L.A.'s Saint Motel

With sold-out shows at The Roxy, long lines for their Spaceland residency and a packed room for their recent KROQ/Filter show at the Echoplex, Tinseltown music fans and industry folks alike have definitely taken notice of L.A. locals Saint Motel. Now, having completed a successful Northwest/Canada tour with UK buzz act Band of Skulls, expect a lot more folks to be packing their shows. And rightfully so, considering powerhouse talent agency CAA have picked them up for representation.

From the beginning, the group took added measures to stand out from other local acts by putting together themed “events” rather than just shows, like their annual Zombie Prom or the Black and White show. They also used creative methods of promoting, such as creating videos to virally promote their events. When they released their six-song ForPlay EP last September, it also came with a free video for each song. What may seem like small extra touches, have gone a long way to building a solid fan base, and has caught the attention of local tastemakers like KROQ’s Kat Corbett and Nic Harcourt, who have championed the band.  Catch them on July 1st at the Hammer Museum where they headline the opening show of KCRW’s concert series, Also I like to Rock…

Sick of Sarah @ The Roxy, Friday 4/23

As quickly as it came, the annual rock n’ roll oasis in the desert known as Coachella is over. So while you tend to that lingering sunburn and exercise the last of those acid-demons, let’s play catch-up on some new signings and stories we’ve been following… Los Angeles indie-label Dangerbird Records, who has been on a recent signing-spree stocking their coffers with a wide spectrum of artists, has put paper to Fitz & the Tantrums and we hear negotiations are in motion. FATT opened for The Specials last week at Club Nokia and will be joining Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings on tour in May… We hear Epic Records is finalizing a deal with Denver’s Joel Jorgenson. The singer is managed by Michael Goldberg and Isaac Hayes for 108 Management (we’ve also confirmed that 108 does not stand for their combined IQs)… Momentum continues to build for Las Vegas-act Imagine Dragons, who played to a sold-out room last Wednesday for the BMI/KROQ-presented show at The Viper Room. Having only played a handful of L.A. dates, it was impressive to see industry take a literal back seat to a sweaty crowd of fans singing along to the band’s late-night set. With a growing regional fan base and an impressive live show, labels seem to be closing in – we hear an East Coast major is looking to shut it down early, while publishers and booking agents have joined the scrimmage too… Radio continues to build for L.A. locals Dead Country with adds at Santa Barbara’s KJEE and KROX in Austin, as well as spikes at Live 105, KNRK in Portland and Denver’s modern rock KTCL; spins are also continuing in their hometown on KROQ. Could there be outside forces at work here? The band just finished a tour with The Bronx and will be supporting Far on a series of upcoming dates. Their self-titled EP is out now… And if you slept on the radio action on South Carolina’s Villanova, it looks like the band is now off the market. We hear an East Coast major is finalizing paperwork to close the act who are getting serious spins on influential modern rock station WARQ… Look for Steve Greenberg’s S-Curve Records to release new albums from Seinking Ships and The Belles on June 8th. Eric Matthews, formerly on Sub Pop, collaborated with Ohio musician Christopher Seink to record the new full-length Museum Quality Capture, while Lawrence, KS combo The Belles will release their sophomore album Times Flies When You’re Losing Your Mind… It certainly does… Finally, catch Minneapolis’ Sick of Sarah tomorrow night in L.A. for the early show at The Roxy. The band, who has been compared to Sleater-Kinney and The Breeders, is building a big following in the mid-west and is one of two artists featured during the month of April in Journeys stores nation-wide…

IN THE MIX: Jay Lewis, Purevolume, Ben Roethlisberger

L.A. locals Dead Country added to rotation on KROQ

If you haven’t heard of VAMPIRES EVERYWHERE! you might not be the only one, but that’s about to change very soon. Century Media Records was early on signing the L.A.-based undead rockers who have a new video for the song “Immortal Love” currently in heavy rotation on MTV2’s Headbangers Ball. The band was signed by new VP of A&R and Marketing Mike Gitter and is the first signing under the watch of new label prexy Don Robertson. Their EP, Lost In The Shadows, streets on April 13th exclusively at Hot Topic locations nationwide, the band’s debut full-length is expected this summer… In a move to spotlight local talent, KROQ began spinning a new song from unsigned L.A. locals Dead Country. The band’s song “Euro Thrash” has been getting 7 spins a day and getting phones, thus spurring a flurry of label calls to the band. We hear S.F. station Live 105 may start spinning the tune this week. Expect to see label and publisher folks making a trek to Orange County for the band’s residency at La Cave, which is famous for its steak & seafood…mmm yum! Meanwhile, we hear east coast A&R reps are planning flights to Tinseltown to meet the band. Nick Raskulinecz has been tapped to produce the album and the group will be supporting The Bronx on a North American tour later this month [Update: "Euro Thrash" received an official add on KROQ this morning]… Back on the right coast is the Chris Long-managed Villanova, whose new song “Hard To Be Around” recently got added to power rotation on South Carolina’s influential WARQ and reached #1 last week with 42 spins. The band’s new album is slated for an April release. Barrister Tim Mandelbaum is handling legal duties and Atlanta studio whiz Rick Beato produced the new album. Stay tuned…