Rob Shepyer, Author at Jankysmooth

Rob Shepyer

Noise Punks on Potassium: Melt Banana at The Roxy

Rob Shepyer November 16, 2022

It had been years since Melt-Banana came to Los Angeles. Their last show at The Troubadour featured a lineup that pitted them beside Napalm Death and The Melvins, and though Melt-Banana didn’t headline that show, as time went on and the musical landscape changed, enough years had passed by 2022 that they became a very hot, headlining commodity in the world of weirdo music. No matter what scene you were in you had to be there, the urge was felt across punk, metal, hardcore and goth. So, in 2022, Melt-Banana returned to Los Angeles before a sold out Roxy Theatre and demolished the crowd that hailed them as legends of noise. Not only was the Japanese duo in question in rare form performance-wise on this night but every band they brought along in their crazy punk rock caravan put on equally wild and mind expanding sets. Psychic Graveyard were one of the best noise rock bands I’ve ever seen. Flipping switches, turning knobs and playing with doo-dads to create this massive behemoth of angry, artsy dysfunction. They jam hard, making electronics feel more rock and roll than any band I’ve seen, and as a result, you are washed in this

Holiest of Holies: Om at the Lodge Room

Rob Shepyer October 11, 2022

What doth God have to do with doom metal? Is there a spiritual element to a musical genre so heavily associated with demonic and satanic imagery? In the eyes of Om, absolutely. At the heart of a riff, at the very core of that vibration, there is a spark of God in every note. There is no more sacred a space to explore such ideas as the holy Lodge Room in Highland Park, and there is no more appropriate a state of mind to discover the truth about the spiritual nature of doom metal than on a little bit of indica. In my younger years, I used to smoke a hefty amount of flower, in the hopes that derangement of the senses would allow for unique artistic output. What I discovered through marijuana was a spiritual space within myself, a sort of link to the collective unconscious, an information super highway for all human truth that connected every being on this planet to a warm and golden source. In other words, marijuana connected me to God, the same way it did Bob Marley and every other stoner that every smoked a doobie then put on Sleep’s Holy Mountain. Sleep was

Perfection Does Exist: Porcupine Tree at the Greek Theatre

Rob Shepyer October 7, 2022

Prog rock is a guilty pleasure for me. When no one is around on a lonely drive, speeding down a highway late at night through the desert, I roll the windows down and blast prog. Something about the perfection of the sound rings through the night and motivates my ride with a more epic quality. If there were someone else in the car though, I’m not so sure the music would hit right. These are personal anthems I keep somewhere close inside. Times I’ve tried to share prog music with others, most people seem not to get it. They don’t see what I see. Which is that prog musicians are some of the most courageous artists around, not just for pushing the boundaries of craftsmanship but for their songwriting and lyrical content which touches upon subjects rock and roll usually strays from, more heady, authentic themes like psychology and philosophy find a home in prog rock. Straight forward rock and roll thinks its too cool for these themes which feel on the surface a bit “bookwormish”. Porcupine Tree‘s absence may not have been felt by the punks, or even most of the metalheads, but to the prog rockers, there was

8 Essential Artists of Substance Festival 2022

Rob Shepyer October 5, 2022

Substance is more than a festival. Substance is a showcase of the past, present and future of goth, post-punk and industrial music, bringing together the best artists and promoters in the greatest live music city in the world. There is no better place to get a sense of goth music today and tomorrow than at Substance. Every attendee gets a glimpse of the current musical landscape and leaves with stronger, more expansive goth sensibilities and knowledge. Sets that define and launch an artist’s trajectory happen at Substance. I will never forget Pixel Grip’s opening set in 2021 and since then, the band has become a major act inside the American goth underground. All these elements combined, make Substance an essential Los Angeles festival. If you think you know music, but don’t go to Substance, then you don’t know shit. It seems every year since the festival’s inception, Restless Nites collaborates with all of LA’s greatest goth minds to put on a festival that exceeds the expectations set by the previous installment. From Boy Harsher’s wild goth rave in 2019, to Geneva Jacuzzi’s future pop, to this year’s acquisition of legends, exotic imports and the next wave of brilliant goth acts,

Gorillaz, the Most Human Band, at Youtube Theatre

Rob Shepyer September 30, 2022

The events of Sunday September 25th at Youtube Theatre were moments I had dreamed of and wished for the last decade of my life, and finally, after loving Demon Days for so long, I finally got to see Gorillaz live at the Youtube Theatre. To me, there is no more beautiful music than this record and the live version released afterward. Not only do I think Gorillaz is beautiful, I consider it the most ‘human’ sounding music. By that I mean their range of songs carry the nuance and complexity hidden inside a full human life–the highs and lows, the bliss and calamity, every bit of turbulence the human race is steeped in and every shred of joy humans are blessed with, all have a place on Demons Days. 2001’s self titled album is incredible too, it’s the OG of Gorillaz’ catalogue, featuring “Clint Eastwood”, the song that made the band a household name. 2010’s Plastic Beach had a plenty of bangers, anthems and serenades featured in epic, dream-team collabs, while 2017’s Humanz may be their most slept-on album of the last five years, it’s just full of great songs from start to finish (speaking of the most ‘human’ music).

Glitz and Glamour: Roxy Music’s 50th Anniversary at The Kia Forum

Rob Shepyer September 30, 2022

The lasting legacy of Roxy Music is one of soul, style, and groundbreaking experimentation. You can hear the roots of so many different genres just by listening to Roxy Music. They weren’t necessarily setting out to produce so many artistic offspring when they began, they were trying to make music that was close to the heart—timeless tunes to make people dance and fall in love. They certainly achieved this at their 50th anniversary tour stop in Los Angeles at the Kia Forum because there, LA fell in love with the band all over again. It was a tour-de-force performance that saw every piece of the band at their best, slaying on their instruments and having the audience swaying their hips and singing along. Even though we’re far removed from the 70’s and 80’s, this show gave a modern audience a slice of a different time when people have much more style. Roxy Music alone could reinvigorate fashion and coolness for this generation, if we could just tap into Bryan Ferry’s vision more often. The more Bryan Ferry the world gets, the more things will improve, that I can guarantee you. This 50th Anniversary tour was so epic and monumental that

German Love Machines: Rammstein at LA Memorial Coliseum

Rob Shepyer September 28, 2022

Rammstein in-concert more closely resembles Mad Max’s Thunderome or Rollerball than your typical rock and roll show. The atmosphere is reminiscent of the best kind of 80’s dystopian cinema, life or death battles that pits man against machine as fire and music blast a rabid crowd salivating for more rock, sex, and violence. It gives new meaning to the words “Arena Rock”. Just like this author, Rammstein prefers a maximalist approach to performing. In fact, I struggle to think of any greater spectacle in all of music. No other marquee act, be they rock or rap, has the production value of Rammstein. These days the kings of rock and roll are the likes of Metallica, Tool, My Chemical Romance, Nine Inch Nails, and Iron Maiden, and still, none of them compare to a Rammstein show. Iron Maiden comes close, but when you behold Rammstein’s stage, you feel like you’ve entered an actual urban hellscape from the year 3000 as you stand before this industrial structure that houses the band for the next two hours. You wonder as you stand in awe of the A and B stage, how large is the crew that built this and how long did it

The Sounds of Spring in Summer: Primavera Sound LA 2022

Rob Shepyer September 22, 2022

On the surface, Primavera Sound LA appeared to have an almost perfect lineup. There was something for everyone. Legendary rockers like Kim Gordon or Nine Inch Nails, extreme acts like Mayhem, exotic and rare imports like Arca, Drain Gang or Chai, young bands on the verge of greatness like Amyl and the Sniffers or Dry Cleaning, or massive millennial bands like Cigarettes After Sex and Fontaines D.C. For those who fancy themselves adventurers across the modern musical landscape, this was a necessary expedition. I checked many bands off my must-see list all in one weekend and these weren’t even the headliners. If Primavera Sound could be defined by two things though, they would be expert curation of international artists and an unforgettable set by Nine Inch Nails. related content: Stroking to LCD: This Ain’t No Picnic Prior to Primavera weekend starting, I checked out Dark Side‘s Hollywood Forever show, their first performance since 2014. It was a mind-bending musical experience, transcendent of whatever it is we call psychedelic rock into something beyond genre or ideals. With this in my rear view mirror, I had high hopes for their performances finishing Primavera’s opening day on Friday along with the rest of

Stroking to LCD: This Ain’t No Picnic

Rob Shepyer September 7, 2022

Goldenvoice has been on a roll, especially with their Rose Bowl based festivals, hosting special gatherings on sacred grounds. These two to three day festivals they’ve been churning out have all featured incredible lineups and have allowed audiences to see numerous artists that could each play at the Greek, Shrine or Bowl all on one giant, dusty field inside a literal melting pot. From Pasadena Daydream with the Cure to Arroyo Seco with Neil Young, Goldenvoice is building up a powerful Pasadena legacy. This Ain’t No Picnic hosted artists that represented our modern rock and roll heroes like Sparks, Le Tigre, The Strokes and LCD Soundsystem, but also the cream of next crop of legends like Turnstile, Caroline Polachek, Yves Tumor, Magdalena Bay, Ethel Cain, King Woman, and Idles. Mark my words, these artists will be massive headliners in the decades to come and on that day, we’ll look back to lineups like This Ain’t No Picnic’s and be in awe of how so many huge artists were assembled on the same bill. related content: Arroyo Seco: The Nostalgic, The Timeless, and the Real Day 1 Getting to drive on the greens of a golf course to find my parking

A Janky Guide to Primavera Sound LA

Rob Shepyer September 2, 2022

Now with set times for Primavera Sound LA live, the first thing one realizes upon seeing them is that this is going to be a laid back festival experience where it will be easy to see every band you want. There are a few conflicts present but that’s why we’re here to steer you in the right direction every time. This is your Janky Guide to Primavera Sound LA. Buy tickets here. Friday Both Divino Niño and Little Jesus are Latin imports worth coming to Primavera LA early for on Friday. If you like psychedelic music these two artists will expand your mind and taste. Divino Niño is on the trippier side, while Little Jesus is on the indie, emotional side. Both bands are great if you’re bringing a date to the fest. The first conflict of the day comes in the form of Jehnny Beth vs Tim Hecker at 3:30pm. Both of these artists push the boundaries of their own subcultures but because to us the point of Primavera Sound LA is to experience avant-garde and international music, we are going to firmly choose Tim Hecker but will probably end up loosely roaming between both. If you love ambient

Risks Make Better Memories Than Nostalgia: Sound and Fury 2022

Rob Shepyer August 8, 2022

Followers of Jankysmooth know that Sound and Fury has always been my favorite festival in Los Angeles. The feeling of being onstage and seeing a barrage of young people charging a band was incomparable among all of our precious and diverse music scene. The openness of artists to share the stage and microphone with their beloved fans made me an instant admirer of hardcore. Growing up a metalhead, I came to the realization that live, nothing touched hardcore. The constant flow of love between audience, artist and promoter made me feel part of something larger than myself, no matter how outgoing or shy I was. And it wasn’t just the scene that I found a home in, it was Sound and Fury specifically. It’s not common that artists constantly show an outpour of love to a promoter but at Sound and Fury, artists had a special connection to the festival that made them constantly thank Riley, Martin, and Madison by name during their sets. After all, these guys weren’t just the people that got them a gig, they were friends that gave them a platform for their art when few else would. Sound and Fury gave Anaiah Lei a platform

Photo Recap: The Zombies at the Fonda

Rob Shepyer August 1, 2022

Los Angeles, and the greater American West Coast, is perhaps the most important hub for all modern psychedelic music, but before the music world was California Dreaming, The Zombies had already begun synthesizing the psychedelic experience into sonic waves and flourishes. The music they created didn’t just reproduce the feeling of psychedelics, it was far beyond any kind of substance use. This Zombies expanded consciousness itself so the psychedelic experience could be accessed without having to take a single drop of anything. They found the notes, combination of instruments, artists and visuals to reshape rock music’s vibration into something that harkened back to the past and also saw a distant future far beyond this dimension. Seeing them perform at the Fonda was both a celebration of rock and roll’s rich history as well as a return to a more human sensibility lost in the digital age where the lyrics of “Time of the Season” made much more sense and were felt on a deeper level. The Zombies didn’t just stop at playing the hits, they included B-sides as well as new music written during the pandemic. Everyone in attendance hailed The Zombies as the Gods of psychedelic rock that they