Belgian heavy rockers Fire Down Below give a catchy and uptempo showing in the first single from their third album, Low Desert Surf Club, keeping on-theme with the album’s title in the shove of “California.” The four-piece imported producers Nick DiSalvo (also of Elder, Weite, Delving, etc.) and Richard Behrens (too many to list as producer/engineer, but he was also in Heat and Samsara Blues Experiment) from Berlin to make the record, as they profess something of a stylistic re-grounding after 2018’s Hymn of the Cosmic Man (review here). “California” bears that out with a straight-ahead, down-the-highway shove and maybe a little bit of daydream escapism in the bridge later on.

I don’t know if any of the members of the band have been to CA or not and I don’t particularly care. Aside from the reality that desert rock can happen in places without a desert, as someone born and raised on the Eastern Seaboard of the US, the Golden State was a daydream for me too. Even that kid in The Wizard knew. “California…” Even then, the future was neurodivergent.

Album preorders and the song stream are below, as per the PR wire:

Belgian stoner rockers FIRE DOWN BELOW drop burning hot debut single off new album “Low Desert Surf Club”, out September 8th on Ripple Music!

Ghent-based stoner rock foursome FIRE DOWN BELOW announce the release of their third studio album “Low Desert Surf Club” through Ripple Music this September 8th, with preorders and a summer-ready first single available now!

About their new single, FIRE DOWN BELOW explain: “California is our take on a feel-good party song that would lift us from the everyday doom and gloom and remind us that good times were going to be back. Now that they are, we hope people will feel the vibes and go crazy with us when we play this song live. Party time!”

“Embracing the contradiction of a Belgian band making songs about the California desert, we pinned down the album title because it captures the general ‘summer vibes upbeat rock ‘n roll’ vibe,” says the band. Produced by Elder frontman Nick DiSalvo and recorded by renowned Berlin engineer Richard Berhens at Dunk! Studios at Zottegem in Belgium, third album “Low Desert Surf Club” is filled with nine fuzzed-out and sunbaked feel-good hits evocative of a road trip through the Californian desert, from the high-speed stoner madness of “Cocaine Hippo” or “Surf Queen” to the heavier and mind-altering vibe of “Hazy Snake” and “Hear Comes The Flood”. An instant stoner rock classic that should enthrall fans of Fu Manchu, Kyuss and 1000mods!

“Written when people were confined to their houses, live music was banned and putting four guys together in a room to jam was borderline illegal, we made the decision not to lament and wee, but instead make an album full of positive vibes and hope for better days to return soon. So we started writing songs that made us feel like we were driving through wide-open deserts, exploring new lands or partying at the beach all day and all night long. After exploring outer space on our second album Hymn of the Cosmic Man, this album feels closer to the vibes on our debut Viper Vixen Goddess Saint,” the band adds.

FIRE DOWN BELOW “Low Desert Surf Club”
Out September 8th on Ripple Music

US preorder – https://ripplemusic.bigcartel.com/product/fire-down-below-low-desert-surf-club-digipack-cd
Bandcamp – https://ripplemusic.bandcamp.com/album/low-desert-surf-club

Formed in Ghent (Belgium) in 2015, Fire Down Below first stepped into the spotlight with their self-released debut album Viper Vixen Goddess Saint in 2016. The album quickly garnered international praise and caught the attention of California-based label Ripple Music, home of some of the finest bands in the world of stoner, doom and heavy rock. Ripple Music re-released VVGS worldwide and released its sophomore album Hymn of the Cosmic Man in 2018. The second album again received excellent critique and Fire Down Below played over 30 shows throughout Europe in the next year.

Album three, Low Desert Surf Club, was recorded in late 2022. The band sought and found a producer in Nick DiSalvo, famed frontman of the bands Elder and Delving. Richard Behrens (Samsara Blues Experiment, Big Snuff Studio Berlin) was added to the team to record and mix the nine tracks on the album. Low Desert Surf Club will be released on 8 September 2023. With the new album, Fire Down Below is once again ready to rock any stage.

Fire Down Below has become known for energetic live shows, with sweat often dripping from the walls by the time they quit the stage. They have shared line ups with bands like Fu Manchu, Sleep, Monster Magnet, Acid King, Naxatras and Stoned Jesus and appeared on festival such as Desertfest Antwerp (BE), Desertfest London (UK), Desertfest Ghent (BE), Alcatraz Hard Rock and Metal Festival (BE), Ripplefest Cologne (GER) and Westill Fest (FR).

FIRE DOWN BELOW is:
Kevin Gernaey – lead guitar
Sam Nuytens – drums
Jeroen Van Troyen – vocals, guitar
Bert Wynsberghe – bass

https://www.facebook.com/firedownbelow/
https://firedownbelow.bandcamp.com/
https://www.instagram.com/firedownbelowband/
https://twitter.com/Fire_Down_Below

https://www.facebook.com/theripplemusic/
https://www.instagram.com/ripplemusic/
https://ripplemusic.bandcamp.com/
http://www.ripple-music.com/

Fire Down Below, Low Desert Surf Club (2023)

Quickie lineup update from Desertfest Belgium 2023 for Antwerp. Having previously confirmed the likes of Yawning Man, Shellac, The Ocean, Monkey3 — whose 39 Laps is about to be reissued on Sound of Liberation Records — Dopelord and King Buffalo, Ruff Majik, Siena Root, on and on, the venerable Belgian installation of the Desertfest brand has put forth word that North Carolinian original-era sludge chaosbringers Sourvein won’t be making the trip after all, but that New Orleans mainstays Eyehategod will, alongside The Obsessed, The Great Machine, ultra-crushers LLNN, as well as Moonstone and Apex Ten, the latter of whom are Belgian natives. Their Aashray (review here) album was released last month.

A little context here offers potentially crucial information. What the below announcement doesn’t say is how on-fire The Obsessed are right now or that they’re headed into a new album release this Fall — release date still forthcoming, but I’m pretty sure Wino said on stage at Freak Valley that the album is called It’s Not Okay — or the extent to which Israeli trio The Great Machine tear it up on (or potentially off) stage, which is something else I was lucky enough to find out for myself in Netphen. Knowing that, they become more than just another name on a bill or another act who put out a cool record this year, and if you haven’t seen them and are headed to Desertfest, they are indeed a sight to see. All the more because the tones and sings are so right on.

Here’s what the fest had to say:

We’re thrilled to add a couple of new names to our Desertfest congregation. Joining our bill for the best fest of the year are:

EYEHATEGOD – The Obsessed – The Great Machine – LLNN – Moonstone – Apex Ten

Unfortunately SOURVEIN won’t make it to the fest this year due to a contingency.

Get your pass to Desert Heaven with a Reduced Three Days Combi Ticket or a Day Ticket at our Ticket Page!

https://www.desertfest.be/antwerp/information/ticketing/

Event page: https://www.facebook.com/events/1634817843606240/

And keep an eye on this very spot for the last couple of band names that still need to be dropped…

Rock out as you rock on! (#129304#)

http://www.desertfest.be/
https://www.facebook.com/desertfestbelgium/
https://www.instagram.com/desertfest_belgium/

The Great Machine, Live at Freak Valley Festival 2023

https://www.youtube.com/live/L23ANlQENJ0?feature=share

[Click play above to stream ‘Awakening’ by Apex Ten. Their new album, Aashray, is out Friday and available to order from Bandcamp.]

The higher-pitched-but-not-abrasive feedback/effects noise lures the listener into the beginning of “Awakening,” departing when the guitar, bass and drums enter. A sense of space and a ‘setting-out’ vibe are almost immediate on Aashray, Apex Ten‘s debut album — that’s counting 2021’s First Session as a full-length demo; stay with me I’ll get there — as the Liège, Belgium, trio of bassist/vocalist Brad Masaya (also synth, theremin, guitar, tambourine), guitarist Benoît Velez (also theremin, lap steel, chime, tambourine) and drummer/percussionist Alexis Radelet (also güiro, tambourine) begin to dig into the seven-track/41-minute procession. An intention toward audience hypnosis is made clear by the bassline and the contemplative, earlier My Sleeping Karma-style rolling exploration that surrounds it, though the additional crunch in the fuzz that emerges late is harder-landing.

Quick in contrast, the subsequent “Unlock” feels based around the movement of the drums, a steady kick pushing the four-minute track through its winding cosmic course, the bass doing well to keep up with tonal warmth beneath the airier guitar. Vocals arrive after three minutes in, not like an afterthought, but obviously not the priority either, and the effect would be jarring had the band not been so outright immersive already in their heavy psych meditation. But the vocal melody — echoing, not so unlike Elder, but not just that either — is a distinguishing feature and one almost expects a verse to turnaround quickly in “Dazed,” which it doesn’t, as Apex Ten show both patience and a willingness to dive into texture and atmosphere more than separate jams and more structured ‘songs.’ It’s to be vibe, then. Fortunately, they make it thick, rounding their way into a low-end fuzz wash in the second half of “Dazed,” not losing themselves in it even as they seem to completely submerge as Masaya and Radelet hold to the core progression under the canopy of effects.

That march cuts and gives over to the drone and Tibetan bowl (contributed by Thomas Mouton) at the outset of “Naga,” the centerpiece of the tracklisting and a presumed side A closer on some future vinyl edition. If the percussion, bowl, synth, guitar and bass jam isn’t improvised, it sounds it, with the drums on the room mics deeper in the mix a solidifying presence as the inward delve continues. At about four minutes into the 6:50, the drums begin to lead more of a march with the hi-hat and toms keeping pace as the guitar noodles out over the established drone, a kind of ethereal blues taking hold that departs with a decisive strike of the crash and leaves one more swell of the bowl behind before ending. Low fuzz begins “Deaf Snake” with a more straightforward nod punctuated by the drums as side B unfolds, the core of the piece dirtier, riffier, trading back and forth in volume and impact, raucous, then receding.

But even “Deaf Snake” argues in favor of Aashray as being Apex Ten‘s first album, with a fullness of sound in its heavier parts that First Session was too raw to dig into. Wouldn’t be the first time in history a band figured out something about their sound between their debut and sophomore LPs — that’s an expected part of the process for most acts — but a ‘session’ is something different than making an album even if Aashray was recorded in a single day on Dec. 30, 2021, with production by Simon Lambert (who also adds Moog, chime and effects along with mixing and mastering) and Laurent Eyen at Koko Studio. “Deaf Snake,” which is as riff-led as Apex Ten get here, is more engrossing as it pushes into its final payoff, and that’s a distinguishing factor to coincide with all the atmospheric jamming and apparent improvisation or at least semi-planned parts.

The penultimate “Brahma” is the shortest of the cuts at 3:27 and finds the vocals returning — the lyrics: something about monsters waiting outside switching faces, something about drowning in space — after a pointed solo and headed into a heavy psych roll that reminds of Sungrazer playing off Colour Haze influence, but it comes apart quickly and gives over to silence ahead of 10-minute closer “Godavari.” The finale takes its name from a river in India, and while I don’t know if Apex Ten are travelers or just daydreaming, the first two minutes echo “Awakening” in their drone, but the spirit is warmer and more subdued as the guitar enters sweet and with still-developing patience the song begins to unfold, drums feeling their way in along with the rhythm in the initial buildup. They get where they’re going before four minutes in, moving perhaps a little faster than the song wants to go, but not egregiously so as they weave through a kind of riff-henge, working around heavy riffing with wah laced after a quick inhale circa six minutes, the bassline at the core of the piece almost in its own world, righteously.

“Godavari” emphasizes and finds its crux in the jam, but there’s linearity as well as they rear back before pushing into the harder fuzz that is the last crescendo, the guitar departing for a solo as the drums and bass keep the plot moving forward. If they were all playing at the same time in the studio, I don’t know who was giving the head signal — maybe Masaya — to bring it down, but they meet back up at the end and draw Aashray‘s last stretch to a relatively quick stop; a cymbal wash and some residual amplifier hum, a swell of synth the last element to go. There’s symmetry of purpose to the finish as well as to the start — Apex Ten sound aware of the genre in which they reside, and that’s to their benefit here — but the personality of the band is found more in the journey than either endpoint, whether that’s the limited use of vocals that seems to be reserving that spot for later development or the extrapolation from a classic power trio dynamic that allows the guitar to meander while the rhythm section moves forward and awaits its eventual return.

None of this will be strange to those with experience in mellow, meditative or progressive-tinged heavy psych, but Apex Ten demonstrate fluidity throughout Aashray — the word translated from Hindi as ‘shelter’ or ‘refuge’ — and the album lives up to the name it’s been given in creating a three-dimensional aural sphere to inhabit, like a biodome of fuzz, world-building. As to what or whom the band will become over time, given the jump in complexity between First Session and Aashray, it seems silly to speculate, but there’s room for them to continue to explore their meld of structure and spontaneous seeking, and in listening, one hopes the next time they decide to spend a day in the studio the results are as rich and engaging as they are here. And if you want to call it their second record, fine. It still feels like they’re just getting started.

Apex Ten on Facebook

Apex Ten on Instagram

Apex Ten on Bandcamp

If you want to take a look at what Euro tastemakers think is the shape of things to come in heavy rock, it’s young. And as someone in my 40s, I enjoy how much Mojo and the Kitchen Brothers aren’t. The Belgian five-piece — who’ve been confirmed as well to appear at Down the Hill this August (info here) — self-issued their funky debut album, Mojo’s Heavy Cream, on April 7 and even before the post-release dust has settled, the full-length and their 2022 EP, Flaming Tiger Lizard, have been snagged by Lay Bare Recordings for wider distribution. Think Slomosa signing to Stickman. Lucid Void with Sound of Liberation‘s label wing. Mojo and the Kitchen Brothers on Lay Bare seems to me to be coming from a similar place. It’s a pointed endorsement of the next generation of European heavy from parties who not only will help shape these bands, but who’ve helped make the heavy underground (in Europe and beyond) what it is today.

And in addition to being wonderful news that will perpetuate the subculture blah blah blah, the music’s cool and I hadn’t heard it yet, so vibing to the 12-minute psych meander of “I’ve Been a Fool” after the funkified “For the Greater Good.” I’m gonna keep digging into the rest of the album, because it’s sitting right, and if you’d like to do the same, the playlist is down at the bottom of the post. I couldn’t find a Bandcamp for them, which is kind of interesting.

Lay Bare posted the following to socials:

!!! NEW BAND SIGNING !!! *** MOJO & the Kitchen Brothers***

A 5-headed omnium gatherum of eclectically inspired music freaks from Belgium who mixes the finest late 60s, early 70s heavy psych and prog rock –

We are really excited to announce that Mojo & the Kitchen Brothers have signed to @laybarerecordings for their upcoming debut ep ‘Flaming Tiger Lizard’ and their full length album ‘Mojo’s Heavy Cream’ !

M&TKB: “Super proud and honored to be on board as a member of the Lay Bare family. Can’t wait to have our music on those shiny pieces of wax!”

PRESALE info on both albums will follow soon.

BIOGRAPHY

Mojo and the Kitchen Brothers. A 5-headed omnium gatherum of eclectically inspired music freaks from Belgium cooking up a late 60’s early 70’s minded mix of heavy progrock soaked in psychedelia. The smells emanating from our kitchen recall bands like Black Sabbath, Wishbone Ash and Pink Floyd. However, M&TKB is more than a nostalgia trip. Firmly tuned into the spring of our contemporary psych rockers, Mojo & the Kitchen Brothers’ catchy tunes, proggy riffs, deafening drums, roaring basslines and spacy, triple-guitar jams take the listener on a Janus-faced journey through the limbo between past and present.

@mojoandthekitchenbrothers are:
Warre Brits, Drum – Lead Vocals
Jon Geboers, Gitaar
Mathijs van Meensel, Bas
Luca Fazioli, Gitaar – Backing Vocals
Jules Meyvis, Gitaar

https://www.facebook.com/MojoAndTheKitchenBrothers
https://instagram.com/mojoandthekitchenbrothers
https://linktr.ee/mojoandthekitchenbrothers

https://laybarerecordings.com/
https://www.facebook.com/laybarerecordings/
https://www.instagram.com/laybarerecordings/
https://laybarerecordings.bandcamp.com/

Mojo and the Kitchen Brothers, Mojo’s Heavy Cream (2023)

Belgian melodic heavy noise rockers My Diligence will release their fourth album next year as their first offering through Listenable Records. The signing announcement — and in an indictment of my diligence, this news is a couple weeks old — came through posted by the Brussels trio, who in addition to Century Festival and others in their home country have been confirmed for a spot in June at Hellfest in France with more sure to follow, and who were heard from last year with their ripper of third record, The Matter, Form and Power (review here). They played Desertfest Belgium last Fall to support that LP, which was issued like the two before it through Mottow Soundz.

They’ve been doing shows steadily since The Matter, Form and Power came out in June, and it will be interesting to see if they hit the road even more with Listenable behind them, but as of now and like a lot of Belgian acts, they remain something of a well-kept secret, despite the loud-at-any-volume sensibility imbued into their work. I could go on here, but the bottom line is congrats to the band and best wishes on the upcoming dates and making the next record. I’ll look forward to (hopefully) hearing how it comes out when the time is right.

Their post and shows for the next few months follow here, snagged from socials:

We have some exciting news to share: we have joined the esteemed talent at Listenable Records. We look forward to making great sounds together – starting with a new album to be released in spring 2024.

We would like to express our thanks and deep appreciation for the nurturing and support Mathias Widtskiöld at Mottow Soundz has shown us over the past decade. We made 3 great albums together, each of which we are extremely proud.

We owe Jean-Michel Labadie of Gojira a HUGE THANKS for connecting us with Laurent Merle and Listenable Records. We are grateful for your mentoring.

Last but not least a shout out to Christophe Dillen aka Denis Daniel our manager whose steady hand ensures we never lose our sense of humour and love for the music.

MY DILIGENCE live:
29.04.23 MOUSCRON (BE) – CENTURY FESTIVAL
06.05.23 IZEGEM (BE) – Headbanger’s Balls Fest
13.05.23 DURBUY (BE) – Durbuy Rock Festival
21.05.23 BÉTHUNE (FR) – Le Poche Béthune
16.06.23 CLISSON (FR) – Hellfest Open Air Festival
08.07.23 TOURNAI (BE) – La Crypte
15.07.23 NOISEUX (BE) – NoiZ’Rock
13.08.23 KORTRIJK (BE) – ALCATRAZ MUSIC

MY DILIGENCE:
Cédric Fontaine – Guitars, Vocals
François Peeters – Guitars
Gabriel Marlier – Drums

http://www.facebook.com/mydiligence
https://www.instagram.com/mydiligence/
https://twitter.com/mydiligence
https://vi.be/mydiligence
https://mydiligence.bandcamp.com/

http://www.facebook.com/listenablerecs
https://www.instagram.com/listenable_records/
https://listenable-records.bandcamp.com/
http://www.listenable.net

My Diligence, The Matter, Form and Power (2022)

What a record. Formed in 1995, Belgian heavy psychedelic progressive rockers Hypnos 69 were at the vanguard of a revivalist sound, but by the time they got around to releasing their fourth album, The Eclectic Measure, in 2006 through Elektrohasch Schallplatten, their depth of arrangement, complexity of songcraft and melodic grace were their own. Running a sprawl across 10 songs and 48 minutes, the band — brothers Steve Houtmeyers (vocals, guitar, synth, theremin) and Dave Houtmeyers (drums, synth, percussion, glockenspiel, timpani), as well as bassist Tom Vanlaer (also synth, Hammond, Rhodes piano) and secret-weapon multi-instrumentalist Steven Marx (tenor and baritone sax, Mellotron, clarinet, Rhodes, Hammond, seemingly whatever else a given part called for) — surpassed even the scope of 2004’s The Intrigue of Perception (discussed here) and captured a warm-toned organic vibe that made each detail precious.

The interplay of acoustic strum and glockenspiel before the Mellotron leads the build in “Forgotten Souls,” that humble sweep there, or the lush but unassuming way in which “I and You and Me (II)” builds off the album’s intro “I and You and Me (I)” with a quiet flow, folkish vocal delivery, down-home electric guitar solo just past halfway into its 6:25 and subsequent sax-blast crescendo, or even the subdued melodic exploration in the sub-two-minute instrumental “My Ambiguity of Reality,” the hand-drums and blips behind the guitar and Vanlaer‘s Moog in “Halfway to the Stars.” Each piece on The Eclectic Measure was and is a showcase of progressive intent, but it’s the totality — the front-to-back experience — through which they made their declaration, whether that’s the title-track bursting to life out of the ending to “I and You and Me (I)” and giving an initial hook to ground the proceedings that seem to lift off the ground so casually, or the soft comedown of closer “Deus Ex Machina” (which does have a subdued payoff in Mellotron and timpani to finish) after the landmark culmination offered in the penultimate “The Point of No Return,” the initial weeping guitar lead of which signals the righteousness to come as it moves past its verses into what, in my mind at least, is a career-defining arc.

Life affords very few moments of absolute perfection, and even fewer of those ever end up on records, but “The Point of No Return” is one of them. There’s the soft, almost sneaking around of the verse and the snap of snare before two minutes in as it shifts into a classic prog boogie — answering both the fuzz shuffle of the earlier “The Antagonist” and the jazzy runs and King Crimson‘ed distorted verse of “Ominous (But Fooled Before)” immediately preceding — before dropping to organ, bass and meandering-seeming electric guitar as the start of a build through an increasingly-adrenaline-fueled-but-still-controlled vibrant rush, the crash cymbal becoming propulsive past the four-minute mark as the song, which is the longest on The Eclectic Measure at 7:42, feels more and more like it’s about to live up to its title. In the spirit of Opeth‘s “Closure” as played on the 2003 Lamentations live video/album, the tension becomes maddening, except that Hypnos 69, instead of ending there push even further, turning at 5:28 to a series of hit-stops and Iberian-ish acoustic guitar in call and response, the weeping lead line coming back beautifully before minute six to underscore the thoughtfulness, plot and understated majesty of the entire arrangement. That they then return to the verse, contradicting the title, does nothing to diminish the spirit of how far out they’ve gone, instead reinforcing it with a rare sense of wholeness; a total, album-style flight compacted into one song. One complete, perfect moment.

The Eclectic Measure was produced by Hypnos 69 and Jean-Pierre Kerckhofs at Artsound Studio in Houthalen. Kerckhofs had also recorded The Intrigue of Perception and the band’s concurrent split with Colour Haze, but The Eclectic Measure remains a lesson in the power of attention to detail, be it in “The Point of No Return,” the ’60s psych-folk sunshine of the keys in “Halfway to the Stars” or the way the percussion in “Forgotten Souls” seems to foreshadow the ending of the album in “Deus Ex Machina.” Among the many strengths of the record is the fact that, in listening, one can immerse completely in these nuances and intricacies spread throughout the tracks like the treasures they are, or not. Especially if you’re new to the band or you don’t know this record, etc., you can put on “I and You and Me (I)” and trust that the material will carry you through, because yes, it will. And that’s true of “The Point of No Return” in itself, as well as “Deus Ex Machina” and “The Eclectic Measure” and “My Ambiguity of Reality,” taken as an entirety or as individual pieces.

Another thing about The Eclectic Measure? It can’t even be called the band’s crowning achievement. Four years later, in 2010, Hypnos 69 offered their to-date swansong, aptly-titled Legacy (review here), and dove even further into the reaches of progressive psychedelic rock, demonstrating again their distinctive approach that could be so encompassing and still cohesive, purposeful and expressive, with a scope even beyond the 2006 LP. It was an album that genuinely seemed like they put everything they had into it, and fitting, if sad, that they didn’t do another after it.

That’s not to say it couldn’t still happen. Following years of quiet and Dave Houtmeyers and Tom Vanlaer putting out two records with Hidden Trails, Hypnos 69 reunited in 2022 to play the 25th anniversary of Orange Factory in Belgium, and they opened that set with a new song called “And the Spirit Spoke.” They’ve been confirmed for Freak Valley 2023 in Germany this June and Down the Hill 2023 in Belgium this August, so while I don’t want to jinx it, the possibility of their keeping the reunion going and building toward a new release exists. However and whenever such a thing arrived, it would be welcome.

I could go on here, tell you about living with this album when it came out and the surprise it presented even after The Intrigue of Perception and 2002’s Timeline Traveller, or about how my first CD copy didn’t have a front cover and it would be more than a decade before I finally saw the Malleus cover art in person, or just how unrealistically stoked I am to say I’ll see Hypnos 69 at Freak Valley, on and on, but you get the idea, I’m sure. A band worth appreciating, with more than one masterpiece under their collective belt, who creep up on 30 years since their inception with a future that is unknowable in its potential.

As always, I hope you enjoy. Thanks for reading.

—

Went to sleep last night at 9PM. We had a kind of surprise-for-us party to celebrate my sister killing it as a realtor last night and so I was up what I consider late, though not much more so than the night before. I woke up at 3:15AM, which was an improvement over yesterday’s 2:30. I’m not even sure it matters anymore. The kid came downstairs at 5:05. I didn’t even have time to finish the above and send the three or four emails that have been hounding the back of my brain for the last week.

Tomorrow night, Church of the Cosmic Skull play NYC for the first time. I’m taking The Patient Mrs., because that’s something she should see, but the kicker is we’ll go after already making the trip during the day to Connecticut and back, decorating eggs because Easter, and kid, and so on. Show will be good, fatigue will suck, and New York feels pretty unpleasant to me at this point in my life, but sometimes you have to go. This is one of those occasions. I have an Iron Jinn premiere Monday, but if I can review the show at the show, I’ll post that as well with probably a few disappointing pictures.

That’s part of a busy weekend at end of a busy week. Not sure that matters either.

5PM Eastern is a new Obelisk Show on Gimme Metal. Playlist should be posted by the time this is — if not, maybe I just forgot because today is a 12-post day and that’s just stupid — but it’s a cool one either way, some old and new mixed together.

The rest of next week is full. Ditto week after and week after that. Time.

I’ve been punched and kicked and scratched this morning. I said rules exist. Yesterday while cleaning the house for four hours the popcorn maker fell on my face and I have a black eye. I just tried to stop the shower head from leaking and accidentally popped it off, spraying water all over the bathroom. No one will deliver weed, and even if they did, I’m fucking broke. So fuck everything. Today. Yesterday. Tomorrow. I feel like I’m about to have a fucking aneurysm and if we’re being honest with each other, if I did, it would be a favor to myself and those around me.

Great and safe weekend. Don’t forget to hydrate.

FRM.

The Obelisk Collective on Facebook

The Obelisk Radio

The Obelisk merch

Obviously the focus here is on the lineup and that’s exactly how it should be, but I’d also like to point out that Belgian festival Down the Hill 2023 will also boast among its amenities an ‘ice cream barn,’ and that’s some wonderfully wholesome accompaniment for a weekend’s worth of heavy and psychedelic — and heavy psychedelic! — vibing. The final four adds to the lineup are Earthless, who, duh, headline, as well as Radar Men From the Moon, Condor Gruppe and Kameel, and they continue to flesh out the reach and range of the Down the Hill, which is set for this August 25-26 in Rillaar and admits only 600 people to keep an intimate setting.

So, keep that in mind as you peruse the bill and see the likes of Mars Red Sky, the reborn live lineup of Sula Bassana, Kanaan, Dorre, Fire Down Below and a slew of others from within and without Belgium. I’ve never been, but this seems like a really cool, dug-in kind of couple days, and if you get to go, well, I’d love to hear about it at some point. You know I daydream on this stuff.

From social media:

DOWN THE HILL 2023

On August 25 & 26 the Down The Hill Festival will arise again from the lush green hillsides in Rillaar, Belgium!

FB event: https://fb.me/e/2gesw0AuJ

Already known for the small & cosy set-up
(limited to 600 tickets) on a gorgeous piece of farm style land and its magical charm.
This 2-day outdoor festival shows some of the finest heavy psychedelic underground rock bands from around the world, on a wooden stage!

GET READY FOR THIS!

*EARTHLESS (usa)
*MARS RED SKY (fr)
*SULA BASSANA (ger)
*RADAR MEN FROM THE MOON (nl)
*HYPNOS 69 (be)
*CONDOR GRUPPE (be)
*KANAAN (nor)
*GNOME (be)
*FIRE DOWN BELOW (be)
*KAMEEL (be)
*DORRE (be)
*GRANDMA’S ASHES (fr)
*MOJO AND THE KITCHEN BROTHERS (be)
*DÔME
*BEAR BONES, LAY LOW
*DR. SPACE
*VITJA PAUWELS (be)
*DRIES GEUSENS (be)
*JONAS MEERSMANS (be)
*KOONDA HOLAA
*FRANKIE TRAANDRUPPEL
*JEF MERTENS
*FLOATING BODIES
*VENEDIKTOS TEMPELBOOM
*SLOW BEAR
*ETHERIK & AMBI-J

*DJ’S:
COSMIC MASSEUR (be)
COCONAUT (nl)
7” OF RIFFS by MOOS (be)

*AFTERPARTIES
*BAND MERCH area
*SPACE FUZZ RECORDS store
*FESTIVAL MERCH stand will also be available on the DTH website

*BAR
*FOOD TRUCKS meat, veggie and vegan
*BREAKFAST & ICECREAM BARN powered by ‘t Nijswolkje

*FIRE/LIGHT INSTALLATIONS
*ART DECO

SAFE TRAVELS & WELCOME!

LET’S GO DOWN THE HILL!

https://www.facebook.com/DownTheHillFestival/
http://www.downthehill.be/

Down the Hill 2023 playlist

First of all, you should note that this is not an album called ‘Ashtray’ by Aphex Twin. The Hindi word ‘aashray’ translates (according to major tech company’s linguistic matrix) as ‘shelter’ or ‘refuge’; Aashray is also the name of an NGO in India that helps homeless kids, if you’re looking for someone else to give money to besides this band. And the band, by the way, are called Apex Ten and they come from Liège, Belgium. Not exactly downtown Mumbai, but fair enough use for the organic vibe they’re capturing in their instrumental sound, improv at the foundation of what they do — even if the end result on the seven songs of the record can be more aligned to structure and more actively shoving than one might think looking at the cover or digging into the info below.

The text emphasizes the jams, which is fine. There’s plenty of that, as one might hear in the 10-minute closer “Godvari” or the earlier “Naga,” but you also get the heavy post-rocker “Unlock” or the build-and-release of tension in the penultimate “Brahama,” as the band take it upon themselves to — wait for it — actually do more than one thing in terms of their approach. I know. It’s scary stuff. There’s no audio yet from Aashray, but it’s a fascinating blend of spaciousness and songcraft. I’m looking forward to getting to know it better, but an ability and will to change it up is almost never a detriment more generally. Plus they’ve got theremin, so that’s a win.

Note Aashray was tracked in 2021. I wonder when or if we’ll get all the way back to relative record-then-release concurrency. Or maybe time just melted this decade and that’s what happened.

Either way, one proceeds:

Belgium’s Instrumental Psych and Stoner rock trio APEX TEN release their album Aashray May 5th, 2023

APEX TEN is a Psych/Space/Stoner Rock Instrumental power trio formed in 2021 in Liège by Alexis Radelet (Drums), Brad Masaya (Bass) and Benoît Velez (Guitar). The group also uses instruments such as a Lapsteel, a Synth, a Theremin,… Their productions and performances are centered on improvisation, offering an ephemeral and unique side. Their style is recognizable by the hovering, psychedelic side and is reinforced by layers of synth and/or theremin. The powerful and hypnotic strike of the drummer is accentuated by the bass playing and the well-marked “fuzz” spirit of the guitarist. Everything gradually accompanies us in a “sound trip” specific to the group.

This album was recorded in Sprimont (Belgium) at the Koko studio in December 2021 by Simon Lambert and Laurent Eyen. It was again mixed and mastered by Simon Lambert who had also mixed First session and Fourth Passenger.

Aashray is essentially composed of jams/improvisations. You will also be able to hear Hindu sounds, hence its name. With this album, Apex Ten offers a more space rock, psychedelic style than their first album: “First Session”. There are also more accomplished jams and the cohesion between the three musicians is greatly strengthened.

Since October 2021, the band has been recording and releasing a DIY-recorded debut album “1st Session” with the help of their sound engineer and producer Simon Lambert. These songs have been well received. “1st session” has quickly reached 10,000 plays on Youtube. In February 2022, the group released a first single titled “The Fourth Passenger” in February, receiving a warm welcome from Belgian radio. A live album, “Chaim Trails Live”, recorded at the MPC Apache in Fontaine l’Evêque, was released on April 20, 2022.

Aashray track list:
1. Awakening
2. Unlock
3. Dazed
4. Naga
5. Deaf Snake
6. Brahma
7. Godavari

APEX TEN is:
Alexis Radelet (Drums)
Brad Masaya (Bass-Synth-Theremin-Cithare-Voices)
Benoît Velez (Guitar-Theremin)

https://www.facebook.com/apextenband
https://www.instagram.com/apex_ten_musicband/
https://apexten.bandcamp.com/

Apex Ten, “The Fourth Passenger”