Show Preview: GBH – at The Observatory – Santa Ana, CA – June 1, 2012

Summer 2012 is looking bright and full of activity for the greater Los Angeles area, and in central Orange County, one band is kicking off summer and starting it right at Santa Ana's The Observatory: GBH. The all-ages event is taking place Friday June 1st and tickets are currently $17.50. With a variety of diverse shows taking place at The Observatory in the near future, GBH's show is a great way to bring in a summer full of concerts.

Originally called Charged GBH (Grievous Bodily Harm), GBH is a band credited as a founding band of the renowned UK82 sound and overall scene. Along with bands like The Exploited, The Varukers, and other English bands performing during the early 80's, GBH helped enable the defining English street punk sound that influenced bands of later generations both in the UK and US.

1982's release of the band's first LP "City Baby Attacked By Rats" (Clay Records) officially commenced GBH's musical career and also established the band in the UK82 scene. By 1986, the band migrated over to Captain Oi! Records for the release of "Midnight Madness and Beyond" and also changed their name to GBH. Most recently, GBH released "Perfume and Piss" through Hellcat Records in April 2010. The band initiated a tour that same year consisting of shows in California, with special performances taking place at the Vans Warped Tour.
   This video will give you a taste of what to expect




With a plethora of Punk performances taking place at The Observatory (DEVO, The Melvins, Gnarmageddon to name a few), the best way to open up summer 2012 in SoCal is via a ticket to GBH's Orange County show. Tickets to see this legendary UK82 band are expected to sell out, so purchase yours immediately or you'll be stuck at home with no A/C, beating yourself up for missing a gnarly Punk show.
 

-Stephanie M.-
Senior Staff Reporter

 

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The Great British Alternative Music Festival – Minehead Butlins, UK

Butlins might seem an odd location for a Punk festival, but it certainly pulled in a crowd. Driving towards the site on Friday it was easy to tell who was also heading over for the festival. I’m not sure if Butlins have ever seen such a bunch of people arriving to check in!

Opening the festival on the Centre Stage was Department S, who did a great cover of Alvin Stardust's ‘My Coo-ca-Choo’. There were a few venues where the bigger bands played and also many bars dotted about the place – some just trestle tables with barrels of ale behind. You could tell this was a no kids allowed weekend!

Following Department S was Hazel O’Connor doing songs from her Breaking Glass album. The popular ‘Eighth Day’ went down well.

Friday’s line up in the Redz venue was where many punters chose to be – Anti Nowhere League, UK Subs and topped off by Sham 69.

The League came on at 8.30 with still many people queuing outside to get in despite the pouring rain. The crowd were well up for the rocky gig and people were pogoing happily. Animal roared out their hits as they worked their way through the set. All the band were on form. The crowd got more and more riled up, so much so the front barrier fell forward, landed on the stage and created a ramp! People stormed onto the stage and security had no chance. The crowd loved it as did the band!

Once more guards were called in people were ushered back and for the rest of the gig there was a scrum of security trying their best to hold the barrier up themselves. At one point there were 9 of them barely holding the Punks at bay!

By the time the UK Subs came on the barrier was fixed. Pete from the Vibrators filled in for Alvin. The mosh pit got going and actually seemed fairly civil! Charlie Harper was still going strong despite getting older. ‘CID’ and ‘Stranglehold’ went down well.

Sham 69 with Tim V finished the evening going through their back catalogue including classics like ‘Borstal Breakout’, ‘Tell us the Truth’ and ‘That’s Life’. It was a packed show with people still queuing to get in. I don't know why venues think that Punk shows must be full of smoke but for some reason this one was. The bands sometimes hate it too.

The next day Ed Tudor Pole kicked things off at 2pm to a surprisingly good sized crowd considering how hungover everyone seemed to be. Ed used a good trick to get the spread out punters to move in closer – he spoke to everyone without using the mike so they had to move in to hear. Back on the microphone he told amusing jokes about how old punks have got. Singing in his rock n roll style he made the show fun, pulling crazy faces and telling anecdotes. He had the audience laughing and singing along. Surprisingly ‘Who Killed Bambi’ and ‘Swords of a 1000 Men’ seemed a little rushed, maybe he’s getting tired playing them every gig?

Steve Cradock followed Ed with a good reception from the already warmed up crowd. He’s familiar to most as the guitarist in Ocean Colour Scene and Paul Weller’s band.

In the evening The Lambrettas brought the mod revival to the Centre Stage where there were plenty Ben Shermans and parkas on show. After them came the Beat with their usual bouncing set including ‘Mirror in the Bathroom’ and ‘Hands off She’s Mine’.

From the Jam kicked off with ‘Down at the Tube Station’ and ‘Going Underground’. The Centre Stage was fitted with a bouncy floor and boy it was bouncing. Bruce Foxton was the only party pooper of the weekend telling the photographers that they’d had enough photos and were told to leave.

On the Reds Stage former Skeletal Family singer Annie Marie Hurst started the night with her gothic look and sounds.

Following her were the Damned. They took their places on stage, Dave looked like an old style pilot with his shades and leather jacket and Captain Sensible came on with a big bottle declaring it was mineral water - yeah right! There was plenty of camaraderie between the Captain and Dave as the show progressed, the best I’ve seen them in ages. Everyone including the band and crowd thoroughly enjoyed the gig.

The night finished with Eddie and the Hot Rods.

On Sunday TV Smith had the early slot and said he was amused at playing at 1pm and being able to see the crowd’s ugly mugs! Despite a small sound hitch at the start he played a good set including ‘No Time to be 21’. His songs were quite melodic played with an acoustic guitar - very anti-establishment, anti-rich, anti-religion and anti-Great Britain, anti-all! He played “the hit” ‘Gary Gilmore’s Eyes’ which was one of the liveliest of his songs. He finished up with ‘One Chord Wonders’.

Wilko Johnson played with bassist Norman Watt-Roy from the Blockheads and drummer Dylan Howe. They had a funky, bluesy rock style and Wilko amused with his jerky movements, scary eyes and open mouth. He even had a retractable guitar lead so he could move all over the stage. There was no chatting between songs like he normally does, possibly short on time? There were some fantastic solos on the bass, excellent music playing.

Secret Affair was one the bands I was looking forward to seeing and they didn’t disappoint. Another sharp dressed mod revival band on the bill, Ian Page was great on vocals, guitar and trumpet. The brass section made the big crowd dance along while singing classics like ‘Going to a Go Go’ but it was their own songs ‘Time for Action’ and ‘My World’ that had the crowd singing along.

Later on the bill the Vibrators and Nine Below Zero also played.

The Blockheads packed out the Redz Stage on Sunday night. The seven of them came on stage including one original member Chaz Jankel. Their music was funky and soulful with a whole variety of sounds to listen to – sax, shaker, synth, keyboard, bass, guitar, drums… each musician very good at their own instrument. The bassist was excellent, and the whole band clearly enjoyed playing with each other. Songs that stood out were ‘Trevor’ and ‘What a Waste’, not to forget the funky ‘Reasons to be Cheerful’ complete with cowbell. The saxophonist was even playing two saxophones at once during ‘Hit  Me With Your Rhythm Stick’!

John Otway complete with his band played next. He came on to chants of his name and kicked off with one of his “two” hits ‘Really Free’. In his usual style he was leaping around stage all smiley and getting tangled in wires. The audience were in fits of laughter from the start. It was a very different show from when Otway plays without the band, nice to see him play off other people on stage. The band has been together 19 yrs with no line up change which is quite a feat! It might be the same act each time but Otway is such a showman it’s entertaining each time and fun. ‘We Rock’ was it’s own comedy show and the famous double guitar came out. There were tears of laughter during ‘House of the Rising Sun’, brilliant, all 3 lead guitars were playing behind their backs at one point.

The night finished with the Boomtown Rats in Redz and Dr Feelgood in the Centre Stage belting out their hits to a packed room.

With over 5000 people there over the weekend I think it was a success. Roll on next year!

             More photos of the show can be seen HERE

 

-Sally and Dod Morrison-
Big Wheel Overseas Correspondent

 

 

 

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7th Annual Smash Party with a performance by Battleflask – Hollywood, CA

Los Angeles is the one city in America where one can always look forward to finding something new and exciting occurring almost daily in and around our own backyard. Whether it be hundreds of cyclists storming the streets and parading down a closed off blvd or going on a city wide scavenger hunt searching for abnormal items, there’s always something out of the norm taking place just around the corner. Take this example for instance, a mass of invited guests willingly destroyed once precious televisions and other fragile belongings with the help of a trusty baseball bat, and my personal favorite; an all American sledge hammer! Yes you read that last sentence correctly, and for those invited to the Titmouse Animation Studios annual Smash Party, they witnessed an event like no other.

Let us take you inside the event to get a glimpse of what went down.

Every year the folks over at Titmouse (responsible for Metalacolypse) throw their annual company party, and believe me, it ain't your father's company picnic you remember from your youth. This instead is a free for all where guests are encouraged to bring forth fragile objects and destroy them with a weapon of their choice in a closed off batting cage like structure. It was a bit like American gladiators, just without sissy spandex uniforms, cheesy music or plastic weaponry. Catering was provided by none other than the very popular Grill Em All’ truck and best of all there was very huge open bar where guests enjoyed mixed cocktails all the way to Pabst Blue Ribbon to Newcastle.

Because of the nature of the event everyone entering the party would have to sign a waiver, how many partys have you signed a waiver to get in, which speaks the madness all attending would be in for. Lab coats and butcher aprons were very popular as were protective eye goggles and painters masks.

The batting cages were also equipped with screens to minimize damage from flying shards of glass and to prevent unhealthy inhalation of toxic particles from TV tubes. In many instances where the television met its demise it created a boom that could be heard from blocks away, it was fucking beautiful!

One of my favorite electronic appliances to meet its maker was what seemed to be a brand new iMac computer; it was destroyed with one swing! It was then that someone in the stands “yelled fuck Steve Jobs!” what a sight to witness! As you will see and hear in the accompanying video the crowd loved every minute of the destruction.

   Enjoy this 15 minute video overview of the destruction and performance by Battleflask

It’s only fitting that Battleflask would be invited to play this special event. Having a Punk band perform all the while guests destroyed valuable objects immediately reminded us of The Damned and their classic single appropriately titled “Smash It Up” , perhaps they will be invited to play next year’s event, we would like that! This being Battleflask's first performance in 6 months, performing a blistering set of a dozen plus songs that maintained the tightness and energy this band is known for.



Certainly one of the BEST partys we have been to in a long time and we appreciated the invite to come cover the event.

-Louie Bones-
Big Wheel Staff Reporter

 
             More photos of the 7th Annual Smash Party can be seen HERE

 

 

 

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The Radio Kills – The Devil You Know

Usually when a guy on the street or at a show gives you a copy of his band's album, you smile, try not to wince, listen to it once, then bury it at the back of your collection. Why even bother listening to it? Because every once in a while you hit the damn jackpot like I did this Saturday when I was given the debut album from The Radio Kills titled "The Devil You Know".

The Radio Kills are a new band made up of members of Lungbutter, X0, Friends and Firearms, and The Milk Thief, one of whom handed me their new LP outside Amoeba during Record Store Day. Instant bonus points, this is no two-bit demo, but the actual coming release on colored vinyl (pink with red/ black splatter to be precise). When I got it home, I took a deep breath, and with one eye started scanning the wall for a good place to hang it up, just in case. No point in letting something pretty go to waste.

But as the needle caught, and the first notes rang out, I started to relax. This wasn't bad. No, wait, this was actually good. Really good. The Radio Kills sound like The Cramps had a baby with Lou Reed, and it spent too much time hanging around with Monster Magnet and drinking with Hank Williams. Dirty Rock & Roll at its finest.

The album grinds through at high speed, with no low spots, and no chance to catch your breath. These are songs to be screamed in sweaty bars, to take you through the night in long car rides with the windows down and the wind in your hair at 100 mph, and to be the sounds track for all your best worst decisions.

Jump on the bandwagon now at http://www.theradiokills.com, where you can also listen to the album on the website's embedded player. Limited release vinyl is out soon and comes with free mp3 download codes.

 

 

-Jo Problems-
Big Wheel Staff Reporter
 

 

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45 Grave – at Webers – Reseda, CA

A club that has been around for a while now, called Weber's in Reseda has continued to throw good shows and tonight's was no different. The featured line up on this night consisted of, Death On The Radio, Switchblade 77, Broken Patron Saints with the evil of 45 Grave headlining the show.

Having been a first time for some of the staff to roll out to, this venue we have to say gives you a good mix of a long bar on the left side of the room that does not interfere with the large dance floor, with plenty of places to chill if you are not slam dancing the night away. The promoters who book many of the shows there have a long history in the Punk scene and are some of the most trusted around to not only take care of the bands, but also deliver best shows and line ups to the fans. Stay in touch with the show promoter's website here www.badsampresents.com to be in the know about all the shows that they put on …you are always gonna have a good time at their shows!

Here are a few photos of 45 Grave's performance because the main reason you clicked on this article is so that you could check out the lovely Dinah Cancer, just be honest. PS: 45 Grave just got signed to Frontier Records so be on the the look our for their new recording and even a vinyl release.

             More photos of the show can be seen HERE

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Record Store Day: Featuring In Store Performances from Channel 3 and Chuck Ragan – Los Angeles – Bakersfield – San Francisco, CA

Independent Record Stores all over the world celebrated Record Store Day. Of course, Big Wheel Magazine staff and contributors were out enjoying the festivities all over California as well. Channel 3 played at Left of the Dial in Seal Beach, Chuck Ragan had a performance at Rasputin Music in Berkeley, and shoppers partied up all day long at Going Underground Records in Bakersfield, CA.

 

Record Store Day - Channel 3 - at Left of the Dial Records - Los Angeles, CA

The brainchild of Chris Brown (no, not THAT Chris Brown), and founded by Eric Levin, Michael Kurtz, Carrie Colliton, Amy Dorfman, Don Van Cleave, and Brian Poehner, Record Store Day celebrated its 5th birthday on April 21st. Each year there is an official ambassador for RSD and Iggy Pop was the chosen one for 2012. (Past ambassadors include Metallica, Josh Homme, and Ozzy Osborne.) With over 700 independent stores in the US participating, we had a lot of locations to choose from, but we went with Left of the Dial Records located in Seal Beach.

Many shops will have in-store appearances, on top of the special album releases made specifically for RSD, and Left of the Dial was no different. The special guests this time? Channel 3!

Left of the Dial is a small place, and I was curious how they were going to pack in the band and the fans around the stacks and stacks of awesome merchandise, but I needn’t have worried. After pushing some stand-up bins to the side and moving out some tables, Mike and the guys set up in the back corner. There weren’t a ton of people at the store when I arrived, but that soon changed as CH3’s start time drew near. The store was incredibly warm, due to the amount of people packed in, but that didn’t deter either the band or the fans.

They started off their set with “I Didn’t Know”. About halfway through the song, Maria Montoya showed up (apparently she was stuck on the freeway for 2 hours—gotta love that Southern California traffic!) and she and the band went into “It’s the Little Things”. In between their older and newer songs, Mike shilled for the neighboring shops (“Pavillions, only $16.99 for a 30 case of Coors Lite! It’s a great deal, you know you want to!” and “Next door, for a limited time, you can get a mani AND a pedi!”) Other songs included “You Make Me Feel Cheap” and “Separate Peace”.

There was no room to pit, but that didn’t stop one girl from showing two young boys how it is done. (Mike’s nephews, if I’m not mistaken.) Channel 3 will be playing at Alex’s Bar in Long Beach on April 27th. They apparently like Coors Lite, so buy them a beer after their set. Go check them out for the full experience and force of their always powerful, and fun, performance.

When the show was over, I stuck around and picked up some vinyl for my collection. Left of the Dial has a great selection of old and rare Punk, so don’t wait until April of next year to get yours.

You can find Channel 3 here:
www.chthree.com
https://www.facebook.com/pages/CH3/109090763486

Left of the Dial can be found here:
https://www.facebook.com/leftofthedialrecords
http://www.leftofthedialrecords.com/

-Anni Thyme-
Big Wheel Magazine Reporter

To see more photos of this event click HERE

Record Store Day - Chuck Ragan - at Rasputin Music - Berkeley, CA

On April 21, 2012, Telegraph Avenue in Berkeley, California was packed with throngs of people walking on the main drag of the street. And why? It was everybody’s favorite holiday – Record Store Day. (Note: It was also UC Berkeley’s welcome day for incoming freshman, but a person can dream and speculate, can’t they?)

 The ‘holiday’ in itself brought together many types of people of different ages, backgrounds, and creeds for one sole purpose: to support their local independent record store.

At Rasputin Music in Berkeley, California, the sound of protective jewel cases clinking together as people paw through the establishment’s CD collection is heard through out the store.

 A line of ten or more people develops as the cashiers at the front desk struggle to deal with the high volume of people record store day has brought in.

Rasputin Music, like many record stores across the country during Record Store Day, hosted a handful of performance acts. One of them was acoustic, Punk Folk-master, Chuck Ragan.

Only minutes before his act, fans and intrigued record store day celebrators filtered into the store to hear his performance. Well known for his Florida Punk-outfit, Hot Water Music, Ragan brought new and old fans alike. (Personal note: I heard the statement, ‘I’ve been a fan of his since Hot Water Music,’ more times in one day than any person should.)
 

Playing from an upper level balcony, Ragan’s gritty, Bruce Springsteen-esque voice thundered throughout the store to the dozens of spectators below. Those wishing to get up close and personal with Chuck Ragan and his band gathered on the upper level, packed tightly against CD racks.

 

 

Crowd favorites such as “For Broken Ears,” “Nothing Left to Prove,” and “Let it Rain” were played. The set had a folky, homespun feel with  fiddle and stand-up bass instrumentals. (Another side note: the man playing stand-up bass looked like a reincarnation of Greg Norton from Husker Du.)

The set ended, and the crowd forming around the store’s CD racks dispersed to other places in the store, seeing what their local record store had to offer on Record Store Day.

-Erin D.-
Big Wheel Magazine Contributor

To see more photos of this event click HERE

 

Record Store Day - at Going Underground - Bakersfield, CA

Despite the 90 degree heat wave that hit Saturday, many Central Californian music lovers made it out to local record stores to support the music scene, local business owners, and of course find some great deals on vinyl. Going Underground in Bakersfield hosted a large selection of new and vintage vinyl of all different genres and had some amazing deals. 

There was a live performance from a local Punk band and a couple of DJs that provided entertainment for the shoppers as they thumbed through boxes upon boxes of records.  

All in all, RSD was a lot of fun in Downtown Bakersfield, I could have hung out at the store all day if they would have had a keg.....On second thought, probably a good thing there wasn't, I would have spent all my money!

http://www.facebook.com/Goingundergroundrecords

Big Wheel Magazine salutes the heroes of the music scene, like Going Underground, that bust their ass running their business because of their passion for music.  Cheers to all the unsung heroes of the scene, and HAPPY RECORD STORE DAY!

-J.Moncrief-
Big Wheel Magazine Reporter

 

To see more photos of this event click  HERE

 

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