By Josh Herwitt //
Silversun Pickups with Pure Hex //
The Observatory – Santa Ana, CA
February 19th, 2026 //
Among the many artists and bands who have found their way to Southern California, seeing homegrown acts reach new levels of success is always special in one of the most creative yet competitive industries. Because in a town with as many transplants as Los Angeles, it’s not lost on us native Angelenos when a local product’s profile extends far beyond our city’s limits to enter the national spotlight every so often.
LA’s connection to the music business and its greater impact on the global landscape needs no further explanation of course, but if we can take a short trip down memory lane, the 90’s were a seminal era for rock ‘n’ roll in the City of Angels following the days of glam and hair metal led by the likes of Mötley Crüe and Guns N’ Roses. And even though the explosion of grunge in Seattle and the Pacific Northwest had taken MTV by storm, the rise of “alternative rock” across SoCal was just as palpable with Red Hot Chili Peppers, Jane’s Addiction, Tool, Rage Against the Machine and Incubus all getting lumped under that generic descriptor due to major radio play (thank you, KROQ) despite each undoubtedly having their own unique style and sound.
The turn of the century, however, would usher in a new type of rock that wasn’t nearly as glamorous — or flamboyant quite frankly — as anything preceding it. Unlike the bright lights of the Sunset Strip, gritty and soon-to-be-gentrified neighborhoods on the Eastside such as Silver Lake, Echo Park and Glassell Park became a hotbed for indie outfits by the early 2000’s when electronic music and rave culture were expeditiously growing in popularity across the Southland, too. Nevertheless, there might not be a band to emerge from that scene as quintessential as Silversun Pickups.
Founding members Brian Aubert (lead and backing vocals, guitar, occasional keyboards) and Nikki Monninger (bass, backing and lead vocals) had met several years earlier when Aubert happened to notice Monninger across the aisle stealing alcohol out of the drink cart on a flight from LA to London. Both were traveling to Cambridge for a school exchange program at the time, striking up a friendship that culminated with them forming Silversun Pickups in the new millennium. Aubert spent most of his childhood in Topanga Canyon and the San Fernando Valley while Monninger grew up in Los Alamitos, but playing storied LA clubs like The Echo, Silverlake Lounge and the now-defunct Spaceland (later renamed The Satellite before its subsequent demise during the COVID-19 pandemic), they put down roots in Silver Lake and drew inspiration from local haunt Silversun Liquor for the band’s name after many late-night booze runs.
As much as the blogosphere was an essential tool for discovering new music by this point, support from others in the Silver Lake community that included the late singer-songwriter Elliott Smith also proved to be a guiding force for Silversun by the time half of the group’s lineup had turned over in 2002. But within months of Chris Guanlao (drums, percussion, programming, occasional backing vocals) and Joe Lester (keyboards, samples, sound manipulation, occasional guitar and backing vocals) coming aboard, Smith had invited the four-piece to open one of his “comeback” shows at The Fonda Theatre.
Releasing their debut album Carnavas in 2006 with lead single “Lazy Eye” as its anchor put the Pickups squarely on the map for those seeking a new source of rock music and many devoted fans of shoegaze. Comparisons to The Smashing Pumpkins and My Bloody Valentine came fast and furious as a result in addition to a Grammy nomination for Best New Artist on the heels of their sophomore full length Swoon, which debuted in the Top 10 of the Billboard 200. Whatever momentum that had been built didn’t vanish suddenly on 2012’s Neck of the Woods and 2015’s Better Nature as both climbed toward the top of the charts, but neither seemed to generate the same kind of mainstream buzz their previous material had.
Maybe that’s why the ensuing Widow’s Weeds less than a year before the whole world shut down saw Silversun collaborate with legendary producer Butch Vig for the first time and continue that relationship on their two most recent studio efforts. Vig has served as Garbage’s drummer for almost 30 years now, but anytime you can land the guy who was behind the boards for Nirvana’s Nevermind, L7’s Bricks Are Heavy, Sonic Youth’s diRty and the aforementioned Pumpkins’ Siamese Dream, you hire him and don’t question the decision. From what we can tell, it has not only helped the quartet expand its horizons with Monninger showcasing more of her vocal capabilities at times but also led to a more refined sound and approach when it comes to the songwriting process. Silversun have every right to feel completely sure of themselves after navigating the last two-plus decades together, and that sort of cohesion as well as chemistry remains evident when you throw on their music or watch them perform it live with conviction.
Leading up to the release of Tenterhooks was a little bit different for the Pickups in that it coincided with a real scare during the album’s production when Aubert went to the hospital for an ear infection and had to stay much longer after suffering blood loss due to stomach damage from ibuprofen. It would take him six months after receiving blood transfusions until his ear was fully healed, but thankfully Aubert avoided any permanent damage to his hearing. As he recently explained to SPIN, one of the downsides from the health issues he experienced was not being there to see the album through its final stages when there’s that “wanderlust because you’re still working on it and you still have an imagination with it.” The finishing touches on Silversun’s seventh record were instead left up to Vig and Aubert’s bandmates, who didn’t let him — or their listeners — down.
Tenterhooks is a tighter collection of songs compared to what came ahead of it with a run time short of the 40-minute mark, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t some serious bangers as soon as you press the play button. The one-two punch of “New Wave” and “The Wreckage” set the tone right away, giving the follow-up to 2022’s Physical Thrills an accessibility that should appeal to listeners new and old. The 10-track LP would arrive less than a couple weeks before the Pickups hit the road to kick off their 30-date North American tour at The Observatory, and based on the sold-out crowd that greeted them in Orange County, it would be easy to believe you had been transported back to the late aughts upon entering the two-room venue’s main music hall.
Even if they aren’t mixing up their setlist on a nightly basis, Silversun have many of the ingredients that any good live act needs — starting with a charismatic frontman in Aubert to go with a rock-solid rhythm section. It had been close to 10 years since we last saw them and mind you that was inside the Mojave Tent at Coachella, so although the 1,200-person space provided a stark contrast, it also offered a more fulfilling experience as they uncorked a trio of personal favorites in “Well Thought Out Twinkles”, “Panic Switch” and “Circadian Rhythm (Last Dance)” prior to their four-song encore that saw Aubert take over keyboard duties for the Tenterhooks cut titled “Running Out of Sounds” (and they certainly aren’t). But no Silversun Pickups show would be complete without a taste of “Lazy Eye” and there was no doubt in our mind it would be coming as the clock eclipsed 10 p.m. No matter how old it is, the unrivaled hit still provokes a visceral feeling that will shake you down to your bones, and at a time when those moments can seem harder to come by as we become more absorbed by technology, it’s seasoned bands like the Pickups that we can count on to remind us what it feels like to be alive.
Setlist:
New Wave
The Wreckage
Well Thought Out Twinkles
It Doesn’t Matter Why
Panic Switch
Au Revoir Reservoir
The Royal We
Witness Mark
Kissing Families
Empty Nest
Mean Spirits
Long Gone
Hot Wired
Circadian Rhythm (Last Dance)
Dots and Dashes (Enough Already)
Encore:
Running Out of Sounds
Interrobang
Growing Old Is Getting Old
Lazy Eye
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