MUSINK Tattoo Convention & Music Festival – 3 day event coverage – at The Orange County Fairgrounds – Costa Mesa, CA

If you were at the 2010 MUSINK Tattoo Convention & Music Festival you know how much of a blast this event was. There is no reason to wait to see coverage of this in a printed magazine as a blip, Big Wheel once again brings the rest of the world that was not there a look at the entire event with over 300 photos and full reviews of each of the 3 days from of our staff that as there to document it all.

 

 

MUSINK Tattoo Convention & Music Festival – Day 1 – at The Orange County Fairgrounds – Costa Mesa, CA - February 19, 2010

MUSINK Tattoo Convention & Music Festival – Day 2 – at The Orange County Fairgrounds – Costa Mesa, CA - February 20, 2010

MUSINK Tattoo Convention & Music Festival – Day 3 – at The Orange County Fairgrounds – Costa Mesa, CA - February 21, 2010

 

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MUSINK Tattoo Convention & Music Festival – Day 3 – at The Orange County Fairgrounds – Costa Mesa, CA

The final day of the music and tattoo convention undoubtedly had the best weather and best crowd of the three day run. For many, the last day of Musink came as a relief, not for the end of it, but for the final round of bands who were set to perform. The day began early and promptly began its course with musical entertainment provided as early as 12:30pm. Bands performing on Sunday consisted of The Sparring, Takse Driver, Lowbrow, The 3rd Degree, Riot Brides, Stolen Radio, Longway, Faraway Boys, The Black Tibetans, Face to Face, and NOFX. Sunday yielded the greatest variety and amount of people, all who were eager to indulge in the final day of the ever artistic Musink convention.

Due to a last minute change, The Sparring opened up Sunday morning, though originally, Takse Driver was set to commence the show at 1pm. Takse Driver arrived on stage shortly after 1pm and performed for a small crowd.

The band performed songs consisting of many influences, including Ska and Orange County inspired Punk rock. Vocalist Alex Cruz walked around the stage and made attempts to reach out to the audience and capture their attention by personalizing the performance and speaking to them between songs. Audience members applauded the effort and cheered as Takse Driver played song after song. At one point during the set, Alex Cruz mentioned to the crowd that guitarist Flo Alvarez was getting married, and in the midst of his hectic marriage plans, made the effort to join along Takse Driver and play Sunday's show. The band's 20 minute set soon came to an end, and Alex Cruz informed the audience that the last song had to be nothing else but an Orange County song, and the band then followed with TSOL's "Code Blue". The crowd head banged along, and those who knew the lyrics sang along as Takse Driver performed.The band dismissed themselves right after and cleared the stage for the next band.

Lowbrow approached the Jagermeister stage at 2pm and with a mellow vibe, began to play Punk rock that was anything but mellow. The band produced a sound that was fast, energetic, and skillfully played through the duration of the thirty minute set. Lowbrow's music sounded like a mix between Pennywise and Bad Religion, which garnered the band a fair amount of audience members. The band diligently played their set with enthusiasm and with smiles that demonstrated to the audience that the entire performance was strictly for the purpose of fun and enjoyment. Lowbrow's time on stage ran out, and the audience ran towards the barricade screaming and requesting to hear more from the band.

Walking into the "Ink" room for the final time was a bittersweet feeling, but most farewells can be said to be bittersweet. The "ink" room was unbelievably packed with people Sunday afternoon, and many individuals could be seen rushing to tattoo booths and attempting to get last minute work done on their bodies. Many of the booths were overflowing with people seeking out tattoo artists with the open availability to handle the workload of new tattoos. All throughout the "Ink" room, people who were visibly eager to get work done on their bodies stood calmly as tattoo artists drew and marked stencils on their bodies, prepping for the permanent ink. Piercing stands also saw a great surge of people asking for pricing on piercings and negotiating arrangements.

At 4:30pm, Musink's final tattoo contest began inside the "Music" room, and the area witnessed a surge in contestants which made the contest as colorful as the first day's contest. People of all ages and scenes entered the contest in hopes of having their body work given the title of "Best Tattoo". The Boo Bear Babes, who are classy tattooed pin-up models, made their appearance during the contest to add flavor and sex appeal to the already sexy tattoo contest. The Boo Bear pin-ups escorted each contestant onto the floor to display to the crowd each tattoo running in the contest. After an hour, the contest announced its winners, the winners were given plaques among other prizes, and everyone clapped and cheered for the success of the winners.

Meanwhile, back inside the "Ink" Room, the crowd appeared to have augmented in size, which made the migration around the room difficult at times. While observing the booths inside, a particular stand stood out above the other piercing stands, primarily because of the type of jewelry being displayed. The stand was the Body Vision LA booth, a booth managed by Adam Block. Body Vision LA is a company that adds class and credibility back into body jewelry, and creates hand made body jewelry made out of gold, platinum, and gems. Adam Block shared with us that the purpose of Body Vision LA was to provide piercing aficionados with the best quality of jewelry available for their body piercings. Body piercings in present time have attained an immature representation that entirely misrepresents a large population that is into body modification. Adam Block's vision began over 10 years ago, and since then, he has provided his precious metal jewelry to consumers ranging from the general public, to renowned mainstream celebrities.

At 5:30pm, Longway hit the stage inside the "Music" room and began to play for a large sized crowd. Longway performed a series of fast paced and rowdy Punk Rock which set the mood for the rest of their set. The band's energy was immense and overwhelmed the atmosphere of the room, which was felt by all the audience members. The stage presence of each individual band member captured the attention of the crowd as each band member manifested their passion into their action.

Guitarist Trevor Jackson climbed the colossal speakers to the left side of the stage, and played his guitar high above the rest of the band and the crowd. Trevor Jackson was so high up on the speakers that his head nearly touched the ceiling of the large venue. Close to the end of the band's set, Longway covered Billy Idol's "Rebel Yell", which attained the crowd's attention and participation. As the band announced their quickly approaching departure, vocalist Brian Longway began to tell the audience, "Alright, LISTEN UP! This is fucking ORANGE COUNTY and we're not gonna have this standing around bullshit here. I want you all to follow the movement of my finger, and walk around in a circle, SLOWLY... THAT'S RIGHT, VERY SLOWLY!" Brian Longway began to move his index finger in a circular motion and proceeded to tell the audience that it was time to go crazy and start a circle pit! The audience created a huge circle in which drunk and aggressive men rushed into as Longway finished up with their fast paced sound. Once Longway finished, the circle pit stopped and everyone began to applaud vigorously for the display Longway had just put on.

The Faraway Boys played at 6pm outside on the Jagermeister stage, and generated a greaser/rockabilly following. The band played Psychobilly music which caused the audience to dance and hop around the floor. The Faraway Boys were quirky and fun, and proved to satisfy the majority of the people present during their set.

The Black Tibetans took the stage inside the "Music" room at 6:30pm and played melancholic and fast alternative rock. A couple of the band's songs resembled the sound of Smashing Pumpkins, and the grunge influence in the band's music was strongly evident.  The music maintained a Punk Rock attitude that forcefully got your attention during the set. The Black Tibetans were the most odd band of the Sunday line up, but possessed the most determination to win the crowd over, which they successfully managed to do.

The anticipation for Face to Face's arrival was intense as people rushed into the floor in preparation for the chaos about to break out on the floor. Face to Face quickly took over the stage and was met with loud cheers and noise. The band opened up with "A-OK" and a circle pit was instantaneous. Throughout the entire night, the circle pit was moving and going, and never once saw a dead calm. The band went on to play "Disconnected", "Pastel", and even invited tattoo artist Corey Miller of TLC's "La Ink" to play drums during their set. During "Pastel", Face to Face took the time to tell the audience they were finally working on new material, to which the audience responded with wild cheers and high fives. The band then took the time to say that they had plenty of new material under their belt, but were strictly "sticking to the old shit tonight!"

The audience let out a fierce roar, and Face to Face went straight back into their song, which prompted an even faster circle pit. The band ended their set with "You've Done Nothing" which caused an agonizingly vicious mosh pit. The band finally departed from the stage after an hour, and informed the audience that NOFX was finally next.

Jim Rose of the Jim Rose Circus took the stage prior to NOFX's set, and began to perform his astonishing acts that bewildered the crowd. Jim Rose brought out a male willing to have a dart board attached to his back, and willing to have people attempt to throw darts onto the dartboard which hung on his bare back. As attempt after attempt was made on the dartboard, the audience cringed at the possibility of a dart striking the man's back, which inevitably, it happened. As each occasional dart struck the man's back, trails of blood flowed in a downward stream, and members of the audience looked as though their eye balls were going to bulge out of their skulls. At 9pm, Jim Rose left the stage and allowed NOFX to take over.

NOFX arrived on stage and the audience exploded with excitement and nervous anticipation. The room was undeniably full of people, and undeniably hosted the largest crowd of the three day event. Guitarist El Hefe was the first to speak into the microphone and introduce the band, and crack a few jokes about playing in Costa Mesa. NOFX began their set by playing Intro/Linoleum, which automatically caused a rambunctious circle pit. NOFX went on to play "Dinosaurs Will Die", "Mattersville", "Leave It Alone", "Eat The Meek", "We Called It America", "The Quitter", "Reeko", and many more songs. As NOFX paused between songs, they constantly made jokes aimed at the Orange County lifestyle, and at one point, vocalist Fat Mike stated, "Man, there's a lot of weird Christians in Orange County, this next song's for you." NOFX then dedicated "Leaving Jesusland" to Orange County's weird Christians. Fat Mike cracked another joke towards the OC and pointed over to the rainbow flag draped on the stage, and notified the audience that the rainbow flag was Orange County's home flag.

Audience members laughed and applauded NOFX's satire and tongue-in-cheek humor, and they genuinely appreciated the band's ability to do so. NOFX was witty from start to finish, and as they finished up their set, NOFX announced to the crowd that they would be playing "Lori Meyers". The audience went insane as NOFX performed the song, and when it was over, NOFX had finished their hour long set. NOFX offered a treat for their fans and performed "Everyone's a Little Bit Racist", which is a song from Broadway's Avenue Q musical. When the performance was over, fans hoped for an encore, but no encore was ultimately delivered. NOFX had blown the audience away, and had them eager to catch NOFX again and soon.

The last day of Musink had finally arrived and finally delivered the last experience of the tattoo convention. Being one of the most conservative counties, Orange County was privileged to have been able to host Musink, and tattoo aficionados were grateful for having the experience right in their backyard. Musink offered the best available in both the world of tattoos, and the world of music, fusing both arts to provide a convention like no other. Musink was an artistic experience that cannot be mimicked or reproduced in any other way. The convention is gone, but many people have taken with them new art, new body work, new piercings, new musical encounters, and perspectives drastically changed by the experience and inspiration that Musink was able to unveil to conservative Orange County.
 

 

-Stephanie M.-
Big Wheel Senior Staff Writer
and
-J. Moncreif-
Big Wheel Photographer

 

More photos of day 3 can be seen HERE

 
Coverage of MUSINK Day 1 is HERE

Coverage of MUSINK Day 2 is HERE
 

                                          Go HERE to see all the latest show reviews

 

 

 

MUSINK Tattoo Convention & Music Festival – Day 2 – at The Orange County Fairgrounds – Costa Mesa, CA

Day 2 of Musink began early Saturday afternoon and brought on a new day and a refreshing atmosphere to the tattoo convention. Contrary to the previous day, the sun was out and shining down on the fairgrounds, demonstrating tremendous promise for the outcome of the day. Saturday's line up provided more punk bands than the previous day, and included renowned punk rock bands the Buzzcocks and The Damned, both which headlined the event. Glass Heroes, Powerflex 5, G.F.P, Final Conflict, The Sparring, Invisible Humans, and The Headcat all joined the headlining bands and contributed to the musical entertainment of day two.

Glass Heroes began their set at 12:30pm and were the first band to kick off Saturday's events. Glass Heroes played the Jagermeister stage and performed their set. Although the days crowd was still building, Glass Heroes took full advantage of their time on stage and played with never ending vivacity.

The band cultivated a Punk rock sound similar to the sound of Cock Sparrer, and the resemblance made Glass Heroes all the more pleasant to watch. Glass Heroes soon used up their time on stage and thanked the audience, though the audience should have been the ones thanking Glass Heroes for their Oi! experience.

G.F.P, which is professional skateboarder Tony Alva's band, hit the Jagermeister stage shortly after 2:30 pm. The band played primarily Punk rock, but exceptions in the set included songs influenced by the steady beats of reggae. The vocalist wore dark aviator sunglasses which he managed to keep on as he wildly jumped and moved while he performed. Although the crowd consisted of few people, Tony Alva performed his bass duties as if he were performing for thousands of people, ultimately providing this crowd with the full value of what his entertainment is capable of providing.

Final Conflict began to play at 3:30pm and garnered more of a crust punk following. The band's screaming vocals were accompanied by heavy distortion, and many of their fans listened on with heavy body movement. The band played for approximately 30 minutes, and used the short time to gratify their fans with their maniacal music.

Close to 4:30pm, The Sparring approached the stage unlike any other band that day. While most bands take the time to get comfortable and let their energy build up, The Sparring was loud, raw, captivating, and unpredictably in your face from the very beginning.

The Sparring are on the move - Keep this band on your radar -Excellent stuff!

With volatile energy, the band not only generated the largest audience of the Jagermeister stage, but also managed to incorporate the audience into their performance, an act not yet done during Musink's two day course. Vocalist Joel Bourne jumped over the barricade that separated the stage from the floor and dove straight into the audience while still performing. He then stormed around the floor, focused the audience's attention onto himself, and demanded that they all, "start a fucking pit!" So what did the audience do? They followed his command and immediately prompted a fast paced circle pit. Joel Bourne dominated the audience and evoked circle pit after circle pit each time they fizzled out. The Sparring ended their set with "JFK" and announced that they were set to play this year's Vans Warped Tour. After witnessing the mesmerizing stage presence of the band, members of the audience cheered vigorously and clapped wildly. There is no doubt that The Sparring's intensity and momentum augmented more and more the longer they remained on stage. The Sparring showcased an impressive performance that ultimately caused them to become the most memorable band of Musink's second day.

After The Sparring played, the attention of the audience drifted over to the large half pipe by the Jagermeister stage which would host the hour long Legends Skate Jam with professional skateboarders Tony Alva, Mike Vallely, Duane Peters, Steve Olsen, and other prominent skateboarders. Onlookers speculated with excitement and anticipation as skateboarder after skateboarder attempted risky flips and stunts, all for the purpose of entertaining the audience. As each skateboarder drew close to achieving a stunt, audience members applauded with praise and support. When audience members could sense a fall or crash coming on, each would cup their hands over their mouths and cringe with terror at the risky consequences of each skateboarder's act. The uncertainty of the risk each skateboarder could encounter was a sublime experience for both the skateboarders and the audience. Through the risks, the Legends Skate Jam was a successful event that lured even people who have never displayed a liking to skateboarding.

Small Paul's band the Invisible Humans took the stage inside the "Music" room close to 6pm, and as each band member approached the stage dressed in a suit and skinny tie, the heavy influences of 80s fashion in their appearance foreshadowed the type of music the band would produce. Invisible Humans played music that intermingled Punk Rock, New Wave, and synth pop to create a distinct sound that brought diversity to Musink. The band provided music as enigmatic as Depeche Mode's music, and with music that unique, Invisible Humans is a band that will prove to be unstoppable and unrestrained.

30 minutes after Invisible Humans' performance, The Headcat, which features "Lemmy" from Motorhead and Slim Jim of the Stray Cats, performed a set which mixed various genres together. Headcat's songs maintained a classic RockNRoll feel with upbeat rockabilly influences. Lemmy's deep, masculine, and rugged voice provided the Motorhead influence which Slim Jim balanced with his upbeat tempos. Slim Jim played his drum set standing up, a task which is not easy for most drummers, yet Slim Jim smiled and played his instrument with fervor through the duration of the band's set.

Prior to Buzzcocks hitting the stage, Jim Rose of the Jim Rose Circus advanced onto the stage and stated to the audience that he was about to perform acts which caused him to attain the title of "freak". Jim Rose then inserted a spoon into his nose which he pulled out through his mouth. The crowd ooh'd, ahh'd, and quivered at the sight of such a spectacle.

When the Buzzcocks finally arrived on stage, the immense energy of the audience could be felt by all inside the venue. Buzzcocks opened up with "Boredom" and the crowd pogo'd enthusiastically. The 70s RockNRoll music of the Buzzcocks provided catchy and upbeat music, and halfway through the band's set, even the toughest of guys were dancing along to each song during the set. Buzzcocks played "Why Can't I Touch It?" and caused the empty pit to instantaneously be full of lively dancing, and playful body swaying.

After an hour, the Buzzcocks announced that the next song they were about to play would be the last of the night. Buzzcocks then began to play "Orgasm Addict" and a violent circle pit immediately broke out. It was the only circle pit the Buzzcocks encountered during the set, but the individuals in the circle pit made sure to compensate for it by providing the most vulgar and rowdy display of the night. Those running around in a circle began to insinuate hand motions that conveyed the lyrical content of the song. All in good fun, the crowd's participation caused the Buzzcocks to issue their gratitude for being given the opportunity to play for the crowd at Musink. The Buzzcocks dismissed themselves, thanked the audience, and handed over the stage to Jim Rose.

Jim Rose returned onto the stage to inform the audience that he had just put an end to a chick fight, and upon saying that, male audience members let out groans of disappointment. Jim Rose then reassured the audience that he had put an end to the fight because he had figured out how to fix the problem. The solution: a staple gun. He let the crowd know that he forced both women to do a coin toss, on grounds that the loser must have a dollar bill stapled to her forehead. Jim Rose called both ladies to the stage, had the females commit the deed, and the audience let out a loud "OOH!" It was officially time for The Damned to end the night.

The Damned commenced their time on stage with "Fan Club" and immediately sparked fanatic behavior on behalf of the crowd. Each individual in the room sang along to every song the band performed, ultimately proving that The Damned has a large fan base in Orange County. The audience diminished in size, but the hysteria over The Damned was over the top and impressive to speculate upon. Captain Sensible, who is an original member of The Damned, skillfully played each song with no mistakes and appeared astonished to still be playing as long as he has been. A few women in the audience constantly screamed out for his attention, their screaming never ceased. The Damned went on to play "Neat Neat Neat", "Ignite", "New Rose", and "Love Song" among many other songs. No circle pit or vicious action was conducted by the audience, but instead the crowd danced along to each song or stood bewildered by the band's stage presence. The Damned ended their set with "Smash It Up", and though a full circle pit did not quite make it, the audience pushed and moved around in a tremendous frenzy.

The Damned ended their time on stage after an hour, and many people could be heard shouting and requesting an encore, but no encore was given. The Damned's set was whimsical and alluring, no other band could seduce its crowd the way The Damned does.

The second day of Musink was a grand success which unfolded and progressed the experiences of the first day. Saturday was packed with more people, more things to do, and more Punk rock which provided the chaos that those who live by the ink are fueled by. The musical entertainment provided on Saturday overpowered the majority of the activities available that day, but Musink is a celebration of both music and ink, which to some, go hand in hand. Musink was still not over though, and with one more day to go, the impact and influence of Musink still had another 24 hours to change perspectives and produce moments of shock and awe that only a convention like Musink could single-handedly deliver.
 

 

-Stephanie M.-
Big Wheel Senior Staff Writer
and
-J. Moncreif-
Big Wheel Photographer

 

More photos of day 2 can be seen HERE

 
Coverage of MUSINK Day 1 is HERE

Coverage of MUSINK Day 3 is HERE
 

                                          Go HERE to see all the latest show reviews

 

 

 

MUSINK Tattoo Convention & Music Festival – Day 1 – at The Orange County Fairgrounds – Costa Mesa, CA

Friday afternoon was cloudy, windy, and rather cold, but while the weather was feeling a bit melancholic, passionate tattoo fans and fanatics made their way to the Orange County fairgrounds in Costa Mesa for the 3rd annual Musink Festival, which hosts live music events, over 100 known and unknown tattoo artists, and familiar names in the world of skateboarding performing their tricks on a large half pipe. Hosted by Small Paul and the Original True Tattoo, Musink maintains all the events and spectacles of the festival similar to Vans Warped Tour, except smaller and spread out only within 3 days. The first day to kick off the 3 day event consisted of 9 bands which included: Six, Laconic, Union Sound, Wolfbane, Mindriot, Good Guys In Black, Mike Vallely/By The Sword, The Unfortunates, and The Cult. All bands played within a time span of 8 hours and provided the music to an event artistic in more ways than one. Musink has singlehandedly diminished an outdated taboo concerning the art of tattoos by spreading knowledge, awareness, and showcasing the talent it takes to be a part of a world as creative as the world of tattoos.

Musink opened its doors around 2pm, which out of the 3 day weekend, is the shortest day of the festival. Regardless, upon arrival, it was surprising to see that many people were already inside the large "Ink" room seeking out tattoo artists and watching them at work. There were many booths set up inside, in fact, the entire room was tattoo booth galore. Fans of TLC's LA Ink were excited upon realization that the show's former cast members Nikko and Amy were both present on the first day. While being the main feature of the 3 day event, the "Ink" room was only one remarkable aspect of the entire festival.

At 3pm, the first band of the day Six took the Jagermeister stage, which few of the event goers witnessed, largely because of the band's time slot. An hour later, Laconic went up on the same stage and performed for a small but eager crowd. Laconic had a New Hardcore feel to them as the vocalist screamed out lyrics in a Metalcore manner. The double pedal added fierce beats, and had the crowd been bigger, the band would have had guaranteed hardcore dancing. The set was thirty minutes long, which was short, but the band used up the short time productively and vigorously.

After Laconic's set, a couple of amateur skateboarders hit the half pipe and practiced tricks or skateboarded on the half pipe for the mere enjoyment of it. Adjacent to this spectacle was a large building called "The Mall", in which many booths were set up to sell clothing, accessories, and other miscellaneous objects interesting and appealing to tattoo and punk rock lovers. A few tattoo booths also took up space inside, and were dealing with customers and tattooing others just as in the "Ink" room. At the very end of the building, there was a sign that read, "Small Paul Presents Musink Art Exhibit Sponsored By: Sullen", and included art by Jack Rudy, Filip Leu, Bill Salmon and other artists.

Outside "The Mall" were other booths set up, which consisted of food, clothing, alcohol vendors, and even KROQ and Johnny's Saloon had booths outside. Around 5pm, the Union Sound approached the Jagermeister stage and introduced themselves. The Union Sound consisted of a vocalist, a guitarist, and a young man behind a laptop and DJ set. The band played Dance Rock music, and each song's lyrical content pertained themes of shots and alcohol, ultimately making appropriate and entertaining Dance music. Vocalist Bret James at one point even upheld the band's dancey music by fist pumping during the set. The crowd was still small, but the entertainment level was certainly high.




Shortly after Union Sound's set, people hurried into the "Music" room to watch the hour long tattoo contest which judged several different categories of types of tattoos. The categories consisted of large black and white, small black and white, large color, and small color. The announcer introduced each contestant onto the stage, made each contestant demonstrate his/her tattoo to the audience, and each contestant then proceeded over to the judge's table for judging.

Meanwhile, the Faraway Boys provided the background music inside the room. Halfway through the contest, the announcer brought out 4 attractive pin up girls who remained on stage and provided pep while escorting each contestant on and off the stage.

Wolfbane played at 6pm and generated a larger crowd than the previous bands. The band's heavy metal music attracted the audience and had people headbanging along to the band's music. Strong solos and showmanship carried the band well and impressed many in the crowd.

Thirty minutes later, Mindriot, who won the right to play Musink via a Slidebar battle of the bands, made their way onto the stage inside the "Music" room and began to play an impassioned set. The band maintained music that resembled the type of Rock bands like Nickelback produce, but with an edge. People in the crowd were constantly shouting words of praise and throwing their hands in the air to wave along to the beat of each song. Mindriot had talent and strong showmanship, proving themselves just as worthy, if not more worthy of performing at Musink.

Good Guys in Black performed at 7 on the Jagermeister stage and had the largest crowd of the day for that stage. The band played alternative rock songs which cultivated a sound similar to Limp Bizkit and Insane Clown Posse. Halfway through the set, the band's vocalist Rick Thorne, who is also a known biker, announced to the audience that the next song the band was about to play was dedicated to all the losers who move to Hollywood, and stated that the next song was called, "Fuck Hollywood". The majority of the people expressed great pleasure and satisfaction in the lyrical content of the song, and threw their fists aggressively in the air as they shouted "Fuck Hollywood!"

Professional skater Mike Vallely hit the stage inside the "Music" room to perform with his band Mike Vallely/By The Sword. Vocalist Mike Vallely had a strong personality and performed each song enthusiastically and with great intensity, truly putting in grand effort into his music. Mike Vallely's band went on to cover Black Flag's "Six Pack", and near the end of the band's set, invited U.S Bombs vocalist and professional skateboarder Duane Peters to approach the stage and perform a few songs with the band. Duane Peters and Mike Vallely then went on to play a series of Black Flag songs which included "Wasted" and "Rise Above". When Duane Peters' time on stage was over, Mike Vallely demanded that everyone in the audience applaud Duane Peters and shouted, "Don't fuck with me, I'm down with Duane Peters!" The band ended their set with a Revolution Mother cover, and after the cover was done the band dismissed themselves, leaving the audience in a state of gratification, and leaving Black Flag fans wanting more Black Flag covers.

The Unfortunates began to play at 8:30 and brought on a heavy crowd. The band's sound consisted of an old RockNRoll feel and attitude which captivated many individuals in the audience. Older female fans were dancing and swaying their hips back and forth to the band's skilled old school RockNRoll vibe. The band paid homage to a fallen member of the band and performed a song in honor of him. The Unfortunates' music was uplifting and influential, and succeeded in keeping the audience's attention throughout the entire set.

Prior to The Cult stealing the show, older crowds began to flood the inside of the "Music" room and many older adults were seen wearing The Cult t-shirts. The age group of the audience was dramatically different in comparison to the audiences of other bands who played throughout the day. The Cult attracted an older generation, but the excitement and enthusiasm of that generation appeared to surpass the commotion that the younger crowd failed to display during the day. Before The Cult finally appeared on stage, the prelude song chosen to heighten the anticipation of The Cult's arrival was realized to be the same prelude song The Adicts play before their performances, and the few who knew this fact joked that The Adicts beneath the makeup were really in fact The Cult.

When The Cult finally arrived on stage, hands went up in the air, screams and shouts were high pitched, and body movement all over was wild. The band began to perform their first song, and the audience sang along to every word. The avidity for song after song was immense, and the magnitude of the energy in the room was intense. The audience kept growing throughout the band's set, and it was inspiring to see that the energy never once went down. The Cult's vocalist Ian Astbury sported dark sunglasses which made his appeal to the older women sexually unbearable, and throughout the night, women would take a look at him and go crazy, causing many husbands to comically embrace their wives tighter and securely. Ian Astbury held a tambourine for the majority of The Cult's songs, and conveyed a lot of sass, attitude, and a fierce stage presence as each song played. The Cult's set was an hour and a half long, and once it was over, audience members applauded, whistled, and screamed for more.

The first day of Musink was slow but intimate, and every aspect of the tattoo convention was successful in garnering much attention. While not the most intense day of the 3 day event, the start is only the beginning to a weekend of crazy alacrity that will build up and manifest itself into the festival quickly. Tattoos, alcohol, food, shopping, music... Punk Rock Disneyland is only here for 3 days, enjoy the adventure while you still can!
 

 

-Stephanie M.-
Big Wheel Senior Staff Writer

 

More photos of day 1 can be seen HERE

 
Coverage of MUSINK Day 2 is HERE

Coverage of MUSINK Day 3 is HERE
 


                                          Go HERE to see all the latest show reviews

 

 

 

Los Angeles on New Years Day 2010

Welcome to 2010! If you are reading this, that means you are alive and survived another year. So a grip of us wake up on New Years Day, groggy, hungry, our wallets are still in our pockets and faces managed to not get written on. Not really having any idea what do do, we just tripped around LA looking for food and perhaps a nip of the hair of the dog that bit us the night before. Here is a look at some of what we saw as we drove around celebrating making it another year.


Gotta get some food and after a night of abuse, nothing keeps the party going better than a visit to Oki Dogs.

This was alot better than going to dine with the hipsters and cool people

Can you imagine what the conversation in this place must have been like -"I'm cool, Your cool, nice face.

This is where you hit play on the Dead Kennedys record, Plastic Surgery Disasters and drive.







Time for a break

Don't believe it


Los Angeles has a museum for everything, isn't LA great!


Things sure look weird from up here.


What movie is this market from - "Beer, I hate beer"



That is a taste of what LA looked like on January 1, 2010.


To see more photos of the day, GO HERE

 

 

 

DEVO – at The Fonda Theater – Hollywood, CA

Devo's second consecutive night playing at the Fonda was dedicated to playing their epic "Freedom Of Choice" album from start to finish. Though there were children and adults of all ages present, most of the audience was made up of people over the age of thirty five. This was one show where nobody seemed to be concerned about being "That Guy" as Devo shirts were everywhere to be seen, along with thick glasses and retro clothing. A group of men in their forties had an in depth conversation about the best way to secure an "Energy Dome" (the upside down flower pots that Devo and their fans wear) to your head. It seemed that Devo fans could be as rabid as Star Wars Fanboys.

At 9:30 Reggie Watts appeared on stage in his fully absurd glory, with hair flying everywhere. Watts is a performance artist whose performances combine beatboxing, singing, rapping, story telling, and various voices, sound effects, and accents. Showing through were aspects of performances by Andy Kaufman, Robin Williams, Bill Cosby, Rahzel, and Bobby McFaren. At first all of it seemed to be a little too much and most people in the audience seemed more confused than amused, but by the end of Watts' set almost everyone was cracking up.

It was about a half hour before Devo was up, but before they started playing a screen behind the stage showed music videos for "Whip It," "Freedom of Choice," and "Girl U Want." By the time that the band started playing "Girl U Want" live the crowd had been waiting with bursting anticipation and everyone was beaming to finally see the band come out on stage in full Devo uniform.

When Devo plays they still deliver maximum weird entertainment and at times they sound like they could be playing along to a recording of the album. Between songs a member of the band's crew held up signs that said "Track 1," "Track 2," etc. and before they went into "Whip It" Gerald Casale asked "Who knows what song is track 3?" and giant cabinets with huge light bulbs turned on behind the band. A full on light show started and people all over the venue were dancing.

The best part of the set was when Devo played "Freedom of Choice" and "Gates of Steel" back to back. These songs both have a driving guitar sound and the band sounded tremendous. The dynamic of the keyboards and keyboards on "Gates Of Steel" was a perfect sonic boom. Just before the end of the set Casale said "This is a song about the place that we are and it's getting more and more like this all the time" and the band concluded with "Planet Earth," which is a song about people wanting to be in a controlled environment all of the time.

Once all of "Freedom Of Choice" had been played a screen lowered on the stage with an animated star landscape and a narration over the P.A. about how small the Earth was in comparison to the rest of the universe. The screen lifted and the band came out for an encore, playing a killer rendition of "Be Stiif." This was followed by and extended version of "Beautiful World." Part way through the song Mark Mothersbaugh came out on stage wearing a creepy baby mask and speaking in a high pitch voice, playing the character of "Booji Boy" telling a story about visiting the Neverland Ranch with Michael Jackson. As the song ended he reached into a fanny pack and threw hundreds of bouncy balls into the audience before the band left the stage having put on an amazing show.
 

-Ditch-
Big Wheel Asst. Editor

 

More photos of the show can be seen HERE

 
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Complete coverage of the first night - with a VIDEO:
DEVO – at The Fonda Theater – Hollywood, CA – November 3, 2009

In a time when you see things that are very generic, pre-packaged, done before / updated, it’s very refreshing that an original band like DEVO exist. Tonight kicks off 2 nights of sold out shows with this band that started in the late 70’s and in 2009 they remain just as iconic today. This round of shows that dots the US and Canada to mark Read the story »

 

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