neighborhood where Latino families often hire live mariachis or bandas for birthday parties. This particular house, however, stood out as punks sat on the rooftop drinking 40-oz. beers, crowds in leather lined up out front to get in, and bands full of rage, including Corrupted Youth, played to a packed yard where circle pits somehow managed to dominate space.“It just shows how big those gigs have gotten,” says Albert Licano, a renowned music photographer who was in attendance for the show.
Backyard gigs have become closely associated with Southern California punk, in particular in Boyle Heights and East L.A. However, it wasn’t always like this. Despite the COVID-19 pandemic causing the parties to stop, Albert Gamboa says the scene has roared back and is just as intense and urgent as before.
The importance these types of gigs have had beyond East L.A. can’t be understated. They provide an all-ages haven for those who can’t get into shows that are 21 and over. Having attended numerous backyard gigs elsewhere when he was a pre-teen, Gomez, whose first backyard gig was over 20 years ago in Whittier, says attending his first proper backyard gig in East L.A. was a life-changing experience that he still remembers fondly.