Posted in Whathaveyou on October 29th, 2013 by JJ Koczan
It’s been almost five months since I first encountered the debut Demo MMXIIIfrom Philadelphia trad doomers Crypt Sermon, and I still find myself with the chorus of “Temple Doors” stuck in my head at the mere mention of the band’s name. Perhaps it’s little surprise then that Dark Descent Records has picked up the three-tracker for a limited tape release, which will be the first physical release from the four-piece outfit, who make short work of the difficult task of adhering to doomly tenets while forging a personality of their own apart from them. The demo got gushed over here if you want to check it out, and kudos to the band on getting it out. I’m already looking forward to their next outing.
Here’s the PR wire info and the Bandcamp stream for your gloomy fix:
CRYPT SERMON Announce Debut Release on Dark Descent Records
Epic doom metal scions CRYPT SERMON have announced the forthcoming release of their 2013 debut, “DEMO MMXIII” in the form of a limited edition cassette tape via Dark Descent Records. The tape, exclusively limited to 300 copies, is slated for a worldwide release on December 17.
“DEMO MMXII” is streaming in full at cryptsermon.bandcamp.com.
“DEMO MMXIII” Track list: 1.) Temple Doors 2.) Belly of the Whale 3.) Whore of Babylon
Founded on the principles of unwavering epic doom metal, Philadelphia’s CRYPT SERMON exist as a vehicle to drive out the current trends that are choking the underground scene. Devoid of contemporary doom conventions, “DEMO MMXIII” showcases three tracks of carefully crafted old-school doom metal that carries the torch for stalwarts such as CANDLEMASS and SOLITUDE AETERNUS.
Regarding the forthcoming release, the band said: “CRYPT SERMON is thrilled to see our demo finally unearthed. We’d like to thank Dark Descent Records for their support, and look forward to creating new music for the underground. We are currently hard at work writing our full length debut, and look forward to hitting the road in the near future.”
For updated CRYPT SERMON news and tour dates, please visit the CRYPT SERMON Facebook page, and the Dark Descent Records website.
Posted in On Wax on October 29th, 2013 by JJ Koczan
They’re not wanting for aggression, but the Bristol duo of Gareth Turner (bass, noise) and Jesse Webb (drums, guitar), who collectively go by BigNaturals,have little to do with metal, and their heaviness of tone — one can see pictures of prominent Matamp logos in the foldout panels of their Greasy Trucker Records self-titled debut LP — seems almost happenstance when put against the rush of their noisy articulations, the focus more on the swirl and the churn than the thickness or pummel. Weird is the primary. Of course, they wind up plenty heavy anyway, but there’s little in the mostly-instrumental offering to guarantee they’ll stay that way. Or to guarantee much of else, for that matter.
Laden with samples on both sides and condensed under psychedelic loops, the vinyl is striking both visually and sonically. The quality stock mushroom cloud cover that comes in a plastic sleeve unfolds as of six panels that work out to be a sort of gatefold-plus, with the recording info on one side with the aforementioned amp pictures and the two panels of the cover, while the other side is a full-size collage of staring eyes. If they’re setting a mood, it’s odd, paranoid and far beyond conventional — though the music mirrors that as well, as Turner and Webb binge on flashes of experimental noise like “Islamaphobia” and “Sea of Lies” that somehow manage to transition smoothly into “Codex” and the creepy laughter of the encompassingly-fuzzed “Krautpunk.”
Longer pieces like side A’s “Hear the Night Roar” and “Neda” make plain their feedback-soaked challenge, but on the first listen, it’s just about indistinguishable where one ends and the other begins, and if continuity was the intent, then it’s all the more impressive that Big Naturals get there with the diversity and open approach they show throughout these “songs.” With sides split between “Brent Skin Suit I” and “Brent Skin Suit II,” that take-it-as-a-whole sentiment is palpable, the ultra-noisy wash of the former building back up on side B after a fade that leads to a continuation of the melee into “A Good Stalker,” which begins to come down from the intensity some but holds its tension all the same, some far back yelling past the halfway point providing a human element beyond that brought to the album by the flurry of samples scattered across it.
Mostly, Big Naturals are instrumental. Mostly. It’s for the better as well, since these tracks don’t leave much room for verses or even lines beyond those in the news clips of “Small Parts” or the slew of angry exclamations that drives the opening build of “Screaming Midnight Cowboys.” Above everything else, Big Naturals‘ debut seems to be working against categorization, or at least any pigeonhole that might go deeper than “experimental” or “noise,” and to their credit, their self-titled legitimately presents a vicious defiance of genre that every now and then locks in a groove but is just as likely to ride it out as to shift quickly away and follow another whim, daring you as the listener to keep up before the side ends. I feel like I’m constantly three minutes behind — which is pretty good, considering.
Posted in Whathaveyou on October 29th, 2013 by JJ Koczan
There’s little I enjoy more than some out-of-the-blue awesome news, and word of the new Black Skies album, Circadian Meditations, and the new track “Time Lord” now streaming definitely qualify. Black Skies will release the follow-up to 2011’s On the Wings of Time(discussed here) on Nov. 19 digitally and put proceeds from download sales toward an eventual vinyl issue. Founders Michelle Temple and Kevin Clark joined forces with Caltrop drummer John Crouch for the recording of Circadian Meditations, which was helmed by Kyle Spence of Harvey Milk and, true to the band’s stated intentions below, follows a more meditative, exploratory and psychedelic course. I’m just hearing it for the first time as I type this, but so far I dig it.
Here’s PR wire info and “Time Lord” so you can keep an eye and ear out:
new Black Skies releases
Circadian Meditations, the latest full length by Black Skies, will be released digitally Tuesday, November 19th. The album expands on the psychedelic leanings of the band’s 2011 release On The Wings Of Time. The group returned to Athens, GA in May to again record with Harvey Milk’s Kyle Spence. Joining founding Black Skies members Kevin Clark & Michelle Temple for this session was drummer John Crouch (Caltrop, Solar Halos, Horseback). Showcasing experimentation, while not abandoning the heavy elements of their sound, Circadian Meditations displays a musical & spiritual evolution for the band. With careful consideration to the sequencing of the songs, as well as the use of ambient sounds, short acoustic instrumental movements, and drones from an Indian shruti box to create transitions, Circadian Meditations is meant to be listened to as a full, flowing cohesive piece rather than a scattered collection of songs.
We are also releasing a digital single featuring an unreleased track, “Echoes In The Void” b/w “Dead Batteries” (previously released on a Digguptapes limited edition split cassingle with Caltrop). Both songs were recorded with Nick Petersen at Track & Field Recording Studio and feature Tim Herzog (Godspeed You! Black Emperor, Milemarker, DesArk) on drums. As an added bonus to our fans who purchase the download of Circadian Meditations, we will include a free download of this single. You can listen to these songs here: https://blackskies.bandcamp.com/album/echoes-in-the-void-b-w-dead-batteries
There have already been a number of people inquiring about the vinyl release of Circadian Meditations, so we want to let you all know that we definitely aim to get this out on vinyl ASAP. Every cent we make from selling this album digitally will be going toward making that happen.
Thank you all for your continued support & we hope you enjoy the music!
The Obelisk’s “10 Days of Stoner Hands of Doom XIII” coverage continues today with a video premiere from Indianapolis four-piece Devil to Pay, who headline Sunday night, Nov. 10 at Strange Matter in Richmond, Virginia. They’ll be the absolute last band to play at this year’s SHoD, and they’re set to tour their way along the East Coast with the fest as the centerpiece in support of their 2013 Ripple Music album, Fate is Your Muse(review here). In addition, they’ll have a brand new 7″ on hand in two different colors with two different covers for the standout cut from that record, “Ten Lizardmen and One Pocketknife” (the B-side is a cover of Eldemur Krimm‘s “Black Fog”), and they’ve got a new video for the song as well that today I have the pleasure of premiering.
Arriving relatively early on in Fate is Your Muse, “Ten Lizardmen and One Pocketknife” is nonetheless one of the most immediately lasting impressions the album leaves. From the quirky narrative of the lyrics, the soulful melodic delivery of guitarist/vocalist Steve Janiak — joined in the band by guitaristRob Hough (who plays the therapist in the new clip), bassist Matt Stokes and drummer Chad Profigle — to the catchy chorus and quirk of the title and the song itself, if nothing else, it’s a track that stays with you. And like their video for “Tie One On,” which premiered here back in August, “Ten Lizardmen and One Pocketknife” finds Devil to Pay having fun with the form, whether it’s dressing up and dancing in lizard costumes or sitting down for a little D&D in the awesome space that the credits refer to as the “Godzilla Room.” You’ll know it when you see it.
It’s always a good time to see what Devil to Pay are up to, and between the cut and the video, “Ten Lizardmen and One Pocketknife” sums up a lot of what I really, really like about this band. Check it out on the player embedded below, followed by the tour dates:
Devil to Pay, “Ten Lizardmen & One Pocketknife” official video
Devil to Pay SHoD XIII / East Coast Tour: 11/01 Valhalla Muncie, IN w/ So Sayeth & Witchdoctor 11/02 Radio Radio Indianapolis, IN w/ the Cocaine Wolves & Dead Birds Adore Us 11/06 Springwater Nashville, TN w/ Admiral Browning & Elder Skull 11/07 529 Bar Atlanta, GA w/ Admiral Browning , Volume IV & Iron Whip 11/08 Flat Iron Greensboro, NC w/ NONE and Jews & Catholics 11/09 Roger’s Pub Chesapeake, VA w/ Pillbuster, Wizard Eye, Faces of Bayon & Compel 11/10 Strange Matter Richmond, VA Stoner Hands of Doom XIII 11/11 The Maywood Raleigh, NC w/ Black Thai & Bedowyn 11/12 JR’s Bar Philadelphia, PA w/ Clamfight, The Cloth & Heavy Temple 11/13 Tobacco Road New York, NY w/ TBA 11/14 Geno’s Portland, ME w/ Eldemur Krimm & Eastern Spell 11/15 O’Brien’s Pub Allston, MA w/ Mollusk & Gut 11/16 Mr. Beery’s Bethpage, NY w/ Borgo Pass, Soma & Von Hell
Posted in Reviews on October 29th, 2013 by JJ Koczan
What better to call the boozy blues? New Hampshire trio Skrogg make their full-length debut with the well-portmanteaued Blooze on Drug Rug Records, and follow up their engaging 2011 Raw Heat demo EP (review here) with like-minded backwoodsery and classically heavy rock push. Guitarist/vocalist Jeff Maxfield, bassist Jason Lawrence and drummer Felix Starr have taken on a bluesier sound than they had last time out — something their obviously aware of, given the title and shading of the artwork — and that sits well alongside the other elements in their approach, which is like heavy Southern rock gone North, and shows itself immediately on the bare intro of “Someone up there Must Like Me/Kentucky Bourbon (in 80 Grit),” with its off-mic vocal and foot-stomp percussion. Naturally, thicker tones kick in and Bloozeshows more of its true course in the Sabbath-via-Goatsnake push of “Kentucky Bourbon (in 80 Grit),” but the context of that intro remains and continues to pepper the atmosphere throughout the rest of the album, whether it’s the bluegrass bounce of “Cool, Clean Mountain Rain” — which goes so far as to include a fiddle — or the twangy acoustics of the penultimate “A City Girl ain’t No Woman.” These latter two are instrumentals that act as complements to longer cuts like “Gran Torino” (12:05) and closer “One to Nothin'” (5:06), but even within the depths of those songs or the suitably inebriated second cut, “Born to Blooze” (8:27), that vibe isn’t lost, and Skrogg find their niche within that blend of thick grooves and countrified fuckall.
Maxfield‘s vocals are high in the mix and mostly dry — somewhat ironic, given the title — which holds to the sans-bullshit ethic of Raw Heat, but his and Lawrence‘s tones mesh well together over top of Starr‘s thudding toms, captured by Clay Neely (BlackPyramid) and Anthony Cimino at Mojo Studio in Franconia, about two hours south of the band’s home in Troy, in a sound that’s rough but satisfyingly heavy on low end and still able to convey the catchy push of the upbeat “Kentucky Bourbon (in 80 Grit)” and “Gran Torino.” Those two boast the strongest hooks on the album, but ultimately have different aims. Where the opener stands pretty clearly at the head in order to grab the listener and give a sense of what’s coming by switching off between its two parts, the brief “Someone up there Must Like Me” and the subsequent song itself, “Gran Torino” has more space to stretch out and finds Maxfield, Lawrence and Starr engaging a classic, Deep Purple, Made in Japan-style stoner jam, smooth and quiet but for sampled motorcycle revving until the nodding groove of the verse riff kicks in. That they’d couple that jam and one of Blooze‘s most effective choruses together speaks well of their songwriting and dedication to a natural feel, but ultimately it’s the semi-title-track “Born to Blooze” that provides the biggest surprise of the album, moving deftly from thick fuzz to a more open jangle. Lawrence‘s bass fills out the bottom — and of course Starr‘s drums lack nothing for push — but the guitars play it subtler, and Maxfield‘s woman-left-me lyrics get a richer feel for what proves to be something of a departure in terms of the record overall.
Posted in Whathaveyou on October 28th, 2013 by JJ Koczan
German four-piece Iguana impressed last year with their full-length debut, Get the City Love You(review here), and while I’m glad they’re doing a weekender in Germany starting this Thursday and wish as usual that I could be there to see it, I’m also posting the news below because it comes coupled with their recent video for the song “Vague as a Mirage” from the album. You might notice quickly that the short film is kind of a weird one. The dang kids and their music upstairs are too loud, so an old lady breaks out the stoner rock and puts a curse on them.
Things take a turn when the three girls start dying off. I won’t spoil how it ends, but yeah, it winds up being somewhat darker than you might expect, albeit with a sense of humor. Iguana reportedly also have new songs in the works that they’ll be playing at these shows and hopefully recording soon.
Here’s the latest:
IGUANA will hit the road for short “Season Closing Tour 2013”! The tour is presented by Sound Of Liberation, Slam Magazin, Smash Zine, Allschools Network, Whiskey Soda, Stonerrock.eu and Sweet Home Records.
Iguana Season Closing Tourdates 2013 31.10.2013 – ger – Dresden – Ostpol * 01.11.2013 – ger – Halle (Saale) – Marktwirtschaft ** 02.11.2013 – ger – Leipzig – Goldhorn * * with Kalamahara ** with Kalamahara & Widow People’s Pub (OFFICIAL)
Voodoo-scenes as well as occult and morbid themes match perfectly with heavy psychedelic retro-rock. This is nothing new for Iguana.
But new is the question how this ‘fitting like a glove’- combination matches with the cheerful Indie-rock of the Kosmonauten. The latter, who are Germany’s pop-cultural high flyer under a different name, are not into gloomy thoughts or voodoo at all.
It’s as simple as that: In their new short film/ music video the four Iguanas from Chemnitz will knit an amazing mesh of esoteric crime, high school horror and psycho thriller. Apart from the desert-post-rock song „Vague as a mirage“ it is, above all, the plot and the cast that will cause a surprise. So, this daring combination of cheerful pop culture, voodoo-charme and psychedelic rock will work out terrifically.
Posted in audiObelisk on October 28th, 2013 by JJ Koczan
From their demo and early days of “Fuck Bulldozers” and “Viking Funeral” on down to “Stealing the Ghost Horse,” I’ve heard just about everything that Philly brain-bruisers Clamfight have come up with to date. So when I tell you that the new song “Bathosphere” from a forthcoming limited compilation CDR that the four-piece will have exclusively on hand at this year’s Stoner Hands of Doom fest — taking place at Strange Matter in Richmond, Virginia, Nov. 7-10 — is the heaviest thing I’ve ever heard them play, please understand there’s the slightest chance I know what I’m talking about. Heavier than “Rabbit” from the first record? Yes, heavier than “Rabbit.”
As the band begins to move past their earlier-2013 sophomore full-length, I vs. the Glacier— released on The Maple Forum, this site’s in-house semi-label — they do so with the utmost brutality. At 3:49, “Bathosphere” is brief compared to some of Clamfight‘s more spacious material, the guitars of Sean McKee and Joel Harris having somewhat less room to spread out over the pummeling groove of bassist Louis Koble and drummer/vocalist Andy Martin, but what it lacks in runtime, it accounts for in intensity, biting down hard with an initial tension build of feedback and tom runs before unleashing its thrashing course following an introductory growl from Martin. It’s a heads-down push, but Clamfight handle it well, letting off the gas just slightly for a chorus before resuming what’s among their most vicious riffs en route to a squibbly churn and unbridled slam of a finish.
“Bathosphere” is set to be included as one of two new tracks on the SHoD-only release (presumably they’ll have a couple for the other shows on their tour south, but who knows?). The other is “Blockship,” and unlike that song, “Bathosphere” won’t appear on Clamfight‘s next album. It’s for this CDR only.
Martin gives some details on the release and tour dates, under the player below on which you can check out “Bathosphere.” Bring a helmet:
We’ll be making one hundred CD-R copies of “Bathosphere” and they will available on the cheap at SHOD 13 on November 7th at Strange Matter in Richmond, VA and after that until they run out. Once they’re gone, they’re gone and we have no plans of making it available in any other format. Also included on the CD will be “Blockship” a track which will be appearing on our third record, as well as many of our old demos as we can lay our hands on.
The CD will also include art by Chris Jones of the mighty Rukut.
From Richmond we’ll be heading to Uncle Lou’s in Orlando Florida to team up with our good friends in Hollow Leg, Shroud Eater and Ad Nauseum on November 8th. November 9th sees us at The Jinx in Savannah Georgia with Hollow Leg, Shroud Eater, and Crazy Bag Lady, and November 12th sees us at JR’s in Philly with Heavy Temple, the Cloth, and Devil to Pay.
“Bathosphere” and “Block Ship” were recorded by Steve Poponi at the Gradwell House in Haddon Heights New Jersey over a day and half last May. “Bathosphere” is probably my favorite thing we’ve done with Steve. We recorded the instruments in the early afternoon and I wrote the lyrics in my car as the guys did over dubs. With the exception of the death growls, the vocals were recorded in one go, so all told, from start to finish “Bathosphere” was recorded in less than four hours. I can’t speak for everyone but for me something about the speed and aggression of this song makes it feel the closer to what we do live than of any of our recordings, and that sort of “fuck it, let’s just destroy” attitude we had about the session itself made the whole day a blast.
Oh and I got disco fries after I tracked my vocals.
Posted in Reviews on October 28th, 2013 by JJ Koczan
It was the first night back on the road for Clutch vocalist Neil Fallon after having back surgery little over a month ago — also his birthday — and for the band, the kickoff to the latest round of tour dates in support of earlier 2013’s stellar Earth Rocker(review here), so even as far as Clutch gigs go, this one was something of an event. The big mystery was whether Fallon would be able to have the same kind of mobility as a frontman so soon after going under the knife, or if he was ready to be on stage. I suppose it shouldn’t be a surprise that Clutch showed up to the Casino Ballroom in Hampton Beach, New Hampshire, ready to roll in their usual pro-rock form, but it was certainly reassuring.
The Casino Ballroom is a sizable space. Wider than it is long if you’re facing the stage, you walk upstairs on either side and the high ceiling, box seats, and open floorplan mark it out immediately as a room with some years. Along the walls are names and dates of people and bands who’ve performed there. It went back to Duke Ellington, and also had Janis Joplin, Led Zeppelin, Nirvana, George Carlin, and so on. Big names in a big room. As they have for several years now, Clutch entered to Chuck Brown and the Soulsearchers‘ “We Need Some Money” following the direct support from American Sharks — The Sword are also on the tour, but didn’t make this date presumably because it was rescheduled from September on account of the surgery — and within minutes, laid to rest any concerns for their wellbeing. Clutch was just fine.
Adrenaline had to be a factor in that — I’m sorry, but you don’t get a major medical procedure and go on tour five weeks later 100 percent recovered — and Fallon would get visibly stiffer as the show went on, but performance-wise, even later set inclusions “D.C. Sound Attack” and “The Mob Goes Wild” were delivered both with vigor and laser-point accuracy. Guitarist Tim Sult, bassist Dan Maines and drummer Jean-Paul Gaster had some rust to shake off initially as well, but with the more vigorous material from the latest album to do so, they were hardly through the Earth Rockertitle-track and into “50,000 Unstoppable Watts” from 2009’s Strange Cousins from the Westbefore they seemed locked in, and the setlist continued, as when I last saw them in May, to draw largely the new record with about a 50/50 split of that and everything else.
No doubt the ability to change it up is an advantage of having 10 albums under their collective belt, and cuts like “Profits of Doom” from 2004’s Blast Tyrant, “Escape from the Prison Planet” from their landmark 1995 self-titled and “The Elephant Riders” from the 1998 follow-up of the same name were welcome alongside Earth Rockerfull-thrusters like “Crucial Velocity,” “Cyborg Bettie” and “Book, Saddle and Go.” The Earth Rockertracks — shorter, crisper, leaner and less jammy-feeling on the whole than those of Strange Cousins from the Westor the preceding LP, 2007’s From Beale Street to Oblivion — go over exceedingly well in the live setting. That’s been the experience for a few years now, as album closer “The Wolfman Kindly Requests…” has been a regular for a while, but it’s especially true of the faster songs. As engaging as the dynamic display of a Clutch jam is — and it is — they made the turn to a more stripped down feel at just the right time, and their fanbase from what I’ve seen at the shows has responded with due excitement.
That was definitely the case at the Casino Ballroom, anyhow. The bars on either side had long lines, and if you were the type to, say, wear sandals in late October, then almost certainly you’d have beer spilled on your feet by the time the show was done (fortunately I avoided the issue with some beat-ass old sneakers I keep on hand for such occasions and/or snow), and any vision you might have of watching awkward beardo dudes boogie down, you can be sure that vision would be fulfilled by “Elephant Riders” or “Book, Saddle and Go.” For me, any night I get to see Clutch play “The Regulator” from Blast Tyrant, I consider myself as having won (at life), and this one was no exception. Watching the let’s-ride-this-cowbell-part-for-a-while take on “D.C. Sound Attack” move into the quieter blues of “Gone Cold” was an interesting shift as well, and only showed the four-piece’s ability to manipulate the vibe at will. Now it’s a party — now it’s that lonely time after the party when you’re picking up bottles from the lawn. Fortunately they have some of heavy rock’s best and funkiest grooves to tie it all together.
And to that end, indulge me as I take a second to admire the workman’s heavy lifting that Dan Maines does playing bass in this band. Gaster is an inventive, deeply creative drummer, and Sult loves his wah, his starts and stops, and as Fallon goes off in madman-preacher mode in “The Face,” it’s Maines‘ smooothness anchoring the song and keeping the motion forward. He’s never showy on stage, but his contribution is essential to Clutch being the force they are, and that was all the more apparent as “The Mob Goes Wild” gave way to “The Wolfman Kindly Requests…” and “Electric Worry” to close out the night, Bryan “Uzi” Hinkley of Tree coming out for a guest spot on guitar. First night of the tour, Fallon looking a little rough by the end — though again, his voice sounded great — Clutch showed that whatever hiccups might’ve come their way, they were nothing more than that, and that their momentum coming off Earth Rockerwill continue as their train keeps a’ rolling for who knows how long and to who knows what destination.
A quick encore was had with “A Shogun Named Marcus” from 1993’s Transnational Speedway League: Anthems, Anecdotes and Undeniable Truthsfull-length debut (which makes a fitting-if-gritty companion for Earth Rocker), and sent everyone back out into the cold Friday night. Hampton Beach is indeed a shore town, and though it was dark, I could smell the salt of the ocean on the cold wind blowing from across the street. At least I think that’s what it was.
