Roula’s List o’

Los Angeles and its famed Sunset Strip were once ruled by the excess and gaudiness of hair metal bands like Poison. When one imagines LA’s music scene in the mid to late eighties, images of large hair, spandex, and power ballads come to mind. The cheesy, superficial nature of the era often undermines the contributions LA bands have made to rock music in the past. However, it’s important to remember that for every Poison there’s a Black Flag.

In recent years a new breed of band has been terrorizing Los Angeles with a sound that’s in complete contrast to the glitz and glamour of the hair band era. Their raw, confrontational music is the perfect soundtrack to the scenes of drug deals and prostitution taking place outside the venues they play. The music of new bands like The Icarus Line, 400 Blows, and The Bronx echoes the disillusionment and aggression of some of the great LA bands of the past like The Germs, Black Flag, and The Doors.

The Icarus Line is a band whose onstage exploits often receive as much attention as their music. While playing the Texas-based South by Southwest music industry showcase, the band pulled a stunt that echoed the dangerous spontaneity that was once a hallmark of rock & roll. The band was in the middle of their set at the Hard Rock Café and fed up with the unresponsive crowd. To the dismay of a myriad of drunken Texans, the lead guitarist, Aaron North, shattered a glass case containing Stevie Ray Vaughn’s guitar, plugged it in, and proceeded