PHOTOS: Warpaint celebrates 15 years at Love You Down 2019

Last week saw Los Angeles indie-rock favorites Warpaint celebrate 15 years of being a band. The pair of shows headlined the third-annual Love You Down Festival at The Echo and Echoplex.

The lineup was curated by fellow LA natives SWIMM and Warpaint bassist Jenny Lee Lindberg. It was a Warpaint fan’s dream, as each member brought a different side project to the bill.

Guitarist and vocalist Theresa Wayman brought her TT project to life, Lindberg performed as Jennylee, vocalist and guitarist Emily Kokal performed a set with deafmute, and drummer Stella Mozgawa brought a side project with Boom Bip called BEEF. Warpaint manager and former Remy Zero bassist Cedric Lemoyne also got in on the action as part of Rose of the West, a band fronted by Gina Barrington.

Warpaint’s sets on back-to-back nights were magnificent. On night one, they opened with “Heads Up” into “Krimson”, one of the best transitions you’ll see. When I saw them more than a half-dozen times in 2017, they often opened their sets with this. They really dug deep into their back catalog, playing “Shadows” for the first time since 2013, and encoring with “Set Your Arms Down”, the first time they played it since 2015. They also debuted a new song “Melting”, which had Kokal on an electronic drum.

They also played one of my favorites, “Warpaint”, which is one of those slow-building kind of songs that they’ve become known for. They also played another old favorite “Drive”, as well as “Beetles” and “Elephants” really getting the crowd moving. “Billie Holliday” — the first Warpaint song I ever heard — was also featured.

On night two, they kicked things off with “Intro” into “Keep It Healthy”, the same way they kick off their self-titled album from 2014. They also played “Burgundy”, a song they don’t often fit into their sets. It was clear that the band really wanted to make these shows extra special for the fans who have been supporting them since the beginning.

I met a handful of people that flew out from places all over, even from the East Coast. They’ve attracted a cult and fervent following over the years, and it’s probably because of how high of a level they play shows at. I touched on this in an interview with Mozgawa for High Times that ran prior to these shows — they don’t play the same show from one night to another, and it sticks out to you.

It was Warpaint’s first proper Los Angeles gigs since they closed out the Santa Monica Pier series in August 2017, and for many superfans like myself, it was long overdue. They’re working on new music and bassist Lindberg said 2020 seems a reasonable expectation for a new record. Let’s cross our fingers!

Other standout sets included Gardens & Villa, Goldensuns, Vs Colour (which features Wayman’s brother on drums), and Sego.

Check out Justin Higuchi‘s photos of the full event below!