Voodoo Glow Skulls has taken the after-COVID touring storm by the reins and stayed in the US this summer. While other bands got the first feeling of freedom and shipped off across the world for festivals and tours, this ska-core band has gone against the popular grain.
ALEX’S BAR
Long Beach, California
September 17, 2022
This has led to the ability to see Voodoo play in our own backyard more than once this summer and we are so grateful! At Alex’s Bar in Long Beach, we had the pleasure of watching a Voodoo show, but not before watching the incredible supporting acts on this bill.
Kicking off the festivities was Teen Mortgage, a Washington D.C. band on their first West Coast tour. This duo put the bomp in the bomp bah bomp bah bomp! While listening to them, if you closed your eyes, you would never guess there were only drums and a guitar! They really blew the crowd away with new fans progressively nodded their heads and cheered after each song. Many in the crowd and members from other bands told them throughout the night how great they were and how much ass they kicked with only two members.
Next up was the grunge punk band Informal Society. They wowed the crowd with their leather and huge mohawks. While singing in their sunglasses, they got the fans to sing along to and dance around the bar, starting off what will be many mosh pits of the night. When their set was over, you could see the fans up front start to fan themselves with their shirts from the heat and sweat they were working up. Don’t let this punk quartet fool you; they are all very nice guys!
DFL (Dead Fucking Last) got on stage with a firestorm of enthusiasm and punk history. Many popular rockers have graced the stage with the DFL crew, but one thing remains the same; they rock. DFL sang their popular recent release, “YRUDFL,” and the crowd went wild. DFL front-man Tom Davis made sure that the packed room gave worthy applause to all of the bands that played before them that night. In Davis’ signature voice, he yelled the “Pizza Man” song and the crowd went crazy.
And now the time came for the headliner, Voodoo Glow Skulls. In typical fashion, the band started to play and the crowd started to get super pumped. Front-man Efrem Schulz propelled himself on stage with the energy of a toddler trying to avoid eating their vegetables. On the stage, he stood with his Mexican striped poncho and trademark wrestling mask and went into “Make America Skank Again” off their 2021 EP, “Livin’ the Apocalypse.” Straight into “My Generation” then “Karen,” both off the same album, the fans were getting a live listen of the album.
VOODOO GLOW SKULLS LIVE | PHOTOS by Robert Hale Images
Not to leave any old school fans out, Voodoo jumped into “Shoot the Moon” and “Fat Randy.” Schulz ran from one side of the stage to the other, while bassist Jorge Casillas shook his curly hair from one side to another, and brother/guitarist Eddie Casillas played and sang backup with incredible facial expressions to match Schulz’s.
When Voodoo’s horn section kicked in with the beginning of “The Band Geek Mafia,” this gave the crowd a second or two to catch their breath and get their skanking on in the pit.
VOODOO GLOW SKULLS LIVE | PHOTOS by Robert Hale Images
They finished off their set with “Unity Song,” which always gets the crowd excited and leaves you with your own happy ska-core ending.
All of these bands were very well placed and we heard from many people in the patio during the downtime and cooling off that this was one of the best shows they’ve been to in a long time.
