RIVAL SCHOOLS ROCKS THE REGENT IN LOS ANGELES
Rival Schools, the acclaimed early 2000’s post-hardcore band from NYC, have had an on-again, off-again relationship with the music biz for the last 25 years. It seems like they release killer rock albums once every decade before vanishing into the ether. While fans are still anxiously waiting for a third album to materialize, they’ve been over the moon since the band started playing shows and touring again.
This quick jaunt across the Western portion of the USA found the band touring with the grunge meets shoegaze warriors in Narrow Head, who were obliterating the Regent as we arrived. Narrow Head’s brand of melodic meets pummeling alt-rock is immensely popular with Gen Z rockers who wasted no time moshing, stage diving, and screaming along during the band’s hour-ish set. Rival Schools capitalized on the crowd's manic/energetic state when they hit the stage, opening with “Wring It Out,” the perfect sing-along track to get things cooking. Walter Schreifels’ voice sounded just as wonderful/raspy as ever, while Sammy Siegler remains a human octopus behind the drums.
The band played a solid mix of songs from their 2011 album, Pedals, and many from their iconic 2001 debut, United by Fate. Moshing erupted during “Used For Glue,” and a lot of people lost their voices singing along to “Travel By Telephone.” Thank you to Rival Schools for unleashing Narrow Head upon DTLA on this fine evening, for allowing this author to act incredibly foolish during “Undercovers On.” The world awaits album number three!
RIVAL SCHOOLS
NARROW HEAD
