The Flatliners/Decent Criminal

Live In Los Angeles (2018)

Ricky Frankel

There’s an interesting pattern when it comes to shows at the Moroccan Lounge in Los Angeles. Every time I have gone to see a show there, a Canadian band is the headliner. I’m not sure why, but it keeps happening. The first time I ever went to the relatively new venue a little less than a year ago I saw PUP, then in June I saw The Dirty Nil, and on October 5, 2018 I saw Gods Of Mount Olympus and Decent Criminal open for The Flatliners.

Gods Of Mount Olympus started their set around 8:15PM. The piano-centric band, made up of notable punk musicians really put on a lively set. The played songs like “Curtains,” “Cops On Saint Andrew’s Place,” and “Blue Screen Light.” This had been a band that I kept meaning to check out this year and I’m really glad I got to catch them live and see what they're all about before listening to their studio material.

Up next was Northern California’s Decent Criminal who always seem to get better each time I see them — this time included. They’re surf/garage/punk style really sounds quite good live. Hearing their stuff especially from their second album Bloom is always a thrill, especially when they bust out their signature guitar harmonies. Decent Criminal played songs like, “Neurotic,” “Cold,” “Death,” “Melt,” and my favorite of their’s “Deviant.”

Around 10PM The Flatliners took the stage. They put on one masterful performance. Their set spanned their entire discography for the most part. The first song they played was “Hand My Head” and then they jumped right into “Eulogy.” The audience was immediately jumping around to the point where the center became a circle pit with some actual dancing in there, too. Midway through their set The Flatliners played a newer track from their recently released Mass Candescence 7-inch called “The Arousal Of Repair,” plus “Birds Of England,” “Carry The Banner,” “Human Party Trick,” “Count Your Bruises,” and “Sew My Mouth Shut.” Through out the set members of the audience kept shouting at the band to play a ska song or to play “Fred’s Got Slacks.” You could tell they were slightly irritated by the constant badgering from individuals in the crowd, but Chris Cresswell and Scott Brigham just kept making light of it and persevered with other tracks like “Monumental,” “Here Comes Treble,” and “Hal Johnson Smokes Cigarettes.” The band concluded their set with “Indoors” and “Caskets Full.” Of course they put on such a powerful and amazing performance that the once obnoxious audience members were all now genuinely begging for an encore. The Flatliners came back on stage for two more songs, the last one of the night being “Fred’s Got Slacks.”

I’ve seen The Flatliners play major festivals like It’s Not Dead Fest 2 and the Fat Wrecked For 25 Years tour and small clubs like the Moroccan Lounge before. It’s always a sure thing that they will put on a fantastic show regardless of the location. This performance was no different. Having Decent Criminal and Gods Of Mount Olympus open for them made for a really good sound variety on the bill. And they too put on great performances. This was the perfect way to end a hectic week.

You can see pictures of the show on the Punknews Instagram.