Death Valley Girls – 7th Level Music

Levitation Austin 2024 – Day Three

Like any other marathon, the three-quarter mark is when it really starts to hit you. The same can be said of Levitation Austin, as Day Three is when the festival starts culling the weak and you begin to hear people saying things like, “I tapped out at one a.m.,” “He wanted me to go to another show last night, but I just couldn’t,” and “Austin is kickin’ my ass today.”

It’s also when you start having weird synchronous moments with people you’ve seen at the festival. My girlfriend and I have seen the same woman at all but two of the shows we’ve attended so far. She’s come all this way from England to express her love for a festival cameraman. He’s married, by the way, and this woman’s friend isn’t happy that he’s been dismissive of her. There’s also “blond guy,” who looks and dresses like a character from an early 1990s video game and I think has been on some kind of illegal drug for three days, “Asian guy with a splint on his right index finger,” and “Guy with the big King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard patch on his jacket.”

We started Day Three with some friends and great BBQ (as one does in Austin at least once where you’re here) at a place called KG BBQ that mixes Texas BBQ with Egyptian flavors. It’s great. We then headed to Hotel Vegas for the “Levitation Lounge,” where no one bothered to check out RSVP tickets, and we had free drinks while listening to a DJ set by Death Valley Girls.

I was wearing my “Death Valley Girls Official Fan Club” shirt and was spotted by Bonnie Bloomgarden, the leader of DVG. She remembered me as the guy who keeps his phone set on black and white and, in a moment of joy for me, from this blog. They’d opened for Osees the previous night there and I told her I was excited to hear their new “Earth, Wind & Fire-sized line-up” later that night at Parish.

My DVG shirt proved to be popular. I had more comments on it than any other shirt I’ve worn all weekend. At least four people pointed at me and said, “Great shirt,” and then told me how they’d seen their Hotel Vegas set the previous evening and were amazed by it.

The surprisingly tall Dry Cleaning walked in not long after my lovely conversation with Ms. Bloomgarden. I thanked them for their set at the Far Out Lounge the previous night, and they told me how much they love playing in Austin. They were all delightful people and played a fun DJ set of their own that dropped in some classic Sade and Wham! tracks.

We wanted to stay for the Black Angels DJ set, but it was Day Three and we needed a disco nap. It turned out to be the right call because Austin got slammed with rain for about an hour and we would’ve been soaked on the walk back to our pad.

We came back to Hotel Vegas to first see local shredders Grocery Bag take the stage, and they played a wild set of fierce garage rock. Be sure to look them up.

After that was night number three of Osees’ four-night residency at Hotel Vegas. They ripped into it straight out of the gate (as always) and immediately floored by girlfriend, who was seeing them for the first time. She was amazed by their manic energy and how “they just go for it.” They threw in some punk ragers with a couple psych-rock cuts, showing how they can change shape faster than a D&D doppelgänger.

We then walked six blocks along 6th Street, maneuvering around stumbling drunks and people still in Halloween costumes lining up to cram into a small club spinning overplayed dance tracks from the early 2000s, to get to Parish and see DVG perform their heart-lifting yet spooky set of psychedelia. It was strange at first to see them with no guitars (apart from Sammy Westervelt on bass), replacing them with saxophone. “They sound like a spooky version of Morphine,” I thought. My girlfriend loved them and empowerment and spiritual healing messages they convey in their lyrics.

We headed to the Parish’s small lounge after the set and another guy pointed out my DVG shirt. It turned out he and his friend were at KG BBQ and noticed my shirt there. They’d seen DVG’s Hotel Vegas set and fell in love with them. One of them, Shafiq, got my “spooky Morphine” reference, and they were both from Chicago and frequented a lot of the same bar. The other, Imran, had been at the same Slift and Meatbodies show I attended at Reggie’s Music Joint weeks earlier. We all bonded over Gen X bands and chai.

Wine Lips, whom Shafiq had seen before (“First tickets I bought.”) and described as “The Toronto Osees,” came out and just went nuts. That might be the best way I can describe their set of crazy garage-psych. It was damn impressive. They barely let you take a breath.

We stopped at a shawarma food truck on the way back, where I was again complimented on my DVG shirt, and then got back in time to settle down with my overflowing chicken and falafel wrap and watch the opening scenes of Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla. You can’t wrap up a festival day much better than that.

Up next, doom!

Keep your mind open.

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Rewind Review: Death Valley Girls – Islands in the Sky (2023)

First, how cool is that cover? I could create a full Dungeons and Dragons adventure based on that. I’m thinking it’s the palace of a Storm Giant or a Cloud Giant, possibly protected by a Sphinx and having a portal to the Astral Plane inside it. I mean, what else could that glowing circle inside it be?

Islands in the Sky by Death Valley Girls turns out to be an album about self-healing, ascension to higher states of consciousness (or, perhaps, centering oneself to the present), and preparing for possible future incarnations of ourselves in this reality or another – such as the one on the cover.

Starting with “California Mountain Shake” (which could reference a few different things in its title), the album starts with moaning chants and haunting organ from Bonnie Bloomgarden as Larry Schemel‘s guitar subtly moves around you like a wise old serpent. “Magic Powers” put bassist Sammy Westervelt on lead vocals singing about realizing through enlightenment that she, and all of us, have untapped power waiting to be rediscovered.

The beat of the title track, thanks to Rikki Styxx and guest percussionist Mark Rains, instantly gets your body moving in a happy groove while Bloomgarden encourages us to leave worry behind and pick up joy. “Sunday” is a fun, almost go-go club rocker.

“What are the odds that we live in a simulated world, and I’m a simulated girl?” Bloomgarden asks on “What Are the Odds?” as she and Schemel trade guitar licks and Styxx puts down some of the heaviest beats of the album. The odds, by the way, seem about even, as we all create our own reality.

The second side of the album starts with the transcendent “Journey to Dog Star,” and by this time I’m long overdue to mention the contributions of Gabe Flores on saxophone throughout the album. His psych-jazz honks blend perfectly with Schemel’s trippy guitar work on not only this track, but on all the songs featuring him on the record.

“Say It Too” has some desert rock and even slight surf touches throughout it, and some of Bloomgarden’s loveliest vocals on the album. “Watch the Sky” could be a warning about UFO’s (watch the original The Thing from Another World) or a song about watching clouds go by and using that as inspiration to clear one’s mind. Either way, it’s a lot of good, fuzzy rock.

Bloomgarden tells us that life can be so much more than the drudgery in which we often trap ourselves on “When I’m Free,” and on “All That Is Not of Me,” she encourages us to let go of our trappings, excesses, and self-imposed limits (“All that is not of me washes away from me.”) while Schemel’s guitar work goes into near-shoegaze territory and Westervelt’s bass keeps the song locked into a sweet groove.

Closing with “It’s All Really Kind of Amazing” is a perfect way to end such an uplifting album. Lyrics like “Wake up it’s time to be all the things you dream.” sum up Islands in the Sky with perfect energy.

As good as this album was in 2023, it’s even better and more important now in 2024 as we head toward a Presidential election featuring two choices that most of us aren’t thrilled about and people are unsure and nervous about what’s to come. Don’t worry about what’s to come, focus on now. Don’t worry about now, but be present with it. The future, when it gets here, will be now. We’re already living in the future. We can fix it now. Death Valley Girls have been telling us this before Islands in the Sky, but this album can be a great entry point for their mystical, metaphysical, marvelous sound and message.

Keep your mind open.

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Top 25 live shows of 2022: #’s 20 – 16

Who were among the top 20 bands I saw last year? Read on to learn!

#20: Gustaf – Levitation France – June 04^th

Wild, weird, and wonderful, Gustaf put on a fun late afternoon set under the Angers sun. You could tell they were having a great time. I spoke with Lydia Gammill after the set and she told me they still couldn’t quite believe they’d just played a set in France.

#19: Death Valley Girls – Empty Bottle – August 04^th

This was the second time I’d seen Death Valley Girls in the same year, with the first being at Levitation France just two months prior. This set was more up close and personal (which is every show at Chicago’s Empty Bottle) and a bit more dangerous to boot. Lead singer Bonnie Bloomgarden delighted in walking out into the crowd to sing and mingle with fans.

#18: Warm Drag – Levitation Austin / Hotel Vegas – October 28^th

Speaking of dangerous shows, Warm Drag‘s set at Levitation Austin was sexy and deadly, not unlike a panther. Blending dark electro with sultry vocals, the set had a lot of people grooving and trembling at the same time.

#17: Automatic – Levitation Austin / Stubb’s – October 27^th

This was the second time I saw Automatic last year. Yes, the first time was in France in June. The trio had only improved in that short time, and they wowed the Austin crowd. The number of Automatic band shirts and tote bags we saw after their set was extensive.

#16: The Joy Formidable – Piere’s / Ft. Wayne – September 20^th

This short set from Welsh power trio The Joy Formidable packed more wallop than most sets I saw from other bands that were twice as long. They were so fierce that lead singer / guitarist Ritzy Bryan headbutted bassist Rhydian Daffyd in the chest twice during the set.

Who’s in the top 15? Well, you’ll have to come back tomorrow to find out!

Keep your mind open.

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Rewind Review: Death Valley Girls – Darkness Rains (2018)

Death Valley Girls‘ third album has an interesting title – Darkness Rains. It’s not “Darkness Reigns,” as you might think if someone told you the name of the album. After all, DVG are known to be explorers of oddities, the unexplained, and things the prowl in shadows, but they chose “Rains” instead. Does it convey an image of environmental disaster, a heavy thunderstorm overpowering a bright summer sky, or impending death?

My guess is on the last one, as the album starts with the hard-hitting “More Dead” and flows right into the heavy fuzz of “(One Less Thing) Before I Die.” The latter reminds me that I need to keep de-cluttering my house and the trend of “Swedish death cleaning” that grows more popular each year. Why burden ourselves and our descendants with our crap? Why live a life unfulfilled? If you’ve seen DVG live or had the pleasure of meeting them, you’d know they were living in a way that would produce no regrets. They encourage us to do the same before darkness rains upon us, like we know it will but try to forget that it will.

“Disaster (Is What We’re After)” is great Stooges-style skronk meant to shake things up wherever you are, and “Unzip Your Forehead” is 60’s horror-psychedelia that makes me imagine Frankenstein’s monster opening the stitches on his square head and literally opening his mind. “Wear Black” could be the dress code for a DVG show. It also has these cool organ chords throughout it that make it hypnotizing (as does Larry Schemel‘s echoing guitar work).

“Abre Camino” is one of DVG’s biggest hits, and often the opener for their live sets. Each listen seems to unveil more layers you hadn’t heard before then, much like finding a book with strange scribbles and arcane symbols that reveal power messages to you after falling asleep. Laura Harris‘ drums hit hard on “Born Again and Again,” driving you to a near panic at one point. “Street Justice” is almost a punk rager with some of Bonnie Bloomgarden‘s most frantic vocals.

“Occupation: Ghost Writer” makes me want to write at least a short story based on the title. It has a dreamy quality to it, like a spirit floating around you while writing a blog post. “We’ll be together, somewhere forever,” they sing on “TV in Jail on Mars” – another song title that deserves an entire short story. The vocals repeat and echo like a trippy mantra or a broadcast from the red planet sent by things living deep within the canals there. It’s the sound of darkness raining down in a slow shower rather than a pounding torrent.

Darkness rains all over this record, but there are moments of sunlight that peek through the clouds to remind us that what lies beyond the veil is something we can’t comprehend, but shouldn’t fear.

Keep your mind open.

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Live: Death Valley Girls, Shadow Show, Waltzer – Empty Bottle – Chicago, IL – August 04, 2022

It had been two months to the day that I’d seen Death Valley Girls live, and that was at the Levitation France festival in Angers. They had recently returned from a tour of Europe and the United Kingdom and were now approaching the halfway point of a U.S. tour that would wrap up with appearances at this year’s Psycho Music Festival and Levitation Austin. They played The Empty Bottle with local garage-psych rockers Waltzer and Detroit 60s psych-pop trio Shadow Show.

Waltzer played a fun, solid rock set with a band who, if I heard the lead singer, Sophie, correctly had only been playing together for a short time and was made of members of many other cool Chicago bands. You wouldn’t have guessed they haven’t been together long, because everyone was in synch and had the audience moving. “They sound like Caroline Rose fronting L7, but with more psychedelia,” I thought at one point during their set.

I was happy to hear from Shadow Show that they’re working on a new album, and equally delighted to hear their lovely psych-pop covered in lots of groovy fuzz in a live setting. They hadn’t played in Chicago since before the pandemic, so they were glad to be back on the road and playing a fun set. Afterward, I was stunned to learn that the father of bassist Kate Derringer was one of the driving forces behind the 7th Level music club I attended in Ft. Wayne, Indiana back in my high school days – and the inspiration for the name of this blog. Her father had seen my review of Shadow Show’s Silhouettes and asked her, “Who’s this guy who knows about the Level?” She’d read the review and was now just as floored to meet me in a weird “small world” moment.

Shadow Show (L-R: Ava East, Kerrigan Pearce, Kate Derringer)

Death Valley Girls came out and immediately got started with guitarist Larry Schemel and drummer Rikki Styxx creating a witch’s brew of beats and fuzz while lead singer / guitarist / keyboardist Bonnie Bloomgarden and bassist Sammy Westervelt shared a pre-set hug / meditation…and Ms. Westervelt rocked shoes that would make KISS envious.

Bonnie Bloomgarden (left) in Chuck Taylors, Sammy Westervelt (right) in shoes she might’ve stolen from Boots Collins or the David Bowie estate.

The creepy sounds soon transformed in “Abre Camino,” which only seems to get heavier every time I hear it live. They flowed right into “Street Justice” and stomped the gas pedal to the floor after that. Bonnie Bloomgarden was going into near-trances when she’d play keyboards by the time they got to “Disco.” New song “Magic Powers,” with Sammy Wetervelt on lead vocals, sounds better every time I hear it. Bloomgarden was prowling through and hugging many in the crowd as she sang “Disaster (Is What We’re After),” and they came back from the bottom of the stage stairs to play “Seis Seis Seis” as a sort-of encore.

They also hung out and chatted with anyone who wanted to chat after the show. Larry Schemel told me that this is the first tour in a long while for them for which they’ve been able to hand-pick their opening bands, so seeing them live right now gives you an insight into bands they also love.

Keep your mind open.

Death Valley Girls putting together spell components.

Keep your mind open.

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Levitation France 2022 recap – Day Two

When in Angers, you should check out the Apocalypse Tapestry at Chateau d’Angers. It’s one of the most doom metal things ever made.

Day Two (June 04th) of Levitation France was our busiest day of the festival. There was a small worry of rain and thunderstorms hitting the festival all three days, but it stayed away on Friday and had hit the area on Saturday afternoon. The skies looked clear for Saturday evening, and, thankfully, that turned out to be the case. We walked in for about the last third of a set by You Said Strange, who were highly popular judging by the number of their band shirts I saw at the festival that day.

You Said Strange getting strange on the Reverberation Stage.

Up next were Death Valley Girls. I hadn’t seen them live since the Psycho Music Festival last year, and they’d written a couple new songs since then (with a new album due in 2023!). They came out, battling the sun beaming directly into their eyes, and put on a heavy, spooky set to counter the light pouring over them.

Death Valley Girls battling the sun and casting spells.

I finally got to introduce myself to them afterwards, which was a delight. We’d only “known” each other through mutually followed Twitter feeds until that time. They’re currently on a three-week European tour and will have a big U.S. / Canada tour this summer (as well as a return to Psycho Music Festival). Don’t miss them.

Some blogger / radio DJ with Death Valley Girls

We then zipped across the lot to see Gustaf. I’d been itching to see them, as I heard their live shows were as fun and weird as their album, Audio Drag for Ego Slobs, and I had heard right. They were just as quirky and sharp as I’d hoped.

I’m not sure if Gustaf or the crowd were bouncing more during their set.

We took a food break (Thanks, BBQ food truck!) and then returned to the Reverberation Stage to see the legendary Kim Gordon come out and rock a mini-skirt better than most women half her age and rock a guitar and stage better than most anyone in the game. It was great to see someone exude so much sensual, raw power.

Australian rockers Pond were up next and put on a fun, energetic set. Their musicianship was tested and on full display when one synthesizer broke only a few songs into their set. They had to adapt their set list on the fly and play songs they hadn’t intended, and did it without missing a beat.

Pond, changing like chameleons from song to song.

Japanese psych-rock legends Kikagaku Moyo were next. In case you weren’t aware, they are on their final tour for a long time – possibly forever – so don’t miss them if they’re near your town. They sound great as always and dazzled the crowd for their whole set.

The festival closed with Canadian electro-industrial duo Pelada, who, if I heard right, were booked a bit at the last minute. They got the entire crowd dancing, with singer Chris Vargas owning the stage (and crowd) from the first moment she appeared. Tobias Rochman‘s beats were a wild switch from the trippy psych-rock and post-punk of the day. Watching douchebag guys being intimidated by Ms. Vargas was one of the highlights of the day.

Pelada dropping beats and spitting fire.

It was a fun day all-around, and the next day would bring psychedelic Shinto music, a band that plays like their hair is on fire, some psych-rock legends, four men on a mission, and a bus ride that will be talked about at the festival for years to come.

Keep your mind open.

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Death Valley Girls and Peaches combine their super powers.

Los Angeles’s Death Valley Girls have shared a remix of their new track “When I’m Free” by the legendary multi-disciplinary artist Peaches via Suicide Squeeze Records.

For nearly a decade, Death Valley Girls have made it their mission to remind the punks, psych rockers, garage aficionados, and desert mystics of the communal, transcendental, and triumphant power of music, as evidenced most recently in the riotous affirmations of their 2022 track “When I’m Free.”

The song fuses Bonnie Bloomgarden’s passionate vocals, Larry Schemel’s anthemic guitar chords, rousing sing-along choruses, and feverish organ lines into a perfect three-minute shot of adrenaline and dopamine. Despite the old-school nature of their instrumentation, Death Valley Girls are well aware of the revolutionary power of the dance floor, so they approached one of their heroes — Peaches — to help re-envision “When I’m Free” for the club crowd.

What better way to reinforce the liberating spirit of the song than to give it to Peaches, an artist who continues to push boundaries in a career that spans over two decades, and who has helped so many people navigate sexuality, gender, identity, and being comfortable in one’s body in the new millennium.

Under Peaches’ meticulous care, “When I’m Free” transforms from a scrappy rock song to a throbbing, minimalist club banger. The musical key switches from major to minor, taking the song from celebratory mode into a leaner and meaner message of empowerment. Bloomgarden’s impassioned vocals remain in place along with a few organ glissandos, though the rest of the original is excised in favor of stark four-on-the-floor beats and pulsing synth bass. The sound may prompt a different type of gyration than the original, but the spirit of freedom and revelry remains and takes on a whole new angle under Peaches’ masterful manipulations.

Listen / share “When I’m Free (Peaches Remix)” on YouTube.

See Death Valley Girls and Peaches both on tour this spring/summer:

Death Valley Girls:

May 13 San Pedro, CA @ The Sardine

May 19 Everett, WA @ Fisherman’s Village Music Fest

May 31 Paris, FR @ Supersonic

June 2 Aix-en-Provence, FR @ 6MIC

June 3 Bourg-en-Bresse, FR @ La Tannerie

June 4 Angers, FR @ Levitation Fest

June 6 Koln, DE @ Sonic Ballroom

June 7 Munster, DE @ Gleis 22

June 8 Berlin, DE @ Urban Spree

June 9 Malmo, SE @ Plan B

June 10 Copenhagen, DK @ Loppen

June 11 Goteborg, SE @ Showdown

June 13 Le Havre, FR @ Mc Daid’s

June 14 Birmingham, UK @ Hare & Hounds

June 15 Leeds, UK @ Brudenell Social Club

June 16 Newcastle, UK @ The Clunny

June 17 Nottingham, UK @ The Bodega

June 18 London, UK @ The Lexington

June 19 Brighton, UK @ The Hope & Ruin

June 21 Barcelona, SP @ Upload

June 22 Valencia, SP @ Loco Club

June 23 Madrid, SP @ Wurlitzer Ballroom

June 14 Vigo, SP@ La Iguana Club

June 25 Oviedo, SP @ La Salvaje

June 26 Sopelana, SP @ La Triangu

June 28 Ravenna, IT @ Hana-Bi

June 29 Perugia, IT @ Fat Art Club

June 30 Livorno, IT @ Ultima Cecina

July 1 Padova, IT @ Sub Cult Fest

July 15 San Francisco, CA @The Chapel

July 16 Santa Cruz, CA @ Crepe Place

July 17 Cayucos, CA @ Schooners

August 5 Indianapolis, IN @ Back Alley Ballyhoo Fest

The Teaches of Peaches Anniversary Tour 2022:

May 15 Vancouver, BC @ Harbour Event Centre

May 16 Seattle, WA @ The Showbox

May 17 Portland, OR @ Wonder Ballroom

May 20 San Francisco, CA @ The Masonic

May 21 Pasadena, CA @ Just Like Heaven Festival

May 22 San Diego, CA @ The Observatory North Park

May 25 Montreal, QC @ MTelus

May 26 Toronto, ON @ Rebel

May 28 Brooklyn, NY @ Great Hall at Avant Gardner

May 29 Boston, MA @ House of Blues

June 4 Bergen, NO @ Bergen International Festival

June 5 Stockholm, SE @ Berns

June 6 Malmö, SE @ Malmö Live

June 10 Brighton, UK @ Brighton Dome

June 11 London, UK @ Grace Jones’ Meltdown Festival

June 13 Glasgow, UK @ SWG3 Galvanizers

June 14 Manchester, UK @ O2 Ritz Manchester

June 15 Liverpool, UK @ Invisible Wind Factory

June 16 Bristol, UK @ Marble Factory

June 19 Amsterdam, NL @ Paradiso

June 20 Paris, FR @ Le Trianon

June 21 Brussels, BE @ AB

June 26 Dublin, IE @ The Mother Pride Block Party

July 1 Porto, PT @ GBT+ Music Festival

July 9 Bilbao, SP @ Bilbao BBK Live

July 16 Graz, AT @ Elevate Festival

Sept 1-3 Lisbon, PT @ Kalorama Festival

FOR MORE INFORMATION ON PEACHES, VISIT:

TWITTER | INSTAGRAM | FACEBOOK

FOR MORE INFORMATION ON DEATH VALLEY GIRLS, VISIT:

TWITTER | INSTAGRAM | FACEBOOK

Keep your mind open.

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[Thanks to Stephanie at Indie Publicity.]

Top 15 live shows of 2021: #’s 10 – 6

I saw over 30 bands last year, despite many shows being cancelled or postponed, and here are the ones that made the top ten.

#10: Frankie and the Witch Fingers – Ft. Wayne’s Brass Rail – October 08th

This was the third time I’d seen Frankie and the Witch Fingers in as many months (and the last time I’d see them in 2021), and they played a wild set in a small club that included some new, unreleased material.

#9: Danzig – Psycho Music Festival – August 21st

I’m not sure how I hadn’t seen Danzig in concert until now, but he and his crew put on a good show. They played Lucifuge in its entirety and plenty of other tracks – including a long encore missed by at least half the crowd.

#8: Claude Fontaine – Psycho Music Festival – August 20th

In the middle of the Psycho Music Festival, which is heavy on metal of all sorts, Claude Fontaine came onstage at the Mandalay Bay House of Blues and put on the most beautiful set of the entire festival. Backed by two percussionists and a guy on acoustic guitar, she performed gorgeous bossa nova and dub tracks for her first show ever in the Sin City. Shame on you if you missed it.\

#7: Death Valley Girls – Psycho Music Festival – August 19th

Playing as the sun set and the moon rose, Death Valley Girls were a highlight of the “Psycho Swim” opening night of the 2021 Psycho Music Festival in Las Vegas. Like pretty much everyone there, it was their first gig in nearly two years and their excitement was palpable.

#6: The Flaming Lips – Psycho Music Festival – August 21st

It’s always a joy to see The Flaming Lips, and hearing their uplifting songs and soaking up the energy from the loving crowd was just what we needed as we returned to live music and hope. This show will always have a special place in my heart, as it was the last time my late wife was able to see them. Their shows always boosted her spirit.

Who’s in the top five? You’ll have to wait until tomorrow to learn!

Keep your mind open.

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Psycho Las Vegas 2021 recap: Day One

I wasn’t sure what to expect at the 2021 Psycho Las Vegas music festival. I’d bought tickets to the 2020 festival, but that was, like everything else, cancelled due to the pandemic. I kept the tickets in hopes that most, if not all, of the bands would return. Most did, but there were some absences that were bummers (Windhand, Mephistofeles, and Boris in particular). There were also additions that were quite welcome (Osees, Frankie and the Witch Fingers, Thievery Corporation).

I also had no idea what to expect in terms of healthy safety measures and how I, my wife, and people in general were going to react to be at a music festival again, or even in a casino and among large groups of people again. Nonetheless, we took our vaccinated bodies to Sin City and were happy to discover that the airplane, airport, and all businesses in Nevada are under a mask mandate.

My guess is that 70% of festival crowd was masked nearly all the time. The only person I heard complaining about it was Glenn Danzig (more on that later). The biggest health hazard complaint I had was due to the stunning amount of smokers. I’ve been gone from festivals for so long that I’d forgotten how many people smoke at them, let alone in casinos. Plus, marijuana is legal in Nevada, so the stank of the sticky-icky was everywhere. It’s illegal to smoke it in public, but the odds of you getting cited for it are slim to none.

The festival opened on Thursday, August 19th, with the “Psycho Swim” kick-off party. The festival is held at the Mandalay Bay Casino Hotel, and the “Psycho Swim” is at their Daylight Beach Club – where the security didn’t allow you to bring in a wallet chain or even gum. The pool was full of metal fans, psych-weirdos, music nerds, and, yes, some sexy people.

Everyone is sinking in this pool because the festival was so metal-heavy.

No, we didn’t get into the pool. It was too crowded by the time we got there, and we were mainly there to see bands for the first time in almost two years. The first was Here Lies Man, who opened the entire festival with their groovy, Afro-doom riffs.

For the record, I was the only one in the crowd with a Here Lies Man shirt (which I picked up from them at the last Levitation Music Festival in Austin). I got to thank many of the HLM members after the show, and J.P., the bassist, was kind enough to give me his set list.

It was their first show in two years. This would be a repeated theme from nearly every band we saw over the weekend. All of them were excited to be playing a live show in front of a crowd again.

Up next were Blackwater Holylight, who started off their set by saying, “Okay, we’re going to play some depressing songs for you.” Their doom-psych was appreciated by the crowd, and their upcoming album should be pretty good – judging from the songs they played from it.

Blackwater Holylight were perhaps the only band all weekend who appropriately dressed for the desert heat.

We left for a little while to enjoy some air conditioning and lunch at an Irish pub in the shopping center that connects Mandalay Bay and the Luxor (where we stayed for about half the price of a room at Mandalay Bay). I recommend the turkey burger. We returned in time for Death Valley Girls‘ set, which was the best of the night. They played a wild set of mystical psychedelia. Lead singer Bonnie Bloomgarden, seeming to draw power from the moon, wore a red dress that made her look like a ghost from a Dario Argento movie and a belt that looked like she won it in a professional wrestling match with a cyborg from the year 2305 (and, for all I know, she did). There were a few times when I wasn’t sure if she was wiping sweat from her face or tears from being so happy that they were performing their “first show in about three hundred years,” as she put it. Guitarist Larry Schemel was on fire as well, unleashing some heavy riffs throughout the set. I chatted with him afterwards for a moment, and thanked him for coming out to the festival. He thanked me and said, “This feels weird. It’s our first show after so long…It’s bizarre.” He also gave me his set list, which was a surprise gift.

“Look at the moon!” – Bonnie Bloomgarden (in red dress) points out her cosmic guide for the evening.

It was a good start to the weekend. We had good music, good food, everyone was being cool about each other’s health (the resorts had plenty of hand sanitizer stations and free masks), and we had plenty of time to sleep in the next day.

Up next, dirty metal, psych-rock, stoner metal, electro-goth, shoe gaze, and…bossa nova?

Keep your mind open.

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Top 35 albums of 2020: #’s 25 – 21

The top 25? Already? Yep. Here we go.

#25: Death Valley Girls – Levitation Sessions: Live from the Astral Plane

Your live psychedelic rock album can’t miss when the first track is a guide to astral projection. You also can’t miss when it’s full of wild rock, passionate vocals, and, for all I know, tantric magic.

#24: Deeper – Auto-Pain

Wow. I mean…Wow. This post-punk record covers some serious subjects (suicide, existential angst, boredom, ennui, technological creep) and does it with serious chops and resolve.

#23: All Them Witches – Nothing As the Ideal

All Them Witches returned with possibly their heaviest album to date. Nothing As the Ideal is almost a Black Sabbath record in its tone and sheer sonic weight. It sounds like they were getting out all their frustration of not being able to tour on the record. It’s a cathartic gem.

#22: Protomartyr – Unlimited Success Today

Protomartyr put out one of the mots intriguing records of 2020. Unlimited Success Today is layered with stunning guitar chords, powerhouse drumming, and mysterious lyrics that sometimes read and sound like a madman yelling atop a milk crate in the middle of a busy intersection in your town.

#21: Gordon Koang – Unity

Possibly the most uplifting album of 2020, Unity is the tale of refugee Gordon Koang finally becoming an Australian citizen. Koang is a musical superstar in Africa, but fled the continent due to civil war and threats on his life. Despite all his tribulations, Unity is a record full of hope (not to mention fun Afrobeat tracks) that we needed last year.

The top 20 of 2020 are coming up next!

Keep your mind open.

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