Xmal Deutschland box set, Gift: The 4AD Years is out on May 9, 2025 (Photo: Kevin Cummins)
Last February, Anja Huwe took to the stage at the Grauzone Festival in The Hague for a set that included songs from Xmal Deutschland, the post-punk outfit she fronted throughout the 1980s. Huwe hadn’t performed these songs live since the band’s demise some 35 years earlier. In fact, after Xmal Deutschland, Huwe stepped away from the stage to focus on her career as a visual artist. Meanwhile, songs like “Mondlicht,”“Incubus Succubus” and “Qual” have become classics of the era. Out in the crowd were multiple generations of fans.
“I had to go out there and I saw these people, so many people, so I just tried to concentrate,” Huwe says, adding with a laugh, “I’ve got to get it right.”
L.A. Witch is back with their first full-length since the pandemic. For Doggod, released on April 4 via Suicide Squeeze Records, the local three-piece headed to Paris, where they recorded at Motorbass, the studio founded by late producer Philippe Zdar (Cassius) where Phoenix recorded Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix.
Even though the album was made in a studio with a French indie pop pedigree, the sound of Doggod is very L.A. Specifically, the album makes me think of the city’s 1980s post-punk scenes. At that time, you had deathrock, which became goth, and included bands like Kommunity FK, Christian Death and 45 Grave. There was a scene known as the Paisley Underground, which was ‘80s psyche and spawned bands like The Bangles and Opal, who evolved into Mazzy Star. Then, you had a band like the Gun Club, that was really its own vibe, playing dark Americana. Doggod sounds like the point where those three tangents intersect. My point being, you can take the band out of L.A., but you can’t take L.A. out of the band, especially when the city is in their name.
So, the reason I decided to scale back on posting events here is because I’m back at writing up listings for Discover Los Angeles and I don’t like to repeat myself. You can click here to see recommendations for the week of April 7 through April 13. The one event on the list that is most relevant to the roundups I write here is the Turntable Trio event at 2220 Arts + Archives on Monday, April 7. It a next-level DJ performance event with a super reasonable cover charge at a venue that I like a lot.
I won’t be DJing this weekend, which is probably a good thing on account of having a feature story that I have to finish for next week. (My next gig, if you’re wondering, is at Nocturno on April 11.) If you’re looking for a dance night, head to Underground on Friday at the Grand Star. Larry G. has all the indie, new wave and post-punk jams ready for you. Here are more recommendations for this weekend.
When Vincent Guerrero had a venue in San Antonio, called Vice Versa, he spent his days organizing, which also meant going through the vinyl collection housed in the space. “Every day, I would get a random record and I would listen to it,” he recalls.
He was struck by the album covers with photos of the musicians, sometimes large bands, all dressed up for the occasion. “At some point in their life, this was their dream,” Guerrero remarks. He’d listen to the music, some of which could not be found on Spotify or YouTube. “It was kind of scary, but kind of beautiful,” he says. “We won’t be here forever, but our music potentially could live for a very, very long time.”
All this inspired Guerrero, who records under the name Night Ritualz. “I always wanted a record, a vinyl,” he says. “That was a dream.”
So, after Vice Versa closed, Guerrero put his efforts into attaining that dream. On March 7, Night Ritualz’s self-titled debut album was released via Metropolis Records on both digital and vinyl formats. Following the album drop, he hit the road. He headed back to San Antonio for the record release shows, then to Austin, where he now lives, and played a string of South by Southwest dates. A West Coast tour, which concludes with Night Ritualz’s first headlining gig in California at The Cathedral in Pomona on April 4, followed.
The 110 freeway in L.A. as seen from a Metro J Line stop (Pic: Liz O.)
It’s time for another Beatique Mix. The April 2025 edition of this mix series includes new music from Mark Lane, Night Ritualz, Marie Davidson, Model/Actriz, The Horrors, French Police and more. It also includes a few classic cuts from the likes of Kittin and the Hacker, Joy Division and others.
One thing that I want to stress is that these aren’t club mixes, even if they partially sound very clubby. The Beatique Mix series is a reflection of the music that’s been in my head for the past month, regardless of genre or vibe or whatever. For the April mix, specifically, I had transportation in mind, which explains the first three songs, as well as the last one. The photo for this mix is of the 110 freeway as seen from an L.A. Metro J Line stop.
If you want to hear my club sets, then you have to go to the gigs. Click this link to see where I’m playing next.
Agender (Photo: Lindsey Byrnes) plays a free show to celebrate new album, Berserk, at Zebulon on 3/28/25
I made an executive decision to scale back on the event listings here, just to save myself some time. Going forward, I’ll post these on Thursdays and the list will include my top five recommendations for events happening in L.A. through Wednesday of the following week.
The top 5 will be in addition to my DJ gigs. (I’m not playing anywhere this week.) If an event is going on multiple days, like a week-long movie run, it will be listed at the top. After that, everything is listed chronologically.
This week’s recommendations include David Lynch movies screening in L.A. and Orange County. Lost Highway, Mulholland Drive, Inland Empire or David Lynch: The Art Life? Take your pick. There’s also animation studio Titmouse’s annual 5 Second Day shorts fest over Vidiots on Friday night. For shows, Agender’s free, album release gig at Zebulon will be a blast on Friday. On Saturday, consider Franz Ferdinand at The Wiltern or Vague Lanes and Darkswoon at The Goldfish. All the details are listed below.
Last Sunday, at the same record fair booth where I found Marc Almond’s fantastic “Melancholy Rose” 12” single, I came across an Italian copy of Quando Quango’s 12” “Two From Quando,” featuring the song “Atom Rock,” released on a Bologna label called Base Record, although it’s still marked with the Factory Records catalog number FAC 102. Sweet! There was no way I was leaving the record fair without this record, even if I *technically* already have the song on vinyl.
Quando Quango first came into my orbit thanks to a compilation called Cool As Ice: The Be Music Productions. Released in 2003, it’s a collection of music produced by members of New Order as Be Music between 1983 and 1985. There are two tracks from Quando Quango on there, “Love Tempo” and “Atom Rock,” both of which were produced by the dream team of Bernard Sumner, using the name Be Music, and A Certain Ratio’s Donald Johnson, under the name DoJo. At the time that copies of Cool As Ice landed in the bins at Amoeba, I was promoting and DJing a Wednesday night party at a now long-gone West Hollywood bar called The Parlour called Transmission. If the name weren’t a total giveaway, I was pretty obsessed with everything related to Joy Division and New Order, as were a lot of the regulars, so I played both those songs often. And, since one of the few constants in this world is that I’m still a little on the Joy Division/New Order obsessive side and still play for people who are riding the same wave, “Love Tempo” and “Atom Rock” still turn up in my sets. All of this a super tl;dr way of justifying my purchase, btw.
French Police released a new EP, Espera, last week. If you haven’t already added the four-song release to your listening queue, get on that asap because this is a good one.
Based in Chicago, French Police is a trio on the post-punk/darkwave tip who have been steadily gaining popularity over the past few years. Anecdotally, I can tell you that their songs were requested at virtually every party I played with Klub Nocturno this past year. Frequently, their songs were requested more than once during the course of one night. Outside of the clubs, you have probably heard them in the ether somewhere in L.A. Recently, when I was at Alamo Drafthouse to see Pump Up the Volume, there was a French Police playlist on in the bar.
The Beatique 2024 Year End Mix is here. I recorded a live set at home featuring songs from all of the albums featured on my Best Albums of 2024 list, plus a few of the bangers that made their way into my DJ sets this year. I didn’t want to rank club hits this year, but there are four songs that really stood out for the crowd reaction that they get. Those are: French Police “Her”; Twin Tribes “Sangre de Oro”; Blood Club “No Quiero Bailar”; Glass Spells “Hechizos.” All four songs are on this mix. There are also a couple songs that actually came out in 2023, but turned up in my sets this year, so I figured those were worth including as well.
But, this isn’t a club mix. Think of it more like a college radio show without the mumbly airbreaks. There are some more ambient tracks, rock songs, etc. in here as well. The mix is a little over an hour-and-a-half, so put it on whenever you have time to listen and, if you like it, share it. Thanks for listening and, for those of you in L.A., I hope to see you at Underground’s New Year’s Eve party on Tuesday night. Scroll down for the set list.
Beetlejuice hanging at Alex’s Bar, October 17, 2024 (Pic: Liz Ohanesian)
I think I have a backlog of playlists that haven’t been posted, but this one is from last night at Alex’s Bar in Long Beach for Klub Nocturno presents Darkwave Night. Thanks to everyone who was there. The energy was fantastic. I’d write more, but I’m still half-asleep, so peep the playlist below and I’ll see you on the dance floor soon. Click on this link to see what gigs I have on the calendar for the rest of the month and follow along on Instagram.
