By Lisa Burke
April 12th 2016, Belasco Theater, Los Angeles CA: Just when you think you’ve been to every venue in Los Angeles, you end up at a show in a location you’ve never been to which was the case for me on April 12th 2016, when I visited The Belasco Theater in downtown Los Angeles for the ‘Back To The USSA’ tour featuring two bands from England, The Darkness and RavenEye.
The Belasco Theater has actually been around for a very long time since the early 1900s and it has been re-modeled with a similar flavor to the Mayan Theater which is pretty much located next door to it. RavenEye was a pleasant surprise as it was my first live experience with this band who is very new to the scene with their 2014 inception. They were on tour with Slash last year and some of the audience remembered them from that and returned to see them again. Despite sound level issues, specially with the bass being too high, they put on a really solid show full of piggy back guitar moves where one guy sits on the other guy’s shoulders to play. I have a feeling they will grow a ton over the next year in popularity as their bluesy hard rock with a ’70s flair has a future in the world of rock ‘n roll. In fact, we need more bands in this genre that really have the ability to stand out and spread their rock ‘n roll seed all over the world. The singer’s voice was great and very Plant-esque, and they all carry the look of a young Led Zeppelin as well, even as a trio, but with a very modern structure. The guitar, bass and drums all had a spark that got your attention and I will definitely check them out again when they come back around. If you need more fresh rock ‘n roll in your life, RavenEye will gladly bring it to you on a silver platter.
Now comes the part of the story where I tell you what’s good and bad about this venue. I had an all-access photo pass for this show, but no one seemed to know where the photo pit was or how to get to it despite the fact that of course it would be right up next to the stage. Then when I went upstairs passing security on the way to a place I found to be a better photo location, the security guard there kept telling me to leave despite the fact that I had three wristbands and all-access with at least two of them. So, because I’m not one to listen to people when I know they are wrong I escorted him downstairs to the manager so he could tell him that yes in fact I did have a right to be upstairs. In attendance upstairs happened to be Foo Fighters drummer Taylor Hawkins, and honestly he’s just another cool dude in a popular band and it kind of makes me uncomfortable when people make a big deal over that sort of thing. Anyway, I finally got a prime spot to see the show and take photos, and The Darkness emerged wearing some fun silky bright ’70s-inspired modern attire that ironically possessed quite the opposite of darkness. So, if you don’t know, The Darkness is two brothers Dan and Justin Hawkins on guitar and vocals and their drummer since last year happens to be Rufus Tiger Taylor who is the son of the drummer from Queen. I think it’s great when children follow in the footsteps of their parents to become the next great legend, or at least that’s the hope since they have access to the greatest teacher. The Darkness is most typically known for their most popular top-40 radio hit song called ‘I Believe In A Thing Called Love’ which to me is their worst song. Yes, I went there and said I think every single other song they have is better than that because most have much less high pitched singing moments where for half a second my ears shatter. Justin’s voice is as off the charts as his character on stage and it’s really unique and he has very impressive range, and as long as he doesn’t get all Mariah Carey window-shattering super high pitched on you, it’s a beautiful thing.
They played majority of songs off of their most popular album as they should, however I’m pretty sure I’m more into the other material even though I do enjoy all of it. Justin had a way of making sure the audience didn’t only not get bored but also that they would do anything he wanted including letting him walk out onto them on their shoulders crowd surf style, but just walking and singing. He also had moments where he would yell at an audience member until they sang the line he wanted them to sing. His banter between songs was an array of jokes lined with British humor that were fun for the most part as he was picking on his own age at times, but then you realize he really was also making fun of the audience, and the line of photographers in the front row who he called out on their grand exit after the first few songs. Yes, Americans can be idiots, but the people here seem to worship you and you’d be nothing without them so may be play a little nice? He did also pull a ‘Rob Halford puppet prank’ where he gets the audience to copy whatever he sings but he also said he’d gauge out our eyeballs if we didn’t cooperate. The most amazing parlor trick this man had up his sleeve, besides trying on people’s hats from the audience and piggyback riding the bouncer through the audience for the encore, was to actually do a handstand with scissor kicks on the stage like it was no big deal. The Darkness is hard rock and glam rock in a Queen and AC/DC kind of way, and I have to say although I was not a big fan originally, seeing them live they really impressed me and talent seeps out in large doses from all the members.
The encore was a huge production and a slight ego trip, but nonetheless no one slept through it. After the show I happened to be hanging with a couple of my English friends and since I was invited to the after party with the band I thought I’d check it out. Oddly it was in a lower level space with bookshelves and kind of reminiscent of a library, and then there was a big open room on the other side containing free alcohol and in another room was free pizza, so no complaints from me. The band members didn’t seem like they wanted to be bothered too much, and for some reason they all decided to change into the dorkiest shirts they owned for the occasion. My one friend actually got interviewed based on his accent, being a guitar player, and availability, for whatever they were filming for. After hearing yet another story about Americans being douchebags, ironically from Taylor Hawkins who is from Texas originally, and getting involved in a group selfie, I decided It was time for a departure. I was happy to have had this experience and it’s always interesting when you meet a band or band members you are not in love with but get to discover just what makes them tick anyway.
Once again ,rock ‘n roll is still around us and being made on a daily basis, so get out there and support it. The Belasco Theater proved overall to be a very interesting place and I’ll have to re-evaluate them on their sound system quality when I hopefully make my return for Duran Duran in May.
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Set List:
01. Barbarian
02. Growing on Me
03. Mudslide
04. Black Shuck
05. Roaring Waters
06. Givin’ Up
07. One Way Ticket
08. Love Is Only a Feeling
09. Friday Night
10. English Country Garden
11. Concrete
12. Every Inch of You
13. Get Your Hands Off My Woman
14. Stuck in a Rut
15. I Believe in a Thing Called Love
Encore:
16. Love on the Rocks With No Ice
Remaining Tour Dates:
4/24 – Cleveland, OH @ House of Blues
4/26 – Cincinnati, OH @ Bogart’s
4/27 – Chicago, IL @ House of Blues
4/29 – Indianapolis, IN @ Old National Center
4/30 – Baltimore, MD @ Baltimore Sound Stage
5/02 – New York City, NY @ Irving Plaza
5/03 – Buffalo, NY @ Waiting Room
5/04 – Boston, MA @ Paradise Rock Club