The Stitched Lips – Apparitions – and The Black Mambas – at the Bleed For Rock N Roll House Party – Los Angeles, CA

Last weekend LA was buzzing with tons of things to do. X played at The Hollywood Park, many rode the Metro to catch Berlin actually perform The Metro, The Objex made their presence known at The Redwood, The Queers joined Screeching Weasel at The Fonda, Moby performed at The Annenburg for the "Who Shot Rock & Roll" exhibit,

   people blazed to Ziggy Marley at the Hollywood Bowl, and that was just a few in huge list of shows to choose from. For many in the LA area, deciding what to do with their weekend became an overwhelming 1st world problem.

I had no doubt what my Saturday would consist of as soon as I received a Facebook invite to the "Bleed For Rock N Roll" party that would be taking place in the Bell Gardens neighborhood of Los Angeles. The Stitched Lips would be headlining a special one time gig after a full year hiatus, that would unfortunately be their last show for a while (considering singer Ricky Guzman is being stationed in Japan for the next 3 years with the U.S. Navy). Donations were being given in return for their never released 5 song EP "Bleed For Rock N Roll", that they recorded at The Laundry Room Recording Studio back in 2010. This off the radar, DIY house party would be packed with great talent including performances by Apparitions, and The Black Mambas as well.

Being that this was an "invite only" party, there was decent vibe as you made your way into the lot that housed a couple hundred of the band's closest friends and family members. The Black Mambas played first, getting the crowd revved with their up tempo Punk infused 50’s Rock N Roll sound.

Front-man Michael Price never disappoints as his spastic, energetic stage performance is met with unrefined, raw vocals and complimented with a stellar group of young musicians backing him up. (Eric Martinez, just so happens to be the bass player for The Stitched Lips as well).  Amongst many songs, they played "Jumpin' Judy", "Baby I'll Give It To You", and my personal favorite and undoubtedly the most Punk tune they have, "Charlie(are you living fast?)".

Apparitions were up next. They had a surfy So Cal Punk vibe that captivated your senses throughout out their set leaving you wanting more. With members of "Dirty Eyes" it was no surprise that these guys kicked ass!

The night wore on with no sign of the police as The Stitched Lips started preparing for their set. Guzman fittingly sported a white sailor hat and pants with a Vibrators T-shirt. The crowd was visibly drunker and it was clear that the moment everyone had gathered for was upon us.

The Stitched Lips wasted no time getting into their groove. The crowd responded by moving in closer as friends interlocked arms started to dance and eventually form a small pit in front of the stage(which was really just a drive way). Energy was high as they covered Iggy and The Stooges' "Sick Of You" . They Also performed original material such as "Outta The Way", "Reaper's Laugh", and "Runnin' Outta Luck".

The Stitched Lips performance was reminiscent of the late 70's bridge between Classic Rock and the early Punk sound that bands like The Misfits, Iggy Pop, and The Ramones paved the way with. However with that being said, they made it their own and maintained a refreshing originality.

Around 11:45 as The Stitched Lips were nearing the end of the set with their song and title of their EP "Bleed For Rock N Roll" when the ghetto birds started flying over head. Just before the last chord of the song, the cops showed up to shut it down.

No one seemed too concerned with the LAPD presence as the home owner announced through the mic that it was time to go and started ushering people to the exits. The crowd cleared, revealing broken glass, beer cans, and cigarettes butts all over the pavement. The party was a success with no fights or arrests and all three bands were able to power through their entire sets with out interruption.

It's a shame we won't be seeing more of The Stitched Lips in the near future. However until then we still have plenty of opportunities for great shows coming up with The Black Mambas and Apparitions. Not to mention all who were lucky enough to make it to the party will have the memories from that night to hold onto forever.

The Black Mambas will be playing the Juke Joint in Anaheim on Friday July 27th. If you haven't had a chance to check them out, do yourself a favor and see what all the hypes about.

  More photos of the show can be seen HERE

-J.Moncrief-
Big Wheel Journalist

 

 

 

 

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