Black Marble + Cold Showers + Flaamingos

Confidence isn't always born of experience, as seen by the forceful debut by Los Angeles band Cold Showers. Combining influences of late 1970s post-punk with a sonic exploration closer to something from Neu!, it is the carefully constructed spatiality of the music that gives the somewhat minimal lyrics their weight; distant and atmospheric, it lends the hazy vocals a detached, ghostly cast. Moments of aggression and transcendence transform the songs from mere sound to rich sonic narratives: within the rise of the language lies a vision under restraint, a pent up joy that is like nothing else. The resulting sound is unexpectedly tough, vital, and contemporary.

Flaamingos are and L.A. based band comprised of Jerrold Balcom (vocals, drum machine), Daniel Koontz (guitar, bass, drones) and Nick Jago (drums, synth). Jerrold and Daniel (a Carol Kaye bass-guitar protege) played together in L.A. psych-groove outfit Sunstorm a few moons ago. Despite releasing an EP on UK indie taste-maker Rough Trade, high-profile support slots with The Strokes, Interpol, Cornershop etc, Sunstorm never fully realized it's potential, eventually collapsing. The two lost contact for awhile, dabbling in various projects along the way (Jerrold- The Clean Prophets, Daniel- Brian Jonestown Massacre, Summer Plays Out). In Spring 2011 Jerrold and Daniel by chance bumped into one another at an Echo Park party spot and decided to try collaborating again, this time crafting a new sound that would include traces of their past psych/shoegaze inclinations fused with a newer-found admiration for krautrock, post-punk, new romantic shimmer and minimal dance rhythms. Flaamingos then added long-time Black Rebel Motorcycle Club member Nick Jago on drums/synth and began to play shows in Los Angeles in late 2011. The Walk a Wire EP was self-released in Feb 2012.