Located in the Chicago ‘burb of Villa Park. Punk Rock Tacos provides a place for music. They expand themselves to friend venues at the core of the Chicago punk scene. After 2 years of putting on shows it became a record label. A website featuring all of the bands will be launching soon. On the site, each band has its own Big Cartel store where the band handles their own orders and money. “In these times, we need to fall somewhere between LABEL-DIY. It’s still nice to group up and have organization, but we are not a label that owns everyone’s music.” They continue to book top local and touring talent. Overall, a memorable experience was had with the bands and crowd. A great old-school punk show vibe. Very pleasant, courteous, and friendly staff, great food. Very accommodating and I highly suggest seeing shows at this venue.
The day at Punk Rock Tacos 33 kicked off with Surf Candy from the Chicago sub-burbs. Surf Candy is a three-piece Noisy Hard Rock band bringing a taste of Grunge and noise rock. Ian Young (guitar/vocals), Seb Schlau (bass) and Andy Hartmanowski (drums) brought a great sense of energy and played most of the songs off their debut E.P. Surf Candy. Check out more photos below!
Next up was the band Mulva from Milwaukee/Chicago. The band consists of Mike Muse (vocals/guitar), Justin Schenck (bass/vocals) and Jeff Coyl (drums). All veterans of the Midwest scene with punk pedigrees. They bring a strong sense of catchy hook-laden energy and humor to their live show. Their set consisted of songs off their E.P.s I Cant Wake Up/ The Prequel Trilogy. Check out more photos below!”
The tempo changed for the day when Of Wolves hit the stage with their blend of crusty punk, sludge, post-hardcore & gritty stoner doom. Steve Wolves (guitar/vocals), Ivan Wolves (bass/backing vocals) and Tom Wolves (drums/backing vocals) brought some thunder that day. Songs from their album Balance and a few others turned the volume to 11 and let it rip. Check out more photos below!
x.Oracles.x with their blend of Chicago-style Punk Rock/Blues brought a great vibe to the day. Members Ms. Lynch (vocals), Bonezz (drums), The Sausage King of Chicago (bass) and Rev. Dracula (guitar/vocals) played a great set with a definite nod towards First Wave New York punk/New Wave stripped down to the blues. Fresh off their new release on Punk Rock Tacos Records Gitcha, Gitcha and an incredible cover of “Psycho Killer” they made more than a few new fans that day. Check out more photos below!
From the Western Burbs, Radar Waves‘ Charlie Thornton (guitar/vocals), Rob Wash (bass/vocals), and Mikey Cervenka (drums) had a fun and upbeat set of Trash Rock with a wide variety of influences on display coming together to create a unique energy filled set filled with songs from their various releases including the latest “Everybody’s Bitchin'”.
Chicago Punk Rock veterans Squared Off brought a solid lineup of classic punk rock with an old-school working man’s vibe. Tony (guitars/vocals), Hoser (guitar/vocals), Nomi (bass/vocals) and Fabian (drums) ran through a set of new and familiar songs from their deep catalog. Their cover of “Safety Dance” was on point with a lot of crowd participation. Always a fun band to see.
Downhill Runner took the stage just as the sun was setting for the day and it was perfect timing for the Three-piece Punk/Alternative band on Punk Rock Tacos Records. Brian Matejk (drums), Jim Burchinal (guitar) and Daniel Fredrick played a great set of songs from their album Rebel Radio.
Next up was The Turdles from Elgin, Il. Josh Holbrook (vocals), Dave Cherek (bass), Dan Cuchiara (guitar), Brian Stream (drums) came on and rocked the stage with songs from their releases Just Another Turd In The Toilet (2023) and Party Pooper (2022). With their infectious dirty Punk/Boogie they brought they got the crowd moving. I look forward to seeing them again.
Closing out the night was Nahuales Underground a five-piece band that brought it with their brand of rock, punk, metal with their songs that are about social revolution, love and political ideas. Loco Dub (vocals/guitar), Ish Echeverria (bass), Chente Echeverria (lead guitar/vocals), Javi Pantoja (percussionist) and Memo Hernandez (drums) played an excellent infused set that had the crowd dancing along.
Head below to check out slideshows from each of the bands on the fun and eclectic lineup!
