This review is actually pre-empting several others because Slash just released a CD with the song “By the Sword” featuring Andy Stockdale and Wolfmother are on the Alice in Wonderland Soundtrack.
We saw Wolfmother at the Wiltern Theater on Tuesday, November 24, 2009. They’re a relatively new band from Australia having released their first album, Wolfmother, in 2006 and their second album, “Cosmic Egg” in October 2009. Despite being new they have a hard-rocking throwback sound causing some people to believe they’ve been around since the 1970’s. They actually formed in the early 2000’s and had major lineup changes in 2008 with all band members replaced except the lead singer/guitarist/frontman Andy Stockdale. He’s hard to miss in their photos and videos with his loud pitched voice, stage theatrics, and big bushy afro. Wolfmother’s big song “Woman” was featured in one of the Guitar Hero games. They were on a 2-month tour of North America to promote their second album and L.A. was their last stop.
We heard about the show over two months before and bought tickets at a Blockbuster Video on Azusa Avenue. The tickets went on sale at 10:00 am on Friday, September 18, 2009 and we got ours at 10:01 am. We had taken the day off work to go to the L.A. County Fair (see earlier blog). Since we got them so soon after they went on sale we got the best seats in our chosen price range: front row mezzanine, very near the middle. When we bought the tickets back then we thought we would be off work on Wednesday, November 25, the day after the concert and the day before Thanksgiving. I thought I had enough vacation time but it turned out that I didn’t so it really was a “school night” for us.
On Tuesday evening, November 24 my wife and I met up at our brother- and sister-in-law’s home in the South Park area of Downtown L.A. From there my wife and I walked to Pastagina restaurant where we had dinner (see future review). We left Pastagina at 6:45 pm and continued to walk north on Hope Street. It felt fairly warm outside for November being in the 60’s or 70’s. We entered the subway station at 7th and Hope, bought a 1-way subway ticket and went down a level to catch the Purple Line subway. We arrived at the platform at 6:55 pm and the next Purple Line subway to Wilshire/Western station wasn’t scheduled to arrive until 7:02 pm. The subway arrived right on time and it wasn’t crowded at all. While we rode it I noticed a sign said “Apartese Amablement” and showed a large group of cartoon figures boarding. I think that means “board in a courteous manner” or something like that. The subway arrived at Wilshire/Western station at 7:10 pm.
We exited the subway and rode the escalators up and out of the station. Once outside we could see the queue all down the block waiting for the doors to the Wiltern theater to open. The marquee of the Wiltern said “Red Nights presents Wolfmother”. After we crossed Wilshire Blvd we noticed a poster on the lamppost for thenewno2, one of the opening acts. It showed a bunch of people wearing white asymmetric masks that looked to me like flat, jagged pieces of icebergs with two holes for eyes. As we walked down to the end of the queue we saw some people in it wearing those masks. Someone had gone down the queue handing them out. The queue mostly consisted of young men who looked to be in their 20’s. There were also many young women as part of couples or groups. They were mostly Caucasian though there were some Asians and African Americans. They mostly wore black clothing: t-shirts and jeans. I looked out of place in my work cloths: white long-sleeved collared shirt from Topman and grey slacks. I would have fit in better at a symphony concert or at the Loggins and Messina concert we attended in October. The queue went all down the block from Western Ave to Oxford Ave where it wrapped around to the south.
We queued up at 7:17 pm along Oxford near the parking garage for the Wiltern. At 7:20 pm the queue contracted causing us to move up several feet. That was interesting because the ticket said that the doors opened at 7:30 pm. I didn’t expect the queue to start moving until then. A couple of ladies walked down the queue selling t-shirts and beanies. There was no queue movement for 15 minutes. The “doors open” time came and went. AT 7:35 pm the queue moved up several feet and from that point moved in spurts of several 5-6 people. We guessed that was how many people they had got through security at a given time. As we waited a father with 2-3 young boys walked by to queue up behind us. Another guy seemed to be walking laps around the block. We saw him walk by at least three times. The queue continued to move up in starts and stops. We passed the Denny’s on the corner of Wilshire and Oxford and the restaurant Opus One Bar and Grill where lots of people were crowded around the bar watching the Laker game. We also stopped in front of the Cinema Makeup Center by 7:50 pm.
At 7:55 pm we made it to the front of the queue. Security consisted of frisking: men by men and women by women. Since there were more men in the queue, the female screeners weren’t as busy and my wife got through security earlier than I. We met up at the doors where employees scanned our tickets. I went upstairs to find our seats while my wife went to see what they were selling at the merch table. When I sat down it was 8 pm. Our seats were good: the front row of the mezzanine section, row A, seats 209 and 210 that were very near the middle. Now the mezzanine section only takes up the larger back part of the upper level. The front seats are in the smaller loge section. But those loge seats are also more expensive. The Wiltern looked very similar to how it looked at the last concert we attended there: Mika in February 2008. I think it was called the Wiltern LG back then. The ceiling had a lot of ornamental woodwork and there was a screen above the stage where the audience could have text messages posted. All they had to do was text WILT + (ur message) to 64066. They didn’t seem to be texting as much to it this time.
I could see many young people congregating on the floor in front of the stage. On stage was some covered equipment including a drum kit with the image of a the mask from thenewno2 poster. My wife went to her seat after getting a Wolfmother “Cosmic Egg” t-shirt and pieces of flair. She saw a text message on the screen saying that the show would start at 8:40 pm. The canned music played two Beach Boys songs: “God Only Knows” and “Wouldn’t it Be Nice”. I walked around a bit. They had a long bar outside the doors to the mezzanine. Near that some people had silkscreen presses set up where they sold t-shirts with artistic designs. There was no attendant in the restrooms saving me some tip money.
I returned to my seat and the first opening band soon took the stage at 8:30 pm. It was thenewno2 with lead singer/guitarist Dhani Harrison. He’s the son of the late former Beatle George Harrison. He stood in the middle of the stage. To his left were a keyboard player and drummer and to his right were another guitarist and bassist. Harrison would also press buttons on this machine near him that produced various sound effects. Their first number was very atmospheric and made use of the sound effects. It started slow but got louder and faster. Dhani Harrison is tall and thin with long, straight hair. He wore a black t-shirt and jeans. His voice is a little bit similar to his father’s. He spoke with an English accent that surprised me because I thought he grew up in L.A. After their first song he said he was glad to be back in America with the “Bastards and the Mothers” (references to the other opening act and the headliner) and that it was good to be home.
Harrison picked up a bullhorn for the next song and sang the chorus with it. The visual effects consisted of many colored spotlights that shone red for this song. He picked up a guitar for the next song that had a lot of loud, low guitar sound. He shouted the chorus and red and yellow lights blinked. The song included the lyrics “you were always watching me”. For the next song Harrison introduced an “illegitimate” member of the band, Jessie, a member of the Heartless Bastards, the other opening act. He played this sit down slide guitar that produced loud and resonating notes. I looked back into the crowd on the mezzanine level and noticed only a few of them wearing those white masks that were handed out earlier in the queue. Signs in front of the crowd on the floor said “No Moshing” and “No Crowd Surfing”.
Harrison described the next song as “somewhere between us and Wolfmother”. I think he also said that he was dedicating it to an old pal. It was a faster song with loud drumming. Harrison played the guitar solo. At one point he got everyone to clap out the rhythm. Before the next song he said it was the last one and told us to “stick around for the bastards and the mothers.” They followed with a very loud and fast song along that included blinking red spotlights and a rapid-fire chorus. When they finished to loud applause, Harrison said, “Thank you very much. We’re thenewno2.” They left the stage at 9:03 pm.
The screen returned and a guy sitting next to me saw me taking notes in my manly notebook and said, “You’re not doing homework are you?” Text messages on the screen commented on thenewno2. Their reviews were mixed: “The vocalist was poop”, “(He) looks like the English guy in (the film) Forgetting Sarah Marshall”, and “Julian Lennon was pretty good.” Another text commented on the headliner still to come: “OMG Wolfmother is so cute!” The crew rearranged the instruments on stage, moving the drums to the middle. At 9:17 pm, the next opening act, the Heartless Bastards, took the stage. They consisted of a female lead singer/guitarist, a drummer, a bassist, and the previously seen Jessie on guitar. The lead singer had a low voice and when she spoke it sounded like she had a Southern accent. Her blond hair covered her eyes slightly. Their first sound sounded bluesy and had the profound lyric “Can’t do things I used to do because I feel old.” I know that feeling well.
“The Heartless Bastards” seemed like a deprecating and negative name for a group whose music didn’t sound that negative. Some songs sounded very positive with lyrics such as “hold your head up high” and “things will work out soon”. Another song sounded like Gospel with the lyrics “hold onto what you know” and “wash my sins away”. Most of the songs had loud and fast vocals. One song had loud guitar feedback. I think that was “Mountainous” that the lead singer said was the title track to their new album. She talked a bit between songs mentioning that this was their first time performing at the Wiltern and that she liked the beautiful old theaters. Their sixth or seventh song was their last and then the lead singer said, “Thank you so much. Thank you Wolfmother and thenewno2”. They left the stage at 9:57 pm.
The crew removed the Heartless Bastards’ instruments and uncovered the drumkit on the elevated platform in the middle back of the stage. I think someone posted the text message “When does the band start?” At 10:18 pm the lights dimmed and the large “WM” Wolfmother logo was lowered as a backdrop. The screen showed an ad for Red Nights that described how a portion of the ticket proceeds was going to charity. Their slogan was “great music saves lives.” The screen then went back to showing ads and text messages. There was an ad for Guy Fieri Food and Rock. Two days later we happened to make the recipe Guy Fieri’s Holy Haluski for the family Thanksgiving potluck. The canned music played the song “Love is the Drug”. At 10:22 pm the lights dimmed, the screen rose, and this time the show started for real. Wolfmother took the stage and went straight into the loud and fast song “Dimension” that I believe is the first track off their first album. It has the line “I found myself alone” but for this performance the lead singer, Andy Stockdale, sang it as “I found myself in L.A.”
Wolfmother consisted of Stockdale on lead vocals and guitar, a drummer on the elevated drum kit behind the others, a bassist with hair nearly as wild as Stockdale’s, and another guitarist. There were parts of some songs where one of them, I don’t remember which, would play keyboard. Six spotlights on stage shined at each other to form a triangular pattern that I believe shows up as part of their main logo or one of their alternate logos. Stockdale played an extended guitar solo for “Dimension” and at one point had the audience clap out the rhythm. We didn’t immediately recall the title of their next song that began with the lyrics “walking through galleria lights.” It got very loud with the loud drumming and Stockdale singing, “Tell me every word you say.” Afterward we determined that the song was “Cosmic Egg”, the title track from their latest album. Their next song was also from this album, though we recognized it right away. It was “California Queen” that we figured they would play at this concert. Like the others it was loud and fast. During the verses the bright blue and yellow spotlights shined right at me for a few seconds temporarily blinding and causing me to see spots. Stockdale shook the microphone. Sometimes during or after songs he would wave his hands or raise them above his head. With his thick, bushy hair he reminded me a bit of L.A. Philharmonic musical director Gustavo Dudamel (root of the words Dudanomics, Dudamania, and Dudameloriffic.)
The next song was the equally loud and fast “New Mood Rising”. It started with them playing a bit lower but they quickly got louder for the choruses. I believe Stockdale again changed the lyrics for this locality by singing (or saying?) “Taking a turn at the Wiltern” and “Gonna let it burn at the Wiltern.” The next song had everyone singing along since it was a big hit on the airwaves and on Guitar Hero: “Woman”. Yellow, red, and green spotlights flashed. Stockdale moved all around the stage. Either he or another band member played keyboard for part of the song. He played an extended guitar solo and the song ended as suddenly as it began.
Between “Woman” and the next song the band played some slow atmospheric feedback. The stage was darker with only three spotlights shining blue light. The people in the loge level finally sat down. They had been standing since Wolfmother took the stage partially obscuring our view. The next song, “White Unicorn”, followed the pattern of slow verses and fast choruses, all loud. Towards the end of the song they played a long instrumental part with guitars, keyboard, and drums. At one point Stockdale climbed up to the drummer’s platform and helped play drums. The sound eventually evolved into low, screeching guitar feedback.
The next song began with a long instrumental part that was soon accompanied by fast singing. It got louder and I couldn’t identify it initially but my wife identified it as “Colossal”. While they played I was temporarily distracted by someone smoking something other than tobacco. Perhaps they were taking their medication. The song got very loud and fast at the end. After they finished Stockdale mentioned that this was the final show of their American tour. He asked, “What better place to have it than the Wiltern?” He then requested applause for thenewno2 and the Heartless Bastards and said, “We have a lot in store for you tonight” as if they were just getting started. They then played some fast guitar to begin “White Feather”, one of our favorite songs from their latest album. It has the lyrics “Dancing feet. Dancing feet. Now.” Stockdale gave the song a loud, screeching guitar solo and the song ended quickly.
Speaking of feet, the next song was “10,000 Feet” that began with loud guitar and drums and later had a loud guitar solo. They kept things rocking with the next song, “Sundial” and kept things going after that with “Apple Tree”. By that point many in the audience were standing and singing along. They slowed a bit for the verses but were still loud and fast for the choruses. I looked down at the floor below and I thought I saw people moshing despite the “no moshing” sign. Security didn’t seem to be enforcing it. Stockdale again played a very loud guitar solo. They finished the song and he mentioned that they were donating some of the ticket sale proceeds to Red Nights, a charitable organization sponsoring the concert and that this would provide “a little good karma.” They had played eleven songs so far, it was 11:25 pm, and a few people were leaving the concert.
Stockdale said something like “Take it away, Perez!” and they started slowly but soon got loud, fast, and almost explosive. People cheered and the song was “In the Castle”. When they finished, Stockdale raised his hands above his head and then left the stage with the band. It was 11:30 pm. We left soon after. We decided not to stay for the encore because we believed that the last Purple Line subway would leave the Wilshire/Western station at 12:00 am. We didn’t think we could leave on time if we left with the rest of the crowd. Wolfmother had performed most of the songs we had wanted to hear such as “Woman”, “White Feather”, and “Apple Tree”. They hadn’t yet done “Far Away” or one of their big songs, “Joker and the Thief” but we could leave the encore to the young people and the people who didn’t have to work the next day. We left the Wiltern completely unobstructed by any crowd, crossed Wilshire and took the escalator down at the Wilshire/Western station. At the bottom of the second escalator we noticed a couple of Metro security personnel. We guessed that they were there for the crowd that was soon to leave the Wiltern. Perhaps that meant there would have been trains running by the time the show got out. But it was still less of a headache to leave before the crowds.
We made it to the platform at 11:37 pm and boarded a subway train that was already there. All subway trains at Wilshire/Western go east since it’s the end of the line and people had to get out before we boarded the train. There were a few others boarding the train with us. At least one guy looked like he also came from the concert. He later got off at the Wilshire/Vermont station. The subway left Wilshire/Western at 11:42 pm and arrived at the 7th and Metro station at 11:50 pm. We walked back to the car and got there at 12:09 am. The door to the elevators at the parking garage was propped open but when we entered the elevator, the doors closed and it stayed on the ground floor beeping. We hit the “doors open” button, exited, and took the stairs. Driving home there was some roadwork on the 10. The exits to Atlantic and Garfield Avenues were blocked but the one at New Avenue was open. A sign said that the two right lanes were closed at route 605 but when we got there the two left lanes were closed. Still, the road work did not slow us down very much. It looked like the other side of the freeway was going very slow and was backed up. We got home at 12:47 am and I got up to go to work about five and a half hours later.
We don’t know all the songs we missed by skipping the encore. I did read online that at one point the former Guns and Roses guitarist Slash came out on stage and performed his song “By the Sword” with Andy Stockdale. I wonder how many of the young folks recognized Slash.
We saw Wolfmother at the Wiltern Theater on Tuesday, November 24, 2009. They’re a relatively new band from Australia having released their first album, Wolfmother, in 2006 and their second album, “Cosmic Egg” in October 2009. Despite being new they have a hard-rocking throwback sound causing some people to believe they’ve been around since the 1970’s. They actually formed in the early 2000’s and had major lineup changes in 2008 with all band members replaced except the lead singer/guitarist/frontman Andy Stockdale. He’s hard to miss in their photos and videos with his loud pitched voice, stage theatrics, and big bushy afro. Wolfmother’s big song “Woman” was featured in one of the Guitar Hero games. They were on a 2-month tour of North America to promote their second album and L.A. was their last stop.
We heard about the show over two months before and bought tickets at a Blockbuster Video on Azusa Avenue. The tickets went on sale at 10:00 am on Friday, September 18, 2009 and we got ours at 10:01 am. We had taken the day off work to go to the L.A. County Fair (see earlier blog). Since we got them so soon after they went on sale we got the best seats in our chosen price range: front row mezzanine, very near the middle. When we bought the tickets back then we thought we would be off work on Wednesday, November 25, the day after the concert and the day before Thanksgiving. I thought I had enough vacation time but it turned out that I didn’t so it really was a “school night” for us.
On Tuesday evening, November 24 my wife and I met up at our brother- and sister-in-law’s home in the South Park area of Downtown L.A. From there my wife and I walked to Pastagina restaurant where we had dinner (see future review). We left Pastagina at 6:45 pm and continued to walk north on Hope Street. It felt fairly warm outside for November being in the 60’s or 70’s. We entered the subway station at 7th and Hope, bought a 1-way subway ticket and went down a level to catch the Purple Line subway. We arrived at the platform at 6:55 pm and the next Purple Line subway to Wilshire/Western station wasn’t scheduled to arrive until 7:02 pm. The subway arrived right on time and it wasn’t crowded at all. While we rode it I noticed a sign said “Apartese Amablement” and showed a large group of cartoon figures boarding. I think that means “board in a courteous manner” or something like that. The subway arrived at Wilshire/Western station at 7:10 pm.
We exited the subway and rode the escalators up and out of the station. Once outside we could see the queue all down the block waiting for the doors to the Wiltern theater to open. The marquee of the Wiltern said “Red Nights presents Wolfmother”. After we crossed Wilshire Blvd we noticed a poster on the lamppost for thenewno2, one of the opening acts. It showed a bunch of people wearing white asymmetric masks that looked to me like flat, jagged pieces of icebergs with two holes for eyes. As we walked down to the end of the queue we saw some people in it wearing those masks. Someone had gone down the queue handing them out. The queue mostly consisted of young men who looked to be in their 20’s. There were also many young women as part of couples or groups. They were mostly Caucasian though there were some Asians and African Americans. They mostly wore black clothing: t-shirts and jeans. I looked out of place in my work cloths: white long-sleeved collared shirt from Topman and grey slacks. I would have fit in better at a symphony concert or at the Loggins and Messina concert we attended in October. The queue went all down the block from Western Ave to Oxford Ave where it wrapped around to the south.
We queued up at 7:17 pm along Oxford near the parking garage for the Wiltern. At 7:20 pm the queue contracted causing us to move up several feet. That was interesting because the ticket said that the doors opened at 7:30 pm. I didn’t expect the queue to start moving until then. A couple of ladies walked down the queue selling t-shirts and beanies. There was no queue movement for 15 minutes. The “doors open” time came and went. AT 7:35 pm the queue moved up several feet and from that point moved in spurts of several 5-6 people. We guessed that was how many people they had got through security at a given time. As we waited a father with 2-3 young boys walked by to queue up behind us. Another guy seemed to be walking laps around the block. We saw him walk by at least three times. The queue continued to move up in starts and stops. We passed the Denny’s on the corner of Wilshire and Oxford and the restaurant Opus One Bar and Grill where lots of people were crowded around the bar watching the Laker game. We also stopped in front of the Cinema Makeup Center by 7:50 pm.
At 7:55 pm we made it to the front of the queue. Security consisted of frisking: men by men and women by women. Since there were more men in the queue, the female screeners weren’t as busy and my wife got through security earlier than I. We met up at the doors where employees scanned our tickets. I went upstairs to find our seats while my wife went to see what they were selling at the merch table. When I sat down it was 8 pm. Our seats were good: the front row of the mezzanine section, row A, seats 209 and 210 that were very near the middle. Now the mezzanine section only takes up the larger back part of the upper level. The front seats are in the smaller loge section. But those loge seats are also more expensive. The Wiltern looked very similar to how it looked at the last concert we attended there: Mika in February 2008. I think it was called the Wiltern LG back then. The ceiling had a lot of ornamental woodwork and there was a screen above the stage where the audience could have text messages posted. All they had to do was text WILT + (ur message) to 64066. They didn’t seem to be texting as much to it this time.
I could see many young people congregating on the floor in front of the stage. On stage was some covered equipment including a drum kit with the image of a the mask from thenewno2 poster. My wife went to her seat after getting a Wolfmother “Cosmic Egg” t-shirt and pieces of flair. She saw a text message on the screen saying that the show would start at 8:40 pm. The canned music played two Beach Boys songs: “God Only Knows” and “Wouldn’t it Be Nice”. I walked around a bit. They had a long bar outside the doors to the mezzanine. Near that some people had silkscreen presses set up where they sold t-shirts with artistic designs. There was no attendant in the restrooms saving me some tip money.
I returned to my seat and the first opening band soon took the stage at 8:30 pm. It was thenewno2 with lead singer/guitarist Dhani Harrison. He’s the son of the late former Beatle George Harrison. He stood in the middle of the stage. To his left were a keyboard player and drummer and to his right were another guitarist and bassist. Harrison would also press buttons on this machine near him that produced various sound effects. Their first number was very atmospheric and made use of the sound effects. It started slow but got louder and faster. Dhani Harrison is tall and thin with long, straight hair. He wore a black t-shirt and jeans. His voice is a little bit similar to his father’s. He spoke with an English accent that surprised me because I thought he grew up in L.A. After their first song he said he was glad to be back in America with the “Bastards and the Mothers” (references to the other opening act and the headliner) and that it was good to be home.
Harrison picked up a bullhorn for the next song and sang the chorus with it. The visual effects consisted of many colored spotlights that shone red for this song. He picked up a guitar for the next song that had a lot of loud, low guitar sound. He shouted the chorus and red and yellow lights blinked. The song included the lyrics “you were always watching me”. For the next song Harrison introduced an “illegitimate” member of the band, Jessie, a member of the Heartless Bastards, the other opening act. He played this sit down slide guitar that produced loud and resonating notes. I looked back into the crowd on the mezzanine level and noticed only a few of them wearing those white masks that were handed out earlier in the queue. Signs in front of the crowd on the floor said “No Moshing” and “No Crowd Surfing”.
Harrison described the next song as “somewhere between us and Wolfmother”. I think he also said that he was dedicating it to an old pal. It was a faster song with loud drumming. Harrison played the guitar solo. At one point he got everyone to clap out the rhythm. Before the next song he said it was the last one and told us to “stick around for the bastards and the mothers.” They followed with a very loud and fast song along that included blinking red spotlights and a rapid-fire chorus. When they finished to loud applause, Harrison said, “Thank you very much. We’re thenewno2.” They left the stage at 9:03 pm.
The screen returned and a guy sitting next to me saw me taking notes in my manly notebook and said, “You’re not doing homework are you?” Text messages on the screen commented on thenewno2. Their reviews were mixed: “The vocalist was poop”, “(He) looks like the English guy in (the film) Forgetting Sarah Marshall”, and “Julian Lennon was pretty good.” Another text commented on the headliner still to come: “OMG Wolfmother is so cute!” The crew rearranged the instruments on stage, moving the drums to the middle. At 9:17 pm, the next opening act, the Heartless Bastards, took the stage. They consisted of a female lead singer/guitarist, a drummer, a bassist, and the previously seen Jessie on guitar. The lead singer had a low voice and when she spoke it sounded like she had a Southern accent. Her blond hair covered her eyes slightly. Their first sound sounded bluesy and had the profound lyric “Can’t do things I used to do because I feel old.” I know that feeling well.
“The Heartless Bastards” seemed like a deprecating and negative name for a group whose music didn’t sound that negative. Some songs sounded very positive with lyrics such as “hold your head up high” and “things will work out soon”. Another song sounded like Gospel with the lyrics “hold onto what you know” and “wash my sins away”. Most of the songs had loud and fast vocals. One song had loud guitar feedback. I think that was “Mountainous” that the lead singer said was the title track to their new album. She talked a bit between songs mentioning that this was their first time performing at the Wiltern and that she liked the beautiful old theaters. Their sixth or seventh song was their last and then the lead singer said, “Thank you so much. Thank you Wolfmother and thenewno2”. They left the stage at 9:57 pm.
The crew removed the Heartless Bastards’ instruments and uncovered the drumkit on the elevated platform in the middle back of the stage. I think someone posted the text message “When does the band start?” At 10:18 pm the lights dimmed and the large “WM” Wolfmother logo was lowered as a backdrop. The screen showed an ad for Red Nights that described how a portion of the ticket proceeds was going to charity. Their slogan was “great music saves lives.” The screen then went back to showing ads and text messages. There was an ad for Guy Fieri Food and Rock. Two days later we happened to make the recipe Guy Fieri’s Holy Haluski for the family Thanksgiving potluck. The canned music played the song “Love is the Drug”. At 10:22 pm the lights dimmed, the screen rose, and this time the show started for real. Wolfmother took the stage and went straight into the loud and fast song “Dimension” that I believe is the first track off their first album. It has the line “I found myself alone” but for this performance the lead singer, Andy Stockdale, sang it as “I found myself in L.A.”
Wolfmother consisted of Stockdale on lead vocals and guitar, a drummer on the elevated drum kit behind the others, a bassist with hair nearly as wild as Stockdale’s, and another guitarist. There were parts of some songs where one of them, I don’t remember which, would play keyboard. Six spotlights on stage shined at each other to form a triangular pattern that I believe shows up as part of their main logo or one of their alternate logos. Stockdale played an extended guitar solo for “Dimension” and at one point had the audience clap out the rhythm. We didn’t immediately recall the title of their next song that began with the lyrics “walking through galleria lights.” It got very loud with the loud drumming and Stockdale singing, “Tell me every word you say.” Afterward we determined that the song was “Cosmic Egg”, the title track from their latest album. Their next song was also from this album, though we recognized it right away. It was “California Queen” that we figured they would play at this concert. Like the others it was loud and fast. During the verses the bright blue and yellow spotlights shined right at me for a few seconds temporarily blinding and causing me to see spots. Stockdale shook the microphone. Sometimes during or after songs he would wave his hands or raise them above his head. With his thick, bushy hair he reminded me a bit of L.A. Philharmonic musical director Gustavo Dudamel (root of the words Dudanomics, Dudamania, and Dudameloriffic.)
The next song was the equally loud and fast “New Mood Rising”. It started with them playing a bit lower but they quickly got louder for the choruses. I believe Stockdale again changed the lyrics for this locality by singing (or saying?) “Taking a turn at the Wiltern” and “Gonna let it burn at the Wiltern.” The next song had everyone singing along since it was a big hit on the airwaves and on Guitar Hero: “Woman”. Yellow, red, and green spotlights flashed. Stockdale moved all around the stage. Either he or another band member played keyboard for part of the song. He played an extended guitar solo and the song ended as suddenly as it began.
Between “Woman” and the next song the band played some slow atmospheric feedback. The stage was darker with only three spotlights shining blue light. The people in the loge level finally sat down. They had been standing since Wolfmother took the stage partially obscuring our view. The next song, “White Unicorn”, followed the pattern of slow verses and fast choruses, all loud. Towards the end of the song they played a long instrumental part with guitars, keyboard, and drums. At one point Stockdale climbed up to the drummer’s platform and helped play drums. The sound eventually evolved into low, screeching guitar feedback.
The next song began with a long instrumental part that was soon accompanied by fast singing. It got louder and I couldn’t identify it initially but my wife identified it as “Colossal”. While they played I was temporarily distracted by someone smoking something other than tobacco. Perhaps they were taking their medication. The song got very loud and fast at the end. After they finished Stockdale mentioned that this was the final show of their American tour. He asked, “What better place to have it than the Wiltern?” He then requested applause for thenewno2 and the Heartless Bastards and said, “We have a lot in store for you tonight” as if they were just getting started. They then played some fast guitar to begin “White Feather”, one of our favorite songs from their latest album. It has the lyrics “Dancing feet. Dancing feet. Now.” Stockdale gave the song a loud, screeching guitar solo and the song ended quickly.
Speaking of feet, the next song was “10,000 Feet” that began with loud guitar and drums and later had a loud guitar solo. They kept things rocking with the next song, “Sundial” and kept things going after that with “Apple Tree”. By that point many in the audience were standing and singing along. They slowed a bit for the verses but were still loud and fast for the choruses. I looked down at the floor below and I thought I saw people moshing despite the “no moshing” sign. Security didn’t seem to be enforcing it. Stockdale again played a very loud guitar solo. They finished the song and he mentioned that they were donating some of the ticket sale proceeds to Red Nights, a charitable organization sponsoring the concert and that this would provide “a little good karma.” They had played eleven songs so far, it was 11:25 pm, and a few people were leaving the concert.
Stockdale said something like “Take it away, Perez!” and they started slowly but soon got loud, fast, and almost explosive. People cheered and the song was “In the Castle”. When they finished, Stockdale raised his hands above his head and then left the stage with the band. It was 11:30 pm. We left soon after. We decided not to stay for the encore because we believed that the last Purple Line subway would leave the Wilshire/Western station at 12:00 am. We didn’t think we could leave on time if we left with the rest of the crowd. Wolfmother had performed most of the songs we had wanted to hear such as “Woman”, “White Feather”, and “Apple Tree”. They hadn’t yet done “Far Away” or one of their big songs, “Joker and the Thief” but we could leave the encore to the young people and the people who didn’t have to work the next day. We left the Wiltern completely unobstructed by any crowd, crossed Wilshire and took the escalator down at the Wilshire/Western station. At the bottom of the second escalator we noticed a couple of Metro security personnel. We guessed that they were there for the crowd that was soon to leave the Wiltern. Perhaps that meant there would have been trains running by the time the show got out. But it was still less of a headache to leave before the crowds.
We made it to the platform at 11:37 pm and boarded a subway train that was already there. All subway trains at Wilshire/Western go east since it’s the end of the line and people had to get out before we boarded the train. There were a few others boarding the train with us. At least one guy looked like he also came from the concert. He later got off at the Wilshire/Vermont station. The subway left Wilshire/Western at 11:42 pm and arrived at the 7th and Metro station at 11:50 pm. We walked back to the car and got there at 12:09 am. The door to the elevators at the parking garage was propped open but when we entered the elevator, the doors closed and it stayed on the ground floor beeping. We hit the “doors open” button, exited, and took the stairs. Driving home there was some roadwork on the 10. The exits to Atlantic and Garfield Avenues were blocked but the one at New Avenue was open. A sign said that the two right lanes were closed at route 605 but when we got there the two left lanes were closed. Still, the road work did not slow us down very much. It looked like the other side of the freeway was going very slow and was backed up. We got home at 12:47 am and I got up to go to work about five and a half hours later.
We don’t know all the songs we missed by skipping the encore. I did read online that at one point the former Guns and Roses guitarist Slash came out on stage and performed his song “By the Sword” with Andy Stockdale. I wonder how many of the young folks recognized Slash.
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