Pepper – Shwayze – Supervillains- at Club Nokia – Los Angeles, CA

There are times when you talk to a friend and they’ll recommend a band that they believe is the best thing since sliced bread. Be honest, how many times have you said “ill have to check them out” and never do. This time however i actually followed through gave this Hawaiian band “Pepper” a chance to impress me. After a couple of listens to their songs on myspace it was plain to see that I found a new band to add to my repertoire. Lucky for me shortly thereafter I was told that Pepper would be playing in Los Angeles, to which I immediately made plans to attend.

When we got to the box office at the Club Nokia to pick up our tickets we were surprised that one hour into the show there was still a gnarly line for tickets. This looked like it was going to be a sell out show!

When we walked in the second band of the evening was just starting to play who were called The Supervillains, and had also got a strong recommendation from the friend who exposed me to Pepper. They played a cool mix of reggae, ska, and punk that could get one in the mood to kick back with some friends beachside. In fact, the theme of the night could quite easily be “music to dink at the beach to”.

Shwayze, the next act of the night was another crowd favorite. At the mere sight of his presence on stage the front row of girls went wild, throwing their arms in the air like they just don’t care…wait...did I just say that?

After a couple of beers and a trip to the merch tables it was time for Pepper to hit the stage.

As a guy who usually attends punk and Indie rock shows, this was definitely a welcome change of pace in the entire vibe of the show. It was definitely more laid back, that is until the band decided to cover the Nirvana song “Smells like Teen Spirit” and the Pennywise song “Bro Hymn”. This island band put on one of the most entertaining shows that I have ever seen, and whats more, they even looked like they enjoyed being there too. Aside from the tunes there was a lot of fun on stage banter and crowd interaction. At one point the horn player for the Supervillains joined then for a song then set his instrument down and dove headlong into the crowd, where he went for a quick surf.

The night ended with an enthusiastic encore demanded by the crowd and an invite from the band to one of their shows in the spring, which I may just take them up on.

-Matt C.-

  

More photos of the show can be seen HERE

 

                                          Go HERE to see all the latest show reviews
 

 

Flipper – Live Target Video 1980-81 DVD review

When listening to Flipper, one can only imagine what types of circumstances and conditions prompted the sound of Flipper, and what types of performances were carried out during their showcase. Flipper Live is not your traditional live DVD, but rather a short collection of Flipper's performances in San Francisco during the early 1980s. Shows recorded at Berkeley Square, Kezar Stadium, and a display for San Fran's Channel 25 are all found in the DVD.

Each live show begins with a brief introduction that informs you about the setting and place, and what to expect from the speculation. The Berkeley Square performance resembles a band practice session; there are only a few people present to watch, it is situated in a small area, and the band members seem to be messing around more than they are trying to impress those who are present. However, it is this quality that makes the Berkeley Square showcase interesting to watch, because the spontaneous acts throughout the set are pretty entertaining.

Unlike the Berkeley Square performance, the showcase at the Kezar Stadium is more of the type of show you would expect from a band like Flipper, notorious for the type of peculiar and mesmerizing music they play. The brief introduction displayed prior to the show informs you that you should expect vocalist/bassist Will Shatter to appear calm and collected on stage, with the exception of a wine bottle he's drinking throughout the set. The setting of the show suits Flipper's music perfectly: it's dark inside, there's a few dim and strange glowing lights that occasionally surround the band members, and the frenzy of the music is clearly demonstrated in the behavior and mannerisms of each band member while they play. The performance is classic Flipper; chaos and mayhem on stage, noise produced that is somehow transformed into hypnotizing music, and a guitar smashed on stage that was bound to happen either way.

Among the bonus features is the song "Sex Bomb" which was performed for San Francisco's Channel 25. The Ch 25 performance will blow you away not just because of the performance of the song, but because Flipper seems to have cleaned up for it! Each member acts appropriately, the song sounds less disorganized than what Flipper fans are used to, and it seems as though the band members actually took the time to prepare for it. If that isn't enough to impress you, some cool and cheesy 80s effects are present and imposed onto the show, making it seem like a retro 80s music video for MTV. It actually makes the show that much more enjoyable.

If you've ever wondered what a genuine live Flipper experience would be like, then the Flipper Live DVD is probably the closest thing you'll come to it. The DVD demonstrates 3 different examples of it, all of which reassure our expectations of what a Flipper show might have been like. It is a DVD that would be good for your collection, seeing as how you get more than 1 live performance, raw music that crawls into your skin and takes your body over, and Flipper in their prime and hectic time.

Out now on MVD Visual
 

-Stephanie M.-

 

Big Wheel TV

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Big Wheel TV features a large inventory of videos.
Just browse the menu to find a video to watch.

For 10 plus years Big Wheel Media has been out filming and capturing all kinds of live music and skateboarding action. What is seen on Big Wheel TV is a small collection of the huge video catalog all the way to the latest show that just went down. Big Wheel TV is mostly made up of original content created by our film crew and we do welcome other programming of music video and action. If you would like to be a sponsor of Big Wheel TV, contact us for details. www.bigwheeltv.com

Bad Antics Record Release – at Vinyl Solution – Huntington Beach, CA

The words "Get Fuckin Ready" never meant so much to the people who have been waiting for the new Bad Antics album that has been in the works for quite some time now. But now, its here and with that the band decided to have a record release show at Vinyl Sulution, a really rad record store that caters to, but is not limited to, punk rock. The show was set to go off at 8:30, but by 8 there was already a group of people gathering in and out of the store hanging out and browsing the records as the band loaded in their gear.

The band played a set of about ten songs from the new album "The Wave"  and from their yet to be titled full length LP. At first a few people started to slam around, but was quickly put to a halt out of respect for the record store and all the merch. 

There were 30 limited edition copies of the new album produced for the in-store release with a very....provcative image inside the cover of the album. As a part of the event there was a hand screned band poster given away with the purchase of the album that night. Thelimited edition poster was created by Paul D'elia, who was in attendence for the show,  creates posters for bands under the name "Screenin for a Change".

The band finished their set, packed their gear up and hung out for a while.

But whats next? A Full length?

Get Fucking Ready!

-Matt C-
Editor
 

Go HERE to see all the photos from this night!

 

 
                                          Go HERE to see all the latest show reviews
 

BYO Records movie world premiere at the 11th annual SF Indie Film Festival

BYO Records movie world premiere at the 11th annual SF Indie Film Festival

Friday 2/13/09 @ 7:15pm and Monday 2/16/09 @ 7:15pm
Roxie Theatre in SF - To get tix / more info:
www.roxie.com or www.sfindie.com

PLUS Monday 2/16/09 at Thee Parkside
YOUTH BRIGADE, FILTHY THIEVING BASTARDS, NOTHINGTON
For tickets and more info go to www.theeparkside.com

A lasting tribute and testament to over 25 years of BYO, Youth Brigade and the DIY spirit that has inspired and continues to inspire so many to change the world....

By the time the second wave of Los Angeles Punk rock began to crest in the early 1980s, most historians had already closed the book. But things were just starting to get interesting.

The music got harder and faster. Politics became integral to the scene. Police-on-punk violence and massive riots were de rigueur. The concept of "D.I.Y." transformed from a necessity to a battle cry.

And the Better Youth Organization was born.

Founded by brothers Shawn and Mark Stern from the influential L.A. Punk band Youth Brigade, the BYO was part political movement, part business venture. It was a way to organize punks to take positive action to help sustain their scene and their way of life. The ideals upon which it was founded helped countless bands put on shows, put out records, and otherwise get their music out to the world. It allowed for the making of the landmark punk documentary "Another State of Mind". And it spawned BYO Records, which stands today as one of the oldest surviving independent Punk rock labels in the world.

BYO, Youth Brigade, and the Stern family are three intertwined entities that comprise a too-often-overlooked chapter in the history of punk.

This is that chapter.

BYO is proud to announce the pending release of this historical documentary film which will be accompanied in a box set with an 80 page hardcover book and 2 audio cd's featuring all the top punk bands in North America covering songs from the extensive BYO Records catalog. Some of the bands involved include: Dropkick Murphys, Pennywise, NOFX, Lagwagon, Matt Skiba, Bouncing Souls, Anti-Flag, American Steel, Youth Brigade, Off With Their Heads, Leatherface, plus many more


WWW.BYORECORDS.COM
BYO RECORDS / PO BOX 67609 / LOS ANGELES, CA 90067
CELEBRATING 25 YEARS OF QUALITY PUNK ROCK

Mon- Jan 26, 2009 – Rocco Deluca w/ Marvelous Toy,
and Pawnshop Kings – Spaceland – Los Angeles, CA

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