The 14th Annual Law Rocks Los Angeles was one for the books! Featuring 18 bands over 3 nights at 2 iconic Sunset Strip venues, the LA-legal community came together for our biggest event to date and raised a record $487K. Keep scrolling to see a photo from each band, plus a visit from a very special guest, West Hollywood Mayor, Chelsea Lee Byers.
SPECIAL GUESTS:
OCEAN PARK SOUND SYSTEM
Special guests OCEAN PARK SOUND SYSTEM set The 14th Annual Law Rocks Los Angeles off to a buttery smooth start at The Roxy Theatre with a tasty blend of retro-funk, reggae and dance rock. Standout songs that got the crowd grooving were seventies hits “Lady Marmalade” by LaBelle, “Flashlight” by George Clinton & Parliament Funkadelic, and “Funkytown” by Lipps Inc., all of which showcased the band’s tight sound, harmonious vocals, and effortlessly cool vibe.
📸: Liza Kushnir
2. GUTHNER AND THE NOSSAMITES
Nossaman’s GUTHNER AND THE NOSSAMITES took the stage, humbly announcing, “Ocean Park Sound System has been together for 10 years...WE’VE been practicing since 2PM this afternoon.” The newly-formed trio, who performed for the first time together at the show, garnered strong support from the crowd, complete with handwritten signs declaring, “Kim is #1!” and “Kim sings THE BEST songs!” Even though they claimed they “make better attorneys than musicians,” the band’s genuine enthusiasm for the songs they performed was felt throughout The Roxy, and the crowd loved every minute.
📸: Liza Kushnir
3. JIMMY’S BROTHER
JIMMY’S BROTHER returned to Law Rocks to rock for the LAFD Foundation. The band of multi-instrumentalists brought the house down with nostalgic covers of ‘90s alternative rock classics like “Where Is My Mind” by The Pixies and “Unbelievable” by EMF. By the end of their set, they had the whole crowd singing along to “Don’t Look Back In Anger” by Oasis, impressing the judges and taking home the evening’s Judges’ Choice Award.
📸: Liza Kushnir
4. A WEST HOLLYWOOD WELCOME
West Hollywood Mayor Chelsea Lee Byers took the stage to present a proclamation officially welcoming Law Rocks to West Hollywood and recognizing our accomplishments since being founded in 2009 and coming to the U.S. in 2012.
📸: Liza Kushnir
5. BAKER & THE MCKENZIES
Rocking for Violence Intervention Program and featuring legal talent from Baker McKenzie; and Lynberg & Watkins, BAKER & THE MCKENZIES wowed the crowd with rock classics, taking home the title of night one’s Overall Winner and Hustle and Heart Award winner.
📸: Liza Kushnir
6. THE SEA AT MIDNIGHT
Performing an inspiring set of original tunes such as “Midnight Sun”, and “Afterglow”, THE SEA AT MIDNIGHT made their Law Rocks debut with a stage presence calling to mind the charisma of Mick Jagger. Vince Grant, the band’s enigmatic singer, shared that several years ago, he had decided he was done with music and wasn’t going to perform anymore. It was upon meeting bassist Chris King that turned things around. King encouraged Grant to record the songs he had penned and return to the stage. We’re sure glad he did.
📸: Liza Kushnir
7. RUST
“Saving the world one song at a time,” RUST made their Law Rocks debut by bringing a burst of infectious energy to the Whisky stage that kicked night two off with a bang. “This is a song about when you get into law school and you’re so excited, and then you’re like, ‘oh sh*t, what am I gonna do?!” announced band leader Blake Cooper as they began playing “Ain’t It Fun” by Paramore. The 2013 hit was one of many pop/rock favorites on the band’s setlist that kept the crowd dancing and singing along.
📸: Liza Kushnir
8. 5 FEET UNDER
Introduced as “a band whose sound is big, but whose commitment to service is even bigger,” FIVE FEET UNDER returned to Law Rocks for another year of high-octane rock, melting faces with epic guitar solos, killer keys, and vocals calling to mind the best of the eighties hair metal greats.
📸: Liza Kushnir
9. CASTLE OF ROCK
CASTLE OF ROCK leaned into the element of surprise, opening with a funk-rock take on Taylor Dayne’s “Tell It To My Heart”. “That’s not what you expected to come out of my mouth, was it?” joked Andrew Spitser, later asking, “Does anybody want to dance? I wanna dance…with somebody!” as the band rolled into the late-eighties classic by Whitney Houston. Their alternative spin on “Kiss Me” by Sixpence None the Richer and Elvis-like take on “Good Luck Babe” by Chappell Roan left the crowd chanting, “Castle! Castle! Castle!” by the end of their set.
📸: Liza Kushnir
10. side hustle
SIDE HUSTLE’s set was full of “Hot Stuff” and we’re not just talking about their Donna Summer cover! The band packed hit after hit into their set, including chart-toppers by The Rolling Stones, Lady Gaga, Gloria Gaynor, and Miley Cyrus, and a crazy good mashup of “Crazy In Love” by Beyoncé and “Crazy” by Gnarls Barkley.
📸: Liza Kushnir
11. the doughboys
THE DOUGHBOYS packed the stage with nine band members, all of whom are legal pros! With a layered sound including sax and bassoon, they brought the house down with an electric set full of pop-rock mashups. Highlights included their cover of Eminem’s “Lose Yourself” which blended seamlessly into Aerosmith’s “Dream On”, and a catchy cover of “APT.” by Rosé and Bruno Mars that had the crowd happily dancing along.
📸: Liza Kushnir
12. PRIVILEGED COMMUNICATIONS
“The Heart of Rock and Roll” was still beating as PRIVILEGED COMMUNICATIONS took the stage for another year of rocking The Whisky. The Perkins Coie band has played Law Rocks for over a decade, this year rocking in support of The Access Project. Their setlist of classic tunes like “What You Need” by INXS and “Road House Blues” by The Doors was right at home on The Whisky stage, and the band took home Night Two’s Overall Win and Hustle & Heart Award.
📸: Liza Kushnir
13. THE GRIND
Donning a set of wings, Bill Shafton (Grindr), band leader of THE GRIND, took the stage like a rock angel. The band opened Night Three with AC/DC’s “For Those About to Rock We Salute You” and switched up singers for The Pretenders’ “Brass In Pocket” and “My Hero” by Foo Fighters, the latter of which featured Zack Domb (Domb & Rauchwerger) on vocals. Domb’s young son Caleb joined the band on keys for The Beatles’ “While My Guitar Gently Weeps”, a standout moment that received thunderous applause from the audience.
📸: Liza Kushnir
14. fauxly
Even though FAUXLY band leader Christopher Ward (Foley & Lardner) humbly announced they “put the amateur in amateur musician”, their enthusiastic stage presence and genuine interactions with the crowd had the whole Whisky singing along to “The Middle” by Jimmy Eat World and “Semi-Charmed Life” by Third Eye Blind. The band’s appreciation of alternative rock gave lovers of ‘90s and early 2000’s rock something to celebrate, and the crowd loved it.
📸: Liza Kushnir
15. shadow docket
SHADOW DOCKET celebrated a 10 year Law Rocks-iversary with a surprise setlist comprised entirely of songs that had, up to that point, never been played at a Law Rocks show in the US. Opening with “I Hate Myself for Loving You” by Joan Jett and following that up with “China Grove” by the Doobie Brothers, the band brought the classic sounds of the seventies and eighties to life with a harmonious balance between band members, and a touch of tambourine.
📸: Liza Kushnir
16. the gee gees
THE GEE GEES of Greenberg Glusker rocked for TreePeople's Wildfire Resiliency Fund with nine talented musicians on stage. Kicking off their set with a ripping sax solo in Foreigner’s “Urgent”, the band covered classic rock hits of the ‘70s and ‘80s with an effortlessly cool vibe. Their crowd-pleasing covers of songs like “Sledgehammer” by Peter Gabriel and “Hold the Line” by Toto gave each band member a chance to shine, and the band walked away with the evening’s Judges’ Choice Award and Hustle and Heart Award.
📸: Liza Kushnir
17. the nuisance
THE NUISANCE switched up the soft sounds of Jimmy Buffett’s “Margaritaville” and Barry Manila’s “Mandy” for high-energy covers that put a punk rock spin on the easy-listening favorites. Throwing in classic rock tunes like “Back in Black” by AC/DC and current hits like “A Bar Song (Tipsy)” by Shaboozey, the band kept the crowd guessing on what might come next - which, for the band, was the high of taking home the night three title of Overall Winner.
18. papa gibson & the writs of replevin
PAPA GIBSON & THE WRITS OF REPLEVIN (Gibson Dunn) made their Law Rocks debut captivating the crowd with Stevie Nicks’ classic “Edge of Seventeen”. The band commanded the crowd’s attention from the first notes of their opening song, and held it through hit after funk-filled hit. The crowd got down, dancing and singing wholeheartedly along to “My Boo” by Ghost Town DJs and an Earth Wind and Fire medley including “September” and “Shining Star”.
19. GUILTY AS CHARGED
Guilty of closing out the 14th Annual Law Rocks Los Angeles with a “Shoot to Thrill” setlist including the AC/DC classic, GUILTY AS CHARGED brought powerhouse vocals and shredding guitar solos to the stage. Performing rock hits such as “When Doves Cry” by Prince, “Animal” by Pearl Jam, and “Nookie” by Limp Bizkit, the band wrapped the show with an infectious energy that kept the crowd living it up through the very last notes of the show.
📸: Liza Kushnir