They don’t really go too much into it in the list of tour dates, but the Doomed Gatherings fest that Gonga are playing on April 20 in Paris is actually pretty badass. Running three days, April 18-20, it’s got Windhand, Inter Arma, Elder, Pombagira, Year of No Light, Hull, Necro Deathmort, The Socks and The Body on the bill, so you know, no small shakes should you happen to find yourself in Paris this spring. Gonga‘s latest outing, Concresence, was streamed here back in October, and this is reportedly only the first leg of their European tour in support of the album.

Dates and details in blue:

GONGA (UK) – EURO TOUR 2o14 ~1st leg

Clawing their way out of the dank blackness of their riff research laboratory and hungry for the flesh of new twisted listeners, Gonga bring forth a new offering – a Concrescence.

In the five years since their last outpouring of un-anchored HeavyRock, Transmigration, Gonga managed to lose/fire/upset every bass player in the region. Brothers Thomas (dramatic battery) and George (riff philosophy) having survived war and mental abuse from the outside world found a new phenomenon walking the golden triangle right in front of their (third) eyes; a specialist in detail – you could say a time-stretch professional. And so, Latch self-sacrificed himself to the group before he even joined; the perfect combination of Geezer Butler and Cliff Burton muttering arcane wisdom.

A trinity of Earth forms was instantly created; bull, goat, ram. The strength of the triangle allowed the 3 to set about HeavyRock construction. Without singer the aim became to create aural landscapes for band and listener to use as a launchpad for remote viewing, for mental and spiritual enlightenment and for emotional therapy. One could refer to it as instrumental HeavyRock for the philosophical connoisseur.

Riff research and late night experimentations led the trio into unexplored territories of voiceless riff/rhythm. Years passed and the brew grew strong, as did the urge to commit the aural paintings to vinyl. Six tracks, two sides – Concrescence, a region of complexity in comparison to its surroundings.

Gonga hail from Bristol, UK. This is their third album. They have toured with Mondo Generator and High On Fire and have performed at DunaJam in Sardinia, Glastonbury and Download Festivals as well as recording a Maida Vale session for Zane Lowe (Radio 1). Their favourite colour is black or green or something probably.

DATES:
17-4 B,Brussels – L’os Moelle w/ Cojones
18-4 NL, Leiden – Cab 03 w/ Tank86 & Bone Man
19-4 B, Liege – La Zone w/ Wardhill & Six Months Of Sun
20-4 FR, Paris – Glazart *Doomed Gatherings w/ The Socks
21-4 LU, Luxembourg City – Rocas
22-4 D, Solingen – Waldmeister w/ Cojones
23-4 D, Nürnberg – K4 w/ Tempel
24-4 CZ, Prague – tba
25-4 D, Berlin – Urban Spree *unofficial Desertfest Aftershow
26-4 NL, Schoonhoven – DeBastille w/ The Socks

https://www.facebook.com/events/574854545941704/
https://www.facebook.com/gonga.official
http://gonga.bandcamp.com/

Gonga, Concrescence (2013)

This past weekend, on a bill with like-minded riffers Sigiriya and Gorilla, Bristol-based trio Gonga played the release show for their third album, Concrescence. The official release date for the six-track/45-minute offering is Oct. 7, and it’s the first Gonga outing not to be issued through Invada Records and the band’s first as an instrumental three-piece, having parted ways with guitarist/vocalist Joe Volk since their last full-length, 2008’s II: Transmigration (he also appeared on 2012’s digital Precession EP, which was recorded in 2007), amid other lineup shuffles around founding guitarist George Elgie and drummer Thomas Elgie. On Concrescence, the Elgie brothers are joined by bassist Latch Manghat, and as the name might imply, it’s an earthy concoction the three players have solidified around.

But also a varied one. Opening with the 10-minute stretch of languid riffing in “Miasma,” Gonga set an immediately hypnotic course for Concrescence, psychedelic without lushness or excess layering, keeping a natural sound that remains in place even as later cuts like “Tungsten Gold” bring a bounce to their musical step that’s part stoner traditionalism and part garage rock rawness. Whatever mood a given track adopts, from the rush that emerges on “Miasma” to the thickened shuffle of the subsequent “Calumet Altar,” Gonga hold firm to a humanity that’s not easy to convey in songs without vocals, and for anyone who might chase down tonal richness, George and Latch offer tube-powered organic fare that only becomes more engaging on repeat listens.

A classically progressive sensibility arises within “Another Day Gone” and gives into some of Concrescence‘s most intricate lead work in the song’s second half, but if there was a chance Gonga might get lost in self-indulgence, “Mount Gonga” smashes it with a fervent crash and cyclical stomp. Starts and stops early on feed into more fluid grooving in the midsection, a tension building all the while that finds payoff past the six-minute mark in the album’s heaviest riffing. Not that there’s a shortage of competition in that regard, mind you. They keep tonally consistent even as “Tungsten Gold” seems to nod in the direction of Queens of the Stone Age‘s “Mexicola,” but though there are definitive verses and choruses, one never gets the sense that vocals are missing thanks to well-placed leads and efficient changes.

As a bookend to “Miasma,” which is the longest track on Concrescence, the album’s second longest cut, “Solar Maximum” (9:10), finishes off the record with its most effective linear build and a balance of airier, cosmic guitar work and the by-now-familiar crunch that earlier tracks seemed to shy away from eliciting. One can’t help but wonder if it could be a sign of things to come from Gonga in this new incarnation, but I wouldn’t presume to say the band have finished evolving or that they seem willing to settle into any single mode of craft. If anything, solid as Concrescence is, it shows the band — now in their 15th year — as being anything but static.

Today I have the pleasure of streaming the record in its entirety in advance of the official release. Please find it on the player below, and enjoy:

[mp3player width=480 height=350 config=fmp_jw_widget_config.xml playlist=gonga-concrescence.xml]

Gonga‘s Concrescence is due out Oct. 7 on Tonehenge Recordings. More info at the links below.

Gonga on Thee Facebooks

Gonga on Bandcamp