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I Got the Mic, So Shut the Fuck Up: Freddie Gibbs and Madlib at the Roxy
Jonathan Reyes
June 30, 2019
If there’s anything to take from Tuesday night’s preview of Bandana, the latest release from Freddie Gibbs and Madlib, it’s just shut it and enjoy what could possibly be the best Gangster Rap artist of the last ten years. Counter to that claim, Gibbs would have to care about accolades and “best of” lists, from his yearly revitalization and inability to create anything unoriginal, he couldn’t be bothered, the only thing that seems to matter to him is being the best version of himself. related content: The Music Millennials Make Love To: Smokin’ Grooves 2019 At The Queen Mary If Freddie has all the ingredients, Madlib is the chef preparing the courses. Their second album is Mexican candy, it’s a burger, its caviar, it’s one part Hennessy one part Freddie one part Madlib, and like a basket on Chopped it all works out into an unconventional but complete meal. Imagine being so good that you don’t need gimmicks in a genre populated by them. Think about making best rap album of the year and deciding to put a teddy bear riding a zebra on the cover. The confidence in skill to freestyle multiple times a night, I’ve seen plenty headliners
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Haley Dahl, Queen of Rock in 2019: Sloppy Jane at the Bootleg Theater
Rob Shepyer
June 29, 2019
Have you ever felt proud of someone you’ve never met but who’s art you know? That’s how I feel about Sloppy Jane and Haley Dahl after seeing her show at the Bootleg Theater. I feel incredibly proud and inspired by the journey she’s taken as an artist. It was only a few years ago that Sloppy Jane was a small band playing small clubs if not being relegated to ugly, claustrophobic dungeons, attics, and backrooms. In those spaces, she used to have wild, unchained performances, where often times she wound up naked, covered only in blue drool all over her naked, natural body. People would dismiss her as a shock artist even though one could make the GG comparison. Women would get offended and disgusted, men would gaze creepily at her, children would cry, asking mother what she did with all her clothes. She wasn’t getting naked as an empty gesture though. Looking back on it, it wasn’t about us, it was about Haley preparing herself as an artist by bracing all the embarrassment and awkwardness of public nudity to develop her stage power until she was beyond comfortable on any stage with any kind of instruments handy. related content:
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Ya’ll Mother Fuckers Need Jesus: Twin Temple at the Roxy
Rob Shepyer
June 29, 2019
“The greatest trick the devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn’t exist.” My opinion of Twin Temple is complicated. Before I clarify how, know despite the hilarious title, this is certainly not an endorsement of Christianity. I think worshipping a human being is just as whack as worshipping satan (or perhaps is slightly less) whether it’s for show or not. Twin Temple, Alexandra and Zachary James, are a band with all the talent in the world that thought of a brilliant concept and materialized it into a package perfectly knit together with all its working parts contributing to something that is powerful and magnetic. Musically and theatrically, the members of this band were born to make and perform music. Removing the satanic component from their sound, they’re single handedly bringing back doo-wop with a sweet vengeance. Their latest banger “Satan’s a Woman” and a sold out Roxy performance are only two examples of how. related content: Echo Part Rising (Five Pointed) Stars: Twin Temple The rub lies in satanism, for me at least. I have so much to say about satanism and satan in music and how it relates to this band and cultural moment that I’m just
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Slug Cult Has Risen: Cancerslug 20 Year Anniversary at the Whisky
Rob Shepyer
June 23, 2019
In the world of horror punk, the Misfits and our dark lord, Glenn Danzig created a model that would inspire every band that dared perform catchy, anthemic songs about such topics as murder, sexual deviancy, and all things morbid or B movie shlock. Since them, no one has come close to creating a comparable legacy or body of work… with one exception. That exception is Alex Story’s band, Cancerslug. Where the Misfits had a die hard following known as the fiend club, Cancerslug has the Slug Cult. Where The Misfits infused their punk with the humor, crassness, and swagger of New Jersey, Cancerslug’s music could’ve only come from the muggy, humid, bluesy and Christ-fearing land of Alabama. Where Danzig knew how to capture imaginations and become larger than life on stage, Alex Story surpasses his presence with wolfish prowling, wild moves and a monstrous anatomy. Where the Misfits had a few notable albums, over their 20 year killing spree, Cancerslug has a huge body of work with notable songs on every single album and as time went on, they never compromised or lost direction. For this reason, Cancerslug needs to be considered among the best of the horror punk genre. If
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Support the Underground!!!: Hospital Productions Showcase at Zebulon
Rob Shepyer
June 22, 2019
If you dabble in every genre of music, especially the underground, you would know that there’s nothing quite as unique and special as a good noise show. Using electronics, artists can flex their psychic powers as if putting the beasts living inside them on full display. It’s not about melody, lyrics, structure or even songs, what it’s about is creating an atmosphere and manifesting chaos itself into a material thing, if sound can be considered material. Dominick Fernow of Prurient and Vatican Shadow created Hospital Productions for all things noise and though their home is New York, Eighty-Four booking was able to wrangle a bunch of their artists for an unforgettable showcase. For two days, we shook the foundation of Zebulon and mangled our minds with noise. related content: 84 Ways To Die: Horrendous At The Echo Up until this point, I attended fair share of incredible noise shows. Eric Wood of Bastard Noise, Drew McDowell, Russell Haswell, David Scott Stone, all these guys wow’d me but still, after these two nights, those past shows felt like they were only preparation for this showcase. related content: Berserktown 3: The Craziest Festival On Earth I was there from the first artist’s set
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The Music Millennials Make Love To: Smokin’ Grooves 2019 at the Queen Mary
Jonathan Reyes
June 19, 2019
Every year a festival comes to Long Beach, each a little bit different and improved from the previous model. Summertime in the LBC on their first try, was a fun but flawed fest, I told security I was with the Wu Tang Clan and they let me on stage. The next year I wasn’t as successful telling them I used to be in NWA so I had to be on stage with Ice Cube. In 2017, Goldenvoice claimed The Queen Mary as their testing ground for boutique music festivals. Having abandoned Orange County, Long Beach offers something missing from The Observatory, a destination. How can you beat listening to music with the ocean to your side and the legendary Queen Mary in your sightline, combine a destination with an experience and you have Smokin’ Grooves‘ sophomore year. Crowds don’t clap after the set is over. It’s the weirdest thing. Its like not tipping on a to go order, you feel kind of bad because they did kind of take care of you but not really because they just did their job. related content: Summertime In The LBC: This Is Your Dad’s Hip Hop House background makes Ravyn Lenae‘s music a little more
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Garage Guitar God, Kid Congo and the Pink Monkey Birds Melts the Echo
Rob Shepyer
June 17, 2019
La Puente’s own, Kid Congo Powers is one of punk rock’s most venerated and legendary guitarists. With stints in the Cramps, the Gun Club, and Nick Cave’s Bad Seeds, some of rock and roll’s most important and influential bands, Kid Congo not only infused their sound into his but he infused his sound, personality, and energy into those bands. With Echo Park being garage rock’s ultimate So-Cal hub and stomping ground, where bands like the Cramps and Gun Club still influence the music, attitude and fashion, Kid Congo Powers gracing the stage at the Echo is like a patron saint blessing a church, this church though, is the church of Southern California punk. related content: Forty Years Of Youth: Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds At The Forum Perhaps the most understated part of Kid Congo’s career is his solo work with the Pink Monkey Birds and their albums on In The Red Records. In fact, during this performance the work off those albums stood out and felt more riveting than Cramps or Gun Club songs he played. For this performance in particular, Kid Congo was celebrating 10 years of the album Dracula Boots, an album which encapsulates the themes
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Photo Recap: Princess at Teragram
Janky Smooth Central Command
June 14, 2019
It’s been three years since Prince left this planet but his impact still resonates with so many people. For everything he’s done as a mega talent, genius songwriter, and iconic performer, he’s created a lasting imprint on music that can neither be denied nor forgotten. Whether man or woman, Prince made music that shook you to your core and made you dance the night away, providing the soundtrack for some of life’s most important moments. His birthday, June 7th, was only days before Princess’ return to Los Angels for a sold out show at the Teragram ballroom. For those of you unfamiliar, Princess is the ultimate Prince cover band made up of SNL’s Maya Rudolph and singer/songwriter Gretchen Lieberum. The duo’s charisma, humor, and knowledge of all things Prince make them the best party hosts you could ever imagine and so, it’s no wonder this show sells out every time. We had to be there and capture the event on camera, so our own Jessica Moncrief attended the show to capture these images: Princess
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Allin Family Values: Murder Junkies at the Viper Room
Rob Shepyer
June 13, 2019
For as long as I’ve loved punk rock, I’ve loved the Jerry Springer show. For as long as I’ve loved Jerry Springer, I’ve loved GG Allin, where I first saw this punk rock saint preach his manifesto to his followers on national television. Then for as long as I’ve loved GG Allin, I’ve loved Todd Phillip’s first documentary, Hated. The story of GG Allin is that of a martyr, someone that lost their life, sacrificed it really, for art but more specifically, rock and roll. If you watch Hated, you would know that the Murder Junkies, GG’s final band, played just as pivotal of a role in his rise to iconic status. Merle Allin, GG’s older brother and the closest thing he had to a protector, and Dino, his eccentric drummer, have still been piloting the Murder Junkies since GG’s death and all this time, they’ve provided a kind of punk rock that is unique from all others. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0UR2Y94gmgU&t=585s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RMgDdYV74T0&t=818s Murder rock and the murder punks that follow it are a separate breed. Where as punks walk around Los Angeles with Discharge shirts and patches, these kids wear Manson patches, Ed Gein shirts, and maybe have a Night Stalker sticker
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L.A. Thrashes Harder Than Ever Before: Sacred Reich and Vio-Lence at the Regent
Rob Shepyer
June 8, 2019
Too quickly, this show sold out and had every metalhead that was too late for the party wishing they didn’t drink the night before so they could wake up in time to spend their hard earned money on a ticket to see two thrash legends on one stage. It was a stacked bill. Sacred Reich doesn’t come around too often and Excel puts on a great enough show that they should always be selling out any venue. Sworn Enemy isn’t a band we get to see often in Los Angeles and Yidhra, though hometown underground doom heroes are staples at Church of the 8th Day shows they’re a pleasure for any riff-lover to see. All these great bands weren’t the real reasons this mother sold out though. Bay area thrash legends, Vio-Lence had just reunited and this was their first and only Los Angeles show in over a decade. related content: The 1720th Circle Of Hell: Deicide At 1720 This was basically a touring festival the likes of Show Your Scars or Strike Fest and like everyone else in attendance, I expected more stage dives and mosh madness than your average metal gig. This was going to be one for
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Scream Team Hits Pomona: The Hives and Refused at the Fox Theater
Rob Shepyer
June 6, 2019
Sweden produces some of the craziest art in all of Europe but with bands like The Hives and Refused, the craziest thing about them is that they’ve taken two American styles, garage punk and hardcore punk, and perfected them better than any Americans ever did. I am such a huge fan of Refused that I have a hard time believing they found a band they could open for on a tour but The Hives impressed me enough to think they earned the coveted closing spot. I always remembered the Hives as the band who’s music video for “Walk, Idiot Walk” was something I obsessed over in the heyday of MTV2. It was just so catchy and kinetic. The Hives were one of the many new wave of garage bands to take over that moment in mainstream music. While the Strokes and Whites Stripes were everywhere, The Hives were this Swedish import that had songs just as groovy to be lumped in with names that huge. related content: Albert Hammond Jr Strokes The Teragram Ballroom With these two bands combining forces for a single tour, their stop at Pomona’s Fox Theater after Punk Rock Bowling was an essential gathering from any
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