Ain't no party like a Comic-Con party...

...and maybe that's good because who wants to get vibed or macked on by comic-book guy, a toy dork, or an entertainment lawyer? As an alternative, we've set up our very own rock show during this year's San Diego Comic-Con, which will take place at the Ruby Room in nearby Hillcrest on Saturday, July 25. The hard-rocking lineup, hand-picked by us at Giant Robot, includes:


Flattbush - The anti-imperialist thrash/speed metal band from Bellflower crawled out of the garage in 1993, has shared the stage with Brujeria, Asesino, and Fear Factory and released two albums on Billy Gould's Kool Arrow record label. I interviewed them at their practice space way back in Giant Robot 45, and now I finally get to see them onstage.


Upsilon Acrux - These are Michelle's friends, and they've been labeled everything from "post punk" to "brutal prog" to "insane jazz rock." With six albums under their collective belt since 1998, they'll have a ton of compositions to choose from.


The Binges - As seen in Giant Robot 58, this is my favorite current L.A. band, playing straight-up, no-bullshit rock 'n' roll and featuring the virtuosic (yet not self-indulgent) riffs of Tokyo sisters Mayuko and Tsuzumi Okai on guitar and bass. It's like 1988 all over again--but better.


Free The Robots - Alpha Pup, OBEY, and self-released recording artist Chris Alfaro is a headliner in the glitch/indie electronica scenes (see GR57 and GR60), but has graciously agreed to man the wheels of steel between the sets of rock.

Download the flyer here and forward it to all your Stormtrooper, Klingon, and geek friends who are going to San Diego. Arrive early, and we'll see you there.