Show: Hollywood Undead
Date: April 30, 2011
Venue: The Wiltern
City: Los Angeles, CA
Hollywood Undead
Photos by Nicolas Bates
Written by Michelle Oberg
Hollywood Undead was formed under the context that “whoever was in the room at the time and played an instrument was in the band.” So it comes as a surprise that 6 years after formation they have only lost 3 members and sky rocketed with their rap-rock artistry, gaining national recognition and fans. Clad with pseudonyms and hockey inspired, unique masks, their uncensored style packs a serious punch. Whether it’s for intimidation purposes to match their lyrical defiance or not, they’ve branded themselves anomalous.
With an additional member and drum kit (sans a few percussion tools) added to the 6-piece ensemble (for touring purposes) the group hit the stage like a ton of bricks. They wasted no time in getting the party started as fans raged to the opener “Undead.” Initially, the vocals were unimpressive as the rapping and chorus overlapping each other lacked the symmetry of Linkin’ Park’s founding technique. That being said, although they share likeness to the previously mentioned band, Hollywood Undead differs as predominantly lyrically driven with almost the entire group providing vocals at some point or another; not to mention their heavier playing style.
Starting the show with masks accentuated with bright lights, they opt for a more au natural look by their 4th song, “Gangsta Sexy”; just as I began to question the feeling of the wet faces that must lie beneath. “City” solidified the turning point for the aforementioned lack of being impressed. Delivering the hit with near vocal perfection, each verse coincides with the beat pausing in all the right places. The urge to dub this as an anthem tune seems perfectly relevant.
Giving Da Kurlzz (drums) and Daren Pfeifer (touring drums) their moment to shine with a percussion-only bit never gets old. The tempo holders let their hair down (literally) for some synchronized head banging as they bashed their skins. At the end of their interpretive drum duet, smoke shoots from canisters on the stage like fire extinguishers. Friends and family made up a decent portion of the crowd for their sold out hometown performance; the rest of the mass was comprised of hardcore fans rocking out, and some from atop fellow patron’s shoulders.
The second to last song, “Everywhere I Go,” had the entire room jumping off their feet and singing along. Pauses as long as an entire verse commenced as the artists basked in the receptiveness they were receiving. Plus, their vocals were being recited to them in a school-like pledge where multiplied voices amplify the songs already natural intensity.
For the show finale, Hollywood Undead chose “Hear Me Now,” the new track off American Tragedy, to give a taste as to what we may look forward to in the future from their music and tours—unfortunately, they may not have perfected that number yet. For all intents and purposes, this show was quite the spectacle of collaborative efforts, and originality; for that we are impressed with the difficult feat, but they didn’t necessarily finish on a high note. The vocals wavered too much between good and a work in progress; it lacked the same confidence and powerful nature the previous songs triumphantly followed through with.
No encore for this band—the final song was actually the final song—which was a first for this ‘ol gal. Overall, if you don’t love them then you may not get to experience the intensity that the SoCal patrons successfully experienced on this eve, but Hollywood Undead are sincerely entertaining nonetheless. Energy flies across the stage as if they have the ability to recharge themselves like a Smart Car. Regardless of this show, or any others, these heavy hitters have made a name for themselves.