This show almost didn’t happen. A week ago, Badflower singer/songwriter Josh Katz had what he publicly called a “full-on breakdown” on stage in Salt Lake City as a result of vocal issues, and cancelled the show after only eight songs. He posted a heartfelt video on social media the next day, where he explained his vocal issues and the resulting anxiety they caused. He talked about the show the night before and said “I sort of announced to the crowd that I’m done with this tour”. An outpouring of support from fans and his peers convinced him to continue, and so the tour rolled on, eventually making its way to Southern California.
Saturday night’s show was at The Fonda Theatre in the heart of Hollywood, a cool old-school 1200 capacity theater that turns 100 years old this year. I’ve been a huge fan of Badflower since Sirius/XM’s Octane started playing several songs from their 2019 album OK, I’m Sick. Josh’s unabashedly introspective lyrics about mental health, addiction, abuse, and self-harm are raw and unfiltered – he can come across as fragile in real life, but he’s a fearless storyteller, and his fans are as diehard as they come. I’m 100% sure his music has helped countless people deal with their own heavy circumstances, and his poetic lyrics are like a lifeboat to those that need one, with his soul bare for all to see. Badflower’s concerts aren’t just another standard rock show with mosh pits and crowd surfers (although there’s plenty of that), but a cathartic and therapeutic release for their fans – a light in the darkness.
Badflower
The current tour is in support of 2025’s No Place Like Home album, and six of the new tracks made their way into the show, including an adrenalized version of “Swinging Hammer” featuring opening act singer AnDy Darling. Other highlights included crowd favorites “The Jester”, “Heroin”, and “Ghost”, but perhaps the most poignant moment was just before the band launched into “What’s the Point”, a slow burner off the new record. Josh talked from the stage about his recent vocal issues, and retold the story about wanting to cancel the tour, only to be told by fans via social media that they didn’t care if his voice cracked – they just wanted to hear him to play the songs. With that, he told the crowd that they might need to help him sing the next song, “What’s the Point” – a somewhat redundant statement, as much of the audience had been singing along from the start. With that, he launched into it, the crowd joined in, and the line between stage and audience blurred for a moment of euphoric symbiosis. For those contemplating seeing Badflower, but worry about his vocals based on recent statements – he sounded amazing in Los Angeles – pure, honest rock and roll.
While Josh is the obvious focal point, Badflower is a tight band. Guitar interplay between Josh and Joey Morrow is seamles,s and they feed off each other. The rhythm section features Alex Espiritu on bass and Anthony Sonetti on drums. While the band had time alone on stage mid-set to play a medley and show off what they could do minus Josh, they aren’t built to be flashy – these songs are important, and each member plays their role to service song, not to show off.
Point North
Prior to Badflower, three-piece Point North from Los Angeles hit the stage. Bathed in garish green light for much of their set, singer Jon Lundin guitarist Andy Hershey made the most of the large stage, moving with energy from side to side, as drummer Josh Parra was stuck in relative obscurity in the back, with zero light on him. From a photographer’s standpoint, this was a worst-case scenario. From the audience’s perspective, the band went over really well, with some of the biggest cheers of the night. All four bands put on a great show, and Point North’s performance complimented the night perfectly.
Olive Vox
The second act of the night was Olive Vox. These guys understood the assignment – they brought energy, and great songs, and completely won over the crowd from the get-go. Bassist Ben Reid couldn’t be contained, and was constantly jumping off his riser, knees raised high. He was complemented by Caden Shea on guitar, drummer Dayton Phillips, and vocalist Parker James. Parker was all over the place, sticking his face into every camera lens he saw, and playing it up for the audience. These guys are fun to see live, and their catalogue of songs is catchy and worth listening to, even if you’re only hearing them for the first time.
AnDy Darling
The evening started with Russian born AnDy Darling, complete with a brown fur ushanka with a large red star on the front. She was clearly the focus – the only white light on stage was pointed at her as she bounded from one side of the stage to the other, while her backing band was soaked in saturated red light, and relegated to wearing red Adidas sweatsuits and matching red ski masks. AnDy was captivating and frequently mugged for the cameras and fans. The thick accent heard during her between-song banter seamlessly disappeared when she started to sing, and her performance was the appropriate lightning rod to kick off an excellent night of live performances.
Badflower Setlist:
- 1) Number 1
- 2) Snuff
- 3) 30
- 4) Animal
- 5) Drop Dead
- 6) Heroin
- 7) Let The Band Play/Drum Solo
- 8) What's the Point
- 9) The Jester
- 10) Ghost
Encore:
- 11) No Place Like Home
- 12) London
- 13) Swinging Hammer (with AnDy Darling)
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