THE BACKFIRES SWEEP THROUGH LOS ANGELES ON A MISSION TO KEEP INDIE ROCK ALIVE
“Rock and roll is coming back”, proclaimed The Backfires frontman Alex Gomez, headlining an early Wednesday night show last week at the Moroccan Lounge.
Currently residing in New York City and from both sides of the Atlantic, the City of Angels was treated to a taste of this wondrous indie band going five years strong so far. If you’re a fan of The Killers, Arctic Monkeys, and The Strokes then this is a band to look out for and support.
The show was originally scheduled this past summer but was pushed back just in time having recently joined Get Some Magazine to cover the gig. What also made great timing for the night was I got an email back from GSM’s fearless leader Timmy Farmer while waiting outside in line saying that my tryout shoot for my first show (Better Lovers at the Roxy) was a success so I took advantage to keep the momentum going that night. It was an early show hosted at the aforementioned Moroccan Lounge in the Downtown Los Angeles area near Union Station, which was convenient for me since I live a mile or two away from the venue.
The house was packed when I arrived. There was a small line and a man behind me tapped me on the shoulder and asked me “Hey, if you were paid a million dollars to work in a cotton factory would you?”. Boy, we’re off to an interesting start of the night. The opener was a cool indie band from Nashville named Secondhand Sound in which they had a quick set that consisted of seven songs.
The Backfires started about a little under a half hour later and did an almost full-hour set. I had the same setup as the opening act. 24mm-70mm up close on stage, 70mm-200mm far back. I’m not a Killers fan but I’ve always loved “When You Were Young”' and The Backfires have good taste because they did an awesome cover. After the show, the fans gathered at the front entrance with members of both bands for a meet and greet photo ops and merch sales.
My favorite shot of the night is Alex up close to my cam with his guitar and grin. The Backfires are currently wrapping up a tour with Phoneboy until early December 2023. So if you’re looking for some new indie content to listen to either on your way to work or kicking back at home then please, just like the title of their 2021 album, ‘Consider The Backfires’.
