-up: Mountain Goats: Beat the Champ (Merge Records), Beach House: Depression Cherry (Sub Pop), The Game: Documentary 2 & 2.5 (Blood Money Entertainment and Entertainment One Music), My Morning Jacket: The Waterfall (ATO Records and Capital Records),  Donnie Trumpet and the Social Experiment: Surf (free download)

Coachella 2013: Father John Misty uses charisma and songs to win over Gobi Tent on third night

Coachella 2013: Father John Misty uses charisma and songs to win over Gobi Tent

Posted:   04/15/2013 03:13:04 AM PDT
Updated:   04/15/2013 04:18:02 AM PDT

 

INDIO – Father John Misty used a combination of humor, charisma and music to earn what he called a “victory, victory in the desert” at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival on Sunday.Father John Misty, real name Josh Tillman, told the audience during his set that “I feel like playing this thing now” before he picked up an acoustic guitar. “This thing is called a laptop.”

That’s Father John Misty in a nutshell and he kept the mood light and energetic with jokes and moves like picking up the mic stand, spinning around or kneeling to the music and most importantly infectious music.

Misty’s band featured a lot of acoustic guitar mixed with experimental rock and folk that kept the set in constant motion during songs like “Funtimes in Babylon,” “Misty’s Nightmares 1 & 2,” “Well, You Can Do It Without Me” and more.

wes.woods@inlandnewspapers.com

Coachella 2013: The Lumineers delight crowd

Coachella 2013: The Lumineers delight crowd

By Liset Marquez, Staff Writer
Posted:   04/15/2013 01:51:45 AM PDT
Updated:   04/15/2013 02:04:06 AM PDT

 

The Lumineers perform at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival Sunday, April 14, 2013, at the Empire Polo Club in Indio. Jennifer Cappuccio Maher/Daily Bulletin (Jennifer Cappuccio Maher)

The Lumineers (Jennifer Cappuccio Maher/Staff Writer)

Photos: The Lumineers performs at Coachella

Complete coverage: COACHELLA 2013


INDIO -The Lumineers turned their early Sunday afternoon performance on the Coachella main stage into a singalong.The folk-rock band from Denver, Colorado were making their first appearance at the festival. But as much as front man Wesley Schultz tried to turn it into a hootenanny, he was unsuccessful.

It doesn’t mean the crowd wasn’t into the set, because they were – dancing along throughout the set. At least Schultz tried even if they weren’t successful.

After opening their set with “Submarines” from their self-titled debut album, Schutlz asked the audience to sing the chorus “I ain’t nobody’s problem but my own” from the song with the same name.

After trying to coax them, he just continued singing.

It was a smart, and bold move by The Lumineers to get “Ho Hey” early in their set. The song helped catapult the band’s success and earned them two Grammys nominations for best new artist and best Americana album.

At the same time they risked the chance of people walking away from the set early on – it happened to Goyte last year after he played “Somebody That I Use to Know.”

The audience began to sing along from the start but then would trail off. With phones and cameras up in the air many tried to capture the moment.

They also performed a brand new, untitled song which featured Neyla Pekarek on vocals, which the crowd loved, and a piano solo.

He later asked the crowd to sing along to “Stubborn Love,” even practicing the chorus with them first.

One of the band member stood on top of the piano, stomping and clapping to start off “Big Parade.”

Schultz told the crowd “I think this is the biggest crowd we’ve ever played,” and goes back into the song.

To close out their set with “Flapper Girl” and before walking off the the stage they give each other hugs.

Coachella 2013: Wu-Tang Clan draw enormous crowd to Outdoor Theatre on third night

Coachella 2013: Wu-Tang Clan draw enormous crowd to Outdoor Theatre

Posted:   04/15/2013 01:15:59 AM PDT
Updated:   04/15/2013 08:38:48 AM PDT

 

Wu-Tang Clan performs at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival Sunday, April 14, 2013, at the Empire Polo Club in Indio. Jennifer Cappuccio Maher/Daily Bulletin (Jennifer Cappuccio Maher/Staff Writer)

Wu-Tan Clan (Jennifer Cappuccio Maher/Staff Writer)

Photos: Wu-Tan Clan performs at Coachella

Complete coverage: COACHELLA 2013


INDIO – The Wu-Tang Clan’s performance celebrating the 20-year anniversary of their album “Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)” drew one of the largest crowds to the Outdoor Theatre on Sunday evening.The Staten Island hip-hop group headlined the stage at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival with thousands of people in attendance.

“If you feel the Wu-Tang spirit in your heart, put your W’s up,” said The Rza to the audience who complied.

Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) was released in November 1993 and has sold more than one million copies.

Their first song was “Protect Ya Neck,” which was also appropriately enough the debut single of the group back in 1992.

Also performed Sunday night were the other singles from the 36 chambers album “Method Man,” “C.R.E.A.M.” and “Can It Be All So Simple.”

While group member Ol’ Dirty Bastard died in November 2004, the other group members filled in for him on Sunday.

Besides 36 chambers songs, group members also performed “Reunited” from Wu-Tang Forever and Method Man performed “Bring The Pain” while The Genius performed “4th Chamber.”

wes.woods@inlandnewspapers.com

Coachella 2013: Red Hot Chili Peppers play all the hits at the festival on third night

Coachella 2013: Red Hot Chili Peppers play all the hits at the festival

Posted:   04/15/2013 12:56:34 AM PDT
Updated:   04/15/2013 01:00:10 AM PDT

 

INDIO – The Red Hot Chili Peppers played a greatest hit set of sorts for the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival audience Sunday night.The group started with “Monarchy of Roses” from their latest 2011 album “I’m With You” before heading to the familar strains of their hit “Dani California” from the 2006 album “Stadium Arcadium.”

There was no surprises from the group as they mostly stuck with familar hits like 2000’s “Californication,” 2002’s “By The Way,” 2006’s “Snow (Hey Oh)” and the 1990’s hits later in the set.

“Under the Bridge” from the 1991 album “Blood Sugar Sex Magik” inspired a massive Coachella singalong as did set ender “Give It Away,” from the same album.

The oldest hit they performed was 1989’s “Higher Ground,” a cover of Stevie Wonder’s 1973 hit.

While fans appeared happy with the set, I wished they would have pushed themselves to go a little farther back into albums like “Freaky Styley,” “The Uplift Mofo Party Plan” and more from “Mother’s Milk” besides “Higher Ground.”

wes.woods@inlandnewspapers.com

Coachella 2013: La Roux impresses crowd in return to fest

Coachella 2013: La Roux impresses crowd in return to fest

By Liset Marquez
Posted:   04/14/2013 09:24:06 PM PDT
Updated:   04/14/2013 09:42:06 PM PDT

Synthpop duo La Roux make a return to Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival. (Thomas Cordova/ Staff photographer)

INDIO – Synthpop singer/songwriter duo La Roux sounded flawless from the moment they took the stage on the Mojave tent of the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival.In a set that relied heavily on their breakout 2009 self-titled album “La Roux,” the band made their return to the festival since 2010.

It’s sort of a do-over for the duo Elly Jackson and Benjamin Langmaid who had to cancel their appearance at last year’s fest because the they were working on finishing up their record, which is set to be released later this year, and could not find the time to play the fest.

Last year was the first time the three-day festival was expanded to two consecutive weekends.

La Roux kicked off their set with “In for the Kill” and going into some dance tunes like “Fascination,” “Tigerlily.” The duo slowed things down for a stripped down version of “Color My Eyes.”

During the set Jackson made her way from one side of the stage to the other as her light coat flapped open in the wind.

The duo were on the stage as heavy winds began to pick up. There were no issues other than the large display screens swayed a bit. The crowd seemed to not be faze by the winds or the dipping temperatures as they danced and sung along.

They closed out their set with crowd favorite “Bulletproof.”

Coachella 2013: Tame Impala plays large crowd at Outdoor Theatre that includes Tyler, the Creator

Coachella 2013: Tame Impala plays large crowd at Outdoor Theatre that includes Tyler, the Creator

Posted:   04/14/2013 08:44:43 PM PDT
Updated:   04/14/2013 08:59:52 PM PDT

 

INDIO – Perth, Western Australia’s Tame Impala performed music from their albums “Innerspeaker” and “Lonerism” that drew a large group of fans to the Outdoor Theatre Sunday night that included hip-hop artist Tyler, the Creator.The Odd Future member was located off stage to the left of Tame Impala but he could be seen singing along to songs like “Feels Like We Only Go Backwards” off Tame Impala’s critically acclaimed “Lonerism” album released in 2012.

Tame Impala had the crowd in the palm of their hands with songs like “Elephant” and “Feels Like We Only Go Backwards” from “Lonerism” that created a dance party Sunday evening.

The group started off with “Solitude Is Bliss” from their debut album “Innerspeaker” that immediately won the crowd over despite the group performing about 10 minutes late on Sunday.

Besides their latest albums, the group also played “Half Full Glass of Wine” from their 2008 “Tame Impala EP.”

wes.woods@inlandnewspapers.com 909-483-8549

Coachella 2013: Social Distortion causes mosh pits at main stage Sunday

Coachella 2013: Social Distortion causes mosh pits at main stage Sunday

Posted:   04/14/2013 07:20:13 PM PDT
Updated:   04/14/2013 07:40:18 PM PDT

 

INDIO – Fullerton’s Social Distortion used its blend of punk rock to start mosh pits at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival at the main Coachella stage shortly after their opening song of “I Was Wrong.””I Was Wrong,” off their 1996 album “White Light, White Heat, White Trash,” was the first of many crowd pleasers from heavily tattooed lead singer Mike Ness and company.

Next up was “Reach for the Sky,” from the 2004 album “Sex, Love and Rock ‘n’ Roll,” that drew heavy applause with Ness’ catchy lyrics of “So if you please take this moment/Try if you can to make it last/Don’t think about no future/And just forget about the past/And make it last/ … Reach for the Sky because tomorrow may neve come.”

The group also performed “Gimme the Sweet and Lowdown” and “Story of My Life” in rapid-fire succession with an enormous mosh-pit for the latter song off their self-titled 1990 album.

Ness even performed the group’s last single “Machine Gun Blues” from their 2011 album “Hard Times and Nursery Rhymes.”

wes.woods@inlandnewspapers.com

Coachella 2013: Electronic acts Tanlines, Jamiexx bring the dance grooves

Coachella 2013: Electronic acts Tanlines, Jamiexx bring the dance grooves on final day

Posted:   04/14/2013 07:05:12 PM PDT
Updated:   04/15/2013 12:28:19 AM PDT

 

Tanlines perform on the final day of Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival (Thomas Cordova/ Staff photographer)

INDIO -Electronic band Tanlines had the crowd inside the Gobi tent dancing during their set Sunday at Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival. The band played crowd favorites “All of me” and “Real Life” off of their albums Mixed Emotions and Settings.Hailing from Brooklyn, New York, Tanlines is comprised of Jesse Cohen and guitarist and vocalist Eric Emm.

Frontman Emm joked with the crowd about how his band mate Cohen looked pretty good for being a hologram. This time last year the festival was a buzz about how the main act on the last night of the fest, Dr Dre and Snoop Dogg would bring Tupac to the stage.

Earlier in the day Jaime Smith, who goes by the name Jamiexx, was preforming in front of a packed crowd inside the Yuma tent on Sunday afternoon.

The English music producer and remix artist, who last night played with his band mates of the xx on the main stage.

During his 45-minute set, Jamiexx spun a lot of music mixed in with that of the xx. Romy Croft danced while her band mate spun.

Coachella 2013: The Gaslight Anthem plays the hits to Coachella stage in afternoon set

Coachella 2013: The Gaslight Anthem plays the hits to Coachella stage in afternoon set

Posted:   04/14/2013 04:28:45 PM PDT
Updated:   04/15/2013 12:37:18 AM PDT

 

The Gaslight Anthem on the Coachella stage (Jennifer Cappuccio Maher/Staff Writer)

Photos: The Gaslight Anthem performs at Coachella

Complete coverage: COACHELLA 2013


INDIO – New Brunswick, New Jersey rock mixed with folk punk, indie rock and punk band The Gaslight Anthem performed a smooth set despite performing under the sun at the main Coachella stage to an underwhelmed and more than likely tired festival audience on Sunday afternoon.The Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival veterans, who last performed in 2009, showcased their diverse musical styles with songs like “45” and “Mulholland Drive” off their latest 2012 album

The Gaslight Anthem on the Coachella stage on Sunday (Jennifer Cappuccio Maher/Staff Writer)

“Handwritten.””The last time we played it was very hot. This time, it’s not so bad,” said singer Brian Fallon to the audience, who didn’t seem to agree as many were just standing around or sitting around waiting for popular folk rock act The Lumineers to perform next.

When Fallon mentioned the audience should see The Lumineers, Social Distortion and Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, the audience arguably became the most animated during the set, which sounded great sonically.

Other songs The Gaslight Anthem performed included “Old Haunts,” “American Slang” and “The Queen of Lower Chelsea” off 2010’s “American Slang” besides “Old White Lincoln” and “Great Expectations” off their breakthough 2008 album “The ’59 Sound.”

wes.woods@inlandnewspapers.com