Larry Ryan: Caught In The Net

Somewhat unfairly I still picture poodle-rocking hair metal bands in their pomp when I think of the Los Angeles music scene. However, while the city might not be considered the same sort of beacon for musicians that New York is, there is still plenty going on and much to be heard there. A book that piqued my interest in the LA alternative music scene was Jonathan Lethem's 2007 novel You Don't Love Me Yet, which focused on the love entanglements of an art-rock buzz band. While it's no match for his 2004 novel The Fortress of Solitude, which in part immersed itself in music subcultures of 1970s New York, the later novel offers an insight into a small band working away beyond the Hollywood limelight.

Several LA music websites would suggest such bands aren't mere fiction either. Among the sites worth checking out are http://www.inflightatnight.com, http://larecord.com and http://buzzbands.la.

The area of Silver Lake in east LA is a a de facto centre for alternative music in the city and one site from there, http://radiofreesilverlake. blogspot.com, concluded 2008 with a rundown of its favourite local bands of the past year. It serves as a handy primer to the local indie scene. The list contains bands such as Earlimart, http://www. myspace.com/earlimart, who do a nice line in low-key rock. Another is One Trick Pony, playing finely instrumented lo-fi indie folk – http:// www.myspace.com/onetrickpony. Also on the list is the catchy electro-pop by the trio Thailand, http://www.myspace.com/welcometothailand.

Others to look out for are the artful pop of Alex Lilley, a female singer who trades under the name Obi Best, http://www.myspace.com/obibest, and the siblings Juliette Commagere and Robert Francis. Hear them at http://www.myspace.com/juliettecommagere and http://www.myspace.com/robertfrancis.

Some standard tropes of music from LA/the west coast of America are a laid-back mood and the new fangled hippie aesthetic as evinced by Devendra Barnhart. As if to prove the point is the self-titled debut album by Little Joy. Among the band's members is Fabrizio Moretti, drummer for The Strokes, a band synonymous with New York. It seems that when making the Little Joy record in LA, Moretti caught the local mood – the album is suffused with a sunny, laid-back feel.

Almost like he is simultaneously giving Little Joy his west coast seal of approval and underlining his status as the standard bearer for LA music, Devenda Barnhart makes a guest appearance in Little Joy's recent video for the song "No One's Better Sake" – http://tinyurl.com/74q88b.

Stepping into Barnhart's "freak folk" terrain is Edward Sharpe. He and The Magnetic Zeros, make a grand sound that's something like a more upbeat, west coast version of Arcade Fire. On their MySpace page, http://www.myspace.com/edwardsharpe, are several videos of their cacophonous live shows.

Further up the food chain is the musician, producer and film scorer, Jon Brion, who has long held down a Friday night residency at esteemed LA venue, Largo. Tracks by Brion and others can be heard on Largo's website, http://www.largo-la.com. A documentary about the venue will be released next year; watch a trailer at http://tinyurl.com/5qocp3.

One of the funniest scenes in Lethem's novel, You Don't Love Me Yet, occurs when the band performs on a radio show. Beyond fiction you can sample the LA music scene and more through several radio stations which are streamed online, including, http://www.littleradio.com, http://www.kxlu.com and http://www.kcrw.com. The latter, KCRW, is LA's branch of National Public Radio and is more mainstream but still fits in good music. Their biggest name DJ, Nic Harcourt, has vacated his daily show, but still presents a Sunday night programme which can be heard at http://tinyurl.com/5baxod, while the daily show, Morning Becomes Eclectic, continues in his absence, providing music in a manner that its name would suggest – http://tinyurl.com/y8gzw5.