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Killradio / The Kinison / A Wilhelm Scream

live in Los Angeles
2004
live show

Review by: Zack
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Published on September 21st 2004

Ever since I saw Killradio open for the Mad Caddies two months ago I had been looking forward to the time when I could see them again. That time came on September 17th, ten days after their debut album "Raised On Whipped Cream" was released. To sum it up Killradio is a punk band that was signed to major label without any big fanbase, a risk that should turn out to be a good choice if Killradio's sound is subjected to the masses.

The first band was a band I'd never heard of before called Program The Dead; overall they were pretty good for a band that wasn't on the ticket and seemed to have recently formed. Their guitar work reminded me alot of the clash tinged with a little bit of metal. I couldn't hear the vocals that well but I'm guessing they were a screamo band because their lead singer was next to me during Killradio's set and thats what he sounded like.

Then came A Wilhelm Scream, they busted out immediately with alot of energy and they sounded really awesome, but for some reason they reminding the crowd that they were far from home. The guitar stood out a lot with this band and I enjoyed the fast melodic hardcore sound alot. A Wilhelm Scream's set was overall pretty seamless, I will definitely check in on them again.

The downer of the night came with The Kinison; to sum them up in one sentence is hard to do. The Kinison's lead singer and lead guitar player were both blatantly feminine, and they danced like girls through the whole set. Their rhythm guitar to quote a friend of mine sounded "like nails on a chalkboard" and their bass was almost impossible to hear over the rhythm guitar. The only good part about their band was their drummer who was playing the drums literally like a madman. They stopped their set halfway through because my freind had involuntarily started a fight by jokingly throwing down, this along with the fact that their singer grabbed my other freind's head and started pulling his hair got me to flat out not like the singer. I personally didn't enjoy The Kinison's performance because their sound was the kind of punk I could do without.

The moment I had been waiting for arrived, Killradio appeared on the stage and after setting up their instruments without hestiation broke into "Pull Out", a song that is pretty catchy with a bass line that rocks and it was a great opener for their set. After "Pull Out" their lead singer introduced "Entertained" with the line that sums up their outlook on the radio, "They made radio for the music, now they just make music for the radio", this song is awesome and it really got the crowd going, the energy of the band was in full force. They then busted out the song "Scavenger" which to make my description short was awesome. "Amerika" was a good song that was really cool, but I dont remember when they played it. They broke into their single "Do You Know (Knife In Your Back)" which really got the pit going. The song with the funniest name, "Penis Envy," is a flat out rant on what modern American society has turned into and I never thought it could be so good musically. The next song "Freedom?" was good, but what came next was better.

The song "Ad Jam" is a really energetic song which breaks out with some of the greatest lyrics on the album, "They live and die by images/ so lets exploit back/ flip it and reverse it watch the audience attack/ They've got the power weve got the pain/ do the ad jam baby let me show you the way" its a great song. What came next was a song that was unfortunately not released on their album called "Whose World". "Whose World" was not released because it borrowed lyrics from a Nas song. It was one of their better songs of the night and it was great that they played it. The lead singer took a minute to remind the crowd that now is the most important time in history and that if you ignore that we're gonna be screwed, he said "Don't fall asleep". Their next song "Classroom Blues" is all about falling asleep during class because teachers can "Brainwash, but they can't teach" - this song is slower than the others and I enjoyed it a lot.

Their bass player, who may I say is one of the better bassists I've seen live, said "we've got two more songs left for you" a line that I was hoping was not true. The song played next was titled "Raised on Whipped Cream." It reminds me of a Dead Kennedys song for some reason and I liked it. The "last" song was called "Where Go We" - it is their poppiest song and I thought it was a great closer. The only problem was it wasn't their closer, their lead singer said "We're too lazy to stop", the song that followed was a cover of "Bodies" by the Sex Pistols, it was flat out amazing. The highlight of the night came during the song when the lead singer climbed on top of the highest amp to finish the show.

Overall, Killradio is one of the best bands I've seen live and with the exception of The Kinison's performance it was a flawless night.

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Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, October 27, 2004 at 8:29 PM (EDT)
My Score:

Liking the kinison and being homophobic seems extremely strange to me because the kinison are the most blatantly homo-erotic band I've ever seen.

Posted by Anonymous on Friday, October 15, 2004 at 5:19 PM (EDT)
My Score:

You are fucking gay. The Kinison is the shit and you have no fucking clue what good music and dance is. Obviously Blink 182 sees them otherwise seeing as they are going on tour with them in about a month.
Eat shit and die

Posted by Anonymous on Thursday, October 7, 2004 at 8:33 PM (EDT)
My Score:

check out the KINISONs new video .
go to

www.lasallerecords.com click on "news"
IT IS DOPE !!!

Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, September 28, 2004 at 4:33 PM (EDT)
My Score:

I love AWS. I think they are getting kinda popular so the next logical step is for the "true punks" to start tearing them down. That's the way it's been for what? the last decade or so? Think about every band that has toured their asses off, put out 7" after 7", started to get a following, what happens next? Everytime, the haters come out of the woodwork, Everytime. Fuckin sheep.
(this isnt directed at the people who, because of personal taste, just dont like them, that's cool. It's to the bandwagoners. They know who they are. They know what they are.)

Posted by Anonymous on Sunday, September 26, 2004 at 9:19 PM (EDT)
My Score:

awesome review. the Kinison SUCKED fat balls. i didnt even move at all during their performance and i wanted to punch the singer in the face. The only reson i stood there is so I could have a good place for Killradio. i been listen to them since they started, litterally, when it was just brandon and a drum machine. i was so happy they played Bodies. and the mad caddies show in july was fukin awesome too. peace.

the half star is because of The Kinison.

JJ

Posted by Anonymous on Saturday, September 25, 2004 at 8:41 PM (EDT)
My Score:

I dont like hatebreed, their fans make pits more like one big massacre than a place to get out your energy, I like mosh pits because it allows you to get out the energy you are feeling during a show, and they are usually freindly unless you go to a show like hatebreed or some metal-core show where their main goal is to injure everyone around them, I myself have never been injured in a mosh pit, and I'm really skinny, and I'm not tough and I dont not like the kinison because they are feminine, I dont like their music thats why.

Posted by Anonymous on Saturday, September 25, 2004 at 7:40 PM (EDT)
My Score:

Ohhh look at the big man, loves to "MOSH IT UP". See you at Hatebreed?

-BSD

Posted by Anonymous on Saturday, September 25, 2004 at 7:32 PM (EDT)
My Score:

The Kinison didn't suck because of their singers stage presence, they sucked because their music sucked, dont take it the wrong way, and I do prefer to mosh to rock music, whether it be punk or not.

Posted by Anonymous on Saturday, September 25, 2004 at 3:28 PM (EDT)
My Score:

this review SUCKS !
first the kinsion are NOt a punk band so why do you even give them a review ?
the singer is awesome .. a cross between a young mick jagger and scott wiland when it comes to dancing !and IF my memory serves me correctly they BOTH dance like chicks . but hmmm
wonder what made them so big .
I am sure in mick jaggers younger years he too was critized for his " chick dancing " and being flamby .
the KINSION kick ass LIVE ! and it sounds like you ( the reviewer ) dont know how to PARTY ! let lose dude and have some fun ! DANCE .. its a GRAET stress reliever !!
or does your MOSHING help you feel better ~~

Posted by Anonymous on Friday, September 24, 2004 at 8:11 PM (EDT)
My Score:

Don't listen to Jones the Boner ever.

I really want to see AWS, I love the new album, hopefully they'll be over here soon as

Posted by stevejonestherealbones on 2004-09-24 12:53:00
My Score:

that whole get on stage and dance like girls with another guy member of the band is just a fuckin fad to get people like bsd to cream their pants...."oohhhh... he wears girl jeans and grabs the other guys cock,...they are soooo not jock rockers...they are so down with it. they know whats up."

they are the true cock rockers.

its just another fad that all the young bands are doing now. just another band wagon that the blood brothers helped get popular and every skinny kid in a band is doin now to be "different":

- jones the bones

- stevejones8770@yahoo.com

and whats up with wearing chicks jeans anyway? thats fucking getting out of hand

Posted by sickboi on 2004-09-24 08:26:59
My Score:

I don't make fun of kids that look "different", I laugh at those who follow a trend, yet rag on those outside the "circle".

I guess my main basis for commenting was calling AWS jock rock, without any reasoning, My conclusion was that it was because they didn't mold into one of the various "fill-in-the-blank"-core that everyone is trying to associate themselves with.

I call the Mad Caddies "Frat-Core", mainly because everytime I see them live, they literally act like a bunch of drunken frat boys on stage. And I'm not talking about the cool kids from Animal House or Lamda Lamda Lamda.

Posted by Anonymous on Thursday, September 23, 2004 at 10:14 PM (EDT)
My Score:

I never said I liked their EP (haven't heard the album). All I know is that I think their live show is the best.

-BSD

Posted by Anonymous on Thursday, September 23, 2004 at 9:22 PM (EDT)
My Score:

Or maybe BSD you just have extremely shitty taste in music, becuase it seems all the reviews I've seen of the kinison are terrible, let me show you one: "Inane

In*ane", a. [L. inanis.] Without contents; empty; void of sense or intelligence; purposeless; pointless; characterless; useless.

See also: The Kinison "Mortgage Is Bank" (Punkrocks.net)

Posted by Anonymous on Thursday, September 23, 2004 at 6:09 PM (EDT)
My Score:

"Don't try to make assumptions about the type of person I am, I don't know you, and wouldn't do that to you."

You would to some anonymous guy though? I'm not assuming anything about you, I'm just saying it's dumb to make fun of kids who dress a certain way if you're into punk or hardcore.

Even though neither of us are fashion kids, it's nothing to get on a soapbox about. You started this bullshit with "why can't bands be popular without looking a certain way?". Bands don't have to look like anything. Hell, I even will commend a kid for looking stupid if he's being original and pissing off others.

I don't know where you live, but in the midwest we still get dirty looks from assholes because we have longer hair than they'd like (which I'm sure some idiot could twist around to being "unpunk", or even "fashion pozerz like GC!"). I've avoided the ass-patches, the leather, the combat boots, etc., but so do most people. Why waste your time making fun of confused kids, instead of offering alternatives, ignoring it, or sounding like a bitter old man. It's how they fucking look. Let them be faux-punks, and they'll let you be yourself.

And it's a fact that live, the Kinison will rape your soul.

-BSD

Posted by sickboi on 2004-09-23 17:48:26
My Score:

"Anyway, you'd better get back to putting on your "normal" clothes and making fun of people who look differently than you.

That is, after all, what punk and hardcore are about. "

Spare me your rebel without a fucking clue rhetoric.

Don't try to spin that bullshit on me. You and I both know its a 2-headed monster. Yes "normal" dressed people look down on those who dress "differently". But before you go jumping to conclusions about me or my intentions, think for a moment.

The comment was obviously geared towards those with the scene-star mentality; clothes, make-up, etc. I just wondered where the jock-rock conclusion came from. Being that it isn't their style, or lyrics, that was my only guess.

Don't try to make assumptions about the type of person I am, I don't know you, and wouldn't do that to you.

Or are you still pissed that I don't like squatters?

Posted by Anonymous on Thursday, September 23, 2004 at 4:01 PM (EDT)
My Score:

"You know, how come if a band doesn't wear street punk/oi uniforms, or girly pants and makeup, or generic hardcore hoodies and New Balance, or old jeans/flannel and trucker hat, they are immediately branded as "jock rock"."

You're an idiot. I (and many other kids that go to shows) don't dress up, and I've seen a lot of bands that don't dress up. You're stupid for assuming that because we think they suck, we must be all-pose.

I, for one, think AWS lyrics are stupid.

If a band is good, people will like them. Just because I don't like their delightfully bland slow hardcore doesn't mean I'm putting on make-up.

Anyway, you'd better get back to putting on your "normal" clothes and making fun of people who look differently than you.

That is, after all, what punk and hardcore are about.

-BSD

Posted by Anonymous on Thursday, September 23, 2004 at 3:19 PM (EDT)
My Score:

Whoever said the bass player looks like a cheap Marilyn Manson know-off. That was funny. I don't know what the hell you are talking about. But that was funny.

Posted by Anonymous on Thursday, September 23, 2004 at 3:17 PM (EDT)
My Score:

People, People. Killradio, a Wilhelm Scream, and te Kinison are three completly different bands. I would like to say I enjoyed them all but I didn't. A Wilhelm scream does sound like jock rock to me. But thats me. I'm not posting on here to give people shit about their taste in music. I'm just saying, don't hate. I don't mean to hate by saying I dont really like a Wilhelm Scream, but im making an example. I thought Killradio and the Kinison were awesome. LOOK! It is possible to like more than one kind of music. Amazing. Wow, well , just be nice people. Everyone of these bands worked hard to get where they are.

ALso, dont assume a band's political just becuse they have good politics. Killradio: They sing about social issues, not all political. Sorry, I just had to throw that in.

So in summation. I think we should praise bands that we like all we want. But don't be stupid and post how much and why you hate a band so much. It's ignorant.

Posted by lobsterboy on 2004-09-23 14:44:47
My Score:

Where is Los Angeles anyway?

Posted by sickboi on 2004-09-23 12:58:37
My Score:

The guy below me bought his pair of women's jeans one size too small, its making him cranky.

Posted by Anonymous on Thursday, September 23, 2004 at 11:44 AM (EDT)
My Score:

This review is horrible.
a retarded fecis throwing monkey with a stick dipped in tar could write a more concise summation.

i hope the kinison fucks you in the ass the next time you go to one of their shows and pay the ticket master corporate dick sucker fees to see some crappy band that is a blatant rip off of Op Ivy.

AWS is jock rock.

Kill radio is jock rock.

kinison made you uncomfortable so they're the punkest band you saw that night.

stop being so complacent.

Posted by sickboi on 2004-09-23 09:50:37
My Score:

Right on Drew.

You know, how come if a band doesn't wear street punk/oi uniforms, or girly pants and makeup, or generic hardcore hoodies and New Balance, or old jeans/flannel and trucker hat, they are immediately branded as "jock rock".

Score is for AWS, bitches.

Posted by Anonymous on Thursday, September 23, 2004 at 9:42 AM (EDT)
My Score:

not dangerous enough

Posted by Anonymous on Thursday, September 23, 2004 at 2:28 AM (EDT)
My Score:

AWS is not a "jock rock" band? There just guys who are straight up in what they do, do you need to where girlss pants and makeup too be good these days? AWS would slay any of these bands guitar players too, not that the others are good, just not AS good. Sorry, but i know these guys and have to defend them because they come from the heart and actully have worked harder than any of these bands to get where they are today.

-drew-
pittsburgh,pa

Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, September 22, 2004 at 3:55 AM (EDT)
My Score:

i hate the kinison more than any other band.

but i give a wilhelm scream a 10

Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, September 22, 2004 at 3:28 AM (EDT)
My Score:

I was at this show as well as the show at The Glass house a few days earlier, and I have to say that I don't agree with you about the kinison, I love that band but I will admit it wasn't their best show the one at Key Club. It was however, an awesome Killradio show for sure. To all you asses that write the very heavily cliched 'corporate dick sucker' type of comments about this band , I just say get over it ! That comment is so fucken tired already. So I guess that Rise Against is also sucking some mean corporate dick along with just about any band that wants to see their music available to more than just people at their shows.Oh and The Kinison is on Atlantic records, but because they have no political content that's all cool right? stupid ! GROW UP! move out of your mommies house and let these hardworking bands do whatever the hell they want to.

Killradio definitely delivered the rock to that damn place. People were going crazy and actually singing at the top of their lungs was beautiful .

Now on with the rest of my comments. A Wilhelm Scream to me is a bit generic, seen it a million times kindof jock band ,
But they still rocked a nice show that night at Key Club and it was much better than their Glass house show, where by the way The Kinison ruled that night. Killradio were also awesome that night, but a better show for them was definitely the LA Show.

Overall, Killradio mopped the floor with both these bands this particular evening. I would recommend seeing any of these bands that were on that bill and Program the Dead - the opening band was also good.
they played too long but I didn't want to murder them by the end so that's a good thing.

however, all you stupid little 'punk police bitches' crying 'sell out' I do want to murder you because you make me sick and bored.

PS . i love lead singers that dance around like girls, and yes Brandon from Killradio does that too and I think it is a hell of a lot more rocking and confident than being one of those baseball hat wearing homophobe jock rockers.

Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, September 22, 2004 at 12:11 AM (EDT)
My Score:

Uh compared to Killradio? Unplug your ears.

-BSD

Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, September 21, 2004 at 11:23 PM (EDT)
My Score:

I think I mentioned that, plus they sounded like shit.

Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, September 21, 2004 at 11:13 PM (EDT)
My Score:

"I personally didn't enjoy The Kinison's performance because their sound was the kind of punk I could do without."

No, it's because their blatantly homo-erotic stage show made you feel insecure. That, and the fact that their singer always picks on at least two people in the crowd. It's awesome.

Score is for the Kinison live. Seriously. NO ONE LIKES THEM.

-BSD

Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, September 21, 2004 at 10:31 PM (EDT)
My Score:

At the CD release show the lead singer of killradio said, "KROQ played us on the radio last week, we're proud of it, not"

Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, September 21, 2004 at 10:27 PM (EDT)
My Score:

fuck all these bands.

have you heard bush's "golden state"? now there's an album.

Posted by blaubs21 on 2004-09-21 21:50:15
My Score:

there should be a lot more written about A Wilhelm Scream here, seeing as how they ruin almost any band's shit that they play with.

Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, September 21, 2004 at 9:43 PM (EDT)
My Score:

I saw Kill Radio and A Wilhelm Scream open for Head Automatica last night. The crowd just did not respond to the frontman for KR. He kept doing this bizarre wide-eyed stare that was supposed to be scary, or intriguing, or whatever he was going for. He just looked cocky and stupid. And he decided to jump off the stage onto a mostly empty floor to jump around during the last song of their set. His stage presence was weak.

The bassist looked like a cheap Marilyn Manson knock-off.

Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, September 21, 2004 at 8:34 PM (EDT)
My Score:

its really funny to call you band kill radio when you are sucking the corporate dick to get on the radio.

Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, September 21, 2004 at 7:35 PM (EDT)
My Score:

good review, killradio is awesome

Posted by Anonymous on Tuesday, September 21, 2004 at 7:28 PM (EDT)
My Score:

No.

I saw The Kinison a couple weeks ago and their lead singer had ridiculously good stage presence. If there was a lead singer who annoyed me at that show it was Killradio's. I was just not a fan of him. I'd never even heard them before and I thought the Kinison was awesome live.