By Andrew Bansal
January 4th 2014, Loaded Rock Bar, Hollywood CA: Although punk rock is considered by many to be an entirely separate genre from heavy metal, those who know their metal would be on strangers to the fact that a lot of metal has its roots in punk, like the early New Wave Of British Heavy Metal which came into existence owing to old-school British punk, and subsequently the early thrash metal movement which was clearly punk-inspired. Even today, these sub-genres of metal carry a discernible punk vibe, and in my opinion, the two styles of music can never be separated. Hence, whenever there’s a prospect of a good punk rock show in town, I venture out to it, and last night was one such occasion at the Loaded Rock Bar in the heart of Hollywood. Presented by Lara Gladstone, this Saturday night billing featured an all-punk lineup of five local bands, and even though I was not familiar with any of these bands, I somehow had a good feeling about this show.
I arrived at the venue at around 9 PM, and the first band High Gain Fury were just about starting their last song. Obviously I didn’t get to see enough of them to form any kind of opinion on their performance, but based on that one song they seemed to show good energy on stage and their music came across as easily accessible for any punk fan. Shortly after, the next band Skin Flick took the stage, and despite some technical difficulties that halted the momentum of their set a couple of times, they put on a more than decent show and presented a set of likable punk tunes played through a very basic, stripped-down gear setup. They possessed a good bit of variety in the set with some songs that ranged from fast to slow and upbeat to dark. They fit this lineup perfectly and provided the crowd, which was steadily increasing in number, an ideal warmup for the acts to follow.
Inazuma, a rockabilly punk trio from Japan who call Los Angeles their adopted hometown, were up next, and as soon as I saw them set up on stage with the stand-up bass and the Byrdland-style guitar, I was instantly reminded of the fact that it’s been more than two years since I saw Reverend Horton Heat in concert. Sweet memories from past experiences seeing the Rev came flooding back. With that mindset, I was ready for Inazuma to hit me with what they had to offer, and they certainly did not disappoint. Both musically and in terms of their stage persona, they delivered exactly what the rockabilly punk sub-genre is known for, and the crowd loved it. Besides their dynamic show, they endeared themselves to the crowd even further whenever they said something in between songs in innocent broken English. A great performance, in every sense.
Visit Inazuma on the web:
Inazuma-Rock.com
facebook.com/Inazuma696
By now, this place was buzzing with people, most of whom had their drink on and were in good spirits. A Pretty Mess took the stage and tore it apart with their incredibly high-octane performance, led by guitarist/vocalist Dee Skusting’s insane energy levels and complemented well by her band mates, specially lead guitarist Dirty Dan who gave the band a metal edge with his riffs and solos as well as his appearance. His guitar play definitely had a touch of Slayer and old-school NWOBHM in it. With the female element coming from frontwoman Dee Skusting and her partner in crime Meghan Mattox on bass/vocals, the band brought forth a sound that could almost be described as ‘punk rock meets The Runaways’. Punk rock of this nature lacks good bands, at least in the Los Angeles scene, and through their performance last night A Pretty Mess showed that they could be the answer to the outcries of those who crave this genre. Dee took off her guitar for the last song of the set and expressed herself to an even greater and wilder extent, bringing the set to an apt end. For every attendee here, A Pretty Mess by themselves were worth the price of admission, and so much more.
Visit A Pretty Mess on the web:
APrettyMess.com
facebook.com/pages/A-Pretty-Mess/154296944666
twitter.com/APrettyMessband
And finally, the clowns in the Yeastie Boys ensemble graced the Loaded stage and played some fun-filled covers of punk classics such as ‘Anarchy In The UK’ by the Sex Pistols, amongst many others. They also had TSOL drummer Anthony ‘Tiny’ Biuso join them for one song, and overall, their set was never short of entertainment, not even for one second. With a large number of clowns on stage at all times, balloons everywhere, and punk classics to sing along to, Yeastie Boys certainly provided a fun time for everyone in attendance. It was the ideal way to end the night, and for those in the crowd that were wasted, intoxicated and loaded beyond repair, this Yeastie Boys set came at the right time. Aside from their excellent renditions of the songs they chose to play, their interaction with the audience was hilarious, and they seemed very adept at handling themselves on stage as performers and entertainers. It was indeed a fine set of punk-infused debauchery.
Visit Yeastie Boys on the web:
facebook.com/pages/Yeastie-Boys/193386188950
All in all, I definitely did not regret attending this show, and judging by the amount of fun had by attendees, it’s clear that LA needs more such punk shows. This was not only the most entertaining show I’ve attended at Loaded till date, but also one of the most fun shows I’ve been to in a while. Contrary to popular belief, punk is not dead!
Visit Loaded Hollywood on the web:
LoadedHollywood.com
facebook.com/LoadedRockBar
twitter.com/LoadedHollywood
instagram.com/LoadedHollywood