The Best Los Angeles Concerts: Dec. 9-15, 2024

What does a band that scores a multi-platinum radio hit in their teens do thereafter? In the case of Echosmith - a SoCal sibling outfit that cleaned up with the irresistibly dancey (and aptly titled) “Cool Kids” in 2014 - they’ve simply continued to create effervescent indie pop ever since. A trio since the departure of co-vocalist Jamie Sierota, Echosmith is increasingly about singer Sydney Sierota Quiseng, who’s lately been hinting at a solo career. Not that this would necessarily preclude Echosmith, but fans might want to make the most of their current run of shows. Now more independent than ever, with bassist Noah Sierota producing, the Chino-raised band tinted their playful beats and textured ‘80s synths with a growing-pains melancholy and questioning vocals on last year’s eponymous third album. This may not yield the adulation of a decade back but is surely satiating for them as creators and more authentic for listeners looking for a band that’s maturing alongside them. Tickets to the all-ages show at AXS.

On their third album, Tear, Philly duo Korine simply get better at what they’ve been doing for the past seven years: angsty, consistently melodic synth pop with major new wave/New Order nostalgia. They’ve steadily accumulated traction and positive reactions by embracing their overtly hooky (no pun intended) instincts rather than aiming for artsy cred. Sure, their sound is sepia tinted, slightly sour and detached, but the songs themselves always come first and call the shots. It hasn’t hurt that Korine’s live shows are unusually engaging for a drummerless outfit and that they often sound even better live than on their proudly DIY recordings. On Tear the analog synths are glossier, the beats more danceable, and the emo-adjacent vocal/lyrical melodrama… more dramatic. The “dark” scene is full of acts that have reverse-engineered 1980s tones and aesthetics to perfection – the difference with Korine is that they’re also penning tunes that could be in the same room as their major influences. Korine open for Dance with the Dead at Echoplex on Tuesday, December 10. Tickets at Live Nation.

Over the past decade, Girli has come a long way, sonically, from the fake ID 15-year-old ad-libbing over GarageBand beats in London pubs. But spiritually, she’s still right there, making sincere, punky yet broadly resonant Gen Z pop streaked with feminist and queer themes. Channeling kindred spirits from M.I.A. and the Slits to the Spice Girls, Girli updates girl power with the multicultural hum of London nightlife and timely samples, from video games to news broadcasts, to smartly sneak her underground sung/rapped signature into the mainstream. Five years on from her debut album, this year’s follow-up, Matriarchy oozes mid-twenties poptimism, its lingering self-doubt evaporating as huge, shimmery refrains take hold. Marrying the future pop of Charli XCX to Grimes’ talent for genre ambiguity, Girli is sufficiently rebellious to appeal to societal outliers yet sufficiently relatable, musically and lyrically, to transcend niche status. If you’re already missing the about-to-retire Cyndi Lauper, Girli has you (and your kids) covered. Tickets at Live Nation.

Los Angeles is spoiled for precocious London singer-songwriters on this Wednesday night, with Girli (see above) and Bea & Her Business performing just three miles apart. Bea Wheeler’s rise to international touring status has been stunning since she signed a major licensing deal and released her first official single, “Born to be Alive” just 18 months ago. Playfully melodic yet emotionally frank, her Lily Allen-indebted pop-rock swiftly gatecrashed Britain’s taste-shaping Radio 1 and grabbed the attention of Adele/Sam Smith collaborator Fraser T. Smith, who’s contributed to her more recent material. This year’s Me vs. Me EP – it’s title alone laser-guided towards her Gen Z peers – finds the 20-year-old Miller navigating the challenging and often confusing post-teens transition with an anthemic optimism, washing her hands of adolescent introvert/extrovert mood swings with unapologetic yet qualified swagger. But all this would count for little without the rollicking tunes and ecstatic, sometimes palpably infatuated vocal delivery of a bona fide new pop princess. Tickets at Ticketmaster.

GRAMMY Award winner Marcus Miller is so synonymous with bass guitar that for many years Fender produced models bearing his name and today two different companies sell signature Miller strings. While this revered New Yorker has played bass on over 500 recordings - including sessions for Michael Jackson, Elton John and Frank Sinatra - these represent only the tip of his talents. Along with playing clarinet, keys, saxophone and guitar, he’s co-written and arranged songs for stars like Luther Vandross and Miles Davis, while also serving as a band leader and co-producer. This four-night engagement at Catalina Jazz Club will likely lean into his 40-year solo career, which has straddled funk, R&B, soul, hip-hop, and predominantly the adventurous jazz fusion with which he’s most associated. As an in-demand first-caller for half a century (he was in the Saturday Night Live band by 1979), Miller draws audiences that span generations and tastes, plus hardcore bass nerds who will likely be right down in front. Tickets at Ticketweb.

Ramona’s self-described “romantic psychedelic rock” draws inspiration from 1960s and ‘70s rock music, Latin American balladry, and the Chicano culture of the borderlands around their Tijuana hometown. Recognized as a leading light of TJ’s buzzing indie landscape – the cultural crossroads city has long been a musical hub – they’ve lately grown from a long-running foursome to a CDMX-based co-ed sextet popular not just in Mexico and the U.S. but now also in Argentina, Chile and Peru. Formed in their mid-teens and mentored on 2015 debut album La Segunda Luz del Día by Mexican indie-pop mainstay Carla Morrison, whose production company helped finance the record, Ramona have come on leaps and bounds since, their refreshingly singular sound spawning regional hits like the swooning “Tristes Ojos,” that went viral during the pandemic; “Ir Por Un Café”; and “Ojiitos Soñados.” In Mexico, Ramona has shared stages with artists like Natalia Lafourcade, Blonde Redhead, and Kinky, with similarly high-profile stateside shows surely imminent. Tickets at AXS.

While 1980s hair metal bands boasted outlandish imagery that implied music to match, the majority just produced amped-up pop music beneath elaborate bouffants and androgynous attire. LA’s W.A.S.P., while plenty hirsute, were something else entirely, with a much more masculine and muscular, blues-based take on metal that actually lived up to their outrageous aesthetics and utterly unwoke lyrical content. Led by the doggedly committed Blackie Lawless, the band’s sole constant since ’82, W.A.S.P.’s best material lent hard rock’s twin-guitar heft and hooky structures to classic bluesy riffs and, crucially, topped the lot with Lawless’ serrated, feral croak – a shudderingly raw instrument that sets apart anything it touches. In their mid-80s heyday, with notorious Pasadena wildman Chris Holmes aboard, few could hold a candle to W.A.S.P. on stage (their Live at the Lyceum 1984 video offers ample evidence) and, while much changed since, Lawless is still a master of showmanship, shock rock, and sheer wind-in-your-hair cinematic rawk. Tickets at Live Nation.

Although New York-born, Cut Chemist’s music career has been LA through-and-through. His prodigious contribution to this city’s scene and sound, as both a turntablist and producer, has been evolving since his mid-90s days at UCLA. Drawn to the storied Thursday open mic nights at Crenshaw’s Good Life Café, a bastion of alternative/conscious hip-hop amidst LA’s overwhelmingly gangstafied rapscape, he was a co-founder of underground hip-hop kings Jurassic 5 and appeared on the first two albums by GRAMMY-winning Latin funk band Ozomatli. As early as 1997, Cut Chemist was also releasing solo material, beginning with his Live at the Future Primitive Sound Session CD, while his repeat collabs with DJ Shadow include the influential The Hard Sell, recorded live at the Hollywood Bowl. Melding huge respect for hip-hop tradition with a fascination with global grooves, Cut Chemist will present the Tunnel Vision Holiday Party, which also features longtime tourmate Edan, DJ Nu-Mark and KCRW's Jeremy Sole.

With his lively baritone and admirable mustache, Texas country/folk troubadour Will Worden oozes a rootsy aura that belies his years. While he plays it straight-faced, it’s unclear if the someone’s-uncle-in-a-faded-‘70s-photo schtick is ironic, even tongue-in-cheek, or truly his everyday self. But it matters little once Worden’s narrative, largely acoustic compositions and that commanding timbre take unassuming flight. This is music that says, “Listen to me if you will, no prob if you won’t.” “Moonlit” is (faux?) autobiographical rhythm & blues with the barest of accompaniment, trying its luck somewhere between Memphis and El Paso; while “Rainy Weather” (and its wonderfully retro video) is a full band affair, lap steel and all. The jaunty “One Foot Out the Door” is a classic lament propelled by brushed snare, and the shuffle continues with Texas two-step single “Shut Your Eyes.” If your love of country reaches back to the 1950s and maybe includes the likes of Marty Robbins, this night is for you. Tickets at Tixr.

For nearly 35 years, KROQ’s Almost Acoustic Christmas fundraising shows have served as era snapshots of listeners’ tastes within the station’s alt/indie/punk/pop/rock format. Consider that the 1992 edition featured the likes of EMF, Adam Ant and Suzanne Vega; or that its ’97 acts included Sneaker Pimps, Sugar Ray and Fiona Apple. After many years as a two-night event, Almost Acoustic Christmas returned post-pandemic as a single header. Its 2024 incarnation has a much more nostalgic, throwback feel than any before it, with The Smashing Pumpkins reprising their 2010 and ‘14 headlining role, preceded by semi-regular participant Beck, 2023 returnees 311, Sublime, 2004 headliners Jimmy Eat World (making their third appearance in five years) and Franz Ferdinand, who last appeared in 2017. As if to offset all these veteran acts, an injection of extreme youth is provided by LA pop-punk openers The Linda Lindas, which has only one member (barely) out of her teens. Tickets at Ticketmaster.