Tag: featured

Sonic Punishment: Primitive Man and Celeste at Union

Janky Smooth Central Command June 13, 2018

The variety of soundscapes in metal are an interesting thing; even the untrained ear can notice a vast difference between acts like Cough (who also performed at Union in May) and Primitive Man – two bands that share the label of “doom” but approach their craft with entirely different methods and goals. With a stacked lineup including Primitive Man, Celeste, Infernal Coil, and Pendulous, this evening was an interesting exercise of the flexibility in sound and tone within those parameters for significantly different sub-genres and a fine example of just how well some of those combinations can work. related content: Crushed At Communion: Cough And Grime At Union Pendulous play a fine brand of funeral doom packed with the two most essential qualities any group in this sub-genre needs: depression and introspection. Each song (while relentlessly crushing) seemingly drifts through space as an agonized ghost: endless suffering, longing, and helplessness riddling a soul cursed to an eternity attempting to grasp a line of comfort always just out of reach. Easily the most captivating performer of the evening, vocalist Eric Rezsõ Mendoza delivers each line as if he’s crawling through miles of broken glass and gives the band the emotional strength

Psych Rock Talk Radio: Wooden Shjips at the Bootleg Theater

Robert Cohen June 12, 2018

Recently I was talking with a friend of mine who could not wrap his head around how anyone could listen to NPR for more than a few minutes. After a fair amount of prodding from others in the group, he was able to admit that it occasionally showcased relevant or otherwise interesting stories; however, its languorous, bordering on comatose, delivery of the material in his mind catapulted any idea of an extended listening session in the realm of the unthinkable. While there are many qualities separating Thursday’s Wooden Shjips show at The Bootleg from listening to talk radio, the further one goes down the rabbit hole with them, the more apparent the similarities become. related content: Between Coachellas, Brazilian Boogarins At The Echo For this reason, it’s almost poetic that the lead in to the main event of the night was named Terry Gross, in this instance being the San Francisco based rock outfit, not the eponymous radio host of NPR’s Fresh Air (although, I would’ve happily paid extra to see her shred for a couple bars). Though I’d never heard of them before and pondered over whether or not the bass player was a long lost cousin

The Dead Milkmen Deliver Cartons of Fun for 2 Nights at Teragram

Rob Shepyer June 6, 2018

The Dead Milkmen are one of the most multi-dimensional and versatile punk bands in the history of the sport. In fact, after seeing them live at the Teragram ballroom, i feel almost as if they’re two bands in one, having one cadence when Rodney Linderman (Rodney Anonymous) sings and another when Joe Genaro sings. Both sides of the coin make for a band that captures the essence of punk and the people that love the music. The set that awaited me on this Friday evening, surrounded by scene veterans that were infantilized to their teenage years in anticipation, was one that truly inspired me as an artist. I heard in The Dead Milkmen’s music a delicate and precise balance between sardonic humor, aggression, and fun that showed me what could be possible in music. related content: Who Needs Pins When you’ve Got Spikes? GBH At The Observatory The first opener of the evening was local band, Small Wigs, a rock and roll quintet with garage sensibilities and shining musicianship. The duel guitar work was impressive and thrilling but they kept it low key, making songs that felt true to an authentic rock and roll. Small Wigs photos from night 1 by

Speedy Speedy Speed Metal: Midnight At Union

Rob Shepyer June 5, 2018

Before Thrash cemented the marriage of punk and metal, speed metal was what metal heads called metal that inspired a frantic pace and pure ferocity simply through applying quickness to licks. Before doctors ever prescribed kids Ritalin, there was speed metal, fixing the attention spans of the damaged. Sometimes it’s hard to distinguish between thrash and speed metal but certainly bands like Motorhead, Venom, and the first two Iron Maiden albums, could fall under the category. And in the tradition of those heavyweights, Midnight and Bat went on tour together, eviscerating every city they played in and believe me, Los Angeles wasn’t able to fend off the assault. By the end of the night, the audience that packed into Union’s Jewels’ room was shred to tatters. related content: Crushed At Communion: Cough And Grime At Union This was undoubtably the best metal show I had seen all May, that means it beat out Slayer, Soulfly, Morbid Angel, The Obsessed, and Satyricon. All those legends couldn’t touch the intensity and ruthlessness that Midnight plays with. The first band to play was Wormwitch, a band that describes themselves as crust meets black metal, funny that when I heard them I thought they

The First Real Day of Summer: Hinds at Teragram

Robert Cohen June 4, 2018

High school is a strange time in life. Caught between wanting the independence you can’t have and having the responsibilities you don’t want, it provides the emotional foundation on which many people build their sense of self and either seize on the opportunity to develop further or retreat towards the path of least resistance. And while high school is likely far in the rear view mirror of many people who attended Monday’s Hinds show at Teragram, for a multitude of reasons, every aspect of the show felt like a trip back into those comparatively halcyon days. related content: What’s Left To Ponders: Pond at Zebulon Kicking off this trend was LA based Jasper Bones. Although it would be easy to say he earns this distinction through his age alone (he’s 19 and I’m pretty sure his parents were the ones standing in front of me whooping for the better part of his set), the content and form of his music were the most telling signs of the high school vibe which came to dominate the night. Going for something of a Latin D’Angelo vibe, though eschewing the more pop aspects of similar acts such as Miguel, it was obvious

Silver Linings to Sorrowful Tales: Laura Veirs at The Echo

Dillon Vaughn June 2, 2018

Touring in support of her new album The Lookout, Laura Veirs performed an intimate show at The Echo to a crowd composed of some of the most engaged fans I’ve seen for any artist at the venue; a level of energy not entirely surprising considering her previous performance in LA was with case/lang/veirs (the singer-songwriter supergroup consisting of Veirs, Neko Case, and K.D. Lang) at the Greek Theatre in 2016. Those in attendance this time around were treated to live performances of a bulk of the songs from The Lookout as well as fan favorites from July Flame, Year of Meteors and more. related content: Erika Wennerstrom Brings The Bootleg Closer To Nature A live setting for her work is an excellent opportunity to see how far Veirs’ strengths extend beyond her songwriting capabilities. Her vocal range easily exceeds the (already satisfying) levels reached in her recordings and viewers are given a glimpse of how technically proficient she is with both guitar and keys. Veirs can shred without hesitation but she knows what works for her music and how important the use of restraint really is. An additional highlight of the night was the performance by Alex Guy (of Led

Overcoming Fear With Fever Ray At The Palladium

Aria Silva-Espinosa June 1, 2018

It’s an understatement to say that I’ve struggled to find words to describe the all-encompassing spectacle that is Fever Ray, live and very much in the flesh. Adorned in a cartoon-like bodysuit with padded superhero musculature adhered in bright colors to her otherwise indistinguishable frame, she brought a more rousing performance to the Hollywood Palladium than I could’ve anticipated. related content: A Softly Harsh Friday The 13th With The Soft Moon And Boy Harsher At Teragram Fever Ray is the solo project of Swedish singer/songwriter Karin Draijer, who is already well-known for her work as one half of the the electronic pop duo The Knife. Unlike The Knife’s IKEA soundtrack-worthy melodic charm, Fever Ray is quite the other side of the coin in terms of style, lyricism and the nightmares that accompany the visuals Karin has chosen for this project. From watching her videos, I fully anticipated a Marilyn Manson meets Guillermo Del Toro house of horrors. Even the costuming of those in attendance were more suggestive of some kind of wild underground party as the crowds gathered on Hollywood Boulevard. As the lights dimmed, the crowd erupted immediately. Karin and her backup vocalists and musicians were costumed uniquely and

Who Needs Pins When You’ve Got Spikes? GBH at the Observatory

Janky Smooth Central Command May 31, 2018

It’s 8pm in Southern California, the night before Punk Rock Bowling kicks off in Las Vegas: do you know where the local punks are? You might assume they’re all somewhere between another vegan straight-edge food stop and pure Barstow bat country; in reality, a number of them are sticking close to home and swimming in the perks of perfect proximity. related content: Against Me! Stuns At The Observatory Before Punk Rock Bowling It’s this crowd I thoroughly appreciated sharing time with on a just right Friday night at Santa Ana’s OC Observatory. I haven’t nailed down my theory on why they stayed: maybe some got a late start and headed out after, maybe this is where the class lines are drawn (PRB ain’t cheap), maybe they just don’t fucking care about the festival. Either way, staying home didn’t mean losing out, as this lineup brought out a healthy and hyped crowd, ready to catch some PRB acts without having to dive into Las Vegas decadence, depravity, and possible debt. Unfortunately for the opener, Spain’s CRIM, who deserved a bigger audience, the crowd came out in a slow trickle. CRIM has a compelling, if confusing, take on Oi!—the influence is so

Against Me! Stuns at The Observatory Before Punk Rock Bowling

Jessica Moncrief May 30, 2018

One of the great things about being a Punk living in Southern California, is Punk Rock Bowling season. A slew of legendary punk bands tend to make LA/OC area their official stop to kick off their weekend of debauchery and 2018 has proven to be no different than in past years. The copious amount of stellar line-ups that pop up all over SoCal the week leading up to Memorial Day Weekend each year often cause those of us who experience extreme cases of FOMO severe anxiety when deciding which shows to pick. Performances by Against Me! along with tour mates Chris Farren and Sharp Shock last Monday at The Observatory were the prefect way for many to kick off PRB season. related content: Punk Rock Bowling 2017: You Can’t Be What You Were Words and Photos by: Jessica Moncrief

What’s Left To Ponders: Pond At Zebulon

Robert Cohen May 29, 2018

One of the best things my Dad ever taught me was to learn the rules laid down by any system before deciding which ones deserve to be broken. After all, any rebellion set off without having done the necessary research can be painted at best as laziness and at worst as unbridled ignorance (i.e. the Occupy movement and/or the Tea Party). And Tuesday night at Zebulon, nothing was more evident than the fact that while Pond and their protégé Lord Fascinator have learned what it takes to make “successful” music, they’ve discarded any rules which have gotten in the way of their respective visions, much to the benefit of all who are willing to give them a chance. related content: Stayin’ Alive: Giorgio Moroder’s 78th Birthday At The Globe Theater Arriving at the beginning of the night was New York based DJ/performer Lord Fascinator. While I had never heard his music before, he managed to make an impression from the moment he and his band walked on stage; however, anyone who looks like dealer to a Heaven’s Gate offshoot out of the East Village likely would. Once the initial novelty of his appearance wore off though, he kicked off a

Get Off Your Phone and Into the Crowd: Unknown Mortal Orchestra at The Wiltern

Travis Beck May 28, 2018

There are times in my life when I don’t listen to new music. Those are often dark times where I do nothing but binge all my old favorite artists – which span about 50 years – from jazz legends to the Beatles to “Crash Into Me” by Dave Matthews Band. The ladder often facilitates sobbing in my car similar to a scene in the Oscar-winning film Lady Bird. related content: Super Tight Rides Into The Sunset At Final Show But new music. New music is magical. New music captures the vibe of the times – if done correctly. My favorite artists have always been those who evolve with the changing cultural landscape. Artists like Beck, Prince and David Bowie. Every time I “discover” a new artist, I learn they’ve existed for years. This makes me feel one of two ways: either taken aback – like I’ve been living under a rock, or excited, like you just met your new best friend. Even though they tour around the globe, Unknown Mortal Orchestra is still, well, unknown to most music fans out there. At least in my experience. But they shouldn’t be, because they rock the fuck out and have been putting

Crushed at Communion: Cough and Grime at Union

Dillon Vaughn May 25, 2018

Union is a weird venue (and I say that entirely with love.) The range of genres and performers you can see there within any given three day period is unparalleled; multiple rooms and the willingness to take risks and work with promoters and musicians from vastly different scenes gives many acts a proper home beyond DIYs and dives – often juxtaposing seemingly alien niches on a single patio on the busiest nights. This lack of pretension has allowed some of the most intimate and (truly) stacked metal lineups to flourish here over the month of May – all beginning with Cough and Grime. related content: Satyricon’s Final Los Angeles Show At The Regent: A Night Too Blackened To Forget A quick glance at Midnite Collective’s past events reveals a finely curated selection of some of the most forward thinking and refined artists in doom and sludge – bands more than capable of exceeding the expectations set by the buzz and hype surrounding them: Cough and Grime being no exception to the standard. The night began with support from Midnight Collective favorites Trapped Within Burning Machinery and -(16)-, each delivering charged performances that set the tone perfectly. -(16)- has grown on

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