It’s been two years since rock groups …And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead and Death Valley Girls have graced a Los Angeles stage. Last Saturday, fans got a killer performance that was anything but un-lively at the Lodge Room in Highland Park.
Death Valley Girls walked onto the stage with psychedelic charm and magical enchantment. “It’s a man’s world, that’s what you think. It’s a man’s world, at least not to me.” Girl Power. Raw Talent. Pure Rock and Roll. If you happened to be in the front, you might have caught a heart warming moment where lead vocalist, Bonnie Bloomgarden, sang with a young fan in the front and shouted out to the Death Valley Girls Kids Chorus. “Killer performance dude,” says a concert goer to guitarist Larry Schemel. You can see the excitement on everyone’s face as Bonnie jokes in-between song and waves to fans. The group is eclectic and captivating. If you weren’t a fan before, you are now.
Death Valley Girls also dedicated their L.A. return performance to Border Kindness, a non-profit that provides resourced for migrants, refugees and displaced people. All concert-goers were able to donate unopened presents to Death Valley Girls for Border Kindness.
…And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead were intense, inspiring and immaculate. From the start of their performance with “Totally Nature,” to the end with “Teenhood” — fans were screaming out their favorite songs that they wanted played, head-banging to the incredible guitar riffs and getting lost on a sonic plane that went beyond the physical world. They are good. Really good. In the dark moody back lit room that is the Lodge Room, Trail of Dead’s somber melodies left your soul trembling as you waited for the peaks and valleys of their catalog to continue and bleed into one another. The only breaks from this sonic trip were the few moments needed for members to change instruments. …And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead were a sonic journey, a pleasant night hike.
Photography & Words by Asha Moné
