Murder City Devils – Contant Lovers – at The Music Box – Hollywood, CA

As the sun was setting in Hollywood, our crew found ourselves standing 5th in line out front of the Fonda.  While we were standing there, it was apparent by the company we kept that we were in for a show of epic per portions. There were people from all over California and all walks over life waiting in line.We ran into a guy who wanted to start a band, he was looking for a hardcore radical style violinist, and the dude was serious. The same guy went on to tell some of the others standing around us how people scam the medical marijuana thing. And since this show sold out practically as soon as the tickets went on sale, you could hear all kinds of people telling stories of how they got their tickets.

Shortly after 8 o'clock they started letting people in. And after a quick non-intrusive frisk, we were in as well. Upon entering the Theatre we were pleasantly surprised by the new renovations. The overall facelift included new suede seating, a VIP lounge, and new bathrooms in the balcony, and a new mural covered the walls of the whole Theatre. Very classy updates!

Opening up the show was Constant Lovers. The first song they did may have just been too eclectic and it seemed that a lot of people were not that into it. At that point you  were left not really knowing what to expect and wondering if this would be a good time to go babysit the bar. Then when the second song kicked in more people were feeling it and the attention to the band grew. What could be best describe as an industrial sound that was centered around percussion instruments. All of this was thrust with vocals that were reminiscent of a demented Offspring pattern. At various parts in the set, both rhythm and lead guitars as well as bass all take up drum sticks and beat in a synchronized form. The one exception is that the bass player uses rubber maracas as drum sticks which made for a very unique twist and sound. As each song kept trucking, this band just kept growing on the audience, and each song took the previous one to a new level. They are certainly a band that we would recommend you go see if you like a clean rhythm with heavy drums.

During the intermission, the venue really started to look like it was sold out. People were packing into the Theatre, the beers were flowing, and everywhere you could hear the fans talking about which MCD song they wanted to hear. I found my self hunkered down in front of the barricade in the best spot to get awesome photos, when the security informed me to get as many pictures as I could right away, because I may only get one song in the press area. They must have known from last years show, that the place was about to go nuts. After what seemed an eternity, one of the photogs next to me started to grow inpatient because the band was late. She broke down and screamed out."I can't take it anymore, the anticipation is killing me!" She took the words right outta my mouth. And as every moment passed you could feel the energy building in the crowd.

Finally you could hear the electric organ as the curtains started to rise. The crowd started cheering and erupted into utter chaos as Murder City Devils started to play. The first two songs left you saying, HOLY SHIT! That was intense! There was serious pit thrashing even during the slow songs, and when they started to play "Idol Hands", the floor was completely outta control! Spencer Moody said," Just because your a stupid man doesn't make you a bad man, and just because you wrote a stupid song doesn't mean you wrote a bad song." Then MCD broke into the song "Johnny Thunders" It was getting hot and no one had any intention of slowing down.

The crowd fed off the energy of the band like ravenous dogs. It was very clear from the stage performance that this band was not just going through the motions, Murder City Devils came to play and play hard. At one point Spencer Moody jumped into the crowd and grabbed a hat from someones head that he wore the remainder of the show. Right after 11 o'clock the MCD exited the stage, leaving the fans pounding on the floor and chanting in unison for more. The whole building shook, and after a 5 minute break, MCD came out and played a 2 song encore. Once the show was over and the band exited the stage, Spencer Moody said "Thank you, thank you very much, we're The Murder City Devils. I don't know why we do it, but I'd like to think we don't do it for nothin'." Then he through the mic down an casually walked off stage. What an exit! This show was stiff kick in the teeth.

-J. Moncrief-
Big Wheel Music Scene Reporter

 

More photos of the show can be seen HERE

 
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