Photo Gallery: Metal Assault Night Vol. 8 @ The Viper Room

Photos by C. Jones

July 30th 2017, The Viper Room, West Hollywood CA: Vol. 8 of our series of Metal Assault Nights at The Viper Room was finally upon us last Sunday, after having been booked and set in stone a long time ago. This was different from the shows we’ve put together so far, and the first of its kind for us, where all the bands belonged to the same record label. This was a showcase event for fast-rising metal label M-Theory Audio, and featured an all-extreme, all-killer lineup headed by Menifee CA pagan death metal band Helsott and supported by Bay Area death metal group Apothesary, Las Vegas death/thrash band Sicocis, and Lake Forest CA black metal outfit Empyrean Throne. Extreme metal on the Sunset Strip on a Sunday night isn’t quite the most popular live entertainment option, but the diehards came out in decent number and raged hard to give these fine talented bands the response and welcome they deserved. Our man C. Jones was in attendance to capture some images for us. Check them out below, follow these bands and their label, and mark your calendars for the next Metal Assault Night! Continue reading “Photo Gallery: Metal Assault Night Vol. 8 @ The Viper Room”

Red Hot Rising: Greta Van Fleet play Sold-Out show at Viper Room

By Lisa Burke

July 25th 2017, The Viper Room, West Hollywood CA: America’s got talent and you don’t need a TV show to tell you that if you pay attention to the present and future of live rock n’ roll which is out there, ready to take back the lead title from all the pop stars that currently stand in the limelight. Watching young talent composite intellectually and historically sound tunes before your eyes on a Tuesday in West Hollywood at The Viper Room is just what the doctor ordered, and on July 25th 2017, I saw three talented rock bands in a well put-together sold-out show, Greta Van Fleet, Joyous Wolf and Thunderpussy. As this was a semi early show with only three bands it actually worked out well with the timing and even though the headliner was the second band to play, those who knew what was best for them got a pleasant surprise at the end with Joyous Wolf’s charmingly original set. Continue reading “Red Hot Rising: Greta Van Fleet play Sold-Out show at Viper Room”

Stoner Sunday: Wounded Giant, Demon Lung, The Rare Breed & High Priestess rock Downtown LA

By Andrew Bansal
Photos by C. Jones

July 23rd 2017, 5 Star Bar, Los Angeles CA: Seattle, Washington stoner metal band and Las Vegas doom quartet Demon Lung joined forces for a mini-tour last week, and visited Los Angeles for a gig at the 5 Star Bar in downtown Skid Row last Sunday. The show also featured local openers The Rare Breed and High Priestess. Continue reading “Stoner Sunday: Wounded Giant, Demon Lung, The Rare Breed & High Priestess rock Downtown LA”

Greetings From High Country: The Sword makes Triumphant Return to El Rey Theatre

By Andrew Bansal
(photos by Samuel Ware)

July 19th 2017, El Rey Theatre, Los Angeles CA: Austin, Texas stoner rock group The Sword are currently on a North American headline tour, to promote their latest release, the live album ‘Greetings From…’ and to present an assortment of their material old, new and unreleased. This is one band that has polarized fans in recent years, but the rate at which they gain new fans is perhaps greater than that at which they lose any, as evident from the stellar turnout they were greeted to in Los Angeles last week, on a Wednesday night no less, as they marked a triumphant return to a venue they’re familiar with and fond of, the El Rey Theatre. Continue reading “Greetings From High Country: The Sword makes Triumphant Return to El Rey Theatre”

Not Dead Yet: Junkyard & Cheetah Chrome’s Dead Boys play sold-out show at Viper Room

By Lisa Burke

July 15th 2017, The Viper Room, West Hollywood CA:  While some of rock n’ roll and punk rock history remains just that, much of it has continued to brand its way into modern-day reality in some very valid semblance of what it once was, and when joined by a few fresh faces to round out a new creation of an old way of life, you can expect to see one hell of a great show. On Saturday July 15th 2017, I attended a sold-out Viper Room show with co-headliners Junkyard and Cheetah Chrome’s The Dead Boys. While these two very compatible bands brought their best to this show, living in Los Angeles brings quite a few chances to catch a Junkyard show, so the favored catch on this evening seemed to lie in the hands of Cheetah Chrome, Johnny Blitz, and his very lively Dead Boys although the crowd attended and responded well to both. Before I create thunder and lighting over the obvious debate here and topic at hand on who is singing in place of Stiv Bators and how can this still be The Dead Boys, let’s remember that it’s forty years later and Cheetah Chrome who seems to be in great shape has forty more years of guitar playing experience that was worth the ticket price alone. Continue reading “Not Dead Yet: Junkyard & Cheetah Chrome’s Dead Boys play sold-out show at Viper Room”

A Fitting Tribute and Then Some: Last In Line rock Brick By Brick in San Diego

By Andrew Bansal
(photos by Brad Worsham)

July 15th 2017, Brick By Brick, San Diego CA: Formed in 2012, Last In Line reunited the original members of the Dio band, Vivian Campbell, Vinny Appice, Jimmy Bain and Claude Schnell, to perform the songs they recorded together in the early ’80s, with vocalist Andrew Freeman at the helm. But soon after, Last In Line evolved into a band that also wrote and performed its own material, releasing their debut album ‘Heavy Crown’ via Frontiers Records in 2016, which they recorded as a four-piece, having parted ways with keyboardist Schnell before recording. Then, following Jimmy Bain’s passing, Phil Soussan joined the band on bass and Erik Norlander on keyboards, and Last In Line continued on.  As part of a short run of US headline dates, the band visited Brick By Brick in San Diego CA last Saturday July 15th to play in front of a completely packed house, and with the kind of set they delivered, did themselves and the late greats Ronnie James Dio and Jimmy Bain no injustice whatsoever. Continue reading “A Fitting Tribute and Then Some: Last In Line rock Brick By Brick in San Diego”