In this feature we ask mainstays of the music establishment who they think will be the next big act to break. 

This time we speak with LA indie icons, Local Natives.

Having grown up in Orange County, collected innumerable fans across the globe and expanded their rich vocal harmonies over the course of three sensational full-length albums (Gorilla Manor, Hummingbird and Sunlit Youth), we’re elated to find Silver Lake quintet Local Natives returning with their fourth studio record, the - at once contemporary and timeless - Violet Street.

Invoking a multitude of musical styles over the course of its 41 minutes, ranging from the anthemic alt. rock of lead single ‘When Am I Gonna Lose You’ to the orchestral marvels of celestial album opener ‘Vogue’; the classic West Coast grooves of ‘Café Amarillo’ to the frenzied marching band pyrotechnics of ‘Shy’, Violet Street is an expansive, inquisitive record that’s as reverent of the canon of great songwriting as it is tirelessly experimental in the face of it.

The band have suggested that in practical terms Violet Street also provides something of a return to the fiercely collaborative songwriting process of their aforementioned 2009 debut Gorilla Manor, which in turn encouraged the five-piece to work even harder. Speaking of the record, singer Taylor Rice states it’s “about us reconnecting to playing off of each other. We didn’t go into separate corners, produce our own songs, and bring them to the group,” going on to assert that “this was the most collaborative and open we’ve been […] We were raw and vulnerable. It’s the first time we didn’t do any pre-production, we went in and built the record out of nothing.”

Lyrically speaking, themes of shelter (and where we find it) “are at the heart of Violet Street.” Rice clarifies that “of course, we have relationships with our significant others, but we also find shelter in community, friendships, and the band.” In this light it seems entirely fitting that Violet Street takes its name from the Downtown LA address the album was made. Indeed, as singer Kelcey Ayer explains “Violet Street embodied the space where we were able to make the songs and harness energy.”

On the brink of releasing their strongest and (no doubt) furthest-reaching record to date, we spoke with Rice about the up-and-coming artists he’s most excited about at the moment. He really only had one band he wanted to champion and, as might be expected, it came down to a chance encounter on a street in LA…

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CUB SPORT



Taylor Rice: I ran into Australian born quartet Cub Sport on my street as they were loading their van for an LA show. They had Airbnb'd the house two doors down. I looked them up and was taken in immediately by the soothing, lush groovers they'd piled up on their last album. It's not necessarily an easy atmosphere in which to distinguish yourself, but Cub Sport have made it their own and I was hooked. They promote inclusivity and gender/sexuality bending love as a band, and back it up by being super nice and friendly when you bump into them on the street.



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Violet Street is due for release on April 26^th via Loma Vista Recordings.

-Karl Jawara