Florence Welch of Florence and the Machine performs at the Fox Theater in Oakland on Nov. 5, 2010. Roman Gokhman/STAFF. This story originally appeared in the Oakland Tribune. OAKLAND — When 24-year-old British singer Florence Welch and her band, the Machine, first performed in the Bay Area in April,…

This story originally appeared in the Oakland Tribune. SAN FRANCISCO —SoCal soul and indie-pop band Cold War Kids’ signature sound is lead singer Nathan Willet’s voice: a strained tenor vibrato always leaning toward desperation. But what makes the band successful is the interaction of all CWK’s musicians on stage…

White Rabbits, courtesy. SAN FRANCISCO — White Rabbits released their second album, “It’s Frightening,” last month just around the time when I was getting bored of bands coming out with sensational first albums and then disappearing. Their first, “Fort Nightly,” came out in 2007 and introduced haunting yet extremely catchy…

Kings of Leon perform at the Warfield in San Francisco on Oct. 18, 2008. Roman Gokhman/STAFF. SAN FRANCISCO — Many bands that are successful in other parts of the world fail to make it big in America. What makes the Kings of Leon — a quartet that’s huge in Europe…

The Presets, courtesy. SAN FRANCISCO — At last summer’s Download Festival, Australian electro-rocker trio Cut Copy overcame playing in the daytime and put up one of the best performances of the event. They worked the crowd into a tizzy for their entire 45-minute set. Sunday night at a sold-out show…

Torquil Campbell (center) and Stars, courtesy. SANTA CRUZ — There are so many possible uses for a rose at a rock show: Throw them into the crowd (less painful than drumsticks), use them as drumsticks (for the dramatic effect), or get them jammed in an adjustable microphone stand (which may…

The Jesus and Mary Chain performs at The Fillmore in San Francisco on Oct. 19, 2017. SAN FRANCISCO — The folks behind this year’s Download Festival, held Saturday at the Shoreline Amphitheatre in Mountain View, targeted fans of newer bands in the dance, alternative and Britpop molds, as well…

Stellastarr*, courtesy. SAN FRANCISCO — Stellastarr* were once one of the hottest buzz bands out the Brooklyn new-wave movement. But while some bands like Interpol have continued to climb beyond buzz-band status and others have fallen away long ago, Stellastarr* are content with their place. The quartet of singer Shawn…

Bell X1, Courtesy: Johnny Savage SAN FRANCISCO — With Bono focusing his humanitarian efforts on Africa, we should consider ourselves lucky we have our own Irishman to help out in America. Irish vacationers are now experiencing here the same thing that Americans were when they visited Ireland in the…

Nada Surf, courtesy. This story originally appeared in the Oakland Tribune. SAN FRANCISCO — In the world of pop music, you’re either “popular” or you’re forgotten. Nada Surf knows how it is. The New York indie band — singer-guitarist Matthew Caws, drummer Ira Elliot and bassist Daniel Lorca —…