Alt-J, The Dream. Alt-J didn’t earn their fanbase with their stray references to Hubert Selby or Bret Easton Ellis—they earned it with their catchy tunes, quirky textures, soothing vocals and slick beats. Still, those references hinted that some brains lurked beneath all the dreaminess. The Dream Alt-J Canvasback/Atlantic, Feb.…

Row 1: Charli XCX, Camila Cabello, The Weeknd, Khalid, Weezer. Row 2: Janet Jackson, Vince Staples, SPOON, GZA, Sky Ferreira, Row 3: Meg Myers, Rina Sawayama, Eddie Vedder, Black Country, New Road, and My Bloody Valentine. Row 4: Elvis Costello, BROCKHAMPTON, Alt-J, Avril Lavigne, Lykke Li. Not pictured: The…

Alt-J performs at the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium in San Francisco on April 18, 2018. Jane Hu/STAFF. SAN FRANCISCO — Electronic soul and folk band Alt-J took a quick break from two weekends of Coachella to make its way to the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium on Wednesday. Drummer Thom Green,…

Welcome, to my five-part series counting down what I believe to be the 50 best albums of 2017. I listened to an insane amount of new music during my first year as a staff writer with RIFF, nearly 150 album releases, in fact. With that in mind, when narrowing down all…

Cage the Elephant performs at Golden Gate Park at Outside Lands on Aug. 12, 2017. Photos: Alessio Neri It was not until I showed up at Golden Gate Park on Aug. 11 at 10 a.m. and walked the length of the Outside Lands Music Festival grounds that I fully grasped…

Alt-J, “Relaxer.” If you were violently put off by the sound of Joe Newman’s voice on the first two Alt-J albums, the band’s new release, Relaxer, might not change your mind. Newman’s vocals make the British band a “love them or hate them” prospect. You either can’t get past…

Jessie Ware performs at the Fillmore in San Francisco on Nov. 18, 2013. Roman Gokhman/STAFF. Last year I predicted I would never see as many concerts as I did in 2013, and I was right. Having two kids can do that to any guy, even a music journalist. From 64…

Cage the Elephant performs during Not So Silent Night at Oracle Arena in Oakland on Dec. 13, 2014. Roman Gokhman/STAFF. The weather behaved and rain took the day off, saving event promoters from worry over attendance on the second night of the two-night event at Oracle Arena. The performances…

Arcade Fire performs during Live 105 Not So Silent Night at Oracle Arena in Oakland on Dec. 7, 2013. Roman Gokhman/STAFF. Photos and videos of Arcade Fire, Phoenix, Alt-J, Lorde, Bastille, NONONO, The Neighbourhood and The Colourist. Arcade Fire performs during Live 105 Not So Silent Night at Oracle…

Alt-J, courtesy. This much is certain about British indie pop quartet Alt-J: When answering questions for a journalist from the road and one of the band members is asleep and unable to defend himself, the remaining three will tease him mercilessly. The unlucky recipient currently is guitarist-bassist Gwil Sainsbury,…