Few things in life are better than spending a full day at a fest with a killer lineup, and so I’m happy as hell to have The Obelisk stand among the presenters for the inaugural Heavy Mash on Sept. 23 in Arlington, Texas. The all-dayer-type event features 10 bands from all around Arlington and Fort Worth, as well as one from Monroe and one from — because, hey, why not? — Adelaide, Australia, but a good swath of Lone Star heavy is represented, and anytime you get Wo Fat on board to headline, you know choice-cut groove will be had. The Dallas trio don’t do it any other way.

Heavy Mash will be held at Division Brewing, so one imagines all the more of a party atmosphere as the day plays out amid fine beers and good times from band to band, and with the likes of jam-psych duo Stone Machine Electric, classic style stoner rockers Boudain, and more aggressive groove-rollers like Cursus on the bill — not to mention the swaggering two-piece Filthy Lucre, who will make that journey across the Pacific to get there — it’s a sonically diverse lineup to which I’m proud to have this site’s name attached. I don’t think I’ll get to Arlington for it, because money, and money, and money, but if you’re either in the area or can make the trip, doing so seems like a total no-brainer. Hopefully it’ll be recorded one way or another, video and/or audio.

You already saw the awesomeness of the poster above, the Thee Facebooks event page is here, but here’s the full lineup and more info:

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Heavy Mash 2017 featuring Wo Fat and more!

Arlington, TX Heavy Music Festival – Sept. 23, 2017

Division Brewing
506 E Main St, Arlington, Texas 76010

In conjunction with Division Brewing in Arlington, TX, we are pleased to announce this small fest sponsored by Division Brewing, The Obelisk, Off the Record Label, and Fistful of Doom Radio! It will be held at Division Brewing in Arlington, TX on September 23rd from 2pm to midnight. Below is our full line-up, starting with the headlining act:

Wo Fat – the veteran swampadelic trio from Dallas, TX
Filthy Lucre – desert blues from Adelaide, South Australia
Stone Machine Electric – weird doom-jazz duo from Fort Worth, TX
Cursus – psychedelic sludge from San Antonio, TX
Orcanaut – heavy/progressive shit from Denton, TX
Boudain – stoner-groove four-piece from Monroe, LA
FTW – heavy blues trio from Fort Worth, TX
The Dirty Seeds – face melting stoner rock from Houston, TX
Black on High – three true thugs from Fort Worth, TX
Justinian – stoner metal from Arlington, TX

Wo Fat, Live at Maryland Doom Fest 2017

Heavy Mash 2017 event page on Thee Facebooks

Heavy Mash on Thee Facebooks

Division Brewing website

At any given second, there is nothing about the new streaming Cursus track that doesn’t seem to want to be as heavy as it can possibly be. One can hear the Neurosis influence noted by the PR wire in “Waters of Wrath,” which is the first audio to come from the San Antonio, Texas, two-piece’s self-titled debut, but less so the likes of Om or YOB, at least as regards an immediate ritualistic or cosmic impression — though after listening to the band’s 2013 Summer Solstice Sessions demo (available name-your-price at their Bandcamp) neither would I count on “Waters of Wrath” to speak for the entirety of the album.

An April 28 release has been set through Artificial Head Records, the label helmed by Funeral Horse guitarist/vocalist Walter Carlos, and I’ll be interested to find out what it has in store to go with the forceful churn Cursus showcase initially. For now, they certainly seem to know how to make a first impression.

Cover art and album details follow:

CURSUS: Texan doom-duo crush worlds on colossal debut | Listen to new song ‘Waters of Wrath’

Cursus will be released on vinyl/digital on 28th April 2017 via Artificial Head Records

Artificial Head Records is pleased to announce the signing of psychedelic sludge band Cursus and with it the release of their self-titled debut album this April.

Taken from the Latin word meaning “course” – specifically the mournful paths our ancestors once took to bury their dead – the San Antonio-based paring of guitarist/vocalist CJ Duron and drummer Sarah Roork first came into being in the winter of 2013 with the release of their Summer Solstice Sessions demo. Influenced by the likes of Om, Neurosis, YOB and Ufomammut, and deep in experimentation with different sounds, instruments and drone frequencies, the demo slowly unfurled colossal riff driven soundscapes that permeated and punched in equal measure.

Released through Bandcamp it quickly caught the ear of label boss and fellow Texan, Walter Carlos, who signed Cursus on the spot to his Houston-based label Artificial Head Records.

“I had toured with Cursus a few times over the years and I’ve always admired their massive sound. Their ability to crush bodies in the room with their songs is uncanny,” explains Carlos. “Initially, we were going to release a live cassette by the band from recordings they made while on tour. But as the project kept going, we decided that a full-length studio album would be better and we’re proud to have Cursus as part of our family.”

Three years on from the release of Summer Solstice Sessions and Duron and Roork have their debut album loaded. Produced in a basement-recording studio by close friend Chris Dillard, over six devastating songs Cursus summons personal and spiritual pains and turns each into amplified dirges packed with riffs, hypnotic string arrangements and spellbinding percussion. With the power of cosmic doom burning brightly, distortion slams hard into 6/8 rhythms as the Duron and Roork charter a longboat through a magnificent storm of ethereal destruction.

Cursus’s self-titled debut album will be released on vinyl/digital on 28th April 2017 via Artificial Head Records.

Cursus:
CJ Duron – Guitar and Vocals
Sarah Roork – Drums

Album art by Javier “Warhorse” Luis
Artist: Cursus
Title: Cursus
Release Date: 28th April 2017
Label: Artificial Head Records
Formats: Vinyl/Digital

https://www.facebook.com/cursusdoom/
https://cursus.bandcamp.com/
https://www.facebook.com/ArtificialHead
https://artinstitute.bandcamp.com/