The Fashionably Late Top 60 of 2013: #12 – L.A. Witch

When it comes to year-end lists, y'all know I don't mess around. I don't post my picks from the previous year for weeks after the next year has started. In 2013 there was a bounty of music that entered the world that made me deliriously happy to be blessed with the sense of sound. So I have pondered, marinated, and contemplated for weeks. Music from 2013 has been digested for breakfast, lunch, and dinner (and yes, even dessert). And now, friends, it's time. Time to share with you what I consider the cream of one heck of a crop indeed. You might see things omitted here that you think should be on a Best Of list. This list isn't what I think you want to read. This list is what I feel about last year. These are records and songs that really mattered to me for one reason of another. If it's not here, I either didn't spend enough time with it or just didn't love it quite enough. A big, big thank you to all of the artists who created the music on this list, the music that I fell in love with last year.

WHO: L.A. Witch

WHAT: L.A. Witch EP

WHEN: 2013 (not the 2014 date on Bandcamp - I've had this playing for months and months)

WHERE: Self-released

WHY: To start with, the cover of this EP has an illustration of a white cat with a face done up in black, Kiss-meets-the-dark-side makeup. We could just stop it there, but thankfully L.A. Witch is more than just a clever cover. Scuzzy, fuzzy, and loud seem to be three of my favorite words when it comes to music, and L.A. Witch produces all three in spades here. The three songs on this EP are spectacularly scuzzed up, and crackle with an attitude somewhere between bored and aggressive. From the belligerent posturing of “Get Lost” to the off-kilter, acoustic-driven “Heart Of Darkness” to the accusatory slow burn of “You Love Nothing,” this is one hell of an EP.

MY JAMS: All three of them







[posted 3.19.14]