Tag: festivals

Desert Daze 2022: 10 Years In The Evolution Of A Music Scene

Danny Baraz November 8, 2022

Walking into Lake Perris Recreational Center took on new meanings this year after last year’s Desert Daze served to exorcize the ghosts of a global pandemic, to teach us that “Nothing that has happened so far has been anything we could control” and heal our mind, body and souls with drum soul-os. While 2021’s pared down Desert Daze was a cautious delight in a sea of dreck on earth, Desert Daze 2022 was a perfectly curated reckless abandon of people having sex in the lake again and breathing all over each other- in through the nose, out through the mouth. The headliners captured 10 years in the evolution of a music scene, the ascent of previously buzzworthy bands into icons celebrating a decade of seminal albums and a new wave of artists that might also one day celebrate the recently released albums they are currently touring on. For some people, Iggy Pop pulling out of the festival before he could impregnate us with music was a deal breaker but luckily, I received so much Iggy sperm the last 6 years that I was ready to bear my Beach House baby. related: Desert Daze 2021- Music, Magick and Medicine 2022 was

Ozzfest Rocks On But Can It Still Rage In 2017?

Lina Lecaro November 15, 2017

Heshers and head bangers are a loyal bunch, but metal ain’t exactly enjoying a mainstream moment in 2017, and it hasn’t for quite some time. With a few exceptions of Queens Of The Stone Age, Metallica and of course, the entirety of Europe where Metal still reigns supreme, the genre just isn’t recognized right now on U.S. radio or on U.S. charts, and this has made the current musical landscape feel really bland and wimpy and disposable to a lot of people (No, Foo Fighters are NOT metal). Heavy music still exists of course, and a lot of it feels as urgent as ever, but for the most part it’s a niche thing right now. related content: Black Sabbath And A Weeping Manboy At The Forum In L.A. I remember when things were different. When there was such a bounty of bombastic and aggressive bands on the scene, swaying the zeitgeist and stirring shit up, it was hard to keep track of them all. Their videos dominated MTV (before it was the Teen Mom channel), their records went multi-platinum (streaming didn’t exist yet) and they even graced the covers of popular music magazines (remember those?). There was so much heavy

Music Tastes Good In Long Beach – It Really Did

Janky Smooth Central Command October 17, 2017

Music Tastes Good 2017 was a fun-filled weekend featuring eclectic music and gourmet foods on the breezy coast of the Long Beach Marina Green Park on September 30th and October 1st. As I first arrived at the festival on Day 2, all my senses were immediately going off as I was greeted by the fiery sounds of the Hot 8 Brass Band, smelled delicious foods, saw incredible 3-D works of art and my feet began to feel the beat of the band, leaving me dancing as I explored the festival grounds. I only briefly lamented missing all the great music of Day 1. related content: Summertime In The LBC: Love Letter To A City That Doesn’t Always Love Back The first full set I was pleased to dance to was that of Dengue Fever, a Cambodian-American band currently based in Los Angeles. Their jazz meets psychedelic rock infused music had the crowd swaying blissfully as lead singer Chhom Nimol belted out beautiful melodies and led the cheerful crowd. The stage was decorated to match their 60’s inspired grooviness with colorfully painted hearts, rainbows and stars. At the end of their set, they rang out their brassy solos and high energy

Jim Reid- Jesus and Mary Chain by Johann Ramos

Take This: Win Two 2-Day Passes to Cloak And Dagger Festival

Janky Smooth Central Command October 10, 2017

If you dress in black everyday and find comfort in the shadows, you’re in luck. Janky Smooth is proud to announce our Cloak And Dagger: Dusk Till Dawn festival giveaway. Goth, post punk, industrial, and more, converge into one monstrous 2-day lineup that will be taking place at both the Globe and Tower Theaters on October 19th and 20th. This is the first year of this two day festival created by those that brought you Cloak and Dagger Tuesday club night’s in Hollywood. We here at Janky Smooth haven’t seen a lineup as whole and cohesive as this one in quite awhile. A lot of bands Janky Smooth has loved for quite some time will be playing, bands like: Ho99o9, Health, The Gaslamp Killer, Drab Majesty, and Uniform. There will also be plenty of powerhouse acts playing like: German industrial legends KMFDM, OHGR of Skinny Puppy, and of course Jesus And Mary Chain. IF YOU HAVEN’T BOUGHT TICKETS ALREADY, DON’T WASTE ANYMORE TIME. YOU CAN BUY THEM HERE. IF YOU DON’T HAVE THE COIN AND FEEL LUCKY, SIGN UP FOR OUR GIVEAWAY. CONTEST RULES Join the Janky Smooth newsletter. Subscription box pop’s up anytime you visit JankySmooth.com. (if you hit

Take This: Win Two Weekend Passes to Desert Daze 2017

Janky Smooth Central Command August 29, 2017

Janky Smooth is proud to announce our Desert Daze 2017 ticket giveaway for the 3rd year in a row. Have you already gotten tickets for our favorite annual festival in one of the most magickal and mysterious places in the world? Desert Daze returns to the Institute of Mentalphysics for it’s second year stationed in this location. Almost a year since the last DD, it rules supreme as the most meaningful interactive live music experience for all Janks that attended in 2016. related content: Desert Daze 2016- Quantifying the Physics of a Good Time The latest additions to the festival such as Iggy Pop, Ty Segall, Sleep performing the Holy Mountain album in it’s entirety and more have elevated the 2017 lineup to the 2016 roster of performers. One can only assume that the sense that you were at a party in the massive living room of your favorite friend that possesses immaculate taste will only be enhanced by the comfort the folks at Moonblock and Spaceland Presents now have with the Institute designed by Frank Lloyd

Ty Segall Saves The Smell at Teragram Ballroom

Desert Daze Finalize 2017 Lineup: Iggy Pop, Ty Segall, Sleep, & More

Janky Smooth Central Command August 1, 2017

You could have seen Iggy Pop this year at Punk Rock Bowling or Burger Boogaloo or FYF Fest but nothing will compare to the Street Walking Cheetah taking the stage amidst the dry, hot sheen of the California high desert at Desert Daze 2017. And he’s joined in this latest lineup addition by some other great artists too, Garage Rock’s golden boy Ty Segall and Trap Jazz bad boys Badbadnotgood, are now listed on this stellar new lineup poster. And check out the art on that thing, Desert Daze seems to be harkening back the Native American cultures that may have roamed those deserts hundreds of years ago. Makes sense seeing how Iggy Pop is all our spirit animal. Oh, did I mention that Sleep will be playing Holy Mountain in it’s entirety? Yeah. Related Content: Desert Daze 2016: Quantifying The Physics Of A Good Time related content: Ascending The Holy Mountain- Sleep at The Fonda Theater Ty Segall is already scheduled to perform with his incredible side project called GØGGS and we don’t begrudge him his double dip in the least. related content: GØGGS Is Damn Good Gravy On The Ty Segall Catalog Tickets for Desert Daze 2017 can

FYF Fest 2017 Steals Coachella’s Throne As So-Cal’s Premiere Festival

Dave Unbuckled August 1, 2017

My bones are still rattling and recovering from Capn’ Jazz’s sold out set at The Echo Thursay night. So much so that I limp across the edges of Exposition Park, and marvel at the crowd as I walk into my first FYF fest. The festival has grown dramatically since it’s early days as a showcase for DIY and up and coming local punk acts in 2004. It’s so comfortably warm walking through the LA coliseum on the outskirts circling the festival that I skip my normal routine of stealing water bottles and go straight to the pit. Related Content: FYF Presents: The Glorious Return of Cap’n Jazz At The Echo In an impromptu pow wow we map out our weekend and get ready to go watch Badbadnotgood- a band I’ve been following since their second album BBNG2 began getting the well-deserved buzz it received nearly five years ago. The band has carved a niche identity as mainstays in these large festivals. The crowd sways through their set, flexing their youthful energy that will be gone by day’s end but for now the band invites special guest Denzel Curry onto the stage and finishes the set with people pogoing to Trap Jazz

Burger Boogaloo 2017: The Ballad of John and Iggy

Rob Shepyer July 10, 2017

This Burger Boogaloo 2017 review is X-rated, so if your kids are reading it, Janky Smooth apologizes if they develop a foot fetish. Like your baby sister’s pretty pink switchblade, the marriage of legendary filmmaker and filth peddler, John Waters and atomic boy, Iggy Pop, cut the Bay Area deep till it bled out all the outlaws, shrimp pimps, gamblers, hipsters, hippies, hyphys, crust punks, trust-fund punks, rockabillies, rockabetties, and freakazoids to gather at Burger Boogaloo 2017 at Mosswood Park. Two whole beef patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles, onions on an acid infused bun. The trip up the 5 freeway was long and arduous but upon entering the burger’s third eye vortex, the camaraderie of San Francis-folk mellowed me out as straight as a noodle. That’s just how us So-Cal kids see Bay Area babies: hella mellow. This year, the festival’s theme was Shrimpin’ which is fiend’s slang for toe sucking. Four giant legs kicking up from the stage to the sky were inflated behind the Gone Shrimpin’ stage, which became the alter of our collective foot worship. I’m talking about high heels and low-life, sweaty soles and pedicured puppies. related content: Burger Boogaloo 2016- Bringing Rare Vinyl Back To

Janky Smooth Presents: FYF Janky Mixtape III & Download for 2017

Justin Cornwall July 7, 2017

It’s hard to believe FYF is just around the corner- again. It feels like yesterday I was stumbling out of the downtown Metrolink station, asking a stranger with a festival wristband on for a ride home (gas money included, of course) because my phone was completely dead. After getting enough power in my phone from home, proceeding to the Lyft waiting outside my door to the filthy Overpass where I watched Father John Misty saucily put moves on any girl who would look at him… oh, and of course, THREE YEARS SINCE MY FIRST FYF MIXTAPE FOR JANKY SMOOTH? Jesus fuckin Christ, where does the time go? Stream The Janky Smooth FYF Mixtape III Now related content: Janky Smooth Presents- FYF 2016 Preview & Mixtape FYF has always been one of my favorite parties of the year and I’ve been attending for almost 10 years in a row. I’ve worked the festival, snuck in, bought tickets an hour before deciding to go – it’s a world class event in our own backyard. The recurring acts on the lineup are like distant relatives I get to reconnect with every year. The headliners jump out of my old iTunes library and onto

The Most Complete Sound And Fury 2017 Review On Earth

Rob Shepyer June 26, 2017

Sound and Fury Festival is one big happy hardcore family and like any family, we like to fight but it’s only out of love. Artists and fans traveled from far and wide, from inside the USA and beyond, to join together and form an unbreakable bond for four days around hardcore music. The unity we shared was stronger than any of the things that divide people outside this scene’s little bubble. We might seem crazed for jumping off stages and swinging our fists and slamming our bodies into one another but the world-at-large can learn a thing or two from us. We can be the example-setters for brotherhood and sisterhood. When I call Sound and Fury a family, I mean the artists and the audience alike. That title is earned by the festival’s participants with three key factors: 1. Artists, usually ones under the same record label, will play in other bands throughout the whole festival. So, you’ll see Todd Jones and the festival’s organizer Martin, playing guitars with Terror; or you’ll see Brendan Yates playing guitar with Angel Du$t; or Taylor Young from Nails drumming for Criminal Instinct or playing guitar for Eyes of the Lord. Then you’ll also

Take This: Win 2 Tix & Goodie Bag to Dirty Penni Fest 2 at Echo+Plex

Janky Smooth Central Command June 14, 2017

Last year, Janky Smooth was smart enough to send a team over to the first installment of Dirty Penni Fest. We had Paige Vreede out to review the fledgling festival, Josh Allen out to shoot the bands and the people and Danny Baraz threw down a DJ set outside on patio of The Echo. But it’s not about us- it’s about the bands that played the fest which was a collaboration between the laundro-maniacs over at Dirty Laundry TV and the whiz kids at Penniback Records. Bands like Sloppy Jane, No Parents, Guantanamo Baywatch, Cherry Glazerr, our boys in Death Hymn… and of course, no event involving Dirty Laundry TV would be complete without the presence of the great Mike Watt and whatever battery of musicians accompany him- whether it be the “Secondmen” or in this case, the “Jom and Terry Show.” related content: Dirty Penni Fest- A Rock n Roll Romper Room for Young & Old “So whether you’re 14, 26, or 60 I think it’s safe to say we all found ‘home’ this past weekend. So let’s keep the DIY scene alive. These kids are our future.” – Paige Vreede This year, Dirty Penni Fest returns for

Punk Rock Bowling 2017: You Can’t Be What You Were…

Danny Baraz June 9, 2017

Looking out into the sea of people in the expanses that sprawl out from the upgraded festival stage at Punk Rock Bowling’s virgin location in the booming district of Downtown Las Vegas was a seismic life experience. Not just because of how fucking rad Punk Rock Bowling was this year but because all the events of the weekend set to the music of the festival served as a soundtrack to life’s highlight reel in my head. A series of events culminated into the bitter-sweetest regression of lonerism one could ever celebrate, as I stood alone, backstage, watching The Adicts play the best set I’d ever seen from them. Being 2 months out of knee surgery, that familiar human turbine engine of 7,k people dancing and swirling in front of the stage like a pack of bats taking flight at sun down or a school of fish changing direction in unison was unfamiliar from this vantage point- I’ve always preferred being IN the engine instead of being a spectator. Because when you’re in the pit, you’re dealing directly with any physical manifestation of frustration or anger that might have built up through the grind of life and you aren’t really thinking