The Moroccan Lounge: The Paranoyds, Howlin Rain, Broncho

I got an Instagram DM from one of the band members from Howlin Rain, wondering if I'd be interested in checking out their set at The Moroccan Lounge. Yeah, I was.

One thing to note is that this show was on a Friday night. I was also interested in the Warriors-Cavaliers game. What did I do? I drove on down to DTLA with the radio on. Then I parked and listened until the end of the game, even though it was a blow out. The game ended at around 8:30 p.m. and then off I went inside the venue. That's when I nearly panicked.

The Paranoyds were a late add to the bill. I happened to catch them once at a warehouse show and was eager to catch them again. When I got to the ticket counter, I looked up at the printed schedule they had on the wall and saw that The Paranoyds were scheduled to go on at 8:15 p.m. I was like, "What?" I asked the ticket guy, "When do The Paranoyds go on?" Sure, the schedule said 8:15, but those are sometimes taken with a grain of salt. The reply, "Around 8:45 p.m."

They killed it with their punk sounds and their cool conversations.

They had the comment of the night with their, "If you've never seen us before that's really cool, because we're from here."

The Paranoyds

Howlin Rain was up next. I have to admit that this was my first time catching their set. I also have to admit that I've never met the person who invited me, Jeff. So as they were setting up, I saw three members of the band setting up. As they were setting up, I decided to take a chance and waved at one of the band members, "Are you Jeff?" The reply, "No, he's coming out." A photographer next to me over-heard my conversation and said, "Jeff's the bass player." And so I said to myself, "Hmm, there's another band member?" Well, there is. Just before they were about to start their set, out came Jeff on bass. He plugged in and was ready to jam.

This band has a Southern Rock style that reminds you of John Mellencamp. I swear one might expect them to break out in a cover of "Small Town."

Howlin Rain

Broncho had the fans out, the screaming fans. One fan came right up to the middle of the stage and screamed her lungs out. I think that she was screaming so loud that it interfered with the sound guy's ability to properly set up the sound.

What couldn't I help but notice? Next to the kick drum was a brown envelope. And sticking out was a $10 bill.

Their sound is loose and makes you want to nod your head. With how the lights were shining, I also started to think of the ending of many of the Twin Peaks' episodes where a band played in a bar as the credits rolled past.

Broncho

Irritation of the night: a very drunk dude came to the front of the stage during Howlin Rain's set. At one point, I noticed that he was actually humping me. It took me a couple seconds to realize what he was doing and then I pushed him away. Then later he came up and started to rub my head. At that point, a female friend of his came over and told him to stop it.