Extreme Heat and Three Days of Punk Bands at Punk Rock Bowling Festival in Vegas, by Holly Homan

Dollheads drummer Austin

This past Memorial Day weekend I flew to Las Vegas to attend the Punk Rock Bowling Festival. This year the lineup was too hard to resist.

Day one the first band I was treated to was the Dollheads. This band of siblings are Las Vegas natives and young. They all must have had their instruments handed to them at birth because they didn’t look like they were 20, yet were very accomplished not only in playing but performing. There’s Angela on lead vocals and guitar and Sammy on the bass. Austin the awesome drummer didn’t look a day over twelve but slammed as hard and as punk as anyone double or triple his age. I hope to see these guys around more, perhaps a summer tour with a date in Seattle.

Next up was the Venomous Pinks. the Venomous Pinks (Drea Doll, bassist/vocalist Gaby Kaos and drummer Cassie Jalilie). Are an all female punk trio totally rocked out. There was a little bit of everything in this band’s sound. There was a definite Ramones’ influence but also some hard core vocals mixed with a more pop sound. I’d seen the name Venomous Pinks here and there and I’m so glad I got to see them. I am definitely a fan now.

The next band I saw was another I’d never heard of called Dee Skusting & the Rodents. These guys were amazing. Lead by Dee, the only female in this raucous trio, she had a voice as smooth as glass but belted, growled and screamed out the songs. None of them were stoic. While Dee belted and growled and churned out wild guitar riffs, Ben on bass was crashing to his knees and writhing about. Aaron slammed the skins like a possessed demon. I am now a fan of another band. They were amazing.

Next it was another unfamiliar artist, Suzi Moon. Suzi is pure punk in looks and attitude. She was accompanied by four musicians who churned out gritty and demonic guitar chords and equally demonic drumming. Suzi would scream one second, then switch to succulent vocals the next. She put on an amazing performance. I hope to see her again.

After Suzi was the legendary Fear. For those of you who have been into punk since its infancy, Fear is a familiar name. I was excited to finally see them. Fear has gone through many member changes since their beginnings in 1977 (currently the lineup consists of Lee Ving (vocalist and founding member, Philo Cramer, Spit Six, Geoff Kresage and Eric Razo.. Their stripped down, angry and energetic hard core punk sound has been copied by many bands since, but these guys are the original and authentic. They totally burned the stage down. They exhibited as much energy as any of the younger bands with Lee strutting about like a spastic android as he growled and screamed into his mic. My punk rock live entertainment is nearly complete. I have seen Fear.

Another SO Cal legend, The Adolescents, were up next. Fronted by Tony Reflex, he sported long graying hair that hung past his shoulders and wore a black bandanna that covered his mouth and nose. He writhed and strutted about while screaming the songs into his mic. The Adolescents are another punk hard core band, but it’s the punk roots hard core, much different than what is done today. They were highly entertaining with grinding guitar riffs and mad slam drumming. They were a force to be reckoned with.

Now it was time for Me First & the Gimme Gimmes. I’ve been a fan of these guys for about twenty years plus. They do all cover songs but songs that were never punk. The lineup consisted of one CJ Ramona on bass. Fronted by the very comical Spike Slawson, he often introduced songs saying, this one’s a cover. They opened with the old Steely Dan song Rikki Don’t Lose That Number. He introduced Leavin’ On A Jet Plane as a song they would totally plagiarize and wanted to dedicate it to a wonderful American, a great performer and pretty decent pilot, John Denver. This was followed by Paul Simon’s Me & Julio Down By the School Yard complete with whistles. He played what looked like a child’s toy guitar. Now you have an idea how much fun this band is. Check them out if you haven’t already. They are non stop fun.

After Me First . . . finished their set I rushed to the other stage and caught an old favorite, the Slackers. When they played Married Girl (don’t ya wanna smoke a little marijuana) everyone sang along. The Slackers are pure NY ska. Their set seems to end way too soon for me. I’ve seen these guys live many times and will see them again many times I’m sure. I love the Slackers.

The final band I saw that first day was the Interrupters. The Interrupters are fairly new to the scene (formed in 2011) but their star has risen quickly in the last few years. There were already hundreds huddled against the barricade before their set began. They are comprised of Aimee Interrupter, drummer Jesse Bivona, bassist Justin Bivona, and guitarist Kevin Bivona. Aimee never stands still. She ran, spun and danced back and forth across the stage belting out song after song, goading the audience into a frenzy. She is highly charismatic as well as energetic. Justin and Kevin were no slouches for high energy either. They often ran across the stage trading places or doing a pas de deus with Aimee. This time they added a trombone player. The Interrupters play a combination of punk and ska. The Interrupters have gained much notoriety in the last couple years and rightly so. Although I’m bummed I’ll never get to see them play in a tiny club again, I’m happy for their deserved success.

I didn’t stick around for Fishbone or Bad Religion. The hydration station ran dry and I couldn’t survive two hours in that heat with no water. I’ve seen both bands multiple times anyway so it was no big deal. I went back to my hotel to rest up for the next day.