https://www.high-endrolex.com/18

Days of Rona: Claudia Crespo of Ode to Doom

Posted in Features on April 1st, 2020 by JJ Koczan

The statistics of COVID-19 change with every news cycle, and with growing numbers, stay-at-home isolation and a near-universal disruption to society on a global scale, it is ever more important to consider the human aspect of this coronavirus. Amid the sad surrealism of living through social distancing, quarantines and bans on gatherings of groups of any size, creative professionals — artists, musicians, promoters, club owners, techs, producers, and more — are seeing an effect like nothing witnessed in the last century, and as humanity as a whole deals with this calamity, some perspective on who, what, where, when and how we’re all getting through is a needed reminder of why we’re doing so in the first place.

Thus, Days of Rona, in some attempt to help document the state of things as they are now, both so help can be asked for and given where needed, and so that when this is over it can be remembered.

Thanks to all who participate. — JJ Koczan

ode to doom claudia crespo

Days of Rona: Claudia Crespo of Ode to Doom (Manhattan, New York)

How are you dealing with this crisis? Have you had to rework plans at all? How is your health so far?

As the producer/promoter who runs Ode to Doom, I had to cancel our bi-monthly show in March, which obviously was necessary. Bands were getting nervous. I was getting nervous. I felt torn, because part of me wanted to keep the show going, for the venue, for myself, for the two bands that still wanted to play. As the days got closer to the show, I realized how serious the situation really was, so I did what I thought best and canceled. Two days later, the governor of NY officially closed down non-essential establishments and that was that. As of now, the next Ode will be on May 20th, but to be honest, that’s still up in the air.

What are the quarantine/isolation rules where you are?

New York bars and venues are required by law to remain shut and so that’s pretty much it (until further notice). Only essential businesses are allowed to remain open, like grocery stores.

How have you seen the virus affecting the community around you and in music?

I think the doom metal community has a way of sticking together through the tougher times, at least that’s what I’ve noticed, and this situation is no different. I feel a real sense of community despite shows being canceled. People are helping bands who have had to cancel tours due to the virus, they’re helping bands promote their merch, etc. It’s a difficult time indeed but I think we’re trying to do the best we can. I’m trying my best to take it one day at a time, that’s all you can really do. On a personal level, it’s definitely tested my sobriety but I’m managing. I do a little journaling and meditation everyday.

What is the one thing you want people to know about your situation, either as a band, or personally, or anything?

To keep going one day at a time. That’s really all you can do. You’re not alone, we’re all in this together. One essential is connect with others, through FaceTime, through music, through sharing music, and remember to breathe. This will get better.

https://www.facebook.com/odetodooom/
https://www.instagram.com/odetodoom/
http://freebird.etsy.com
https://www.arlenesgrocery.net/

Tags: , , , , ,

Live Review: Ode to Doom with Leather Lung, Mother Iron Horse, Somnuri & Grandpa Jack, 09.18.19

Posted in Reviews on September 19th, 2019 by JJ Koczan

Leather Lung (Photo by JJ Koczan)

The third anniversary celebration of NYC-based curated show series Ode to Doom was a special occasion. The bands knew it, the venue knew it, and the people who showed up knew it. Everyone who played had new material and was excited to share. Everyone said thanks. The vibe was chill from before the show even started, and even as heavy and as raucous as things got as the bluesy opening Grandpa Jack delivered gave way to the noisier likes of Somnuri, Mother Iron Horse and Leather Lung, it stayed chill for the duration. For being what Somnuri guitarist/vocalist Justin Sherrell referred to as, “a school night” — can’t argue with facts — it was also a welcome escape from midweek blues; all parties involved seemed happy to shed the uphill slump from their shoulders, or maybe that’s just me projecting.

One way or the other, it was the best argument I’ve encountered in a while for sitting in workday-evening traffic. The air was crisp but not bitingly cold. When I signed on three years ago to have The Obelisk be among the presenters for Ode to Doom, which is run with clear dedication by Claudia Crespo at Arlene’s Grocery with input from indomitable entrepreneur Vadim Dyadyuk of Made in Brooklyn Silkscreeners, who’s done merch for this site and will again — new colors coming for the holiday season, plus did I hear you asking for Obelisk sweatpants? no? well they’re happening anyway — part of the appeal for me was nostalgic. I remembered great times at Precious Metal in the basement at Lit Lounge and other Manhattan-based shows. I don’t think it’s a bad thing that it’s all moved to Brooklyn over the last generation and now is headed to Queens, but someone keeping the flame of a Manhattan underground alive felt like an idea well worth preserving. Turns out I was right.

Suitably enough given my recent move, the unstated theme for the evening was NY-meets-MA, with Brooklyn’s Grandpa Jack and Somnuri getting started and Salem, Mass, heavybringers Mother Iron Horse and Boston’s Leather Lung closing the night. If you don’t know Grandpa Jack — and I’ll admit I didn’t hear their self-titled debut LP last year; my loss — give it time. You will. The three-piece turned classic heavy rock shades of doomly purple with vintage tone emanating from the finger-picked guitar of Johnny Strom, who also shared vocal duties with drummer Matt C. White while Jared Schapker provided warm and engrossing low end to suit their blues-infused spirit. Their periodic dips into melody on vocals were welcome and hopefully telling of things to come, and the languid pace of their material brought to mind Radio Moscow played at two-thirds speed, with jammy intent. They were a more than welcome start to the proceedings.

I hadn’t seen Somnuri yet, but was excited to. having so thoroughly dug their late-2017 self-titled debut (discussed here) and subsequent split with fellow purveyors-o’-noise Godmaker (review here). They’ve got a new album mastered as of earlier this month and will cover “Dirt” on Magnetic Eye‘s upcoming Alice in Chains redux (presumably that’s what the cover they posted a snippet of on social media is for, unless they’re just going rogue with it, which might be fun too), and the aforementioned Sherrell, bassist Philippe Arman (also of Tower) and drummer Phil SanGiacomo both brought and demolished the evening’s crowd. The new material had more melody in a post-grunge, still-volatile kind of way that made me really excited to hear it in recorded form, but there was plenty of crushing going on as well, and as wheelhouses go, that’s a good one to be in. I’ll go out on a limb and say that barring disaster this won’t be the last time I see them play, but knowing that and knowing there’s a new record in the offing only made me enjoy their set more. Until next time.

There was time for a quick walk around the block between bands, which beat staring at the baby monitor on my phone — did it? — so I walked out of the venue for a minute to get some air, made it back well in time for Mother Iron Horse, who released their debut, The Lesser Key, in May and who seem primed to get picked up by some label or another if they haven’t yet. Their energy built on what Somnuri had been doing, but their sound was more rock-based, and the double-guitar riffing was complemented by right-on classic-style lead work and excursions into more uproarious stretches. Comprised of Adam Luca, Marco Medina, Devin Fields and Chris Kobialka, they made it easy to get into what they were doing in cuts like “Gehenna” and “Scepter of Ice” from the album, and as they’re on tour with Leather Lung — they’ll play Montclair, NJ’s The Meatlocker tonight, of course with Dutchguts — they started off that run in top form with what was still a good crowd who stuck around after Somnuri‘s set. Another band I’d never seen before, another one I’ll try to see again. That’s three for three on the night so far at Ode to Doom.

By contrast, I had seen Leather Lung before, but it was upwards of four years ago in Boston and they’ve got a new record out through Magnetic Eye called Lonesome, On’ry and Evil that produced the set-highlight “Miscreant,” which perfectly summarized the band’s approach rooted in mosh-ready riffs and massive aggro-sludge tones. Coming out to the familiar strains of Waylon Jennings, frontman Mike Vickers had apparently busted his arm and had it in a sling. He left the audience to guess how he’d done it, so insert here whatever pulled-a-ligament hyperbole you’d like to about him lifting the riffs of guitarist Zach and lumbering bass of Jesse — whose backing vocals also added a sense of extremity throughout the set. Set to the crash of drummer Ben, Leather Lung‘s willfully lunkheaded sludge metal was nothing short of a hit on a Wednesday night in Manhattan, which if that doesn’t sound like an accomplishment absolutely was one. Dudes up front lost their mind, and even standing in the back, beat as I was, the groove was palpable. And by “palpable” I mean shaking the floor. They’re going to kill at Descendants of Crom this weekend in Pittsburgh.

So what did we learn? I hadn’t planned on sticking around through the entirety of Leather Lung‘s set, as I’d been up since 4AM and knew I still had the drive back to my ancestral homestead ahead of me, but I did, and so did a lot of others who no doubt had trains, Ubers, hoverboards or Citibikes to catch. And I won’t take away from what Leather Lung were doing, but the vibe of the whole night was a big part of what kept me there. It felt like I had showed up to a party three years late and still been welcomed. That’s a rare thing.

More pics after the jump. Thanks for reading.

Read more »

Tags: , , , , , , ,

The Obelisk Presents: Ode to Doom in Manhattan on Nov. 24 with Heavy Temple, Fox 45, Nine Layers Deep and Sabba

Posted in The Obelisk Presents on November 19th, 2018 by JJ Koczan

ode to doom nov 24 lineup

My general tack in talking about gender on this site is not to. I try not to post album art that has shitty objectification of women on it, and if I think something is outwardly misogynist, I’ll say so one way or another, but I cringe when I see male writers and PR people and labels using tags like “female-fronted,” etc., and I usually try to mention it as little as humanly possible. I don’t know if the method is politically sound or what — I’d have to talk to my theorist wife about it, and she’s sleeping at the moment — but the way I see it something can’t be normalized while still being made exotic. That is, when a band has three or four dudes in it, one doesn’t call them “male-fronted.” Women in bands is a thing that happens. The proportions as relates to the general population are ridiculous — see: shitty misogyny, above — but I try not to position lady-inclusion in my writing as something abnormal, because it isn’t something abnormal and it shouldn’t be treated that way. I don’t expect or want or think I deserve kudos for that, and fuck you heartily if you think I’m saying this to be self-righteous.

I’ve been sort of loosely involved in presenting Ode to Doom at Arlene’s Grocery in NYC for a little over two years. I signed on initially because I liked the idea of someone still putting on underground heavy shows in Manhattan where so much of that business seems to have migrated to Brooklyn during the course of the last decade-plus. Claudia Crespo, who is the promoter behind the series, is well beyond admirable for her dedication to the cause, and the events she has curated have highlighted some of the finest in heavy that the Eastern Seaboard has to offer, from groups like Geezer to Tarpit Boogie to Eternal Black and Shadow Witch and on and on. It’s awesome, to be blunt, and the next one is a special lineup along the lines alluded-to above, so yeah, it seemed well worth an extra plug to me.

I know this week is Thanksgiving and that people will be recovering this week from the holiday, but if you, like me, have found spiritual restoration in riff form, I’ve no doubt you’ll find it again Saturday night at Arlene’s with Heavy Temple, Fox 45, Nine Layers Deep and Sabba on a reasonably early bill.

Dig the info:

ode to doom nov 24 poster

Next up, an all female-fronted Ode to Doom, with #Sabba, Nine Layers Deep, Fox 45, and Heavy Temple @ Arlene’s Grocery!!! Save the date, November 24th!! Doors open at 6:30, show kicks off at 7!! Flyer by Ritual Design!

Sabba at 7
Nine Layers Deep at 8
Fox 45 at 9
Heavy Temple at 10

Claudia Crespo on Nov. 24 Ode to Doom:

I’ve been doing Ode for a little over two years now and this one coming up on the 24th has been marinating in my mind for some time now, really about a year. I find the growing number of women in the metal scene (particularly in the Doom Community) only getting larger, stronger, and more in your face (which is a great thing). With groups like The Doom Hag, it was only a matter a time when I felt a show like the one coming up was wanted or maybe even a little needed. I’m super proud and stoked to support that.

Ode to Doom Nov. 24 event page

Ode to Doom on Thee Facebooks

Tags: , , , , , , ,

The Obelisk Presents: Geezer, Eternal Black, Matte Black & River Cult at Arlene’s Grocery, NYC, 9/13

Posted in The Obelisk Presents on July 22nd, 2016 by JJ Koczan

geezer eternal black show poster

On Sept. 13, Arlene’s Grocery in Manhattan will host GeezerEternal BlackMatte Black and River Cult as the first edition of a new series of shows called Ode to Doom. When I think about the trajectory of shows in New York over the course of that sentence, the key word in my mind is “Manhattan.” As someone born and raised in Northern New Jersey, I spent a lot of time in dinged-out NYC clubs like The ContinentalC.B.G.B.’s, Lit LoungeAcme UndergroundMidwayBowery Electric and so on, and though the bulk of the underground scene has moved as a matter of generational shift and relative affordability to Brooklyn, to see Arlene’s Grocery starting this series reminds me of how heavy rock first began to flourish in New York. And that’s a good thing, and something I’m proud to have The Obelisk associated with in conjunction with Freebird Productions.

And you’ll note the immediate dedication to up and coming acts. Geezer‘s new album? Yeah, look out for that when it arrives. Eternal Black, meanwhile, have been tracking their own debut and from what I saw them bring to the stage at Maryland Doom Fest, that’ll be one to keep an eye on as well, while Matte Black issued their debut LP at the end of last year and River Cult set an encouraging tone with their first demo in 2015. Right away, Ode to Doom is digging deep into the heart of New York heavy, and that’s exactly the way it should be. Gonna be an awesome night and hopefully the launch of many more to come.

Says show organizer Claudia Crespo of Freebird Productions:

“With so many venues shutting down in NYC, I think collectively we feel those losses… I wanted to — for a long time now — produce a bi-monthly doom/sludge/desert/stoner metal night, and luckily for me, I have a venue in my corner willing to support me and the ideas i wanna do. It’s a little intimidating coming in and producing a show like this — because first of all, I’m new. Secondly, I don’t want other producer thinking I’m trying to step on their toes. A lot of them are my friends and i have a lot of respect for what they do. They do so much for the metal communities in NYC and have certainly paid their dues and know their shit. I just wanna add another platform specifically for this particular genre.

It really comes from a good place, from a place where I connect deeply with this music and just wanna get involved in it. If anything, i don’t wanna take away from anything or anyone. Actually it’s the opposite of that: I wanna do more and give more back. The September 13th show will be our very first one, and I hope people COME OUT AND SUPPORT !! This is my love note to DOOM, SLUDGE, DESERT AND STONER ROCK !!! an ODE to THE RIFFS !!”

Freebird Productions & The Obelisk Present: Geezer, Eternal Black, Matte Black & River Cult

Sept. 13 – 8PM – $8

Arlene’s Grocery
95 Stanton St.
Manhattan, NYC

Event page on Thee Facebooks

Tickets at Ticketfly

Arlene’s Grocery website

Tags: , , , , , , ,