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At Least Now We Know How Om Feel about God

Posted in Buried Treasure on October 27th, 2009 by JJ Koczan

Man, Al Cisneros looks totally different with short hair. (Photo by Aaron Farley)I’ve decided not to give it a full review, because it’s been out for a while already and because I paid for it (with my blood, sweat and pseudo-intellectualism), but God is Good, Om‘s first record for Drag City is worth some comment anyway. The digipak came to me in my latest All that is Heavy order, and I’ve been grooving on its moody sensibilities and stoned spirituality ever since. Turns out I was right to look forward to hearing it.

Of course, the big story here is that it’s the first Om record without Chris Hakius on drums. When bassist/vocalist Al Cisneros announced Hakius was out of the band, I scoffed, said there was no way they’d be any good. Mostly because I’m a cynical dick and that’s usually the way things work. As I’ve said several times on this site and elsewhere, Om are better with GrailsEmil Amos behind the kit. I don’t know if it’s his experimental tendencies or just that Hakius had gotten bored with Om‘s breadth, but God is Good surpasses 2007’s Pilgrimage in every way possible.

More than that, it shows Om expanding its horizons. Not necessarily lyrically — Cisneros is sticking to his guns there — but with a tamboura from Robert Aiki Aubrey Lowe on 19-minute opener “Thebes,” and later on the much shorter “Cremation Ghat I” (3:11) and “Cremation Ghat II” (4:58), Om‘s sound is undergoing a subtle progression that is well suited to what fans have come to expect from them. God is Good presented Cisneros with a great chance to change things up since so much was already going to be different with 50 percent of the band brand new.

“Meditation is the Practice of Death” (6:51) boasts a flute and solid musical conversation between Cisneros and Amos. More even than the expansive “Thebes,” it’s here the chemistry between the two players can be heard. Doubtless Steve Albini‘s production had something to do with bringing that out, but even he wouldn’t be able to fake that if it wasn’t there in the first place.

The point, since it’s about time to get there, is if you’ve been sitting on your hands and waiting to hear God is Good, it’s worth checking out. I’ve come across complaints that the “Cremation Ghat” tracks are too short, but every Om record since their 2005 debut, Variations on a Theme, has been under 35 minutes, and this is right in there. If people are longing for more, take that as a sign of the general success of the work and don’t deny yourself the chance to hear it.

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Chronomega: Making Time with Black Cobra

Posted in Reviews on September 30th, 2009 by JJ Koczan

Electric beehive!If we?ve learned anything about Los Angeles thunder-thrash duo Black Cobra by this time, it?s that they kick ass. Starting with their 2004 self-titled, self-released EP, and across the two full-lengths that followed (2006?s Bestial and 2007?s Feather and Stone), guitarist/vocalist Jason Landrian (Cavity) and drummer Rafael Martinez (Acid King, 16) have left boot prints in the glutes of the multitudes planet-wide, touring incessantly and becoming ever tighter and ever more aggressive. Kicking, in other words, more ass.

So with the surprisingly unceremonious release of their new Billy Anderson-produced Southern Lord debut, Chronomega, it?s not much of a surprise to hear Black Cobra doing what they do best; taking all the intensity of earlier High on Fire and ramping it up even further with Melvins-on-speed riffing and unhinged drum-work that would do Dave Lombardo proud (listen to ?Glacies en Spiritu? — it?s like the whole song is a fill!). Some subtle development in Landrian?s vocals is apparent throughout. Not so much in the beginning — opener ?Negative Reversal? keeps it pretty straightforward — but the echo on the title track gives his voice an early-?90s Ministry vibe and there?s some melody creeping into ?Catalyst? that shows some definite growth. It?s in there if you listen for it.

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Um, Did You Know There’s a New Black Cobra Song Online?

Posted in Whathaveyou on July 8th, 2009 by JJ Koczan

These dudes rock.I didn’t. Until a friendly tip pointed me over to their MySpace page, anyway, where after some quick buffer time my ears were assaulted by “Negative Reversal.” I don’t know what it’s going to be released on (though one assumes it’ll make the cut for their forthcoming Southern Lord debut), but its riffs have all the balls of High on Fire matched with the aural heft of Torche, so it’s cool by me. Speaking of Black Cobra and Torche, when I was visiting Los Angeles in 2006 and happened to catch the two bands teamed up for a gig at a shoe museum, of all places, it was one of the heaviest shows I’ve ever seen.

That’s right, one of the heaviest shows I’ve ever seen. At a shoe museum. Sometimes you just feel like life is making fun of you.

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Dark Castle Show Some Spirit

Posted in Reviews on April 13th, 2009 by JJ Koczan

Stevie painted this.As time rolls on and the extreme by necessity has to become more extreme and, in doom, the frequencies get lower and slower and the use of synth noise to flesh out songs is increasingly commonplace, it’s possible for a duo like Saint Augustine, Florida‘s Dark Castle to be a full band. The songs are thick and rich, viscous, heavy and — as much as I know several bassists who won’t want to hear it — don’t sound like they’re missing anything, despite the character and diversity that another instrument can bring to a given track or movement. Of course, with studio technology one person can make an entire record alone (Sweden‘s Forest of Shadows comes to mind as an example of it in the doom world, though of course there are a ton of one-man black metal acts), but those albums rarely feel complete and are often on the other side of the line between brilliance and self-indulgence.

Whereas, as in the case of Dark Castle‘s full-length debut, Spirited Migration (At a Loss), guitarist/vocalist Stevie and drummer/vocalist Rob, who also handles synth, the band achieves an entirely developed atmosphere that borders on prog ambience with instrumental centerpiece “Weather the Storm,” while maintaining a stripped-down aesthetic that confidently snarls in the direction of Oceanic-era Isis and younger, rawer Crowbar. Their demo, Flight of Pegasus (still available for purchase on their MySpace page) feels underdeveloped in comparison to the album, which given the amount of touring the duo has done since its release is exactly the way it should be. Stevie and Rob are a solid unit writing solid songs, even if the title of their album reminds me of “Spirit Journey Formation Anniversary” from Aqua Teen Hunger Force.

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