One Way System – Billyclub – Poop – The Last Gang – at The Blue Star – Los Angeles, CA

One Way System was in town for their only Los Angeles appearance. It was 4 o’clock when I arrived at The Blue Star, which is hidden in the middle of an industrial area,  and Punks were already lined up in the front. Some had even arrived earlier at 2 o’clock guaranteeing their spot to get inside for only about 150 to 200 people were going to be let inside. No one seemed to mind  waiting for hours for we were all drinking, talking, smoking and having a good time. As soon as the last ray of the sun had disappeared, the blue neon lights of the Blue Star had turned on and the doors opened to the public.

Everyone was excited to go inside.  As you enter the Blue Star, you enter in their small but comfortable diner with it’s own Bar. Every adult hit the bar right away. Those unfortunate to not be 21 made their way outside to where the small stage was located. Yes, The Blue Star has an outdoor stage. People were relieved to know they weren’t going to be in a packed in a hot, humid room like sardines in a can. In the back of the place was a small grilling area. Those to have arrived early were treated to free Hamburgers and Free Hot dogs. Although it was free, donations were being asked and people pitched in as much as they could. People were very social, bands were talking with other bands. Paco, a fellow Punk I met that night,  came all the way from Switzerland to see One Way System play in Los Angeles.  Now that’s a diehard fan.

The Last Gang started the night off at The Blue Star. They’re a female fronted Punk Rock band from southern California. Gritty Punk rock with a pinch of pop can best describe their sound. The Crowd was small but everybody enjoyed their sound. They were able to get the crowd up and going with a small pit.

Poop, which features Rikk Agnew from the adolescents, was on after The Last Gang. Not too many people were at the Blue Star yet. Those were who were there looked very pleased by Poop’s performance. They’re a great band with a great  Punk rock sound.

Billy Club was next and people were coming in numbers .As soon as their set began, the incoming crowd filled up the empty space around the stage. Their Hardcore, Punk rock sound got the crowd to jump into the pit. The audience loved their performance and Billy Club did a marvelous job warming up the crowd for the final performance of the night.

One Way System came up to the stage and started setting up. Immediately people began to shout out song requests. As soon as they played their first note, the crowd immediately erupted into a chaotic pit. It was pure chaos. People were having the time of their lives singing along and hitting anyone who stood in their way.  Jerusalem, No Return, Stab the Judge, Give us a future, and Jackie Was a Junkie, and many others were played that night.

I feel sorry for anyone who missed this show. It was a treat to have an iconic Punk band return to Los Angeles and play the songs we all grew up listening as young Punks.  If you did miss them then you have another chance to see them for they will be in riverside on the 18th and in Santa Ana on the 19th of April.

-Rob Nuisance-
Big Wheel Music Scene Reporter
 

More photos of the show can be seen HERE

 
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Here is another review from another one of the Big Wheel reporters that had the night off to just go and enjoy the show, yet he could not resist writing up his thoughts of the evening.

ONE WAY SYSTEM / BILLYCLUB – April 3rd, 2009 – The Blue Star, Downtown Los Angeles, CA
It seems like there are lot of UK 82 bands getting back together and touring, which is great news for fans of these bands. I hadn’t seen One Way System since……well….. a long time!! So when I heard they were playing I had to get the info and start making plans to go see them at their premier LA appearance. The club they played at was called The Blue Star located in a seedy part of Downtown Los Angeles where there was nothing but warehouses for what seemed like miles on end. This was actually a good thing because with all the Punk running ramped and drinking in the streets, there was nobody around to complain about anything going on there, no complaints=no cops, yeah!! Well, the fact that we didn’t think any police would be around made us comfortable enough to drink a few on a side street, and we got so comfortable that we missed the first few bands, sorry guys. When we finally got into the club BILLYCLUB was setting up their equipment, so after saying hi to a few people at the bar and getting a few more drinks in, we decided to head outside where the bands were playing. This club was tiny and I was surprised that they held a show like this there, but it seemed to work out. When you walk in, you are in the bar area, where there are quite a few seats to sit in and relax, but there is not much room to move around in there when it started getting more crowded.

The bands play in an outdoor patio with a 15 foot fencing surrounded by barbed wire all along the top of the fences. I felt like I was locked away in some kind of Punk rock prison. The crowd was pretty chill, no fights that I saw. They were definitely there to have a good time and support these bands. As BILLYCLUB hit the stage, people were rockin and started a pit, this club was small, but seemed to hold the crowd very well. BILLYCLUB is from Texas, so I was excited to get the chance to see them live. They’ve got quite a few releases of UK influenced Punk rock with members having played in such bands as The Exploited, Broken Bones, UK Subs, etc…They rocked out quite a few songs one after another, with a brutal power punch. The highlight was a cover of 999′s "Homicide", which really got the crowd going and singing along!! Yours truly got to sing on a couple of the versus, haha. Great job BILLYCLUB of getting the crowd warmed up for the main attraction….ONE WAY SYSTEM!!
 
ONE WAY SYSTEM is one of those bands that was a major influence in my life, so I was excited that we’d actually get to see them in a small venue, up close and personal. They are one of those bands that you see painted on every Punks leather jacket all around the world, complete with studs, spikes and spikey-hair. And when they hit the stage, they did not disappoint!! Starting off the set with "Believe Yourself", I thought for sure they’d get trampled by the energetic crowd!! They went into playing all the classics from "Stab the Judge", "Jerusalem", "Give Us A Future" and my personal favourite "No Return". The stage was low to the ground and very small barely fitting the drum kit and the amps, let alone the band. The band had a hard time moving around on stage, and after the place erupted, it looked like all chaos would follow. Luckily a few people helped out holding up the speakers and trying to keep people off the stage so that ONE WAY SYSTEM could focus on their instruments and what they were playing. The band did not miss a beat and the small stage, and crazed fans, didn’t seem to affect the band what so ever. It was like they were used to all the manic going-ons around them. The sound system was not the best at this small venue, but like I said, it was great to see them in this small setting. After a brief break they came out for a couple of encore songs, leaving the crowd satisfied and content. It was a great night for any L.A. punk that was present and accounted for!! For those of you who missed this show, ONE WAY SYSTEM will be back in the L.A. area after some West Coast shows that include San Fransisco and Seattle. They will be back on April 14 (Apple Valley), April 18 (Riverside) or April 19 (Santa Ana)…..go and support, support, support!!! You won’t be sorry!!
 
See you at the show,
-Pete (^^PUNK4LIFE^^)-
Big Wheel Music Scene Reporter