I suppose Estevan Oriol is mostly known as a photographer. He’s done photoshoots for some of L.A.‘s top cats such as Kanye and Kim Kardashian, but his street photography and gang member portraits is how I found out about him.

Besides documenting street culture, Estevan also directs music videos and has worked with the likes of Cypress Hill, Snoop Dogg, Blink 182 and many others. He’s also directed videos for companies such as Cadillac and Nike.

Estevan is also involved in many other things such as lowriding and fashion and in this chat he shared some thoughts on the way things are moving.

LC: Your work keeps you in touch with tons of musical artists– have you ever thought about trying out in music as well?

Estevan: I’ve been on a couple songs - 1 for The Alchemist, 2 for Cypress Hill: La connecta and Tequila sunrise.

Making music is hard and would take a while to learn but I...

Man, Blindspott!

I was too late to find out about this band. They had already broken up a year before I stumbled upon the reggae-influenced ‘Phlex’, which became sort of an anthem for me and Vicho, a very close friend.

I was super stoked to find them and I’ve kept their music close to my heart in the 10 years that have passed since. Blindspott mix lots of atmospheric, melodic chords and catchy singing with powerful, heavy parts and the result is this seamless flow of energy and emotions. Very honest and natural.

I’ll skip the history lesson, because it’s all out there and easy to find. All that matters is the boys are back at it. I got the chance to send Marcus Powell some questions and I hope this chat leaves you with the same uplifting feeling it had on me. Safe to say - this guy is much more than a guitar player.

LC: How much does it mean to be back with your mates after all...

Even though hardcore isn’t entirely up my street, this band is easily one of my all time favourites. To me Death Before Dishonor is a super self-empowering act. Many times I’ve been down, pissed off at something or someone, I’ve been able to find the solution, or at least the direction, listening to their tunes. I still haven’t seen them live, but that day will surely come too. A short talk with Bryan, their frontman, will have to do for now:

LC: Is there a scene going on in Boston these days? What are the kids into?

Bryan: Yea there definitely is a lot going on in Boston. Hardcore, punk, metal and hip hop are going strong. Boston is a huge college city, so we always get new kids that come in from all over and come to all types of shows. On top of that Boston has a great history in music so there’s always people from the older generations that still come out and support bands...

Back in 2006 I was still in high school and was already into reggae, when a friend (HALLOOOO MITKO!) introduced me to 8°6 Crew. I think this was the gateway band for me, especially with their Bad Bad Reggae album. I started my real ska journey with these guys and it’s been great to be able to talk to their singer - Charly, about some of the random things that go through my head! Enjoy! :)

LC: When did you fall in love with reggae/ska?

Charly: I’ve always listened to reggae with my older sister: Bob Marley, The Gladiators, Alpha Blondy, etc… France has always been a country that loves reggae. Then, as a teenager, I discovered punk and ska: The Specials, The Selecter. After punk I became a skinhead, and then I discovered Jamaican ska, rock steady and especially skinhead reggae, and then rub a dub, dancehall…

LC: What were the biggest challenges of your early years? Are they still...

Remember Dave Mirra’s freestyle BMX? That is when I fist heard Primer 55’s Loose, and I was blown away by their sound and attitude. Later on, the guy who masterminded Primer picked up the bass and joined another favourite band of mine, who were in their heyday at the time - the (once) mighty Soulfly. He was a massive influence I was always happy to follow. Recently, that same guy has been keeping quiet and I was interested to see what’s going on in Bobby Burns’ world, so we did this short interview. Here goes:

LC: What is it like to start a band in the States today compared to when you started playing music?

Bobby: Today? It’s hard? I mean it’s easy to start anything but if u want to make it? Almost impossible. Especially for heavy music.

LC: Primer 55’s story is a wild journey and I am not sure many people were able to follow it as closely as they would’ve wanted. What are your...

63 High is a ska-reggae-punk powerhouse from Thessaloniki. I saw them live at a Serres show last year and I was hooked straight away. Some lively, jumpy tunes combined with the balls, the attitude and prowess these guys have, all made for a great gig! After the show I got to talk with their drummer Chris for a bit, and now, approximately a year later, we spoke again. This time before their gig in Thessaloniki on the 24th of March!

LC: Do you still get excited when one of your favourite bands releases an album?

Chris: Most of my favourite bands are still around and they do a great job. I think they all are around 50+ years old, but they are not sellouts, really enjoying what they do, probably happy to be still a part of the scene they have supported for so long. Most of the punk rock bands I used to listen, they are re-united as well or released an album after a time gap, with...

I first heard the name Vodka Juniors when I was watching a track by track documentary for Jaya the Cat’s album The New International Sound of Hedonism. Turns out the track Date with a Needle is a cover song! So I checked this Greek band and that started a mad journey that me and my friends are still on! There is a special spark that these guys light up through their music and in the past few years we’ve travelled to Thessaloniki, Bucharest and Serres to see them play live (a thing we’ve never done for any of the big ass bands we like by the way). This year they will come and play Sofia for the first time, they also have a new album out and that was a natural cause for this interview.

LC: The new album Warrior Anthems! What is the lyrical concept behind it?

VJ: Warrior Anthems is a tribute to the fighting youth of today. Everyone fights his own personal battles and it seems that as...

In my mind Jaya the Cat is the only foreign band that has played 512429 gigs in Sofia. They keep coming over here year after year, and they have now built quite the fanbase. That’s far from the most interesting thing about this band of hedonistic dudes, though. Here’s a short chat with their frontman, Geoff, about some of the other important Jaya trivia shieet:

LC: Going back in time – how did you get into playing music? Where does Jaya the Cat come from?

Geoff: I don’t know really. It was never a plan or anything. I guess it was just around me all the time, living in places where everyone kinda played something even if they did it really poorly. It was something to do when you were stoned and broke, pick up the guitar someone left in the corner. I guess the band came from that, a bunch of idiots living in a house and someone had a drum kit and a few amps in the attic and it just...

This is a short talk with someone truly important for Bulgarian underground music. Oleg plays drums in a skate punk band called Piranha and he also runs one of the best venues in the country – Grindhouse Skateclub. The interview itself happened over two sessions – the first one was while he was having a shit; at one point we had to stop, cause his ass got stiff from sitting too long; the second part was the day after he played a totally wasted set on his birthday gig. What I mean with all this is that Oleg is a very busy man. To be honest, even though he doesn’t take himself too seriously sometimes, he’s one of the few people around that have their head screwed on straight and I am glad he agreed to do this. So here it is:

LC: How was Piranha born?

Oleg: I think it was somewhere around 2011. I was out skating with SDB (Alexander Parvanov) and Kubinetsa, and at some point SDB asked...