CRANKED UP RECORDS SHOWCASE with KAOS / BENDER, PAISTY JENNY, GRAVEL, DEAD AMSTERDAM and more AT THE BONFIRE LV

The Cranked Up Records Showcase brought some top talent to The Bonfire in Las Vegas, a venue we really like, but the night was plagued with problems that caused a bit of a twist with pulling off the event. Things started out great but soon turned into a challenging evening as there were sound issues, and seemed to be something that was difficult to resolve. But there were some great sets, and we hope to see more of these bands live in Vegas this year.

Pre to the show, the owners of Cranked Up Records came out onstage and thanked the crowd for coming out, and talked about the bands they had performing that night and the mission of their label. They tossed out a couple really cool designed t-shirts to the fans, and then the first band DEAD AMSTERDAM took to the stage.

The band was formed back in 2019, hails from the midwest, and have opened for bands such as Nonpoint, Texas Hippie Coalition and Hinder. In 2023 they released their debut self titled cd, and are a good hard rock / bluesy band which I really enjoyed. More on Dead Amsterdam HERE.

Next was PAISTY JENNY, who signed with Cranked Up Records in 2024. The band was formed back in 2004 and recorded five cds and toured the US but decided to take an 8 year hiatus. Now they are back once again, re-energized and making waves on radio all over the country.

Their song “Jesus and Guns” cracked the US top 20 peaking at #16. The band currently are out in support of their new CD titled, 30 Days In Weed with three singles being released so far off that CD. The was another great set and a welcome addition to the Cranked Up family. Check them out HERE.

Next up was a band I have seen most every time they have played Vegas the last couple of years. GRAVEL is what I call a road band - they are constantly on the road and are a working man's band. Unlike most club bands who just show up and play, Gravel brings a production with them and this time included some pyro at the start of their set.

The guys hail from Colorado and play over 200 shows a year, and has a trademark in vocalist Troy Kammerdiener's mic stand - a bunch of red heavy chains spread out connecting at the top where his mic is. These guys have opened for bands such as Slipknot, Alice In Chains and many others, and the sound is hard rocking and with hooks that catch you immediately. A great band who I would love to see in big venues, More on Gravel HERE.

Now this is where things went from ok to not so good. After Gravel, sound issues kinda went south. Things from in ear issues? to problems with the monitors, mics...? seemed to be everything. Things got so bad that KAOS / BENDER nearly got into a fight with the sound guy. It took a few minutes but things eventually calmed down, a working situation developed and both the band and the sound guy tried their best to get things on track.

Kaos was supposed to go on last but due to issues and running late they moved up, but the crowd was growing restless. It was over an hour of delay trying to fix the sound and getting too late for most, so Kaos decided to just go ahead and try to perform, brought out of the American flag before launching into their opening song. I thought they actually sounded good, but the band was so frustrated at this point after the first song they thanked the crowd for their patience and for coming out, but that they had enough and were done for the night and walked off the stage.Yikes.

I had no idea if the next band was even going to play and since it was already 1 am, so I packed it in, said my goodbyes to friends and called it a night. It was unfortunate that the end had sound issues, but I got to take in some impressive music from some memorable bands on the Cranked Up Label. Bonfire is a great club to see music, but the stars didn't aline for Kaos. Rock on. More on Kaos Bender HERE.

For more on Cranked Up Records and their catalogue, check them out HERE. More on The Bonfiore and calendar HERE.

Kaos Bender Photos Harold Mountain / JustAFanRecords

Gravel Photos Harold Mountain / JustAFanRecords

Paisty Jenny Photos Harold Mountain / JustAFanRecords

Dead Amsterdam Photos Harold Mountain / JustAFanRecords