What was meant to be a “night of music and good health” on Saturday night was shut down early by the Department of Public Safety for noise complaints.
USC Thornton students and Ourros, a visual production and artist management collective, put on a house show on Oct. 12. The poster published on social media described the event as a “night of music and good health.” Headlining artists, Kyle Tolbert, aka Kyle Lux, who is also a popular music major, and sophomore Jake McEvoy, aka Kid Hastings, who is a music industry major, expressed their frustration with the shutdown.
“I was half-way expecting it [the show to be shut down], but later in the night, I was more disappointed. We put a lot of effort into the set we were going to do but we didn’t get to it so I kind of felt deprived by someone who didn’t understand what we were trying to do,” said Tolbert.
According to the DPS Assistant Chief David Carlisle, officers responded to numerous noise complaints of a loud party in the area. Officers arrived at the scene at approximately 9:30 p.m. and informed the host of the party of the violation of the Loud or Unruly Gathering ordinance -- a municipal code preventing public gatherings in residential areas.
DPS left the scene after the warning and returned later in the night after receiving more calls and complaints from local residents. Carlisle said there were about 300 people in attendance.
“It’s difficult to have a live rock ‘n’ roll bands in a residential area,” said Carlisle, “the music carries a long way, particularly the bass. As it gets later ... residents are trying to quiet down for the night. When they hear this loud music and call DPS or LAPD to complain, we’re obligated to action -- it’s our duty,” he said.
Another house show held by Thornton students about a month ago was also shut down at the Flow House, located at 2706 Menlo Ave. The proceeds from the show, “Polish Up Paradise,” was intended to go to the HeadKnowles Hurricane Relief fund.
“It doesn't make sense to me that we could be shut down at 10 p.m. on a Saturday night. The disappointment was the feeling that stuck though, we had been planning this for a long time and were just trying to bring the community together and show them a good time,” said McEvoy.
John Van Liere, a junior music industry major and organizer of the event, said that he was “pretty bummed” after hearing the news of the show being shut down. “The circumstances were out of our control,” he said.
Eddie Mandell, a junior media arts and practice major and creative director for Ourros, echoed Van Liere’s disappointment, calling the show “a good opportunity for the arts scene at USC to flourish.”
Moving forward, those involved with the show aim to exercise caution when throwing future events by being “extra careful when speaking with neighbors,” who, according to McEvoy, initially called in the complaint.
“I’m confident we’ll keep it going one way or another, it’ll take more than a few noise complaints to shut us down completely,” said McEvoy.