CHIMPZ AIM TO BE TOP BANANAS WITH “CALIFORNIA”
Alert the zookeeper! The Chimpz are running wild! Actually, Mr. Zookeeper probably already knows that L.A.’s favorite simian-loving rap rockers have just released a new self-titled six-song EP. How could he not know when the effort’s first single, “California,” is already echoing throughout the jungle like Tarzan’s lusty wail.

The band has also made a lyric video for the song, and it shows the home state in all its sand, sun and surf glory, while guitars slash and singer Artimus Prime leads the hooked-filled chorus of “I’ll see you when you get here/See you when you get to California.”

The hit anthem is not the only big news coming out of Chimpz Nation; “Right to Left,” another song from the new EP, will be featured in the upcoming season of “Sons of Anarchy.”

So yep, the bananas are going to be flying big time this fall.

BOILING POINT GIVES FANS MORE
Pop rock foursome Boiling Point has a hit on their hands with the uplifting “When You’ve Lost it All” from its new album More.

About keeping the faith and never giving up, the band had just finished recording the song when tragedy struck as the mother of singer Eric Bjorklund and drummer Scott Bjorklund succumbed to cancer. Two weeks after that, one of the guy’s aunts died, as did one of Eric’s in-laws.

“June 2013 derailed the band, derailed everything,” said Eric. “We had to come together as a family and grieve.”

And while the loved ones will forever be missed, the band is back on track with 10 guitar-driven soaring rock songs contained in More, scheduled to drop on Sept. 16. A national tour that should bring the Minneapolis-based outfit to Los Angeles is planned for later this fall.

KNOTFEST COMING TO SAN BERNARDINO
Slipknot’s Knotfest is coming to the San Manuel Amphitheater in San Bernardino for a three-day stand Oct. 24-26.

Slipknot has personally selected the 60 or so bands that’ll play over the course of the festival, including Anthrax, Danzig, Five Finger Death Punch, Fear Factory and Of Mice & Men. Also scheduled to appear are Volbeat, Prong, Otep, Napalm Death, Satyricon, Amen, Attika 7 and Immolation.

Slipknot will be performing on Oct. 25 and 26, playing completely different sets each night. Additionally, everyone who buys a ticket will receive a digital copy of Slipknot’s new album when it drops later this year.

ATASH: EVERYTHING IS MUSIC
The eight-member world music group Atash is based in Austin, Texas, but it always had special memories of California.

The band honed its sound touring up and down the Cali coast way back in 2001, and when the 9/11 terrorist attacks struck while they were on their way home to Austin, the members immediately returned to Los Angeles to play disaster relief shows.

Surprisingly, Atash hasn’t played a show in the area for a decade now; that’ll be remedied with a show at the Mint on Sept. 28 and another in the Multicultural Center at the University of Santa Barbara on Sept. 29. Fans can expect to hear plenty of music from the brand new album, Everything is Music.

NAAMA KATES RECORD RELEASE PARTY
Pop songstress Naama Kates is ready to release her latest effort Souled; it drops on Oct. 7. There’ll be a record release party that evening at The Complex in Atwater Village (3015 Glendale Blvd.) starting at 8:00 p.m. The outdoor event is free, and there’ll be an open bar.

HALF NOTES
CAMILLE BLOOM will be playing a show on Sept. 21 at Republic of Pie in North Hollywood. Bloom’s latest release is last year’s acoustic effort Big Dreams.

NIGHT CLUB, the L.A.-based synth pop duo, will be releasing a new EP called Black Leather Heart later this month. For an advance taste, seek out the band’s video tribute to grindhouse-style B-movies, “She Wants to Play with Fire.”

ROBERT SCHWARTZMAN of Rooney fame will soon be embarking on a nationwide “California Roll” tour where he’ll perform in each city for about 30 people aboard a specially outfitted party bus. The tour will hit L.A. on Oct. 17 and 18. Find details at www.californiarolltour.com