Tag: post punk
Substance Festival 2025: The Post Pandemic/Post Punk Era
Danny Baraz
November 14, 2025
Substance Festival in Los Angeles has become a right of passage in this city and this past November 7th and 8th we attended the 2025 installment in the festival’s return to the Belasco Theater. Approaching this Substance Fest review with any overt enthusiasm would be antithetical to the spirit of the way we revel in the morose nature of this art- the oddly mesmerizing decay of destruction/creation approached with a somewhat detached dreariness that is direct in it’s aloofness. But also… the fucking horrific beauty of it all… or whatever. related: Cloak And Dagger Fest- The Heart Of Los Angeles Bled From Dusk To Dawn Even with the orbits and cycles of pop culture and music circling back to black lipstick among the masses, the mainstream attention can cause a scene to go into lockdown and it’s members more discerning on where they spend their show dollars. So for Substance Festival, it was important to pull in the beating heart of the scene at the increased ticket price. related: Sextile At The Novo- The Most Important Band in Los Angeles? A touch for curation in the dark arts is what scene loyalists look for most and their return to the
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The Saints at the Teragram Ballroom: Still Stranded After All These Years
Janky Smooth Central Command
November 11, 2025
I never thought I’d ever get the chance to see The Saints live, especially after the passing of frontman Chris Bailey. When I heard the band was reuniting with a new lineup, I had my doubts. The Saints are a legendary Australian band whose influence shaped countless others. But seeing their current incarnation on November 5, 2025 at The Teragram Ballroom, featuring original members Ed Kuepper and Ivor Hay, proved that they truly do justice to the old classics. The lineup was rounded out by Mark Arm (Mudhoney), Mick Harvey (Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds/The Birthday Party), and Peter Oxley (The Sunnyboys). Touring as The Saints ‘73-‘78, they focused on the band’s golden years-and it was everything a fan could hope for. Of course all the obligatory “hits” were played like “I’m Stranded” and “This Perfect Day.” The 90-minute set was perfect. related: Cruel World 2025 at The Rose Bowl – We’re Only Happy When It Rains Opening the night were The Chimers, an Australian guitar/drum duo who delivered a driving post-punk set that perfectly set the tone for what was to come. Words and Photos: Albert Licano The Saints at the Teragram Ballroom weren’t just a nostalgia trip-they
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Janky Fresh Friday: Record Release Shows for Spiritual Cramp and Patriarchy
Janky Smooth Central Command
October 24, 2025
Welcome to Janky Fresh Friday- the busiest day of the week for artists and labels to drop newly released music. Check in every Friday for a fresh squeeze. As part of Janky Smooth’s Janky Fresh Friday series, we’ve been comparing two albums that come out on the same day and seemingly have nothing in common- for the sole purpose of discovering the wealth of similarities between two disparate things. related: Janky Fresh Friday – New Albums from Tame Impala and Militarie Gun This week we mix things up a bit to examine two new albums with late-October 2025 record release parties in LA. Spiritual Cramp’s free show sponsored by Marshall at Zebulon on 10/21 reminded us of what rock music should be all about; and Patriarchy’s upcoming record release party at The Lodge Room on 10/26 is about to be one of the creepiest and most gritty dance-parties you’ve ever been to, just in time for Halloween. Author Danny Ryan gives his review of Spiritual Cramp’s RUDE, with photos by Taylor Wong from the Zebulon record release show. Author Rob Shepyer breaks down Patriarchy’s new album for us in preparation of their upcoming Lodge Room performance. Spiritual Cramp: RUDE (released
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Sextile At The Novo: The Most Important Band In Los Angeles?
Danny Baraz
October 22, 2025
A bold question. What elements create rank of importance in art? It’s easier in a music scene. Sextile played The Novo on October 11, 2025 and they left a lasting impression for anyone who was there to witness it. Walking into the venue that night felt like stepping into a vortex where underground club culture, raw post-punk perfection, and Los Angeles local band chaos fused into something futuristic. I’ve seen Sextile before, but this was different. This was a band leveling up in real time, playing like they were headlining a festival the world hasn’t invented yet. And Los Angeles showed up to The Novo, hard. The Novo was already buzzing the second I walked in, bodies packed shoulder-to-shoulder on the floor, the balcony filling fast with goths, punks, ravers, skaters, fashion kids, and aging industrial heads who looked like they’d been waiting 20 years for a band like this. Sextile draws tribes. And when a band pulls that many subcultures under one roof, you know something important is about to go down. related: Dark Entries- Bauhaus at The Palladium related: The Lost Coverage of Substance Fest 2022 – Los Angeles Theater The night kicked off with the kind of
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Janky Fresh Friday: New Albums From John Maus and PeelingFlesh
Danny Ryan
September 26, 2025
Welcome to Janky Fresh Friday- the busiest day of the week for artists and labels to drop newly released music. Check in every Friday for a fresh squeeze. John Maus: Later Than You Think (released September 26, 2025): Young Records John Maus’ new album Later Than You Think is a huge deal. Like a really huge, massive deal. Personally, his last release in 2011 We Must Become the Pitiless Censors Of Ourselves was a formative album during my high school years and one of my first introductions to goth music or synth pop outside of the mainstream. Almost 15 years later and he’s back with a vengeance; a deeply changed man on a spiritual level, but still bringing the lo-fi dark and gloomy atmosphere to the dancefloor. Don’t miss John Maus live this October: Observatory OC – October 20, 2025 The Belasco – October 22, 2025 The lyrical themes have certainly changed quite a bit from 2011’s “Cop Killer” to today with “I Hate Antichrist” and this tone of religious awakening can be felt throughout his newest release. As early as the second track we get lyrics like “Satan, Satan, Satan lies. Turns everything into fucking spite”. You could
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ALL LEATHER- A Post Punk Re-Release By THREEONEG Out Today
Janky Smooth Central Command
July 11, 2025
ALL LEATHER – Amateur Surgery On Half-Hog Abortion Island (Double LP anthology) the remixed, remastered and updated anthology of the band’s music to be re-released TODAY, July 11th on Three One G Records. Originally released by Dim Mak almost 20 years ago with a studio budget of $7,000, Justin Pearson told idioteq.com that a dispute over royalties had arisen after after one of the tracks had sold nearly 2 million downloads and Dim Mak, owned by Steve Aoki stopped reporting royalties. Was this exciting Justin Pearson project squashed before it’s full impact was felt? Stream- ALL LEATHER: Amateur Surgery On Half-Hog Abortion Island (Double LP anthology) “The band’s debt to Dim Mak for our recording has doubled over the years of not being accounted to, just after we had one of our songs sell 1,940,000+ downloads (not streams, download digital sales, as it was pre streaming). However, the accounting showed that we got $320 for that one track’s sales, yet still owe the label $14K, twice the budget we started with” Justin Pearson explained to us in an email. related: Swing Heil- Anti Fascist Hardcore Punks Swing Kids Return to Los Angeles related: Three One G Radiation- Deaf Club at The
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Youth Code Break The Ice At The Echo: Yours, With Malice
Danny Baraz
June 12, 2025
This past Saturday, June 7th, the post-punk industrial outfit, Youth Code, returned to The Echo in Los Angeles for their first headlining show in this city in 9 years. L.A. is the city from which Youth Code spawned so, that hiatus is enigmatic on its own. Why has it been so long and why now? The latter, easy to answer — Yours, With Malice, the new EP released last month on May 16th by Sumerian Records. Spoiler alert: It’s a fucking banger. In the shadow of the ICE raids and protests happening downtown and all over the city, Youth Code and their supporting act, Sweat played a show- one of the best club shows I’ve seen all year and it was fitting it was at The Echo for many reasons. I knew nothing about the band Sweat but they announced their presence with authority. Sweat are a hard-hitting hardcore-punk trio from Los Angeles, formed in 2019 by veteran SoCal scene members Tuna Tardugno (vocals), Justin Smith (guitar/bass), and Anthony Rivera (drums), formerly of outfits like Graf Orlock, Dangers, and Dogteeth . With razor-sharp riffs, metallic hardcore energy, and an unhinged and frenetic live show by their ringleader, Tardugno, they channel influences ranging from Cro‑Mags
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Spiritual Cramp: Alive at the Regent Theater
Danny Baraz
June 6, 2025
Last month on May 21st, Spiritual Cramp opened a show for Bad Nerves at The Regent Theater. We here at Janky Smooth have been mildly obsessed with Spiritual Cramp- mostly theorizing on why they aren’t headlining shows like this yet. Because once you see them live, the band leaves no doubt. Spiritual Cramp released their first full length, self titled studio album in 2023 to go with 4 EP’s and a slue of singles. Every release is solid. But do yourself a favor- if Spiritual Cramp come to your town, do whatever you can to go see them. related: LA’s Best Festival is Sound and Fury- Here’s Why (2018) When you first hear the name Spiritual Cramp, you’re not sure if you’re about to get hit with a darkwave sermon or an exorcism of punk rock demons. But once the needle drops—or they hit the stage—you know exactly what you’re in for: a sweaty, soul-drenched blast of refined angst, post-punk groove, and swagger that may not be unique to them but they certainly take it to it’s purest form. Now stationed in Los Angeles, Spiritual Cramp is the band you didn’t know you needed—until you see them and your taint
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Gang of Four at The Fonda: The End of the Long Goodbye Tour
Janky Smooth Central Command
June 2, 2025
On May 28, 2025, Gang of Four delivered a powerful performance at Los Angeles’ Fonda Theatre, marking a significant moment in their farewell “The Long Goodbye” tour. The band, known for their influential role in the post-punk movement, showcased two sets that paid homage to their storied career. As pioneers of the post-punk movement, Gang Of Four’s music favored tense rhythms, percussive guitar with sharp tones, and lyrics that traded in Marxist theory and situationism. As long as this last goodbye run was, it didn’t show at The Fonda Theater. Gang of Four are not only as spry and believable as ever, but John King still had seemingly endless energy at the end of the second set. I’m sure the adrenaline is still pumping a week later from the adoring fans prompting the band to play one more song that would never end. The Fonda-Setlist 1 “Entertainment!”: Ether Natural’s Not in It Not Great Men Damaged Goods Return the Gift I Found That Essence Rare Glass Contract At Home He’s a Tourist 5.45 Anthrax The Fonda- Setlist 2 “Best of the Rest”: He’d Send in the Army Capital (It Fails Us Now) Outside the Trains Don’t Run on Time Paralysed
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Partying Like It’s 2004: IHEARTCOMIX 20th Anniversary
Danny Ryan
October 29, 2024
IHEARTCOMIX have established themselves as one of the most forward-thinking and distinct promoters in recent LA history over the past two decades; dipping their toes into events celebrating nearly every form of art not limited to raves, parties, movie premieres, album release events, and interactive art exhibitions. Celebrating their 20th anniversary, IHEARTCOMIX threw an absolutely wild party with a complete hodgepodge of a lineup; Featuring The Dare, Boys Noize, Fcukers, Nation of Language, Chela, and even Yo Gabba Gabba blessing the night with their presence. Comedy legend Reggie Watts hosted the entire event, completely taking ownership of the evening’s vibes and making sure everybody in attendance had the most memorable night possible. Although the early 00’s where they started may be long over, IHEARTCOMIX went above and beyond in providing a futuristic lineup that still evoked a nostalgic feeling that celebrated their history in the most crafted way possible. As soon as I approached The Bellweather, it was instantly apparent that this was not the average club event with the eccentric and colorful outfits that everybody was decked out in. While it was a more formally dressed crowd, IHEARTCOMIX’s brand is entirely based on being as expressive and colorful as
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HEALTH at The Grammy Museum- Making It In The New Music Industry
Danny Baraz
October 18, 2024
So here I am for the first time at the Grammy Museum in Downtown Los Angeles to see HEALTH perform a half set in a small 200 person theater with seats, and to live premier their latest song collaboration- “Ashamed” featuring Lauren Mayberry of CHVRCHES. Prior to the performance was a less awkward than I imagined Q and A with Nic Harcourt and the band that focused heavily on the creation of the 2023 full length release of Rat Wars. Singer/Songwriter and HEALTH guitarist, Jake Dusik was much more chatty than I expected for someone with such a catalog of sad bastard, isolationist song credits. Dusik spoke in great detail about that despair, which peaked during the pandemic lock down. The birth of his child during this bleak time and the death of society conceived their most critically acclaimed HEALTH album, to date. HEALTH co-founder and ambassador John Famiglietti, always bringing levity to the band described a completely different lock down experience that didn’t always shelter in place and was echoed by HEALTH drummer BJ Miller. HEALTH were asked their thoughts on who was the quintessential Los Angeles band and the answer given was The Doors. I found that to
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N8NOFACE at The Lodge Room- F*ck You, Pay Me
Danny Baraz
April 6, 2023
The character arch of N8NoFace will one day become the stuff of legend. From making music in a closet to a sold out show at the Lodge Room. From a self described “border boy” growing up in the Sonoran Desert in Tuscon Arizona, to building the kind of cult following in Los Angeles over the last 13 years that is the envy of most religious fundamentalist leaders. After seeing N8’s March 22nd kinetic performance at the Lodge Room in Highland Park, the only question that remains is how far does N8NoFace want to go? Up to this point, I had only seen N8 open for other bands and artists. With just himself and his Roland SP-404, I can’t remember anyone who was able to fill up both big and small stages alike with just themselves, a sampler and a massive stage presence. But this headlining gig at the Lodge Room was a different configuration of people joining him on stage and that made me nervous, at first. When the essence of something you like changes, the changes aren’t always good. For this show, N8NOFACE enlisted the help of Here Lies Man and Antibalas guitarist, Marcos Garcia aka Chico Mann. This
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