Made In America - La Luz, "It's Alive" (2013)

I don't know what it is about 60's inspired surf-rock that's really grabbed my attention lately. In my first blog post for "Made In America" I swooned over L.A. surf-punks Bleached and then again in May with The Allah-Las. This week we head back up the west coast for Seattle's La Luz.

Shana Cleveland (guitar), Marian Li Pino (drums), Abbey Blackwell (bass), and Alice Sandahl (electric piano) formed La Luz just last summer and quickly self-released a five song EP Damp Face which was named after a steamy summer recording session in an un-airconditioned apartment in Washington state. The EP has since then been picked up and re-released digitally and on cassette via Burger Records. The ladies, known for their tight and interactive live shows, straddle and sometimes blur the lines between near-riotous danceable garage rock and etheral mood music. The music is crafted well enough to hold up as Ventures-style instrumental, with that wet Fender slack-jawed reverb and punchy electric piano, but it's the atmospheric vocals and quad-harmonies that really pushes you over the edge and into that warm salty water.

Made In America - The Lovely Bad Things

I have to give a shout out to the 3hive crew for turning me on to The Lovely Bad Things. Those guys have such great taste in music and I often visit the site when I have the need for new sounds in my ears. Thanks!

La Mirada, California’s The Lovely Bad Things represent what I loved most about bands like the Pixies and Pretty Girls Make Graves. They've got this raucous highly intensive garage sound melded with sharp hooks and sweet harmonies that will have you instantly mouthing the words to the songs before you even know what the lyrics are. They also all sing and play each other’s instruments, as if being huge fans of the Pixies wasn't endearing enough.

Made up of brothers Brayden and Cameron Ward, Tim Hatch and Lauren Curtius, and clearly evident by listening to their song lyrics, all pop culturalists and sci-fi geeks, The Lovely Bad Things hit the scene around 2010 with an unofficial first release title Shark Week. Two years later a bigger splash would be made with their quickly sold out Maxi-EP New Ghost/Old Waves on Burger Records. New Ghost/Old Waves has since been reissued on vinyl along with their official debut album The Late Great Whatever through Volcom Entertainment.

The Lovely Bad Things Fried Eyes

Preview the rest of The Late Great Whatever on The Lovely Bad Thing's Spotify page.