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KXLU Fund-Raiser Razes Roof

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SPECIAL TO THE TIMES

Radio station KXLU-FM (88.9) took over the Knitting Factory on Wednesday for its “Fundrazor” benefit, which featured a wide-ranging bill that reflected the eclectic spirit of Loyola Marymount University’s venerable outlet.

At times, many crowded into the club’s tiny Alter-Knit Lounge to see such acts as versatile sonic radicals GoGoGo Airheart and locally popular rockers the 400 Blows. Others hung out in the bar to see and be seen while listening to various DJs spin their stuff.

Common threads included the surprisingly far-reaching legacy of ‘90s grunge-rockers Mudhoney, whose influence was heard in the aggressive shrieks of Pleasure Forever as well as in Autolux. Careening from droning to fierce, the L.A. trio Autolux sculpted an angular, modern, distorted yet melodic sound that bore the imprint of the Pixies’ sharp alt-pop, and might have made some listeners think of the psychedelic thrash of Black Rebel Motorcycle Club.

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Hip-hop was another recurring style in the main room.

The Beat Junkies featured five turntablists, all scratching out and mixing up at once for a cacophonous, if sometimes tedious, sonic brew.

Though only marginally more interesting, at least the Visionaries--whose five socially conscious rappers were backed by the Junkies’ Rhettmatic--worked the usual rap-concert cliches with real enthusiasm.

Things ran so far behind schedule in the main room that De Facto, one of the more anticipated acts, had to truncate its set to 15 minutes rather than the allotted half-hour.

Co-founded by bassist Omar Rodriguez and drummer Cedric Bixler, who played guitar and sang, respectively, in the now-defunct indie-rock darling At the Drive-In, the group also featured former Long Beach Dub Allstars keyboardist Ikey Owens. They didn’t have much time to set a mood, but the spaced-out dub-reggae instrumental groove they managed to get rolling was pretty cool.

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