Coconut Records

A band from Los Angeles, Coconut Records.

Our recommendations: If you have never heard the band before, we recommend listening to "Microphone" (Youtube video at the bottom of the page), and "West Coast". 

Band Members: Jason Schwartzman (all instruments, mixing, producing, etc.). The albums do have some contributions by Incubus, Zooey Deschanel and Kirsten Dunst.


Who they are:

Coconut Records is an indie-pop solo-project by the singer-song writer/actor, Jason Schwartzman. The project began in 2006 during the time Jason Schwartzman decided to further his acting after leaving Phantom Planet - notable for their song "California" (which was even turned into the theme song for The O.C). 

The debut album Nighttiming was recorded in 2007 by Schwartzman who wrote all of the songs and played most of the instruments, and produced by Mike Einziger (of Incubus). The album also included contributions from other actors and musicians, such as Zooey Deschanel, Kirsten Dunst, Brandon Boyd, Ben Kenney, and Robert Schwartzman (brother of Jason Schwartzman). Some of the songs from Nighttiming were featured in films which Jason acts in such as Funny People (features the song "Nighttiming"), and other films such as Spider-Man 3 (features "Summer Day") and Cloverfield (features "West Coast").

The follow-up album by Coconut Records was Davy, released in 2009 which was again recorded by Jason Schwartzman who again is the main vocalist, song-writer and plays most of the instruments.  

Why we love them:

Coconut Records is a great alternative to pop songs that you hear every day on the radio. It is defined as "pop rock" or "indie pop" and this can be seen with pretty much anything that Jason Schwartzman does. Going along with the rest of his projects which have all had "hipster" status, you can hear in Coconut Records' style. Jason Schwartzman's influences include the Beatles, which can be definitely heard in his lyrical and general style of music. Songs such as "Nighttiming" can be heard to be disco-esque. 

While you are not going to hear insane guitar solos and should not expect any extreme vocals, Coconut Records reflects Jason Schwartzman's personality and style perfectly. Laid back, simple, while enjoyable and beautiful. An overall enjoyable listen.

Labels:  

• Young Baby Records

Notable Albums:

• Nighttiming (2007) - Debut Album
• Davy (2009) - latest album.

Check out "Microphone":