Rewind Scotland Festival – at Scone Palace – Perth, Scotland, UK

Saturday, despite the damp day punters streamed into the sold out Rewind arena ready for the day ahead. It rained most of the day but this didn’t dampen spirits. The Sugar Hill Gang brought rap to the festival and started it off with a bang. Their songs “Rapper’s Delight” and “Apache” pleased the crowd.

Bjorn Again provided a fun Abba sing along.

 
Steve Augeri, the former lead singer of Journey, pulled a big crowd, and provided one of the best two sing alongs of the weekend with “Don’t Stop Believing”. The other was Dr and the Medics with “Spirit in the Sky”.

 
Jimmy Somerville was the small man with a big voice singing hits like “ Don’t leave me this way”

 
Billy Ocean ended the day on a high with “Caribbean Queen” and “The Going Gets Tough”.

Sunday, In the baking sun The Selecter got most of the crowd off their seats and dancing. Classics such as “Too Much Pressure”, “Three Minute Hero” and “On My Radio” got the whole arena bouncing to these ska legends. We were even treated to a ska version of the James Bond soundtrack.

 
The Boomtown Rats were due on just as monsoon style rain came down. The band walked on stage after announcement said “give it up for the best fucking band in the world!” Bob Geldof moved around the stage like he owned it, strutting and gesturing, really entertaining the crowd. After talking about how in this day and age there’s always someone watching you, we got the same titled song, although it was amazing how many people videoed this song! The moving “I Don’t like Mondays” captured everyone’s attention. At the line “today’s lesson is how to die” the whole band paused. Whilst the crowd cheered, Bob had his arm raised, which he dropped when the band kicked back into finishing the song. During “Like Clockwork”, Bob waved his hands around the sides of his head like a malfunctioning robot. They finished off with “Rat Trap”. This was definitely the set of the weekend, and all too short, Bob Owned the festival and one of the best live acts around at the moment.

 
My surprise of the day was Roland Gift’s reggae version of the Buzzcock’s “Ever Fallen in Love”. A great tune done in a new and interesting way.

 
Mark Almond pleased people with his classic “Tainted Love”, which even had the song “Where Did our Love Go” in the middle of it. And also played “ Something Gotten Hold of my heart” dedicated to Gene Pitney.

 
Hall and Oates have sold platinum selling albums for decades, but unfortunately they didn’t really have the energy for a headliner act. They started off with “Maneater”, but too many of their songs were mellow.  Quite a few fans believed the Rats high energy show would have been the ending to the weekend.

 
The spectacular fireworks at the end made up for the lack of big ending of their set.

More photos of the show can be seen HERE

 

-Sally Morrison-
Big Wheel Overseas Contributor

 

 

 

 

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Bad Religion and X – at The OC Fairgrounds – Costa Mesa, CA

Southern California based bands X and Bad Religion took the stage at the annual Orange County Fair Concert Series.  A large auditorium, the Pacific Amphitheater has hosted big names for decades, and in spite of the rows of seats from the back of the stadium to the floor, it continues to produce some of the best live music sound around.

A South OC tradition, live music at the annual Orange County Fair is a crowd pleaser. This night was no different and opening act, X , was fantastic, highlighting many songs from arguably their anthem album, Los Angeles (Slash, 1980) and sticking to a set list that would satisfy their most adoring, old school fans.

Seated to my left were ladies who embodied the spirit of old school punk following, meeting this X venue with the same enthusiasm they have undoubtedly carried to countless shows over the decades.  Behind me sat three thirteen-year-old boys who could not contain their excitement in getting to see headliner, Bad Religion, live.  What struck me was the level of enthusiasm in both groups, the seasoned veterans were just as excited as the kids finding their Punk rock roots and as I walked around the large Pacific Amphitheater venue I saw people smiling and laughing; singing along with their favorite bands playing their favorite songs.



In true Bad Religion tradition, their show was political, motivating, and professional. Bringing a higher standard to the alternative music scene, Bad Religion demands respect from a wide array of fans. I love going to Bad Religion shows, businessmen and punks, young and seasoned, exuding music enthusiasm. Bad Religion appeals to a large audience making for an always stellar and memorable concert-going experience. Lead singer, Greg Graffin connected with his band and his audience, delivering the trademark powerhouse performance that fans have come to expect of Bad Religion. The highlight of the evening was when Graffin suggested the band's Canoga Park roots, prompting fans, who were taken by enthusiasm and a desire to show their appreciation of the band's influence on the music scene, to respectfully decline security's suggested stadium protocol, ejecting the folding seats in the pit before exploding, in true Punk rock tradition, into a tenacious quarry of O.C. style, brotherly pitting and crowd surfing.  The band's encore echoed the tradition of their influential sound with "Infected" (Stranger Than Fiction, 1994), holding the attention of their fans to the last cord.

Both bands brought it on Thursday night and the Amphitheater did their usual excellent job of making sure that the beer was cold and easily accessible, the seats were filled and the sound was, as always, perfectly managed, making for an intimate feel in spite of the stadium's girth. The bands had fun, the crowd had fun, old school supporters were reminded of their roots, and a new generation of punk enthusiasts was born.

More photos of the show can be seen HERE

-Robin Mairs-
Big Wheel Contributor

 

 

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Levellers – at The Lemon Tree – Aberdeen, UK

Tuesday seemed like an odd night to have a Levellers gig and Mark Chadwick, lead singer, said as much when they came on stage. This did not impede anyone’s fun and a thoroughly good night was had by all!

The Levellers have been playing together since the 80’s and it shows in their performance. Each member is an accomplished musician and they all bounced off each other perfectly. From Jeremy Cunningham’s lively guitar playing to Jon Sevink’s amazing ‘fiddling’ and accompanied by the recognizable vocal tones of Mark, they truly are an enthralling band.

 
The set consisted mostly of their well known songs including “One Way”, “Riverflow” and “Beautiful Day”. Everyone was jumping around after the first couple, you would have thought it was a regular Saturday night gig. Stephen Boakes came on for his usual couple of songs with his ‘wooden trumpet’ (as said by Mark), otherwise known as a didgeridoo!

 
Some members of the audience had obviously been so many of their gigs that they could predict what was coming next, and were even given the opportunity of counting in Simon Friend on the harmonica before “Carry Me”.

 
It was roasting hot but this just added to the atmosphere of fun, friends and frolics! For the encore we were treated to “Another Man’s Cause”, “Beanfield” and finished up with their fast passed rendition of “Devil Went Down on Georgia”. It was a real treat to see the band in such a small venue for a change.

More photos of the show can be seen HERE

 

-Dod Morrison-
Big Wheel Overseas Staff Reporter

 

 

 

 

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My Life With The Thrill Kill Kult – at The Whiskey A Go Go – Los Angeles, CA

When I heard Thrill Kill Kult was playing the Whisky-a-Go-Go I went online and bought 4 tickets without even blinking. I’d always wanted to catch them live and planned on crossing it off my bucket list without a thought.
 

Then the tickets arrived in the mail and a burning question loomed in the back of my mind: but what if they suck? It’s true, when you’ve been a die-hard fan of a band that’s been around for over 25 years it’s natural to second-guess their ability to perform well “these days.” But, what’s different about TTK is the fact that their new album, in this humble goth’s opinion, is their most amazing record yet. I figured that alone made the TTK-acid trip worth taking. After all, the self-described kings of “Industrial Disko Elektro Sleaze” wouldn’t dare disappoint, would they?

My friends and I arrived just in time to catch DJ Toxic Rainbow walk on stage to begin his set, and let me just say, I really hoped his performance wasn’t a barometer for the type of night I was about to have. His set sucked so much ass I couldn’t decide between downing my vodka tonic in hopes of blacking out, or downing it so I could smash the glass, cut my ears off, and end my misery. It was a dub-steppy, pre-recorded, train wreck of a mess. As a fellow DJ I didn’t even care about the pre-record so much, but more about what it represented. Hey, asshole, stop waving your arms around like you’re conducting your own pretentious symphonic cacophony and LOOK THE FUCK UP AT THESE DISAPPOINTED FACES AND ACT ACCORDINGLY!!!! A DJ has just one job when he or she opens for a band: get the crowd ready to loose their minds. All he needed to do was set the scene for TTK to take the stage, get everyone pumped, and mic drop in a blaze of sleazy glory before the band took the reins. Unfortunately, he didn’t—and it was the audience who had to suffer through it. But I’m a silver lining kind of girl, and so I can say with all honesty that thank you fucking Jesus that was the only thing about this show that sucked.

About 15 minutes after the sweet and silent relief bought to us by the ending of Toxic Rainbow’s set, the house lights began to dim. I had elbowed and shoved my way right to the front and was rambling on with other fans about the classic tracks we hoped to hear. I began hooting and screaming like a white girl when I saw Buzz McCoy and Mimi Star walk on the stage. Honestly, Buzz didn’t look all the different from the classic TTK days, so it was Mimi’s sexy ass that really caught my eye. Dressed head to toe in go-go silver, purple hair in long pig tails, and her bass stiffly positioned at her upper thighs like a cock, I knew before Groovie Mann even walked on the stage that this was going to be a night to remember.

Almost immediately the whooping and throbbing of the lead track from Spooky Tricks” began echoing through the room, skipping the intro featuring sampled b-film-like female vocals as Groovie Mann strutted as arrogantly as ever onto the stage, grabbing the mic and asking the crowd in a his signature smoker’s cough growl, “If I give you some money, will you come to my room?” BOOM! The beat dropped, as my heart leapt, eyes rolled back in my head and every party of my body was throbbing to the bass line screaming, “yes, yes, yes!!!” From that point on every ass was shaking for the rest of the show. There was even a guy in a wheel chair next to me who couldn’t sit still through TTK’s mind blowing new set of spooky tricks.

The second song they launched into was “Daisy Chain for Satan,” a classic and one I’m sure the whole crowd was waiting to hear. I was blown away when I heard it! It took about 30 seconds for me to realize what song it was when I heard the sample “I live for drugs. It’s great,” and Groovie Mann—leaning far back exposing the shiny silver zipper that ran from the belly of his jeans to the back of his crotch, leather vest exposing his bare and sweaty chest—began whining in the scuzziest tone he could muster “Here where I will sit alone, lost here I will dream, why give me a drink, I need to think…” and it was then I realized how truly special this set was. Buzz McCoy, keyboardist and producer for TTK seamlessly meshed the industrial scum of classic tracks like “Do You Fear for Your Child?” and “After the Flesh” with the new Spooky Tricks sounds full of elements of disko, and industrial, along with Chicago house, dark electro, and even some break beats. It was faultless and glorious in every way. Groovie Mann delivered the scuzz, Mimi cared the bassline that I could feel in my knees for the entire set, filling in some of the vocal samples for songs like “Bella Piranha.”

The last song of TTK’s set was chosen perfectly. If the point of this tour was to show that they’ve still got it and to rub the crowd’s faces in a little bit of tantalizingly welcome sleaze while promoting the new record, then Groovie Mann, Buzz, and Mimi delivered. The tune they chose to close their set with was indulgently braggadocios—a goth anthem—and it was a track composed to celebrate what else but TTK themselves. As soon as the crowd heard Mimi’s sexy robotic chant: “And this is what the devil does…” it was like pure ecstasy. The song ended with an extension of the chorus “My Life with the Thrill Kill Kult…” Who else but TTK could so unapologetically congratulate themselves in a song that had the crowd in a uproar, reduced, and yet elevated, to cult-like followers of the church of TTK chanting and singing their band name over and over with them?

After what seemed like forever, the crowd still wasn’t satisfied. We needed another fix. TTK was happy to oblige, returning to the stage for a 3-song encore, the highlight of which was a Spooky Tricks-style rendition of one of their most well-known and beloved tracks, “After the Flesh.” It hit hard. It was aggressive, it was groovy, and it left me feeling like I needed a shower. It was over too quickly, like most good times feel. But the memory, the sleaze, the bass booming indulgence into all things taboo and “naughty” will live on forever. Thrill Kill Kult: after 25 years as the soundtrack to my life, I love you more than ever.

-Princess Darkness-
Big Wheel Contributor

 

 

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Band Spotlight: Los Dharma Bums

Southeast LA's very own Los Dharma Bums are July's Band Spotlight for good reason. If you have a taste for eclectic eccentricity, then this group of dudes comes highly recommended. The bums were formed in 2007 by Mike and Joe Dharma as a two piece (Joe on vox and guitar and mike on drums) just for funsies to play in bars and get free drinks.

The pair quickly realized the response was much more than what was expected and began looking for a bassist. Gabriel and Bryan would join the fold later after running into Mike at the In-n-Out Burger in Downey. Having known the Maldonado brothers (as well as Bryan Ponce) from the Bell High wrestling team, Mike invited them to come jam out at Joe's pad, the house that would become a commune of sorts, doubling as both headquarters and a practice space that they all would spend most of their time a lot of time to just hangout playing video games. Ponce Later took a stab at recording the band on a digital 8 track machine and though the recording proved unsuccessful, he would go on the join them on guitar as their fifth member toward the end of the summer of 2008 having learned the songs all by ear while giving recording a shot.

Mike went on hiatus in October of 2010 prompting a series of drummers beginning with Jesse, then Chris and finally Carlos (the youngest of the Bums) on skins. Mike would return as hype man in 2012 causing ruckus and talking shit on the microphone between songs and inciting dancing and other movement in the crowd.

       Video of The Dharma Bums - Bruce Wayne

Truly a spectacle to behold. In a world of copy cats, Los Dharma Bums stick out like a sore thumb and give hope for anyone worried over the state of independent music. The Bums take different musical cultures and genres and blend everything seamlessly creating a timeless sound, both classic and fresh, familiar and new. Live sets are navigated flawlessly at times starting with anything from a blues classic, 'Goin' up the Country', moving on to Ska tunes like 'Pour Out A Little Liquor', then an Indie song like 'the Telephone Song' and before you know it, you're in a full out Cumbia jam sesh, dancing your butt off next to Mike switching from tambourine over to guiro (percussion).

The band shares enthusiasm and love for vintage and current video games as you may be able to tell by the cover of their self titled EP, or the video for 'The Bruce Wayne' that includes their rendition of 'Streets of Desolation' (from Batman the Video Game for the original NES).

All around the guys take a light-hearted approach to life and it definitely shows if you've ever seen them keep a party going. They came to ROCK and bring FUN to the crowd. These Bums are Southeast LA through and through and plan to keep it that way "until they move to Japan to find wives."

If you're in the LA area, catch Los Dharma Bums next gig on Tuesday Aug. 12th at Harvard & Stone with HOBART W FINK for the low price of FREE.  21+  5221 Hollywood Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90027.

You can listen to some tunes HERE

Or Keep up with them on Facebook HERE

 

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