The Lions – DJ Boss Harmony – at La Cita – Los Angeles, CA

On a seemingly normal Thursday night in Los Angeles reggae lovers came out in droves for an evening anything but normal. With temperatures finally reaching a more familiar chilly atmosphere, warmth and shelter would be provided by La Cita in los Angeles, as well as be our venue for the nights celebration. Thursday February 6th marked what would have been Robert Nesta Marley 69th birthday. 

Lovingly known as Bob Marley, Tough Gong and a bevy of other names we joined together to celebrate the man and his unquestioned mark on music, culture, humanity and world politics. Sadly decades later younger audiences may only tie his visage to a handful of songs and marijuana, but on those truly touched by his life and influence February 6th marked a true embodiment of unity and one love. 

As folks gathered together around one another like a pack to dance away to DJ Boss Harmony (Punky Reggae/DubClub) and his always world class selections, another Pack was ready to inhabit the cozy La Cita Bar for the evening. The Lions, a reggae super-hero ensemble, comprising top tier musicians from Los Angeles including (to name just a few) The Expanders and Hepcat, was primed and ready to mesmerize the now jam packed bar. The Lions have wasted no time in placing themselves atop the Los Angeles and national reggae scene, with two albums including last years hugely popular  ‘This Generation’ that saw it soar to the very top of the Billboard Reggae Charts garnering acclaim from all corners of the music industry. 

With that very same seemingly endless momentum, The Lions launched into their set with their brand of original and creative reggae music. With so much talent the tiny stage couldn’t contain all the members of the band, as the one-of-a-kind, three-part harmony of Alex Desert, Malik Moore and Black Shakespeare emphatically enthralled those close enough to dance along side them. With over fifteen scorchers burning through the amps, The Lions roar was welcomed and adored, masterfully crafted songs like ‘New Girl’ ‘Roll it ‘Round’ ‘Ethio-Steppers’ ‘Tuesday Roots’ possessed all within ear shot as the hips swayed and drinks emptied all in a wonderful tizzy of precise horns, soul scratching guitar work and the synonymous key work of Deston Barry.

Ending the night on the Wildly popular ‘This Generation’ and ‘Pick Up The Pieces’ The Lions and countless others continue to pick up the pieces in the Los Angeles reggae scene left behind by the early departure of Mr. Marley, harnessing his message and injecting new life and love along the way. The Lions pedigree (pun intended) is of the highest caliber and should be viewed in its natural environment: roaming the stage under the bright lights, proudly displayed for all to behold and enjoy. With the band back in the studio working on a brand new LP fans wont have to wait too long to enjoy The Lions once again, as March and April signal the release of ‘This Generation In Dub’ mixed by the Dub Club’s tom Chasteen to be released via Stones Throw and live performances at Alex’s Bar in Long Beach in March on the 7th and more to be confirmed soon.

Don’t miss any opportunities to see what most in Los Angeles have come to expect from these men over the years. Be sure to purchase their last album ‘This Generation’ at reputable locations and retailers like Amoeba Records and Amazon.com. 

-Gio Van Dam-
Big Wheel Staff Reporter

 

 

 

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Mad Caddies with illScarlett – at El Rey Theatre – Los Angeles, CA

The Mad Caddies turned The El Rey into a giant Punk Rock pirate party February 4th. Their Tuesday night tour kick off  was filled with sing-alongs, circle pits, and crazy crowd surfers. 

Fans were stoked to get a taste of two new songs from their upcoming album, and be treated to hits from albums past. The Caddies even took some special requests from their enthusiastic fans. The show was a non stop Punk Rock fun time for both the bands and the audience.       

The night started out with Toronto Reggae rockers illscarlet. The four piece have a sound that melds Reggae grooving bass lines with bass drum heavy rhythms, throws in some driving Punk riffs and catchy intermingling vocal styles.  illscarlet is one of those bands where each song is a little different, a little unique. Some tunes had a laid back chill groove, some a taste of Punk angst. Sometimes the vocals were smooth and harmonizing, sometimes there was a touch of gnarl reminiscent of Bradley Nowell. The crowd really warmed up to illscarlet, and were continuously drawn in towards the stage throughout the set. illscarlet had a great intensity as a band and was a strong fit for the opening slot.

       

The Mad Caddies hit the stage at 10pm and immediately lived up to their reputation as being a good time, fun and carefree live act. Trumpet player Keith's excitement on stage makes the trumpet seem like the most Punk instrument you could ever pick up. Vocalist Chuck looked sincerely overjoyed with the crowd reaction, and humbled by all the positive energy the audience was giving back to the band. His dynamic vocals filled the room and invited the whole audience to sing along. 

       

The Caddies have their set down. The whole band is solid and on point, and they preform with a lively and passionate zeal. The current rhythm section features original drummer Todd Rosenberg on drums and newest member Graham Palmer on bass. These two held it down and were a rhythmic brick wall. We also saw Dustin Lanker on the keyboard, assuring that "Weird Beard" had that signature accordion, and adding an amusing layer to the Caddies live sound.

All Caddies fans know the most recognizable horn section in Punk Rock today consists of Keith on Trumpet and Eddy blaring his trombone. These brass bad asses give spit valves and toilet plungers an unexpected sex appeal and get the young ladies swooning. They are casual and cool with their fills, careful not to over shine when the song is more guitar or vocal driven, but showing off all their skills on horn heavy songs such as "Monkeys." This show was extra special for Eddy, who is a Los Angeles area native and received extra love and attention from the fanatical audience.

The backbone of the Caddies' sound is the signature guitar styling of Sascha. His subtle yet driving Reggae influenced style lays a great foundation for the vocals to play with, and he is an ace at writing catchy solos that seem to never escape your head once heard. It was also great to see Chuck picking up his guitar for some new tunes and hits from their 07' release "Keep it Going."

The audience was thrilled when Chuck offered a time for requests, and "The Gentlemen" and "Macho Nachos" were played for a very receptive, flowing and cheerful crowd. The atmosphere of the night was friendly and upbeat, with a wide variety of people, young and old. After a killer rendition of "Distress," the Caddies tried to leave the stage but it wasn't that easy. Clapping and chanting drew them out for a couple more, ending on the party time drinking hit "American Badass."

The Mad Caddies are about to drop a new full length record this spring on Fat Wreck Chords. Los Angeles got a first hand preview of good things to come. The Caddies played "Brand New Scar" and "Shot in the Dark," both set to be released at the end of April. The crowd was moving and grooving through both new tunes, and each one got a hearty round of applause. Keep an eye on the Caddies this spring and be ready to snatch up a copy of the new album.

    More photos of the show can be seen HERE

 

-Mindiana Jones-
Big Wheel Contributor

 

 

 

 

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SKAMANIA! Presents: The Ska and Rocksteady Clash of The Century Part 1 – featuring The Steady 45s – at Los Globos – Los Angeles, CA – February 1, 2014

February 1st 2014, SKAMANIA! Made its return with “The Ska & Rocksteady Clash Of The Century Part 1”.  With a tradsition rooted deep within the heart of Jamaica, the Selector Sound Clash pits ska/rocksteady dj’s against one another in a battle royal, where only the best vinyl will do, as those in attendance would be the judges not only with their applause but with their feet as well. 

“What was on the line Aside from the bragging right?” Glad you asked, the coveted Treasure Isle/ Studio One Trophy and a crisp $300 bucks. Now with that cleared up let us introduce the evenings Selectors: 

Gabby Loks, Ian Olivera (Banana Sound System), Brian Spanky Kingston, Elizabeth MixItUpzine, Charles Smith (DJ Double Barrel), Arrow Sound (Supa Kay), and Ashwut Zound Zystem

With the match ups decided by a draw from a hat and the rules clearly stated in advance, the trophy awaited its new home. Friends, family and Los Angeles regulars packed the cozy downstairs bar room of the Los Globo’s nightclub. As DJ’s went heads up and chin down into their cherished crates and suit cases of pure Jamaican rarities, each intent on stealing the crowed and knocking out their opponent with one drop of the needle. Battles early on raged back and forth as no Selector intended on leaving without giving it their best wax.

No matter the rarity or popularity of the tune, the victor, would be decided by those in attendance and the choices always proved tough. The three round battles broke down as such: Gabby Loks vs. Elizabeth - Spanky vs. Arrow Sound - Ian vs. Charles Smith, with Gabby, Spanky and Charles advancing to the next round to meet Ashwut Zound Zystem (who advanced from a previous elimination process).

With the second round pairing Gabby vs. Charles ‘Double Barrel’ Smith and Spanky vs. Ashwut, the selections only got better as Spanky and Charles Smith both made spirited efforts only to bow out gracefully, paving the way for the nights main event Gabby Loks vs. Ashwut Zound Zystem.

After the dust had settled and the records stopped spinning the winner was. Both! YES after two attempts to gauge a clear winner the audience seemed to be at a tie and how could you blame them? With Ashwut Zound Zystem digging deep into the collection and Gabby Loks countering with gems like The Maytals ‘Don’t Trouble Trouble’ Keith & Ken ‘I Don’t Love You Anymore’ and Ken Lazarus ‘Soul Time’ the decision was up in the air, and with the rules clearly stating fan applause decided the winner, the two competitors were declared co-champions. And so they went, to revel in their hard earned victories as The Steady 45’s and The SKAMANIA All-Stars helped round off the night in the next room over.

 

After an early evening of DJ battles subsided the live acts took to the stage, with the now SKAMANIA regulars, The Steady 45’s, hit the stage first with what could easily be one of the strongest horn lines and precise sets touring the west coast. Mixing a catalog of original tunes with classic Jamaican tracks the seamless transition from tune to tune flowed just as perfectly as it did in the neighboring room for the Sound Clash. With their status and popularity on a sharp rise, The Steady 45’s have all the tools to play these high caliber events and play them extremely well.  It was only fitting, on a night of tradition and remembrance, The SKAMANIA! All-Stars pay tribute to founding member of the iconic Skatalites Roland Alphonso. In a strictly instrumental get down drinks were not the only things being poured, sweat and emotion poured out from those dancing the night away.

Nothing new to Jamaica, a gathering of the local top-flight musicians to jam or create was commonplace, naturally producing some of the best dance scorchers to ever leave the island. A similar gathering is happening deep within the Los Angeles ska scene, and was on display for the evening’s conclusion. Summoning members from local bands (The Delirians, The Steady’45s, Pachamama) and SKAMANIA! Veteran’s to forge the SKAMANIA! All-Stars.

And just like past appearances under the los Globo’s lights, these young men brought the furry. Re animating the already treasured catalog of the great Roland Alphonso, The SKAMANIA! All-stars, jammed out over fifteen choice tunes ranging from ‘Soul Fingers’ ‘Saucyhorn’ ‘Bango Tango’ ‘Stream of Life’ and wrapping the night up with the beloved ‘Streets of Gold’.  These young but thriving bands have released and produced some of the best ska/rocksteady in recent months, and came together to form a dizzying musical onslaught only SKAMANIA! would provide. Tired dancing legs, some sweet ska vinyl and a new SAKAMANIA! Sound Clash Co-Champions. All we need now is the climactic sequel.

With the weather in L.A. now reaching its normal chilly temperatures the heat was brought by SKAMANIA! Once again..

-Gio Van Dam-
Big Wheel Staff Reporter

 

 

 

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SKAmania Holiday Extravaganza Featuring Pat Kelly and The Clarendonians – The Delirians – Chris Murray – and The Steady 45s – at Los Globos – Los Angeles, CA

Saturday December 7th 2013, the anticipation had reached a fever pitch as the return and arrival of two beloved entities converged upon Los Angeles. First the long awaited return of SKAmania! 

 

One of LA’s more cherished regular events, whose tenure atop the Los Angeles Ska/Reggae scene has brought some of the more memorable LA performances as well as rare appearances, ranging from The Pioneers, The Skatalites, Ken Boothe and Eric ‘Monty’ Morris to name only a handful. And with its return to prominence, has brought with it the first Los Angeles appearance of The Clarendonians. As has become the norm with all SKAmania events, the line-up boasted top-level talent from beginning to end. 

As early arrivals found out, the standard had been set high from the first song. Kicking off the night was The Steady 45’s who’s masterfully crafted harmonies and heavier than lead horn section had the second floor of the Silver lake nightclub bouncing and swaying. Immediately patrons flocked to the front of the stage to dance in a circle or pair off with their well dressed partners dawning tonic suits and Fred Perry dresses. With their steady rise over the last year we’ve seen The Steady 45’s grace a number of wonderful marquee’s, and rightly so. Traditionalists basked in their well-tuned performance as they maneuver from original scorchers to Jamaican relics such as the Ken Boothe classic  ‘Artibela’.

After a wonderful 45 minute set The Steady 45’s made way for Acoustic Legend Chris Murray providing back up for yet another 45-minute gem.  In true Chris Murray fashion his set ranged from past to present encompassing the entire spectrum of his acoustic and studio works. Those like myself foolish enough to wonder off for a Heineken Sponsored beer failed to remember no Chris Murray Set is ever the same, as he launched into the fan favorite ‘Love Flame’ causing some to abandon hope in drinking, as the dance floor only further tightened in a sea of skanking and singing fans.  Only a few days removed from a recent east coast trip Chris Murray’s smooth voice and slick guitar work was as dominant and perfect as ever, LA fans have come to remember it from the one time weekly reggae showcase Blue Beat lounge. After Chris Murray’s set their was a small and well needed break for fans and especially the bands, some members even pulling quadruple duty for the night, had the opportunity to recover and brace themselves for the final stretch of joy and dancing.

It was now time for The Delirians to claim dominion over the old stomping grounds, the Los Globos Stage. Poised to overtake the Los Angeles Ska/Reggae community once again, the young men from East LA had a daunting yet easily surmountable task ahead of them as they performed their own set as well as supplying the perfect pairing of high quality musicianship the catalog’s of Pat Kelly and The Clarendonians deserve. Fans have no doubt come to endear themselves to the Delirians and their music, chanting and singing in unison, shoulders rubbing and dancers jockeying for position along the front of the stage. All the while grooving to old favorites and being treated to new songs including the just unveiled “Come And See”. The first third of The Delirians night progressed seamlessly as they took a step back to welcome the Clarendonians to Los Angeles for the first time.

Celebrating 50 years of Clarendonians music, the Clarendonians were welcomed to Los Angeles with a conquering hero’s ovation. Some waited a lifetime for the opportunity to see these remarkable men, some with closed eyes clutching drinks and singing to their hearts content. The emotion and energy was overpowering and present, even as Peter Austin dropped to his knees, tears of joy and humility streamed from his eyes even recalling songs inspired by heartbreak. The moment was definetly not lost on The Clarendonians or those in attendance as every song was sung with such passion even playing old time classics ‘Darling Forever’ ‘Shoo Bee Doo Bee’ ‘Bye Bye Bye’ and ‘Rudy Bam Bam’. With the once in a lifetime performance now in the books and in the hearts and memories of SKAmania loyalists, they now turned their attention to welcoming back a one, Pat Kelly.

No stranger to LA or SKAmania those not new to the scene knew what kind of clout and ability Pat Kelly brings to his performances. Adorned in a beautiful white suit he shimmered just as brightly. Bathed in the red and yellow glow of the Los Globos lights drinks were tossed while the now maximums capacity venue cheered on in joy for timeless classics ‘Talk About Love’ ‘Whiter Shade Of Pale’ ‘How Long Will It Take’ and my personal favorite ‘ I Wish It Would Rain’.

Never a disappointment he performed at the highest caliber even treating the fans to an encore and more of his trademark voice.  The memorable holiday extravaganza went off without a hitch as friends embraced and share in a collective happiness only SKAmania could provide. The time had come to wonder home partake in a few dozen street tacos and begin the countdown until the next SKAmania masterpiece.

-Gio Van Dam-
Big Wheel Staff Reporter

 

 

 

 

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The Bangles – Three O’ Clock – Dream Syndicate – Rain Parade – at The Fonda Theatre – Hollywood, CA

For fans of the LA Paisley Underground sound there was no better time than the 1980s and no better place to be than in Los Angeles. Music trends have come and gone since many times over, but one thing remains; people in LA love their hometown bands and continue to do so decades on into their careers. December 6th 2013 went down in local rock history as a day where fans got to see crucial bands of that specific era on one bill in support of a great cause as well.



    Rain Parade

The aforementioned bill was as follows, Rain Parade, Dream Syndicate, the Three O’ Clock, and The Bangles. If you had an interest in the Paisley Underground then you were definitely one of the many in attendance Friday night as the Fonda was a packed house. If you weren’t there then you really missed out on perhaps a once in this lifetime kind of concert.

    Dream Syndicate

Every band on the bill was as on point as any fan could have hoped for. Every hit in each of the bands respective back catalog was played to a crowd who was as receptive as one could find on a Friday night. There were some fun covers thrown in for good measure like the Syd Barret fronted Pink Floyds “Lucifer Sam” by The Three O’ Clock.

    The Three O'Clock

It was The Bangles hour long plus set that featured an introduction from none other than legendary KROQ Dj Rodney on the Roq’ Bingenheimer and more hit songs than any of the openers sets. Whether it was an Bangles original like the fun “Want You” or Simon and Garfunkel cover “A Hazy Shade of Winter” The 3 original members harmonized live on stage just like they did on the record, perfect pop.

    Rodney Bingenheimer


It was over an hour of perfect pop and all around greatness from a band who wrote fun many fun songs that have simply lasted the test of time. For those who happened to miss Friday nights show you are in luck as The Bangles are playing The Whiskey A Go Go early next year.

    More photos of the show can be seen HERE

 

-Louie Bones-
Big Wheel Staff Reporter

 

 

 

 

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Slade and Sweet – at The Music Hall – Aberdeen, UK

As a seasoned gig-goer I go to lots of events over the space of a year but, this last 2 years, I can honestly say that the glam rock extravaganza that is Sweet and Slade has definitely been my favorite gig of the year.

We may all be folk of a 'certain age' but we still know how to enjoy ourselves and we were all in agreement that last night's near capacity gig in the Music Hall was absolutely fabulous. Sweet came on first of all and started the evening off with New York Groove. It's hard to believe the band have been around since the late 60's, although Andy Scott is the only remaining original member and Bruce, has now been with the band for around 20 years.

 

From the first few bars of New York Groove, the guys threw themselves into the show and it was clear they were enjoying themselves as much as the eager audience. A highlight for us down at the front, was the way Andy interacted with a little old woman, who was probably in her 80's and she put the rest of us to shame by dancing all the way through the set. I'm sure it made her night when Andy actually spoke to her. All the old favourites were played including “Blockbuster”, “Wig Wam Bam”, “Teenage Rampage” and “Hellraiser” to mention just a few.

There was a poignant moment when Andy spoke of Brian Connolly, and dedicated Love is like oxygen, to his memory. At the start of the evening Andy had said how they always play totally live and, as if to prove the point, when one of his guitar strings broke he quickly grabbed another guitar and hardly missed a beat. Telling us all again that, yes, we do play live!

After a short interval and just enough time for us all to get our breath back, it was time for Slade to come on. They arrived on stage to the theme of Thunderbirds, which they've been doing for a few years now  and went straight into playing Gudbye to Jane. As in previous years, Dave Hill stole the show with his cheeky smile and antics on stage. John Berry did an outstanding job of taking on a lot of the lead vocals. A stand out moment for me was when they performed Coz I love you.

“My oh my”, “Far far away”, “Cum on Feel the Noise” and “Everyday” also featured in the set, which came to a rousing close with the forever favorite “Merry Xmas Everybody”, for which the band all donned Xmas hats, just to get us more in the festive mood.  

The only down side to the evening was that it was over all too quickly and I'll definitely have it on my Santa list for them to make a return visit to the Granite City next December.

 

More photos of the show can be seen HERE

-Rock Chick-
Big Wheel Overseas Correspondent 

 

 

 

 

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