Panchiko are a band that have generated a lot of online buzz the last couple of years. With a mysterious origin story, they were very close to becoming a forgotten band of the late 90s/early 2000s but were rediscovered nearly 15 years later by a 4chan user who randomly stumbled upon their physical CD. While the cover art of their debut/lost record D>E>A>T>H>M>E>T>A>L looks like something you would see associated with the current vaporwave scene, their sound on the other hand sounds straight out of Radiohead’s OK Computer era with some added trip-hop elements. An interesting combination to say the least, and likely also a factor that has drawn many people in.
On the second night of their nearly sold out two-show run at Observatory North Park in San Diego, Panchiko had fans lining up down the street hours before doors opened. Kicking off the show were Weatherday (emo/lo-fi from Sweden) and Wisp (shoegaze from San Francisco). The crowd were mostly high-school aged concert-goers, dressed in their 90s nu-metal fashion (think DC shoes, JNCO pants, wallet chains, all black everything). Sprinkled throughout this crowd were disgruntled parents who by their surprise, realized that they were the same age as the four band members on stage. Accentuating the show were live visuals by Zachary Rodell which were at times lava-lamp psychedelic to match the music. It created a sense of a borderline happy-dystopian future that describes the oxymoron of the crowd to the band onstage. On a technical level the set was perfect – the vocals were on point and the band played like well-seasoned musicians.
Photo gallery below:
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