L7

at Avalon
by Paul Lee

On a fine evening in October, Avalon was viciously assaulted by four crazed women. L7 were the culprits from Cali who came to our fair city for the sole purpose of destroying auditory canals. High on the roar, low on melodics, L7 rode the tsunami created by their latest and rawest opus, Hungry For Stink (Slash/Reprise).

The crowd that converged upon Avalon to revel in the madness was about as diverse as the kinds of cars at a junk heap – hip people, punkers, normal folks, grungesters, tattooed lesbians – you name ’em. L7 has clicked well with a warped rainbow of folks. Their fans are about as easy to pigeonhole as greedy governmental bastards are to make honest.

The house lights dropped and four silhouettes appeared, getting themselves and their tools ready. Atop the silhouettes were two lit objects that appeared to hover. The illumination grew on stage as all four members of L7 appeared with devil horns aglow on their heads. They were garbed in their finest threads (ragged t-shirts, jeans etc.) and proceeded to tear into one of their older tunes. They had the whole of Avalon clutching our bodies and hoping the vibrations didn’t break us into pieces.

L7 ripped into the fabric of our reality with raw, unfettered passion while we in the crowd smiled with joy as our skulls were being obliterated. They tore into “Freakmagnet” as they sang about the freaks that always seem to torment them. These women were hungry for blood. They pounded forward with maniacal energy and cranked out songs including the heavy grooving tune “Andres,” the bouncy “Riding With a Movie Star” with bongo accompaniment, and the almost nice and possible hit “Stuck Here Again.”

L7 managed to tap into the ’70s and ’80s punk groove with their sound and attitude. They were the epitome of no-frills rock blasting basic, three chord shot-bursts. I can imagine L7 doing a tour with the mighty Motörhead or Ramones. Perfect complements to each other.