Friday, April 3, 2009 2:00PM - By Kara
This week’s BeatCrave Favs are Passion Pit, The Motion Sick, Family Force 5, and DeVotchKa.
Which one is your favorite? Is it the eclectic-folk band, DeVotchKa (listen here)? Do you tend to favor the dance-pop beats from Passion Pit (listen here)? Does the crunk/dance/rap sound of Family Force 5 (listen here) get you going? Or does the charming, catchy tunes of The Motion Sick (listen here) brighten your day?
Which one is your favorite? Be sure to vote for your favorite band! The band with the most votes will have a feature at the end of the month. It’s for a good cause…
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Monday, March 30, 2009 2:00PM - By Allison
DeVotchKa were, initially, a backing band for burlesque shows. Numerous nationwide tours in support of self released records earned the band an underground following. Their performance at the 2006 Bonnaroo music festival was considered their breakout event. In between tours, the band was picked by first time film directors Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris to score Little Miss Sunshine, which went on to garner four Academy Award nominations. Based in Denver, Colorado, the quartet is made up of Nick Urata, who sings and plays theremin, guitar, bouzouki, piano, and trumpet; Tom Hagerman, who plays violin, accordion, and piano; Jeanie Schroder, who sings and plays sousaphone and double bass; and Shawn King, who plays percussion and trumpet.
There music is an eclectic blend of various world folk influences (Romani, Greek, Slavic, Mariachi, and more), combined with American folk. It’s a moving array of ballads, overflowing with emotion. From the desperation of “The Enemy Guns,” to the heartfelt sorrow of “We’re Leaving,” DeVotchKa’s songs tend to dig into the heart. They’ve put some unique twists on their cover songs: “Venus in Furs” becomes a psychedelic, red light district anthem and “The Last Beat of My Heart” draws musical depth and runs away into the sunset. Its escapism at its most beautiful.
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Friday, September 19, 2008 4:56PM - By Mali
As I stepped into the classy El Rey Theatre once more this week, I couldn’t help but think of how different it would be from my Balkan Beat Box experience. Upon arrival for a DeVotchKa show, I was anticipating looking at a different type of crowd. However, I found similarities more than differences. For The El Rey, the volume of concert goers never seems to dwindle. No matter what night it is, if it’s a good show, especially one so highly expected to be as DeVotchKa, the crowd will spill past the bar.
Gaining most of their mainstream popularity from scoring the film, Little Miss Sunshine, DeVotchKa had finally been able to reach the masses with their unique take on American punk and folk roots. This four piece band, however, goes far beyond what’s expected of a rock band. Exhibiting their credibility, all multi-instrumentalists flourish together as they weave in and out of Greek, Mariachi, and Slavic notes. I wondered, will Los Angeles embrace them tonight as much as world music lovers or those so called sophiticated hipsters? I was about to find out.
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