Tag: featured
Hooliganism Trumps Hate: Pussy Riot At The Echo
Aria Silva-Espinosa
April 10, 2018
In terms of global affairs, Pussy Riot came to us when we needed them most. Building political tensions between the United States and basically everyone else seem to be constantly in the foreground of conversations and news briefings.Gaining notoriety for activism in their home country of Russia, Pussy Riot made a name for themselves by speaking out against Vladimir Putin and his anti-LGBT, anti-Feminist agenda. Similarly, we seem to be struggling with our own self-important leader with a relatively corrupt agenda ourselves. Three founding members of the band were arrested, tried and convicted in 2012 for “hooliganism motivated by religious hatred”, including Nadya Tolokonnikova who actually served a sentence of over a year. The inciting incident for the arrest of the members of Pussy Riot came in the form of a demonstration held inside a Moscow church, the congregants of which did not take kindly to the women donning neon ski masks and dresses who stormed the altar to recite a “punk prayer” before being detained by relatively unenthusiastic authority figures. This was all caught on video and was widely distributed by media sources when news of the arrest spread and caught the attention of Amnesty International, who named the
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Spring Break Can’t Last Forever: Riff Raff At Los Globos
Aria Silva-Espinosa
April 4, 2018
It’s something about the impulsive “Spring Break Forever” mentality that carries this fitting sponsorship between the Four Loko brand and Riff Raff’s highly stylized personal brand. For those who haven’t had the misfortune of a lengthy relationship with the canned malt liquor beverage, to try to offer an explanation of the Four Loko Experience might prove difficult in an objective light. When I was a senior in high school, Four Loko was available for $2.50 a can and to this day, I have never been as drunk in my life as I could get off ¾ of a Blue Raspberry-ish flavored drink. Lovingly referred to as “blackout in a can” on the ever-trustworthy Urban Dictionary, the beverage’s original recipe was banned in a number of states due to the severe health risks it posed to those who consumed it. The company has since reformulated the drink to remove some of the stimulatory ingredients, since being accused of marketing to underage drinkers with bright colors, fruit flavors and boasting energy drink-like properties. Still, it has always been my experience that underaged drinkers will literally drink anything, regardless of flavor or the promised effects. related content: Beach Goth 4: The Party Of
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Fierce Fiesta: Scum’s 2 Year Anniversary W/ Limp Wrist At The Echoplex
Rob Shepyer
March 28, 2018
There was something queer about March. Even the month’s name conjures up the image of boys with chiseled jaws in uniforms and leather boots. Or maybe it was the number 3 that was symbolic; of a third chromosome? A third gender? Or a third nipple or partner? Whatever it was, this merry month’s man-on-man madness began with me seeing Fischerspooner at the Fonda, where myself as a straight, life-long fan of queer cinema and music, got to see a myriad of males half naked on stage, sweaty and throbbing. Then after attending sCUM’s 2 year anniversary show at the Echoplex with Limp Wrist headlining, I got the sense that East Los could be the new Weho and that LGBTQ punks have ideas to express, verbal and non-verbal, that straight punks can neither access nor fathom. With Lethal Amount’s Sex Cells Divine Ball approaching on the 31st, who knows, I might start behaving in ways I never thought possible in February. I don’t think I’ll be going cruising but hell, I might try to suck my own. related content: Los Crudos Play The Echoplex Right When L.A. Needed It Most sCUM is a party for queerdos of color at Club Chico created
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Take This: Win 2 Tix To Riff Raff At Los Globos
Janky Smooth Central Command
March 27, 2018
Too hot for Spring Break and too big for the WWE, the Peach Panther is back and bringing the party to Los Globos for the Neon Black Tour. It gets better though, because Janky Smooth is giving you the opportunity to see Riff Raff with a friend by entering for a chance to win 2 tickets to the show. And that’s not all, Kansas City, Missouri’s rap duo Ces Cru will also be performing. So this is not a show you want to miss, sucka! BE THERE OR BE SQUARE. YOU CAN BUY TICKETS HERE OR: ENTER TO WIN 2 TICKETS TO THE NEON BLACK TOUR AT LOS GLOBOS March 29th, 2018 @ Los Globos Step 1- Join Our Newsletter (look for pop up everytime you arrive at jankysmooth.com) Step 2- Share or RT this post on FB or Twitter or Tag a Friend in the comment section of our INSTAGRAM Neon Black Ticket Giveaway Post WINNER WILL BE SELECTED ON MARCH 28TH VIA EMAIL CONFIRMATION related content: Take This: Win 2 VIP Tix To Burger Boogaloo W/Devo, The Damned, The Mummies & Le Shok
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The Universe Smiles Upon Khruangbin At The Lodge Room
Rob Shepyer
March 27, 2018
Furthering my exploration and discovery of psych rock, Khruangbin, a band that completely breaks the boundaries of that genre was the next to expand my consciousness. Fusing together Thai funk, Persian psych rock, and surf rock in an alchemical equation, they are left with a solution that sounds transcendental, yet groovy; euphoric, yet cool; as if passing through the inner-inter-galactic gates of Nirvana with your shades on. It makes immediate sense that they claim Tarantino as an influence. related content: Earthless Liquified My Face At The Teragram The name Khruangbin is Thai for “Engine Fly”, but the band originates from Houston, Texas and is made up of Laura Lee on bass/vocals, Mark Speer on guitar, and Donald Johnson on drums. With their debut, The Universe Smiles Upon You, the band was breaking all sorts of waves in the psych rock scene in 2015. Now, their latest release, Con Todo El Mundo (which translates to “With Everybody”), has elevated the band enough to sell out three consecutive nights at the Lodge Room in a single day. This review is based on the second night, the Friday show at the regal and sacred Lodge Room. Around 9pm, a little dynamic duo of musicians took the stage
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Whoop Whoop! ICP’s Slam Fest At The Regent: A Family Affair
Rob Shepyer
March 26, 2018
It feels like I had been waiting to see ICP forever. Having passed up opportunities to see both members perform solo, this stacked bill at the Regent Theater that they deemed Slam Fest, was going to be my induction to the family and just as the posse said, everyone that attended was a Juggalo. Insane Clown Posse is an essential attraction to anyone that wants to claim they’ve seen it all. They put on a show that’s unlike any other and somehow in the last couple of years, they went from mainstream mockery to one of the most relevant groups in the country. When the United States government classified Juggalos as a gang, from coast to coast, this nation’s true first family, got together to protest in their very own million Juggalo march on Washington. I don’t think any other band in the world has as many die hard fans, driven by a true cause, that they could orchestrate a similar historical moment. Not Metallica, not Radiohead, not nobody. related content: Nature World Night Out At The Regent: Building Bridges Between Hardcore And Hip Hop This true rebellion was met with fascination from every mainstream media outlet until ICP saw
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Take This: Win 2 VIP Tix to Burger Boogaloo w/ Devo, The Damned, The Mummies, and Le Shok
Janky Smooth Central Command
March 20, 2018
Burger Boogaloo and Total Trash Productions have achieved the unthinkable, they’ve outdone themselves yet again after having outdone themselves last year with Iggy Pop headlining their Boogaloo. As Northern (and really, all of) California’s premiere garage punk festival, this year’s Boogaloo features none other than Devo, breaking their hiatus, punk rock originators The Damned, The Mummies (the festival’s headliner 2 years ago), and the return of Long Beach electro-punk legends Le Shok. I foresee people flying into the country to attend this festival, so we here at Janky Smooth decided to give you the chance to lighten your financial load by giving away 2 free VIP tickets to the festival. Oh, and did I mention John Waters will reassume the position of Master of Ceremonies? This festival is worth attending just to hear him introduce every band and to see what themes the festival has made for its stages. Last year’s theme was Gone Shrimpin’, meaning toe sucking. What will this year’s theme be? Getting your red wings? related content: Burger Boogaloo 2017: The Ballad Of John And Iggy There’s no other festival quite like Boogaloo, as an Angelino what happens after the festival as you terrorize San Francisco with your
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Midnight Massacre: American Nightmare At The Echoplex
Rob Shepyer
March 18, 2018
Like a long, dooming swing of the reaper’s scythe, death rock and hardcore rained down upon us as if by the hand of Death itself. Since the headliner was hardcore, one might not expect two death rock bands opening up the show but when you consider the history of American Nightmare, it’s not so strange at all. American Nightmare has always highlighted the darker, more gothic side of the human experience to the point that Wesley Eisold, the band’s singer, evolved into Cold Cave, a goth, dark wave sensation. Never straying too far from his roots though, Eisold always kept American Nightmare in his back pocket. Perhaps now he’s wearing those pants back-side front. It’s too sides of the same coin, anyway. A sad, depressed crooner making music you can dance your sorrow away to and a rage-filled banshee that inspires blood-lust, violence, and anarchy in mosh pits that flood onto the stage. American Nightmare was the first band in the hardcore scene to really delve into emotional, darker lyrics and tones while not straying from true hardcore and the scene. The first band to open up the evening was Death Bells, a young death rock outfit from Sydney, Australia that
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U.S. Girls Sell Out The Moroccan Lounge: The Most Soulfulest Sound
Rob Shepyer
March 15, 2018
My adventures through the Los Angeles music scene took me to The Moroccan Lounge on Tuesday where one of the brightest stars off the legendary 4AD records had sold the place out on a damn school night. U.S. Girls go right alongside powerful, female-led bands like The Pretenders, Sleater-Kinney, and Haim in the rock and roll halls of history but even among those bands, I can see a potential in U.S. Girls’ leader, Meghan Remy, that I don’t think shined quite as warmly or as obviously as the others. Oddly enough, I first heard about this band by watching Power Trip on Amoeba’s “What’s In My Bag” series. Where part of singer, Riley Cayle’s selection was none other than U.S. Girls’ Half Free. related content: Power Trip & Destruction Unit Leave The Teragram In Ash & Rubble related content: Nature World Night Out At The Regent: Building Bridges Between Hardcore And Hip Hop Beginning as a noise-pop project, Meghan Remy was inspired by Riot Grrrl bands and Crass to create a rebellious and beautiful amalgamation of pop, jazz, funk, and electro-punk which is best represented in the band’s 2018 release
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Air + Style Day 2: Snowblind in So-Cal
Aria Silva-Espinosa
March 9, 2018
Construction cranes tower over Exposition Park, obscuring the view from the festival grounds. Although Sunday means progress is stalled, the skeletal half-constructed stadium leaves the stages set up for the festival looking dwarfed in comparison. The lineup boasts a lineup similar to what I would put on a ‘Sunday Morning’-type of playlist, Gucci Mane included. Like any Sunday of a festival, it took awhile for festival-goers to start filing in. A good percentage of the earlier crowds consisted of families with school-aged children and even stroller-bound infants. This serves as a reminder that this is just as much of a family-friendly sporting event as it is a music festival. related content: Air + Style Day 1: The Church Of Dram When attending a festival, it isn’t uncommon to be forced to make the heartbreaking, relationship-ruining decisions about which sets you’re going to catch and which will have to be sacrificed due to conflicted scheduling. Not so with Air & Style; the sets are split between two stages and staggered so nobody has to miss anybody they want to see. related content: Air + Style Saved By Hard Rain Washing Away Crowds We caught part of the Cloud Nothings‘ set and being
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Video Premiere: Baronen & Satan “Why Does The Blood Never Stick To Your Teeth” Janky Smooth Exclusive
Janky Smooth Central Command
March 9, 2018
Calling all garage punks, psych rockers, and Luciferian Satanists, we have a band from you straight out of the gothic darkness of Gothenburg, Sweden. The Swedish have always given the world some of the most insane music, think Brainbombs and Bathroy, and Baronen & Satan are no exception. Melding psych rock and garage punk with ear-splitting distortion and reverb that harkens bands like Destruction Unit, this band’s latest video for the single “Why Does The Blood Never Stick To Your Teeth” is sure to make you sharpen your fangs. related content: Berserktown 3: The Craziest Festival On Earth This quartet led by Phillippe Sainz and Linda Rydellius is signed to Dirty Water Records and is ready to invade the divide consciousness of the United States. With music produced by Detroit Legend Jim Diamond, the buzz on this band is only beginning. Check out the video, if you Kenneth Anger films, liquid light, and altered states of mind you’re sure to like the visuals. If you like heavy rock with soul then you’re sure to like the music.
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