I don’t even know what to say about Roadburn 2017 at this point, which means the annual pilgrimage must be getting close. There comes a moment every year where I just kind of have to throw my hands up, be in awe of the festival’s scope, and leave it at that. As Roadburn announces the lineup for its annual Hard Rock Hideout and who’ll be at the Cul de Sac venue over the subsequent four days — that Thursday lineup pretty much invites one to camp out there all day, but as ever, Roadburn will mean hard choices in terms of schedule — as well as art shows and other odds and ends for its bill, with more still to come, it’s safe to say we’ve hit that point. Hard to type with your hands thrown in the air, and yet here we are.

Most of the fest is sold out, which is about as surprising as a sunrise, but a few single-day tickets remain for those who want to get whatever piece of the action they can. Can’t say I’d blame you. I’ll be there. If you’re going, say hi. I’m the dude with the beard.

From the PR wire:

Cul-de-Sac line up, art exhibitions and more announced for Roadburn 2017

With weekend and Saturday day tickets already sold out for Roadburn 2017 and other day tickets not far behind, there are only a handful of acts and exhibitions still to announce. Following the below additions, there will be just one further announcement ahead of the festival.

CUL DE SAC & NEW ADDITIONS

In keeping with what has become Roadburn tradition, the festival’s fifth and most intimate stage returns to Cul de Sac. Once again, in collaboration with Never Mind The Hype (an independent Dutch music platform for everything heavy, alternative and deviant), we will focus on bringing you the most promising Dutch and Belgian bands, plus others from futher afield. Positioned just around the corner from the 013 venue, the intimate surroundings of the Cul de Sac mean you can get up close and personal with some of the most exciting bands the underground scene has to offer, squeezed in alongside some established acts too!

In 2017 the band that Roadburn is specifically choosing to showcase to our audience is Utrecht’s LASTER. The spotlight of Roadburn Introduces… this year will fall on this Dutch trio; to call them black metal doesn’t do justice to the complexity of each horrific layer of putridity they heap upon our senses. Don’t say you weren’t warned.

CUL DE SAC LINE UP
Thursday:
Ritual Object
Joy
Harsh Toke
Verwoed
Ortega
Bathsheba

Friday:
Ritual Object
Kuro
Zaum
Telepathy
Jonkoklapper

Saturday:
Laster
Bear
Hedonist
Lotus
Mantis
Slow Crush

Sunday:
Sink
Stone in Egypt
Faal
MNHM
Jaye Jayle
Turia

In addition to the full Cul de Sac programme, two more bands have been added to the main Roadburn programme.

Describing their addition to Roadburn 2017 as “a dream come true”, California’s ATALA will bring their hypnotic riffing to the festival ahead of the release of their new album, Labyrinth of Ashmedai, this Spring.

ANTROPOMORPHIA plan to let the murky brutality of their intricate yet straightforward-sounding death metal to do the trick when they welcome Roadburners to their own home town.

ART EXHIBITIONS

Another Roadburn tradition is a commitment to visual arts alongside musical offerings and 2017 is no different. A diverse selection of artists will exhibit at Roadburn Festival this year.

The Two Worlds of MARALD VAN HAASTEREN: Born in Leiden, The Netherlands in 1970, Marald is best known for his collaborative work with John Dyer Baizley on the images and packaging artwork of Baroness latest album, Purple. Being part of the DIY underground scene since the late 80’s, Marald has also been making art for the likes of High on Fire, Kylesa, and Bolt Thrower to name but a few. His distinctive blend of jaw-dropping craftmanship and delicate, compositional sensibility ranges from black and white ink works to full colour paintings, enhanced by digital media – though the basis for Marald’s stunning technical masterpieces, remains hand drawn imagery.

FURSY TEYSSIER – Exhibition of Drawings: Hailing from France, Fursy Teyssier is a visual artist and composer who has refined his talents over the years to entwine a strong artistic identity with mesmerizing aural creations. Teyssier’s band, Les Discrets, is the culmination of all his artistic endeavours, whether it’s his take on shoegaze, post-rock and, of course, black metal, or his work as an illustrator, painter, or animated film director. The band conveys his art, and in turn Teyssier’s artwork captures Les Discrets’ dream-like approach.

Got No Obvious Direction: A Visual Art Exhibition by GNOD: Established in 2007, psychedelic, anarcho, sonic pioneers GNOD celebrate their tenth anniversary as artist in residence at Roadburn 2017. In conjunction with their musical explorations, there will be outsider art on display at the 013 venue by various GNOD-bods.Since 2009, GNOD have based their operations from Salford’s premiere arts venue, Islington Mill. Being influenced by the static and transient artistic community the building has hosted, some pieces have been featured on the band’s early releases, as well as artwork used for their Tesla Tapes label.

ROLAND SCRIVER – Familiar Ink: Not content with levelling small buildings and causing tectonic shifts via the power of six deadly strings, erstwhile Serpent Venom guitarist Roland Scriver is also a visual wizard who works magickal art under the name Familiar Ink, art with an unexpected lightness – both of touch and imbued within the art itself. Come let the light in with Roland Scriver, AKA Familiar Ink, at Roadburn 2017!

HARD ROCK HIDE OUT

Whilst many Roadburners arrive in Tilburg on Thursday, the first official day of the festival, hundreds more arrive the day before. And to keep them out of trouble, or at least contain it, we’re thrilled to announce that The Hard Rock Hideout, Roadburn’s official pre-show party will return on the Wednesday evening at Cul de Sac.

Forging 80s inspired thrash metal, Holland’s own DISTILLATOR, black’n’roll veterans, HERETIC, and Californian riff masters ATALA – yes, them again – will crack one (or more) open and kick off the festival in style.

Artists already announced for Roadburn 2017 include Coven, Warning (playing Watching from a Distance in full), Artists in Residence – GNOD, My Dying Bride (performing Turn Loose The Swans in its entirety), Ulver, Hypnopaz?zu (David Tibet & Youth), Zeal & Ardor, Mysticum, Deafheaven, Chelsea Wolfe, and our 2017 curator, John Baizley who will perform with Baroness, plus many more. Roadburn Festival will take place 20-23 April, 2017 at the 013 venue, Tilburg, The Netherlands.

Tickets (and campsite tickets) are on sale for Roadburn 2017 and can be purchased from this link.

4 day – SOLD OUT
3 day (Thu, Fri, Sat) – SOLD OUT
Thursday only – 59 Euro
Friday only – 59 Euro
Saturday only – SOLD OUT
Sunday only – 54 Euro

http://www.roadburn.com/
https://www.facebook.com/roadburnfestival
https://twitter.com/roadburnfest

Atala, “Levity” official video

Belgian punishers Bathsheba will make their full-length debut on Svart Records Feb. 24 with the album Servus. The esteemed label also released their prior EP, The Sleepless Gods (one wonders if they’re the same gods Enslaved said were sleeping on an EP of their own), in 2015, and to prepare the ground for the LP’s arrival, Bathsheba have a new video for the track “Conjuration of Fire” that you can see below.

Admittedly, it’s not that new. Word of the clip came down the PR wire just before the holidays, fell through what were some rather considerable cracks on my end — if it wasn’t the Quarterly Review that week, I was pretty probably too busy cramming at work to not sleep on it — but February’s still a little ways out and I’d rather be late than never. So if this is old news to you, apologies. Most days I’m just trying to keep my head on straight.

From the PR wire:

BATHSHEBA reveal new video from SVART debut album, set release date

Blackened Belgian doom/sludge cult Bathsheba reveal a video for “Conjuration of Fire.” The track hails from the band’s highly anticipated debut album, Servus, set for international release on February 24th, 2017 via Svart Records. Directed by Joris Lieben and Michelle Nocon, view the video for Bathsheba’s “Conjuration of Fire” exclusively HERE.

From the depths of the black charcoal mountains rises Bathsheba. Fronted by she-devil Michelle Nocon (ex-Serpentcult, Leviathan Speaks, Death Penalty), carried by the punishing drums of Jelle Stevens (ex- SardoniS), massive vibrations from Raf Meukens (Death Penalty, Torturerama), and relentless riffs from Dwight Goossens (ex-Disinterred), Bathsheba create atmospheric, schizophrenic doom that carries the heaviness of filthy, blackened sludge. A heavily downtuned monster, it throws you into deep sadness and inner rage, straight into a grim cave – no meandering in an enchanted forest on the way to the deepest abyss.

Bathsheba self-released a demo tape in October 2014 and shortly after signed to Svart Records, who released a 10″ EP, The Sleepless Gods, in May 2015. Not long after, the band took to the stage at such festivals as Doom Over London, DesertFest, Incubate, Dutch Doom Days, and Doomed Gatherings.

The Sleepless Gods made quite a stand, but it is obvious that Bathsheba have gained more identity with their debut album, Servus. Servus translates the heaviness of life, a way to cope with the concrete walls of fact and matter against which we are relentlessly beaten. Servus is about struggle, sadness, constant threat, and distortion of the mind. With this album, Bathsheba drags you into the horror of existence under the crushing weight of reality. Servus is about losing yourself in the maelstrom of burden and then finding yourself again, facing the true ugliness of existence. It destructs the mind and shakes the soul. This schizophrenia is translated musically in a genre that takes on sludgy doom in a filthy, blackened way: no compromises. A sinister whisper to a howling she-devil moan…

Sometimes, the truth is too heavy to carry – gather around the witch and hail the oath of doom. Cover and tracklisting are as follows:

Tracklisting for Bathsheba’s Servus
1. Conjuration Of Fire
2. Ain Soph
3. Manifest
4. Demmon 13
5. The Sleepless Gods
6. I, At The End Of Everything

BATHSHEBA is:
Michelle Nocon – vocals
Dwight Goossens – guitars
Raf Meukens – bass
Jelle Stevens – drums

www.facebook.com/bathshebakills
www.svartrecords.com
www.facebook.com/svartrecords
www.youtube.com/svartrecords
www.twitter.com/svartrecords

Bathsheba, “Demon 13” official video

You know how I know Doomed Gatherings III has its shit together? Yeah, they’ve got Elder, Crowbar, Trouble, Monolord, Egypt, Ramesses, Mantar and so on confirmed to play over the course of the three-night event in Paris this May, and that’s super. Not arguing against any of that. But how you really know is that not only are Toner Low playing the thing, but they’re playing a set all three nights. That’s right: a Toner Low residency. I don’t know about you, but from where I sit there’s nothing about that concept that isn’t badass.

Details and ticket links follow for the big to-do, for which there are reportedly more band announcements to come. Makes sense, as May’s still a ways off. The following came down the PR wire:

Crowbar, Ramesses, Trouble and more confirmed to play third DOOMED GATHERINGS festival in Paris!

The third edition of France’s only doom, sludge and filth-oriented festival DOOMED GATHERINGS is taking up residence again at Glazart venue in Paris, for three days of crushing, highly grooving and undoubtedly smoke-filled performances. The lineup is now almost complete with a total of twenty-one bands, among which Crowbar, Ramesses, Trouble, Monolord and Elder. Let there be doom.

DOOMED GATHERINGS III
May 14-16th at Glazart – Paris, France
3-day pass (55€) and day tickets (25€) on sale HERE

The current lineup is as follows, with two more bands remaining to be announced. Hotel deals will come up soon along with next announcement.

DAY 1 ? Saturday 14th May ?
Ramesses (UK) ? Toner Low (NL) ? Mantar ? Egypt (USA) ? Demonic Death Judge (FIN) ? The Lumberjack Feedback (FR) ? NNRA ? Bathsheba (BE)

DAY 2 ? Sunday 15h May ?
Crowbar (USA) ? Trouble (USA) ? Toner Low (NL) ? Samothrace (USA) ? Hang The Bastard (UK) ? Throw Me in the Crater (NL) + 2 more bands TBA

DAY 3 ? Monday 16h May ?
Elder (USA) ? Monolord (SWE) ? Toner Low (NL) ? Electric Moon (DE) ? Chaos E.T. Sexual (FR) ? DDENT (FR) ? Carousel (USA)

Doomed Gatherings is the first festival in France for everything doom, sludge, filthy and psyched out. Taking place for the third year at Glazart in the 19th district of Paris, the festival is powered by national heavy promoters Stoned Gatherings and assembles a fine selection of international headliners and breakthrough acts, for the sheer love of Heavy.

Glazart is an indoor/outdoor club located in the north-east of Paris, near reknown architectural unit of La Villette, a venue that is easily reachable from the underground and tramway lines.

? Getting to Glazart ?
7-15 avenue de La Porte de la Villette, 75019 Paris
? Metro 7 (Porte de la Villette station)
or Tram 3b (Porte de la Villette station)

https://www.facebook.com/events/1717007591852526
https://www.weezevent.com/doomed-gatherings
https://www.facebook.com/doomed.gatherings
https://twitter.com/StonedGathering

The Body, Live at Doomed Gatherings 2014

It has been a pretty wild ride watching Desertfest Belgium 2015 take shape. From the first announcements through these — which are reportedly the final ones before the schedule of runtimes is put out on Friday — the festival has taken on bigger and bigger names, expanding well beyond the desert to grow into an entity of its own and a landmark for the fall season. The last adds are The Machine, newcomers Bathsheba, who intrigue on lineup alone, and Wucan, who I don’t know but who pretty much win the contest for genre descriptors based on what they’re quoted as being below. They join one of the least fuckwithable lineups in the multi-year, multi-city history of Desertfest.

Announcement came through like so:

We still owed you a couple of names to complete our line-up, and here they are: from The Netherlands we have THE MACHINE to provide their experimental heavy rock sound. From Germany we have WUCAN with their “Topsy-Turvy Higgledy-Piggledy Folk-Blues-Psych-Stoner-ProtoMetal-Soul”. And to round things off, there’s the Belgian BATHSHEBA, a super doom band of sorts involving members from Serpentcult, SardoniS and Death Penalty.

Later on this week we will announce the names of the turntable wizards (including a very special guest on Saturday!) that will rock the time inbetween the concerts & the afterparties.

We also know a lot of you are waiting for the time schedules so you can start plotting your trajectory. Well, the wait is almost over… on Friday we publish the schedules!

Bands already confirmed are:
Earth, Goatsnake, Orange Goblin, Bongzilla, Fatso Jetson, Dozer, Moon Duo, Greenleaf, Valient Thorr, Ufomammut, Stoned Jesus, Causa Sui, Siena Root, Monolord, Mars Red Sky, Glowsun, Papir, Carlton Melton, Monomyth, Child, Harsh Toke, Planet Of Zeus, Pendejo, Vandal X, USA Out Of Vietnam, Banda De La Muerte, Tangled Horns, Psychonaut, The Progerians, Crystal Head, The Heavy Crown, Wheel Of Smoke, Sunder, Fever Dog, Black-Bone and 3rd Ear Experience.

DESERTFEST BELGIUM 2015
October 9-11th at Trix Muziekcentrum – Antwerp
3 day tickets (96€) on sale HERE

More infos at www.desertfest.be

https://www.facebook.com/desertfestbelgium
https://twitter.com/desertfestBE
http://www.desertfest.be/

The Machine, “Coda Sun” official video