Press photo courtesy of Tonje Thilesen. A slow, psychotropic waltz introduces “Beauty Routine,” the opening track of Mothers’ sophomore LP, Render Another Ugly Method. Ripples of dissonant chords spiral into jangly vertigo as vocalist-guitarist Kristine Leschper sings of going through the motions. Render Another Ugly Method Mothers Sept. 7…

Photos: Chloe Catajan SAN FRANCISCO — Before Calpurnia took The Fillmore stage Saturday night, a small cinema lightbox sat aloof from the instruments. It illuminated the words: “HELLO SF WE ARE CALPURNIA.” An understated touch, the message felt like the calm before the Vancouver band’s thunderous Bay Area debut.…

Mitski, “Be The Cowboy.” In Western cinema, cowboys symbolize lone heroes facing danger by themselves. Mitski, inspired by a figure of similar essence, channels this on her 2018 release Be The Cowboy. She’s at war with her own solitude. While her music is no stranger to confronting emotion through sophisticated…

Photos: Chloe Catajan OAKLAND — Baltimore dream-pop duo Beach House opened its two-night stay at the Fox Theater with a sold-out show on Tuesday. Vocalist-keyboardist Victoria Legrand and guitarist Alex Scally, along with touring drummer James Barone, appeared as silhouettes, set against erratic stage lights. Beach House opened with “L’inconnue,”…

Courtesy: Cara Robbins Oakland’s Dick Stusso embodies Wild West nostalgia. Gussied up in a Stetson hat, bolo tie and duster coat, he fits the archetypal vision of a rhinestone cowboy perfectly. His music feels even more familiar, but not because it resorts to go-to country sounds. It actually does…

Photos: Chloe Catajan SAN FRANCISCO — Experimental rock group The Voidz sold out The Chapel for two nights in a row. The side project of The Strokes’ Julian Casablancas concluded its mini residency Friday with a late set that rung in the weekend with radioactive energy. The Voidz perform at The…

Post-hiatus success can become a challenge for bands when nostalgia for their past successes overshadows their new material. While best known for ‘90s hits “Sit Down,” “Come Home” and “Laid,” British rock band James reached new milestones with recent releases, even following a six-year absence. James’ impact surged during…

Photos: Chloe Catajan and Mike DeWald MOUNTAIN VIEW — No artist turns personal hardships into danceable and empowering anthems quite like Paramore. Mixing rock, pop and occasionally even ‘80s glam, the Tennessee band brought its “Tour 5” to Shoreline Amphitheatre Saturday. The group went straight into “Grudges,” a catchy tune…

Photos: Joaquin Cabello SAN FRANCISCO — Last year, post-hardcore luminaries Quicksand and Glassjaw released albums for the first time in more than a decade. Their return was followed with the announcement of a co-headlining tour, which made its Bay Area stop at the Great American Music Hall Tuesday. Quicksand took…

Every week, there’s a plethora of new music at our fingertips. Artists on platforms such as Spotify and Bandcamp are plentiful, and the radio offers a steady deluge of new singles, but who has time to sort through all that? RIFF does! We pooled our resources to find some of the best…