Those who say punk is dead tend to be those who wish punk were dead, either still somehow threatened by the culture or -- and this is more likely -- chagrined that punks don't give a shit what they think. Punk is, of course, very much alive in 2013, particularly in regions like Southern California. ... More >>
The logo is simple. Four heavy black bars sitting side by side — one up, one down, one up, one down — creating a wave effect: a black flag flying in the wind of discontent. Few logos are as universally recognized and revered as the one Raymond Pettibon designed for L.A. punk legends Blac ... More >>
Ink N Iron, featuring Iggy and the Stooges Queen Mary June 8, 2013 Over 18,000 people attended this weekend's Ink-N-Iron festival at the Queen Mary in Long Beach, which had booze, hot rods, cigarettes, tattoos, and good ol' fashioned rock n' roll. Th festival was celebrating 10 years of tattoos, bo ... More >>
Don't forget to check our constantly-updated Los Angeles Concert Calendar Friday, June 7 Ink-N-Iron Festival THE QUEEN MARY This three-day veneration of art, cars, music, burlesque and all things tattooed boasts some impressively wild, certified legends scattered among the horde of rockabilly huck ... More >>
Punk Rock Bowling Downtown Las Vegas May 25-27, 2013 The Punk Rock Bowling & Music Festival started in 1999, and since then the mayhem has moved from the lanes to a giant parking lot just off of Fremont street in downtown Las Vegas. Tournaments and cash prizes are still part of the event, but toda ... More >>
You can't please everyone. No sooner had my list of the five best punk rock guitarists gone up than the complaining started. Folks were annoyed that there was a tie for first, yes, but that was only one of the things they found to complain about. Mostly it was about how their no-talent low-life favo ... More >>
Refused, Warpaint, The Vaselines, and others FYF Fest Los Angeles State Historic Park September 1, 2012 See also: F-Yeah! It's the 2012 FYF Quiz! Better than: Any cookout ever. Braving choking dust clouds, oppressive sunlight and the inevitable game of PortaJohn Roulette ought to deliver an eart ... More >>
Stanley Donwood doesn't have the slightest objection to the term "commercial artist." Often considered the sixth member of the band Radiohead, the 44-year old Essex native is responsible for all of the band's artwork since 1994 and has the commercial marketplace to thank for part of his success. "It ... More >>
The garage punks are about to blow up. Either that, or crash and burn
At the beginning of the year, Boston metalcore giants Killswitch Engage announced that they had parted ways with vocalist Howard Jones, and two weeks ago they announced they were bringing their first vocalist, Jesse Leach, back into the fold. At the very least, it seems a way to ensure they w ... More >>
Jena ArdellGuess we hit a nerve when we called out Dave Grohl for his anti-EDM Grammy Awards acceptance speech. Besides tons of hate mail (our favorite told us to " ... go eat a bag of dicks") and some support (Moby's former manager noted we were there when that real punk rocker went electro ... More >>
X, Dead Kennedys, the Avengers MOCA at the Geffen 1-28-12 (Much) Better Than ... hearing many of these same songs butchered on punk rock karaoke night at the local sports bar. Of course there's something oddly oxymoronic about a museum inviting punk rock bands over to play (albeit safely outside o ... More >>
Also, Dengue Fever, Jessie Baylin, Reigning Sound, Black Bananas and others
See also: *The Top Five L.A. Punk Albums of 2011 *Kelly Clarkson Endorses Ron Paul: The Five Most Baffling Political Pairings The Iowa caucuses are being held today, which means that Republican primary season is about to kick into high gear. Spoiler alert: The candidates all suck. But you knew tha ... More >>
We at West Coast Sound love little more than good tunes and good booze. So, when Drinkify dropped earlier this month -- an Internet app that suggests cocktails to sip while listening to your artist of choice -- we were intrigued. So much so that we bought a whole shopping bag of elixirs and got to d ... More >>
brooklynvegan.comMagrudergrindOne of the year's more relentless metal festivals will lay waste to downtown this weekend. California Discord Fest invades The Vortex for two days of whiplash-inducing death metal, brutal grindcore, and mosh-friendly hardcore. Acoustic interludes, good cop/bad co ... More >>
Kirsti Anna UrpaThe Sounds' Maja Ivarsson Tuesdays are always teeming with possibility when it comes to live music in Los Angeles. Of course, the toe-to-toe hipster hoedowns that are Dim Mak Studios and Check Yo Ponytail dominate the night most of the time, but other venues big and small seem ... More >>
In his 2001 compendium, American Hardcore: A Tribal History, New York writer and former promoter Steven Blush all but dispensed with your dad's glamorized spit-scabs-and-safety-pin punk, instead focusing on hundreds of DIY, anarchic hardcore bands from the scene's peak between 1980 and 198 ... More >>
Powerflex 5 via MySpaceSt. Louis is hosting a tattoo convention and Nick Lucchesi at our sister paper The Riverfront Times scored an interview with LA Ink's Corey Miller, reality star (he's the one on the show without the boobs), surf rocker, punk rock lifestyle decorator, and self-described ... More >>
Back in the early '80s, when deathrock was taking over California, a group of young guys from Bakersfield formed Burning Image. They released a 7" single and played with bands like Specimen, Dead Kennedys and Butthole Surfers. Years after their demise, Jello Biafra re-released Burning Image ... More >>
Also, The Choke, Nouvelle Vague, Wilco, Sunset Rubdown and others
Helping to fill the pockets of indie bands now that CD sales have dried up
What to do in L.A., August 15-21
Lighting theMasque
Lighting the Masque
For the week of Sept. 27 – Oct. 4
For the week of September 20 – 27
Tour posters, photos of cracked-out Pete Doherty and scrawled lyrics to “Apple Pie and Genocide”
Artists reimagine the Star Wars villain for The Vader Project
Kinky Sex (Makes the World Go ’Round) Group Show and Pieter Hugo’s Looking Aside
Our unofficial guide to vintage rock T-shirts
Brent Bolthouse
For January 27 - February 2, 2006 Country listings follow.
A Shy Lady, croquet and Illegal Art
War for truth marches on in the streets of New York
The future of heaviness
Flaming Lips and the spark that bleeds
