Madame Siam: Holy Wars with Christina Castle, Sam Fischer and Fever Joy

I'm not sure there are a lot of Los Angeles bands out there that can bring out the photographers like Holy Wars. I counted at least 10 photographers hanging out in the tiny space of Madame Siam.

This band will make you scream out your anguish and then turn that pain into, as the say in their own music, rebirth. It is those lyrics and sounds that connected not just with the photographers, but the packed out crowd in Madame Siam.

The moment of the set has to be when lead singer Kat climbed onto the shoulders of one of those photographers, Scott. Scott then took her on a walk through the floor of Madame Siam. I was later told that Scott had a big fear as he was carrying Kat around the floor. No, it wasn't that he was worried he might fall. He had left his camera on the stage and he was worried that someone might swipe it. It was a valid worry as over the years I've learned about many photographers that have had their cameras stolen. Of course, it also looked to me that the walk took a lot of energy out of Scott. He worked up as much sweat as Kat did.

As for me, I learned a few days prior to the night, that they were going to have a synth band member for the night. That person was Emily, who I call the bassist of choice for Los Angeles bands. I swear when I show up to catch a band, I'm never surprised when I see her on bass. So on the back half of the set, I pushed through the crowd, probably upsetting a number of individuals. I found my way to where Emily was playing and took a number of photos as proof that she was on synth. And well, she also played a couple songs on bass, as well.

Holy Wars

Opening the night was Sam Fischer. His backup singer was his wife of 1 month. They had that honeymoon glow. Of course, he couldn't remember how long they'd been married. His wife had to tell him their wedding was a month ago. I'm sure he was trying to figure out how many weeks back it was. His song "This City" is a wonderful combination of guitar play and vocals. Though the song, itself, has a bit of a dark tone as he soars through the lyrics, "The city is going to break my heart."

Sam Fischer

Christina Castle performed one quick set. It timed in at 15 minutes. This is my second time catching her. Both were at Madame Siam. Though I was disappointed with the short set, I was still thrilled to have caught those 15 minutes. She is one of those musicians that can switch genres from song to song and make it flow together. One moment, she's on the keyboard, giving you that perfect singer songwriter tune. Then the next, she's bouncing on stage, doing some rapid fire rapping.

Christina Castle

Fever Joy put on the most visual striking set of the night. Their lead singer, Avery, sported striking aqua dyed hair and a Batman-like black strip across her eyes. It just made her eyes stand out. Of course, that look works perfectly for one of their songs, "R.Y.W.B," where she belts out the lyrics, "behind your eyes." This band is more than willing to spread the wealth when it comes to the various talents of the band. Those vocals are pierce, but the band lets the heavy beats of the guitar and drums drive the music for extended periods with vocal silence.

Fever Joy

The night was a WFNM night. It was also the founder's, Gran Owens, birthday bash.