On November 13, 2016 I went to a show I literally thought that I would never be able to attend just because I accepted the fact that this band would never get back together. I saw the one and only Choking Victim at The Observatory in Santa Ana, California and I have to say that it was hands down one of the most legendary shows I have ever been to.

Up first was South Central’s Psyk Ward. They had a bit of a hardcore sound mixed with some thrash. Overall they had a good energy and put on a solid performance most notably when they played songs like “True Words Of Wisdom,” “Asylum,” “Tell You What” and “Disease.” At one point in between songs, band’s lead singer went on a bit of rant about how it was wrong that the funeral industry was so expensive for families that were grieving. It wouldn’t be my first cause to speak out about if I were in a political punk band, but hey – to each his own.

Up next was Rats In The Wall who are always a pleasure to see. They're definitely one of my favorite hardcore bands to see live. This was my third time seeing them, but this was the first time seeing them with their new bassist Farrah Ferguson. I later found out that it was only her third or fourth show with the band and I have to say that it’s as if she had always been a member. She seemed to have fit in that quickly and easily. Of course vocalist Eva Hall killed it on lead vocals and seeing Brad Logan go completely wild on stage, running and jumping back and forth the way only he seems to do it is totally mind blowing. They had just released a limited split called Estos Dias with Fraude so they did include some new songs in their set along with “Circular Existence,” “Cope,” “On Blast,” “2050” and “Sinking.”

Once Rats In The Wall were done it was Naked Aggression’s turn to take that stage. I know that this band has quite the following, but for me this was my first time seeing them. To put it bluntly, they were pretty awesome. I really liked how they played mostly hardcore songs, but still ventured out to be a little bit melodic at some points in their set and I have to say that the wailing guitar solos were most definitely appreciated at a show where that didn’t really happen with the other bands. They played songs like, “Smash The State,” “Plastic World,” “Your Nightmare, My Life,” “Right Now,” “Killing Floor” and they unexpectedly (at least in my view) covered “Kids In America” for one of their last shows of their set.

Now again, I literally never thought that I would get to see Choking Victim ever. I had come to terms that the time to see them was over twenty years ago and to my disbelief, even while standing right against the barricade, there they were – Sturgeon, Alec and Skwert all on one stage together. The band played everything from No Gods/No Managers, The Crack Rock Steady EP and Squatta’s Paradise (see the full set list below). In other words it was a fan’s dream come true. To hear those songs live, especially the ones that Leftover Crack don't play was a super surreal experience. It was very refreshing to Sturgeon back on guitar as well. During the majority of the No Gods/No Managers tunes Kyle White of Public Serpents was brought on stage to play second guitar and a very cool surprise of the show was when Joey Steel of All Torn Up did some of the guest vocals during “Crack Rock Steady.” The crowd though, was one of the craziest I had been a part of in a long time. The crowd surfing was constant and people were jumping from the smaller dividing walls at back of the venue onto people in the pit. I had never seen that in person before and it was utter insanity. Even a trashcan crowd surfed like three to four times.

Keep in mind that this show took place less than a week since the election ended so the audience and the artist were extra charged up. Mix all of that with that fact that this was Choking Victim’s first tour in a couple decades and you know you are going to get some pretty out spoken politically charged words being spoken from everyone. Every band had something to say about it, but the most memorable statement made about the election came from Sturgeon. It was the simplest one of the night, but his timing was impeccable. People were shouting “Fuck Donald Trump!” over and over again and then Sturgeon says in to the mic, “I’ll raise you one…fuck America,” and then they go right into playing that song.

Seeing Choking Victim play live was something I had written off for years. Being that I was like seven years old when No Gods/No Managers was released it really wasn’t possible for me to see them back then, so this show more than made up for it. There people way younger there and just as enthused if not more so to see band that created a punk subgenre that so many are fans. It was one hell of a night and definitely one of the best shows that I have ever had the pleasure of attending.

Choking Victim's Set List:

500 Channels

In Hell

Crack Rock Steady

Suicide

In My Grave

Fucked reality

Money

Hate Yer State

Fuck America

War Story

Five Finger Discount

Praise To The Sinners

Living The Laws

Choking Victim

You Outta Die

Apple Pie

Infested

Death Song

Born To Die

Money Changes Everything 

You can see some pictures and a video clip over on the Punknews Instagram.