Hello, my name is Ashlin Ashbaugh, Mojo’s new Junior editor and personal assistant. This would be my first article/column. Never done this before, so here goes nothing.
So, there’s a couple up and coming shows and events I’m going to this summer. The first show I will be going to is THROW RAG on June 20th, which are headlining the show at the Garden Amp. The Grabbers will also be there at the show. This will be my second time seeing Throw Rag. I saw them 2 years ago at the same place. FRYING SAUCERS will be in the locker room, which is the small room at the amp. They were recommended to me by Dennis M Kopczak.
The next day after Throw Rag, I’m going to Black Hole Records to see THE ORDER OF THE FLY. Owner Bill Evans of the Black Hole Records, band, NAUGHTY WOMEN, is also playing. It will be in the parking lot of Black Hole Records.
Then, on July 2nd, for my 18th birthday countdown, it’s off to the Whisky A Go Go for the METEORS and other psychobilly bands.
On July 11th, I will be also going to GUTTERFEST, which Guttermouth are headlining. Dan the Bull from CHEMICAL CONTROL is playing in the locker room at the same event.
After that, on July 18th, I will be at Reverend Horton Heat at The Observatory OC.
On August 13th, I will be at the Road Dog TV awards show, a night of unity in Long Beach, celebraing 13 years of music, art, and culture at the Art Theatre. Which I got personally invited to by G from HTTH (Who are celebrating their 30th anniversary.).
Stay tuned for my review of each event in the next issue.
People always ask me what it’s like running the LA Punk Museum. The truth is there is no museum building. There never was. Punk was never about sitting quietly behind glass. Punk is movement. Punk is community. Punk is showing up. Punk is carrying history in a cardboard box to a gallery, a club, a university, or somebody’s living room and sharing it with whoever walks through the door.
The last month has been a perfect example of that.
I’ve been bouncing between archives, galleries, universities, television projects, concerts, museum planning, and enough coffee meetings to keep a small city awake. One day I’m discussing the future of Punk School, the next I’m digging through forty-year-old flyers, and by nightfall I’m singing Kurt Weill songs and talking about the first wave of Los Angeles punk rock.
The LA Punk Museum continues its strange and wonderful life as a nomadic institution. We pop up wherever we’re invited. Galleries. Universities. Cultural centers. Record stores. Wherever people want to talk about punk history. The museum was founded on the idea that culture belongs to the people who made it, and every year more people seem interested in preserving these stories before they disappear.
I’ve also been spending time working on Punk School, a project that has grown far beyond a book. What started as a collection of memories is becoming a curriculum, a workbook, an archive, and a challenge to the idea that education only happens in classrooms. Punk taught many of us how to think for ourselves, build communities, create art, publish our own media, and survive. That’s an education worth preserving.
Meanwhile, preparations continue for what promises to be a very busy year in Europe. The upcoming exhibitions in Vienna, Berlin, Amsterdam, and Germany are bringing together artists, musicians, archivists, and troublemakers from around the world. It’s exciting to see how punk culture continues to evolve while still carrying the DNA of those first chaotic years.
One thing that never ceases to amaze me is how international punk has become. When I first got involved, most people thought of punk as a local scene. Today, I can have conversations with artists from Berlin, Vienna, Mexico City, Tokyo, London, and Los Angeles all in the same day. Different languages. Different cultures. Same spirit.
I’ve also continued my work with university archives and researchers documenting punk history. For years, people dismissed punk as something temporary. Now universities are collecting flyers, fanzines, photographs, video footage, and oral histories. The kids who were once told they would never amount to anything have become subjects of academic study. There is something wonderfully punk about that.
Music remains at the center of everything. Whether it’s revisiting the work of Kurt Weill, celebrating the Ramones, talking about Nina Hagen, or discovering new bands carrying the torch, the soundtrack never stops. Punk has always been more than a genre. It’s a conversation that stretches across generations.
And then there’s Tequila TV, which somehow continues after all these years. Public access television taught me an important lesson: don’t wait for permission. If nobody gives you a platform, build your own. That lesson still applies today whether you’re making television, publishing a zine, starting a podcast, or opening a museum.
What I’ve learned after decades in punk rock is that survival itself is a creative act. Every flyer saved, every story recorded, every young artist encouraged, every old friend remembered adds another thread to a history that was never supposed to last.
Yet here we are.
Almost fifty years after the first punk explosion, the culture is still growing, still arguing, still reinventing itself, and still finding new people who need it.
LEMMY WAS RIGHT: THE BEST EXHIBIT IN THE MUSEUM IS THE GIFT SHOP
Lemmy always told me the best exhibit in any museum is the gift shop.
So naturally, the first place I went when I walked into “Outsiders, Outcasts, Rebels + Weirdos: Punk Culture 1976–86” at the Skirball was the gift shop.
The funny thing about punk is that nobody ever expected it to end up in a museum. We were the flowers in the dustbin. We were the kids they said wouldn’t amount to anything. We were making flyers, stapling posters to telephone poles, sleeping on floors, starting bands with three chords and a bad attitude.
Now there are museum exhibitsAnd honestly? I thought it was a good show.
What struck me most wasn’t what was hanging on the walls. It was the people walking through the doors. The average age seemed to be around sixty. Veterans returning to the battlefield. Survivors checking in on their own history. But there was also a steady stream of younger visitors wandering through, trying to understand what all the noise was about.
Punk is popping out of the ground like weeds all over the world. The seeds got scattered decades ago and now they’re growing everywhere.
The Skirball is about as sterile a location as you can imagine for a movement that thrived in filthy clubs, abandoned warehouses, rehearsal spaces, and somebody’s living room. Yet somehow it works. Maybe because punk was never really about the location. Punk was about the people.
The gift shop was packed. I was told they can’t keep punk buttons in stock. The staff members were wearing them. That alone made me smile. The revolution may have been commercialized, but at least people are still wearing the uniform.
One of the highlights was meeting the manager of the gift shop, a leather smith from Los Angeles. Good people. The kind of people punk has always attracted. Creative people. Makers. Outsiders. The folks who build culture instead of consuming it.
The exhibition itself was assembled by curator Cate Thurston and guest curator Michael Worthington, who clearly understand that punk wasn’t just a sound. It was a community. A network of outsiders finding each other.
Walking through the galleries, I couldn’t help thinking about all the people who aren’t here anymore. The musicians, artists, promoters, photographers, zinesters, club owners, and weird kids who made this thing happen. They probably never imagined their homemade flyers and battered jackets would someday be displayed behind museum glass.
Yoko Ono’s Los Angeles Dreamscape
The first thing visitors encounter at Yoko Ono: Music of the Mind is an enormous portrait of the artist herself. She sits cross-legged in a sparse room, calm and centered, as though waiting for us to catch up. It is the perfect introduction to an exhibition that is less about looking at art and more about participating in it.
I attended the pre-opening in Los Angeles and found myself immersed in a world where art refuses to stay quietly on the wall. Visitors danced beneath flowing black fabric suspended in bright white space. Others scribbled messages, drawings, poems, and dreams on walls and ceilings, reaching as high as their arms would allow. One room has become a vast ocean of blue ink, layer upon layer of human expression accumulating over time.
Standing inside that room feels less like viewing an artwork and more like standing inside the collective consciousness of Los Angeles. Names overlap drawings. Hearts sit beside political statements. Simple sketches coexist with elaborate illustrations. Thousands of individual voices become one giant conversation. The room itself becomes the artwork.
Nearby, German helmets hang overhead like strange parachutes filled with puzzle pieces. Visitors are invited to take one home, carrying away a fragment of a larger whole. It is a simple gesture, yet profoundly moving. We leave with a piece of the puzzle and a reminder that none of us ever sees the complete picture.
The exhibition includes one of Ono’s most famous works, Cut Piece, the legendary performance in which audience members were invited to cut away portions of her clothing while she remained seated and silent. Decades later, the work still confronts viewers with uncomfortable questions about power, vulnerability, consent, and human behavior. There is also a shattered window marked by what appears to be a bullet hole. The image strikes the heart immediately. Ono has always understood how a small visual gesture can open an enormous emotional space.
I had the privilege of seeing Yoko Ono’s work in London last year, and this Los Angeles presentation only deepened my admiration. There appears to be no limit to the territory her imagination is willing to explore. Long before I understood Fluxus or conceptual art, Yoko Ono was one of the first avant-garde artists I followed. She represented a world where art could be an idea rather than an object.
Which brings me to the Beatles. History has not always been kind to Yoko Ono. For decades she was blamed for breaking up the world’s most famous band. Yet standing among these works, that narrative feels increasingly absurd.
I remember hearing stories of the Beatles in Hamburg, singing in German, wearing leather jackets, and playing marathon club sets before the machinery of superstardom took hold. Their original spirit was experimentation, rebellion, curiosity, and artistic risk. Yoko Ono did not destroy that spirit. She embodied it.
The Beatles were always going to evolve. Every great partnership eventually changes form. What matters is that the creativity continued. John Lennon continued. Paul McCartney continued. George Harrison continued. Ringo Starr continued. The music survived. The art survived.
Debuting in 2014, Screaming Soup! broke ground as the first fully animated horror host show and has been helping evolve the honored TV tradition for audiences of the 21st century. Starring a gas guzzling, laser slinging skeleton cowboy named Deadwest with his apocalyptic goat for a sidekick, Billy, the duo constantly find themselves in outrageous misadventures in the Wild Weird West while reviewing B movies they think horror fanatics should check out or even avoid at all costs. Currently in its sixth season with over 50 episodes and counting, Screaming Soup! has entertained fans with chainsaw arm wrestling, jurassic rodeos, big top bar brawls, and over 300 movie reviews plus interviews with fan favorite horror icons like Kane Hodder and Danielle Harris. In addition, the web series has survived a season long crossover with Charles Band’s Full Moon Empire, regularly guest stars other contemporary horror hosts, and features cameos by vocal powerhouses like Roger L. Jackson, the voice of Ghostface from the Scream movies. Recognized for its alternative approach to horror hosting, Screaming Soup! is a recipient of the Silver Bolo Award on Joe Bob Brigg’s Last Drive-In on Shudder and won the coveted Rondo Hatton Classic Horror Award for best documentary of 2023 for Screaming Soup! Presents the Attack of the Killer Tomatoes Retrospective, a three hour documentary on the history of the Attack of the Killer Tomatoes franchise. Screaming Soup! can be found across most social media outlets with its homebase at ScreamingSoup.com, and is currently working to produce toys, books, and trading cards in the near future.
Watch Screaming Soup! online and join animated horror hosts Deadwest and Billy on all their misadventures in the Wild Weird West as they review B movie fright flicks from yesterday and today!
As a member of the Marginalized Moderate Majority and an Ideological Ⓐnarchist, who has had to pay taxes and adhere to unfair bullshit laws my whole life, I have never voted for any so-called “politicians” or any “initiatives” to allegedly “change laws”, etc. even once in my entire lifetime.
That is because as having been an anarcho-punk since my pre-teens, starting back in 1979, I have always known that we do not actually live in a so-called “Democratic Republic”, but rather that we live in a Corporate Dictatorship ruled by a Shadow Government where “politicians” are just “bad actor” poster boys and puppets putting on a false left-right paradigm shit-show sham and charade under the direction of their marionette masters who are pulling their strings, which is meant to placate “We The People” in to believing that we actually have a “voice” and thus a “choice” in our governance through an alleged “voting system”, and to thereby keep us “in line”, docile and working for them like good little farm manimals, but that in fact we actually do not, because if voting was real and actually changed anything then they would just make it illegal like they do everything else that doesn’t line their pockets, advance their agendas, or that they don’t profit from in some other way.
And it is also done to keep us divided, distracted and thus off-kilter by keeping us at each other’s throats while they simply slip their nefarious agendas in to place and write them in to law right under our big, dumb, easily-duped noses.
Therefore I, and anyone else who knows these things I’ve stated to be true, in fact DO have the right to complain about them all I or they want, and I will continue to do so contrary to and regardless of what any of the duped sheeple think if they can’t even see the fake engineered society, false reality and gilded cage that the Shadow Fucks have created for us all to live in and to serve them, and if they really still believe that their stupid fucking “votes” actually count for fuck all.
So those who like to tell people that they don’t have the right to complain if they don’t participate in the voting sham that they’ve blindly bought in to really need to watch this eye-opening video called “The Story of Your Enslavement” and wake up and learn the truth if they think otherwise…
He’s been a part of the underground for the last 28+ years, writer, actor and musician Christiaan Pasquale known to many as Christian Slanderin from the Psychobilly band The Slanderin.
The Slanderin began at the infamous Al’s Bar, what brought the band together?
We were all part of the same scene and kinda based around Epitaph. I was writing for Hellcat magazine, Charlie Ackerman who was Brett Gurewitz Godson, was putting out the magazine and Greg Lee from Hepcat knew I was a writer and told him he should publish my stuff and he did. That’s how I met Mauricio Arguetta hanging out in Silverlake, Echo Park, East LA , there was a lot of punk stuff happening there. Skunk Draino I met at Al’s he was a deathrock guy at the time playing with Ginger Coyote at the time, but it wasn’t working out. The first lineup I ever had that recorded a song was me, my ex-girlfriend Andi Beltramo from a band called Snapper, Tom Curry from Kommunity FK and Skunk. But later we met Everett Thompson when I was working at Retail Slut on Melrose. He joined and then it was me, Mauricio and Everett until Skunk left SnapHer and we became The Slanderin in 1999. Our first show was out in Brea at La Vida Roadhouse with Hellbound Hayride on NYE.
What do you miss about The American?
I miss it a lot, that was a huge part of my life for a very long time. I moved there in 1996-2006 then back in 2014-2016 so about 12 and half years. Back in those days it wasn’t gentrified and built up like it is now. It’s unrecognizable. You know it was Al’s Bar, the American Hotel, Blooms General Store on the corner where I worked. Soul Folks the soul food restaurant next to Blooms and a coffee shop across the street. At that time in the Art’s District, there’s, I don’t know, between our corner (Attraction and Hewitt), the Santa Fe Art Colony and the brewery there was probably 800 people that made up that scene and then all the bands that came through and played Al’s, it was just a great community. Otherwise, it was quiet. There was nothing down there, just warehouses, empty warehouses, mercantile shops, it was just our little scene, and I miss it a lot.
How has the Hollywood scene changed?
Well, it didn’t change as much as it disappeared. All the great avant guard alternative music that’s happening is happening on the east side. Highland Park, East LA, some parts of Downtown, Silverlake but that’s it. I mean in terms of Hollywood you have the occasional stuff at the Roxy or the Whiskey, but that’s a rare occasion. I don’t know what’s happening at the Troubadour. The Key Club is gone, Knitting Factory is gone, Dragonfly is gone, the Garage is gone, Goldfingers, Mr T’s Bowl, so much of it vanished in the wind. Alex from Los Creepers is an old touring buddy of mine. He is still putting on good shows at the Offbeat Bar in Highland Park but that’s where all the alternative music is going. It’s not Hollywood anymore, it’s just a graveyard.
What were your influences?
I mean, that is a wide breadth of different genres and stuff. Everybody from Tom Waits and Leonard Cohen, in terms of punk, of course, The Ramones, you know, Rancid were a big help to us. The first 2 Rancid albums are classic. All the LA punk bands, X, X was the first show I ever went to when I was in 5th grade. X and The Blasters. Love that stuff. That kind of gave me a vision you know, the past like, you know there were Rockabilly dudes and punks slam dancing in the pit and that image stuck with me which later led to psychobilly. It was almost inevitable because punk is just good rock and roll and rockabilly is like that old rock and roll chords and psychobilly just plays it sort of up tempo with B-movie horror imagery and all that stuff. As a kid I grew up in Orange County so like Social Distortion, DI, Adolescents, Agent Orange all that stuff was really my first impression of what teenagers were doing. I was probably 10 years old and all those guys were like in high school, and I’d watch them in the alley behind my house skateboarding and playing music and being rowdy. Probably the biggest influence of all is The Cramps.
What was your favorite song you wrote?
I keep going back to one call “Condemned” because I wrote it really quickly. I wrote the arrangement in like 5 minutes. It’s kind of like a three geared song (low-medium-high) speed song and it’s simple, it’s only 2 notes. The lyrics came to me in 5 minutes and are just one of those songs that came together really well and are really powerful. It’s got a big crescendo at the end, and it’s a favorite off the Blue Rambling album. Our last album and weirdly enough we didn’t tour around.
Being a support act on the Rancid tour what’s your favorite memory of that tour?
We never got a support role touring with Rancid but did open on both coasts in LA and New York. They knew me from my writing with Charlie and Hellcat magazine and when he started Destroy All Monthly I had a monthly column call the Christiaan Bible. It was just a bunch of short stories and funny takes I had, and Lars also wrote for that monthly. So did Keith Morris from the Circle Jerks. Lars and Matt Freeman came and saw us play the North Beach Festival in San Francisco and we killed it. Lars came up afterward and told me we should do some things with Devils Brigade which was Matt’s psychobilly band and we talked about it but it never happened. Then for the LA show I was in the hospital and the crown sung my parts then in New York me and the original lineup had a falling out and I was backed by the Arkhams. Epitaph dropped us shortly afterwards I’m guessing too much baggage to take a chance on us. Lars, Tim and Matt are fucking awesome and still play us on the Sirius XM channel and helped us grow our popularity. It was an honor to support those guys.
What’s next on the horizon?
I’m working on the 6th book but haven’t had luck raising the funds to get it published. I’ve been going through some hard times in the last 3 years. I mean, just one knockdown after another and got laid off. I have been working ride share and I barely make my bills monthly and just haven’t had the money to raise it, but I’m catching up. You know it’s crazy I’m working 50 hours a week and having to file chapter 7 bankruptcy. I’m contemplating putting it out as an E-book maybe by the end of summer. It’s called “Agents of Cool” which is about my early years in LA, being 19 living in Hollywood, being part of the punk scene, going on tour with Hepcat as their tour manager. It’s where it all started for me. I’m also working on a new band called Vitrolix more garage, surf, punk. It’s a mixture of all good things that make rock and roll basically, we have 4 songs recorded.
Every summer, thousands of metal fans cross borders, board trains, camp in fields, and descend upon medieval fortresses, rural villages, coastal cities, and historic fairgrounds for what has become one of Europe’s greatest cultural traditions: heavy metal festival season. While the United States still hosts excellent events, Europe increasingly feels like the center of the metal universe. The scale is larger, the lineups are deeper, the crowds are more international, and perhaps most importantly, each country brings its own personality to heavy metal. Attending a European festival isn’t just about seeing bands, but it’s also about experiencing how different cultures have embraced and interpreted metal as part of their identity.
Hellfest – France
Located in the small French town of Clisson, Hellfest has grown into one of the largest and most ambitious metal festivals in the world. The festival combines massive production, elaborate stage design, sculpture gardens, art installations, and a distinctly French appreciation for atmosphere and presentation. Hellfest 2026 runs June 18–21.
What makes Hellfest special is how seamlessly France blends culture and spectacle. They are allowed to keep building on the grounds, so a few years ago they unleashed the most amazing Lemmy Kilmister metal statue ever seen. This year they are releasing an Ozzy Osbourne statue that is sure to raise hell. You can spend the day watching extreme metal, then enjoy excellent local food and wine before heading back into the pit. It feels uniquely French with it’s peaceful elegance, organization, and unapologetically heavy metal setting.
Luppolo In Rock – Italy
Italy’s Luppolo In Rock offers a different experience. Smaller than the continent’s giants, it combines heavy music with Italy’s passion for food, community, and craft beer. Yours truly will be attending this festival, so stay tuned for a full report. Italian metal culture tends to be warm and social.
Fans gather not only for the bands but also for long conversations, local cuisine, and the sense of shared celebration that defines many Italian festivals. It’s an excellent reminder that heavy metal can be both intense and welcoming. Dates are July 17th-19th.
Brutal Assault – Czech Republic
Few festivals on Earth have a more dramatic setting than Brutal Assault. Held inside the 18th-century Fortress Josefov in Jaroměř, the festival transforms historic military walls into one of metal’s most atmospheric venues. The 2026 edition takes place August 5–8.
The Czech metal scene has long embraced heavier and more experimental sounds. Brutal Assault reflects that spirit with a lineup that frequently ventures beyond mainstream metal into black, death, industrial, and avant-garde territory. Walking through ancient stone corridors while hearing blast beats echo across the fortress is an experience every metal fan should have at least once.
Bloodstock Open Air – United Kingdom
For many fans, Bloodstock Open Air represents the heart of the British metal community. Held in Derbyshire, Bloodstock remains proudly independent while showcasing both legendary acts and emerging underground talent. The festival takes place August 6–9, 2026. The UK’s contribution to heavy metal is impossible to overstate. From the birth of traditional heavy metal through the New Wave of British Heavy Metal, the country’s influence remains enormous. Bloodstock feels like a family gathering for that legacy.
Wacken Open Air – Germany
No discussion of European metal festivals is complete without Wacken Open Air. The tiny German village of Wacken becomes the epicenter of global metal every summer, welcoming fans from around the world. The 2026 edition runs July 29–August 1.
Germany approaches metal with remarkable dedication. The organization, infrastructure, and scale are legendary. Yet despite its enormous size, Wacken still feels like a pilgrimage site for metal fans. Seeing flags from dozens of countries flying above muddy campgrounds perfectly captures the international spirit of the genre.
Beyond The Gates – Norway
Set amid the historic streets of Bergen, Beyond The Gates offers one of the most distinctive experiences in European metal.
Norway’s black metal legacy looms large, and Beyond The Gates embraces that heritage while celebrating extreme music from around the world. The city’s mountains, fjords, and medieval architecture create an atmosphere unlike any other festival destination. It feels less like a concert and more like a journey into metal history.
Sweden Rock Festival – Sweden
Sweden has produced an astonishing number of influential bands across death metal, melodic metal, hard rock, and progressive music. Sweden Rock Festival serves as a showcase for that legacy. The 2026 festival was held June 3–6 in Sölvesborg.
Swedish audiences are known for their deep musical knowledge and enthusiasm. Sweden Rock reflects that culture, presenting everything from classic hard rock to modern extreme metal with equal respect.
Finland’s Summer Metal Tradition
No country embraces heavy metal quite like Finland. With one of the highest concentrations of metal bands per capita in the world, Finland treats metal less like a subculture and more like a national art form.
With black metal festival Steelfest already passed thus year, there are still more metal festivals to enjoy such as Tuska Festival which continues to draw fans from across Europe. Finnish festivals often combine world-class organization with a uniquely Nordic atmosphere, where metal exists comfortably alongside mainstream culture.
Other European Festivals worth exploring, to name a few, are Belgium’s Graspop Metal Meeting remains one of the continent’s premier heavy music gatherings. Denmark’s Copenhell brings metal to Copenhagen’s waterfront. Germany’s Summer Breeze Open Air continues to grow into one of Europe’s most respected festivals, taking place August 12–15, 2026.
England’s Download Festival also remains a major destination for hard rock and metal fans each summer.
What makes European metal festivals special isn’t simply the size of the lineups. It’s the opportunity to see how metal evolves across borders.
In France, metal is theatrical and artistic. In Germany, it becomes a massive communal celebration. In Norway, it intersects with history and mythology. In the Czech Republic, it thrives in ancient fortresses. In Finland, it feels woven into everyday culture.
For American fans, attending these festivals offers something increasingly rare: the chance to combine travel, cultural exploration, and music into a single unforgettable experience. Summer festival season is here. And if there is one lesson Europe’s metal scene continues to teach the world, it’s that heavy metal is not just a genre. It is a global culture spoken in many different languages, all united by the same beautiful chaos from the stage. Stay metal and go to Europe!
Here we go its Official.Nick Fuoco presents The 2nd Annual NIKSTOCK HOLLYWOOD 2026 special nikstock anniversary edition Friday June 19th and Saturday June 20th Nick Fuoco..mojo..Chill..Vanessa Rodrigues Birthday Bash At The 3 Clubs 1123 Vine St, Los Angeles, CA 90038. 2 Days .3 Rooms.40 Bands .2 Stages.Hosted by Ivonna Cadaver from TVs Macabre Theater .GoGo Dancers. Food Trucks in the parking lot.Drink Specials.Vendors. DJs NIGHTMARE the Alice Cooper tribute plays Both Nights 11pm..Tempter featuring Nick Fuoco.. HTTH…Murderone motorhead tribute..Black Sabbatha.. Moore-AD..Slow Burning Car..Fast Hammer..Krystal Shades..Guard Dawg.. many more Doors open Friday June 19th 5:30pm..Doors open Sat June 20th 4pm. Advance Tickets $25 covers entry for both days Or $20 at the door Fri..$20 at the door Saturday this is definitely one event you don’t want to miss. If ur a band .sponsor.vendor now its your time to submit for this event. Thank you and we will see all of you at NIKSTOCK HOLLYWOOD 2026 for more info Nick 8182129136 Nikstock.com
We’s baaaaaack again w/ Screaming Soup…AND HERE’S WHAT THEY GOTS TO SAY?
SS: Howdy there, y’all! This is Deadwest, the host of Screaming Soup! the web’s #1 animated horror host show. If ya enjoy horror hosted B movies, Saturday mornin’ cartoons, retro video games, and indie funny books, then we’re the perfect show fer ya with 56 episodes and countin’ over at ScreamingSoup.com where you’ll find all our misadventures in the Wild Weird West as we review yesteryear’s best and worst horror flicks!
YOU FINALLY GOT YOUR NEW EPISODE UP?
SS: Ya know it, Mojo! We’re continuin’ to help the new king of the vampires round up classic monsters to be in his posse, and we just held auditions fer a new Phantom of the Opera kinda member with yer help as a judge. Lotta deaf tone “talents” who couldn’t belt a tune to save their afterlives, but we did land the Phantom of the Paradise who starred in one of our favorite flicks of all time. That fella can rock with the best of ‘em, and we’re thrilled to have him on the team. Though, he ain’t been returnin’ our calls lately . . .
ANY NEW MOVIES TO LOOK FORWARD TO?
SS: The biggest surprise to hit theaters lately is They Will Kill You. The trailer’s kinda whatever ‘bout a gal goin’ all Kill Bill on an apartment buildin’ full of devil worshippers to save her missin’ sister, but then I buy my movie ticket and find out there’s a whole hook worthy twist the trailer leaves out — The tenants are immortal and keep comically respawnin’ fer endless eye candy brawlin’ that leads to one monstrous boss level endin’! Gore-tastic 4/5 fun I highly recommend seein’.
ANY BIG EVENTS YOU GUYS GONNA BE AT?
SS: Our next scheduled appearance is at Retro-Horror Con in Greenville, SC September 11-13. Not only will we have a table, but we’re the official announcers you’ll hear blabberin’ all weekend, and we’re hostin’ all the celebrity panels. Last year was a screamin’ success, so y’all gotta come to the con and see us!
WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON FAKE GOTH GIRLS ON THE INTERNET (aka posers)?
SS: So long as they stay on their side of the line inside Hot Topic, I’m fine with ‘em.
ANY NEW PROJECTS?
SS: Screaming Soup! pvc figures are in the works as we speak! Aimin’ to be released later this year fer online orders, yer guaranteed to see a Deadwest, Billy, and Mandy figure with some monstrous allies and wicked villains of ours not too far behind. It’s gonna be a sweet collection fer Scream Freaks to get their claws on, and we’re stoked ‘bout it.
CAN MOJO BE A REGULAR ON YOUR SHOW?
SS: Now that yer existence has been folded into our limbo dimension of the Wild Weird West, anythang’s possible.
ANY LAST WORDS FOR YOUR FANS?
SS: Catch up on all our past Screaming Soup! seasons at ScreamingSoup.com where you can also read our bios and updates and purchase exclusive Screaming Soup! merch. Follow us on YouTube, Facebook, X, Instagram, and watch our daily bite size reviews on TikTok. Show your support through our Patreon and check out our Rondon Hatton Classic Horror Award winnin’ retrospective on the history of the Attack of the Killer Tomatoes ‘fore the new Killer Tomatoes movie comes out later this year. If anyone wants to watch us on their Roku, we’re ‘mong Mister Lobo’s line-up of horror hosted shows on his OSI74 channel. See ya later, Scream Freaks!
I think there’s probably some, if not many, people in So. Cal, that can relate to what I’m about to say here on one level or another, although we may differ in our opinions of bands on the bill, our choices of which bands we would like or not like to see, those we’ve already seen fairly recently anyway, or those that we figure we can just see somewhere else relatively soon instead for far less money and hassle at a more intimate venue, etc..
But at any rate, here we go…
With all of the dramedy surrounding his politics, socio-politics, and semi-frequent cancellations etc. aside, I would still like to see MORRISSEY, as I don’t recall if I’ve ever seen him perform before or not. But I will admit that considering his track record it’s probably likely that he will just cancel anyway… so “whatever”.
I never been the biggest fan of SMASHING PUMPKINS, but I do like some of their material. However I saw them a few times at festivals in the 90’s during the height of their career, so it’s never gonna get better than that for me… so again; “whatever”.
SIMPLE MINDS are great, they don’t come around to play too often, and I’ve only ever seen them once, so I’d love to see them again. However it was only a few years ago when I saw them at an old theater in DTLA, and I was up close ‘n’ personal in the 7th row, so it won’t be better than that either and I’d rather wait and see them somewhere like that again, wherever that might be.
I’ve seen ADAM ANT, PSYCHEDELIC FURS, SOFT CELL, GARY NUMAN and MODERN ENGLISH up close ‘n’ personal to one degree or another, and some of them several times, all in the last 10 years or so, and most of them play around between L.A. and O.C. at least a few times a year at venues that are smaller and more intimate, so I’m good waiting to see them somewhere like that again too.
The MOTELS and MISSING PERSONS play at the Whisky and other local clubs like the Canyon Club, etc. all over town semi-regularly, so I can see them up close pretty much any time.
The DAMNED, BAD RELIGION and sometimes The BUZZCOCKS play venues like The Fonda or comparable sized venues and also at local festivals semi-frequently too, and I’ve seen them all a few times at them in the last decade or so as well, so no biggie either.
I just saw the CIRCLE JERKS up close at an old theater in Gardena, and it ain’t gonna get better than that, so I’m good on waiting until another smaller show like that happens too.
Plus with the Rozz vs. Valor drama aside, I’ve seen Valor’s version of CHRISTIAN DEATH very up close ‘n’ personal at small or medium size clubs a number of times over the last few decades, going all the way back to when he first started doing it in the 90’s and I caught him at The Scream, and I’ve hung out with him and his crew backstage, etc. since then… and so yet again; “whatever”.
I would love to see MANIC STREET PREACHERS though, as I never have… but hopefully they’ll play a venue around town while they are here and I can catch them there instead, but if not then maybe next time they come around instead.
And I would also like to see PRAYERS, albeit mostly just for their whole “cholo goth” angle though, as I kinda relate to that being an old school punk guy that grew up hangin’ around punk gangs and dressing like that, but also being in to deathrock and dressing like that too, and sometimes combining both styles which I still do to this day as my usual “daytime image”… but I’m sure I’ll eventually catch them in a club somewhere instead though.
But I could frankly sort of largely care less about MARKY RAMONE, SILVERSUN PICKUPS, EMF, SPACEHOG, GENE, THE SOUNDS, COLD CAVE, TR/ST, MARIACHI EL BRONX, CHOIR BOY, DECEITS PAST SELF, BENCHES, THE MAINLINERS, RIKI, WARFIELD, PUREST FORM, CASKET CASSETTE, MIGS WHISKEY, ALL THE DAMN VAMPIRES, KIM THEORY, and I FORGET though, and I would honestly probably prefer not to have to stand through most of their sets anyway. So it wouldn’t be worth showing up there early enough to catch them and spend all those extra hours walking around between stages in the sand and sun either, as that just sounds pretty torturous actually… and especially not for something like two hundred dollars for a ticket.
So unless I get in for free through my connections and have some sort of VIP pass to have a premium viewing spot and access to shorter line concession stands and cleaner less used bathrooms, or via my press credentials and have a photo pass, etc. then I’ll most likely just skip the event and catch some of those bands somewhere better, closer, cheaper and with far less hassles and drawbacks.
