Category: SHOWS

Sweat Therapy: Dumb Fucks and Niis at the Echo

Janky Smooth Central Command July 21, 2021

Words by Juan Perez Photos by Paula Jean On the night before the mask mandate went into effect, Pretty But Wicked put together a showcase for the ages, bringing together an eclectic crowd to witness some of the best acts Los Angeles has to offer. From young kids still in high school, to old heads who have been around, this last ditch effort to party before we’d be forced to wear masks showed how much power the love of music has. Playing their first live show ever, Smirk is a project formed by frontman Nick during the pandemic. What started off as something just for fun turned into one of the new best acts in the scene. Old school punk, with something a little bit more obscure added into the mix. The crowd responded very well to the set, stage diving and circle pitting. It was a nice, little warm-up for the madness to come. Just hearing the conversations afterwards tells me how much of an impression the band made for their first time. Next up was Downside. Gaining a huge reputation in the LA punk scene for rowdy shows, the crowd really brought it for these guys. The fans were so

Danger and Fun: Nature World Presents Made Before Sound at 1720

Rob Shepyer July 15, 2021

It’s never been more punk to attend a show. Sure, in the 80’s there was the threat of being stomped out by skinhead mobs or having beer spit in your face for wearing the wrong band shirt but today, a respiratory virus can actually reward your daring for going to a show by permanently mangling your organs. You don’t even need to be in the pit, you can hang back in the farthest corner from the action and still be just as much of a risk-taker as the next cat, crazy enough to test your luck and praying you don’t come out the venue with a strange, dry cough. If you’re going to die young because you went to a show, I could understand if it was a Nature World show. It’s been awhile since this amazing name brought us a show, their Nature World Night Out festivals were enough years ago that we all started to miss them. What distinguishes Nature World from every other promoter is that they have one foot in each underground, punk and rap. When the two come together, you have mohawks bouncing to trap and dreadlocks moshing to hardcore. It’s a beautiful thing to

Speaking in Jazz: John Carroll Kirby at the Lodge Room

Rob Shepyer June 30, 2021

One of the silver linings of the pandemic is that being deprived all our favorite things for over a year makes us truly cherish them now that they’ve returned. “Don’t know what you got, till it’s gone”, in the Cinderella sense of the adage, applies here, to this John Carroll Kirby concert at the Lodge Room. I use this cliche because we are seeing it play out in real time. John Carroll Kirby‘s was the second artist to sell out the venue since its re-opening and the sort of people that bought tickets and cocktails on this evening weren’t the sort that might attend an experimental jazz show at any previous moment of their lives. Having gone without the spiritual sustenance of music has made all our souls rather emaciated over the last year, so like a vampire that smells human blood, we are fiending live music now more than ever. That’s not to take away anything from the artist, John Carroll Kirby is nothing short of a jazz genius, which in a sense is a genius’ genius. After the first song finished, John took the opportunity to address the crowd and thank us all for coming out. Sharing in

First Show After The Great Reset: Patriarchy at The Lash’s Reopening Party

Rob Shepyer June 23, 2021

I’m assuming our audience watches alternative media and not corporate news so the words “Great Reset” call to mind this pseudo-conspiracy theory based on smatterings of elite water cooler talk at world economic forums and other such patriarchal happenings that the global economy will reset into a new system as a result of technological advent, reaction to catastrophe and pursuit of sinister agendas. related content: Janky Smooth Top 25 Artists To Watch In 2020 Where does Actually Huizenga fit in all this? Well, I consider the Great Reset more than a conspiracy but a cultural phenomenon that changed Los Angeles’ underground music scene forever. Without any bands to play for over a year, our once thriving and impressive live concert circuit was completely reset. The kings and queens of 2019 had their scepters and crowns stripped and their thrones vacated. With a clean slate to play with, Actually Huizenga intends to take that throne by making a name for herself as Patriarchy. related content: Photo Recap: Patriarchy At The Echoplex This was the first concert I attended since seeing Madball in March 2020 and coming down with Covid soon after. Even after all this time though, I never lost my

Photo Recap: Overkill at the House of Blues Anaheim

Janky Smooth Central Command March 10, 2020

If you were to ask me who thrash metal’s biggest badass is, I’d answer you in half a second with the name, Bobby Blitz. New Jersey’s own devil, the lead singer of Overkill. Overkill just embarked on their North American tour, beginning with their House of Blues Anaheim show with Exhorder and Hydraform opening. It was a display of the dirtiest, most fun and carefree sort of thrash you can ever hear. Whereas plenty of thrash is about evil and hell, Overkill paints a portrait of the street life from the gutters to the alleyways that one could only get when growing up in a hard knock state like New Jersey. Overkill came out with their most recent album in 2019 with The Wings of War and unlike plenty of bands they came up with, they still sound fresh and brutal. The same goes for Exhorder who released Mourn the Southern Skies in 2019 to continue their tradition of creating some of the most brutal and groovy NOLA thrash metal in the scene. Photos by: Dillon Vaughn Overkill Exhorder Hydraform

Photo Recap: Madball at 1720

Janky Smooth Central Command March 8, 2020

NYHC legends Madball were in the house at 1720 and gave the entire venue a lesson in how much style and bounce you can pack into hardcore. These guys are OG’s in this game and by the sound of their set, it shows because hardcore this heavy and ass-kicking could only come from the mind and guts of a pack of guys who’ve been around the block. Accompanying the band for this show was Death Before Dishonor, Section H8 and Stone Cold Stunner. Every band’s hardness and brutality shined on this night. Check out our pics from the show: Photos by: Veronika Reinert Madball Death by Dishonor Section H8 Stone Cold Stunner

Photo Recap: Jasiah and $not at the Roxy Theatre

Janky Smooth Central Command March 7, 2020

A few of hip hop’s most talented up and coming rappers came together to turn the Roxy upside down with one of the hottest, sweatiest, most chaotic trap shows you could ever see. Jasiah and $not have collaborated together on a few tracks, so this tour was a match made in heaven because rarely do you see hip hop artists with this much chemistry. This was an especially cool show because of the guests that joined the mc’s on stage including hip hop’s greatest punk patron, Travis Barker, as well as Nascar Aloe, both of which took the vibe over the top. Check out our photos of this insane show. Photos by: Jessica Moncrief $not Jasiah

California Takeover Part Deux: Earth Crisis, Strife, and Snapcase Tear Down Teragram

Rob Shepyer March 3, 2020

90’s hardcore was a period of peaks and valleys. You had legendary bands that changed with the times but also had a few bands like Earth Crisis, that changed the face of hardcore entirely. The original California Takeover featured Earth Crisis, Strife and Snapcase and in its second installment, decades later, the same bands came together again to get a totally evolved scene slam their hardcore hearts out. related content: The Hardest So-Cal Has To Offer, Strife Plays “In This Defiance” At The Roxy The night began with Hesitation Wounds, a hardcore outlet for Touche Amore singer, Jeremy Bolm, who uses this band to scream and howl with more aggression than we’re used to seeing from him. There’s no room for sensitivity here, Hesitation Wounds does not hesitate to destroy whatever is in their sights. The turnout was good and the set was great this early in the afternoon, so we were all assured this show would only get more insane as the doomsday clocked ticked down to Earth Crisis. One of Triple B’s best bands, Magnitude, were next and of all the bands off this label that I’ve seen in my days going to hardcore shows and frequenting Sound and

Photo Recap: Nascar Aloe at the Lodge Room

Janky Smooth Central Command March 1, 2020

For those of the older ilk of hip hop fan who think that this new generation of trap and Soundcloud artists are too wild and too loud, we do not recommend Nascar Aloe to ya’ll. This kid brings wild to a whole new level, infusing trap shows with raw punk energy the likes of which you’d compare to Iggy Pop or even GG Allin. This is what old heads were afraid of. Bleeding for music isn’t just punk anymore, it’s fucking hip hop. We got pics of Nascar Aloe’s Lodge Room show with Kidsnextdoor up. Hope you enjoy and hope to see more trap shows at the Lodge Room. Photos by: Rodney Campos Nascar Aloe Kidsnextdoor

Punx Undead: Phantoms Book Launch: The Rise of L.A. Deathrock Presented by Lethal Amounts

Rob Shepyer February 26, 2020

Los Angeles has always had an obsession with death. Our city’s celebrities and socialites have a habit of perishing in the most dramatic and mysterious fashion, Rozz Williams of course being no exception. It’s no surprise that from out of punk rock would come a death obsessed, black clad, sorrowful, mournful form of expression and rebellion known as deathrock. To celebrate the launch of Mikey Bean’s new 600 page encyclopedia of deathrock called Phantoms: The Rise of Deathrock From The LA Punk Scene, Lethal Amounts and Release the Bats held a photo exhibit and concert celebrating the genre’s Los Angeles heyday. You need this bad boy on your coffee table. related content: Sex Cells’ Divine Ball At El Rey: The Filthiest People Alive Among the attendants at the gallery showing and concert were the likes of 45 Grave singer Dinah Cancer, LA experimental artist Ron Athey, Don Bolles, and many more. With walls adorned with Rozz’s likeness as well as all the show flyers of the scene, the gallery captured a mood, a time, and a place that were quintessentially gothic, dark, and exploding with creativity. Following the book signing, the gathering moved to Monty Bar where numerous bands took

A Formula for Lots of Green: One Love Cali Reggae Fest

Dave Unbuckled February 24, 2020

Now in its fifth year, with a nearly solidified lineup, One Love Cali Reggae Fest has simply mastered the formula for a successful reggae festival that continues to grow, despite a lineup that stays almost identical. One could ask, “Why mess with a winning formula?”, but I went into the festival confused on how this continues to work. Nearly all the domestic bands performing at the festival make routine trips to Southern California throughout the year, and nearly every attendant we spoke to was returning from the previous year or years. I was told the festival grows a little bit annually both in crowd, as well as adding new food vendors, including my personal favorites, After’s Ice Cream and Slater’s 50 /50, as well as a few artists each day. The rare blend of hip-hop on Friday, with returning performer Atmosphere, seemed a highlight, in addition to Sublime With Rome and the evening’s headliners, The Dirty Heads. This will likely be the last show Sublime doesn’t headline in Long Beach, as they still have managed to retain, as well as grow in popularity, even if it’s a little more noticeable in Long Beach, than other neighborhoods. related content: Smokin’ In

Keys to the Soul: Joep Beving at the Lodge Room Highland Park

Rob Shepyer February 21, 2020

Here’s a bit of advice, whenever the Lodge Room puts on an intimate show with seating instead of standing room, buy a ticket no matter who’s playing is because satisfaction is guaranteed. I could tell Joep Beving would put on a transformative show just by seeing his face on a Lodge Room poster. It’s rare I get to see compositions for the piano live, let alone get to review the shows and in this case, from start to finish, the music was beautiful, mournful, even celestial. A good compliment to the sacred feeling of the room. There was something blissful about every note and hallowed about every pause. After a solo performance, Joep brought on Acme Music, a group of four musicians one strings and brass to play with him and together they manifested some of the most powerful and emotional music I’ve ever heard, with swelling peaks and painful lows that brought tears to many eyes in the Lodge Room. Once Acme music was finished, Joep played two more songs for us, one of which was dedicated to his friend Stephen, who died in a freak accident at SXSW a few years ago and the evening’s closing number which

Category: SHOWS

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