Tag: echoplex

Earth’s Crust: CY Fest 2024 at the Belasco

Rob Shepyer November 6, 2024

What does a typical LA punk want out of a festival? Given that Los Angeles is the most prominent live music hub in the USA, and the world, the average LA punk attends enough shows to make any given concert, no matter how badass, still leaving something to be desired. From my personal experience, that thing LA punks are left desiring from their scene is to have their minds, tastes, and boundaries expanded. I want to see something different, new. I want a band to show me something I didn’t think was possible. The best way to do this is by assembling bills with bands of various styles from various parts of the globe, and no festival has gathered more international acts in Los Angeles than CY Fest 2024. It was the World Cup of punk, with heavy representation from Sweden, Spain, Japan, Italy, Mexico, and so many more countries. Topping off the festivities, the USA’s contribution to the lineup came in the form of a rare Dropdead co-headlining performance before the reunion of Portland’s female-fronted crusties, Detestation. related content: Set The Animals Free: Wolfbrigade and Dropdead at 1720 With a few bands of the upcoming CY Fest 2025 already

A Cathedral of Hardcore: Ceremony at Echoplex

Alfredo Luna October 25, 2022

Ceremony has been a band that is ever-changing and in many cases prompts their fanbase to become very opinionated on their sound. Despite their evolution, and whatever people say they are or have become, the band has continually crafted a live set that is as raw and filled with emotion as it can get. After touring with Citizen and Turnstile, Ceremony harnessed the energy from that experience to power their “Vanity Spawned by Fear” tour. With support from Bay Area Hardcore Punk rising stars SPY and shoegaze bedroom pop laden Suzanne Kraft, Ceremony curated a perfect end to thee first leg of their tour. The night kicked off with Suzanne Kraft swooning the crowd with a set filled with jangly guitars and drowned out vocals to ease into the night. The ability to set a smooth tone and give a calmness to the crowd before the impending chaos worked extremely well. As they continued their set you could see a juxtaposed crowd of people swaying and feeling every hook as well as the pit taking shape and carving itself for the rest of the night. Forming itself like a drawback before a tsunami, the open space became ominous and as

Cyber-Core: Vein. FM at the Echoplex

Danny Ryan September 22, 2022

Vein.fm’s signature blend of emotionally driven post-hardcore and ferocious metalcore with unpredictable glitchy electronic-based samples transformed the Echoplex into a violent cyperpunk apocalypse with their recent headlining performance. With the show starting at 6pm, they hosted a nearly festival-sized lineup of upcoming hardcore punk bands from all different sounds that shared a common theme of having intense, ass-beating breakdowns that inspire spin-kicks throughout the room. As hardcore punk gains more prominence with current trends, bands like Vein.fm and co-headliner Candy are beginning to break into the audiences of other heavy music scenes more than ever. If you’re a fan of punk rock, metal, or even heavier electronic IDM scenes at all, then Vein.fm should absolutely be one of the top bands on your radar. With the show starting at the incredibly early time of 6pm, the first opening acts of the night were Twist of Cain, Living Weapon, and Momentum. Each band brought their own unique brand of hardcore to the lineup, with Twist of Cain starting things off sounding raw as all hell with their lack of effects or electronics compared to the rest of the bands that evening. Twist of Cain has an incredibly down-to-earth hardcore sound with

Photo Recap: Pink Turns Blue at Echoplex

Janky Smooth Central Command September 20, 2022

Post punk at Echoplex is a goddamn L.A. institution and with Pink Turns Blue performing there, the tradition is back in full swing. Berlin’s finest put on a banger of an evening, performing all their most tragic and powerful tunes. LA’s goth scene showed up and gave the band all they had in response. Photos by: Jason Murillo Pink Turns Blue

Long Live the New Flesh: Ho99o9 and N8 NOFACE at Echoplex

Aria Silva-Espinosa May 3, 2022

The span of Ho99o9’s 5-year siege of the hip hop punk crossover scene isn’t nearly enough time to digest the expansive and complex body of work. In March, the group released their second studio album SKIN following a few EP’s and mixtapes since their debut album United States of Ho99o9 that absolutely broke necks back in 2017. That seems long ago and far away now, almost like a fever dream in the wake of live music’s seemingly untimely demise. A few years back when it felt like shit had really hit the fan, I found myself revisiting tracks like War is Hell and Knuckle Up, finding confirmation in the vengeful, acerbic lyricism and concordant rhythm. It’s the kind of music made by and for those of us who have simply had enough of the bullshit, certainly. Ho99o9’s hot-blooded and unbridled grit invigorates the disdain felt for false authority, inequity and the general state of affairs – as relatable today as it was in 2015 if not increasingly moreso. related content: House of Ho99o9 Halloween at The Roxy The full-length studio album is something of a dream/nightmare blunt rotation of collaborators. SKIN was produced by current Kardashian Kaptive and former pop

Take This: Win Two Tickets to Dance With The Dead at Echoplex

Janky Smooth Central Command May 3, 2022

We’re giving away tickets to the darksynth rave of the year with Dance With The Dead bombing into the Echoplex for a night of ripping, hard beats. If you dance to the death, you’ll be dancing with yourself, at Dance With The Dead….see what I did there? Joining them will be Magic Sword, only adding to the retro trip. YOU CAN BUY TICKETS HERE or ENTER TO WIN 2 TICKETS TO DANCE WITH THE DEAD MAY 5TH AT ECHOPLEX Step 1- Join Our Newsletter (look for pop up every time you arrive at jankysmooth.com) Step 2 – Tag a Friend in the comment section of our INSTAGRAM or FACEBOOK DANCE WITH THE DEAD Ticket Giveaway Post WINNER WILL BE SELECTED ON MAY 4TH AT 1PM PST VIA EMAIL CONFIRMATION

Take This: Win Two Tickets to Ho99o9 at the Echoplex

Rob Shepyer April 12, 2022

Our favorite dynamic duo are back in Los Angeles to kick your ass and play songs off their latest album SKIN. Ho99o9 never disappoints and neither do we. We’re giving away two ticket to see them at the Echoplex for y’all to fight over. YOU CAN BUY TICKETS HERE or ENTER TO WIN 2 TICKETS TO HO99O9 APRIL 15TH AT THE ECHOPLEX Step 1- Join Our Newsletter (look for pop up every time you arrive at jankysmooth.com) Step 2 – Tag a Friend in the comment section of our INSTAGRAM or FACEBOOK HO99O9 Ticket Giveaway Post WINNER WILL BE SELECTED ON APRIL 14TH AT 1PM PST VIA EMAIL CONFIRMATION

PHOTO RECAP: Mike Jones at Echo Flex

Janky Smooth Central Command July 23, 2021

The last concert before Los Angeles’ mask mandate was put into effect had to be LA’s premiere 90’s hip hop party, Echo Flex at the Echoplex where late into the evening fans got up close and personal to each other to romp and dance to hip from the greatest era of the genre’s history, only to top it off with a rare performance from one of the OG’s himself, Mike Jones. Photos by: Rodney Campos Mike Jones

I Don’t Have a Curfew: Dirty Penni Fest IV at the Echo/Echoplex

Jonathan Reyes July 16, 2019

The kaleidoscope of sound heard at the fourth iteration of Dirty Laundry TV and Penniback Records‘ collaboration, Dirty Penni Fest, could best be described as pleasantly confounding. While there was a thread of teen angst sewn through every band, the final product being a disorderly quilt collaboratively sewn by neo-cumbia, acid metal, and traditional punk bands. Walking through this festival made of think of listening to the radio in one room and the TV in another while smoking weed in the bathroom so mom doesn’t smell it. related content: Dirty Penni Fest: A Rock And Roll Romper Room For Young And Old Can you describe something as walking through a sea of teenagers? The patio stage was constant and rowdy, Think “The Smell” without the scared straight element. When I wasn’t getting elbowed in the back I was enjoying Kuromi rip it up. What a band. I watched a lot of kids scream and thrash into instruments but they had something that was lacking in some of the other bands, a point to the fury, they screamed and they bashed and they captivated. Sabrina is Not in This Chat Sabrina is not playing loud enough, for the first couple songs

Take This: Win 2 Tickets to Dirty Penni Fest IV at the Echo/Echoplex

Janky Smooth Central Command July 2, 2019

Dirty Penni Fest is back for it’s fourth installment and Dirty Laundry TV and Penniback Records are collaborating once against o bring you one of the best garage punk lineups your young bodies can pogo to. This year, legendary surf guitarist and rock and roll innovator, Dick Dale, will be commemorated with a tribute by the Buttertones. Make sure to catch Perfection too! YOU CAN BUY TICKETS HERE OR: ENTER TO WIN 2 TICKETS TO DIRTY PENNI FEST IV JULY 6TH AT THE ECHO/ECHOPLEX Step 1- Join Our Newsletter (look for pop up every time you arrive at jankysmooth.com) Step 2 – Tag a Friend in the comment section of our INSTAGRAM, TWITTER, or FACEBOOK Dirty Penni Fest IV Ticket Giveaway Post WINNER WILL BE SELECTED ON JULY 4TH AT 11AM PST VIA EMAIL CONFIRMATION

Outlaws of Goth: VR SEX “Human Traffic Jam” Record Release at Echoplex

Rob Shepyer May 20, 2019

The common misconception of goths is that they’re sad, poetic, and wear black. And though the second two descriptors might be dead on, there’s nothing sad about a band of outlaws, ransacking stages and breaking the post punk mold with undisputed attitude and badass style. Great things come in threes and VR SEX sure are great. Riding black horses, these three gents carry the Dais records flag for yet another incredible record, “Human Traffic Jam”, the release of which we celebrated at the Echoplex with a performance no one in attendance is ever going to forget. This was the last show I saw at Echoplex before the venue was sold to Live Nation, so one could make the case that where these ghostriders go, death follows. related content: Drab Majesty Return To Los Angeles After Taking Europe By Storm Opening the show was fellow Dais record-mate and one-woman noise conjurer, Pod Blotz who created digitized thunder that shook the Echoplex and made every heart in the audience beat faster and more anxiously. The mind wanders strange places as Pod Blotz displaces the air molecules around you with sonic stabs. Incorporating a long, winding metal sheet to make sounds machines simply

Photo Recap: Patriarchy at the Echoplex

Janky Smooth Central Command April 17, 2019

If you’ve been paying attention, you’ve been seeing Patriarchy coming up from the underground and making the beginnings of what might become a huge splash in Los Angeles. Patriarchy, the musical brain-child of avant-garde filmmaker and fashionista, Actually Huizenga, is one of the most symbolically powerful acts hitting the clubs right now. Playing with gender roles, Actually takes many forms from princess to warrior and combines their animus in every artistic breath. You’ll be seeing and hearing a lot more from Patriarchy in the near future, so we thought it would be wise to catch her recent Echoplex display of power. Also, check out her films, this artist is part of some new wave of which she is at the forefront. Pics by: Lindsay Arth