OzzMania, Just Like Priest, Motorbreath & More are Bringing Heavy Metal Hits to House of Blues Sunset, Jan. 21
Going through Ozzfest withdrawl? Relax — there is a rock and roll reprise of sorts on the horizon.
West Hollywood hot spot House of Blues Sunset is hosting the closest thing you’re ever gonna find to Ozzfest on January 21, when OzzMania(right) brings to the Strip an arsenal of Ozzy Osbourne and Black Sabbath hits, along with four other metal-loving tribute bands!
SoCal cover band OzzMania proves you can’t kill rock and roll with a headlining night of non-stop metal that will be shaking up Sunset alongside Slayer-worshipping rockers Slaytanic; masters of Metallica, Motorbreath(right); spot-on Judas Priest imitators Just Like Priest (main photo, top); and Du Hast, which will rock out some Rammstein.
House of Blues Sunset is at located at 8430 Sunset. Get tickets and show times here.
Metal-Loving, Groundbreaking Urban Artists–and a Few Superstar Creatives–Are Turning L.A. into the Guerilla-Art Capital of the World. Eat Your Heart Out, East Village
By David Ciminelli
Hanging out in NYC’s East and West Villages in the ’80s/early ’90s, it wasn’t uncommon to spot cool and edgy urban art left by creative transplants like Keith Haring and Mark Kostabiand locals like SAMO/Basquiat and Robert Longo. (Nowadays, you can still find some of these celebrated artists’ sidewalk carvings and fading murals throughout NYC, if you know where to look.)
Take a virtual tour below of these and other artists’ amazing artwork that Sunset and Clark has stumbled upon over the past few years during our travels up and down the Sunset Strip, from the PCH to DTLA, and throughout the Southland. A few world-renown artists, including the edgy and awe-inspiring Banksy, Kenny Scharf, Retna and Shepard Fairey, also gifted the City of Angels with colorful original creations, both sanctioned by the city and guerilla-style. Check ’em out and get inspired by awesome artworks that all share a rock and roll edge.
The Sunset Strip welcomed in a new neighbor this week, when Angus Young landed on the boulevard in a slick new West Hollywood billboard hyping AC/DC‘s new hit album, Rock or Bust.
It’s great to see the Aussie guitar god overlooking the strip between La Cienega and Alta Loma, especially when Rock Row near the Whisky and Roxy is suffering from the urban blight of not one but two (!!) One Direction billboards featuring the boy band peering down on the intersection of Sunset and Clark/San Vicente.
YOU WANTED THE BEST (KISS TRIBUTE BAND), YOU GOT THE BEST: PRISS AT VIPER ROOM, NOVEMBER 14
Hey,Iron Maidens, we’ve found the perfect band should the female Maiden cover group ever decide to start its own Metalpalooza festival: PRISS, a face-painted, leather-costumed, hard-rockin’ KISS tribute band that is fronted by four fierce female rockers.
The L.A. band, which certifiably kicks ass — check ’em out here — will be heading to the Sunset Strip on Friday, November 14, to bring the hits from one of the greatest rock bands on the planet to the Viper Room. The 21-and-over show also features two more really good local bands that are definitely worth checking out: Spirit in the Room and Breaking Arrows.
Even the “God of Thunder” himself, Gene Simmons, has given PRISS a seal of approval, featuring the band on Family Jewels last year, when Shannon Tweed joined PRISS on stage as “Queen Simmons.”
The ladies of PRISS not only prove that KISS’ famous costumes — and various incarnations of them — look even better on a sexy-edgy all-female band, they are also remarkable musicians that rock just as hard as the ground-breaking, multi-platinum group that inspired them.
PRISS is comprised of starry-eyed guitarist-vocalist Doll Stanley (Moa Henriksson); darling demon bassist-vocalist and “Goddess of Thunder,” Jean Simone (Andrea Zermeno); spacey lead six-string slinger Lace Frehley (Jennifer Paro); and foxy feline drummer Luda Criss (Judy Cocuzza).
Viper Room is located in the heart of West Hollywood, at 8852 Sunset Boulevard at Larrabee. Doors open at 9 p.m. and tickets are only $10. (Seriously, $10!) Get tickets and more information here.
The only reason you can possibly have for missing PRISS on the Sunset Strip is that you’re laid up in a KISS Kasket! See you at the show!
LED ZEPPELIN GUITAR GOD JIMMY PAGE TO TALK MUSIC & MAYHEM WITH CHRIS CORNELL NOV. 12 IN L.A.
Been a long time since you rock and rolled? Los Angeles music fans are getting a rare opportunity to witness rock history next month, when iconic superstars Chris Cornell (right) and Jimmy Page share a conversation about the 70-year-old Led Zeppelin founder’s glorious years in one of the world’s greatest bands on November 12 at Downtown L.A.’s legendary The Theatre at Ace Hotel.
The event, “An Evening with Jimmy Page in Conversation with Chris Cornell,” is being held to celebrate the release of the iconic British guitarist’s photo memoir, Jimmy Page.
Soundgarden frontman Cornell and Page will be chatting about the latter’s time in the Yardbirds and Zeppelin and showcase some private phtos from Page’s personal collection. Genesis Publishing’s 500-page book , which debuted last month, features over 650 rare photos and artwork from the musician’s pre- and post-Zeppelin superstardom and traces his career from the start right up to his 2008 stint performing “Whole Lotta Love” alongside Leona Lewis at the Beijing Olympics.
“An Evening with Jimmy Page in Conversation with Chris Cornell” starts at 8:30 p.m.; doors open at 7 p.m. Tickets are $100, which includes a copy of Page’s memoir, and $150, which includes the book and a poster. The Theatre at Ace Hotel at 939 Broadway. Get ticket details here.
WARNER DRIVE TO HEADLINE CITY OF ANGELS RECORD RELEASE SHOW AT SUNSET STRIP’S VIPER ROOM NOV. 8
As far as Hollywood buzz bands go, they don’t get much better than Warner Drive. The hard rocking fivesome has been tirelessly shaking up the Sunset Strip for a couple years now before recently taking some time off the club scene to record new material.
Local fans will get a live taste of the new stuff when Warner Drive hits up the Viper Room on November 8 for a headlining gig at the iconic rock club. The band’s return to the Sunset Strip is to celebrate the long awaited release of WD’s new album, City of Angels.
As expected, the band does not disappoint with City of Angels, which includes 10 solid tracks featuring WD’s newer club staples and brand spankin’ new material.
City of Angels, which officially dropped September 9, kicks off with “Rising From the Fallen,” a full-throttle, Sabbathy hard rock anthem that Disturbed would have killed to have recorded. We think the late, great Dio would give this track two devil’s horns up.
The album starts off very strong and never lets up, seguing to the title track, “City of Angels,” which is the coolest L.A. anthem to surface from a Sunset Strip-launched band since Motley Crue‘s “Saints of Los Angeles.”
“Radio Love Song” echoes with ’80s-metal-style harmonies and is the most radio-ready and badass sing-along track since WD’s signature jam “The Scarecrow.” Likewise, the band’s new single “Boys N’ Girls” is another killer original rock song that would have fit comfortably on any early Skidrow or Dokken album.
Also on the new release, frontman Jonny Law and crew — guitarists Candice Levinson and Ryan Harris, bassist Elvis James and drummer Jonny U — switch gears from party rock to get political and bust some strings on the catchy, hard-rocking “West Memphis Three.”
“King of Swing” is standard Warner Drive: mercilessly melodic chorus, scorching guitars and a solid rhythm section that kicks this tune into overdrive and should blow the roof off of the Viper Room on November 8.
Also, considering that WD has already immortalized Viper Room in one of its best songs, expect Warner Drive to deliver a particularly scorching version of “Viper Room.”
Viper Room is located in the heart of the Strip at 8852 West Sunset Boulevard. The show starts at 10:30 p.m. Tickets are $10, or $15 with a copy of City of Angels. Lose Control and Kicking Harold are also on the bill. Get ticket details here.
BEEN A LONG TIME SINCE YOU ROCK & ROLLED? GET SET TO SHOUT AT THE DEVIL & DANCE THE NIGHT AWAY ONCE AGAIN!
Not enough metal in your summer? Bummed about the closing of Rock Row landmark Hollywood SoundCheck? Disappointed by the lack of classic metal bands in the SSMF 2014 lineup? Don’t fret. A good mix of hard rockin’ fan bands is coming to a stage near you to save your end-of-summer partying.
On September 12, a hard rocking trio of cover bands paying homage to three of the biggest rock groups in history–Van Halen, Bon Jovi and Motley Crue–will set their amps to 11 and rattle the roof of House of Blues Anaheim. Giving L.A. rock fans a good reason to make the commute over to The O.C. is Atomic Punks, the L.A. Music Awards-winning tribute band whose spot-on covers of early VH tracks has made fans out of metal aficionados like Bret Michaels and Howard Stern; Crue-worshipping rockers Motley Inc.; and Wanted, which will attempt to rock a million–or a couple hundred–faces with scorchin’ renditions of Bon Jovi’s runaway hits. Get tickets and additional details here.
The next night, on September 13, head over to House of Blues Sunsetfor a trip back to the awesome ’80s with Brit band The Molly Ringwalds. The costumed cover rockers’ roster of retro rock and pop classics generally includes tunes by Sunset Strip icons like Guns N’ Roses, The Go-Gos, Motley Crue and Poison. Timeless tracks by Eighties metal monsters like Twisted Sister and Whitesnake also often wind their way into The Molly Ringwalds’ set list. And considering that these cover rockers are from Sheffield, England, you can expect to hear some anthemic hits from the group’s hometown heroes, Def Leppard.
Wanna get rocked? The Whisky A Go Go is the spot to head to on September 16, when fellow Def Leppard lovers Pyromania takes center stage as headliners of the return of AXS TV’s concert show The World’s Greatest Tribute Bands. Get more details and free tickets here.
Stroll the Sunset Strip east the following week and hit up House of Blues Sunset for a night of good times, rad times when Led Zeppelin 2 cranks up its amps on September 25. Winding down its national tour through America, the Chicago-based band sticks so close to Zeppelin’s repertoire that you can expect to get a contact high just by watching. It’s also why Metallica guitar legend Kirk Hammet has publicly declared, “These guys sound fucking exactly like Led Zeppelin!”
ROBERT TRUJILLO TO REUNITE WITH MASS MENTAL AUG. 26
Metallica bassist Robert Trujillo is keeping good on a promise made earlier this summer and is heading back to the Sunset Strip to rock the Whisky A Go Go with a reunited Mass Mental on August 26.
The all-ages show will feature Trujillo once again jamming with his funky, pre-Metallica, art-rock bandmates: vocalist Benji Webbe, bassist Armand Sabal-Lecco and drummer Ken Schalk.
Making the historic heavy metal experience even more cool is the addition of guest vocalist Whitfield Crane of Ugly Kid Joe.
The L.A. show is a warm-up gig for Mass Mental’s September 6 slot at Germany’s Warwick Open Day music fest.
Landmark Sunset Strip rock club TheViper Room celebrates its 21st anniversary this month as one of the city’s best venues for live shows. To mark the milestone, from August 11 to 16, The Viper Room, at 8852 Sunset Boulevard, is hosting a week of special shows featuring an electric and eclectic mix of music, including an all-star salute to classic rock. Check out the details here.
Great acoustics, fantastic sight lines from anywhere in the club, comfy vibe and an always awesome roster of diverse rock-oriented artists has kept Viper Room one of Sunset and Clark’s favorite hot spots on the Strip since we first stepped foot in the club not too long after it first opened its doors. Here’s some of our favorite Viper Room moments from the first 21 years…
FAVORITE SHOW BY A LOCAL ACT:
After randomly stumbling upon Warner Drive one night during a multi-band bill a few years ago, the Hollywood rockers immediately became–and remain–our favorite local band. And we made that decision before the band was done with its first song.
FAVORITE SHOW BY A NATIONAL ACT:
Bryan “Big B” Mahoney in 2012. The hip-hoppin’ white trash renegade rocked the Viper Room hardcore with nothing but a mic, a kick-ass three-piece band and an arsenal of redneck party anthems. The set still has us baffled as to why B isn’t bigger than Kid Rock yet.
BEST VIPER ROOM MOMENT:
Checking out a multi-band bill in the mid-Nineties and watchingsinger-songwriter Brian Grillo (right), frontman of legendary, in-your-face, Silver Lake-launched homocore band Extra Fancy,literally drop his mic mid-show and jump off the Viper Room stage before a packed crowd to chase a heckling homophobe right out of the club!
FAVORITE ROCK STAR SIGHTING:
The time we turned and noticed that the guy standing next to us at the back of the club nodding his head to the music at a random show was one of our all-time favorite artists, Red Hot Chili Peppers frontman Anthony Kiedis.
COOLEST VIPER ROOM SHOW EVER:
In what was probably the hardest rockin’ show since Guns N’ Roses used to rock Sunset, Viper Room regulars the Lonely Drunks Club Band celebrated the 25th anniversary of Appetite for Destruction in 2012 by inviting the vocalists for some of L.A.’s best bands, including Brando’s Island and GN’R tribute band Hollywood Roses, to front the mic on a track-by-track cover set paying homage to the hits-packed metal classic. Axl would approve.
MOST INDELIBLE IMPRESSION:
In addition to bringing in some of our favorite national acts and introducing us to great local bands like Warner Drive and Lonely Drunks Club Band, The Viper Room has also helped to hype some very cool visual artists whose original work has adorned the club’s exterior over the years, including our faves David Flores and Becca.
MOST SURREAL ROCK MOMENT:
If we weren’t there to witness it, we wouldn’t have believed it when then-newly signed Atlantic artists Never the Bride performed a record release show for the British band’s 1995 self-titled major label debut that included a powerful cover of “Going to California” that was indisputably on par with LedZeppelin‘s untouchable original.
OLD TOWER RECORDS SUNSET LOCATION IS ‘FLIPPED’ AGAIN
WeHo has gotten yet another facelift! Innovative start-up Flipagram is bringing some youthful, edgy ambiance back to the old Tower Records Sunset location as the newest proprietor of the famous property in the heart of West Hollywood.
After Tower toppled in 2006, the shell of Tower Records Sunset at the corner of Sunset and Horn had it famous yellow and red exterior painted over numerous times in various shades as it housed a few different businesses of varying success.
Live on Sunset clothing store settled into the warehouse-size building for a few years before calling it quits in 2013. The site then became a random parking lot for a few months before a Halloween costumes pop-up shop rented the space last fall.
Flipagram set up shop on Sunset in June after launching online late last year. The good news is that the company seems to have a lot more in common with the former record retailer than other businesses that were housed at the old Tower location. Music-focused Flipagram lets users synch their choice of hit songs to their cell photos to create “short video stories” via the free app. It’s kind of like Instagram but with an added dose of cool courtesy of some Motley Crue or Def Leppard. And what could be better than sharing your photographs synched to “Photograph”?!?
DEMONS ON MELROSE: KISS BRINGS ROCKIN’ STYLE TO WEHO
Detroit (Rock City)-born designer John Varvatos is giving KISS Army members a good reason to trade in their uniforms and step-up their style by using KISS to showcase his latest menswear collection. The front windows of Varvatos’ West Hollywood store at 8800 Melrose Ave at Robertson feature likenesses of the iconic band members donning the designer’s Spring 2014 fashions.
While we have never personally owned a man purse, we have to admit that no one looks more manly with one than the Demon himself.
The WeHo window display follows the recent unveiling of Varvatos’ KISS billboard on La Cienega featuring the New York band on its home turf and dressed to kill in designer suits from Varvatos’ Spring 2014 collection.
The couture designer also debuted a limited-edition KISS “Dressed to Kill” t-shirt, a double-sided tee that received the band’s blessing. The only downside to the cool collaboration? The t-shirt costs $118! We guess that if you want to look like a rock star you have to have a rock star’s income, too. Better brush up on those power chords!
SAINTS OF LOS ANGELES: SSMF 2011 honorees Motley Crue at House of Blues’ pre-fest party.
HOUSE OF BLUES CELEBRATES 20 YEARS OF ROCKIN’ SUNSET
We raise a toast today to House of Blues Sunset, which is celebrating 20 years of kicking ass on the world-famous Sunset Strip by bringing in some of the greatest rock shows around during its first two decades of decadence.
Aerosmith helped House of Blues Sunset kick open its doors with a show by the hit-making hard rockers 20 years ago today, April 22. Since then, the local hot spot in the heart of WeHo has hosted a rockin’ roster of local and international music artists. Further adding to its street cred, House of Blues Sunset is also the official host to the Sunset Strip Music Festival‘s annual pre-event kick-off party honoring SSMF’s honorees.
Some of our favorite shows over the past two decades include Pat Benatar, Foo Fighters, 311, The Doors, L.A. rock legends X, Tenacious D, Jars of Clay, Goo Goo Dolls, Social Distortion, Steel Panther, local faves Warner Drive (right) and cheering on Motley Crue at the band’s 2011 SSMF event, to name just a few of the superstar artists that have lured us back to Sunset and Olive again and again.
To celebrate the milestone, House of Blues Sunset is offering a 20 percent discount at the hot spot’s restaurant and store.
We spotted this rockin’ and random stencil art confession by prolific L.A. street artist Wrdsmth just off the Sunset Strip, outside Viper Room‘s Larrabee entrance. We imagine that, like us, most Angelenos totally empathize with half of this statement–and occasionally, the other half!
WHISKY SERVES UP DOUBLE SHOT OF METAL WITH HOLLYWOOD ROSES & MOTLEY TOO
Sure, it’s been awhile since Guns N’ Roses and Motley Crue played the Sunset Strip. But if you have enough Night TrainExpress and head to the Whisky A Go-Go tonight, you, like Bowling for Soup, may be able to drift back to 19, 19 1985!
Perhaps the the next best thing to a real Guns/Motley double-bill, local legends Hollywood Roses (right) and Motley Too (below) will be visiting the Whisky tonight to do a little dancing with Mr. Browntstone and shouting at the Devil while keeping the spirit of Sunset strip-launched heavy metal alive!
SoCal rockers Never Justified, who cite GN’R as a key influence, along with Foo Fighters, Zeppelin and Slash, are also on the bill and making the Saturday night event the band’s record release showcase for Never Justified’s debut EP.
Also set to hit the Whisky stage tonight, Sept. 14, is OC Bay, a local duo delivering original tunes and familiar covers. Get more deets here.
The Gibson Guitar Town urban art installation has added a new rock-star tribute to its cool collection of giant guitars that dot the Sunset Strip.
On-again, off-again, on-againFleetwood Mac hit-maker and solo superstar Stevie Nicks is the newest legend to be immortalized with a huge guitar installation featuring a colorful mosaic portrait of the prolific singer-songwriter. The artwork is on display in front of Mel’s Diner.
OK, so the illustrated “Gold Dust Woman” kinda looks like Dina Lohan, but it’s the thought that counts. And it’s great to see Stevie getting her props on Sunset!
Going through Ozzfest withdrawl? Relax — there is a rock and roll reprise of sorts on the horizon.
SoCal cover band OzzMania proves you can’t kill rock and roll with a headlining night of non-stop metal that will be shaking up Sunset alongside Slayer-worshipping rockers Slaytanic; masters of Metallica, Motorbreath (right); spot-on Judas Priest imitators Just Like Priest (main photo, top); and Du Hast, which will rock out some Rammstein.
On September 12, a hard rocking trio of cover bands paying homage to three of the biggest rock groups in history–Van Halen, Bon Jovi and Motley Crue–will set their amps to 11 and rattle the roof of 
SUNSETandCLARK.blog 