blog

MJ Lenderman & Karly Hartzman at the Deer Lodge

05 Sep, 2024

blog / music / show reviews

words and photos by Avery Morgan Playing a run of sold out acoustic shows on the West Coast, Karly Hartzman of Wednesday & Jake of MJ Lenderman visited Ojai’s Deer Lodge last December. Only a 40 minute drive up from UCSB, I arrived early to check out the venue. I […]

Our 10 Favorite Sets from Pitchfork Fest 2024

20 Aug, 2024

blog / music / show reviews

With the summer sun in the sky and a verve for live music, KCSB was on the scene to witness a wonderful weekend of live music at Union Park in Chicago. Here were our 10 favorite sets of Pitchfork Chicago 2024. words by: Will Bacaj    Rosali Situated on the […]

Pre-Fest Excitement for Pitchfork Festival 2024

18 Jul, 2024

music / show reviews

  In honor of Pitchfork’s infamous 0.0-10.0 ratings scale for albums, KCSB’s Will Bacaj scores his most anticipated sets of the upcoming festival weekend. words by: Will Bacaj After Conde Nast fired several of Pitchfork’s editors and placed the website under the umbrella of GQ Magazine in January, outside observers […]

Cali Roots 2024

19 Jun, 2024

music / show reviews

KCSB programmer Marley Jay takes to Monterey to give you an inside look into the 2024 Cali Roots Festival. Read on for the inside scoop into a weekend of love, reggae, and community.  Words and Photos by Marley Jay I sat amongst like-minded individuals of the California Roots Sol Tribe, […]

Cruel World 2024

14 Jun, 2024

blog / music / show reviews

Production Coordinator Will and Publications Coordinator Galilea took on Huntington Beach’s Cruel World Festival this past month, ready to report back to KCSB’s audience with all the scintillating details. Check it out.  words by: Will Bacaj and Galilea Trujillo photos by: Will Bacaj Mark Almond of Soft Cell Duran Duran, […]

Just Like Heaven 2024

29 May, 2024

blog / music / music reviews / show reviews

If you’re longing and looking to tap into your indie-centered nostalgia, Just Like Heaven is the place to be. Every May, Goldenvoice puts on their annual Just Like Heaven festival, and this year marks 5 years since the first edition. It’s the time of year where you can bring back […]

El Vive Latino 2024

11 Apr, 2024

blog / music / show reviews

Words by: Angel Lopez Photos courtesy El Vive Latino El Vivo Latino music festival happens once a year, usually on the 3rd weekend of March in Mexico City. This year had 5 stages, 1 surprise stage, a comedy stage and a Lucha Libre ring. 88 bands performed in the span […]

Shabang 2023 Festival Review

29 Jan, 2024

blog / music / show reviews

KCSB’s program director, Naila, visited San Louis Obispo last year to get our audience the scoop on Shabang! As the 2024 lineup begins to make its rounds, we hope this review of last year’s festival gives you an idea of what to expect and look forward to. words and photos […]

Life Is Beautiful 2023 Recap and Review

16 Oct, 2023

blog / music / music reviews / show reviews

words by Will Bacaj photos courtesy Life Is Beautiful KCSB’s Promotions Director Will Bacaj attended the Life is Beautiful festival in downtown Las Vegas, Nevada Sept 22-24, 2023. Here’s his report from the scene. Having never been anywhere in Las Vegas beyond the Strip, going to Las Vegas for a […]

Portola 2023 Recap and Review

12 Oct, 2023

blog / music reviews / show reviews

words by Yasmeen Tsipena Photo courtesy of Portola Music Festival Six months ago I let my roommate convince me to buy a 300 dollar ticket to a music festival I had never heard of.  The 21+ electronic music festival took place the weekend of September 30th on the vast lot […]

KCSB Goes Way Out West

12 Sep, 2022

blog / show reviews

Words by Yousef Srour, Internal Music Director 21-22′ Welcome to Way Out West. For those of you who aren’t enlightened and haven’t been to the premier festival in Gothenburg, Sweden, this is a three-day festival with five stages, four theaters, and seven independent music venues spread out throughout the city. […]

✷ LOONA: Live at the Wiltern ✷

08 Aug, 2022

blog / DJ Posts / show reviews

Words by Chloe Kimmel Digital Media Coordinator 21-22′     It’s a Tuesday in Koreatown two hours before the venue doors are scheduled to open and the line for general admission already wraps around the block in a complete loop. Wiltern staff are perplexed at how to manage such an […]

Pitchfork Music Festival 2022: Smaller Sets, Bigger Hearts

26 Jul, 2022

blog / music / show reviews

Words by Ryan Miller, Promotions Director 2021-2022 Pitchfork Music Festival is a 3-day festival held in Union Park, Chicago, and organized by the curators behind Pitchfork Media. Whether you love them or not, the website has long been an important platform to highlight left-field, alternative, and independent artists, and the […]

Concert Review: Ty Segall at the Teragram Ballroom

14 Jul, 2022

music / show reviews

Words by: Marión Suchowiecky   The Teragram Ballroom sits between a convenience store called Rosa Mini’s Market and a dry cleaners. Tall buildings with intricate scaffolding designs tower over this modest venue, which is just a 10 minute drive away from the heart of Downtown Los Angeles. It’s Thursday, July […]

Rainbow Kitten Surprise: Live at the Santa Barbara Bowl

20 Jun, 2022

blog / music / show reviews

Words by: Yousef Srour, Internal Music Director Composed of Ela Melo, Darrick “Bozzy” Keller, Ethan Goodpaster, Jess Haney, and Charlie Holt, the five members together make up Rainbow Kitten Surprise. Everyone in Santa Barbara knew their names and chanted for them when they came on stage. It’s May 27, 2022, […]

Live at The Music Box: Skegss

26 Apr, 2022

blog / music / show reviews

  The crowd roared. The Aussie group needed no introduction as the crowd rippled with mosh pits opening up. The crowd bristled with excitement as their favorite band finally came to their home after two years of being unable to tour due to COVID.   The magic of Skegss could […]

IN PICTURES: SASAMI AT SOHO 2/26

24 Mar, 2020

show reviews

Photos and words by Kiyomi Morrison Known for her time playing synth in L.A. rock band Cherry Glazer, and opening for acts like Mitski, Soccer Mommy, Blondie, Snail Mail, and more — Sasami has earned her place in the industry long before her recent foray as a solo artist. Her […]

Show Review: Big Thief at the Fonda Theater on 5/3/19

03 May, 2019

show reviews

On May 2nd, four-piece indie-rock band Big Thief headlined The Fonda theater the night before the release of U.F.O.F., their third full-length album. Singer-songwriter Victoria Williams opened the show with a performance that was unarguably quirky, charming, and wholesome. As her band left the stage for her last song – […]

Show Review: Mogwai at the Theatre at the Ace Hotel on Jan. 18th, 2017

30 Jan, 2017

blog / show reviews

Ever-evolving sonically, Scottish band Mogwai have scored three films in addition to releasing eight studio albums. Beginning as a rock-centered band with an atmospheric and enveloping sound, their evolution into soundtrack work is a natural progression for the band. On January 18th, they performed their most recent film collaboration live […]

Show Review: Hinds at Velvet Jones on 10/17/16

16 Jan, 2016

blog / show reviews

As the saying goes, girls are made of sugar, spice, and everything nice, right? Now, we all know that women are creatures far exceeding these basic ingredients, but add some cherry-red lipstick, high-tops, an oversized t-shirt, and a cigarette or two, and we might just have something that resembles the […]