As many bands were looking for a place to play after their Sunset Junction Fair gig had been cancelled, a party at Dangerbird Records was organized during the afternoon, and it turned out to be a great thing since the event (the entrance was free but you could make a donation) raised $2,500 for the kid cancer charity, the Pablove Foundation.
It was a busy afternoon line-up, co-hosted by 98.7 FM and Buzz Bands LA, and people braved the close-to-100ºF heat to see something like 8 different bands play under the burning sun,… poor guys! I was able to catch a few of them like the quintet Vanaprasta and their complex and explosive music, which did not let the energy going down a second despite the extreme heat.
‘Rock and roll’s not dead’ shouted someone in the crowd when they were done, they were indeed true arena-rock giants; with several synths in the front, a big sound flirting with the psychedelic, fast and furious guitar riffs, surprising rhythmic shifts and long jamming sessions, they truly rocked out the place. Led Zeppelin anyone? Steven Wilkin’s falsetto voice was especially noticeable, it was the undeniable star of the show, soulful and powerful at the same time, he was using it like another instrument. I had seen them before, but it seems that every time I see them, they have become a bigger deal!
There was a funny moment that made everyone laugh hard when guitarist Cameron Dmytryk escaped the stage during one of their long jams and was grabbed by a security guard when he was trying to return to the stage. Not quite the immediately recognizable star, but it may come sooner than they think.