12 Area Standouts to Watch for in ’92

T he top 1991 freshmen of Southern California come from all over the musical map--from rap to country to Beatle-pop to grunge-rock. Here’s a look at the 12 new area acts who’ve made the biggest splash this year.

Hole (above): On the debut album “Pretty in the Inside,” Courtney Love, the lead singer of this three-fourths-female L.A. rock band, sings of suffering and danger with a fearless, “Blue Velvet”-like intensity.