A&E

When you’re listening to the uplifting world music-influenced folk-pop of the Makepeace Brothers, you can’t help but feel you should be soaking in the trio’s new album, Slow Down Feel Love, on a California beach as you watch the sun melt into the ocean. And when you’re a writer interviewing vocalist/guitarist Finian Makepeace via cell phone and you hear the crash of the surf and cry of seagulls and he says, “I’m just hanging out at Venice Beach,” and, “Cool, I just saw a seal in the water,” you wonder: Is it a music career or a lifestyle for these guys?

Still nursing your Coachella hangover? Alas, I’m not—deadlines and an allergy attack kept me home. Thanks to Benadryl, I’m now upright and, despite cottonmouth, in search of new and inspiring live music. I don’t have to look far.

Photo by Anthony Mair

It might sound like a bad joke about disgraced Sen. Larry Craig, but it’s true: You never know who you’ll bump into in the restroom—and the coed facilities at Todd English P.U.B. are no exception. “I’ve met a lot of important people here,” says Pedro Iuli, 24, who, as a personal valet, spends his evenings in the restroom. “It’s helping out people with quality service, but I add a twist to it. It’s all in the hustle. That’s why I started rapping.”

Last year, when an earthquake hit Haiti, artist Gina Quaranto and her partners did not hesitate to organize a fundraising event. It was a success, and they helped raise more than $1,000 for the Red Cross.