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In honor of the label’s upcoming showcase in Philadelphia (info here) later in September, I’ve decided this month’s audiObelisk transmission should highlight some of the best contributions from Detroit‘s Small Stone Records. The biggest challenge in making this installment wasn’t deciding what to include in terms of bands, but where to stop. It’s about three hours long, and I probably could have gone another easily.

I wanted to include some of Small Stone‘s classic output, from bands like Acid King, The Men of Porn and Five Horse Johnson, and I had to make sure the current and new faces were represented as well: Gozu, Skanska Mord, House of Broken Promises. And just when I thought I was all set to go, I realized I’d forgotten to include Sasquatch. Don’t even ask me how. I was all converted, uploaded, labeled and live, and the next thing I knew I broke out III and ripped the opener, reconverted, re-uploaded, so on and so forth. I don’t know if that’s dedicated or dumb.

Either way, it’s worth being both, given all that Small Stone has done for the genre over the course of the last decade-plus. We start off with some love for Jersey, which the label has always been ready to show. Halfway to Gone, doing “Great American Scumbag.” It’s a song I think sums up a lot of what it means to be into this kind of music in this day and age. As always, I hope you dig it and the rest of the transmission, which is the longest yet at over three hours and featuring 35 bands. This one’s easily my favorite so far.

And if you’re wondering what the image is above, it’s the Detroit airport.

You know the drill: Full tracklist after the jump, stream the file above or download it here. As requested, I included time stamps for when each song starts.

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Clearly Northampton, Massachusetts, doom bringers Black Pyramid just didn’t learn their lesson after last time, because here they are again, debuting “The Cloud of Unknowing” from their new single Stormbringer (on Hydrophonic). The other track on the release, “Stormbringer,” is up on the band’s MySpace page, but this one’s all ours and all the sweeter for it. Stream it by pressing play below:

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Vocalist/guitarist Andy Beresky gives some background on the song:

“We had ‘Stormbringer’ done, and were working on the B-side. I had a bunch of riffs worked out, and it was a matter of getting them all to flow together. That’s really what we were going for, a song that didn’t really have a typical set structure, but just flowed from one part to the next, almost like a meditation. So the title, and the lyrics, they refer to a book on Western meditation, that takes an almost more Eastern approach to it.

“Obviously, it’s our own take on it, I took the religious aspects out and made it more about personal reflection and how we deal with the growing darkness and doubt within our lives, so that we may eventually overcome the concepts of good and evil altogether. Musically, I think it’s also ambitious, but because it retains that flowing, meditative nature throughout, it draws you inside the cloud, and once you’re there, totally obscured by it, everything somehow becomes clearer.”

I think by now there are enough of these live streams so that anyone who didn’t actually make it to the 013 Popcentrum in Tilburg can reenact their own Roadburn festival, but I’ll be damned if I’m going to stop posting them, because they sound great. Special thanks as always to Walter for the permission and for sending over the links. Enjoy:

Monkey3 live at Roadburn 2010

Russian Circles live at Roadburn 2010

Orange Sunshine live at Roadburn 2010

Darkspace live at Roadburn 2010

Dive live at Roadburn 2010

Noneuclid live at Roadburn 2010

The countdown is on. I only have 9 copies left of the first release on The Obelisk‘s in-house label, The Maple Forum, Roareth‘s Acts I-VI. If you want one, select your location and click the button below to buy one via Paypal. The band sold a bunch of their copies at the Seattle Doom Fest, so they’re going fast, and once they’re gone, they’re gone.

Although Roareth has samples of the album on their MySpace (as well as info about their next show August 14 at El Corazon, for which they’ll also have an exclusive t-shirt design), I thought it was time to stream the album, so that everyone could get the chance to hear it even if they didn’t get the chance to buy it, and so anyone on the fence could make up their mind either way. Just click the play button below:

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I’ve come to feel tremendous sentimental attachment to this record, and I hope you enjoy it as much as I know I do. Thanks for listening, for supporting the band and the site.

Purchase Roareth, Acts I-VI:

Choose Location

US $10.00 Everywhere else $14.00

I don’t usually like to repost news from StonerRock.com, since I imagine there’s significant overlap between the people who visit this site and that one, but hey man, I like Cortez, and after listening to it for free on Bandcamp, I like their Demo 2009 three-song release, so I figure why not post the thing here for everyone else to enjoy too? Good stuff. Hope you dig it:

Today is the day Moth Eater‘s new EP, The Thunder God of Monster Island (Giddy Up! Records) goes live for sale on something called… iTunes(?). I’m not sure what that is, but I hear tell it’s all the rage amongst the children, and if there’s one thing that’s good for the children, it’s killer doomed sludge of the kind Moth Eater play. Mothers will be shocked, fathers will disapprove, rock and roll shall reign.

To celebrate the iTune-ification of The Thunder God of Monster Island, Moth Eater have generously granted me permission to host the track “The Aftermath,” which you can stream below. Enjoy.

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Purchase The Thunder God of Monster Island on iTunes

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The above image (apart from having the text added and a little cropping) is unedited. It is an aerial view of New Jersey from someone who I can only imagine was on their way to or from Newark Airport. What you’re seeing is the blanket of haze that rests over my beloved Garden State June to September every year. Pretty much all throughout July and August, you can’t see the sky except through the humidity. It is miserable and sopping.

The purpose of audiObelisk Transmission 007 is to honor (or perhaps, like a ritual sacrifice, appease) the summer itself. I’ve chosen tracks that embody different aspects of the season: sunny days (Unida, Fu Manchu, The Atomic Bitchwax), warm nights (Angels of Light, Six Organs of Admittance, Los Natas, Colour Haze), and some that just sound like they’re as wretchedly soaked through with sweat as I am these several months each year (Snail, Loop, Dead Meadow).

You’ll find a lot of the desert rock discussed in the last Where to Start post, new music from the likes of Fatso Jetson, Yawning Man, Backwoods Payback and Brant Bjork, and, true to the title, some Blue Cheer and a little blues from Robert Johnson, John Lee Hooker and Blind Lemon Jefferson. As always, all are my rips from physical sources.

Click the picture up top to download or stream it above. Full list of tracks is after the jump.

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Well, it’s official: There’s a whole buttload of audio streams from Roadburn 2010 for you to check out. I thought on this Monday afternoon, posting a few more to get you through whatever it is that has you sitting in front of a computer would probably be the way to go. Hope you enjoy:

Church of Misery live on Roadburn 2010 Main Stage

Church of Misery live at Roadburn Afterburner

Altar of Plagues live at Roadburn 2010

Ancestors live at Roadburn 2010

Monarch! live at Roadburn 2010

Karma to Burn live at Roadburn 2010

Mouth of the Architect live at Roadburn 2010

Suma live at Roadburn 2010

Troubled Horse live at Roadburn 2010

Witchfynde live at Roadburn 2010

It’s unreal how many bands they packed into the Roadburn festival. It could have been three separate killer fests and no one would have complained. Being there was like being at the Metropolitan Museum in New York — you couldn’t possibly see everything on offer in one day. Though it was fun to try.

Walter and the good folks at Roadburn have made available more live audio streams, and they sent me the links to share with you. I remember Fatso Jetson‘s performance was especially killer, but I wouldn’t count out any of these bands, because I’ve yet to hear one of these streams I didn’t think was awesome. Enjoy:

Fatso Jetson live at Roadburn 2010

Sons of Otis playing Templeball live at Roadburn 2010

Ahkmed live at Roadburn 2010

Night Horse live at Roadburn 2010

Man’s Gin is the new project from Cobalt multi-instrumentalist and Hemingway enthusiast Erik Wunder. Now residing in Brooklyn, NY, having relocated from Denver (I cannot imagine why someone would do such a thing), he’s joined in Man’s Gin by Scott Edward and Inswarm‘s Josh Lozano, and the three explore dark post-folk Americana with Wunder out front singing melodic in a huge departure from Cobalt‘s blackened ambience. I dig it.

Profound Lore, who will be releasing the Man’s Gin debut, Smiling Dogs, in August, has the title-track posted for preview-type listening. Here it is, followed by PR wire info about the record. To their list of influences, I’d add the solo acoustic work of Neurosis‘ Steve Von Till and Scott Kelly. But that’s me. Enjoy the track:

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Man’s Gin (featuring Erik Wunder of Cobalt) have completed work on their debut album, Smiling Dogs.

Smiling Dogs is a moving musical pilgrimage reminiscent of the vibe of such acts as Woven Hand, Deadboy & the Elephant Men, Dax Riggs’ solo stuff, 16 Horsepower, Tom Waits and Bruce Springsteen Nebraska-era. With a singer-songwriter approach (obviously this is not metal in the slightest) that dabbles with southern rock and Americana folk, Smiling Dogs is a journey through the dark heart of America’s desolate, barren, and ghostly wastelands.

To be released late August, tracklisting for Smiling Dogs goes as follows:

1. Smiling Dogs
2. Free
3. Stone on My Head
4. Solid Gold Telephone
5. Nuclear Ambition Part 1
6. Nuclear Ambition Part 2
7. The Death of Jimmy Sturgis
8. Hate.Money.Love.Woman.
9. Doggamn

[NOTE: New posts will appear underneath this post for the rest of the week. You know the deal.]

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Truth be told, I was planning a special UK-only podcast even before Chris and Pete from Trippy Wicked and the Cosmic Children of the Knight were so hospitable to me in April. There’s been a Post-It on my desk with a list of bands on it since February. Pretty sad, I know.

But it’s all the more appropriate that it goes live today, when Germany‘s psychic octopus proved correct and England was knocked out the World Cup. Having watched the US succumb to the unstoppable force known as the Ghanaian team yesterday, I can empathize. We bleed as one, except, you know, it matters to England.

As always, this audiObelisk Transmission is culled from my own rips, made with love in honor of the UK‘s many contributions to the heavy underground. Making your way through it, you’ll notice a couple glaring omissions, among them Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin and Iron Maiden. I wanted to keep it focused on stoner rock and doom (apart from the bonus track), and while I know these bands are vastly influential, I’d rather spend that time listening to Uriah Heep, Leaf Hound and Atomic Rooster. Yeah, there’s Deep Purple and Black Sabbath on the playlist. It’s a pretty fine line.

We start off (following a Snuff Box sample) with London‘s Kings of Frog Island, and I think it’s a pretty good flow of songs and styles thereafter. The UK has had so much diversity, sound wise, it was all I could do to hold it together. In my most trying moments, I thought of England.

Playlist is after the jump…

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I missed Eyehategod when they played their Thursday set at this year’s Roadburn festival, which is a bummer. But now, thanks to the wonders of technology, even I can pretend I was there with this live audio stream. If you missed the last two batches of streams, they are here, and here.

And if you’d like to read what Mr. Bower Power himself, Jimmy Bower, has to say about playing Roadburn, check out our interview here. Please enjoy the set and thanks once again to Walter and the Roadburn crew:

Eyehategod live at Roadburn 2010

I’ve been a fan of Adult Swim since the days when they showed clips of old people synchronized-swimming, and in no way is that depressing. The Cartoon Network Sunday night programming block got ahold of the as-yet-unreleased High on Fire track (somehow Kia was involved too), and posted the single as part of a series they’re doing over the course of apparently eight weeks. So, uh, thanks guys.

You can stream the track below or download it at the Adult Swim page linked above. If you don’t recall, High on Fire guitarist/vocalist Matt Pike spoke about this song in our interview.

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If you missed the last batch, check them out here. Of course, I’m stoked beyond belief that after all the kindness the festival showed in allowing me to show up, drink their beer, eat their food, rock out to their bands and basically pollute their beautiful country with my terrible presence, Roadburn is letting The Obelisk host these audio streams of the 2010 festival performances, which took place April 15-18, at the 013 Popcentrum in Tilburg, The Netherlands. Awesome.

Click the links below to listen:

Sons of Otis live at Roadburn 2010

Eagle Twin live at Roadburn 2010 (Thursday performance)

Eagle Twin live at Roadburn 2010 (Friday performance, featuring Greg Anderson)

LongDistanceCalling live at Roadburn 2010

Astra live at Roadburn 2010

Jex Thoth live at Roadburn 2010

Jex Thoth live at Roadburn Afterburner 2010

Once again, special thanks to Walter and Roadburn for letting me post these links. Please dig into the complete audio stream collection here.

Today The Obelisk is proud and thrilled to have been given permission to host the next batch of audio streams from the 2010 Roadburn Festival, which took place April 15-18 in Tilburg, Netherlands at the 013 Popcentrum. Please click the links below to listen, and enjoy.

Bong live at Roadburn 2010

Death Row live at Roadburn 2010

Karma to Burn live at Roadburn 2010

Moss live at Roadburn 2010

The Lamp of Thoth live at Roadburn 2010

The Machine live at Roadburn 2010

Valborg live at Roadburn 2010

More streams and info on the Roadburn audio crew available here. Special thanks to Walter and the Roadburn festival.