The Ruckus

In Pictures: Nicole Simone

Bootleg Theatre | Los Angeles, California | 24 February 2010 | Flickr Set

At first listen, you might think the jazz-infused music and gorgeous voice of Nicole Simone stepped out of a time machine, hearkening back to an earlier era of sexy voices in dimly-lit night clubs. Then you realize she's better than a mere retro act. Last Wednesday, she and her band showed this to an appreciative crowd at the Bootleg Theatre in Los Angeles.

Nicole and her band played several songs from her forthcoming EP as well as newer material, one song even making its live debut, that blended a more rock feel with her jazz style. Her voice was perfect and her band spot on as they wound through their set.

Her video for "Melt" was featured here recently and more tracks can be heard on her MySpace. Nicole Simone's EP is due out March 9th.

In Pictures: The Damn Sons

Bootleg Theatre | Los Angeles, California | 22 February 2010 | Flickr Set

Seeing The Damn Sons was no bad way to start the week. The band's recent set at the Bootleg Theatre rocked, giving the audience several songs from their EP as well as a couple great ones yet to be released.

Definitely a band to keep an eye on if you dig their garage/southern rock feel, the group's EP can be had for less than five bucks on iTunes and there's an album in the works.

The Interview: Goldhawks

I sat down with the boys from Goldhawks before their show at Cargo, East London. I was only a little familiar with the five piece but I was quite interested to speak to them after I did some research. There seemed to be a little bit of controversy surrounding them, lead singer Bobby had once been a part of the London folk scene (you know the one with Ruckus favourites Johnny Flynn and Laura Marling). Bobby then decided to break away from acoustic folk and opt for more electric Indie Rock, and Goldhawks was formed with Graham (drums), Nick (keyboard), Jack (guitar) and Colin (bass). The controversy reared its head when the band was quoted as being less than positive toward the London Folk scene, and I wanted to get to the bottom of this. We love Indie and we love Folk, so colour me intrigued.

Watch This: Tiësto feat. Tegan & Sara - Feel It In My Bones

While we're on a Tegan and Sara kick, check out the video for their collaboration with Tiësto, "Feel It In My Bones". They played a stripped down, acoustic version at their show on Sunday in Tampa, and I thought it was brilliant, but the original version is just as fantastic.

Live: Tegan and Sara

Tegan and Sara | Tampa Theatre | 20 February 2010

Tegan and Sara have been one of my very favorite bands ever since one (relatively) chilly September day when I innocently picked up If It Was You while out buying Bangs' Call and Response (god, I miss Bangs). To say that I fell hard for them would be an understatement. I was taken in initially by "Living Room" (which remains my favorite Tegan and Sara song to this day) and "And Darling (This Thing That Breaks My Heart)" - which was, endearingly, recorded at Tegan's house, separately from the rest of the record. My adoration of them grew with every album - their songs are always pitch perfect and totally relevant and now I'm getting off of the subject, which is the gig that they played at my favorite venue on Sunday night.

They rarely come to Florida, and they hadn't been to Tampa before this so it was kind of a capital E EVENT for me (why I'd never seen them while traveling, I have no idea). I took my friend Bri along with me, and although she is relatively new to their music, she was similarly affected and now has an enormous crush on Sara (whereas I have to admit that I'm more Tegan-centric when pressed to choose).

Their opening acts, Steel Train and Holly Miranda (from The Jealous Girlfriends - I'm a big fan) provided solid support, and had the crowd whipped into a frenzy early on, which only (naturally) increased when Tegan and Sara took the stage.

Watch This: Fake Problems: Heartless

Fake Problems - Heartless from If You Make It on Vimeo.

I'm a sucker for a simple acoustic performance. There's something about the lone guitar and vocals that tugs at my heart. This style perfectly suits the raw lyrics of "Heartless", from one of my favorite bands, Fake Problems.

Watch This: Margaret Cho - My Lil Wayne (ft Ben Lee)

Can we talk about Margaret Cho? I have had the biggest girl crush on her for years (along with Liz Lemon, she's my hero), and have always found her work - from her early standup, to her activism to her books and live performances - to be utter perfection. This video isn't what you might expect to see here, but it's impossible for me to ignore anything that she does.

With camera work by actress Ione Skye, and written and performed by Margaret Cho and Ben Lee (who also produced this masterpiece), this video packs a fair amount of star power, and a lot of wtf level hilarity. Regardless of how you feel about Lil Wayne's unfortunate incarceration, you're sure to have a laugh.