La Sera + Cold Showers = A lovely evening in LA

La Sera, Cold Showers @ The Echo, Los Angeles, CA.

Cold Showers are a band that I should have heard before this night.  I know that it’s tough to keep up with all the radness that is going on in music these days but c’mon.  Where have I been?  These guys have toured with some of my faves and they have a sound definitely leaning towards Joy Division which is incredibly hard to pull off without pushing the lines of suicide.  They straddle that line that borders the forcefull laziness that Joy Division conquered and add a smidgen of lo-fi garage.  Not only that, but lead singer Jonathan Weinberg is also the drummer for La Sera.  This gives him very little rest between sets but he seemed to be firing on all cylinders as he went from frontman to drums as La Sera took the stage bringing with them a completely separate sound.  This time it was far more palpable for the entire crowd.  A lovely soft female voice reminiscent of summer started the sway that would take over the audience.  Katy Goodmans voice seems to have more honey in it when she is backed by La Sera as opposed to her other well known group Vivian Girls.  The swells and lilt of her voice coincide perfectly with the slow strums and occasional twangs that the rest of the band produce.  From the soft summery hits they transition into a bluesier rock for a few songs and keep those in attendance on their toes and eventually bouncing from toe to and fro.  Eventually the music winds down and the doors open to a brisk January LA night still warm with the sounds of La Sera.

Words by Thirst’n Howl

Photos by Monti Smith