It’s always a blast to put a new entry on the favorite-band list, and that’s what happened when canny music-biz insider Dave the Duke encouraged me to stop by the Bottom of the Hill - a reliably ahead-of-the-curve nightclub in San Francisco’s Potrero Hill neighborhood - and catch The Little Ones earlier this week. Within seconds of hearing the band for the first time, I was hopping around, knocked out, bouncing off the walls, grinning.
This is a young, wildly exuberent Los Angeles-based rock quintet that features a couple of brothers and their three cohorts: singer-guitarist Edward Reyes, bassist Brian Reyes, guitarist Ian Moreno, keyboardist Greg Meyer and drummer Lee LaDouceur. The Little Ones have been together for under a year, but wow! With E. Reyes whooping, shouting and shaking it, and he and Moreno jangling and slashing on guitar, they manage to sound utterly contemporary in the manner of latter-day Brit-pop, while hearkening back to the psychdelic rock of the ‘60s. Meyer even conjures up mellotron-ish flute and woodwind sounds from his keyboard.
Some of it recalls the upbeat power-pop of the new-wave era; some of it echoes Beatles and Beach Boys (circa “Pet Sounds”) as channeled through XTC; and now and then, there’s a grindy introspective quality that makes me think of emo or shoegazer bands. Mostly, what they do is swooshing, pulsing, and utterly engaging.
The band is signed to Astralwerks, and you can buy their sharp, shiny homegrown EP “Sing Song,” which was recently reissued. They’re also in the middle of recording their debut album. Can’t wait.
My Trusted MOGs
You sold me. I will try out anything Pet Sounds-y. I will check them out thanks...how cool is that picture haha. I can spot so many kitschy albums here haha Top Gun and Mary Poppins. ( :
My Trusted MOGs
They played a great set at The Vic; especially considering they blew a tire before getting there and were almost late. I wish I'd bought an album before leaving that night, but the merch table was about 4 deep all around, and I was in a hurry to get out of town. Thanks for pointing this out!