Review & photos by Andrew Bansal
August 9th 2014, The Satellite, Los Angeles CA: Known for his involvement in groups such as Kyuss, Queens Of The Stone Age, Mondo Generator, The Dwarves and several others over the past nearly 25 years, Nick Oliveri needs no introduction to true stoner rock fans. But in a departure from what he does in most of the bands he’s ever played in, Oliveri donned an acoustic guitar to play a solo hometown show last night with support acts The Freeks, You Know Who and Waxy, a gig put together by Matthew Hutchison of Self Destructo Records and aptly held at the Satellite which is very much a haven for shows presenting this style of music.
The show began at 9:25 with Palm Desert-based three-piece band You Know Who, comprising members of The Dwarves and Mondo Generator, playing a very compelling and diverse 30-minute set that consisted of a combination of straight-up stoner rock songs mixed in with fast-paced, to-the-point punk tunes. Mike Pygmie excelled on guitar and vocals while Dylan Brown’s bass licks sounded delightfully prominent and Greg Saenz dictated the tempo with his drumming. The diversity in the band’s music over such a short period almost made them seem like a mix tape rather than a single band, and it made a positive impact on the audience. At one point Mike’s guitar strap came loose but he bent down to support his guitar on his knees and continued soloing as somebody came up to help put the strap back on. This moment endeared You Know Who to the crowd furthermore. This set was by all means a great start to the evening.
You Know Who links: facebook
Set List:
01. Save Me Jebus
02. Napolean Blownapart
03. Cobra Twist
04. Waistoid
05. Knuckle Buster
06. You Know What
07. Marshall Stacks
08. Whoa Dude
09. Babuhda Bah
10. Recycler
The Freeks, who shared the stage recently with Fu Manchu at the Troubadour, came next and the quintet hit the groove straightaway with their spastic psychedelic jams, treating the audience with a sonically rich experience owing to the multiple layers in the music. “Let’s get weird!” yelled frontman Ruben Romano right before they played ‘Weirdness’ and cranked it up to the next gear for the remainder of the set. Romano combined well with Jonathan Hall on guitar as the other three members held the rhythms strongly on bass, drums and keyboards. In comparison to the Troubadour show I felt the Satellite was a better fit for The Freeks’ sound and style, and they served as the ideal appetizer for the main course to follow.
The Freeks links: website | facebook | twitter | instagram
Set List:
01. Black Chunk
02. Secret Pathway
03. Weirdness
04. Vitamin D
05. Go Go Get
06. Bitchin’
07. On A Whim
08. Fast & Black
At 11:15, Nick Oliveri introduced himself to the audience with a sense of ironic humor, saying he never goes to see his favorite musicians playing acoustic sets, and was apologetic about doing it himself. He played a 14-song set featuring barebones acoustic adaptations of well-selected Kyuss, Queens Of The Stone Age, Mondo Generator and a few other tunes from his solo career, the Kyuss song ‘Green Machine’ drawing the loudest cheers from the audience as expected. Even though certainly acoustic, the guitar wasn’t ‘unplugged’ by any means and instead was amplified with very heavy and dirty distortion, rendering this the first ever acoustic show I contemplated using earplugs for. As a perfect companion to this filthy guitar sound, Oliveri employed a gruff style of vocal delivery, but a couple of songs in the set also displayed his clean singing talents, the QOTSA tune ‘Another Love Song’ in particular.
Oliveri’s performance was light-hearted, humorous and very entertaining, and for fans of any of the aforementioned bands he has played in, it was a special treat to be able to attend this show and get a rare chance to discover what he does on stage as a solo singer/guitarist.
The trials and tribulations of the week past finally got to me on this Saturday night and after the end of Nick Oliveri’s set I could no longer gather any strength to stay for Waxy. But overall, it was a great gig with excellent performances across the board from the three acts I did see, and by all means a worthwhile outing at the Satellite.
Check out more photos from the show below, or view them here if you’re on a non-Flash device:
Nick Oliveri links: facebook | twitter | instagram
Set List:
01. Bloody Hammer
02. Invisible Like The Sky
03. I’m Gonna Leave You
04. Love Is Fiction
05. Green Machine
06. Endless Vacation
07. Won’t Let Go
08. Six Shooter
09. Millionaire
10. Dungaree High
11. Drug Store
12. Another Love Song
13. Autopilot
14. Outlaw Scumfuc
Self Destructo Records links: website | facebook | twitter | instagram
The Satellite links: website | facebook | twitter | instagram