L.A. Witch took to the stage at Oslo, Hackney halfway through their 20-date tour of Europe, the psych-tinged garage rock trio from Los Angeles meant business. In attendance on the night were Hard Of Hearing favourites Ghum, we asked the London four-piece to share their thoughts on the band they shared a stage with last year.

Keeping the chat to an absolute minimum to the sold out crowd, the band rattled through the dark and atmospheric cuts from their self-titled debut record, released last September, as well as introducing new songs. Basking in sharp shades of pink and blue light onstage, the band enter into their own hazy sonic landscape with standout tracks such as album opener Kill My Baby Tonight showing off frontwomen Sade Sanchez‘s smokey and effortless-cool vocal delivery and reverb-drenched guitarwork.

L.A. Witch play their tight and euphoric single Drive Your Car, displaying three minutes of punchy and direct garage rock with the excellent hard drumming backbone of Ellie English providing a spike in energy mid-set. The slow, pounding rhythmic beast of Baby in Blue Jeans stands out as moment in which the trio aren’t afraid to step off the gas and put romance to the sword with a haunting and fragile love song.

Hard Of Hearing favourites, London four-piece Ghum, were in attendance on the night and previously supported L.A. Witch in Brighton on last year’s tour. We got in touch to ask what they thought of the Californian trio’s live return this time round.

The real charm and true romance with L.A. Witch is their ability to play outside immediately recognisable song structure as their performance at points feels like sitting in on a psych-fuelled, loose as hell jam session. Three people in the zone just playing the music they love, fuck everything else. Their tempo shifts at will, they play long dreamy outro’s and fuse one song to the next when it suits. The band have toured and covered the globe relentlessly over the past few years as well as releasing their excellent debut record through Suicide Squeeze Records. Their togetherness as people and as a band is tangible, and their set on the night flawless, a great return from LA’s finest and scuzziest rockers.