Otoboke Beaver Put On A 'Dam' Good Show At The Belasco

Otoboke Beaver, a 4 member alt-rock outfit from Kyoto, graced the Belasco’s stage for their last West Coast show on their headlining North American tour to an incredibly eager fanbase. The show was sold out, along with multiple other sold out dates on this tour, and all parties involved were incredibly excited. Otoboke Beaver had South Korean punk band, Drinking Boys and Girls Choir, open for them along with local acts throughout the tour.

Opening the show was LA-based hardcore band Auxiliö, who started the event with a harder and deeper sound than the rest of the bands on the lineup. Auxiliö blends English and Spanish lyrics in politically charged tracks such as “Fuck Monsanto." Lead vocalist Krisma Aguayo absolutely crushed with her growling vocals; the whole band came together in an array of distortion and face-melting sound. "Badass" is really the only descriptor you could use for this band. Auxiliö was a great addition as a local band for this lineup, and they got the crowd moving and moshing early in the show.

The second band on the line-up, Drinking Boys and Girls Choir (DBGC), had a brighter skate-punk sound that rode off of Auxiliö's energy very well. DBGC hails from Daegu, South Korea with a current line-up of Meena Bae on vocals and bass, Myeong-Jin Kim on drums and vocals, and Megan Nisbet on guitar and vocals. Their music is bright and reminiscent of 90’s punk scenes from SoCal and Daegu’s own scene that they came up in. They complimented Otoboke Beaver well, and it’s no wonder they’ve performed together many times over the years. DBGC was super in tune with the crowd’s energy, and they have incredible chemistry with one another.

The main event, Otoboke Beaver (O.B.), started by rolling out a carpet – a multicolored, pastel carpet. O.B. has a wonderful aesthetic; from their album covers, to the mod dresses on stage, and the stage itself. Colored lights strung up over amps and across the stage, and the silver streamer backdrop that glittered behind everyone brought a cozy and fun feel to the room. The aesthetic is both incongruent and in tune with the music O.B. makes. They have a similar energetic, bright-punky sound to DBGC, but have their own brand of electricity. With songs about 'delectable chicken skewers', and others about 'finding some bullshit on your significant others phone', there’s something to latch onto for everyone. A notable part of this show was the fact that it was Yoyoyoshie, Otoboke Beaver’s guitarist’s, birthday. She got a shout out and a birthday song before their set, and it made the whole lineup seem like a big family. Overall this event was special to me, because I don’t always get to see bands that are all women, much less a whole lineup of women from all over the world selling out historic venues in Downtown LA.

Keep up with Otoboke Beaver and their future shows here.

PHOTOS BY ANASTASIA WHITE