WHO’S NEXT:

CHIEF

HOMETOWN: Los Angeles

MEMBERS:
Evan Koga  (vocals, guitar)
Danny Fujikawa (guitar)
Mike Moonves (bass)
Michael Fujikawa  (drums)

ALBUM: Modern Rituals,
due out Aug. 17

WEBSITE: chieftheband.com

Frontman Evan Koga and his fellow L.A.-born members of Chief formed the band as students at New York University. They made the move back to California last year, guitarist Danny Fujikawa leaving school to do so. “I had faith in this band and Evan’s songs,” he says. “Evan has a great grip on finding very powerful chords, ones that could even be seen as classic. He doesn’t just sing over them—he flows.” Chief began recording its debut album last November with producer Emery Dobyns. The result, Modern Rituals, carries echoes of the classic 1970s work of acts like Neil Young, the Band and Crosby, Stills and Nash. “It’s a traveler’s record. I listen and it immediately feels natural to see myself driving down the Pacific Coast Highway,” says Fujikawa. “But at the same time, maybe it would feel the same way if I were walking through New York.”