LIVE @ CLUB VIOLAINE

JS: You guys sounded great!

EF: Shut up! Are you just saying that? You dont have to be nice, be honest...    spill it!

JS: No really, it was like The Doors if they got together in the 21st century...            but not: "The Doors of the 21st Century"... more like the future, or: now...               a future sound... 

EF: Makes sense to me :)

LIVE:

A few drinks into the night, Im convinced by a friend to head out to a random show in Highland Park...       

Before i know it, taking the stage with nary a word or glance shared between members, LA band Secret Alphabet immediately launched into, "Dirty Magazines," a hypnotic mantra-riff fusion that had the audience swaying like hippies.

The 4-piece roared with wails of feedback and driving rhythms smashed into one another, creating a gleeful, cacophonous sound. The volume was explosive and thunderous; the decibals were high enough to enduce bodygasms. The closed eyed swaying girls out in front of the small stage of the Wolfgang Sound Gallery  were more than convincing that I wasnt the only one feeling this.

The rest of the night is pretty much a blur, but it proved to me there is much more out here in L.A. than the typical hipster bands that are force fed to us by what seems to be hundreds of local bloggers.                                                                   (or is it one blogger with hundreds of blogs?)
Whats more- theyre actually from L.A., (except for the new drummer) a rare thing indeed.

If youre tired of your run-of-the-mill, over-hyped transplant bands in Silverlake/Echo Park, keep heading East... yes- past the "Eat Well" and the "Little Joy"... where no skinny jeans are required. AT

LIVE:

Secret Alphabet got the evening off to an atmospheric start. I enjoyed their music and its hazy psychedelic sound. Heavy with ambient bass and guitar, Eddie drones his vocals sideways into the microphone, treating his voice as just another instrument in their oceanic sound. They played about 5 or 6 songs to an ever expanding audience. -B

 Led by singer Eddie Figueroa, this foursome have a droning, hypnotic sound pioneered by Spacemen 3 and Jesus & Mary Chain- droning vocals, bags of guitar squall and copious volume. SA's minimalist attack on the songs "27." "The Light/The Way" and "Where To Go" is seductive, arty and psychedelic. What the band achieve on these songs is effective- but it only goes so far; to truly stand out they will need to explore, develop further, reach a breakthrough. At this point there is a strong foundation for them to build on. 

On Saturday (September 13) my intention was to go see a band called Secret Alphabet, who had extended an invitation for me to come see them sometime. I didn't know their music, but when I listened to a few of their tunes on their myspace page I was impressed. They play the kind of shoe-gaze, psychedelic indie rock that I'm instantly partial to, and they play it well... B

 Eddie Figueroa just SOUNDS like an important name. Like he could be a boxer or a car salesman or the varsity quarterback - but he’s not. He’s the brains behind the operation referred to as Secret Alphabet. The oddly shoe-gazey, dream-poppy, yet somehow still jam-bandish foursome is made up of some dudes from Highland Park, and you should totally swoop on their free mp3’s before you check them out in September. Seriously, go see them now, cause I promise you that in December your way-too-indie pal is gonna be all, “Dude, there’s this band called secret alphabet, you should check them out.” And when he does, you can be a pretentious fuck and go, “Uh, yeah, I’ve known about these dudes since like September, man.” CS

7 dollar taxi ten years out of date TRASH Astronauts of Antiquity the Jury is out i nearly posted on them myself Jaguar Farm think he is deluded needs a day job he may be influenced by these great bands but TRASH, The Frowns did nothing but remind me of Nickleback so you can guess where im sending them you saved the best till last Secret Alphabet i kinda like SMASH im more moody than Simon Cowell in this comment sorry to all the above artists except Secret Alphabet.                      -london calling

I'm tempted to think of bands like Elika, My Bloody Valentine or Languis and LSD And The Search For God... but still damn distinctive.

The only thing wrong about ‘27’ is that it ends too quickly. I just love the tumbling instrumentation and even though the vocals are fairly monosyllabic they seem particularly apt in this instance. It is a delicious taster from Secret Alphabet’s new EP (it’s free if you ask them for a copy!). The quartet come from L.A. and by the looks of their still-in-construction webpages they are just getting off the ground. ‘27’ is a broody little number that is both fleet of foot and full of cerebral manoeuvres. It has a grinding momentum that builds to a cascading crescendo and boasts tons of atmosphere. If this were the 80’s I’m sure there’d be a 12-inch remix whereupon ‘27’s curvaceous aura would be given a thorough workout and our thirst for more of the same would be fully sated. Damn De Lorean, never about when you need it. KD