Stockholm's boundless maniacs light a fire beneath an equally electric crowd.
Photographs & Text by Joshua Alvarez (@joshua.jam3s) at
The Belasco in Los Angeles on September 30, 2022:
Only a couple of days into the Viagra Boys North American tour and the kaleidoscopic band landed in Los Angeles for a sold out show the day before their Desert Daze festival appearance. Some might call this a pre-show to the show, but I can tell you right now that not only did Viagra Boys come out on all cylinders firing, but so did the people of Los Angeles.
To warm the night up were Los Angeles locals Kills Birds who deliver a grunge sound the reminds you of something out of the 90’s. Nina Ljeti delivered powerful vocals with an energetic performance that will keep you locked in for the entirety of the set. As The Belasco began to fill up, you knew that the next band was a much anticipated one, that being shame. People went absolutely wild for the post punk unit from South London. It has been quite some time since their last show in the states and they did not disappoint with an energy that made you feel as if you were watching the headliner by putting the punk in post-punk and radiating an energy that could not be contained. It was notably felt from the crowd with mosh pits breaking out, bodies being crowd surfed, and the uncontrollable jumping taking over the floor for the next hour. Talk about getting the crowd ready for the chaos that was about to take place!
Viagra Boys, who need no introduction, stepped on stage and hit the ground running.
On the heels of their newly released album, Cave World, Viagra Boys came forth with a show filled with fan favorites, as well as new tracks that people have already memorized the words to, such as Troglodyte. Frontman and exquisite artist Sebastian Murphy commanded a thrilling and energy infused show that got the crowd moving for the entire 12-song set. Upon seeing Sebastian take off his shoes and shirt, you knew he meant business. It's clear that shirtless Sebastian is preferred to the shirt-wearing one because it's almost as if he takes another form entirely, amping up the packed room with wild antics and showmanship to strive for. As the music consumes the room, bodies begin to sway along to the always groovy, saxophone infused tunes.
The vocal delivery walks a fine line between spoken word and singing, which works just perfectly for a band as multi-faceted as Viagra Boys. Each album was shown some love and the band respectively played everyone’s favorite tracks from Ain’t Nice to Worm and everything in between. Beyond it being a showcase of hits, it demonstrated the breadth and intentionality of the band's respected craft. The high octane energy never died down and though people didn’t want them to stop delivering a good time, ending the set with Shrimp Shack was a perfect send off. Not only does the multi-layered composition hook you in, but the lyrics are just as catchy to the point where they are stuck in your head for days to come. Viagra Boys are making their way across North America for the next month, so don't make the mistake and sleep on this tour because Viagra Boys and the accompanying touring ensemble make for one hell of a good time.
Enjoy a photo gallery of the performance below and stream Cave World in anticipation of the tour hitting your neck of the woods.
