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Live at Hollywood Palladium
August 27th, 2026 Review by Todd Marrkel
I may be the only one who geeks out on stuff like this, but whenever I go to an old venue in Hollywood, I often find myself thinking about the history of the place. Tonight was no exception as I walked into the Hollywood Palladium.
The venue opened on Halloween in 1940 with none other than crooner Frank Sinatra. It was featured in “The Blues Brothers” movie and is probably best known in punk circles as the site of the infamous Black Flag/police riot in 1984. Being aware of all of that as I walked through the doors makes it feel a little more special.
First up was Sullvn, a band made up of some pretty seasoned musicians. James East joined singer Robert “Sully” Sullivan on bass, Brian Jordan on guitar, Mark Hattersley on keys, No Doubt’s Stephen Bradley on trumpet, along with Dan Regan from Reel Big Fish. They opened with “Chasing the Echoes” and worked through a set that mixed their own material with some familiar favorites.
Their cover of “Tears of a Clown” was a nice surprise, but “Oh California” was possibly the most meaningful song of their set as Sullivan dedicated it to the firefighters who battled the Palisades Fire.
They regularly include The Mighty Mighty Bosstones’ hit “The Impression That I Get” in their set, so hearing it wasn’t a surprise. The surprise was when Dicky Barrett appeared onstage to help sing it.
Moments later, Aaron Barrett of Reel Big Fish joined them onstage as well. Having both Barretts up made it clear this just might be a special night. Dicky stayed around to introduce a song that he recently recorded with Sullvn, “Raise a Glass,” before they wrapped up their set.
Next up was Simi Valley’s Pulley, featuring Scott Radinsky on vocals. They wasted no time getting things going with “A Bad Reputation,” which immediately saw some slam action going on in the pit.
Pulley has always been one of those bands that fits right in here in the Southern California punk scene, and they sounded great. They dedicated “One Shot” to the legendary Cathay de Grande, the now-defunct punk venue that had been located just down the street from the Palladium back in the day.
It was another reminder of just how much punk history is packed into this part of Hollywood. They closed their set with “Working Class Whore,” leaving the crowd ready for what was coming next.
Although they hail from Detroit, The Suicide Machines have always had a very loyal and enthusiastic fanbase here in Southern California.
As promised, they played their entire 1996 debut album, “Destruction by Definition,” from beginning to end. This was the album that established the band and has meant so much to fans over the years.
The crowd knew every word to every song, and the pit was going in a massive circle on the old wooden dance floor. At one point, Charlie Paulson of Goldfinger ran onto the stage and gave singer Jason Navarro a congratulatory hug before running off again. The Suicide Machines delivered exactly what the fans came to hear, from “New Girl” to “I Don’t Wanna Hear It.”
Then it was time for the kings of punk rock irreverence, The Vandals. Anyone who follows the band knows that Josh Freese is their regular drummer, but when Freese is busy, the band has some very capable drummers ready to fill in. Little did I know that when one of my favorite bands, NOFX, broke up, one of the benefits would be getting to see their former drummer, Erik “Smelly” Sandin, playing drums with The Vandals.
They opened with the classic “NIMBY,” or “Not in My Backyard,” followed by a fan favorite, “People That Are Going to Hell.” Before playing their mega hit “Oi to the World,” singer Dave Quackenbush asked if anybody wanted to hear a Christmas song. Given that it was a hot summer night in August, the answer was an obvious yes. The band has always had a sense of humor about what they do, and that was on full display throughout their set.
Quackenbush then suggested they mess up a NOFX song before launching into “The Moron Brothers.” He even turned to Smelly and asked, “Isn’t this about you?” which got a pretty big chuckle from the crowd.
The Vandals finished as usual with their irrepressible guitarist Warren Fitzgerald out front, singing his heart out, while Quackenbush took his turn on guitar for “My Girlfriend’s Dead” and “I Have a Date.” It was a great way to close out their set.
Then the mighty Goldfinger took the stage and immediately blasted into the bangers “Spokesman,” “Get Up,” and “Counting the Days” without giving anyone much of a chance to catch their breath.
The band was filled out by Mike Herrera from MxPx on bass and Philip Sneed, formerly of Story of the Year, on second guitar.
The all-star guest appearances continued as Hefe from NOFX came out to play guitar on “Open Your Eyes.” And since Hefe was already there, Goldfinger decided to pay a little tribute to NOFX by playing their signature song “Linoleum.”
At this point, it almost seemed like there was a running contest to see how many special guests could be brought onto the stage in one night.
The horn section backing Goldfinger tonight was none other than Reel Big Fish’s Dan Regan and Scott Klopfenstein, so it wasn’t much of a stretch to bring Aaron Barrett back onstage to perform Reel Big Fish’s “Sell Out.” Goldfinger and RBF have a long-shared history of joint tours and split seven-inch releases.
Then came “Superman,” which is, of course, my personal theme song. Hearing it live was every bit as good as I had hoped, and with everyone still on stage, it turned into one of those big, chaotic moments that you want to remember.
But Goldfinger wasn’t done yet. Feldman announced that tonight was especially significant because it would be the first time in 29 years that the original version of Goldfinger would perform together onstage. Original bass player Simon Williams and original drummer “Dangerous” Darrin Pfeiffer came out to join the band for a few classic songs from Goldfinger’s debut album, including “Anxiety,” “Answers,” and “Mable.”
All night, hanging above the stage, was a large net filled with red balloons. I think most of us had a pretty good idea what was coming next. To close out their biggest headlining show, they finished with their beloved cover of “99 Red Balloons.” As all the balloons fell to the floor and confetti cannons shot red confetti into the air, the night came to a brilliant but fitting conclusion.
Looking back at the whole show, it really did have everything you could have asked for. Great bands, a packed venue, a good pit, songs that brought back a lot of memories, and more special guests than anyone could have hoped for. Having members of NOFX, Reel Big Fish, and the original Goldfinger lineup all show up throughout the night made it feel like more than just another punk show.
Maybe that’s why the Hollywood Palladium felt like the perfect place for it. You could look around and realize that you were standing in a building that has been hosting important music events for more than 80 years while watching another night that people will probably be talking about for a long time.
For a fan of Southern California punk and ska, it was pretty hard to ask for a better show.
SHOW PHOTO GALLERY
by Todd Markel Rock Images
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